Happy Valentine's Day!

Stephanie Chan February 14, 2014

I was so excited for my shoot with Chloe, I had no ideas of what I was going to do with Moses. Our home is always upside down when the studio set up comes out and trying to make room to have dinner was starting to get on our nerves. Of course, as soon as I had everything ready, we realized that Moses had a mild fever and was not in any condition to take photos. I gave him half a chewy Advil and sent him for a nap while Chloe and I snuck out to see Frozen (her first movie theatre!). I know, I know, kind of mean, but we had to cancel the previous day and she was really looking forward to it. We needed a girls outing and Moses has been to the theatre twice already. I have more excuses but I'll leave it at that. By the time we came back, he was in great spirits and ready for photos.

You can't go wrong with jeans and a white tee. It's inarguably classic, fashionably timeless and like a blank canvas, it leaves room for endless possibilities. Dress it up or dress it down, it's hard to go wrong when you're keeping it simple. Jealous of Chloe's rose photos, he asked to have photos with the rose as well. Sweet as pie.

When I say this guy is "ready for photos" I truly mean it. With Chloe, you never know what you are going to get, you never know what mood she'll be in and she often refuses to take direction so photographing her is often a painful and frustrating process. Moses on the other hand, is so natural. Always eager to please, he takes direction extraordinarily well, does not get disheartened when corrected as realizes their is a reason to the madness, he is capable of making small movements that change an entire image, and he offers an array of facial expressions. He is so pleasant and so easy, he's a photographer's dream model.

In conclusion, I am pretty damn stoked about what I got out of this last minute session, this last minute attempt to capture something fun and new for his Valentine's Day photos. This last weekend was more emotionally taxing than usual for our family, and having both kids with a fever did not help. Thankfully they were mild fevers and they were both up and running in no time. Family Life continues to be crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Have a lovely Valentine's Day Weekend

Book of Love: Caela + Brian

Stephanie Chan February 12, 2014

As any photographer will attest, seeing your art in a physical and tangible form provides a rush like no other. The closest feeling that compares is opening presents on Christmas morning as a child or maybe kind of like Charlie from Charlie and the Chocolate factory, nervous and excited and shaking, carefully tearing the wrapper from the chocolate bar hoping to find that Golden Ticket. It elevates your work to a new level.

I shot Caela + Brian's engagement session last summer, and just in the nick of time. I was elated when Caela mentioned Real Weddings wanted to include a photo from the session in their Fall 2013 Engagement section!

Prints, Save the Dates, postcards and canvasses are always a fun surprise when they arrive. Going over to clients homes and seeing how proud they are to display their photos is the best reminder of why I do what I do. However, it is less often that I get to see my work in book form, and in this case, in a larger format! Caela needed a little convincing on the larger 11.5" x 15" size. After assuring her she would not be disappointed with the extra WOW factor that a couple more inches would provide (… that's what she said..), I can now assure you she and Brian have zero regrets. In fact I'm pretty sure they are thankful for my Asian persuasion. Ha!

When investing in your memories, we have to remember it is not just for immediate gratification. Of course, it is thrilling to have a big book to share with your spouse-to-be, your families and your current group of friends. These memories will not end here. They will have life breathed into them with each new member of your family and ever-growing circle of friends, including your own children down the road! Oh and let's not forget the new mom friends you will acquire who will no doubt share in your misery as you look back on your days of absolute freedom and radiant beauty. Was I ever actually THAT stunning?!!!

Time is not on our side. The sun and moon rise and fall without notice of our aging souls. These moments need to be captured and remembered. When we hit rough patches in life, sometimes photos can help remind us of the love that started it all and give us the strength we need to push through.

Without a doubt, one of my favourite things to do at my grandparents' homes is to sit with a pile of old photo albums and look through my history and see photos of my parents when they were young, before they became parents.

C'est l'amour

Valentine's Day Countdown

Stephanie Chan February 11, 2014

Valentine's Day has snuck up on me once again! Amazingly I managed to get my two shoots with Moses & Chloe done over the weekend in time to edit and send my print order out for my Mom! She saw a bunch of the ones I did with Chloe on Friday, but the ones of Moses will definitely be a fun surprise for her. I had so much fun with both these shoots, going to start composing my blog post tonight!

I Love a Girl in Uniform

Stephanie Chan February 7, 2014

My mom came over today. She came just as I was setting up to do a Valentine's Day shoot with Little C. It turned out better than I could have imagined and I am losing my mind knowing that I won't be able to post it for another week. I have had this idea/inspiration planted in my brain for a number of weeks and was very nervous about how my version would translate. It is perfect. My mom snuck Chloe into the kids' room to change into a new outfit she had found. Chloe came out in a tiny little tunic that had me squealing like a pig!

Having been enrolled in Catholic Private Schools, I spent my entire elementary and high school years in a uniform. I have to say, I am really loving my mom for dressing Chloe in things that I used to wear. She saved my ballerina leotard and mouse tutu and ears from when I took ballet at age 4. Chloe is in love with the tutu and ears and it just melts my heart seeing her so happy.

We started off this little shoot with a little red beret knitted by high school friend, Sally. Sally lives in Toronto and I only see her every couple of years, but on her last visit she had made this beret with a matching scarf for Chloe and a tin full of cookies for all to share. Perfect match.

Switched to a Hello Kitty headband to match her Hello Kitty book ...

…aaaaand, well no uniform is complete without a little Blair Waldorf (for you Caela!).

This was fun. Really digging the lighting in these photos but really all I can think about is how excited I am for these Valentine's Day ones for next week.

Have a great weekend!

XOXO Gossip Girl ;)

Eleanor Sky

Stephanie Chan January 27, 2014

Where does the time go? Motherhood is a crazy place to be. That first year seemingly lasts forever; we anticipate our little one's first milestones and do our best to not feel competitive when Baby Jones meets his/her milestone first. We worry when their progression does not match up with our favourite baby guidebook or worse with other babies in the same age bracket. We almost wish all that time away, eager to end the sleepless nights, eager for them to sit up, roll over, wave/hi-5/pound, hear their first word... to see whom our little one will blossom into. Their first birthday arrives out of nowhere and we wonder how those very long days went by so very fast!

It's different with the second. The first one breaks you in, teaches you the ropes. The second one arrives to calmer arms, ready to rock and soothe. There is less time for panic and adaptation, and more time to take it aaaallllllll in.

Miss Eleanor was featured a week before Christmas while still perfecting her tiny toes and lips in her Mama's belly. Back then, she was Chicadoan to Mama Rita and Big Sis Verity, today she is Eleanor Sky Sheena Beckett.

I tried to look back and capture the things I remembered when my little ones were itsy bitsy ones. The hours spent holding and comforting this very tiny being with their funny shaped body and even funnier bodily movements that would always draw a loving smile across my very tired face.

How I wish I had a few photos of me breastfeeding my kids as newborns. It seems so impossible that I don't have any considering it was what I did 50% of the time. Gazing at their tiny face, covered with down, playing and kissing with their free hand, grasping for dear life onto one of your fingers.

How fast they grow… We forget how tiny they are, how their heads could be cradled like a large grapefruit in our palms with their bodies small enough to comfortably fit the length of our thighs.

The millions upon millions of smooches, barely a whisper of a kiss on their tiny faces once finally asleep...

In the blink of an eye, it's gone. Their chubby arms and legs branch out into lean limbs and that perfectly round belly melts away and stretches itself right out.

Just like that, Verity has become a big sister.

And so begins the journey of these 3 lovely ladies.

It's a crazy beautiful life.