A coworker of mine has been in looking at buying a new camera and every now and then she and I talk about photography. Although I own primarily Canon equipment, I usually recommend that people buy what feels good in their hands and that once they have a camera that they practice and take lots of photos. So much of what I've learned when it comes to photography came from photographing constantly and then analyzing my shots, comparing my work against that of a photographer I admire. And I wasn't too afraid to experiment. Nor was I afraid to admit that my work would never be perfect.

Now that I have a camera that also shoots video, I'm trying to take that same approach. I've had a Vimeo account since 2006, but I've never had any video projects to share. Now, I do. There usually pointless little things (much like many of my photos), but they are my attempt to document bits and pieces of my life. And they're fun to create. With my camera almost always within reach, it's easy to record tiny snippets here and there to piece together into a longer form. Just like composition with my photographs, I'm learning how to compose for video. Although there are some similarities, video does require a slightly different way of thinking. It's also requiring a different way of dealing with my equipment. Video on the 5DMKII is testing my understanding of exposure as well as my manual focusing ability. And then there is the concept of sound, which I'm only just beginning to dabble with. It's really rather fun, although I forsee this new hobby becoming another expensive one.

Here are my latest three videos. When I first started shooting video I had the tendency to follow motion with the camera. Now I'm understanding to keep the camera still and let things move across the frame. None of these are of course perfect, but it will be interesting to look at them after a few months and see if I've made any progress.

Let's pretend that my Sunday went a little bit like this...

So there I was, lounging on the daybed doing my best to look peaceful and relaxed.

The phone rings. It's actually close enough for me to hear it and see who's calling.

I answer. It's one of my many friends inviting me out to socialize. An art show... in Millwoods! But of course, I'm always up for an adventure.



Of course that's not exactly how my Sunday morning unfolded (plans were actually hatched days before and sorted out via text and email... I almost never use my phone as a phone anymore, but I felt like constructing a bit of a false narrative so that I could post the series of pictures above), but I did end up in Millwoods at an art show. It's not all creative fiction.

Much like Saturday, the weather was spectacular. The sunny skies and warm temperatures meant it was definitely sundress time. I wasn't the only one with this idea. Most of the ladies in attendance were baring their legs in some form.



The artshow was totally casual and relaxed. The artist, Erin Hooper, is an old friend of Sarah and her sister Sable, and her parents had transformed their home into a makeshift gallery for her art. Erin's paintings, sketches,  and etchings were on display throughout the house. I actually preferred it to the last gallery showing I went to. I find that sometimes it can be hard to imagine what a piece of art would like in a room full of furniture and books, in between curios and whatnots, in rooms where you can't stand back 5-10 ft. to admire a piece. What does art look like in rooms where we live? It was interesting to see Erin's art in the context of a home, in some ways it made of the really huge pieces that she had created seem much more accessible. I think it would be interesting to see an independent gallery that was set up more like a house with art in it... I wonder if people would buy more? There was one piece that I would have loved to buy, but it just wasn't something I had budgeted for. Sigh.



I'd like to mix in a few original paintings and illustrations in with my photographs. It will happen, eventually.

The afternoon was particularly lovely. I got to meet new people, play with my very charming surrogate nephew, and drink lemonade. All-in-all, it was a good afternoon. The only thing that was missing was my sister Alessandra who was supposed to come along too so that we could have made it a trio of sisters... Sarah + Sable, Emma + Erin, and then of course me and Alessandra. She let us all down. Alessandra, if you're reading this... we were all very disappointed in you ;)



On my way back from the artshow, I stopped by Grandin station to photograph some of the blossoming flora along the street. Of course photographs weren't enough given my new recent obsession with pointless little films. But how could I resist?



The answer my friend is blowing in the wind.

While there are a few other farmer's markets that run during the week, Saturday has always been market day for me, especially once the downtown farmer's market (also known as the City Market) opens for the season. Although I could take the LRT there, it's maybe a ten minute walk from my apartment to 104th street. I was meeting up with my friends Wade and Phil for breakfast, but I was having trouble sleeping after waking up from a nightmare about stolen pizza. So while it wasn't quite the crack of dawn when I left the house, it was still early enough that some of the more 'responsible' nighttime revelers had not yet picked up their vehicles from the downtown parking lots along Jasper Avenue's 'entertainment' district. w00t! Clubbing at the ultralounge!



The downtown sidewalks were mostly deserted, with the exception of a few socially conscous seniors sporting raybans and t-shirts that read "Keep Alberta Nuclear Free!" the only other people I passed were a crew removing a tree from the mini parking lot across the street from RedStar (note the newly completed storefront facade above RedStar).


The city could use a bit more street level activity along Jasper on the weekend. It can be a bit apocalyptic at times. I half expect someone to call to me from behind a door and tell me that I'm crazy to be out wandering about and that soon I'll be consumed by the zombie army that lurks on the next block. Thankfully, the crowd that was gathering a few streets away was not interested in eating brains, rather local produce instead (uhh... so if you're wondering where all these zombie references are coming from I recently bought a book about preparing for a zombie attack for Sarah, I think I've been overly influenced by it).

And so... the market.



I had actually intended on doing more shopping at the market than shooting photos or video, but very quickly the camera took precedence and I didn't pick up a single thing. Next time I'll leave the camera at home, or better yet, leave the serious shopping to the gentleman while I happily take pictures.



The market felt a bit like set of My Fair Lady, with lots of plants and flowers for sale. I couldn't find anyone who resembled Eliza Doolittle though (despite there being flowers and girls aplenty), but more than a few dogs were large enough to be mistaken for small horses and one could have easily hitched them up to a hansom cab.


I might have left empty-handed, but most people didn't. I expect that on future Saturdays I'll look a lot like this lady below, with bags full of local fare. If I continue the trend of being at the market by 9am I might actually be early enough to get something from the Queen of Tarts.

Here's your summary of what took place this afternoon.



and the longer version:

I had plans to meet up with Wade for lunch at the university since I was going to be on campus following another video shoot (my seventh for the week), but early in the morning I got an email from my interview subject asking to reschedule. The temporary cancellation proved fortuitous since I ended up using the time to finish editing another video I had shot the day before. But, as my luck would have it, I ended up missing lunch with Wade and didn't get a chance to leave the office until much later that afternoon.

I was going to retire to the quiet of the home office, but Sarah was heading out of the house to get some work done on her master's thesis, so we arranged to meet at the newly opened second location of Transcend Coffee on the south side of the river on 109th street. Sarah made her way there by bike while I trekked across the High Level Bridge on foot. Usually I love the walk, but between carrying my computer and camera I was really lamenting my lack of a bicycle. The trip to Transcend would have taken mere minutes and I would have spared my shoulders the digging in of canvas straps from my various bags.




I really like the big picture windows and corner location of Transcend, but I'm a bit put off by the limitations of the coffee boutique. Considering the location of the shop (so close to the university and right next door to the Garneau theatre) the owners would probably be wise to expand their menu offerings. Right now they serve some baked goods and waffles, but the place needs more food. Perhaps they think that will complicate their business model. I get that their priority is coffee, but even with the free wi-fi and comfortable chairs, we ended up leaving Transcend to go by nearby DaCapo to get some pizza.

So about a month ago I photographed the grand opening of the new location of Lux Beauty Boutique in the High Street shopping area. It's taken me much longer than I anticipated to finish editing these photos, but I'll blame that on the number of work projects that I have on the go. I wonder if I'm ever going to be able to finish unpacking and paint my bedroom.

Despite the recent snow storm, during mid April we were experiencing a doubt of particularly warm weather. I had been working from the home office that day so I walked to the store, wandering through the Grandin neighbourhood and down Victoria Promenade, taking my time to admire the scenery.


I first met Jennifer Le Grimm, Lux's owner/beauty-junkie-in-chief, through a series of NextGen connections. Jenn's husband Mike was on the NextGen Steering Committee. It's possible that we didn't meet until the first Pecha Kucha event, but for some reason I think it was earlier. Anyhow, while I don't recall the exact circumstances brought us together, at some point Jenn discovered that I took photos, and every so often she has asked me to photograph things for her and I've been happy to oblige. I'm always happy to volunteer because Jenn gives me carte blanche to shoot what I want. Which is exactly what I want to do when I photograph events like this.

The new store is lovely. In addition to all the pretty packaging of the various lotions and potions, it's filled with plenty of delightful details like custom wallpaper, pretty light fixtures, and some vintage stools. It's so much larger than the original location and it has plenty of huge windows to let in natural light. I was very impressed when I first saw it.


The decor is feminine but not too girlish, it's whimsical but still classy, and it's modern without being too cold. It's really quite a nicely designed space. I had a chance to briefly catch up with Mike during the event and he told me about all the aspects of the design that Jenn was responsible for. It's extremely impressive to think how she was able to conceptualize all this and balance being a new mom. I'm always admire her tenacity and how she just gets things done.


The customers who attended this first private shopping party were clearly in agreement. With lineups that were literally outside the door, inside the store was packed with enthusiastic shoppers who were giddy with excitement about the bigger store and some of the new products that were available.

But the event was not just about shopping. Jenn had organized for catering from d'Lish Urban Kitchen (a 124th Street neighbour) in addition to a selection of wines selected by another local business whose name I can't remember at the moment. The Prosecco di Conegliano was very popular (but that comes as no surprise since it hails from the Veneto region of Italy, and as we all know that is where the best of Italy hails from, like my family). The food was also tasty and delicious. I had already been photographing inside for a couple hours when I headed outside to the catering tent/waiting area. People inside were really taking their time to browse through the merchandise, so there were always a few others waiting outside to get in. With the fine selection of organic fare to snack on, no one complained about having to wait.


So while shopping continued upstairs, I took a brief break from taking photos and sampled the specially seasoned popcorn, the delectable ganache spoons, the soup shots (one was a spinach gazpacho, the other a spicy tomato basil something or other), and the flatbread (can you tell I'm not a food blogger, the most I can say about the food was that it was delicious). I don't think d'Lish was responsible for the mini-cupcakes but they were ridiculously addictive. Eventually I abandoned the food and returned upstairs to photograph the next set of customers who had made it inside.






It was such a fantastic turn out for the grand opening. Women of every age were there. They shopped with their friends, with their mothers, and the occasional spouse. I was pleased to see the support for the local boutique. And as a sign of appreciation to everyone who came, Jenn and her staff at LUX had prepared swag bags full of product samples. As a lucky result, I've discovered a new facial moisturizer from the swag bag (Linden Leaves herbalist daily facial moisture... secret ingredient calendula oil). Hopefully this weekend I'll reprise my walk through Grandin and along Victoria Promenade and stop in at the shop to pick up some supplies. Perhaps while I'm in the area I'll check out some of the other neighbouring boutiques... some cheese for a picnic perhaps?