st. stephen (ganong nature park) family portaits:: the bilsky family

i am so excited to share these photos of my very good friends: brent, gwen, nathaniel, benjamin and joseph! i first met the bilsky clan over three years when brent, gwen and their two boys (at the time) came to st. stephen to visit gwen's parents and to check out the university. my first actual encounter with them was when three year old nathaniel introduced himself to me. it went something like this:

nathaniel: hi, my names nisaniel. what's yer name?

me: hi nathaniel, my names shannon-may.

nathaniel: hi shannon-may, it's nice to meet you.

oh my heart. i've been hooked ever since. and the more i hang out with brent and gwen the more i am so glad to know them. brent challenged me academically and was my nemesis when we were in classes together. i recall one time his disappointment that i was not in attendance for one of his seminars because he knew i would find something to argument with him about! gwen is a kindred spirit... you know what i'm talking about right? that person whom you know you have to be friends with because they are just too cool, wonderfully transparent and real, and an absolutely joy to be around. i often remark that just fives minutes hanging out with gwen can turn my frown upside down! i think, however, what i most enjoy about brent and gwen is them as a couple, and how they model marriage. i have told both brent and gwen that when i meet that special guy that is worth hanging onto we will be hanging out with brent and gwen all-the-time because i want a marriage like theirs: based upon friendship, honesty, trust, respect, faith, fun and sacrifice. they are just good people... and i good on and on and on about them!

it was so much fun doing this photo session with them... cold at times but so worth it! we started out in their family's living room, moved into the backyard to the ginormous pirate ship play fort that brent built and then onto the ganong nature park. 

st. stephen family portraits:: jeremy, jaana, eden and asher

way back in october on a way too sunny day, i met up with my good friends (and former philosophy professor jer) for a family photo session! (no it does not usually take this long to edit photos and post them for sharing!!!). it was a fun time together and we were done in under an hour, which works well for the kiddos. we began with a few shots at their home where the fall colored foliage decorated the yard perfectly, and then headed down to the st. stephen wharf to capture the town's quaintness. 

as i was editing through the numerous photos taken of jer, jaana, eden and asher i couldn't help but see how each one of their unique personalities so distinctly shone. jer - though fun loving and enjoys all of life's fine things - is a real thinker and you know there is always some deep philosophical idea or concept brewing in that mind of his. jaana is always smiling is such a joy to be around - the joy of the Lord just emanates from this lady! eden is a very serious and shy little girl but when she finds her comfort zone she emerges from her shell full of wonder and childlike curiosity and giggles! and asher, sweet little asher who came into the world fully content and remains so to this day is calm and playful!

yesterday, when i delivered the disc containing their pictures, was the first time i had been with a family when they saw the pictures for the first time! what a treat this was. to hear the exclamation in a mother's voice when she sees the tender moments between her and her little ones that have been captured is one of the reasons i love photographing people! watching little eden sort through the pictures while sitting on her daddy's lap with a big grin on her face is another reason... and if i'd had my camera on hand, i would have been clicking away, for this was a moment worth capturing too!!

thank you jer and jaana and eden and asher for the fun, the bottle wine and the other token's of thanks you have showered me with!!! it was a privilege to provide you with family photos from your last fall spent on the east coast!