Tuesday, May 14, 2013

Wedding Industry Awards: Award Winners!

We placed for 12 Awards at the 2013 Wedding Industry Experts Awards thanks to your support and persistent voting:

Ottawa's Best Photography Studio:
Finalist: Best Photography studio in Ottawa – 2nd
Finalist: Best Photography studio in Ontario- 5th place
Finalist: Best Photography studio in Canada- 8th place
Finalist: Best Photography studio Worldwide- 13th place

Ottawa's Best Photo Booths:
Finalist: Best Photo Booths in Ottawa- 2nd place
Finalist: Best Photo Booths in Ontario- 3rd place
Finalist: Best Photo Booths in Canada:- 4th place
Finalist: Best Photo Booths – Worldwide- 11th place

Ottawa's Best Photographer;

Finalist: Best Photographer in Ottawa – 2nd place

Thank you for voting and helping me to achieve this success!

Thursday, April 18, 2013

Masquerade Birthday Photobooth

To end March I had the awesome privilege of photographing a wonderful woman's milestone Birthday. The theme was masquerade and the more we chatted about the big celebration the more Susan fell in love with the thought of Damask accents. By the time I got there to set up on the day of, the house was filled with damask in every room and it reminded me of home (but of course more beautiful)
Here were a couple favourites from her Birthday PhotoBooth








If you have been photographed in our choice of 2 walls or countless customizable photobooths and loved the service, please take 2 seconds to vote for a new award we were nominated for at the Wedding Industry Experts Awards.

http://www.weddingindustryexperts.com/votes/izZ1xy208.html

Thanks for your support!



Special thanks to Dahlia Event Productions.
The delicious cake and cookies were by the Natural Food Pantry's gluten and nut free bakery.

"Hi Melanie, Thanks sooo much for a great Photobooth. We had a venetian ball of fun with your props.
Love the sneak peak….all the photos are awesome! Especially the one of you and I.
Thanks again for making a special birthday magical." - Susan






Monday, April 15, 2013

Wedding Industry Awards are Back!

The Wedding Industry Experts Awards are back and I'm thrilled to be nominated for not 1, but 3 categories this year: Best Photographer Ottawa, Best Studio Ottawa and Best Photobooth!

If you love my work and want to let me know it, please visit one or all of the links below. It takes just 2 seconds to click "vote" and you can do it every 24 hours.


Best Photography Studio, Ottawa
 
Best Photobooths, Ottawa

                            Best Photographer, Ottawa 


Contest begins April 16th in the morning and closes one week later on the 23rd. 
Now some people are saying that viewer's choice awards aren't really awards because a panel  of your talented fellow industry professionals don't award you but honestly I think it's even better that my clients actively go out of their way to vote for me each day to tell me how much my service meant to them.
And I couldn't be more flattered by being nominated and last year, winning 4 awards. Being a small business owner, a 1 person studio, your own marketer, business consultant, media spokesperson, photographer,  editor, etc. is draining and it's these small rewards that make it all worth doing each and everyday until I'm about 79, then I'm quitting because that is too old for this young (wo)man's game.
 
 

Sunday, April 7, 2013

Girls Night Out: May 31st, 2013 Algonquin College

Last year I had the pleasure of photographing all the wild and crazy, amazing women in my Photobooth at the 2nd Annual Spring Bling Fashion Fling hosted by the Queensway Carleton Hospital Foundation. This year unfortunately that event isn't happening but the bigger and even better 'Girls Night Out' event will be a huge success and I'm thrilled to be a part of it by participating in the silent auction and lootbags! 

7th Annual Girls Night Out

Friday, May 31, 2013
Algonquin College, 1385 Woodroffe Avenue
Doors open at 5:30 p.m.

Girls Night Out lady picture Fabulous dinner, drinks, music, dancing, firefighters, entertainer extraordinaire George Thomas, great live and silent auction items & many more surprises. Gather your BFF’s and get your tickets now. This event always sells out!
Tickets: $70Proceeds will benefit the programs and services that Friends of Hospice provide without charge Girls just wanna have fun! You can purchase tickets by calling: 613-591-6002 ext. 27 Or By visiting one of our ticket outlets:
Act II, 417 Hazeldean Rd, Kanata, 613-831-8386
Scotiabank-Bridlewood, 701 Eagleson Rd., Kanata 613-591-7545
Scotiabank-Centrum, 800 Campeau Dr., Kanata, 613-590-2020
Scotiabank-Stittsville, 1271 Stittsville Main St., 613-831-3115
Scotiabank-Richmond, 3438 McBean St., Richmond, 613-838-2410
Three Wild Women, 263 Richmond Rd., Westboro, 613-728-1400

Buy tickets online at: http://www.friendsofhospiceottawa.ca/gno2013.html

Look for my awesome canvas and photoshoot package in the silent auction, all for a wonderful cause!



Tuesday, January 8, 2013

Thanks for a wonderful 2012!

I know I'm 8 days late on the Happy New Year but here it is.
Happy New Year! I've recovered from Christmas and Ukrainian Christmas (yesterday) and now I mean business :)

I just wanted to thank everyone who I got to see again, got to meet and photograph in 2012. It was a great and extremely busy year and I'm blessed to do what I love. I know sometimes I complain because I'm exhausted during wedding season (which is like 8 months of the year around here) or I don't get to go out often but I try to never lose sight of the fact I'm doing what I love and it is amazing to see families and couples displaying the artwork we created together which makes every edit, every phone call and email and every trip to the lab worth it!

In 2012 I was fortunate enough to be a part of the following fundraisers as well and am really proud that I could participate in these events and that so many funds were raised for charity.


I started off the year preparing to Co Host the Team Diabetes Dress Sale and mini wedding show - which we aided in a huge fundraising effort for the Canadian Diabetes Association.
http://www.diabetes.ca/


The Queensway Carelton Hospital Foundation hosted the 2nd annual, Spring Bling Fashion Fling Event at 6400 Celebration Centre in Stittsville, which is close by to the studio so I jumped on the chance to see a bunch of women living it up in support of a good cause.
They raised even more money than last year and had a fun keepsake in the Wonderwall Photobooth (with their mascot - Lady Bling) I donated my services for the evening in April.

Next was just a simple framed scenery donation for a yearly Light the night event one of my amazing Bride's hosts for The Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's event, Light the Night walk.
http://www.lightthenight.org/
This is the type of thing that goes to show if everyone makes an effort we can do so much!



I was asked to participate in the Angels In Action in support of Ovarian Cancer Research and I had to do a beautiful canvas and session as this is a cause that doesn't receive a ton of support.
angelsinaction.ca
I received this letter which is going for plaque mount tomorrow,
"...With the help of our guests, concerned supporters and generous sponsors like yourself Angels in Action raised nearly $25'000 for ovarian cancer research and patient support in 2012..."

And to finish off the year we had a gift basket sale where all the left overs went to the Kanata Resource Centre and The Olivia Act which passes on the gift of a photo session to a very deserving family (Photos to come in February when the shoot has happened)

Hopefully 2013 I will be as fortunate to participate and continue to help raise funds for worthy causes.