pink petal ballet...

last Saturday, I had the pleasure of photographing 180 little girls (and one boy!), ages 2 through 7 dancing their hearts out on stage at Capilano University Performance Arts Theatre.  my good friend and client, Alix Dunham of Pink Petal Ballet has been dancing her whole life and teaching kids to love dance for the past 17 years.  to see her work her magic with these adorable kids at Pink Petal Ballet's year end performance is a joy to be shared...

the combination of all of those sweet faces in their adorable costumes made me take waaaaaaayyy too many photos!  as a result, I couldn't resist creating a very special slideshow from a bunch of my favourites.

simply click on this link below and get ready to smile (don't forget to turn up your speakers!).....

Pink Petal Ballet Slideshow

enjoy!

Lori

first comes love, then comes marriage...

one of the many things I love about my job is keeping in touch with my wedding clients.  I first met Leanne & Matt when I had the pleasure of photographing their gorgeous Kelowna wedding back in September of 2008...

when I heard from Leanne they were expecting a baby in the Spring, we headed down to the beach in West Van to do a little impromtu pregnancy shoot to capture her beautiful belly.  I forgot how easy it was to photograph these two.  they certainly make my job an easy one...

and then... their beautiful baby girl, Ella was born in March of this year!  newborns are so precious to photograph and Ella was no exception.  she slept through most of our shoot and I used the opportunity to capture the beautiful bond between Ella and her very lucky parents...

Leanne and Matt, it has been such a pleasure to document and share in your amazing journey  and I wish you both a lifetime of joy and happiness with your gorgeous new daughter!

road trip, anyone?

when I was a kid, I loved a good road trip.  getting in the car and driving, the road in front of you and no particular place to be... now that I HAVE a kid, I love a road trip even more!  what a great way to get away and have fun and explore.  my daughter and I took off for 10 days over Spring Break and flew into San Francisco.  what a gorgeous city!  so much to see and do... our plan was to spend a few days doing the tourist thing and then rent a car and drive south on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway and see where it took us.  but first, San Fran!

between shopping and sightseeing and sleeping and eating, we rode the cable cars and even visited Alcatraz.  we soaked up the feel of the city on the streets of San Francisco.  although I have to say, Haight Ashbury was quite a trip... in more ways than one!

stopping to stock up on tunes for the road trip portion was also a must... and what do you know?  we just happened to find a great music store in the neighbourhood.

stay tuned for the second, and more scenic part of the trip!  so many photos, way too many to choose from...

sweet pea photography brand new website!

things that make me happy:

• American Idol
• taking my dog to the beach
• booking (and shooting!) weddings
• watching my Spring bulbs bloom in the garden
• road trips with my daughter

and, lastly...

• finally launching MY BRAND NEW WEBSITE!!

it has been months in the making and  I'm thrilled with how it turned out.  my web designer, Stephen at Blender Design did an amazing job!  thank you, Stephen for all your hard work.

a huge thank you also, to all my wonderful clients who put their trust in me and gave me the opportunity to create these beautiful images over the past few years.

feel free to sit back, turn up the volume and take a look through the site.

enjoy!

Lori

at the beach...

I have the best clients...

I received an e-mail last week (on my birthday, no less!) from one of my awesome brides from this past year, Angela. it was incredibly kind and it made me feel really happy, so I wanted to share it here...

Hello my friend,

I sit here thinking about how Jon and I can express our gratitude for the part u have played in our wedding (a huge part). There really are no words to show you how special and sweet of a person you are. I stayed up quite late last nite just looking at the books over and over again. It never seems to get old for me (much to Jonathan's surprise). You have given me a chance to re-live the best day of my life (thus far) I will always have a glimpse of that magical day right at my fingertips. You have not disappointed me since the day we met and the books are even more beautiful than I imagined. I can't wait to show everyone I know. Jon and I wish you all the best that life has to offer...cuz u have more than added to ours. I hope that your business will flourish for years to come and I will without a doubt in my mind see u again one day! Santa will be very good to you this season cuz u have been nothing but *GOOD* all year round! Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Much love, Jonathan & Angela =P

THANK YOU, Angela! you know, from the moment I met you both I knew we were going to have a blast working together. you two are very special and it was an honour and a pleasure to be a part of capturing what you have together. you made my job very easy.

I think this is a great time to thank ALL of my brides and grooms from this year! thank you, thank you, for putting your trust in me to document one of the most important days of your life. I love what I do and I am very fortunate to have clients who feel the same way. it has been an amazing year and I have been very blessed. I want to wish each and every one of you all the best of the holiday season!

much love,

Lori