Girl of Summer

I am thrilled that summer is here.  I love photographing outdoors in the sunshine.

It was a lot of fun to take photos of Leslie over the long weekend.
My faves.

 I think this last one is my favourite.   I love her hat - the perfect way to avoid a sunburnt nose ;)

52 weeks: the rest.

Ahhh my 52 week project of 2011. 
Well, 2011 is done.  The project - it came close.
I didn't get to 52 and I am ok with that.   

It all came crumbling down in late November - around the time that I was working 7 days a week, Christmas shopping, baking, decorating, cleaning, partying, finishing my semester and shooting my assignments for school. 
Such is life.   

In hindsight, trying to shoot a creative portrait with a new person each week is a really tall order. 
Coming up with a new concept 5-6 days after finishing the last, trying to find a willing subject, hoping the idea works with them, and coordinating schedules was never easy.   The worst was when people bailed.   One weekend I walked to Queen St in Toronto just to find a stranger to photograph.  

All in all, I'd say it was a successful project.   

I met some great people, made some great photos and had a lot of fun. 

Here you are, the last of the 52:

Week 43.  Nico, a political scientist.  "Even I have my limits."

Week 44.  Christina, helping me by modeling for my school assignment as a Covergirl ;)

Week 45.  Amy, modeling vintage jewelry - also a double-up school assignment, what can I do?

Week 46.  James in Mars, Thunder Bay's newest mens clothing store.

Week 47.  Pete and Julie from The Life of A Cupcake.  The Bay never looked so festive ;)

And there you have it. 47 weeks out of 52.

I'll come back tomorrow to show off my faves from the year (a retrospective!) and tell you the plan for 2012! 

p.s. attempting some blog redesign, bear with me as I'm under construction :)

52 weeks - weeks thirty-nine and forty.

Somehow there are only 12 weeks left in the year.  (I think I'm one behind the calendar.)
Time flies.

If you're in the Toronto area and haven't been the subject of a week yet, act now!

#40.  Hamish, a friend doing his PhD at the University of Toronto.  We wandered around the school and found an impressive amount of stately fireplaces.  This one was the favourite. 

 Note the other fireplace selections.

Week #39 was a walk through the paths near my house with my old friend Katie.   We wanted to capture the colours of the fall leaves.  They weren't there yet.  We found a nicely manicured garden in someone's yard and snapped away in front of the flowers that matched her sweater.

Have a great day!

52 weeks - week thirty-eight.

"ba", a photo by melaniegodecki on Flickr.

This is my cousin's little angel. Can you tell what his favourite toy is? All he ever says is "ba." He's the cutest.

And for those of you who read the previous post, we're still waiting, no answers, but I will be heading back to Toronto tomorrow. Thanks for your kind and thoughtful words, and thank goodness for babies that giggle :)

52 weeks - weeks thirty-one to thirty-five

I got a little behind on posting my 52 week project.  I blame summer vacation.  Thankfully, the weather over the long weekend wasn't great, and it was easy enough to sort and edit photos. 

Good news for you, more photos in one post.  This one's all over the place. 

Week #31. 

"Don't worry Daddy, I'll catch you!" Adorable. 

Week #32. 

My apologies that you can't see this one totally yet.  

It is for a friend who is opening a men's clothing store - and he wants it kept secret until he launches.  (soon enough though - and exciting - my first shoot with a male model. )

Week #33.

I met Anna through our photography class last year.  We had a great day of shooting out at a stunning park just outside of Guelph, ON. 

Week #34.

A photo of Rachel for Delight Bags, my aunt started a small business designing reusable shopping bags.  They are extremely durable, have cushy handles and cute designs.  

Visit on facebook and say hi!

Week #35. 

Jenn is a musician and all around super fun gal.  

I did some headshots and fun stuff with her over the weekend. 

As always, if you'd like to see more pictures, check out my flickr.
Did you have a nice long weekend?

52 weeks: weeks twenty-eight to thirty.

It's been a while.  How are you?

Here's a little bit of what I've been up to, photographically speaking.

week #28 of 52.
The first time I've ever approached a complete stranger to take a portrait. 

I was a little nervous!
I met Sujan at his place of work - a fabulous button and textile shop on Queen west. He let me snap 2 frames, then the shop owner came over and was confused about why I'd want to take his picture. I offered to take the owner's as well, but he just laughed it off. All in all, a unique & pleasant experience I suppose I'll try talking to strangers again.
If you ever see me in Toronto, wave me over!

week #29 of 52.
Spending some time in the pool with a friend is never a bad thing, although wow. After trying to get a decent shot with my point and shoot, I have a new respect for underwater photographers but also want to get a housing for my SLR! Have you ever seen the work of Elena Kalis?  I love her work.

week #30 of 52.  (a) is above (b) is below. 

My friend Bry was in Toronto visiting this weekend, which meant - photo of the week! 

We headed to the darkest place we could find in my neighbourhood - a field in a schoolyard. 

We experimented with a few different compositions and styles and I have 2 favourites. 

The fight against himself (#30a) was fine-tuned over about 20 attempts at spacing, lighting, speed and whew! we had a winner. The second photo (#30b) was one shot to test lighting and then the winner. 

We finally packed up, both tired and sweaty, then headed to meet Steve for ice cream. 

Good times.

But while we were out there with the shot set up...

I hope your summer is loads of fun so far! 

See you soon!

52 weeks - week twenty-seven.

sjd, a photo by melaniegodecki on Flickr.

This is SJ, a former coworker of mine.  The plan for the photo this week was to have her playing volleyball on a beach at sunset.  However, I had never been to said beach before and didn't realize there would be 20 000 people there.  And so, we moved away from the crowd to get some relaxed shots under a tree while the sun set. 
Funny story, SJ was wearing workout gear, but as we started shooting, things had more of a pretty feel and we changed clothes.   This is the dress I was wearing, which I happily purchased at a Target last week. 
As for edits, clearly I did combine 2 photos, then didn't do much.  Here's the original:

 

I did play with colour a bit.  I added a Solid Colour Fill Layer which was golden - at 5% opacity.  I also used my lasso tool at 120px feather, drew around her face, selected inverse and then darkened the background slightly to draw more attention to her face.   I think I played with the Hue & Saturation a little bit as well, though I can't remember how exactly.

Overall the shoot was nothing that we expected, but I really like these shots of her.  (Next time I'll scout the beach.)

52 weeks - week twenty-four.

k+a0537b, a photo by melaniegodecki on Flickr.

My favourite so far of the 2464 images my assistant and I shot on Friday at a lovely wedding on a steamboat in Gravenhurst, ON. Long day, but a lot of fun.

I love this moment.

Yes, I was lying on the dock to get the shot, 

but it felt better than the 4 hours of mild seasickness I had while on the boat.

Lots more pictures to share in the coming week or so as I sift through them all.

What did you get up to this weekend?

52 weeks - week twenty-three.

graci8441, a photo by melaniegodecki on Flickr.

This weeks portrait is of the crafty gal Christina, of www.getcraftee.com.
We were paired together as Happy Mail partners back last summer, and we met for the first time this weekend.
Hilarious how much we both enjoyed threading all the needles - it's so soothing!

Not as soothing - having dozens of needles dangling in your face and trying to look good :)

someday her prince will come...

someday her prince will come..., a photo by melaniegodecki on Flickr.

So i finally got to hang out with my sister in toronto. 

She was here for a concert. (NKOTBSB, lol) We had dinner at my place, then walked to my friendly neighbourhood castle, she changed into this princess dress, and we raced the sunset. 

It was a really fun night :)

52 weeks - week twenty.

Devan7904, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

Today's shoot was an absolute blast. 
Lets add the factors:
1.  Meeting the hilarious Devan for the first time when she came to my house and we picked outfits.
2.  Devan owns this dress! isn't it awesome? (from French Connection)
3.  Doors Open Toronto meant that the Spadina House Museum was free today - location shoot!

4.  Other tourists thought Devan was part of the museum, and took sooo many pictures of her.  At one point she burst out laughing because a crowd of about 20 was behind me as I shot.
5.  One of the ladies working let us sneak behind the roped off room to get this shot.  (As long as we didn't touch or sit on anything - everything is authentic and 150 years old...)

I'll try to post some more pics from the museum later this week, it's a beautiful place, and I have loads of great shots of Devan.
Annnnnd I'm going to my hometown on Tuesday, so I'll be busy seeing family and friends :)

52 weeks - week sixteen.

kyle7367-83, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

Meet The Deliverer.
Wannabe superhero, real-life postal employee.

Actually, this is Kyle.  We went to film school together ages ago. 

This is the roof of my house, where I will no longer be living come Saturday. 

This is the day after a huge "last weekend at our giant party house" party. 

I really wanted to get someone dressed as a superhero, fingers crossed as attempting to fly for the first time.  As if he discovered he had accidentally eaten half of a butterfly & wonders if he might finally have the super powers of his dreams.

In reality, the roof is really scary, and Kyle had some legitimate fears as he hopped on one foot.

Canon 5d, Sigma 28-200 lens, 1/125 sec, waiting for the wind to pick up the cape.

Photoshop: Selective colour adjustment layer to desaturate the orange-y houses, high pass filter on a layer at 40% for punch.  

Wishing I had shot it at night, with city lights in the background, but Kyle was only in for a few hours.

52 weeks - week fifteen.

katy7299, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

This is my good friend and fellow Mad Men fan katy. 

we had a great time drinking girlie martini's and trying to get the perfect egg crack & fall on this shot. at the end of the day though, we couldn't bring ourselves to open the can of spam that's back there. really didn't want to smell it. who would spend 5 bucks on that?! aside from our exception "for the art"

oh, and the cigarette is a plastic prop from a halloween store.  neither of us wanted to smell hideous smoke either.  (or to die a slow and painful death, you know)

52 weeks - week thirteen and fourteen.

week 13 - this is my classmate Caitlin.  So, the original idea for this in my head was awesome.  but executing it wasn't as easy as planned.  not the shooting of course, that was quite simple, but the photoshopping the pieces of about 30 different photos together, that was tricky to get it right.  

i'm still not entirely sure if i love it.  i like it... maybe it will grow on me. 

kim7106, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

week 14 - this is my friend kim.  

the plan, for last saturday, when it was pouring rain and supposed to stay miserable all day, was to have kim in a car, in the rain, looking out the window with that kind of melancholic look you would have when stuck in a car in the rain, looking at a cemetary, or your ex's house, or an ice cream cone that fell on the ground.  

however, the rain cleared up within 10 minutes of us starting the shoot, and the day turned warm and sunny.  awesome weather - not the intended shot.   so, we tossed on the sunglasses and made her look like she was being driven around in a limo.  voila.

I am happy to report that after a month of absolute madness and stress, steve and

 i have found a new apartment for may.  i honestly think apartment hunting was more stressful than job hunting.  glad that its over. 

and speaking of over, i just had my last class of the semester, which feels good too.

after packing and moving, i will have some free time!

really looking forward to decorating ;)

52 weeks - week twelve.

steve7082, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

i had made this hat for steve for halloween when he was SNL Jeopardy Burt Reynolds.
It needed to be used again. It was time.

so cold tonight! end winter, end!

extra extra.

bre6747, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

another image from the hair shoot. pre-fan-blowing-her-hair-everywhere :)

52 weeks - week eleven.

ting6994, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

Spring is finally here!
I can shoot outside again! It was still a little chilly, but I had a great afternoon out with my former classmate Ting, who biked to get around Toronto this winter. Brave soul :)

We are across the street from Casa Loma - I had a hard time deciding on the best shot, so can post a couple extras soon. 

52 weeks - week eight, nine, ten + bonus :)

I can't believe I've missed posting about so many!

This past month has been really busy.  I'm working full-time, still have classes at school (ace-ing them, which is great) shooting the portrait a week, and am hunting for an apartment, which is killer time consuming and isn't as much fun a few weeks in as it was at the beginning. 

It's amazing how some people decorate their homes.... 

Anyway, I owe you all of these, enjoy :)

week 8 - Alex

Week 9 - Amanda Cordero, stylist

Week 10 - Shannon at the Frangipane Bakery

This last photo is a bonus - My friend Amy is a hairstylist and she needed some pics for her book - this is her friend/model Bre.  

Hope that you're having a good month of March! I am so happy to feel spring coming :)

52 weeks - week five.

benjamin6256, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

this is my cousin's little benjamin.  
i painted the backdrop on some muslin, so i can use it again.

i'm in calgary this weekend, hanging out with my family and watching the superbowl. 

isn't he the cutest?!?!

52 weeks - week four.

jesse5856, originally uploaded by melaniegodecki.

this week's photo is a slight departure from the hearts and vintage dresses you might be used to seeing from me, but this is my friend jesse, a writer, in my housemate's bathroom...
trying to add a little bit of variety to the mix :)