An At Home Adventure | Calgary Family Photographer
Not all adventures have to be big. When you have a toddler, every day is an adventure. So, why not document a little bit of your every day? For this family, we just had an evening walk around the neighborhood with a stop at their favourite park. Then, I photographed bath and bed time. It’s a true snapshot of what your family’s life is really like right now. The opposite of a mini session…this is the full meal deal!! I like to think of my Adventure sessions as slow portraiture. It’s my way of trying to calm everyone right down and just be in the moment. Some families take longer than others. Some families never calm down(ha). But, when there is enough time and space to relax a bit, your family’s true personality shines through. If you are someone who wants candid images full of connection…THIS is the way to get them. Not a mini session. The FULL MEAL DEAL.
This family is so calm that the whole session was super chill. This guy might be little, but this is his third session with me. He knows a good thing when he sees it. hahahahahahaha. But, no really…I feel like I am training the whole family to get the best photographs possible. Here is a small sampling of the images we created together.
Adventure Session with Teens | Calgary Family Photographer
Adventure Sessions at home are always one of my favourite things. I love documenting kids in their rooms. It is such a marker of time. It’s not about the room being perfectly clean or decorated to look like it should be in a magazine…it’s about the imperfect beauty of a child’s bedroom and how it evolves over time. The room in and of itself tells a story of who that child is so creating a portrait of them in that space is so powerful to me. Even if there is an issue and the bed didn’t arrive in time for the photo shoot(as so happened in this session). Kids—especially teens—spend a lot of time in their bedrooms. They should be documented. When we do an Adventure Session in your home, it allows for me to really capture a glimpse of who you are as a family in a way that just isn’t possible anyplace else.
This Black Friday(November 25th) my Adventure Sessions will be discounted for 2023. As I’ve become busier doing larger commercial jobs, these sessions will be my focus for next year. There will be 10 up for sale at $250 off the regular rate. It will require a $250(+gst) deposit along with the month in which you wish for the session to happen. Everything else will be worked out in January. If you are planning on a session with me next year, this is the day to book that session. My email list will get an email at 8:00am with the link to purchase. If you wish to be added to that list, contact me though the contact form on this website. At 9:00am, the link will be made public via my social media channels.
Let me know if you have any questions. For now, here is a wonderful example of an at home session. This is about 1/3rd of the photographs that they received from me(for reference).
Toronto Neighbourhood Adventure | Calgary Family Photographer
Urban Adventure
I often photograph other photographer's families. It is a special honour. Truly. It also makes me nervous as heck. True story. So, when Kerry Grogan asked me to photograph her family while I was in Toronto last year, my palms got all sweaty but I quickly said yes. Yes because--photographers will totally let you do whatever you want no questions asked. So, we had a leisurely session where we hung out at home first, played a little street hockey in their driveway and then headed to a favourite park. This is my favourite kind of session because it allows me to capture such a variety of images. Plus, the relaxed feeling of the session allows everyone to be themselves a lot quicker.
It's funny because some photographers limit their time with you making the session feel rushed and more like a traditional portrait session. I don't like to restrict myself. I like to give us all the time and space we need to create incredible imagery. Some families that naturally happens quicker than other families, but...these slow sessions...the sessions where I truly see who you are...they are my favourite type of session.
Add to that the bonus of being able to nerd out with photography talk while Kerry drove me back to my hotel and I was in nerd photographer heaven ;)
Still blogging!!! I have lots of sessions to share, but I also want to share some tips and techniques so if there is anything you want to know, just ask! Maybe I'll be inspired to do an entire blog post about it!!
~ Dana
Kids In Their Rooms
This image was in my portfolio for a long while. This was back in 2009...playing with the wooden cars he got as a reward for good behaviour during the session.
This is from this year. He insisted on wearing the tie. And, the shoes...he got them at that 'new fancy department store in Chinook'(hello...Nordstrom's! Welcome to Calgary). I insisted on photographing him in his room. I absolutely adore photographing kids in their rooms. So much so that I am considering adding a gallery of said images since I literally have hundreds of them. I also love watching families grow up. I know I've said that before, but it is such a cool thing for me.
The fall season has been insane and I have so much new work to share. Heck, I have work from last year's fall season to share. Ha! I am starting to book 2015 now, so if you are expecting a baby this winter or feel like getting out into the snow for some unique images, I'd love to hear from you! I'll be travelling to Vancouver in January and again in April. I'd love to meet some families there.
~ Dana