Cans for Comments!!

Hello Everyone!! 

I was doing my regular 'blog-stalking' rounds today, and as I was reading the blog of Chris+Lynn I was completely moved by their post, and I'd like to not only share it with you guys, but to join in as well. 

As it stands now, a growing handful of Vancouver photographers are participating in something called "Cans for Comments". From now until midnight on Friday, December 12th (next Friday), for everyone who posts a comment on ANY of my blog entries, I will donate one canned good to The White Rock / South Surrey Food Bank.

Please be sure to click on the links below to view some great work by some amazing photographers, and don't forget to leave a comment!!!

CJ Scott 

Erin Gilmore
Amber Hughes
Chris+Lynn
Lori Miles

Jamie Delaine

Tracey Heppner

Blue Olive Photography

Bebb Studios

John Heil

Kristel Wyman

Alana Couch

Shandro Photo

Crystal Genes

Dolce Pics

“If you can't feed a hundred people, then just feed one.” - Mother Teresa

This is How I Kick It!

Check my flow, Uh! :)

(had a little 'creative time' after hanging with my 6-year-old niece Kaia today)

P.s. please don't judge me by my dirty bathroom mirror :\

A Little One

Its been a LONG time since I posted, so I thought I would post a few cute photos of a recent session I did. I have never shot a newborn session before, so I was unsure of what to expect, but I had such a great time! How did I do?

I have a lot of updates and exciting news to share soon, I can't wait to tell you!

p.s. Happy Thanksgiving to all my friends in the US! Be sure to eat an extra plate for me :)

Vancouver View Magazine

At the beginning of September, I had been asked to take portraits of one of the top cops in Canada for an upcoming article in Vancouver View Magazine. I had a blast with Shinder Kirk and Kuljeet Kaila and when I saw it on the shelves today I flipped out! I totally forgot it was coming out in November! The first time I had photos in a magazine was last September but it just totally makes me giddy when I see it in public! Every single time I walk past it, I always want to go to the nearest person and be like "Hey... see these photos? Ya, I shot them... Ya, I'm kind of a big deal... Autograph?" 

... I kinda turn into that guy from the McDonald's commercial...

"See that Angus Burger... ya, I invented it."

Cassie + Steve { eSession }

When I first met Cassie & Steve, I knew they were really super-cool people, but I had no idea to what extent... until the engagement session. Right at the beginning there were a few "oh, we have never really had PROFESSIONAL photos taken of us...really..." , so I thought "ok, well I'll take a few photos just to get them warmed up and comfortable in front of the camera, and then go from there"...ya, not necessary my friends. Not necessary even a little... within SECONDS these guys were striking poses and cuddling up and kissing and in all honesty I had a hard time keeping up! I kinda felt like Rambo, firing off as many rounds as fast as I could, only instead of screaming like a madman I was hailing shouts of "perfect! dont move thats great!! MY GOD you look amazing!". I really cannot wait for their wedding next June at Swan-E-Set!

p.s. the Madonna concert last night was simply amazing!!!! :)

Cassie + Steve { Sneak Peak }

Well I have officially blogged for a month! I was really curious as to whether or not I could actually think of something to say every single day, but now that the month is over, I am quite pleased at the way the blogging turned out! Now, thats one more thing I can scratch off of my list of 101 things to do in 1001 days! (plus I had a blast doing it!) 

I have been really busy these past few days with moving my mom into her new apartment, and that whole Madonnathon thing (by the way, I made it to the end of the contest, danced 10 nonstop hours with makeup on and my girlfriends jeans just to try to win her madonna tickets, and then lost after the 10 hours on a bloody game of Hot Potato... dammit! Made it down to 5th place out of 25 people though!). However, thanks to one of my '08 brides calling me, I managed to buy some tickets from a friend of hers that bought extra tickets for JUST such an occasion! So, Grit and I are indeed going to the Madonna concert this Thursday! yay! 

Anyhoo, this past Sunday I spent a few hours hanging out with Cassie and Steve at Barnett Beach for their engagement session! They are getting married next year and I am STOKED already! I have some pretty amazing weddings coming up next year! These guys really are in every sense of the word, HELLA COOL! Nice? Check. Funny? Check. Hot? Check Check! :) 

Here is a quick little sneak peak from the session, stay tuned for lots more! 

First Time Going To Bed Before 10pm in years!!!

I can't believe I am actually going to bed as soon as I am done typing this! Whats even weirder is that I am actually TIRED and its only 9:56pm!!

I have to wake up at 4am to get ready for the Madonna dance competition... and for those of you that just twitched a little bit and have a really confused look on your face (don't worry, I do too...), you can read my post here to understand a little better. Basically I entered a contest on the radio and now I am 1 of 25 qualifiers that now have to dance dressed like Madonna in front of many many people... last person dancing wins two tickets to her Vancouver concert next week and a whopping $10,000 cash.... 

so ya... when everyone is at work tomorrow, I will already be dancing like the best damn little "Material Girl" I can be.... 

 nervous? a bit... excited? very. embarrased? slightly.

winning?

you bet your booty I am :)

The La Prairie Family: Portraits!

I always have a blast with the La Prairie Family lol! They are so much fun, and the kids are SO well behaved!! Heather contacted me a few weeks ago and mentioned that since her kids have grown quite a bit since our last photoshoot in December, she really wanted to spend a day watching me chase them around outside with my camera :)  Sunday was SUCH a beautiful day, not too hot, not too cold... perfect lighting... a photographers dream! :) And Callum and Cole are indeed getting SOOOOOO big!

I strongly encourage everyone to watch the slideshow, and I guarantee your hearts will melt when you see the kids smiling! :)

If you would like to purchase this show on DVD, please email me!

True Love Sometimes Comes With A Price... (WARNING)

Oh God I can't believe I am posting this...

Yes, thats ME in the photo... please let me explain:

Here in Vancouver, one of our biggest radio stations is 95Crave FM. Madonna is coming to Vancouver October 30th, and 95Crave has a contest right now where you can win two free tickets to the concert and a WHOPPING $10,000 cash!!! Now, tickets are UNBELIEVABLY hard to find now that we are so close to the concert... but since my girlfriend REALLY wants to go, and because I LOVE her so much, it wasn't hard to decide that I should do everything in my power to win her those tickets!   

Now comes the rules of the contest (and why I am wearing makeup in the photo....oh, it gets worse guys and gals...read on.):

To enter the contest, you had to dress up like Madonna, take a photo of yourself, and send it in to the radio station. Fine. What are the chances, right? 

So... I get a phone call today.... I have been chosen as one of the twenty-five "participants" in the MADONNATHON. What does that mean, you ask? Well, regrettably, let me tell you! It means that this Thursday, October 23rd, at 6:30am, I will be at Coquitlam Centre for 12 hours, IN MAKEUP NO LESS, and dancing like Madonna in front of hundreds, possibly THOUSANDS of people with 24 equally scared individuals. If I am the last person dancing, I win 10G's and 2 tickets to see Madonna! 

Now, I'm not a very MANLY man.... but this isn't the kind of attention any man would want (at least I don't think)... this is honestly only being done because I really want to see the look on my girlfriend's face when I hand her two ...no, ONE ticket to Madonna (Jeez, wouldn't that suck if I handed her BOTH tickets, and she didn't even take me???!!!).... 

So, why am I posting it here, do you ask?

I want you to see what a man who is about to win $10,000 looks like! :)

Laugh away everyone! Or better yet, come cheer me on this Thursday!! :)

(but please keep the cameras at home haha!)

Michael

p.s.  The Make-Up and "arranging" in the sexy photo above was done by my loving gal, Grit... who OBVIOUSLY did a good enough job to get me this far into the contest! I'm certain I will have the strength and willpower to win this with her at my side! (because if I don't win, I'll probably be sleeping on the couch for the next little while! lol just kidding haha LOVE YOU BABE!)

Double Sneak Peak!

I had an awesome double-header today! First of all I had a blast with the La Prairie family, whom I originally met last December for the FIRST photosession with them, and then afterwards today I had a maternity session with Chris and Janina! I had such a great time today, and I'm stoked to show you guys a sneak peak from each session! Enjoy!

Michael

Brian & Yari: Puerto Vallarta Wedding Slideshow!

I am so pleased to share with you Brian & Yari's Puerto Vallarta Wedding Slideshow!

Let me know what you think!

Michael

If you would like to purchase this show on DVD, please email me!

Brian & Yari: Puerto Vallarta Wedding Part 2!!

Here are some more photos from Brian & Yari's October 10th wedding at the amazing Las Caletas in Puerto Vallarta Mexico!!

The Rings!

Look at those puppy dog eyes, this guy's smitten !

This photo makes me smile, its so sweet! I also love Brian's wet feet, we were all dancing on the beach! :)

The beautiful bride!

Now, this isn't the best exposed shot, but I just LOVE the expression on Yari's face! You can almost hear the "Awwww..Daaaaaaaaaaaaaad!" through the grit teeth. Priceless!

A special moment between Brian and his mom.

I loved the Fire Dancers! Brian and Yari were SO brave! :)

Brian & Yari: Puerto Vallarta Wedding!!

No words can express how amazing it was to be a part of Brian & Yari's wedding. They were so loving, caring, and made me feel like a part of their family the moment I first OFFICIALLY met them in person at the hotel in Puerto Vallarta. It was such a heartwarming experience seeing their two families together all week, and I felt deeply honored just simply being there. 

The wedding took place at the amazing Las Caletas and it was absolutely breathtaking. Stay Tuned for the slideshow!!

The Canon 5D MKII: A Dream Come True

Dear Santa,

I know I'm a little early, but if you wouldn't mind, there's a little something I have put on my list this year that I would like you to pay extra attention to... if thats ok...

I've been good.... mostly.

Love,

Michael

Photo from dpreview.com, please check out their review on this kick-ass camera here!!

Voting Day!

 I have honestly been wondering who I was going to vote for in the elections today, and while debating this with myself I came across two pieces of CRUCIAL information that could help me with my decision!

The first one, entitled "Politics is no place for grown ups". Its scary how accurate these kids are!:

The second point came from a friend's FaceBook status:

"________  is reminding everyone to vote - even if they are all duds, you have to vote for whoever you think will screw things up the least!"

:)  

Can't we just be invaded by the states once Obama wins in the US? I honestly wouldn't mind!

Apple TV in Canada

Is it worth it or not? Grit and I are thinking of getting rid of cable, as we are sick of 'surfing' just to find out not only that there is nothing on, but we are spending money on something we don't really need! We are big movie buffs though, so we are looking at our options... Having an Apple TV in the US is quite different than having one in Canada. In the US you have virtually an unlimited library of movies to rent (in HD too, no less), and you also have TONS of tv shows (that would cut down on the surfing, and you'd pay only for what you want!)... in Canada, you have a mediocre at best movie library, and the only tv shows are beyond lame... they're not even worth (in my opinion) the $1.99 per episode!

So, my question is this: are there any Canadians out there that have an Apple TV, or know of any reason I should be swayed into purchasing one?

Home Safe!

I am finally home safe, and I am so happy to be able to sleep in my own bed again ;)

I had SUCH a kickass-awesome time in Puerto Vallarta, and I can't wait to start working on these photos!!! I have already gone through them briefly and I am SO happy with them! Grit and I are having a 'night in' tonight so I am just blogging quick and then back to the couch to start watching The Wedding Singer ;)

In the meantime, I want to share with you one of the photos from the fire-dancers that put on a show for Brian and Yari during the reception. It was quite an amazing thing to see and I know this abstract photo doesnt do it justice, but I hope you can get an idea of how cool it COULD have been, had you actually have been there ;)

Michael