Hallie - Courtenay Grad 2020

As we all know, this has not been a typical year, especially for high school graduates. So I wanted to do something special for Hallie, who is graduating from Vanier High School.

The light was beautiful the other night at Kye Bay, which made her beautiful red hair glisten in the golden sun. Hallie's goal is to pursue musical theatre, so she was very comfortable in front of the camera.

Hallie also brought along some casual clothes for a more natural look.

Her dad Jim came along and became my instant assistant, carrying around my lighting and making sure it didn't blow away on a breezy evening. Thank you Jim! This also gave me the opportunity to take a few daddy-daughter shots.

And of course a new headshot for Jim.

Congratulations and all the best, Hallie!

I am still taking bookings for grads of 2020, so if there is someone you know who would like a fun photo shoot experience to cap off their high school years, please send them my way! Contact info can be found here. Bye for now!

Treat Catching with Josie

Hey there, the last time I wrote a blog post I realized it had been 6 months since I had posted one. Well guess what, this time it has been over 6 months! It hasn’t been for a lack of shooting, although with the pandemic I obviously haven’t been taking nearly as many portraits as I’d like.

Lately I’ve been enjoying making treat-catching photos. I asked on my Facebook page if my followers would like to see a video of how I make them and there was a big positive response, so even though I’m not usually one to be in front of the camera I made this little video so you can see how I produce images like these:

This style has been popularized by German photographer Christian Vieler. He has amazing treat-catching images so I hope you check out his work. His Instagram handle is @vieler.photography.

Enjoy the video!

I should mention that the images I have posted in the video (and above) have been edited. Because I use a wide angle lens for these shots they get cropped quite a bit. I make them square and do some minor editing (mostly increasing contrast and clarity and adding a vignette).

I plan on offering a “post COVID” package deal on treat-catching sessions once things get up and running again so if you’re interested you can stay tuned for that, or join my mailing list to get notified. To do that click here.

So long and stay safe!

Comox Valley's Best Dog Walking Trails: #1

Now that I have a puppy (a very active puppy!), I am spending more and more time walking in the great outdoors. And of course I have come to have my favourite spots for walking Josie here in the Comox Valley. So I thought I would do a blog series on my favourite dog walking trails.

So today’s post is all about my #1 favourite dog walking park in Courtenay: Seal Bay Park!

Managed by the Comox Valley Regional District, Seal Bay Park has it all: endless walking and multi-use trails, an ocean playground, lots of wildlife and views of mainland mountains. It is over 652 hectares in size and is never crowded. There are leashed and leashing optional trails for dogs, although in the spring there is mandatory leashing due to nesting and fawning season.

Josie learned to swim here last week!

One of the fun things about Seal Bay’s beach is that you almost always see seals, either on the rocks or swimming in the distance. Once I even saw orcas!

Unfortunately the beach is rocky, but at low tide there is a bit of sand to play on.

Every season in this park has it’s own beauty. I think I love fall the most. The colours are spectacular. Even though I detest winter, sometimes the crisp winter air is refreshing.

One of my favourite walks with Josie is around Melda’s Marsh. Often you can see beavers swimming around in the evenings.

Although there are several ways to enter the park, the main lot is on Bates Road. From there you can take one of three trails that meander down to the ocean (coming back up is a chore), or cross the road for more trail options.

My hubby and I have started biking the 10k horse bike loop. That is a great way to tire Josie out.

Stay tuned for more posts about my favourite dog walking trails in the Comox Valley. Let me know if you have any trails you’d like me to try out! I’m always looking for more places to go.

I’ll leave you with a few more shots of the park.

Jessica's "Trash the Dress" Session

My daughter Jessica has been a horse girl since grade 4, and when she got engaged to her man Elder, she thought it was fitting to have the ceremony at her horse Maverick’s barn, Dove Creek Heritage Farm. But alas, the weather didn’t cooperate and we made the decision to have the ceremony at the reception venue, the Little Red Church in Comox.

Jessica still wanted to have photos with Maverick, so a few days later we headed out to the barn to do a “trash the dress” session. I’ve never really been comfortable with the term “trash the dress” because I’m much too practical for that. But, I like the idea of brides being able to do some fun shots in their dress without fear that they might get it a little bit dirty. And, I like the thought that after the wedding is over, it’s time to get on with life (the marriage is of course more important than the wedding), and that she won’t need the dress anymore.

So here are a bunch of shots from our fun time together!

Lovely Lovebirds - Courtenay Pet Photographer

My friend Virginia recently added 2 lovebirds to her family, so I knew I just had to photograph them. I had never done a bird portrait shoot before so I didn't quite know what to expect, but they did great! 

These little fellas are still quite young, but very well-behaved. I love their beautiful colours.

To get them to fly toward me, I had my assistant hold a branch where I wanted them to go. After a bit of coaxing, they started to fly toward the camera. They totally got into a groove and did it over and over again, as if it were a game. It is incredible how fast a bird can flap it's wings. They went from one branch to another in a split second.

My husband recently pruned our fig tree so we had some branches in the back yard. The birds were curious and started pecking at them!

I love this one below because it just looks like they are two friends hanging out having a friendly conversation. They look totally comfortable with each other.

As a reminder, my last pet mini-session event of the fall is coming up next Saturday, November 25th. Click on the bar above if you'd like to get in on the fun!

Urban Look, Rural Setting - Courtenay Photographer

I love finding new locations! I have been wanting to shoot at Headquarters Townsite Park ever since the fall, but alas, the rain, snow and lousy weather kept me away. Now the sun is starting to shine a little more regularly so I rounded up three beautiful young women and headed out there for a photo shoot.

The graffiti provides a totally interesting and colourful background to shoot against. First we did some "modelly" shots and then finished with some fun ones.

You can't do a friends photo shoot without some fun and crazy antics!

There's the Charlie's Angels:

The Ninjas:

And the Jump Shot!:

Thank you Noa, Makayla, and Jess for being good sports! I hope to do another photo shoot here soon...the options are endless.

Here's to many more sunny days to come!

Foster Pups - Vancouver Island Pet Photography

My former neighbour Virginia is fostering three sweet little puppies for West Coast Animal Rescue Society here on Vancouver Island, and they were so cute I just had to photograph them! They are three of six in the litter and are only six weeks old. 

It is hilarious that these little ones are all named after "Friends" characters, so their names are: Janice, Emma and Chandler! (Apparently Monica didn't suit any of their personalities, hence the name Emma). Phoebe, Joey and Rachel are being fostered with other families down Island.

Virginia brought along this cute Easter basket so we actually got the puppies to stay still for a split second! As you can imagine, keeping puppies still is not an easy task.

These puppies are totally mixed breeds, and they are tiny. They likely have chihuahua, shih tzu, and a bunch of other breeds. It is amazing how different they all are in their colouring.

Look at those eyes! 

Eventually, the puppies did settle down and have naps, and of course they looked even cuter. My daughter Jessica set this fuzzy blanket on her lap and they curled right up.

I have so many more amazing photos from this shoot but I don't think you could handle any more cuteness for one day so I'll leave it at that. If you would like to see more over the coming weeks, check out my Instagram page, @ssniderdogphotography. And if you are interested in adopting or fostering these or any other dogs from West Coast Animal Rescue Society, check them out on Facebook, or click on their website, http://westcoastanimalrescuesociety.ca

Jessica's Grad Photo Shoot - Courtenay Photographer

For those of you who don't know me well, Jessica is my firstborn and one and only daughter. She has had a love of horses since grade 4 and I have taken many (countless!) photographs of her riding over the years. This photo shoot, however, was extra special. She is graduating from high school next week!

Maverick is her horse and has been a great companion to her since we moved from Chilliwack two years ago. When she was lonely and missing her friends, he was there with unconditional love.

But there is a lot more to Jessica than her love of horses. She is a talented musician, trusted friend and dedicated student. She finished her high school courses early so that she could work and enroll in a dual-credit psychology course at North Island College. Working at Woofy's Pet Foods in Courtenay and Comox has allowed her to save up enough money to take a trip to Brazil this summer to visit friends she met last year. As her mother I'm naturally a little nervous about this but I know that her friends will take great care of her while she learns a new culture and way of life.

I'll leave you with a few more of the portraits I took of Jess and Maverick this week, and one more from one of her first riding lessons, way back in 2008!  Congratulations on your graduation, Jess! Your dad and I are very proud of you!