Beach Shoot: Toronto Natural Light Photography

Had an AWESOME evening out with some follow photographers. Met up with Leigh, Nicole (Leigh’s friend/assistant) and Rebecca, and did some shooting on the beach before going for dinner.

Captured this shot of Leigh as we sat for a few minutes, upon our arrival, discussing our plan of ‘action’. I started out shooting with the Canon 24–70 mm f2.8L lens:

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As we wandered down the beach we spotted this adorable puppy named “Trooper”, so CUTE!

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This shot made me wish that I had brought along my Canon 70–200 f2.8L IS lens so I could have really zoomed in on him as he ran, unfortunately I left that lens at home (it’s rather heavy!), so had to crop in the frame for this image (but still, so CUTE! Look at those ears!):

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Eventually Trooper had to go home, sniff, but we were not lonely for long as we came upon these cuties, who were obviously ready for their close-ups:

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I really like this shot, angle, shallow depth of field, beautiful dog:

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Like this one very much too!

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Then we turned our attention to photographing each other, you can see Rebecca’s ‘bump’ in this shot, believe she said she’s just over three months along…her daughter will have a sibling soon to play with! I have switched over the Canon 85 f1.2L lens for the next shots:

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We were enjoying the backlight, perfect light!

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Caught a few more of Leigh:

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And Nicole! I can’t believe this is the only shot I captured of you! Holding up the reflector! I’m going to capture your beautiful blue eyes next time…maybe I’ll bring the Canon 100 mm f2.8 macro lens! πŸ˜‰

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Whoa! Serious backlight! LOVE!

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Then we brought out the good stuff, bubbles from Germany! (And now I know where to find them too!!!)

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After all the fun of shooting we finished up with a FAB meal at “The Nose” (Gio Rana’s Really Really Nice Restaurant, 1220 Queen St. E.), the food is amazing! Think we’ll be going back there on our next outing as well! The restaurant has these amazing large images throughout the restaurant, very cool!

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Looking forward to our next get-together Leigh, Rebecca and Nicole!

amieJune 21, 2009 - 1:17 am

hi, just wanted to ask how did you shoot pic #21 (the backlight pic)?
been trying to shoot with natural backlight but didn’t end up good πŸ™

HollyJune 21, 2009 - 9:07 am

Backlit photos can be tricky as the camera can have a difficult time focusing. I have had that issue myself, and don’t really have any recommendations other then to keep trying/practicing. Good luck.

Mother/Daughter Day: Toronto Family Photographer

Noah was out for the afternoon/evening at a ball game and dinner to celebrate a classmate’s birthday, so Rebecca and I took advantage and had a wonderful mother/daughter afternoon on Bloor Street. I took the Canon EOS-1D MarkIII and the Canon 24–70 mm f2.8L lens along for capturing some photos.

On our way with the lights of Avenue Road in the background:

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Liking how the cherry blossoms play off the pink of her shirt and jacket:

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We stopped at a great used book store (BMV on Bloor) for some book shopping. Rebecca ended up with a huge pile of books, unfortunately I couldn’t find any of the current ones on my list in stock.

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We were going to head over to another used book store, but decided (with light rain falling) that it would be a good time for a lunch break (and it was 2 pm by then too!). We started out on the covered patio, shot this close-up:

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Then zoomed out for the wide angle shot:

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Then it REALLY started to pour, so we decided we would be more comfortable inside, yummy lattΓ© (but not as good as the ones I make for myself!):

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Our table full of food. Rebecca shared with me, but really just wanted toast so she could enjoy/indulge in eating peanut butter (which isn’t allowed in our house as Noah is allergic to peanuts/nuts), as you can see from the last shot of the four, she enjoyed!

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Afterward, back on Bloor Street, the wind was picking up:

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Waiting to cross the street, on our way home, caught some shots of the wind really blowing through Rebecca’s hair:

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We are happy, loaded down with groceries, to almost be home!

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And a little tired too!

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I had an awesome afternoon with my girl, hope to repeat this type of outing many times in our future.

May 2009 EatSavvy: Commercial Food Photography

Another delicious EatSavvy shoot! This month the focus was on beef.

(Equipment Used: All shots were taken with the Canon 24–70 mm f2.8L lens, brought the 85 f1.2L lens and the Canon 100 mm f2.8 macro lens, but neither got much love for this shoot.)

The ingredient shot:

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I couldn’t resist a shot of these yummy grape tomatoes which were sitting on the counter top when I arrived:

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Asparagus was one of the nutritional highlights for this month:

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Think this was the one and only shot I took for this setup, no debate, everyone liked this one:

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Grilled peppers:

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Fresh off the grill:

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The family meal: Marinated Flank Steak, click here for the recipe.

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The dinner party meal: Chimichurri Marinated Flank Steak, click here for the recipe.

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The Make-Ahead Way: Flank Steak Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette, click here for the recipe.

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I made my own version of the flank steak salad today for my lunch. I substituted sunflower seeds for the pine nuts (as my son is allergic to peanuts/nuts, pine nuts are not a safe item to have in our kitchen), and exchanged goat cheese for the blue cheese, which I can find to be somewhat overpowering:

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The dessert was Rhubarb-Apple Crisp, it was so yummy! Will have to make this soon I think! For the recipe, click here.

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Another EatSavvy is done…wonder what will be on the menu next time!

LandonMay 19, 2009 - 11:50 am

Great work Holly! Great eye for detail and such fresh and inviting foodie photos!

Architectural Photography, Toronto: Bellair & Advantage Laser Clinics

I recently did some architectural photography for a new client with two clinics.

Equipment Used: All images were shot with my back-up body, the Canon 5D, for the full-frame factor, with the Canon 24–70 mm f2.8L lens.

First off we did some shooting at the Bellair Laser Clinic:

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Before we moved on to the Advantage Laser Clinic around the corner:

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For those who are watching for the EatSavvy shots, keep an eye out, I’m planning a blog post on them on Tuesday! πŸ™‚

Mother’s Day: Toronto Family Photographer

Last Sunday the kids and I went over to my mother’s for lunch and a nice visit for Mother’s Day. Met this beautiful cat a few doors down from my mother’s house.

(Equipment Used: All shots in this blog post were taken with my beloved Canon 85 f1.2L lens.)

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A shot of Simon hanging out on the sofa:

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A few shots of Mylo, who was hiding upstairs away from the kids:

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Poor, sweet Simon has a horrible condition called Syringomyelia, which is currently causing him to drag one of his paws, so my mother puts on a protective bootie before he goes out for a walk:

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Rebecca’s checks out her little tree across the street from my mother’s house. She received this little tree as a sapling from the Montessori school she attended, upon graduation from SK:

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Noah enjoys running with Simon, we are off to the park to have a bit of a break before dessert:

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Some beautiful red tulips on the way to the park:

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Rebecca up top on the Summerhill Reservoir near my mother’s home:

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Noah enjoyed throwing Simon’s kong for him:

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My mother is always so stylish! Doesn’t she looks beautiful in her blue outfit?

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Noah awaits Simon’s return with the kong to throw it again for him:

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Love the out-of-focus dandelions in this shot:

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Noah brought ‘Mr. Bill’ with him for the outing to my mother’s and the park:

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All that running around, you built up a thirst!

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We came upon Mylo on the say home:

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One last shot of Noah holding Simon just inside my mother’s house:

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Hope all the mother’s out there had a wonderful mother’s day!