William gets his first portrait session.

As promised here are more baby related shots. Last week I was fortunate enough to go see the Mount family again. A couple years ago I was lucky enough to photograph the daughter, Maya, at six months of age, 12 months of age and at 18 months. This time they had a new edition, William.
William is so cute and such a joy to photograph! He was happy the whole time and was perfectly happy to be moved around and even enjoyed the flashing lights. Of course, who wouldn’t have been enchanted by his big sister showing me her version of a unicorn butterfly princess. Quite frankly I had no idea they even existed until that moment! Playing with Maya, photographing William and then reading Maya a book completed my delightful day with the family. I am looking forward to seeing them all again in six months. Enjoy these photos…

Giovanni of Pink & Grey Style and Image Consulting

Recently, I have been working closely with Giovanni from Pink & Grey Style and Image Consulting. We have been giving deserving winners makeovers and the ‘after’ fashion photo shoot to go with their new look. These women are amazing women and are very deserving of their new found looks! Every month we have had the before and after shots and write up printed, in full colour, in the Burnaby Leader. Here are some photos from a couple recent editions. Enjoy!

Kristy and Mark

Enjoy these photos of Kristy and Mark as they celebrate their new baby girl still within the womb!

30th Annual Wedding Fair

This year we are joining other wedding vendor in the 30th Annual Wedding Fair. This time we have a fantastic 'Door-Buster Special'! If you or anyone you know needs a wedding photographer for the 2009 wedding season come visit our booth (#39) to receive a show special discounted wedding package! You can only get it here and these are the last two days for this wedding season, 2009. Hurry, offer ends soon!

Visit their web site for details weddingfair.ca and tickets. You could always call or e-mail us for help, too. greysquarephoto.com

We look forward to seeing you there and answering all your wedding photography questions. Come see our portfolios and look at some beautiful photographs.

Mini Cakes

We have all seen cupcakes instead of a traditional wedding cake for years. They are really cute and we love them because they are so practical. You can eat it with your hand and you take what you want not what is handed to you.
But, we are also loving the mini cakes that have been popping up everywhere, too.
These are so cute and lots of fun because each guest can bring one home; they double as the favor. Of course, you have a few as display and as the ‘wedding cake’ for cutting but each guest gets one in an individually wrapped package to take home. Then everyone can indulge the catered desert that you paid for with dinner any way.
It’s a win-win. Your guests get to chose their desert, you don’t have to buy an expensive cake no-one will eat, all the guests love the mini cakes to take home, and you don’t have to pay for cutting or any favors no-one keeps anyway!
We found some beautiful mini cakes on-line from Kathy Dvorski Cakes (Ontario, Canada), Debbie Brown (Ashford, Middlesex, UK) and Peggy Porschen (London, UK). Hopefully these will inspire!

We also found some cute mini cake pans from Wilton. See their web site for photos and more details.

Blog Update

Dear faithful readers we are changing the format of this blog over the next few months.

At greysquare photographics we pride ourselves on helping brides find what they need for their wedding. Since we are in the biz and you only get married once we figure we probably know a little more than the average bride. We see a lot of weddings each year and see what works. In our blog we will bring our expertise and experience to the masses. Once a month, or so, we will be interspersing our blog with wedding info and updates on what we enjoy in the biz.

We hope you enjoy the information and if you have any questions please comment or send us an e-mail.

Best Wishes,
Lara

lara@greysquarephoto.com

Welcome back with Rock n' Roll wedding!

So it has been awhile since the last time the blogging happened. Many things have changed but not the basics of photography.
I have been asked to add some of my own photography to this blog. A few projects I have recently done to show what greysquare photographics does in a regular work day.
Alright then, here goes...

Rock n' Roll wedding!
This was a really fun wedding with the couple being from the band, Sugarblade. It took place outside in the family's backyard with glowing members of the family and friends from around the world. It was really special (and very tongue-in-cheek).

Kim and Greg are always having fun and laughing. Their house is filled with laughter. We had so much fun capturing them being themselves with each other and their guests.
They had custom made their wine bottle labels to show their sense of humour.

All the guests had such a good time because it was a very intimate wedding. Everyone had a chance to visit with the bride and groom. They visited with everyone at their table and introduced guests to each other so everyone felt like family.

We were able to go to the local hostel which had an excellent view of the ocean and a really funky window. I really wanted to get the band photo feel for this part of the portraits. Of course, Kim and Greg had an excellent time joking around.

Of course , it is very easy to photograph beautiful people. And, there is nothing more beautiful than a couple full of love for each other that just got married.

We really enjoyed working with Kim and Greg. We wish them all the happiness and the many babies they mentioned they want.

Babies! Babies! Babies!

I love babies!

They seem to be everywhere these days! Every few years it seems that there is a trend to have babies. (This sounds callous but isn’t supposed to sound that way.) I love babies, after all.

I especially love to photograph babies. This can be quite difficult as a new parent and I usually say leave it to the professionals. But, not everyone can hire a photographer 24/7 until the boy/girl is 18 years old. So here, I will give you some pointers.

1) Get down to their level

You will find that most amateur baby pix are from an adult perspective. How boring. Get down to baby perspective. You will see what they see and you will ‘become one with baby’. At this level you will get the facial expressions you see but can’t capture. Also this is at a more personal level and this personality will show in your photos.

2) Come in closer

You can’t hurt your baby by coming in a little close. You want them to engage with the camera. A hand on your lens will not wreck it forever. Believe me when I say a little baby spittle on your lens is easily cleaned off. Take photos of details of your boy/girl: a finger, an eyebrow, or just an eye.

3) Black and White

All your other photos are in colour why not make these pictures classical by photographing in black and white? Black and white is more about people and their personalities. There is a time for colour, too, but maybe this isn’t it.

4) Direct flash is a no no

Try to use available, soft light. Natural light coming in a strategically placed window (or a window near a strategically placed baby) is perfect. A harsh direct light will not compliment the soft baby bum you are trying to capture.

5) Uncluttered backgrounds

You don’t need a backdrop to do nice portraits all you need is an uncluttered background. Why not take the baby photos on your bed surrounded by a white duvet? Or, even on your white/off white carpet? Just keep the background uncluttered and your photos will look professional. Your baby is the subject matter not the rowing machine in your living room.

I hope these tips help in your next baby photoshoot. If you have any questions, comments or suggestions for this or any other subject please write to me.

My 'new' Best Friend...

So I am finding my 'new' best friend is a bounced second flash. New is in quotations because it isn't new and I have used it before but not as much as recently.
I am using my bounce flash (into ceiling, wall, etc.) as my main light and having my 'on-camera' flash as my secondary light. The camera flash is just there to add highlights into the eyes. You need that or you get the 'dead eye' look. Very unappealing!
The bounce flash gives indirect lighting to the subject by having the light bounce throughout the room from the ceiling or off a wall. This lighting, because it is indirect, is quite soft and gives a glow as opposed to a direct flash look with a shadow behind the subject.
Now this bounce flash has a peanut slave attached to it so it knows when to 'pop'. A peanut slave is a device that makes a flash go off by detecting another flash going off and, therefore, goes off at the exact same time. I have no idea how this works, you would have to ask a technician of peanut slaves, not me. All I know is that it does work and this is a wonderful thing.
Because you have this bounced main light you would also need to be able to meter how much light is being admitted out of the flash...here you would need a light meter. Unless you are a flash genius, and I have seen them, they do exist!
Have fun trying this out and tell me of your past experiments that have worked for you (or haven't). I can help with all your questions.
Happy shooting!!!
- Lara
I was trying to sync my digital point-and-shoot camera with the bounce flash but it didn't work. I will have to experiment further with that. Good luck!

The Province article

My company and I were recently featured in The Province Newspaper. This was very exciting because within the interview I was able to add some pointers for choosing a wedding photographer. As you can see with this blog I am really into helping people. In the past I have had married women, when they find out I am a wedding photographer, cry and cry on my shoulder and tell me their horror stories. Below is the interview that was featured. Thanks to Jeani Read for the excellent interview. Enjoy and I hope it helps.

Capturing life as it happens

Jeani Read, The Province

Published: Monday, April 17, 2006

Lara Hildebrandt

Owner, Greysquare Photograhics

Photography: first love?

"During high school I lived in the darkroom. During college it was the same. When I walked into the Alberta College of Art and Design I thought, 'I'm home. This is it.'"

Wedding photography: crucial?

"People can have a wonderful wedding but if the photographs aren't good I've seen so many brides just cry and cry and cry. It's horrible."

Wedding photography: ingredients?

"You need an eye for the detail of tabletop photography combined with the action of sports photography. It's capturing moments. Plus you need a feeling for people."

Wedding photography: great or gruesome?

"I won't lie -- it can be both. The great part is I get to meet people at their happiest and create an heirloom for them. The gruesome part is you never know when your camera will fall apart. Your batteries will die in the middle of the ceremony. Your film will start rewinding in the middle of the silent prayer. I once went through three cars for one wedding. My car broke down on Wednesday and I borrowed another, which broke down on Thursday. Finally I rented a car. All these things happen but you learn from it and move on."

Top tips for choosing a photographer?

"Check the photographer's portfolio, how recent it is and how diverse. Sign a detailed contract, even if the photographer is a friend. This will secure the date and make sure the photographer won't let you down for a higher-paying job. Make sure there's a clause to cover what happens if the photographer gets sick. Do you like the back-up photographer? Do they both have backup equipment? Try to have the photographer take engagement photos of you to double-check you like their work and them."

You: urban or suburban?

"Urban all the way. Give me the city with all her people and life. But I also enjoy the natural world and the snowboarding I can do on it.

Guilty pleasure?

"Shoes. There is nothing like getting a new pair of shoes. I know I should say something like romance novels but I take photos of the brides' footwear mainly for myself. I was in Dallas last year and was able to visit a Jimmy Choo store. Absolute heaven!"

Career advice?

"To a new photographer coming into wedding photography I would say, don't listen to other photographers complaining about the market being saturated. If you are good at something and you have a passion for it, it will happen. "

jread@png.canwest.com