Lethbridge Weddings & Portrait Photography by Tanya Plonka

Just as I had been wanting to do witch-themed photos, I was serendipitously contacted by a group of friends who were planning a girls’ weekend away in Lethbridge in the coming summer. They wanted to dress up like a coven for a fun photoshoot during their trip. It was incredibly hard to wait the many months until their visit, but soooo worth the wait!

Chelsey, Joanne, and Trish absolutely killed it. They selected sexy black outfits all with unique personality and enlisted the talents of Katt Panic for their makeup.

I had so much fun with these women, and they were up for anything! I got everyone to levitate, they climbed on trees in their dresses and heels, and by the end they braved the cold to make use of some creative lighting after dark. The best part of the session was their energy and the positivity they gave to each other, encouraging each of their friends and telling them how sexy they were.

This was easily my favourite photos session this year and I’m so thankful you ladies found me!

I love how vibrant Shelly’s colourful autumn portrait session turned out! Shelly and I planned her outfits ahead of time and I chose the best locations to compliment each one. Shelly looks amazing in bright yellow, so it was perfect for autumn.

Shelly’s family is overseas and with COVID hitting that year, it meant she didn’t get to see them as much as she would have liked. This session was planned as a gift to her mom so she could still see her daughter from afar, which I thought was so sweet!

Shelly is fairly new to Lethbridge after moving from Edmonton, so we made use of a few iconic Lethbridge features like the coulees. She has such a contagious smile and came ready for her photos after studying poses she wanted to use. (I don’t want to scare others away – normally you don’t have to worry about posing, I will do that for you!) It was great getting to know her for the hour session, and we luckily beat a huge rain storm by minutes!

Katon was in need of some new headshots and professional but casual portraits when he contacted me to do his photoshoot. It’s not super often that I get to do a session that is exclusively men’s portraiture, but I love this change from working with families!

I love taking photos at the University of Lethbridge campus because it offers such a great mix of urban and nature locations right next to each other. The urban look was more of what Katon was going for and primarily chose in the end, but I couldn’t resist how great the foliage looked with the autumn colours.

For individual portraits, I always recommend bringing at least two outfits. Katon chose a great contrasting set, including both a more formal dressed up look, as well as a casual look that showed off his tattoos.

Last fall I had another fun personal branding top up session with Renae from Beautiful Inside Academy.

While Renae is usually about cool neutral colours and a crisp, clean look, she needed something more seasonal she can use in the autumn. We picked a gorgeous day when the colours were vibrant to have some fun throwing leaves, playing on the swings, and hanging out in Pavan Park.

The background may not fit Renae’s brand, but the photos still show her approachable, warm personality and positive outlook. You may also remember her awesome sunglasses from her last session!

I’ve worked with Melissa many times for her family photos, but this time I had the opportunity to focus on just her! In addition to her work in the world of medicine, Melissa is also a local Lethbridge musician and needed some singer-songwriter promotional photos for her solo music she is working on.

Melissa usually plays guitar with a local rock band of other health care professionals, but her solo work shows a more vulnerable side. Normally my focus is on colour work, but a ton of black and white felt like such a good fit in this case.

Being a true rockstar, Melissa bared her arm and shoulder tattoos in the freezing cold for the sake of these photos!

Weddings and events may have been postponed in 2020 due to COVID, but once restrictions eased up in the summer, everyone was grateful to spend time outdoors with their families! I was so thankful we have such beautiful, wide open outdoor spaces around Lethbridge so I could keep photographing all of these awesome families. I ended up hoarse on many occasions from yelling through my mask, but it was always worth it.

Two of the biggest trends I noticed this year were all of the babies who arrived (and these aren’t even the quarantine babies yet!) and all of the larger families who made an effort to celebrate important anniversaries and birthdays. I adapted quickly by bringing most of the newborns outdoors on warm days and talking their parents through poses. Everyone did so well!

Some highlights from 2020 include not one but TWO marriage proposals, a cat birthday, and a few more secret projects to come that I can’t share yet, including album art for local musicians and a children’s book. Each season was so amazing this year, from the long blossom season we had to the vibrant colours in the fall. Even the early snow was warm enough for outdoor photos!