I confess, I didn't know who Johnny Reid was until I got to the concert to shoot last night but I certainly know who he is now.

What a fun show!

Imagine a Scotsman moving to Canada and becoming a country singer!

He was great fun to shoot, hamming it up for the camera. These were a few of my favorites.

Ballet Kelowna dancers were back dancing in Orchard Park Mall over the weekend so I stopped by to do some photos for their website. I thought this one summed it up perfectly as you can see the other two gentleman in the background and the heads of some of the spectators.

It's been killing me to sit on the Ballet Kelowna photos without sharing them, but I'm working on their calendar right now and as soon as I have the green light, will post some up here and on my Facebook photography page. For now, here's this one and one more from the mall.

Enjoy!

Jesse Cook was back in Kelowna last week for a concert at Mission Hill Winery and as always, put on a fabulous show. I've seen him live many times - first was when he headlined at Salmon Arm Roots & Blues on the Friday night, 2001, then in Vernon a couple of times, but the one show that will forever stand out will be the night I went home with the band at Kaslo Jazz Festival a few years back. No, it's not what it sounds like... let me explain...

I was supposed to meet some friends at the festival but when I got there, discovered there was no cell service. I looked for them all day and never did find them. THere was not a campground spot to had within 50 kilometers or more and as the began to set i realized I'd probably end up having to sleep in my car.

During Jesse's show, i was shooting it (shot on my website under music) when his manager came over and asked if I wanted to meet the band after the show. Of course I said no...

Well, there I was sitting backstage sipping a beer with Jesse and the band (what awesome, awesome people!) and when I finished, I made a comment about having to sleep in my car. "Don't be silly," they said, "we've got an entire heli-ski lodge to ourselves, you can come sleep there with us." Of course, I said no...

Funniest part was Jesse's manager Darryl didn't have a jacket so I loaned him my baby pink coloured hoodie to wear. As he hopped onto his Harley to ride to the lodge he looked around and made a comment that he could potentially get beaten up for this.

I ended up sharing a room (it's okay, Mom, I had my own bed) with Jesse's guitar player at the time, Dominic. Truly a gentleman. As for Jesse, he said he had sunk to an all time low that evening as someone had given him a can of beans to autograph.

I've had a couple of people ask to see more of the Cirque images so here are a few more.

The clowns are simply spectacular in this performance and the gymnasts in the power track are absolutely mind blowing. Whoever choreographed the power track must have been a genius or a sadist just waiting for an accident to happen. It is unbelievable the way they go, across the stage on trampoline strips shaped like an "X".

It was definitely one of the highlights of the first half of the show.

more photos to come soon... plus the latest Ballet Kelowna shoot - WOW!!!

What a fabulous week this has been. I started off by shooting for Ballet Kelowna (photos to come) and then was asked by Cirque du Soleil to come in and shoot some shots for them to use.

Anyone who knows me knows I am a certifed Cirque-a-holic and so the thought of getting paid not only by the local paper but by Cirque as well to come in and shoot was kind of like getting my ultimate dream job.

First they flew me to Edmonton to shoot the show there, and then they asked me to come back and shoot for them again in Kelowna last night. YIPEEE!!!!

The show is fantastic and if anyone is fence sitting on whether or not to buy tickets, my suggestion would be DEFINITELY go. I bought my own tickets to take my kids the day they went on sale, not knowing I would have already seen the show twice before our ticket date, but honestly I just can't wait to see the show again - especially as I will get to just sit back and watch with both eyes.

One of the shots they wanted goes on the cover of the Kamloops This Week that comes out Friday, here's the link: http://www.bclocalnews.com/bc_thompson_nicola/kamloopsthisweek/news/101594298.html

Enjoy!

What a blast at Salmon Arm Roots & Blues festival. It's always a good time.

It was, however, the first time I've ever actually been scared shooting a show. I don't know if you've ever seen where they put the photographers but it's between the fence and the stage. At this show, they had to ask everyone to please stop pushing and said K'NAAN wouldn't come on until everyone moved back. I looked at the thousands of people pushing on the fence and I looked at the tiny space between the fence and stage and realized, one good shove and I was going to get popped like a zit between the fence and stage. So, I just got my shot and got the heck out of there, back to the blanket on the grass with my friends. Of course once there, I could not resist taking this second shot of a kid at his first concert. I gave his dad my email address - hope I hear from them so I can pass the shot on as a keepsake.

What a refreshingly fun couple Alex and Chris were to shoot! The bridal party was lots of fun, with a brides "person" as well as bridesmaids and the whole day was filled with fun surprises.

They lined the aisle with lemons and limes and used succulents instead of flowers. The groom and men had boutineers made from hot chili peppers and the flower girl had lemons and limes instead. They even used their dogs as part of the wedding party. What a lot of fun!

Congratulations Alex and Chris!

I got to shoot Kelowna singer Leah West on the weekend.

She was performing at Kerry Park as part of the Parks Alive! program.

It's always fun to shoot a beautiful singer! She recently made headlines in Europe because someone swiped one of her songs, translated it and entered it into a contest. Someone else figured it out and as a result, she's being sought after by people in Europe.

Funny how life has a way of turning things around for us all.

Marusia's Wedding

What a fun wedding, in Vernon last week.

It was very very hot - so hot that fingers were swelling and getting the rings on proved to be a little amusing. Thankfully these two had a wonderful sense of humour.

It was great fun working with such a big wedding party too.

Well, wedding season is upon us again and it's a busy, fun one with my first ever Thursday wedding today, shot out in Vernon at Paddle Wheel Park. A very fun couple with lots of bridesmaids and groomsmen to shot.

While going through memory cards, I came across this one shot I took a few months ago of Finnigan, my border collie. I was setting up lights and backdrops to do portraits and Finn just walked over with his toy and plunked himself on the backdrop.

What else could I do but shoot?

Last weekend I was out shooting the Peach Tarts home opening bout against the Raggedy Rollers for eVent magazine. Wow, could that number 8 of the Raggedy Rollers, Haren Mahkeester, ever skate! If only she could have stayed out of the penalty box they would have been unstoppable. Fun stuff!

In addition to shooting some family portraits this spring, I shot a lot of rugby. I was hoping i could post the slideshow I made but this site doesn't support any of the mac formats or MV4 so until I can figure it out, I'll drop in this photo for now.

Ruck on!

Normally I am asked to come and shoot the dress rehearsal for Ballet Kelowna, which is almost like having my own private showing. It is truly amazing to watch these dancers in action.

For the past year or so, they have also requested that I shoot from the wings during the shows as well. The results are nothing short of spectacular and offer an intimacy that gets lost from shooting head on.

I love the contrast of these two shots from The Miracle Worker. The cast was simply fantastic, and the lighting was a photographer's nightmare in many places, being very dark and shifting in and out of spotlights. You simply cannot trust your light meter when shooting theatre and have to always go with your gut and just keep checking to make sure you've got it dialed in right.

Big kudos to Patricia Burns and Emma Magirescu who played Helen Keller and her teacher Anne Sullivan.

Busy Spring with theatre shoots, ballet shoots, rugby games and grad season. Wedding season starting too so I will try to be more diligent about posting.

For now, though, just love this one I snapped for a KSS grad, posing with her little sister. Love the smurf-like coloured hair!

Once again, I've been horribly negligent in posting so I thought I'd put up a few of my favorites i took while shooting Kelowna Actors Studio's Sweeney Todd.

It was a very difficult show to shoot and the director looked at me sheepishly when I arrived to work and said, "You're not going to like this one," as he knows what a challenge it is to shoot under low light.

Thankfully, the Nikon D3 can shoot at 6400 ISO and so the low lighting wasn't too big of a deal. He doesn't know this of course and just thinks I'm a genius for pulling it off.

The other problem with shooting theatre is that you have to learn to never ever trust your light meter when working with spotlights. You get such wonderfully dramatic shots but getting the setting right is simply a matter of practice. After shooting a few dozen shows, you eventually get the knack of it :)

What a busy winter this was with four issues of Big White magazine to get out, a few theatre productions to shoot and Ballet Kelowna's Spring tour work. It's been very rewarding, though, and I've thoroughly enjoyed it. This is the shot that they went with for the cover of Big White's march issue. If you're in the village, pick up a copy and have a look at what's going on on the hill.

It's been crazy busy here the past few weeks and I've kind of neglected blogging - oops!

This is my favorite shot of the week from last Friday when I was asked to come in and shoot a new group that call themselves Company B.

Not only are they all top-notch dancers but apparently they sing as well and are now getting hired to put on shows at various functions.

What fun to work with these beautiful and talented young ladies. I really am lucky. On days like this, I love my job more than ever!~

What a show last night! I got to shoot the Colin James show last night at the Kelowna Community Theatre. I think this was my favorite shot - there's something about catching those moments of shared smiles between band members that says, "We love what we do" that I enjoy snapping. Probably not the shot that will run in the paper but definitely one of my favorites of the night. Of course, after shooting a headshot in the morning for a very sweet lady who wanted photos to put on eHarmony, then shooting an artist for a story at lunch time, then shooting at Ballet Kelowna for close to an hour, by the time I got to the Colin James show my arms were about to fall off, but that's OK, help get me back in shape for wedding season, which is just around the corner!