Vancouver Portrait Photography // Dustin, Taya and Ryder!

Today on the blog I have Dustin and Taya, at their wedding reception, along with their little baby girl Ryder. Have you ever experienced all the newfound excitement of a crush, but in a platonic way? That was Shane and Dustin. They met at one of the US motorcycle races, and quickly realized that they are somewhat neighbours, with Dustin living in Bellingham. From then, it was a whirlwind friendship. I could tell Shane was smitten, from the way he found everything Dustin said either hilarious or fascinating, and I knew that if I saw him smiling down at his phone, it was most likely at something Dustin had said. 

When I finally got to meet him at an awards banquet (where they had neither a fish or a veggie option, so I ended up just eating a really big plate of mashed potatoes), I understood what drew Shane to him. For one, he looked like a mini Shane, with a body size suitable for a gymnast (something he used to do at a highly competitive level), but with very similar facial structure and hair & beard combination. On top of that, he was just straight up bubbly and hilarious.

Dustin was at our wedding, and he is just the kind of guy who is easily loved by all. He was constantly cracking jokes, and always down for anything. He was the first one in the ocean to play in the waves, and I know Shane really appreciated having a riding buddy for all the awesome motorcycle trails around the house. One evening, I got on the back of Shane’s bike, and Marie got on the back of Dustin’s, and we went to visit Colotepec at sunset. The views, the ride, and just the general vibe of that outing is one of my favourite memories from our trip. 

When Dustin and Taya had Ryder, her birthday just happened to coincide with the birthday of Nash, who is the son of our friends Nathan and Jyoti, and who you will see on the blog next week. Ryder was a great choice for a name because on one hand, her dad rides (rydes) motorcycles, and on the other, Taya is a world-class golfer, and I am told that the Ryder Cup is a kind of golf tournament. But don’t quote me on that, I am just the girl with the camera. 

Vancouver Portrait Photography // Christine, Adam and Seymour: Family Photoshoot

First of all, full disclosure: I am obsessed with the cat you are currently looking at. His name is Seymour, and he is the best boy. He is not the cuddliest, but he is goofy and zoomy, and so curious and athletic, and just overall a 10/10 cat. 

He came into our lives about a year and a half ago, when, after posting a picture of the cutest kitten I have ever seen on her instagram, our tenant Christine approached us, and asked how we would feel about them getting a cat. I immediately asked if it was the one from the photo, and when she said yes, I looked at Shane with the biggest puppy dog eyes I could muster. Long story short, they got the cat. 

It took them a long time to come up with a perfect name, so in the meantime, we called him a wide variety of things, the best by far being Señor Black Balls (because he has huge black balls relative to his little cream-coloured cat body, in case that wasn’t clear). Even as a kitten, he was great at fetch. He has these yellow rubber balls, and he would go crazy chasing them, and then he would grab it in his mouth, and bring it right back to you. Never did teach him to put it in your hand. He was also really interested in shoes as a kitten? He would find a shoe and climb into it, and that was pretty freaking cute. 

It didn’t take long for him to make it clear that he did not appreciate being shut out from the top floor of the house, which turned us from tenants and landlords into roomies who shared a cat. I will say, Shane and I definitely lucked out on that deal, because we get all the cuteness with none of the litterbox. 

Seymour is obviously our favourite, but Adam and Christine are pretty cool too. Adam is the chillest guy I have ever met, and also a pro snowboarder who does crazy things on his board, and somehow makes it look easy. He also plays guitar, and as his upstairs neighbour, I am happy to say he is very good at it. Christine is a helicopter mechanic, which is badass as hell, and overall just a funny, kind, down to earth person. 

It’s been great living with them over the last couple years, and I simply had to take some family photos of them with Señor Black Balls while he was still small. The result is pure cuteness.

Vancouver Portrait Photography // Stella Visits a Car Show

Stella enjoys fast cars and tasty snacks at a Sunshine Coast car show // Vancouver Portrait Photography

I think I have officially become an adult, because I am now saying things like “you are growing so fast!” whenever I see Shane’s goddaughter Stella. We visited her and her parents Galen and Melissa, the owners of the cutest baby shoe company Pipsneaks on the Sunshine Coast, and accidentally stumbled onto a car show and drag race weekend. My fiancé Shane, who loves anything with a motor, was more than a little thrilled (hm, maybe this wasn’t an accident at all).

The below portraits were taken over two days, the first was a vintage car show, and the second a drag race. You can’t see the cars, but I think you get a good sense of the excitement from Stella’s faces. She is totally digging cars and motorcycles currently, so she and Uncle Shane are bonding over that. Speaking of Uncle Shane, I love that she can’t see one of us without demanding to know where the other one is. Whenever she sees him first, I always hear “Where’s Auntie Nadya?”, and vice versa. I find it so endearing I could cry.

Stella’s mom Melissa has a great sense of style, and I love the way she looks with her daughter in these shots. The ones with her dad Galen and Uncle Shane are pretty freakin’ cute too. I love observing a child, and getting images of them just being themselves. The best compliment ever was given to me by Galen, who said told me that I take the best ever photos of his kid. He said “I take photos of her all day long and she just looks like my kid, and you take them and she somehow looks like Audrey Hepburn.”

What can I say, I love photographing children, and I believe their personalities are best captured through candid shots. I’d love to give you beautiful photos of your child that you can treasure forever too.