Reaman-Duetta Family

This fall we had the pleasure of photographing this family for their very first Family Portraits! It was so great to be able to do this for them. And then to see all the beautiful portraits that we took.  We know they will treasure them forever. 

2 Weeks Later
It always feels so wonderful to see looks of delight and surprise from our clients as they view their images for the first time.
When you hear a mom say she might need Kleenex, you know you've reached your goal! You've created portraits that evoke emotions. Made us need Kleenex too.

Road Trip!!!!

Is there anything better then taking a road trip with your family? Do you remember road trips from when you were a kid?

We're getting ready to take one all the way to Nova Scotia to see our wonderful family and have a bit of fun! But sometimes the drive out is not so fun....

"Are we there yet?"
"I have to go pee!"
"I'm hungry!"
"Why are we doing this anyways?"

And on and on and ON......

Well this trip I promised myself would be different! I am making my 7 going on 17 year old boy a bin that will definitely keep him entertained!

On the lid I will glue a flat large piece of Lego.... So inside the box will be some Lego of course!  Maybe a surprise kit as well.  Something that goes with our trip, sea animals, boats.... will figure that one out tomorrow!

He will also be able to use the lid to colour his colouring books, or play some of the other games.

Here is a wonderful site chalked full of fantastic games to play:

http://www.momsminivan.com/index.html

We want to buy Battleship for Nicholas to play, but as a trial, we are going to try the printable version.  In addition there is always good old Car Bingo! Plus I plan on printing out maps of where we are going and getting him a compass to learn how to navigate our way.

If all this fails I will have a few more ideas up my sleeve that I have found on Pinterest.  If you decide to search Pinterest, be careful not to get lost!

I hope this gives you ideas on how to enjoy your road trips (short or long).

See you all soon!

November 11th and the Holidays

I know some people may have the opinion that anything holiday related prior to November 11 is disrespectful.  As a military wife I can understand that opinion completely. However, for custom portraits that you hope to send out to loved ones as your holiday card, getting a head start is essential! 

What if you all of a sudden can't make your session time? What if at your session, your child decides to have a bad day so you need to reschedule? Time is still needed for you to see your completed images, pick the ones you want and the design, then wait for them to arrive from the printer - let's say an additional 4 weeks.

If you book and get in today, you will receive your cards during the first week of December. Now you have to stuff the envelopes and mail them out. 

Even with everything being smooth sailing, it's a tight schedule!

In the end, we at least will be closed on November 11th.  It is one day that I have always insisted that I have off.  I attend a ceremony each year - usually the one where my husband is on parade. I hope this year to see some of you, my wonderful clients and friends there with us.

The joys of Infertility

A local business owner and friend of mine Karen Stoyles from Nature Prenatal recently posted an article regarding the Ontario Government (article) paying for IVF.  This sparked an urge in me to tell my experience with IVF. In addition I will be adding a special discounts section on my website.  Please check to see what I will be offering to those who have gone through IVF.

My IVF Story

You're walking down the street you see a couple pushing a stroller with a little baby inside, and you just can't help but feel like crying. You sit there and you think, why can't that be us? Why is it so hard for us? Why are we hitting all these road blocks? Month after month, you try and try and try, and it's always negative. 

Then the doctor finally says, "ok, time for an intervention! Let's send you to the local Infertility clinic!.  But there's a waiting list.

"Oke dokey"

Several months go by then we finally see the specialist.

"We got to do a HSG x-ray, a laparoscopy, and a whole bunch of other tests, then we'll try IUI (Inter Uterine Insemination)." "Oke dokey"

Little do you know, that you are going to gain weight like crazy because of the wonderful hormones they give you, and the depression you're going to feel when month after month, you still get a negative....

Time for a mental and physical break!

Low and behold though, you are no longer in your 20's! You're not even in your low 30's! That extra weight from the Clomide is not falling off like it use to, and you know you're on a deadline to reach you're goal! So back to the doctor! 

"What's the next step?"

"IVF..... but we don't do that here. You have to go to Calgary or Burnaby or Ontario. Best clinic right now is Calgary."

"Oke Dokey"

"There's a waiting list"

"Nokey dokey, I'm not getting any younger.... I've got a deadline I'm fast approaching!"

"There's a cost too, big one"

"Well thank goodness hubby just got back from Afghanistan!  We got a little extra there, plus some savings, and RRSP's and some stocks."

So on the list we go and we wait, and wait and wait........

We get the call... We're on the list to wait to come in for the orientation to see if we qualify.

Orientation comes..... We pass the psychological tests (amazing that this point). We pass the general physical. Then we talk to the doctor - one of the doctors. He tells us the chances of it working.  They have to transfer 2 embryo's back into me. Any that are remaining can go into cryo-preservation for future attempts. 

We're on the waiting list.............. again ...............

We then get a call at the very end of August the are sending my drugs via courier.  I start them September 1st (I'm in Quebec visiting my parents getting home August 31st). 

September 1st arrives.... my husband has to inject me! I really, really want a baby, but I'm not to sure about him injecting me! We are lucky enough to have a friend who use to be a nurse. She comes over and demonstrates for him how to give the needle.  How easy it slides in. No issue's.  Slides right in..... Easy peasy!!!! The next day my husband is on his own to give it to me in my belly! I'm sure you've guessed what happened by now..... I'm surprised he didn't feel the need to jump and jab it in!!! OUCH!!! The good thing is, after that he realized how easy it slides in and there were no further jabs!

Weeks went by then we were off to Calgary for the eggs to be removed.... here was the most nerve wrecking part! Not the taking out of the eggs.  Yes there was a little bit of pain. But I was trying to get pregnant, which would lead to birth which is suppose to be painful as well... so it was worth it. The nerve wrecking part is the morning line-up for ultra sounds and blood work to see if your follicles are ready. Many couples, just like you, lining up, hoping all the stars will finally be lined up for them.... their lottery number will finally be called..... the rainbow will end on their doorstep!

And then, even more nerve wrecking, how many.....

19

9 viable

We had to have an additional procedure done ICSI (Intracytoplasmic sperm injection).

7 survived ICSI Process

4 survived to day 2

3 survived to day 3 - Transfer Day

So they transfer them in, and give you a lovely photo of you`re 8 cell embryos. Then into recovery, and then back to your hotel for the night. The next day you`re on your way home.....

With a blood test for pregnancy and more hormones. The next step is to wait.  The first day your period is due you have to go for your blood test and then wait for them to call. If it`s positive they send you for an ultra sound to see how many of the embryo`s took.

We were extremely lucky!  One round of IVF and it worked.  It doesn`t always. I was 39 when Nicholas was born.  My chances of another successful pregnancy coming to term dropped to 15%. 

The total cost at the end with hotels, meals, procedures, etc was around $15000.00. Alberta, at that time, did not cover any of it. My work benefits, covered some of my IUI medication costs but that was it. I`m sure this is a familiar to some of you who have gone through this. It is a long, costly process.  But in the end, the cost is a pittance compared to the miracle we are given.

 

 

Drip, Drip, Drip...

It's raining outside.....  

Puddle Jumping

From now until the end of summer you can book a Puddle Jumping Mini Session for your child for $30.00!!

This includes:
   ~ A phone consultation to ensure we tailor our custom session to achieve your portrait vision. We will also go over location, date and time.
   ~ 30 - 45 minutes of session time
   ~ Time spent fully editing a final selection of images for you
   ~ Your final meeting to reveal the completed images and you may make your purchase decisions.


Look at the weather forecast and if it's 60% or higher probability of rain, book a session with us!


Suggested attire:  raincoat, boots, umbrella, coveralls, jeans.  Solids instead of patterns is always better.  Shirts without logo's or writing.

Favourite Things...

As time has gone by I've had the opportunity to photograph so many different things. Each one has taught me a different lesson, or has helped me to see things in a new light.  Here are a few of my favourite images.

Angel

Deekin

Missy

My Family

My Boy

Lac Megantic - Memories of Summer

THE PICTURE PERFECT BABY ROOM CONTEST

THE PICTURE PERFECT 

BABY ROOM CONTEST

Why are we looking for a picture perfect room? We are looking for a room to be photographed for our marketing and sales materials. We will go to your home and photograph the room without anything on the wall, so we can, through the magic of Photoshop and other tools, put products on your walls to show off how lovely they can be.

1. Send us a picture or even a video of your baby's room. - Without a flash! Oh yeah there had to be a hitch!
2. Sit and wait, and wait, and wait. After waiting for your bundle of joy to arrive, I know you're tired of waiting but it won't be nine months. Winner will be announced on August 17th, 2015

How Will the Winner be Determined?

I've selected a small group of people to review the images you send in.  They will be looking that them simply for how nice the room looks.  We will narrow down the list, then look again to see how the room matches my business brand. Then I will be look at the quality of light and where the light lands and other photographic details to determine how it will be for photographing it.

The rules

1. The pictures and / or video's cannot be professionally produced.
2. You must live within the province of Ontario, and more specifically - within a .5 hour drive of Rockland.
3. If you win, you must use your $100 certificate within 1 year of the winner being announced. It may be applied to a session fee only (excluding mini sessions). There is no cash value therefore no refund or exchange if not used or if you are for any reason unsatisfied with the terms.  BEFORE YOU ENTER, VIEW OUR WEBSITE AND SEE IF YOU LIKE OUR STYLE. IF WE AREN'T FOR YOU, THEN WHAT GOOD IS WINNING IF YOU HATE WHAT YOU WIN?

What Size?

You would like to get a print made of your sleeping baby to display in your home, but you're not sure what size to get? What size will look good over your couch on that wall? Will it look too small or too big? 

The above image gives you an idea of what each size print will look like above the average sized couch. If you're considering a grouping of images, let us know and we can build it for you. Even better, send us a picture of your space, and we will build it in your space so you can see what it will look like when all together.

My View on Print vs Digital AGAIN.......

Why Quality Prints are Important.

Some of you have heard me say "No I don't sell digital copies".  But there are reasons why I have preferred not to.  Reasons to protect you, me and your legacy.

Let's just think about it for a few minutes......

If I was to hand you a cassette tape and tell you your images are on there, you would probably think I'm nuts. But, way back in the NOT so distant past, programs were saved on cassettes.  I know, because my favourite game on my Atari was Jaw Breaker and it was on a tape, and it was a sad day when that tape got eaten by the machine.

If I was to ask you if you wanted them on a floppy, you might think I need to get with it.... To tell you the truth it would probably be several floppy's!

Now here's something a little more scary.... If you had a newer MAC AIR and I gave you a CD, you know what you would have? A nice coaster..... No more CD drives.

Now the other little known fact is that it in the IT world, CD's are not anticipated to work for more then 10 years.  So you load the images onto your computer right?  Ok, computer software is constantly being upgraded, and with that comes hardware that needs to be upgraded to run the new software. If a key component breaks down (your hard drive for example), some things may be retrieved, but some may not.

Those precious moments... That special time.... That key turning point in your life.....

Ok next scenario is that you did get them printed.  You sent them out to that local cheap place, so you could save some money. You hang it on the wall. You come to my studio and I happen to have the same one hanging on my wall as a sample of my work. You then notice, even though they are not side by side, there is a difference. Mine looks rich, and alive, and lush. Yours..... ummmmm.... doesn't?  Did I do something special to the file? No I just sent it to a professional lab to have it printed on HIGH QUALITY PAPER or CANVAS. Mine will last for years and years.  Yours may begin to fade in a couple of years. 

So where does the me part come into it? Well, from a business sense, when I sell you a digital file, you then have the ability to print that image in any medium, any size you would like. How much revenue does that one file potentially represent to me? Yes I know it's a selfish reason, but I do have to make a living also.

With all that being said, I am considering selling digital files as a premium product and in addition to the purchase of a legacy piece.  Watch for this on the new pricelists coming soon.

Below is a link to an article by the UK Telegraph regarding Google's Vice President's view on Print and Digital images.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/science/science-news/11410506/Print-out-digital-photos-or-risk-losing-them-Google-boss-warns.html

Warm Summer days are perfect for sessions out doors!  Maternity sessions are best booked for during weeks 34 - 36. Book early to ensure your session date!

Copyright Catherine Bowser Photography 2014