And growing up, we had a dark room in our house that my dad used - the black and white images he took and developed up on our walls. So photography was always present. But there was still this small part of me that was scared to admit to anyone that what I really wanted to be was a photographer. It would have meant throwing away my expensive degree and fitness background and I credit some of that bravery of just jumping in to my husband who questioned (and bought me my first camera!) why did I not just be a photographer? I wasn't happy in the career I had chosen and spent all my free time pouring over photography books and art.. So that's what I did! I literally quit my job one day and never looked back.
Our first date was a 21km run. He was training for Boston Marathon and I had run it the year before. I think we both wanted to see if the other was legit! He was the first person I dated that could keep up to me running. And yes, his marathon time is faster than mine.. But I beat him in a 10km. We are not competitive at all. ;)
Not so much cooking when I had little babies at my feet, but now that they are older, my boys seem to have this same love for different foods and cooking that I do. We enjoy experiencing this with them and trying new restaurants and dishes is one of our favorite things to do as a family.
It’s the most common heart attack in young women and often fatal (and is considered the otherwise healthy person heart attack). It was scary and I’m still learning to process emotionally more than anything. But on the flip-side: it has given me a new perspective on life and it’s fragility. A lot of things I used to stress or worry about have been replaced with a deeper clarity of what’s actually important and what we need as a family - love & each other.
I am a textbook INTP and enneagram 5.
I struggle a LOT with being on social media as a business and how much to share of “me”. A lot of ‘me’ is my family and kid time which I value a lot of and not so comfortable sharing that with the whole world. I get the 'who is the person behind the lens & business" (hence these little tidbits!). But as for social media, I really have to make an effort to put myself out there every now and then; I would really just prefer to share my work only!
I'm rarely wrong on my instincts and often quick to come to decisions because of this. And this definitely makes me a better photographer of people and events as I can easily perceive personalities and situations. When photographing people, I can often anticipate how people are going to react in order to tell the story through images more clearly.
It started for health reasons and morphed into environmental and animal welfare over time. And because I do enjoy cooking and my kids are up for trying new foods and dishes, this hasn’t been extremely challenging. Plus seeing the health benefits from this past year (everything from less general sickness to more energy and overall mood improvements - especially with the kids!) I think it’ll likely be here to stay. And trust me, if you had told me 3 years ago that I would be giving up bacon for good, I would have thought you were crazy!
It just seems like such a silly ‘social’ event. Socially, I would way rather enjoy a good meal, glass of wine and good conversation at a restaurant.
Some of my favorites - Casino, Blow, About Time (everyone should watch this movie! So good!), The Departed, The Family Man, Oceans 11 and Gladiator.
Chances are, if we meet and chat in a busy environment, I will not recognize you when meeting you again. I’ll remember the conversation, but your face will be a blank and you’ll likely think I’m a crazy person for mixing you up with someone else before it finally sticks. My husband enjoys making fun of me for this - especially when watching movies together and I get the actors mixed up! My theory is that it comes down to the disorganization. I'm disorganized on the outside but can hold a lot of information in my head (I rarely write things down to remember and was never a note taker.) so faces get lost in there somewhere.. at least that's what I tell myself!
2020 BC Wedding Awards Photojournalism & overall Wedding
2020 This is Reportage Individual Image & Overall Wedding
2020 West Coast Wedding Awards Overall Winner Photojournalism
2019 Fearless Awards Recipient
2019 Wedding Photojournalist Association Top BC Wedding Photographer
2019 Professional Wedding Photographers of Canada 3rd Place Overall
2019 This is Reportage award winner and awards judge
2018 International Wedding Photographer of the Year Single Capture Awards
2018 BC Wedding Awards Winner Overall Best Wedding Photographer
2018 BC Wedding Awards Winner Best Overall Photojournalism
2018 BC Wedding Awards Winner Best Wedding Couple Photograph
2018 International Documentary Family Awards Winner - 7th place
This is Reportage: This Is How: ‘The Flower Girls’
2017 BC Wedding Awards Winner Best Overall Photojournalism
2017 Fearless Photographer Wedding Award
2017 ARC Interview
Vancouver Magazine's Top Vancouver Wedding Photographers
Narcity's Vancouver Top Wedding Photographers
2016 BC Wedding Awards Overall Best Wedding Photographer Finalist
2016 Professional Wedding Photographers of Canada top 15 Photographers
2016 Click Magazine top 100 Photographers to watch worldwide
2015 BC Wedding Awards Overall Best Wedding Photographer Finalist
2015 BC Wedding Awards Photojournalism Finalist
2018 Single Capture Top-Scoring Image