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

Ah, Good Times

I had such an amazing time at the wedding last night! Brian and Yari made me feel so welcome and their entire group of family and friends was awesome! A sand ceremony at sunset, fire dancers, doing the macarena knee deep in the ocean... Ah, good times.

----

I am sitting here in my hotel room in Phoenix watching "Me, Myself, and Irene" and I totally forgot how hilarious it was! Of course, since it's on tv, all the "adult funny" has been cut out (and there's a lot!). Ah, good times.

----

Today was my first experience flying in first-class...and I slept through the whole thing... Seconds after takeoff I must have passed out and the next thing I remember was hearing the flight attendant make the announcement that we were landing! I was like my dad watching a movie: falling asleep at the opening credits and then waking up at the closing credits! Ah, good times.

----

I am so excited to see Grit tomorrow! Rather than me taking the shuttle from Seattle airport back home, Grit has decided to drive down and get me, and then we are heading to the outlet mall before crossing back over the border ;) Ah, good times. ;)

My room with a view!

I am in the midst of getting ready for the wedding today and I thought I would share with you the view I have from my hotel suite. This was taken this morning and so far the weather is really cooperating! I just finished breakfast by the pool with 'the fam' and I am now taking it easy and prepping for "Game Time"! :)

Take it easy!

Michael

Zip-Lining in the Jungle

Well it is 10pm and I am already back in my hotel room! I am Sooooo
tired from today's festivities, I thought it would probably be a smart
thing to retire when Brian and Yari did so I could get a good nights
sleep and be ready for the wedding tomorrow!

Today the weather seemed to be very confused... It was SO hot when we
were zip lining, and not a cloud in the sky, and tonight it rained and
stormed so hard the power went out of the restaurant 6 times during
dinner!!!

Ok all, I can't wait for tomorrow I am stoked for the wedding! I can't
wait to post some pics!!

Goodnight!!

Sent from my iPhone

I'm in Puerto Vallarta!!!!

I made it safely, I am having an amazing time, and I love the wedding
couple! Brian and Yari's families are so freaking awesome!! Somehow
after 6 hours I have been nicknamed "Bob", "the Canuck", and
"Miguel" :)

The rehearsal was tonight, I got to meet everyone, and I can't wait
til tomorrow's "zip lining esession"!!!

Michael

Sent from my iPhone

And Off I Go!!!

I'm leaving tonight at midnight for Seattle, and at 5am I am leaving on a jetplane...don't know when I'll be back again... well, actually I know... Sunday :)

I should be in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico at approx 1:30pm Pacific Time, where I will be greeted by a couple so beautiful they can light up a room...which is good because from what I see, the weather isn't cooperating as much as we'd like in PV... 

I'm going to try and keep up with the blogging and hopefully I can find a way to post some photos while I am down there!!!

See you all soon!

Michael

Mountains of Thought

I've been so busy today getting ready for Mexico that I haven't really anything to say on my blog! So, I thought I would share with you one of my favorite photos I shot a few years ago while driving through the mountains when I lived in Calgary!

Let me know what you think!

Namaste,

Michael

Holy Schnitzel!!!

OH...MY....GOD!!! I have just died and gone to heaven!!! 

Grit and I just got home from an amazing dinner! She was recommended by a client at work to try out a European restaurant in Cloverdale that served the best Schnitzel she would ever have (in Canada of course lol). Being a German gal, she decided to give it a try, and also take ME on a date tonight! The name of the place is Elizabeth's Chalet in Cloverdale, BC on 177th st and Highway 10. 

I made the reservations over the phone and was already blown away! First of all, it was Elizabeth herself that answered the phone. She was SO cheerful and friendly with cute little comments like "I was waiting for your call!" and "we will roll out the red carpet when you get here!"... it made me smile and I wasn't even there yet!!! When we got there, we were greeted immediately by Elizabeth and her husband Josef with a hearty handshake and a "You must be Michael!"... Josef showed us to our corner booth at the end of the VERY busy wing of the quaint, bavarian-styled restaurant. Within moments we were greeted by our waitress and were handed our menus. Grit and I ordered a glass of white wine each and by the time we had even opened the menus, the wine was already on our table. I ordered an 8oz New York Steak with veggies, a stuffed baked potato, and a side order of sauteed shrimp, while Grit ordered the Schnitzel with crabmeat and hollandaise sauce, Bavarian Red Cabbage, Spaetzle, and Asparagus. The food was quick (but not TOO quick...just perfect), and hot! It was WUNDERBAR!! :)  And just when I thought I was going to explode from all the food, there was tiramisu and coffee.... wow!!! 

When it was time to pay the bill, we were both shocked at how reasonable the price was! The entire way home consisted of absolute silence...with the occasional "*sigh* I am SOOOO full" from either one of us lol!

Highly Recommended to anyone looking for a great meal, great ambience, and amazing service! We are definitely going back again!

Michael

My Haiku for a Rainy Day

I am so excited that I am leaving the cold, windy, rainy, crappy 

weather to shoot a wicked couple on their wedding day in Puerto 

Vallarta in 4 days that I thought I would celebrate with a haiku...

Four more days to go

Raindrops on my window

Mexico is warm

Now... What if Yoda wrote a haiku you ask? Ok. Same situation:

Excited am I

Use the force in Mexico

Take pictures I will

There, I hope that made you smile :)

Sent from my iPhone

A Quick Look At My CD Cases!

I thought I'd share with everyone my new CD Cases! These are what your "High Res Photo DVDs" and "DVD Slideshows" will come in! Custom Designed by (yours truly), and I am so happy with how they have turned out! The quality of the Cases are amazing!

Let me know what you think!

Michael