Niagara Wedding and Portrait Photographer

Kim Germaine Band Poster

2011-07-15T16:47:00.001-04:00

product shot

2011-07-15T16:36:00.002-04:00

Here's a shot of Lynda's jewelry. I think it looks great, and I had the best time photographing her pieces!

Artist Showing

2011-05-05T15:07:00.002-04:00

So, many of you who know me, know that I work with autistic children. I've been working with Michael for about 6 years now, and he is an incredible artist. I've been taking him on a weekly basis to art lessons, when we work together. He is having an exhibition opening at Keith's Restaurant, here in Fonthill, on May 15 from 2:30-4:30 PM. His work will be on display and for sale during the months of May and June. I've attached the invitation and would love it if you could come to the opening. Thanks.

Successful Open House

2011-04-29T10:48:00.001-04:00

Our Spring Open House was a huge success. We had lots of people, loyal customers, students, friends, family and new faces too! We were so happy to see everyone. It was a great day!

Open House April 21 from 2-8PM.

2011-04-06T12:44:00.003-04:00

Hey Everyone,
Many of you know that I have rented out the upper floor of my studio to a silversmith who creates new and recycled jewelry out of vintage silver trays, teapots, plates etc. We're planning to have an Open House on April 21 and we'd love it if you could come. See the photo for details. The address is 13 Highway 20 West in Fonthill. Hope to see you there!
Claudia

Doll face

2011-03-22T14:42:00.003-04:00

she looks a little stiff today.....

Crutches Suck!

2011-03-17T12:39:00.004-04:00

So.....I painted the ENTIRE studio including all the ceilings, and I'm down to the last wall, and I fell off the ladder and sprained my ankle:( ........only me!!!!

Winston

2011-03-15T13:02:00.003-04:00

Here's a photo of my friends new puppy. How cute is he?????!!!!!

Studio is almost done!!

2011-02-23T16:30:00.002-05:00

So, the redo of the studio is almost done! Yay!!! Also, as many of you know, I've had a loft studio for rent on the upper floor of my studio. I've rented it out and a silversmith is moving in on March 1st! She makes unique hand-crafted jewelry out of vintage silver plates, teapots, etc. It's really a great fit with my photography. She has a wedding line of unique pieces which are perfect for "something old.....something new" for your big day. Will update with more info next week. Contact me if you need more info.

Studio Update

2011-02-07T12:57:00.002-05:00

So, many of you know that I have recently renovated my bathroom here at the studio. Well, now that it's done, I figure why stop there? Now my entire studio is torn apart for an update. I have to send a special thanks to Rudy, my dad, my brother John, and my brother Stephen. Without you these updates would not have been possible. Thank YOU!!!! :)

There are some interesting developments (pardon the pun) here at Studio Southwest. I'll let you know all about them when everything is ready.

Plus, I've attached a photo of the beautiful snowstorm we had this weekend. Enjoy.
Claudia

Happy New Year!

2011-01-03T13:17:00.006-05:00

December has been a CRAZY month ( my busiest December so far!) and I haven't been very diligent with my posting! I HAVE added a new page on my website called 'musicians'. I hope you'll check it out at Niagara wedding and portrait photographer
Hope everyone's holidays were wonderful!

Its Been a Long Time!!!

2010-11-30T09:28:00.002-05:00

Hey Everyone,
I have to apologize for taking so long to update my post. October and November have been two CRAZY months! My 5th Year Anniversary Special was a huge success!!! :) I kept the special going for the month of November as well. PLUS, I had the opportunity to photograph Roger Hodgson again, (yay!!!) live in concert. I've attached a photo. He's amaZing! Well, I have 3 busy weeks ahead of me 'til Christmas, so I better get back to work.

Colin and Lauren

2010-10-12T16:31:00.005-04:00

I had a great time photographing Colin and Lauren this weekend. They were so much fun! Here are a couple of sneak previews. Sty tuned to our website for more images.Niagara wedding and portrait photographer

Studio Southwest Photography's 5th Anniversary!!!!

2010-10-01T12:03:00.003-04:00

Can you believe it?! The month of October marks The 5th Anniversary of Studio Southwest Photography in Fonthill !! To celebrate, our studio portrait sittings are 50% off during the month of October. Its great timing too, especially if you were thinking of giving someone a portrait of you or your family for Christmas. I don't have specials very often, so take advantage of this one. Remember though, its only valid for the month of October!! Check out our website, Niagara wedding and portrait photographer and go to our contact page to book your session. See you soon!
Sincerely,
Claudia

KGB-Kim Germaine Band

2010-09-15T16:14:00.010-04:00

I had a blast shooting Kim from the Kim Germaine Band this morning on our location shoot. I've posted a couple of photos from the hundred and something photos I took. Studio Southwest is a Niagara wedding and portrait photographer Checkout my Facebook page for additional photos from this shoot.

Three Reasons To Hire a Professional for Your Wedding Photography

2010-09-08T16:32:00.003-04:00

So you're planning your wedding. You're trying to do as much as possible using the resources of yourself, your friends and your family. Much of the wedding industry today is a DIY event. However, when it comes to photographing and forever capturing your special day, there are many good reasons why you should choose a professional photographer. Here are three of them.....

Professionals Have The Equipment Needed
Most amateurs will have a camera that is more than adequate for the job. They'll most likely have a flash unit that is tough enough to handle a big dark room, and maybe even a stand to prop it up on for interesting formal photographs. This is all well and good, and provided nothing goes wrong, they will have the tools to capture the images you want. They might even have the eye for what makes a good formal photograph.
But what if something goes wrong?
Professional photographers don't carry two of everything. But a professional will have redundancy in all the most important equipment, (camera bodies, flash units, batteries, memory, lenses) AND a contingency plan for the unlikely event that something they don't have redundancy for should fail. Professionals will be ready with backups of the crucial gear, and the knowledge of how to work around gear that may have conked out. This usually isn't the case with amateurs, and really isn't fair to expect that of them.

Professionals Have the Time Required to Complete the Task
Not only is a wedding a big deal to you the bride, its also a big deal to the professional photographer. The photographer spends on average 8 hours or more of constant shooting with very little time to collect their thoughts and figure out what to do next. But that's just the beginning. In a 6 to 8 hour wedding a photographer will shoot anywhere from 1500-3000 images. That's a LOT of images to deal with. Your photographer will need to meticulously edit all these photographs, one by one, deleting the duds, and processing and editing the rest. For an amateur, or friend or family member with a camera, even if they have an established workflow to keep them organized and on-track, it will probably be a long time before you see any of your wedding photos. After all they most likely will have families, full-time jobs, and their own lives to attend to. A professional on the other hand has an established workflow, will have budgeted their time, and will be able to deliver your wedding photographs in their best condition, and in a timely manner.

Professionals Have Plenty of the Right Experience
Shooting non-wedding events does not adequately prepare a photographer to shoot a wedding, though it does provide a necessary foundation. Professionals have followed a variety of paths into wedding photography and have had plenty of time to learn what to do and what not to do.

Your wedding day will be a complex event with a lot of moving parts. Your photographer, while capturing images of you and maybe your spouse getting ready, will have to find time to snap shots of the details-like your rings, dress, shoes, jewelry and decorations. When you have finished getting ready, your photographer will have to shift gears immediately into the ceremony where they'll need to remember where they can and can't go without disrupting the ceremony and distracting the guests who are trying to focus on the commitment you're making. Then, almost instantly, your photographer will have to arrange and pose a big collection of people they don't know and who aren't readily available. When that's over, the photographer will have to change gears again to shoot in a variety of shifting light situations where the 'auto' mode on the camera is woefully inadequate.

There are countless things that could go differently than expected. What if the DJ brings some dance floor lighting effects? The professional photographer knows how to make his equipment meet the challenge. An amateur might not. What about a guest with a camera fighting for your attention too? The professional knows how to handle them gracefully without sacrificing the images you've paid them to create.

But the topic of experience goes even farther. The professional will be all over the place, capturing images of a huge array of people. If the amateur photographer is a friend or family member, other friends or family members will be at your wedding also. Most amateurs will be drawn to spend a lot of time in the company of, or near, the people they know. This often results in a huge number of photographs of a few particular people, and the loss of other images that may have been important to you.

Additionally, professional photographers will see their attendance at your wedding as a service to you. Some amateurs may not. If the amateur sees himself as just as much a guest as a photographer, rather than a vendor adding to your total wedding experience, you may end up without many of the images you were hoping for. The amateur may even be unaccustomed to important wedding vendor etiquette. This could range from very minor things, to much bigger problems, such as the amateur becoming intoxicated leaving you with no usable images expect for perhaps some snapshots taken by other guests. The professional on the other hand fully understands why they are there and act accordingly.

You may not have considered these things, but the professional has.

In conclusion.....
Everyone has to start somewhere, but save money elsewhere.
There are lots of ways and places to save money on your wedding day, but don't risk losing something you're going to cherish for the rest of your life. Save on things that will be gone the very next day, and forgotten in a week by almost all of your guests. But trust the important, life long things to a professional who fully grasps the importance of the job.

Every professional was once an amateur with a lot to learn. If making big mistakes is key to learning, you don't want your wedding day being the classroom. Instead, if you have a friend who wishes to build a portfolio or get into the game, ask your professional photographer to allow him to shoot as well. With a little coordination between your professional photographer and amateur friend , you can rest easy knowing the photography is under control and you can feel good about giving your friend a chance to gain experience they may not otherwise get. After-all, friendships are important and you don't want something like bad images, or worse, no images, destroying them. Hire a professional and set your mind at ease.

This article was an adaptation taken from an excellent article written by Angelo Stavrow.

David & Kate

2010-09-07T16:32:00.009-04:00

I had a great time shooting David and Kates wedding. They were such a fun couple, and so was the wedding party. I've attached a sneak preview with a few fun photos. Studio Southwest is a Niagara wedding and portrait photographer and we look forward to shooting your wedding!

New Look!

2010-09-07T12:58:00.012-04:00

I decided to change the look of my blog. I like it a lot more than the old blog design. We have had a full and busy summer with weddings and portraits, and are winding down the wedding season for 2010 with only a couple of weddings left. We are booking into 2011/12 now. We are Niagara's premiere studio for classic, elegant, and timeless wedding photography. Studio Southwest is a Niagara wedding and portrait photographer and have photographed over 200 weddings.

Very Nice Photo!!

2010-08-18T16:21:00.002-04:00

Just putting up a very nice of photo of Al Gilbert and myself taken at Al's show "A Glimpse at Greatness: The Portraiture of Al Gilbert".
Al is a very dear friend and mentor who I admire very much.

Some of my professional colleagues!

2010-08-09T14:35:00.002-04:00

Hi Everyone,
I just came across some photos the other day of myself and my colleagues from New Image Photography in Las Vegas, Nevada. Here's one. Aren't we a crew?!! More of these can be seen on my facebook page.

The Big Apple

2010-07-31T13:51:00.002-04:00

Just posting some photos of the Big Apple from our trip. I used film for these photos.

Sunset Over the Atlantic

2010-07-23T16:12:00.001-04:00

Ah, what a beautiful sunset.

Vacation!!

2010-07-16T16:25:00.002-04:00

We went on a cruise a couple of weeks ago out of New York City to St. John, New Brunswick, Halifax, then back to New York. It was great! Lots of sun, lots of food, seafood and lots of photos. Here are some of them. The towels were the pets we found waiting for us back in our staterooms each evening. Cute!!

KGB

2010-07-15T14:58:00.003-04:00

I had a blast yesterday shooting Kim Germaine from KGB (the Kim Germaine Band)!!

What a Night!!! Thank you Roger Hodgson!

2010-04-23T15:53:00.009-04:00

Wow, so besides my wedding night, last night was the best night of my life!! I had the distinct honour and privilege of photographing Roger Hodgson my favourite musician. First before the session my brother Stephen and I enjoyed his concert , then after the show we spent a whole hour with Roger getting tons of great shots. I can't wait to share them with you but of course, Roger has to see them first. But here is a photo of Roger and I which was our last photo of the session. Studio Southwest is a Niagara wedding and portrait photographer with 20 years of professional photography experience. We LOVE being able to provide exceptional quality to our couples, and most importantly we LOVE being chosen to share and capture your special day.
Roger was the co-founder of Supertramp. He parted ways with Supertramp in 1983, but is performing solo now, and he is fantastic, and his show is AWESOME!! I like Supertramp but all of my favourite Supertramp songs were his. I'm so honoured that I was given the opportunity to photograph someone I admire so much.

Happy Birthday Roger

2010-03-08T14:36:00.006-05:00

Hi Everyone,
One of my favourite singer/songwriters, Roger Hodgson, formerly of Supertramp, will be celebrating his 60th birthday this March 21. Roger wrote most of the Supertramp hits like Logical Song, Give A Little Bit, School, Fool's Overture, and my two all time, absolute favourites "Lord Is It Mine, and "Hide In Your Shell". Roger hasn't been with Supertramp since 1983, but he is touring worldwide solo singing all his hits that he wrote for Supertramp. In my opinion, he was Supertramp, because ALL of the Supertramp songs I love are all written by him. He will be performing at Fallsview Casino, on April 22 and 23, 2010.
Well, I hope Roger has a fantastic birthday, and I can't wait to see him in April.
Happy Birthday Roger.
Love Claudia
Check out his website at www.rogerhodgson.com