I am completely thrilled that I'm able to give Michelle & Jaret these images.

I'm heading to Cuba to shoot Amanda & Colin's wedding in Varadero this week.  I'm pretty fired up to make our way into Havana for some very cool bridal stuff.  I'm also pretty excited that my 7 month pregnant wife, Jilly and our 3 year old daughter is coming.  It's our last family outing until our son is born in mid-April.   Then I'm off to Punta Cana for another wedding with a Newfoundland & Labrador crowd.

Speaking of weddings, I have 22 weddings booked for 2011 so I'm going to be a busy fella this summer and will shortly cap my weddings so that I don't stretch myself too thin and can better focus on my existing clients.  However, I do still have a few key Saturdays available this summer in case you are here looking into me shooting your wedding.  Some available dates are June 11, July 2, August 6, Sept 17, Sept 24 & October 1st.

I'm plugging and chugging through the coffee table books and slowly getting through all 16 of them.  I'm real pleased how they turning out and will have a "Best of 2010" book pages blog post later in the Spring.  My next three books are Jenny & Nick, Michelle & Mike and Rochelle & Kurt - then I will be into October weddings.  I know people are always anxious to see their books but with the wedding season ending in November and then right into Christmas shoots, I really don't get to them until mid-January.  It's in my FAQ and contract that they won't be ready for Christmas (I got three done before Christmas) but I'd like to figure out a way to put together these books earlier in the year.  Maybe I should just greatly raise the price on them so I have fewer orders.  Nah.

So, I built a large photography studio two years ago and designed it in such a way that it would be very 'kid-friendly' but I really haven't marketed that genre at all.  However, 2011 will be a different year for me.  Now in my 5th year of full-time photography, I believe it's time to focus my energy into the areas I love and chose a clear direction of my work.  Weddings are very special to me as I love the power and emotion of the day and that it is me contributing to these memories never being forgotten.  But I also feel a great pull toward shooting newborns and young children.  I've had the privilege to document a few births, photograph many infants here in the studio and now that I have a child of my own (and one on the way) and I'v come to realize I love everything about newborn photography.  It really brings me a lot of joy to provide new parents with beautiful images of their little ones.  While in Cuba, I'm having further work done to my studio that will better accommodate this market and in 2011 you will see more promotion and many more blog posts geared toward newborn photography.  I'll still shoot all the other types of photography but I don't want to be all things to all people.  I'll focus on these and be great at these.

Again, sorry I haven't posted much lately.  I know there are many who check often looking for recent work from me but with a wife who's 'nesting' (and has me cutting, hammering and painting every week) and with 16 large Wedding Coffee Table Books to do, my attention has been focused elsewhere.

Talk to you soon.

Trev

I received an e-mail from Melissa DePape, a photographer in British Columbia who created The Tiny Light Foundation, a non-profit organization that provides professional photography for children and families that have been faced with a life altering diagnoses.

Having seen the difficulties faced head-on by our neighbours Melanie and Duncan with their little one Gregor and his mountain of health issues, families with these challenges have found a special place for me.

  From their website:  

"We provide families with the lasting memories through the amazing art of photography. With the help of many photographers throughout Canada we are able to provide families with photos they can share and help carry the many memories.

Our mission is to provide and capture memories that will help provide a family with one less thing to worry about. In the mist of dealing with doctors appointments, specialist appointments or just the daily life of medicines, rushing here to there for weights, check ups, and the many many other things we deal with in everyday life. A lot of the time photographs seem to take a back burner and not only with time, but with funds. When we look back we want to remember and even though you may not forget what you and your child has gone through we always want more we need the memories to last "Forever"."

I have noticed there are other Nova Scotian photographers participating with this foundation.  Bethany Macisaac , Rhonda Demone and David MacVickar are three others who I join in this wonderful service.  I'm glad to be a part of it.

And when I say, "wedding", I guess it wasn't a wedding in the traditional sense.  You see, it was more of a commitment ceremony as they were married years before.  However, they wanted the tux and wedding dress (and Doc Martins) and to have a wonderful candlelit ceremony at the Lord Nelson.  After which, we would head out onto the streets of Halifax for some great images of their 'wedding' day.

I've actually become quite fond of Julie & Ian.  They swung by the house at the end of their Nova Scotia vacation and we had a fat BBQ and a fat bottle of wine before we went out to the airport and we've since kept in touch.  I truly look forward to seeing them again.

(and I've never been called so many British nicknames in my life).

Halifax NS Wedding Photographers

It was a great day and it was so nice seeing them all so happy (and great seeing some old friends) but I just loved it when they said, "so, ah, can we get some wedding shots with our motorcycles?"

Mouseover the image for more viewing options of a dozen more of their wedding photos

It was so rustic and the people were so friendly.  We were invited to the home of a local photographer named Jorge and we showed us his old 1952 Whizzer motorcycle and offered it to be part of the shoot. We loved the bike and after he rolled if from it's corner of the room (next to his mothers bed) out to the street ... well, we could have been there all day.  But when 10:00 rolled around and it was pushing 32 degrees, we figured it was time to head back to the beach and jump in the water.  You know...sort of a 'Trash the Dress' session (don't worry - the dress was fine)

Autumn Family Photography

Happy Valley indeed (and Goose Bay).

Oh - and I get to party with many of the same crew again as I'm photographing Amanda's cousin Sonya's wedding this spring...in Punta Cana.