I just wanna stay up all night with you....

coreen exner May 11, 2018

Well, its been a minute hasn’t it?

I’ve recently accepted the fact that I cannot sustain a weekly blog. Or a monthy one.

As you can imagine, things have been a little crazy over here the last 5 months. Blissfully, beautifully, insanely crazy.

I have never been so empty, and yet so full, so tired and yet so awake, so exhausted, and yet so fulfilled.

To begin, I’ll start with the best part, the birth of our Little One, Remy.

He was scheduled to be delivered on December the 29th, via c-section. On the 21st, I went to see my Baby Doc, as I hadn’t seen her in a while and I was getting concerned about my blood pressure.

Sure enough, she confirmed that I was developing pre-eclampsia. (note to self-always trust your gut! I knew something wasn’t right and I made the appointment)

So, at 1130am on a Thursday, I was told that I would be having my third baby early, like now early, as in, tomorrow early (the 22nd)

Surprise!

I got in my car, I called a few friends, and I was a bawling mess; because I was so happy the wait was over; I would be holding my love and getting to smooch him a full week early. Because my hospital bag wasn’t even packed yet. Because I was mega hormonal. Because I was horribly, unbearably uncomfortable. Because at almost 40 years old, growing/birthing babies at my age is hard(er). Because I hadn’t finished folding his clothes and organizing his room yet. Because Jeff was arriving back home in Calgary in exactly 1 hour and 45 minutes and I knew he had things he wanted to finish in the next 7 days as well. Because, my last, my sweetest little baby, would be here with us for Christmas, and what a beautiful gift, what a great time to come into this world :)

I drove to the airport, and through tears, I told my husband that we had to go home and pack, and Grandma needed to come, and sleepover, because we were having a baby in the morning, and, and, and.... you get it. I was an emotional disaster. There was a whole lot more going on involving me monitoring my blood pressure and some tense moments, but what matters is-the next morning, Jeff and I drove to the hospital, the same one where Kash and Atty were born, and settled in, to welcome Baby Remy Wilson Brown into our family.

There were no complications, no dramatics, nothing out of the ordinary-we had a wonderful medical team (all female, just sayin’) at the Rockyview, and he came into this world surrounded by love and happy tears. It was amazing. The Drs even allowed Jeff to take this photo, baby still attached, umbilical cord hadn’t been cut yet. I'm pretty sure it’s the greatest photo Jeff has ever taken.

Being as old as I am, (40 at the end of this year) and knowing the toll this takes on my body (despite being a gym nerd and considerably healthy-ish) we knew going in that I would get the ‘ol Baby Factory shut down while they were in there, and that Remy would for sure-sies, be the last baby for us.

He has been the sweetest, calmest, most chilled out little baby you ever did meet. He smiles constantly, between naps and feeding, that is. We couldn’t have asked for a more healthy, charming, and beautiful little boy. I have already taken thousands of photos of him, and I'll share a few at the end of this post.

Introducing our older boys to the new baby was a heart-melting event; they are so in love with him-fiercely protective and already stepping up and helping out like big brothers should. Having 3 boys in my life...wow. just wow. What am I in for? Madness, I presume, but it will be beautiful, no doubt.

I should mention how grateful I am for a partner that was able to go into ‘action mode’ and be there for me as I prepared for surgery, had Remy, and spent two days in hospital recovering, while he cleaned the house, prepped the babys room, took care of Kash and Atty, did all the grocery shopping and cooking for Christmas celebrations for a few family members, and generally just ran the house perfectly for a few weeks so I could concentrate on breastfeeding and healing.

I literally have the best husband on the planet-hands down! ...aaaand in case you don’t believe me, here’s a few photos of him being a super Dad ❤️

So, a mere 32 days after Remy was born, I went back to work-taking the whole family with me out of the city to Canmore, a gorgeous mountain town not far from us.

I was there to photograph a wedding between a bride and groom that I hadn’t actually met in person yet, which was a first for me.

N&J were a super sweet couple; they had a great network of friends and family that made the trek to Canmore for their celebration. They were married and had the reception at The Cornerstone Theater, which is a STUNNING venue that I had been anxious to work at. It did not disappoint!

We did formals at Quarry Lake, my own familys favorite summer time swimming hole! It was snowing ridiculous amounts when we first arrived, but it subsided pretty quick and we were able to get some decent shots of the mountain backdrop.

I spent most of February just concentrating on family and bonding with the baby, trying to figure out the new routine after Jeff went back to work out of province. It was actually easier than I thought, and we all kind of settled in pretty good, and pretty quickly. I was able to do some valentines minis, and had a blast shopping for props to add to my ever-growing collection.

March came and I got back at it; studio sessions (7 sessions in one day, the most I've ever done…which got me to thinking…..more on that later) also a small east village wedding, engagement sessions, easter minis, and meetings with perspective clients. I also did my first session with a lovely young lady who is already a pro model. At the tender age of 16, she is a natural! and super sweet as well.

I love spending time with my kids, the baby especially, but I really loved getting back to work and finding that momentum again.

I had set a goal for myself to try and double last years weddings (9) and book 18 for 2018. I wasn’t sure that it was possible, especially because I live and work in a city that is inundated with so much talent, its ridiculous.

Last week, however, I booked my 18th wedding for the year, in gorgeous Mexico! Jeff and I had been talking abut heading south this winter for a bit so it fell into place perfectly. It will be my 3rd destination wedding, and I’m looking forward to getting better at shooting in full sun/beach conditions.

April brought another wedding, (K&A…swoooooon!!!!) I also met with a local studio about renting permanent space (more on that next time) and participated in some fun stuff with my family.

At the end of 2017, I started working with the AARCS (Alberta Animal Rescue Crew Society) as a volunteer and was asked to work a conference put on by the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies. I was happy to gain a little experience in event photography, and put some good karma in the bank.

When I was a kid, I volunteered at the SPCA every Saturday for years, and later on in my teens with various events around my hometown. As a teenager and into my adult years, I simply couldn’t find the time (or so I thought) to volunteer, so I didn’t. Jeff and I had talked about doing little things here and there to be supportive Calgarians, but never put anything into action.

Last fall, I asked on social media for anyone to recommend charities that might benefit from a photographer, and I was put in touch with 3 😊

AARCS is one, Families Fighting Cancer is another, and PACE KIDS is the last one, all of which I will be donating hours to this year.

Time is the most valuable commodity we have, and to give yours to an organization is priceless. Im so happy to be able to help anyone, anywhere, in any way that I can!

This month for work, I have a few smaller sessions, one wedding out of town, meetings with clients and studio peeps, and a few other photoshoots that Im very excited about!

One in particular involves some of my favorite mommy friends! I really want to give my TRIBE something they will love forever and ever, so I am concocting a styled shoot, gathering props, and making a list of names-I’ll only have a short time to get in as many as possible, but I think I can get it done? Stay tuned for some fierce forest photos!

But for now check out these beautiful boys- they fill me up with more love than I can ever put into words xoxo

I know I’m forgetting a bunch of things, but this is long winded enough, right?

Thanks for reading if you’ve made it this far, and I’ll post again soon as I have a few things to talk about ;)

All the love, and then a little more,

Reens

Everything, now

coreen exner November 7, 2017

well hello there! I wanted to touch base before the month of December as its gonna be pretty crazy! Especially for me and my family, as we are preparing for the addition of our 3rd baby, and winding down work for the rest of 2017.

my boys, playing, in the warm fall weather

The last month has seen many, many hours of editing, meetings, and SO much time behind the camera; at the beginning of Oct I did 12 shoots in 10 days! It was awesome but I can honestly say, I probably overloaded my plate a little. I'm the kind of person who hates to turn down the opportunity to work, so I scheduled a ton while Jeff was home. I am thankful to have a partner who is so supportive, and doesn't mind doing ALL of the cooking, cleaning, and child minding so I can focus 100% on my work-Thanks Handsome Husband!

Thank you to everyone who reached out to me for wedding bookings for next year; it looks like I *might* hit my goal of 18, fingers crossed!

So, in all my meetings with potential brides and grooms, I started handing out Welcome Folders, complete with a letter to say hello, a questionnaire about wedding details, a list of Family Formal photos, and of course, my contract. I've just added a few more things in the last few days, but just doing that small thing, has helped keep me organized and feel like I have my shit together, at least somewhat ;)

In chatting with clients, I noticed a few things;

1. more than a few had mentioned that the reason they chose me (out of ALL the AMAZING photographers in this city) was because I gave my prices, right up front.

I have nothing to hide; I'm new, I'm cheap(-ish) and I certainly don't want to waste your, or my own time, going for coffee only to discover immediately that we wont be a good fit, either due to budget, location, or various other expectations that cannot be met.

2. my 'style' is not set in stone. In almost every photography group/forum I am part of, most pro photogs INSIST that you must find your own style, stick with it, and don't change it.

I completely disagree. I love ALL styles of editing. Some days, when shooting, I like to edit bright and airy. Other days I love dark and moody. Sometimes I'm all about super bold colors, and other sessions make me edit very muted colors and/or hazy mattes. For me, it has a lot to do with the mood I'm in, the feeling I get from the clients, the light that day, what I've been reading, what photographers work I've been drooling over that week....

I understand consistency is important, but can I be consistent in say...8 different ways?

Also, of course, I always ask what the client wants. I don't feel like I'm compromising myself by modifying to what they are looking for. On the contrary; being flexible in a profession in which trends are changing weekly, makes you adaptable, and therefor you will have a greater variety in clients.

I'm in love with photography, all of it.

You want bright and bold?

Sweet, lets do it.

You love hazy, muted images?

Awesome, I love that too.

Just bold, black and white?

Yesss please!

I feel like ONLY doing one type of editing for your work, is limiting, and I feel like for me, I would get terribly bored; I wouldn't be pushing myself to grow, to learn more, and my work would become stagnant. My career would be over before it even started.

3. some of the best feedback I've gotten, from all previous and even future clients, is that I'm friendly and easy going. Can I just say that, yes! thats true! I AM very easy to get along with, I'm almost always smiling, laughing, or trying to get you to smile and/or laugh.

Having a good attitude is one of the MOST IMPORTANT tools for a photographer to have in their repertoire. I want to bring good energy, smiles, happiness, and an overall feeling of love, wherever I go. I'm in love with my life; my husband, my kids, my family, my friends, and my job. I am genuinely a happy person and it shows.

I've been given some really great feedback from clients, mentioning all of these points, and the thing is, I didn't even think about how important that stuff reeealllly is.

I kind of took it for granted that all wedding photographers were like that; I mean, they only do it cuz they love LOVE right? They're hopeless romantics like me? They are married to the love of their lives and want to bask in LOVE all day long?

I know that Calgary is full of stellar wedding photographers, most better than me. What sets me apart is my ability to adapt, my openness, and my attitude. I am trying everyday to get better and better at this craft as its something I'm very passionate about, something I want to continue doing until my body wont let me.

Signing off for now,

giant Baby Belly in full effect,

Reens SWP

xoxo

Here we go again...

coreen exner May 16, 2017

Hello :)

thank you all so much for the love and positive responses regarding my first blog post, I was slightly overwhelmed and very humbled. The boudoir marathon was a great success with lovely ladies :) Lindsey and I had so much fun, we are looking to do another in July so stay posted for the details on my Facebook page!

I was lucky enough to be asked to participate in the annual Give A Kid A Lift Charity event down at the Ironwood again this Spring :) Its a wonderful day filled with love, live music, yummy food, refreshing drinks, and many, many laughs (totally my kind of charity)

The purpose is to help out families who have children with mobility issues; installing lifts and/or elevators in homes to make life easier and more accessible! As you can imagine, these can be a huge expense, so the good people at Canwest elevators, Garaventa Lifts, and the Easter Seals of Canada (also Patrick at the ironwood) all pitch in their time and hearts to help out. Its such a great cause, and one I'm happy to be a part of.

Can West Elevators had also hired me to do a shoot at the Porche dealership a few weeks later, to photograph their elevators (because as I told you before, I'll shoot anything)

It was fun and I hope to be able to do more commercial work in the future

The very next day I was off to Mexico to shoot a destination wedding in Cabo! This was my second trip to Mexico in the last 6 months for 'work' and I was excited to see the pacific side

I hadn't met the bride or groom beforehand, but some of my most favorite friends in the world had referred me to them (thanks Mike and Lisa!)

Jenn (the bride) and I got to know each other over email last fall, and got along right from the start; we knew we would be a good fit together.

The Riu Palace was where we all stayed and also where the ceremony took place. It is a STUNNING resort, and everything went amazingly well. The bride and groom had 70 or so guests attend the wedding, most of them coming from northern Alberta, Ontario, and Newfoundland.

They were a great bunch of people and I had a lot fun getting to know a few of them in the pool bar over the week ;)

This brings me to the purpose of this post;

Qualities you must look for in a (destination) wedding photographer!!

1-punctuality-vitally important! make sure your photographer isn't the type to miss a flight or be late to any scheduled photo event!

2-friendly, easy to get along with, and approachable-you need your photographer to be able to engage with your guests, and make them feel at ease! You'll get great candid shots if your guests feel really comfortable around your photographer

3-patience-It's a wedding. Things go wrong. Timelines get rearranged and things don't always go as planned! People can get irritable under pressure and wedding days are notoriously stressful. You need a photographer who is patient and understanding when circumstances change, and can even help put the bride (or wedding party, or family) at ease and stay calm.

4-prepared and organized-Make sure you sit down with your photographer asap to go over a timeline for the entire week. They need to know where they need to be at all times for photo events (excursions, boudoir, family portraits etc)

5-fun-to invite someone to spend a week with your closest friends and family, you want a photographer who is fun! They need to be able to enjoy themselves and contribute to this celebration of love!

....but not too fun! You also need a photographer who is a professional, and knows their limits. Having a few too many mojitos can lead to bad decisions and overall embarrassment for everyone.

6-references-make sure to either read some honest reviews online, or ask to chat with past clients to really know who you're getting!

7-experienced-depending on whatever deal you have made with your photographer, you need to know what they're capable of, and what you're expectations are, and hope they're similar. Make sure to go over their portfolios and see the work they have produced thus far. I also personally follow my brides Pinterest Boards to have an idea of what they're looking for, specifically.

8-love for the work-free trips are nice and getting paid is nice, but make sure your photographer LOVES photography! To only be 'in it' for the trip or cash, will not give you a great experience. You need someone who loves photography, can be creative, and has their heart behind it.

Not only has photography been a passion of mine most of my life, I also LOVE weddings! And I love LOVE! And I love knowing that the images I capture are going to be hanging on these families walls forEVER!! Its such a special time, and for me, bringing LOVE and photography together is a no-brainer.

9-good quality equipment-I recently upgraded to a 5D Markiii Full Frame Canon camera. It had been on my wish list for 2 years, and it meets all expectations! I also recently purchased a wide angle lens for those large group shots (and maybe for Aurora too) I bring a rebel for a back up, a PowerShot just for tooling around, and a Polaroid, purely for fun :)

10-has a contract in place-you need to be clear on what your expectations are, and what the photographers expectations are as well. Getting paid, length of time to receive photos, copywrite issues, and everything else! It needs to be clear for everyone so there are no discrepencies down the line.

Thank you to everyone for your support, and patience as it took me months to write a follow up to Blog #1! I am a full time stay at home mother to my 2 young boys and life can get hectic! I will always write when I can, and share photos from recent sessions.

Here's a few of my fave photos from the last few months...