ONWA 3rd Annual MMIW Pow Wow
It was my second year in a row photographing the MMIW Pow Wow at ONWA. Admittedly, it is one of the events I look forward to most. It's for such an important cause and the amount of people in the community and abroad that show up is amazing to see. For those of you who don't know, MMIW stands for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women.
Thunder at the Bay - Motorsports Extravaganza
I love cars. If I was rich I would probably a whole lot of old vintage cars and probably a few new ones as well. Alas, I do not have that kind of money, so for now, I just photograph them. The Thunder at the Bay car show at the CLE grounds is a yearly event that I very much look forward to. It's the biggest car show of the year here in the Thunder Bay, which means lots and lots of different vehicles to drool over.
Thunder Bay Ultimate League Night
The Thunder Bay Ultimate League asked me to capture some promotional photos for the upcoming 10th Anniversary season coming up. I am definitely no sports photographer but I jumped at the chance, and challenge, to do so. Having played ultimate frisbee in the past, a long time ago, I understand the game so it somewhat helped me in anticipating moments. It's still a really fast pace sports at time so it was still very challenging.
BrewHa Craft Beer Festival 2018 - Thunder Bay
It was that time of year again this past weekend, for one my favourite events of the year, the BrewHa Craft Beer Festival. Not only do I love going to it, I absolutely love photographing it. It's such a good time and everyone is so friendly. This year amazed me more then the last in that so many people were actually asking to have their photo taken. That made my job much easier. Regardless, anyone I approached was all for it anyway.
Buskers Festival 2018 - Thunder Bay
Buskers Festival took place this past weekend and it was even bigger then last years. This meant more people, more performers and of closure more fun for everyone. We also get some really good, if not almost too hot, weather for most of the two days. Anne and I made it out for the tail end of the festival on the Saturday and also on the Sunday as well. We had such a great time walking around seeing all the amazing talent and all the different vendors too.
I captured a few photos over the weekend and you can view those highlights below. Thanks for viewing!
YLP Embracing Youth Festival - ONWA
ONWA is always hosting great events in and around the community and this time around they had a wonderful event right in their backyard called the YLP Embracing Youth Festival. It was a free festival and it had so many great artists and vendors. I was amazed at how many people showed up.
Thunder Bay Pride Parade - 2018
It was another amazing turnout for this years Pride Parade and I was so happy that I was actually around to take part in it. Usually this time of year is hit and miss for me with weddings and all. So, with that being said, I packed up my camera and headed down to Waverley Park where everything the event was starting. I didn't have much time but I managed to get some candids before the parade actually started and then before I knew it, everyone began marching down Red River Road. From that point on, it was just a matter of keeping up and finding moments along the way.
Debbie + Craig - 5th Wedding Anniversary - Slovak Legion
This past Friday I was lucky enough to photograph Debbie and Craig's 5th Wedding Anniversary at the Slovak Legion. It was an intimate affair which meant that I was able to sit back and look for special moments. It really is one of my favourite type of events, extremely low key. It also helped that of Debbie and Craig's family and friends were very easy going and fun to photograph.
K.I.H.S. Graduation 2018 @ Valhalla Inn
This event was another one that I was photographing for the second time. Last years Keewaytinook Okimakanak Graduation Ceremony took place at the Italian Hall and it was a very intimate yet fun event. However, this time around, I was amazed not only at how many more graduates there were but all the family that attended as well. Whenever I photograph graduations such as this, it's really not that difficult capturing special moments because everyone in attendance is just so happy to be there.
Institute For Canadian Citizenship Ceremony - Fort William Historical Park
This was my second year in a row photographing probably one of my favourite events of the year - the Institute for Canadian Citizenship Ceremony at Fort William Historical Park. For those of you who don't about this organization or event, I encourage to you head on over to their website where you can learn a lot more.
Finger Eleven + I Mother Earth Concert at Crocks Thunder Bay
It has actually been quite a while since I got out and photographed a concert so I was excited when The Walleye asked me to cover the Finger Eleven and I Mother Earth Concert at Crocks in Thunder Bay. Having only seen I Mother Earth live in concert a long time ago I was definitely excited to see them perform again. Admittedly I have not followed Finger Eleven but even so, they put on an amazing show.
Urban Infill: Art in the Core 12
Even though Thunder Bay is considered a 'small city' compared to the likes of Toronto and Winnipeg, it never ceases to amaze me how many great events there are throughout the year, and moreover, all the fantastic artistic talent this city has to offer. Case in point, Defsup's Urban Infill: Art in the Core 12 took place this past weekend, and it was just as diverse and fun as last years, which was the first one I attended. I was lucky enough to photograph most of this years version, along with a lot of other great photographers, who I officially met for the first time.
59th Canadian Firefighters Curling Championship
It was approximately 10 years ago that Thunder Bay hosted the Canadian Firefighters Curling Championship. So, when asked if I could cover the event I jumped at the chance because who knows when the next time it will make it's way to Thunder Bay again.
ONWA - She is Wise Conference - Chelsea Hotel Toronto
Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of photographing an amazing event for ONWA, at the Chelsea Hotel in Toronto. The conference was called 'She is Wise in the Ways of Life'. It focused on ending violence against women and girls. Along with photographing the event I also helped design all a lot of the marketing for it, so I knew everything that was going on. With that being said, I was still anxious to see how it all turned out, and I couldn't have imagined a better event.
Gull Bay First Nation Microgrid Announcement
I was recently asked by Ontario Power Generation to cover a very important event at the Gull Bay First Nation this past Tuesday. Kiashke Zaaging Anishinaabek and Ontario Power Generation are working together to develop a microgrid that will use solar, battery storage and grid technology to help reduce diesel use at Gull Bay. It is to be the first fully-integrated solar energy-storage system in a remote community.
30th Annual LUNSA Powwow
I got asked to cover some of this weekends LUNSA Powwow and the Lakehead University Fieldhouse. This year marks the 30th Anniversary of the event and I was honoured to photograph it. Surprisingly I had never been to the LUNSA Powwow, but I have photographed other ones throughout the city. So, I was amazed at just how many dancers and people attended. As I photographer, it's a dream event to photograph with all the colours and people and energy.
Human Trafficking Awareness Day - ONWA
I'm lucky enough to photograph a variety of events for ONWA throughout the year, and pretty much every single one is important in some way. Such was the case with their recent one focusing on human trafficking. My main job was to obviously capture the event but I was also able to learn a lot while I did so.
For anyone interested in learning more, please feel free to head on over to ONWA's Facebook page here.
Derelicte 10 - Black Pirates Pub
I was so excited once I realized I would be able to help photograph Derelicte 10. I had only attended once before, a couple years ago, and I had so much fun then. The thing I like most about Derelicte is that it's just so ... random. There are so many talented designers in this city and it's the one night of the year they get to showcase their amazing work. Not to mention, the musical talent a well, which is just as diverse.
St. Benard Kindergarten Information Session
This past Thursday saw St. Benard School host an kindergarten information session. It was a last minute booking for me, but luckily I was able to accept it. I didn't know much going in but once I got there, I soon realized there was going to be approximately 400 people there. My job for the next hour was to simply capture candids of the attendees, the booths and the speakers. It was right up my alley and my favourite type of photography.
Looking Back On My 2017 Events
I recently posted my favourite wedding photos of 2017 which was a great way for me to look back and really see what I captured, and also what I can improve upon. Then it dawned on me that I covered a lot of events throughout the year too. So it was a no brainer to select a few of my top photos from the numerous events I covered.