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Child portraits | Winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:15:00 +0000

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sum·mer {suhm-er}

n. a period of hot, usually sunny weather

One of the classic summer things to do is eat Watermelon. Nothing is more refreshing than a big, thick, juicy slice on a hot summer day.

Enjoy the rest of the summer and all of the sights, sounds, tastes & feelings of a wonderful Manitoba summer!

interior photography | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:30:30 +0000

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wine {wahyn}

n. the fermenting juice of grapes, made in many varieties, such as red, white, sweet, dry, still, and sparkling, for use as a beverage, in cooking, in religious rites, etc., and usually having an alcoholic content of 14 percent or less.

It has been a while since the last post. Not because I forgot about you guys, but because it has been extremely busy along with 2 weeks of holidays as well. We have been photographing everything from babies, families, interiors, product etc. It sure has been fun!

A while back we photographed The WineHouse for our long time client, Everitt Design Associates. This is a wine store like no other. It is sophisticated, modern, inviting, warm and just down right gorgeous (way to go Rob! from Everitt Design). They have a huge variety of wines with hundreds to choose from and sure to please everyone’s taste buds. The Winehouse is located at 110-1600 Kenaston Blvd. @ Kenaston Commons (just down from the Costco). The WineHouse originally opened in 1999 and was call Pembina Fine Wines. The WineHouse is a private wine store that is a family run business and they have been serving a dedicated, loyal clientele from not only Winnipeg, but wine lovers from all over Manitoba.

If you are in the Linden Woods, Whyte Ridge or Linden Ridge areas…drop in for a visit. You may even leave with a bottle or two of some fine wine!

why hire a professional photographer? part 1 | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 16:40:31 +0000

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ex·per·tise {ek-sper-teez}

n. expert skill or knowledge; expertness; know-how: business expertise.

There are many benefits to hiring a professional for your photography needs. Whether it be on a personal or business need, having a professional photographer to take care of your photography needs will save time, money, and give you a great product/portrait to benefit your business or family. In the first of this 2 part blog post, I will discuss how hiring a professional will create lasting memories of your family for generations to enjoy. It’s not just the camera that makes the photographer a professional, it’s much, much more.

What is the future for the photographic industry? Maybe even more importantly, what is the future for a professional photographer? There are so many varying opinions on the subject from both the general public to the photography industry. There are questions like: Film vs. Digital? Jpeg vs. RAW? Manual vs. Automatic? Give away the digital files, sell the digital files, keep the digital files? Save them on the computer vs. make prints? I could go on and on. Are there any definite answers to these questions? No. But I can give you my 2 cents worth on the subject. The way we do things here at Artistic Impressions is what is right for us as a professional studio. Opinions and practices vary from studio to studio, from photographer to photographer.

Does owning Photoshop or Photoshop Elements make you a professional photographer? Does purchasing the latest camera make you a professional photographer? I think you can probably guess what my answer to that is. As long as you have a credit card, you can purchase the tools needed to get started in this industry, but you can’t buy an “artistic eye” or that “creative bone” in your body. You are born with it.

When I was in high school I discovered my passion and talent for photography. Lucky for me the best photography program in the country was a 10 minute drive from my house at Humber College of Applied Arts and Technology in Toronto Canada. (I was born and raised in Toronto and moved to Winnipeg in Dec. 1995 to open the studio with Grant) After submitting a portfolio, essay and attend and interview with the college, I was very fortunate to get one of 70 spots available for the program from over 700 applicants. The program at Humber was the best thing to happen to me and taught me everything that I needed to know to be a successful working professional photographer. It trained me in so many different aspects of the photographic industry from colour theory, the history of photography, film processing (Black & White, Colour and Transparency), darkroom printing (both Black & White and Colour from negative and positive films), shooting all different subjects and assignments, business management etc. It’s not too often that a photographer can photograph architectural interiors, babies, protraits, products, food etc. and do them all well. I have the training and know how. I didn’t just pick up a camera, read a book or watch a couple of webinars and say… “hey this is cool, maybe I will become a professional”. The two years that I spent at Humber were some of the most valuable and memorable years of my life. Attending college and achieving my diploma molded me into the professional photographer that I am today. Of course with the dawn of digital photography, I am constantly attending seminars to continue to build on my training as a photographer.

Digital photography has opened a whole new world that allows you to manipulate and enhance the image straight from the camera. Instead of manipulating the image in the “traditional darkroom” with the film processing or the printing process, we now do it in the “digital darkroom”…the computer. The computer however isn’t the only thing that creates the perfect image. It is the photographers vision, composition of the subjects, lighting, exposure, proper focal length of the lens, and shooting in the RAW format. Now I’m not going to get too technical, but here is quote from John Mitchell, a fellow professional photographer in Ontario, who explains the Jpeg vs RAW debate very well.

“J-peg vs. RAW

Oh, this argument has gone on for as long as I have known the word digital. Capturing a RAW image is a lot more work that capturing one in j-peg format, but I choose RAW and this is why:

Start with defining what each is. RAW is exactly what the work implies. It is the RAW information stored digitally with absolutely no processing or interpretation done to the information received. j-peg is a processed and compressed file. This means the camera program is making decisions about colour, contrast, saturation, and brightness just to name a few. That`s the processed part. It is also compressed and for the non-photographers that are reading this, let me quickly explain. As you know everything on a computer is in the form of a language, which I understand to be a mathematical formula. Now, for the purpose of explanation, say there are a hundred variations of a colour and we number them 1 – 100. When the information is received and translated into a j-peg file it is compressed. The program says I am taking everything from 1-9 and going to make it a one. I will take everything from 10 – 19 and make it a 2, 20 – 29 will be three, etc. and when you are done you have 1/10th of the information that was captured.”

Thank you John. I couldn’t have said it any better myself. And that is exactly why I shoot RAW files as well. As a photographer, I often have a clear picture, no pun intended :), on what the final image will be. I know how to manipulate the image in photoshop to get it to where I want it to be…a work of art. Artists, including photographers, have a vision. I don’t want an automatic camera, computer, program, or another person trying to interpret my artistic vision. I want to be the one to create it and assure that it is exactly as I wanted it when it comes back from the lab.

Here are some examples of images that have been enhanced. The first image is “straight out of the camera”…so no retouching, enhancements etc. The second is the cropped, retouched, manipulated & enhanced version. Some require just a little bit of tweaking, where others are heavily retouched to create the final image. Everything is “done by hand” per say. It’s not just a click of a button. I am actually applying multiple layers one at a time to create the final image. Enjoy!

We get asked from time to time if we sell our digital files. The answer is no. As a studio, we want to make sure that every image that leaves here is exactly as how I envisioned it. I don’t want the raw file to go to Costco to be printed and it look nothing like what our professional studio would produce. It’s our name attached to it and we are proud of that.

Part 2…hiring a professional photographer as a business.

Product Photography | winnipeg Manitoba

Ingrid — Fri, 21 May 2010 14:48:13 +0000

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Tag {tag}

n. a piece or strip of strong paper, plastic, metal, leather, etc., for attaching by one end to something as a mark or label

Here at Artistic Impressions, we get the opportunity to photograph a variety of different things. Some can be quite common, while some can be quite unusual. Some can be very easy to light and photograph, while others can provide a larger challenge. There are two things that can be particularly challenging…glass and metal objects. Well, this week we were called upon to photograph dog tags. Seems simple…but it’s not.

I am always up for a challenge and that’s one thing that makes this career so enjoyable for me. I don’t photograph the same thing day in and day out. There is always something different and exciting from one day to the next. These small, shinny, reflective, metal dog tags sure brought out my training from Humber College in product photography and really tested my knowledge on photographing metal. It’s not an easy task and can be very time consuming to get it just perfect. I loved every minute of it!

If you have a item that you need photographed, or know anyone that may need some photography of their products done, have them call Grant @ 204.831.8310. He would be delighted to provide them with a quote. And I would be up for the next challenge!

Gifts for Mother’s Day | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Mon, 03 May 2010 18:48:59 +0000

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moth·er {muhth-er}

n. A woman who conceives, gives birth to, or raises and nurtures a child.

No matter how we look at it, our Mothers are very important people in our lives. They have brought us into this world and they have helped form the individuals we are today.

The history of Mother’s day goes back centuries and was a way to pay tribute to or honour mothers. During the 1600’s, the early Christians in England celebrated a day to honor Mary, the mother of Christ. In England this holiday was expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday.

As Mother’s Day approaches, many people wonder how to best honor their mothers or pay tribute to them. Our daughter provides Ingrid with a breakfast in bed, with all the fixings that a mother will love, including toast and accompaniments, cereal, juice and of course candies.

With my own mothers passing many years ago, I still mark this day with flowers and some time of reflection.

Another special gift, is that of photographs, whether of family or as an individual. Mothers will look back on these to reflect on a time, a place, feelings and memories. One things for sure, mothers are proud of their children and grandchildren. There is no better way to pay tribute to the mother in you and your children’s life, than with an Artistic Impressions heirloom portrait that she will cherish forever.

If we can’t fit you in this week or if you would like to have the whole family involved in the portrait session, we can provide you with a beautiful gift certificate wrapped up elegantly, in time for Mother’s day.

Contact the studio for more details, to book a session or to purchase a gift certificate. You can call us @ 831.8310 or send us an email.

Family Beach Portraits | Winnipeg Manitoba

Ingrid — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 04:08:01 +0000

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Beach {beech}

n. The zone above the water line at a shore of a body of water, marked by an accumulation of sand, stone, or gravel that has been deposited by the tide or waves.

With the snow melted, the Easter/Passover Holidays behind us, it’s a sure sign that summer is just around the corner. Spending time with family and friends at a summer vacation spot for you and your family, is where memories are made and cherished. For us, that special place was our family cottage at Victoria Beach. I have been going there for over 30 years, it’s a place that I remember fondly, and can’t wait to go to every year. Ingrid has been going for over 15 years and Joone has been going since she was just over 1 month old. It really is the most precious place to us and we are anxiously waiting to open up the cottage for another fantastic summer season.

As we plan our summer holidays for this year, we are also booking many of our clients for their summer portraits at their special spots. We have done portraits like these for years and many of our clients capture these wonderful memories in their lives every year or two. A number of these sessions take place while we are on holidays around the Lake Winnipeg beaches, however we are available for sessions all around Manitoba and western Ontario, throughout the summer, fall and even winter for those winter wonderland portraits. For us to travel to your cottage would normally involve a travel cost. But to make it feasible for many of our clients, we group sessions based on location and time. This allows for people to get family portraits at their favorite places at a very reasonable cost, without the travel charge.

If you are thinking of booking a photographer for that summer family reunion, anniversary celebration, family & friends get together, or just to commemorate your time at the beach, lake or cottage, let us know the weeks you are planning. This will allow us to work it in with our other sessions, and make it work for you. Summer is short in Manitoba, Fall passes quickly, and Winter gets cold…FAST. So plan ahead and call us today to ensure that we are available to capture your memories for a lifetime.

Product Photography | Winnipeg Manitoba

Ingrid — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 06:17:32 +0000

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ov·en·ware {uhv-uhn-wair}

n. heat-resistant dishes of glass, pottery, etc., for baking and serving food; bakeware.

We photograph a lot of different things here at Artistic Impressions. By photographing all these different subjects, whether it be a family, newborn baby, inside of a home or a product, we get to meet new people, venture to interesting places and see some really neat things.

This week we were called again to photograph this awesome set of ovenware called Temp-tations®. These dishes allow you to prepare, cook, serve and store your meals all in one dish. Temp-tations® Presentable Ovenware is known for its beauty and durability. The ceramic casserole dishes and serving pieces come with wrought iron baskets and trivets to help protect your table while making a beautiful presentation. They go from oven to table to freezer without the need to transfer from dish to dish. The other great thing about the set is that they all stack into eachother so it takes up minimal space in your cubbords.

This time around they wanted to show the ovenware with some more varieties of food in it. So Grant got cooking!

Here at Artistic Impressions, we have a full kitchen, installed especially for this type of shoot so we can go straight from the stove to the shooting table to capture the perfect food shot. Grant has a great eye for styling the food to make it look it’s best. The food session didn’t require anything fancy, just some great home cooked meals to compliment this fantastic ovenware.

Also, have a browse at the Temp-tations® Canada’s website @ www.temptationscanada.com to see our images from the last shoot and this amazing product. Believe it or not, but the ovenware, for the 16 piece set, costs less than $70! What a deal!!!! I’m ordering a set for home and the cottage. Also what a great gift for many of those special people in your life. And hey…Mothers Day is coming up! ♥ You could get your shopping done early. Here are some of the images that we captured from this years shoot. fyi…The chicken that Grant prepared for the shoot got a “2 thumbs up” and a 10 out of 10 rating from Joone. She said “this is the best chicken ever! You can make it anytime Dad”.

Editorial Photography | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 18:40:38 +0000

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pe·dor·thics {pĭ-dôr’thĭks}

n. The art concerned with the design, manufacture, fit, and modification of foot appliances as prescribed for relief of painful or disabling conditions of the foot.

A couple of years ago we did a shoot for the Pedorthic Association of Canada for a brouchure, website and other marketing pieces. We did another such shoot last month to continue building their library of images. Artistic Impressions was in charge of hiring of the models and co-ordinating the schedule for the day. 4 of our models were hired from Swish Model Management located in Winnipeg. 1 model was found via a Facebook group for models and photographers, and 3 were clients of ours.

This year a board member, Julie, from the Pedorthic Association flew in from Toronto for the shoot to assist us with capturing all the correct foot positions, hand positions etc. Every image has to be as accurate as possible to portray what Pedorthists do. It was great having her and her expertise here for the shoot. We all learned a lot from the session and will now look more closely at the shoes we purchase to make sure they are a good quality shoe. Our “pedorthists” models did a great job and were great sports considering they got up close and personal with feet

Everyone did a fantastic job…Thank you to all our models!

Here are a couple of images from the shoot, which took place at Canadian Footwear, at their downtown location @128 Adelaide Street. They are by far the BEST place to purchase shoes in Winnipeg. Every staff person is very knowledgeable and an expert on shoes and how they should fit you.

Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 17:55:40 +0000

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torch {tawrch}

n. something considered as a source of illumination, enlightenment, guidance, etc.

This morning the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Torch Relay made it’s way past the studio on Portage Avenue. We made sure not to miss this historic event. Myself and Grant were both armed with a camera. I was on a snowbank in front of the studio and Grant was on the median shooting back towards the studio. It went by so fast, but was still worth standing out in the -39°c temperature (with the wind chill). Here are some of the shots that we got as the Torch went by.

that's me on the snowbank

right in front of the studio. Great shot Grant!

lighting the next runners torch

a high five between the two torch runners.

Political Christmas Portrait | winnipeg manitoba

Ingrid — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:30:26 +0000

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ar·ti·cle {ahr-ti-kuhl}

n. a written composition in prose, usually nonfiction, on a specific topic, forming an independent part of a book or other publication, as a newspaper or magazine.

I just got an email from one of our clients, Manitoba Conservative MLA Mavis Taillieu, who is the provincial representative for Morris. Her email had a link to an article about her Christmas card in the Winnipeg Free Press. Of course, we took the portrait for it.

Here is an excerpt from the article found on the Winnpeg Free Press’ website:

Capital Chronicles with Mia Rabson | Winnipeg Free Press | Dec, 16, 2009

“But so far the best holiday card photo I’ve seen has to be that of Manitoba Conservative MLA Mavis Taillieu. The provincial representative for Morris is standing with her husband and two sons under a tree in a park-like setting. It is pouring rain and they are huddled under an umbrella and Taillieu is hunched into herself, arms crossed around herself for warmth and looks like she is positively freezing.

At first I wondered why they wouldn’t have just rescheduled the photo shoot if the weather were that horrible. Then I thought hey, bravo to Mavis. First of all, with the wet, cold weather of 2009, finding a day when it wasn’t raining was about as easy as it is to find Waldo at a convention of red-hatted people.

Plus that photo is in many ways symbolic of the year that was. For 2009 will not go down in history as a year many people want to remember. From the economic meltdown and major government deficits, growing unemployment lines, H1N1, you name it, It kind of feels a bit like the entire year was spent under a rain cloud. That picture just kind of personifies it.”

a not so typical Family Fall Portrait

The story behind the photo….A couple of years back we had done a portrait of her and her husband for her Christmas card. This year, her two sons were coming in for Thanksgiving weekend, so we scheduled a family session to photograph them in their home and outdoors on a walking path that she often walks on near her home. Mavis really wanted fall colours and the popular, beautiful fall portrait. When we got to the location, just as I was about to click the shutter it started to snow. Not just a light fluffy snow, but a outright downpour of wet snow. We waited in the cars for about 10 minutes hoping it would blow by, but it didn’t, so I said…well I have an umbrella, lets just go for it. So we did a fun one with the umbrella to capture the moment and then did some without. It was soo much fun. We also headed back to her house to do some more inside. But we all felt that the snow shots were fun and couldn’t wait to see them.
When Mavis came to view the images, she decided almost immediately that the umbrella portrait would be her Christmas card. She loved that it was different and so did I.

I think she made the right choice

It just goes to show, that no matter what the weather, a professional photographer can “make it work!” as Tim Gunn (from the hit Bravo TV’s show by Heidi Klum…Project Runway) says.