Lethbridge Portrait & Wedding Photography & Design by Tanya Plonka

I can’t believe Sophia is already two! I’ve had the fortune to photograph this little girl since she was only a baby bump. Actually, her maternity photos were done while I still worked at Sears! During that session I found out her mom Laura was from the Crowsnest Pass, where I am originally from, and though we had just missed each other in high school by about a year, we have been in touch ever since. I’ve been able to photograph little Sophia when she was teeny tiny, and last year when she turned one. You may have seen her feet throughout my website ;)

This last weekend while I was in the Pass to photograph some friends getting married (photos of that coming soon!), Laura brought Sophia out to the scenic Leitch Collieries for some photos to celebrate the momentous 2 year occasion. I wish Leitch Collieries was closer to Lethbridge… the best way I can describe the location for photos is EPIC! At least in the CNP, it’s only a five minute drive from my house :)

It took a lot of chasing to get most of these photos, but oh goodness she’s so cute!

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Trevor has recently purchased a pretty intense pogo stick, so we’ve spent some time at lunch this week photographing his up and coming skill! Warf brought his Alien Bee and found a very long extension cord, and we worked Trevor to the point of exhaustion – apparently these pogo sticks are a lot of work!

Mike, the athlete that he is, made sure to take his turn on the pogo stick too.

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Wondering how “Like a Prayer” can find its way into a wedding slideshow? Be sure to click on Read More and check out the full entry here :)

I’m starting to see why wedding photographers stop posting blogs during wedding season, but I vowed to keep up with these! As long as I make it before the next weekend I am happy :) The problem this week is that Al and Lindsay were so cute AND had me booked for longer, so I had so many great shots to sort through! Their fun attitude lent itself well to a lot of great photos.

Lindsay and Al chose to see each other before everyone else was around and do the photos as the first part of the day, allowing them to be totally ready to party once the ceremony was done and the tables rolled out. I love being there to capture when the couple sees each other for the first time all done up; there is always such a look of awe and appreciation they give each other.

I loved being a part of their day. The bridal party was a riot (I had to be told a few times not to encourage certain members by laughing at their crude jokes!) and we had a beautiful sunny day to work with. Late last year I shot his brother Tyler’s wedding (who was in the bridal party this time around), and it makes it so much easier (and fun!) when you already know a chunk of the family; at the very least, it saves me from calling a few extra people “hey you!” throughout the day ;)

A big thank you again to Michael for assisting! He had lights out and ready to go when I needed them!

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Last night Lethbridge was graced by one of my favorite bands, Twilight Hotel who hail from Winnipeg. They put on a stunning show at Slice Bar and Grill, and as usual I was completely captivated by them through the entire performance. If you haven’t already heard this Juno nominated band, please check them out; you won’t be disappointed!

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This Saturday I shot the wedding of the oh-so-gorgeous Candace and Shane, once again with Michael in tow as my backup shooter. I have to admit, it was a bit of a challenge shooting this as I’m still recovering from pneumonia! Luckily my lungs cooperated, it was a gorgeous day, and Candace and Shane were SO easy to work with. They are such a laid back couple and they looked absolutely stunning. The details they put into their wedding were so beautiful (especially Candace’s fitted dress) and I was so impressed that they put this whole thing together in only a couple months!

We started the day with an intimate ceremony at the Lethbridge Lodge, then journeyed out into the wind for photos, but by Lethbridge standards it was only a “breezy” day, so luckily no one blew into the coulee ;)

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Earlier this year when I swung by Henotic to shoot the photos for their website, I brought along a CD I was particularly fond of at the time, O My Heart by Mother Mother. Though these guys have been making huge waves, they’re not a “top 40″ band and I thought owners Jason and Adam would dig the music (which they did). Imagine my delight when a couple months later, they book Mother Mother to play at Henotic! (The moral of this story is that if you find good music, don’t keep it to yourself!)

Lethbridge does not get enough big “small” shows, so this was a fantastic experience – and it proved we can fill a venue when exceptional indie bands come though. The guys at Henotic really rose to the occasion and the show ran flawlessly; the restaurant proved to be the perfect venue.

I feel so lucky to have seen Mother Mother live as they are keeping a pretty strong hold on being one of my favorite bands, and they put on the best show I’ve seen this year. So impressive! Check them out on MySpace

They also made a great choice in having Said the Whale open up for them. I’ve seen these guys more times than I can count because they love us in Lethbridge, and it’s been wonderful to see how they are growing as a band (and I was even really impressed with them the first time I saw them!) :)

Photos follow after the jump:
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