Photogrpahy Portfolio

    Kari Miller, age 3, is completely oblivious to the intense volleyball game going on behind her Sunday afternoon. People of all ages took advantage of the beautiful weather to enjoy some volleyball and picnicking.  

           

Tourists cross the T. Evans Wyckoff Memorial Bridge as hundreds flock to see the newly-restored Boeing 747 jet belonging to the Museum of Flight

Young lads from a local youth group gather around a campfire for songs and s'mores. 

Pastry chefs from around the world showcased their talents at last week's United Pastry Chef Convention. Pictured is fresh butter-crunch toffee with almonds.

 

Amy, 9, shows off her beach combing finds. The warm weather this weekend brought loads of families to Newcastle Island.

 The ring pictured is apart of a touring museum exhibit titled 'The Last Great Warriors'. The ring was discovered in a Viking burial ground nearly a decade ago, and is one of several pieces of fine jewelry. They are believed to belong to a king's wife, and are all handcrafted by the king. The jewelry is still in mint condition, and are truly stunning. The exhibit will continue touring for the remainder of the year.

A rebel party guest takes off with a bunch of balloons in a blur of purple and green. The balloons were soon returned.

Ryan, 7, takes a moment to combine his two favourite things: soccer and trampoline.

The young bride radiates joy at seeing her husband-to-be while her father contemplates having to give his little girl away to another man.

Sisters Leah, Melody, and Taylor take in the beautiful west-coast sunset on the beach. 

Amy and Ryan enjoy a summer stroll with their puppy, Ruby (not pictured) yesterday afternoon.  

Ezra, age 1, showcases the classic baby-blue eyes and pout for photographers at the third annual Mothers' Exposition.

The bungee-run operator takes a minute to explain to a little guy that the ride has a minimum age and height limit. The bungee-run was just one of many free attractions offered to the public at the 16th annual Love Your City in Maffeo Sutton Park.

Ryan and Amy, 6 and 9 respectively, strike a threatening pose for the camera as they head out for a walk on Wednesday afternoon.

Body in Motion

Motion is my least favourite area of photography, but it’s also my favourite. The countless shots, shutter-speed adjustments, and angle-changing is all worth it once you achieve that perfect shot. 

  For the following pictures, I used a variation of shutter speeds. While low shutter speeds (1/6) capture motion well, it often allows too much light, and my pictures turned out to be nothing more than a white-light blur. I had to find that balance that allowed me to capture motion, and also adequate lighting.

  While I enjoy capturing sport shots, my favourite motion shots are candid, everyday moments that some people might not even consider ‘motion’ or ‘action’. The following two pictures that were shot from behind are probably my favourite. The one featuring two children was taken on a casual walk in my neighborhood. The second one was taken while crossing a glass-enclosed bridge to the Boeing Museum of Flight air field. It has an almost vortex-like feeling to it.

  Some of my shots had humorous outcomes. For example, I had taken multiple pictures of the boys playing volleyball. I didn't realize until later that Kari had managed to appear in the bottom left corner of all of them. I love how oblivious she is to the action around her. 

      For in Him we live and move and have our being.

                                                                             Acts 17:28

Tourists cross the T. Evans Wyckoff Memorial Bridge as hundreds flock to see the newly-restored Boeing 747 jet belonging to the Museum of Flight.

Amy and Ryan enjoy a summer stroll with their puppy, Ruby (not pictured) yesterday afternoon.  

              Members of Super Sonic Youth take to the floor under a disco ball at their year-end dance party last week.

 Left to right: Taylor, Melody, Leah, and Kursty all participated in a beach-photo shoot featuring local talent and locations last Friday. Proceeds from the shoot will be donated to the Wellness Animal Centre.

  Zeke and Sable show off their bike-riding skills at the Village's first-annual childrens bike race last Saturday.

Over a dozen youngsters competed in the annual sack-race at the Oceanside church family picnic Sunday afternoon. Participants and winners alike received chocolate gold-medals.

   Kari Miller, age 3, is completely oblivious to the intense volleyball game going on behind her Sunday afternoon. People of all ages took advantage of the beautiful weather to enjoy some volleyball and picnicking.

Photojournalism: SuperSonic Youth

    The SuperSonic Youth group, aimed for grades 5-8, meets every Friday night at The Junction. The youth get to socialize, learn about God, worship, and play games. The leaders work together to create a friendly, safe environment for these kids, as well as building a Godly foundation in them.   

  SuperSonic Youth leader, Jordan, plays the guitar and sings with the youth last Friday at The Junction.

  Above: Kids and leaders find seats in the Upper Room

 Below: Youth pastor, Kevin, shares on prayer.

  

 

           

                            

   

            

             The night ends with snacks (homemade chocolate cake!) and some campfire songs. 

Motion

  I took advantage of the beautiful weather today, and took some 'action' shots of the kids and the dogs. Enjoy!

 And, of course, the baby:

Non-alcoholic Spanish Sangria

 

  I came across this recipe for non-alcoholic sangria recently. Sangria is traditionally from Spain and Portugal. It is made with wine, chopped fruit, and a sweetener. I fell in love with the non-alcoholic version of this drink because the ingredients can be varied according to preference and it is fairly less harsh than most sugary drinks.

Ingredients:
4 cups cranberry or grape juice
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 lemon, orange, apple, or lime, cut in circles (You can use as many fruit pieces as you like. I chose to use just lemon)
3 cups Sprite or ginger ale

1. Fill a large pitcher about 1/3 full of ice cubes. Pour cranberry or grape juice over the ice, and add lemon juice.

2. Slice fruit of choice and add to the pitcher.

3. Add ginger ale or Sprite. Stir and serve chilled.

Me gusta!

Potato, Vegetable, and Sausage Casserole

  

  Cold, winter weather calls for comfort food. I usually turn to making soups. I like to start in the morning, double the recipe, and let it simmer on the stove until dinner time. 

  While looking for a potato soup recipe (potato soup is my favourite!), I happened across a recipe for a cheesy potato and sausage casserole. It looked heavenly, but a little plain. 

  So, naturally, I fixed that.

Ingredients:

4 cups potatoes, quartered and boiled

1 onion, chopped

1-2 stalks of celery, chopped

5 cloves of garlic

4 carrots

1 1/2 cups frozen corn

2 cups smoked sausage (you can also use ham), sliced

2 cups cheese, shredded and divided (I used orange cheddar and Gouda) 

2 cups milk

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup butter

Salt, pepper, and paprika to taste

*Note: you can increase any of the amounts to suit your preferences 

1. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Chop onion, celery, and garlic. Saute in olive oil in a large saucepan. Cut carrots into rounds and put in a steamer. Add corn. This recipe is extremely versatile, so feel free to add bell peppers, frozen peas, and anything else you have in the fridge! 

 2. Cut the sausage into bite-sized pieces. I had three different sausages left over from Christmas, and I used a little of all three.

3. Add the sausage to the onion mix and increase heat. Place boiled potatoes in a large casserole dish, and add corn and carrots.

4. Once the sausage is lightly browned, add to the casserole dish. Toss lightly with two forks to mix.

5. Now the sauce! Mix milk, flour, and butter in a small pot. Add 1 cup of cheese (I did one cup of Gouda) and stir until the cheese is melted. Pour over the casserole. Top with the remaining 1 cup of cheese.

6. Cook for 30 minutes or until the cheese is melted. I found waiting for it to cook was hands down the hardest part. Once it's finished, serve warm.

 

Toffee

  I love toffee.
  And chocolate.
  And candy.
  I have tried to make candy before, using the mixture-in-cold-water. Unfortunately, it isn't as nearly as accurate as a candy thermometer. So, I finally invested in one, and immediately got to work.


 INGREDIENTS
-2 cups slivered almonds
-1 1/2 cups butter
-1 2/3 cups white sugar
-1/4 cup water
-3 tablespoons corn syrup
-1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
-8 ounces milk, semisweet, or dark chocolate (I used chocolate chips)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. While the almonds are cooling, butter a 9 x 13 inch pan.

2. Melt the butter over medium heat. Add sugar, water, and corn syrup, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved. Once the mixture begins to boil, stop stirring and clamp on the candy thermometer. The mixture will look a little something like this:

3. It takes about 15 minutes for it to reach hard crack stage (about 300 degrees Fahrenheit). While this boils, take one cup of almonds and chop them roughly. Set aside. Resist the urge to stir it.

While I was waiting for the candy to boil, I tried to take pictures of my dog. She either refused to look at the camera, or wouldn't stay still.

4. When the candy has reached hard crack stage it will look like this: 

Remove from heat immediately. Stir in the chopped almonds and the vanilla. Pour evenly into the buttered pan.

5. Gently sprinkle the chocolate of your choice (I used dark and semisweet) over the toffee. After a few minutes, it will be soft enough to spread. Sprinkle on the remaining almonds.

 You can put the toffee in the refrigerator, or let it harden at room temperature. Once it's hard, attack with a mallet and eat.

 Or, you can break it into uneven pieces and store in an airtight container. It will last about a week at room temperature, or can be frozen for approximately a month.

Me gusta! Enjoy :)