Looking for ways to treat yourself before your engagement shoot? GREAT! Although, I usually advise against buying a new outfit just for your shoot (unless you wear it out a couple times first and are SURE that you love it). Sometimes you don't realize how short a new skirt is until you are constantly having to pull it down during your shoot. Or a new pair of shoes could give you painful blisters. And you may look back and realize that that outfit just didn't scream YOU. But the perfect way to treat yourself? A MANICURE! What better excuse to get a manicure than for your engagement photos? This helps your nails look neat and tidy and really helps to show off your new bling on your finger. So if you were looking for an excuse for your next manicure, now you have one! Is this something you would get? 
Christina and Spencer soaking in every moment they get to spend together ♥️♥️ Lately I’ve been noticing and trying to capture the “little” things during my sessions. The way my couple’s hand touch. The way they lean into each other. How they feel when they’re around each other. And even just their personal style at the time. These are the small moments that have the biggest impact. The little feelings you never want to forget. And I’m here to capture ALL of it, so you can hold onto these moments forever. I’ll be all over Alberta, BC, and Saskatchewan this summer so hit me up if you want to book a session! Adventuring with you and your love is what I’m all about! Let’s do this thing!! 
"People only elope when they don't want to spend any money..." I've heard this many times, but it just isn't true for all cases. YES, elopements are often much cheaper than the big traditional weddings. But most couples still choose to invest money on their elopement, just in different ways. Instead of spending 5 - 20 thousand dollars on a venue, you get to use nature as your backdrop for nearly free! If in a National Park you will need to get a permit, but this is still much cheaper than the traditional wedding venue. And on the money you save, you may choose to book a helicopter tour or go on a cool excursion you've always wanted to go on. Instead of paying to feed 200+ people, you can treat yourself and the few people you have with you to an incredible meal. Instead of paying for a wedding planner, you hire your dream photographer who will also act as a guide for your special day and help you with all your planning and preparation. Really, you have so much more freedom to spend money on the things that matter to you, rather than all the (often wasteful) things you "need" for a big wedding. If you could do absolutely ANYTHING on your elopement day, what would you do? 
NEW ON THE BLOG!! Quyn and Braden's elopement day made it up on the blog today! If you want to see what it's like eloping in Canmore in March amidst a global pandemic, taking a trip up the Banff Gondola, and enjoying a celebratory meal at McDonald's then go to the link in my bio to view their elopement gallery and read all about Quyn and Braden's adorable love story! 
Remember that gorgeous elopement I shot last week at Flora Bora? Well I thought it was about time I shared some sneak peeks! Jenna and Lee got ready inside the cutest yurts on one of the hottest days of the year! They celebrated with their closest friends. There was no unnecessary stress, no unwanted guests, no time constraints, they were able to just roll with the flow of the day while enjoying themselves and each other’s company. It was such a special time and such an honour to be a part of? Would you ever get married at a yurt?? 
📍Change of address As of Sunday I've been living out of my van and plan to continue with vanlife all summer! This has been a dream of mine for a while, since before I bought my van in 2019. And it's officially happening! Although it looks a little different than I had dreamed, I'm still super excited to officially be a vanlifer! My plan is to stay based in Calgary, while traveling around the mountains a lot and also going back home to Saskatoon a couples times throughout the summer! Are you ready for crap ton of vanlife content?!? Because I plan on sharing all my adventures as well as the reality of vanlife (which isn't always so pretty)... So let me know what you want to see first. Or go ask me your questions on my story! 
From the incredible sunset on Saturday I was telling y’all about!! Can you even believe this was after that INSANEEEE sandstorm?? I don’t think I need much more to convince you to schedule your elopement/wedding portraits around sunset. Comment 🌅 if you’re dreaming of sunset portraits!! Also be prepared for a LOT more from this shoot!! 
From tornado warnings, to clear sunny skies, to a great big sand storm, to the most amazing sunset....Saturday was INCREDIBLE!!! Please enjoy this gif I created from the moment the sand storm hit. Immediately after these images were taken I rushed back to grab my camera bag and put everything back in the vehicles. Only thing, my camera bag was no longer there... So I booked it back to my van to put my camera away safely as everyone is being amazing and helping carry props back to the vehicle. Then I book it back to hunt for my camera bag, extremely terrified that it would be buried in the sand with my lenses fallen out... Luckily I find it sitting on side of the sand cliff so I literally crawl up to retrieve it as well as some missing shoes. Then I book it back to the vehicles, make sure everyone is safe and nothing blew away, game plan what to do, and hand out charcuterie boxes to our incredible attendees who are now sitting in their cars. Not gonna lie, this was one of the most stressful moments of my life, the fact that I had hardly eaten all day didn’t help either... But we stuck it out and were rewarded with the most amazing sunset ever which I will share photos if soon 😉 So now is when I say something super cheesy like, “the sun always shines again after the storm.” Or, “always expect the unexpected.” But honestly... it’s true. When you persevere through the storm, both literally and figuratively, you will be rewarded with the most amazing magic after. Thanks to everyone who attended the @creategold_ shootout and stuck out the storm with me. You are incredible and I’m so grateful to have met you! So who’s coming to my next shootout?? Hopefully there won’t be any sand storms 🤞🤞 
Here's a question for you photographers: 𝐃𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐭𝐬 𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐫 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞? This is something I struggled with for a while... This can happen when you shoot at the same location multiple times, use the same posing at every shoot, or you don't take enough time to intentionally get to know your clients and their story. How can you fix this to create new content that tells your client's story (and not some made up story you gave them)? 𝐆𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐭. This will inspire you capture their unique story. It will help you understand the way they connect + the types of images that speak to them. It can also help you suggest locations + activities that will be meaningful to your clients and help them feel comfortable right off the bat. This can be done through questionnaires, phone calls, or just talking with them before you take out your camera during their session. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤. Literally... You don't have to be posing your clients the entire time! Give them space to be themselves + interact with one another as they normally would. All mine + my client's favourite images have been the ones that were unposed + unscripted. This is because they were being authentically them + they see their true selves when looking at the pictures. I'm considering sharing a few more tips on this topic because one caption doesn't cut it... What more questions do you have on this or what do you want me to share more of? Maybe a few of my most essential questions I include in my client questionnaires? Let me know in the comments! 
Happy Friday! Enjoy the weekend and make sure to get in lots of snuggles with your love 💕 💕.