You turn the tide on me each day and teach my eyes to see
Just being next to you is a natural thing for me
And I could never let you go, no matter what goes on
‘Cause I love you more than ever now that the past is gone.
Congratulations, Ashley & John. Stay tuned …
The bride and Grandfather
Ain’t got no camera, ain’t got no self esteem.
Picking it up off the floor wasn’t part of the dream.
Found at the Port Hope Drive-In.
Personally, I hope they’re still using this stuff. Who needs arteries?
Long time no blog. Point in fact why I need to return to a job in television….who can possibly run a business from home with two young children underfoot? I’m sure someone would hop to that and say they’re able but, I’m not ashamed to say I’m not that person. It’s a lonely, exhausting existence, one I’m happy to retire for the sake of sanity, personal and professional development…and the odd martini for dinner while working overtime.
This entry isn’t really a photog submission. The art of photograpy…I’m at a crossroads. Perplexed to forge ahead or to retire it to a family project with the odd burst of exhibitionism. Today the photographs are merely blurry snapshots from the life and times of the MuchMusic Book Club. Cool cats reading pop culture fused with tons of Canadiana (maybe not so much now that Miss Nikki Green has left us) discussed over pub food (usually) with beer and the state of television programming melts into MuchMusic updates following dessert. Pop culture overload at it’s finest…truly. Oh, this month we’re reading The Hunger Games. Tres exciting! It seems I’ve had Battle Royale on my list of must reads since back in the day when I shared desk space with The Almighty Wendage while sausaged in the tiniest newsroom ever. I mention because Heisler recommended Blonde by Joyce Carol Oates and Battle Royale. Haven’t gotten around to Battle, but Blonde was a fantastic read, a book I would like to revisit.
My coffee is weak and an obnoxious amount of cream so I’m off to find something more pleasant to sip on.
Enjoy the rain.
Ever since photography has become my job – day in, day out – I’ve completely lost interest in it as a hobby. Here’s one from when taking photos was fun
Today is Tuesday. June 15.
Today I draft a letter to the Ganaraska Forest Conservation Centre in hopes of convincing them I am the person for the job, Office/Property Manager. I’ve come to believe that an overhaul of my resume & cover letter is necessary.
Before I tackle the task of selling myself (fingers crossed it works) I think it’s a good idea for me to adjust my focus and gear down to simplicity – the small somewhat simple things we leave behind, or ignore altogether. The bird pulling up worms in the yard, the person next to you on the subway who smells great (tell them!), the coffee that tastes just a little bit better than yesterday, a hug from an adorable little girl…I believe my fairly new isolated existence has taught me to be kinder, to pay more attention, to express my appreciation, and that organization is the key to a piece of mind…only a piece but so worth it. Perhaps my approach to work seach has been too wrapped up in my pride, that damn ego again. I am very pleased with the work I accomplished at MuchMusic, and while I think I failed the political game (which, btw, was so incredibly lame), I did excel in operating the flow of information in a newsroom … and I did it with 20 tapes in my arm, a tight pair of running shoes and an overall pride of watching the news roll knowing I did my best with the limited resources given. My life isn’t ready for me to commute Colborne to Queen & John but I am ready to dig into something new and exciting.
Here are a few simple things in my yard today….what’s in yours?
Recently, Warren turned 32. The man is overworked, stressed and in serious need of a vacation which won’t be coming his way anytime soon as we are in full swing of high season in the real estate world. So when his birthday snuck up on us I wanted to give him something thoughtful, something homegrown yet art based and interesting. It was a challenge but I rise to such challenges. The result – JR, Jolene and I, decided to bring a New York art gallery to Colborne as we busily (read: messy) readied our home for a JR/Jolene kitchen art exhibit with all the toppings including homemade chocolate chip cookie ice cream sundaes. The gift had originality (or so I thought), creativity and a whole lot of heart. The kids enjoyed the experience immensely and Jolene was overjoyed with the cookies.
I give you one of JR’s art pieces from the day Warren turned 32. Enjoy.
Here are some photos that were shot at a pair of gorgeous, way-out-of-our-league waterfront condos in Newcastle. They were done for Gabrielle Rohrich of Models Interiors in Cobourg.
This is Mark. Mark married Charlene in Cobourg, Ontario. Very sweet, very quirky, adorable people.
Mark and his vows
I’ve always admired Marie Antoinette. And, yes, I totally dug what Sophia Copolla did with the movie. Different, yes, but I liked that which worked and that which did not work. It certainly wasn’t an ordinary rendition. But I don’t like ordinary. I’m not overly fond of being ordinary. And I journal to my babies to encourage them to grow up, live up to their beautiful names and to never be ordinary. That said, it’s not really a philosophy supported by the masses in the small snoozer town of Colborne. Too bad. For those who judge my philosophy, or me for that matter, you may be dismissed to go eat cake.
I’m ready to move on.
This is not my world.
This is not my town.
I am oceans away, man.
Oceans away.
It’s snowy and my car is horrible in the snow so I’m most likely going to be housebound and working from home attempting, again, to cure my poor habit of face distortion while shooting wide angle. And more importantly, training my eye not to see what others don’t want to see. With that I present to you on this snowy day a picture with no facial distortion whatsoever.
Now back to the coffee…
The other day, a bunch of lunatics jumped in the freezing water of Lake Ontario. They say it was for charity. I belive they did it to try and kill the little trolls that have invaded their bodies, making them do crazy stuff like this.
Captain Polar Bear decides he doesn't want to die in the freezing lake.
We haven’t updated our blog for a week or two, so with that in mind,we offer you this visual representation of our inactivity:
A visual metaphor
We’ve been mentioning the Northside a lot lately on this blog; not only for its delicious food and the generosity and absurd loyalty of its owner Jeff, but also because a number of April’s photos are now hanging there (and more will be soon!) With that in mind, we offer you a sample of what’s now on display.
Click the photo below for some more images from the set, including a few rejects that Jeff liked (just not enough to put them on his wall).
Go to sleep sweetie, Granpa's moustache will make it all better.
Sometimes you’re taking photos of someone’s back yard and you turn the corner and see a bunch of horses just standing there, minding their own business. I would have liked to have switched to a lens with a longer zoom, but my fingers were about to break off from the cold. So I kept shooting with my wide-angle “Real Estate” lens and ended up being fairly satisfied with the result.
Click the image to see a larger version.
Our volunteer work for the illustrious SNAP Northumberland West earned us some advertising space in its hallowed pages. This is the photo that accompanied our ad.
The Gosling-Fultons
The weekend is almost is here.
Let’s dance it out…
JR gets down
Joel Plaskett is a rather popular fellow in the Denomme-Day household, so we were quite excited to find out he was coming to Northumberland County. It was quickly decided that we should abuse our relationship with SNAP magazine to score free tickets under the flimsy pretence of “covering the event”. In the end, SNAP got their coverage, April got a night out with Joel, and everyone went home happy.
Clayton Park Playhouse
Click the photo for more.
Altima Dental in Port Hope recently held their “Smile Makeover Contest”, and we volunteered to shoot the before and after photos of the winner as part of the prize package. Click the photo below to view Brent’s transformation. Because it’s a dental makeover, there are lots of photos of the inside of his mouth – so consider yourselves warned.
A little wider please, Dr. Popa
Good Morning Monday -
Post – Golden Globes. Michael C. Hall – winner. John Lithgow – winner. Mo’nique – winner. Gabourey Sidibe – robbed. Sandra Bullock over Gabourey? Bollocks.
We had Sunday brunch at a fine little restaurant, The Northside. Recently, Jeff (co-owner) displayed 5 of my pictures in lovely black frames at the front of his establishment. It’s official. I have been hung. It almost pained me to look at them because all I could see was fault - what I could have done better? should have? lots of room for improvement. Doubt almost took away the exciting side of the experience, but rather quickly the nerves turned into a giddiness which I liked. Giddy is good. There is the slight possibility the giddiness was deliciousness (I made that one up) but experience tells me it was probably the pint of stout with a shot of espresso in it. Less than 24 hours later, I’ve got a hankering for another pint. On that note, if you’re up for a funky jazz brunch then Northside is definitely a must do. Our tablemates – Deb, Duke and Ruby – were as charming as ever, and JR dancing with Ruby to live jazz was the cutest thing I’ve seen all year.
Next up our new friend Jeff and The Northside will be displaying my series of the Port Hope Drive In. Stay tuned to see how my nerves cope with that.
Below is a picture I took of Warren photographing a bride and groom alongside the bride’s grandfather. It’s one of my favourites. I particularily like the standing around in the background…wedding photography and film sets = a lot of standing around for the crew.
Perhaps I will dig up some of the Northside pictures and share with you tomorrow.
Last week Debbie Beattie, Sr Dir of Content Snap Northumberland West (yes, she’s as fancy as her title suggests) and I worked a gig together. We met in Cobourg for lattes then drove into the beautiful Northumberland hills to intv/shoot the brothers Newcomb for a business profile in the February edition of Snap. Their studio, Newcomb Studios, is slightly deceiving if you don’t know it’s there. Nestled in a family home, the property overlooks the rolling landscape…it was fresh and cozy. Matt and Adam greeted us warmly, although their cat-like assistant was only interested in sneaking a peek. The studio was comfortable – which is a good quality. I can just picture musicians crashing out on the sofa in between takes during a late-night session. An open house is in their future and hopefully an invitation lands in my in-box. Good guys. Talented. Nice arm art.
Click the photo for a larger set:
'sticks
Happy Wednesday.
Jolene turned one last Friday and on Sunday we celebrated with family, friends, nibblies, bevvies and a botched batch of meatballs (how I read salsa instead of Heinz chili sauce is beyond me). The children frolicked, JR’s favourite people congregrated (minus Uncle Niels but JR will be sure he pays for the mistake at a later date) and cheesecake devoured. New friends met old friends, Jolene received beautiful clothes, fun toys and her very first doll compliments of Ruby. I believe it’s fair to say everyone had a good time despite the football game being on in the livingroom (I know, lame, right).
This is Jolene. She’s one.
The belle of the country ball
It’s January, and many brides-to-be are busy scouring the internet to find that perfect photographer to capture their perfect summer wedding. With that in mind, we present Arietta, featuring Nick the Ice Cream Man. We also vow for the 1000th time (to ourselves, mostly) to have a wedding portfolio up very soon.
The Gods of War (and Nick)
Click the photo for a larger set. And if you get a chance, do yourself a favour and see them live.
I like pleasantly lit family photos. I don’t like fake smiles, WalMart studios or posed kisses. I like raw, unconventional, true grit family pictures…as if Clint Eastwood met Dirty Harry with a baby on his lap. It works for me. Sometimes studio lighting is beautiful, sometimes it causes everything to seem a little bit too pefect and perfection is so overrated. I’m not perfect, are you? Rhetorical. I don’t enjoy photography that’s trying to be perfect – much photoshop, too much staged emotion. It’s not for me. No judging for those who like it and more importantly, those who do it well. But that’s exactly why I like this photograph. Family, Grocery shopping, practical togetherness. Love.
Family grocery shopping excursion
Happy Weekend!
Monday, January 4, 2010. A new year. A new day has dawned. And a solid reality check awakened me this morning. Now back to work.
Although it was freezing today, and my fingers felt like they had been smashed by a hammer due to the pain of cold air exposure, I managed to fire off a few snaps to make being outdoors seem worthwhile. So I took a pause at my favourite bench in the neighbourhood, compliments of our coolest neighbours.
2010!
Freezing fingers, chilly bench
When in doubt, use a JR pic. This philosophy has always worked well for me. Self indulgent, yes. Acceptable, no need to care. Does it work? You decide.
A dilapidated factory building served nicely as a backdrop to a quirky engagement session. Kristen was adorable, and as Warren said so perfectly, “Steve was great at being Steve”. Nice.
Taken during the shooting of a music video that will never get played on any channel ever. The band’s tight pants, however, will keep them in the pages of Now magazine for years to come.
Click the photo for a larger set.
Knights in Silver Spandex
UPDATE!: Thank-you to the person who found our site by searching the term “tight pants boy”. I hope Zion’s pants were tight enough and his looks boyish enough for you. Check our Flickr page for more.
Sorry. We wish there were more we could do to help.
Why It's Not Friday?
Was up on a 725-acre horse farm north of Kingston on a Real Estate shoot and paused to take a few self-indulgent photos. This was one of them.
Competition Barn
Oh. You’ve seen one before. Have you seen one beside a bench on the moon Lake Ontario?
Boy, you’re a tough one to please.
Stay awhile.
Kind of a sad story, this one. Our neighbours found this beautiful Robin Moth back in the spring, and asked us to take a couple of pictures before they released it. It was a gorgeous creature with a wingspan of about 7″-8″. Well they released it alright, and a day or two later our cat showed up at our back door with the moth in its mouth. Though it was still alive, the vivid colours seemed to have been drained from its shredded wings.
Click the photo for the full set.
Robin Moth
We’ve posted a few samples from a recent engagement shoot on our flickr page. Click the photo to see the set.
Ashley and John by the Cobourg Lighthouse
A ride along the Murray Canal
Taken while on a Real Estate shoot in Brighton
Took a little break from work and reality for a week or so.
Now we’re back.
This was taken by April during our all-too-brief stint with iheartthemusic, before the Paint Movement‘s record release party at the Rivoli . The night will always be remembered for April’s unsuccessful two-hour search for parking, which ended up with her just driving around downtown while I shot the performance. Then, at midnight (okay, 1:30) we turned from rock photographers back into pumpkins and went home. To this day, April can’t find the glass slipper she left in the ladies’ washroom.
Click the photo for the full set.
Pearce the Pirate, Photographed amid the Mega Machines at the Cobourg YMCA for the September ’09 issue of SNAP Northumberland West.
Pearce the Pirate at the Cobourg YMCA Mega Machines
UPDATE: Sept. 24, 2010. Sad to report that Munro’s has closed its doors. Best of luck to all involved.
After celebrating their grand opening earlier this month, the fine folks at Munro`s After Five invited us to come by and snap a few photos for their upcoming print ad. While we were there, we were treated to a lovely anniversary dinner, and fired off a few more shots for their business profile in SNAP magazine.
Click the photo to view the full set.
Dessert at Munro`s After Five
Munro`s After Five is located at 20 King St. W., Cobourg. tel-905.372.0624
Taken at 166 North Murray St., Trenton, Ontario.
October 20, 2009
After navigating our poor station wagon through an ill-advised detour along miles and miles of rocky ATV trails, we finally arrived at Oak Heights Winery. Tip: if you’re looking for Oak Heights on Google Maps, don’t take Wolfraim Road. It’s not a road.
We shot a series of portraits for their redesigned website that recently went live. They picked black and white, so here are the images in colour.
Greetings stranger –
Way back in September Linamaria and Andre got married at our shabby old farmhouse in the country. I think it’s fair to say that it was the most uniquely wonderful wedding I’ve ever been a part of. Everything from bare feet to the picnics on the lawn to the most dramatic and special impromptu speeches I’ve ever witnessed to the music, the oh so amazing Brazilian beats, to the love, glowsticks, family, and drink. It was a good time had by all, including the neighbours.
I hope you enjoy the pictures. It’s a retelling of the story from the very beginning of that special weekend. Stay with it, it picks up. See the Flickr sidebar on the right hand side of this page, or click here to see all of the images.
Always, just be you.
A&W….xo
The gang at the Northside (and by gang we mean Jeff) commissioned a series of photos of the Port Hope Drive-In Theatre to be displayed in a conspicuous location at the restaurant, replacing the “loaners” currently on the wall.
The selections haven’t been finalized, but here are a few of our favourites:
Port Hope drive-in cantina
Hello,
Making Photos and Internets
Thank-you for visiting April Day Photography. Our website is currently under construction, and new content is being added regularly – so check back often!
If you would like to know more, or would like to discuss rates and services, you can reach us at: 905-355-2764 or send an e-mail to aprildayphoto@gmail.com
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