Why is everything just better by the water?

It doesn’t really matter what it is…it’s just better!  More dramatic…more romantic…more perfect than I ever before.

I love the water.  I would spend my whole life along the shores if I had my way.   The two best weeks of my adult life were the ones spent in Sydney and the beaches of Maui.  Something about having breakfast beside the ocean just soothes my soul in ways that nothing else can.  I’m calmer…I’m happier…I’m more complete.

It’s one of the reasons that I fell in love with our son’s name the very second I heard it.

During the warm summer months, I like to shoot near water as much as possible.  With our extreme seasons in Ottawa, we have a very small window of opportunity throughout the year to get sand between our toes.

Reem and I had never met before.  Lu and I had never met before.

Reem and Lu were getting married though and the powers that be brought us together on a stifling hot day in July to do some engagement pictures!!!  But we arrived at our chosen location – Britannia Beach – only to find it packed with people participating in a volleyball tournament…leaving us without any space in sight to photograph.  And our light was dwindling.  Quickly.

But Reem and Lu also happen to be two of the most awesome people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting.  They are funny…they are easy going…and they are total all-stars in front of the camera!!  Furthermore though, they were completely trusting of me when I made a few “unorthodox” suggestions for getting around all the people!  They were so patient as we photographed between the countless bodies fishing along the pier and they didn’t think twice when I asked if they’d be willing to go to the only place that wasn’t completely crowded…in the water.

My evening with Reem and Lu was ridiculously wonderful!  I had the most fun photographing them and was so blessed by our time together!

And like everything else in this life…the water made it that much better…