A few weeks ago I tagged along with this family to document their after-school routine. Theirs is not like many others! Living in the heart of downtown, close to the lake, the kiddos go to preschool on Toronto Island and travel back and forth with their teachers on the ferry! We met them as they exited the boat, enjoyed a snack and I then followed them as they made their way home. An urban playground to say the least!
One of the many things that I love about this city is that you can be in the heart of the old Distillery District, surrounded by buildings, restaurants and stores – and then just minutes later on the beach with toes in the water and a view of the city skyline.
The trip to the beach during this session was completely impromptu. It was actually a pretty chilly morning when we started, but heading to the water turned out to be a great idea. The sun warmed us up and the girls taught me about sea glass.
I was so happy that this family booked in September which is my absolute favourite month for shooting. The grasses and trees are still alive and fresh, and the sunsets are glorious. When I asked these girls to sit down on the grass and THIS is how they fell into position, without any direction or prompting from me, in that moment I knew this would be a good one. The kind of session that is effortless and fun, that oozes with love and connection.
I think this session is a bit different for me. What started out as a cloudy morning, turned into a very sunny morning. I was drawn to the highlights in their hair and across the grass and flowers. And the connection between the family – I loved how close they were. They were rarely more than a few feet apart.
This was "my kind" of session. When I arrived, the new parents asked "so what do we do?" with nervous laughter, and I suggested that they just hang out and keep their baby happy. Which of course proved to be easier said than done as Baby H was having a bit of a fussy morning. But in my humble opinion, this resulted perfectly in photographs that capture what a typical morning is like with a newborn. Lots of bouncing, nursing, cuddling, swaddling, un-swaddling, more nursing, and occasionally, sleeping. Photographs filled with genuine joy and love.
*Updated as of Sunday Sept 27*
I am excited to announce that I am now accepting bookings for family sessions this September and October, as well as my annual mini-sessions!
Sessions will be booked on a first-come, first-served basis and require a paid deposit. To book your session, email info@kimberlywalker.ca or fill-out the online contact form. Please include your preferred date and time, location preference (applies to full sessions only), and the number of members in your family. For a mini-session, please provide a second choice date/time. Mini-sessions will take place in the west end of the city.
I will be booking full sessions on weekday evenings and limited weekends in September and October. Please inquire for weekday availability (including Friday evenings), and below is my current weekend availability.
For weekdays, including Friday evenings, please inquire.
Option 1 – $175
Option 2 – $275
Please inquire for waitlist.
*Please inquire for waitlist.
I photographed this sweet family last July when Baby B was just brand new! And it was so nice to spend time with them again this year, just days before B's first birthday.
I photographed this sweet family back in March when they were parents-to-be (session can be viewed here), and it was so wonderful to finally meet their new baby girl last week. We spent the afternoon catching up and admiring lovely baby I, who eventually grew bored of me and fell asleep ;-)
I thought this little guy might have been my last newborn of 2014, but December is proving to be busy and I may have one or two more little ones to capture before the start of the new year. This peanut was the ultimate dream for any photographer. He slept most of his session or quietly stared at his parents. I'm not sure that I heard him cry once.
How exciting for this new family to be celebrating their first holiday season together. I hope it includes some sleep!
I hope everyone had a wonderful Halloween. Despite the chilly weather and rain, my girls were troopers and enjoyed both giving out candy at our door and traveling around the neighbourhood to fill their bags. Today's post features a session from back in September. Elizabeth is an artist who I met at a local mom's group (MumNet for anyone who is interested!). I've really enjoyed her friendship the past few years, as well as photographing her family.
Check out Elizabeth D'Agostino's blog here. She has an upcoming exhibition which opens this Saturday November 8 at Loop Gallery.
