Jamie + Cory Family Portraits - Centennial Park
What can I say about this amazing session. First of all, I absolutely love photographing kids. They just bring an energy that is not only infectious but also inspiring. Sophia and Teagan made me work for so many of the photos but I wouldn’t have had it any other way. They were running, laughing, falling, crying at certain points and just being crazy like kids are. The good thing about it was that it makes for extremely natural photos. I hope I helped tire them out just a little bit for bedtime.
Jamilee + Michael Wedding
It was a busy July for me with weddings and this was the second one I photographed. Jamilee and MIchael were kind enough to entrust me to capture their special day and I couldn’t have been more happy. My day started with with Jamilee and her bridesmaids at the Marriott Hotel in Thunder Bay and it didn’t go quite as planned. Luckily, I always try to show up earlier than my scheduled arrival just in case something happens. Well, I completely forgot that there is more than one Marriott Hotel in Thunder Bay, and I went to the right one I don’t usually assume with wedding details but I made a rookie mistake this time around. Long story short, I realized quickly I was at the wrong hotel and quickly went to the right one. Luckily, Thunder Bay is a small town, so I still arrived on time, with no speeding tickets.
BrewHa Craft Beer Festival 2019 - Thunder Bay
I have a lot of ‘favourite’ events throughout the year here in Thunder Bay, but I think BrewHa is up there as one of the best. Each year I’m more and more impressed with the vendors and also the people who attend. It’s such a chill and relaxed atmosphere and combine that with live music playing in the background by local bands, and you really can’t go wrong.
Paige + Nishant Wedding - Mariner's Hall - Thunder Bay
This past Wednesday I spent just 1.5 hours with Paige and Nishant at Mariners Hall which is located beside Bight Restaurant. It was a small wedding and I photographed the ceremony, portraits and a bit of the reception. On the one hand it was a short day but on the other I really wanted to make my time count seeing as how I had so little of it. For anyone that follows my posts, especially weddings, knows that I specialize in candid photography. Aside from the formal portraits, that’s exactly what I did for my time there. I really do enjoy searching out those fleeting moments throughout the wedding day. I think I accomplished that for this short and sweet day.
An Evening of Music on the Waterfront
Last week was the first time this year that we made it to the Live on the Waterfront event that happens every Wednesday during the summer. I decided to go again this past Wednesday and I took my mother in law and her sister with me. After we set up our seats I started walking around. I of course photographed the last two performers of the night which were great. They were Nêhiyawak and Jeremy Dutcher. I was disappointed that I missed Robin Ranger but we arrived a little too late. I have been shooting pretty much everything with the Canon EOS R which I absolutely love but this time around I decided to just use my original Canon 5D Classic.
King Ghidrah Lounge – Food + Interior Photos
King Ghidrah, Thunder Bay’s newest lounge, asked me to capture some high end photos of all of their dishes and also some interior photos. I hadn’t had the chance to eat there yet but so it was the perfect excuse to not only photograph some amazing food, it was also great to taste test some of it. Long story short, everything tastes amazing as it looks. For those of you aren’t familiar with King Ghidrah, it specializes in Pan Asian cuisine and cocktails. They are open Thursday, Friday and Saturday 6pm-11pm. Go check it out!
Jagmeet Singh Meeting with Bombardier Employees - Thunder Bay
In a very last minute request I was asked to photograph NDP Leader - Jasmeet Singh’s visit to Thunder Bay this morning. He was here to visit with the workers of Bombardier who were recently impacted by the news of the impending layoffs in Thunder Bay. He was here to show solidarity and talk about the solutions our Party has in mind for these workers. I was honoured to be a part of such an important event.
7th Annual Bay + Algoma Busker's Festival - 2019
One of the premiere events, I think, of the summer, is the Busker’s Festival. It’s always a great time with so many performers and vendors coming out. Not to mention, it always brings out so many people from around the city. I didn’t get out as long as I would have liked this year because I had a wedding to photography, but I still got the chance to photograph a small portion of it. Along with the photos, I walked around for about 45 minutes on the Sunday and focused on capturing some video. That can be found below as well. I’m already looking forward to next years festival!
Fat Guys Auto Parts Car Show - 2019
Yesterday the annual Fat Guys Auto Parts Car Show took place yet again and I swear, it was twice as big as last years. I only spent around 30 minutes walking around because I had a wedding to photograph in the afternoon but it was enough to get at least a few photos of the cars and the people. It was pretty crowded with people as you would expect so instead of trying to get photos of entire cars I picked out details that stood out to me. I would say some of the photos are almost abstract.
Hopefully next year I’ll have a bit more time to actually photograph more of the awesome cars and people that attended the event!
Arthur + Katherine Wedding - Wawa, Ontario
One of the reasons I love photographing weddings is that often times it takes me to a different city. In the case of Arthur and Katherine, their wedding took place in Wawa, Ontario. Now, anyone who has driven from Thunder Bay to Toronto has stopped in at Wawa which I definitely have done in the past. Surprisingly, I never really explored Wawa or gone any further then the standard gift shop. So when my wife and Anne arrived in Wawa for the wedding, I was super excited to actually see a lot more of Wawa.
Festival of Colours 201
It was Day 2 of an amazing weekend. Yesterday, as I mentioned in my previous post, the Festival of India took place at the Thunder Bay Marina Park. Today, Festival of Colours was the main attraction, and it’s definitely one of my favourite events of the year to attend and of course photograph. I only had about an hour to work with because of prior commitments, but I managed to get some good photos. As usual, there was a ton of people in attendance.
Festival of India 2019
Festival of India here in Thunder Bay has been going on for about 10 years I believe. I have made it to a few over the years and it’s always a great time. This year, I went for about 1 hour and came away with some memorable photos. The dancers that I did see were simply amazing. I would have been nice to stick around to see a few more but I had to go. Tomorrow, The Festival of Colours takes place at the Marina and I’m really hoping I can find the time to make it out. it’s quite the scene. Here are some highlights from this evening.
Andre + Danielle Family Portraits - Friendship Gardens
I know the heading says Andre and Danielle, but this session was really all about Darius. Since he was born, he’s had a rough go of it, but has always had a smile on his face, even through all the pain. I have know Andre and his family for quite some time now, and when I heard that Darius is going for a very dangerous surgery in August, I offered to capture some family portraits and a short video of everyone. We chose Friendship Gardens as the location and it ended up being the perfect venue.
Project Learning Tree – Government Funding Announcement – Lakehead Unviversity
Lakehead University played host to an amazing event yesterday. The Federal Government announced that it would be giving $4.4 million in funding to Project Learning Tree. Project Learning Tree is a workplace program that provides youth with employment opportunities in the forest and conservation sector. Currently Zac and Nick Wagman are biking across Canada and they made a stop at Lakehead University, where they were greeted by Minister Patty Hajdu to announce the investment, which will support more than 500 local and Canadian youth, particularly those facing barriers.
To find out more about this initiative, head on over to the Project Learning Tree Website.
Thunder Bay Blues Festival 2019
I attended the Thunder Bay Blues Festival a couple years back and that was actually the first time I did so. It was only for one day and I didn’t have access to the stage or the ability to really get in close. I still managed to get a lot of great crowd photos because that is mainly what I was hired for and I had a great time doing so. Fast forward to this years event and The Walleye asked if I could capture the event for them. As soon as they said I would be getting media passes I jumped at the opportunity. Plus, it’s rare that I actually have this weekend in July free. Usually I have a wedding booked.
Amy + Family Portraits - Sandy Beach
Amy and her family were in need of some updated family photos and plus her parents were in town so we decided to use Sandy Beach as the backdrop. The kids full of energy so they had me working extra hard this time around, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s amazing how fast kids grow up! I really can’t wait until the next session. :)
Baylee + Noah Graduation Night
Anytime I get to do family portraits of my actual family, it’s an added bonus. In this case Noah, my son, and Baylee, his girlfriend, wanted some getting ready photos of Baylee’s Graduation Night. It all took place at her beautiful home out in the country, so it was the perfect backdrop. I was only there for about an hour but it was enough time to capture some moments of her mom doing her hair as well as some outdoor portraits. Baylee looked very pretty and of course Noah was handsome too. They ended up having a really good time that evening at the Graduation Party.
Albany Graduation Night Portraits
Earlier this month I photographed Albany for her official graduation photos. We also made it into a partial family session too. During that shoot she was obviously wearing her graduation gown and the photos turned out amazing. If you haven’t already, make sure you check out my previous posts to see highlights from that session.
Eden + Chris Family Portraits
I originally photographed Eden and Chris’s Wedding a few years back and then a portrait session a couple years ago as well. It was time for yet another portrait session and I couldn’t wait to see then again. Every time I have photographed them in the past it’s been such a great time. This session was no different. The hour went by so fast I could hardly believe it. I’m so glad the weather held up too, it was perfect overcast and not too hot.
2019 Scholarship + Bursary Awards Reception
The Thunder Bay Community Foundation hosted their 2019 Scholarship and Bursary Awards Reception last evening at the Boys and Girls Club. A select number of high school students along with their families were on hand to receive various scholarships and bursaries. My job was to simply capture the atmosphere, the people and of course the award presentations. I had a great time capturing candid moments and I could really feel the joy and excitement from everyone involved.