B2 Photography | Winnipeg, MB

Little Reid was 5 days old when I went to have a little photoshoot with him.   We weren’t sure if we were going to get him to sleep, but eventually those heavy eye lids closed and he had a little nap.

After a crazy week and a whirlwind weekend in Vancouver (I really was like a whirlwind shopping up a storm down Robson St. with my cousin) things are finally settling back down. Be sure to check in this week for full sneak peeks for Reid and Shannon!

AND don’t forget to vote for the best friends photo contest!!  The race is close and the standings are changing everyday, so vote for your favs!!

Glowing & Gorgeous

I’m proud to present our group of contest entries!!  I can’t tell you how enjoyable it was to read all these stories.  I know how important it is to have a best friend who listens, consoles, shares your taste in movies, music, shopping, has the same shoe size and is someone you can travel with (not just anybody makes a good travel partner…this I know!).  The bond of women is so strong and so important, it’s wonderful to hear so many stories of (as Anne of Green Gables would say) Kindred Spirits.  Thank-you. Thank-you. Thank-you for sharing your stories with us!

Now we’re leaving the hard part of voting to everyone else out there in cyber space….at the bottom of this post you will find a poll where you can vote for the ultimate BFFs and choose who you think deserves some glam and photos! You can only vote once…so chose carefully!

1.Ashley & Amy

Heart of Life

Our story begins on an airplane en route Thailand.  A few months prior, we were both itching to escape the upcoming Winnipeg winter and were craving some adventure.  Luckily, through mutual friends we were introduced and without much thought or consideration, we promised to travel together by the sacred bondage of a pinky swear.  Months passed, and Amy went away for the summer while Ashley worked to save money for their trip.  The date of departure quickly arrived and a beautiful relationship was about to begin.  One would have to agree that our plan was risky and could have ended in a disaster, but luckily the exact opposite happened.  After a twenty-one hour flight we knew that we were kindred spirits, a perfect balance and a flattering TopShop fit to each other.  When Amy was negative, Ashley was positive; when Ashley was anxious, Amy was relaxed.  Without each other, the trip would not have been nearly as amazing as it was.  
After coming home, our friendship continued to grow.  We spend hours reminiscing, watching scuba diving dvds, having bake-a-thons and cook-offs and daydreaming about upcoming adventures (usually over non-fat cinnamon dolce lattes and tunes by either Jack Johnson, Kanye or Michael Franti & Spearhead.)
Our friendship is real, effortless and natural.  We are so blessed to have found a sister in each other that will never judge, always love and forever support and encourage one another. Here’s to many more years to come, cheers. <3

2. Carmelle & Mavis

Carmelle: I don’t recall the specifics as to how Mav and I hooked up, but what I do remember is that at the beginning of the Grade 8 year I had an absolutely instant joined-at-the-hip, read-your-mind, finish your sentences, do everything-with, kind of best friend. Nothing and everything have changed over the years! Our lives have developed very differently, but no matter what, no matter when, our connection is instant. Mav was for me, the sister I never had but always hoped for and wanted. But even better. Its hard to explain what makes it work…but you can’t always explain awesome chemistry! We draw out different qualities in each other – she brings me out of my shell, and stretches my adventurous & fun side that she knows is there, just hidden…and maybe I bring her back to reality and pull out those characteristics that linger just underneath the surface. Whatever it is, life hasn’t changed our friendship and it is just amazing to have each other – it goes beyond what I could have imagined friends to be. Our memories haven’t just ‘been’ made to look back on, but are continually being made.

Mavis: A friendship that can withstand the years…
We met in grade 8. I had friends here from before, when I used to live here but something was just not clicking right…until i met Carmelle. This girl in my class confident, beautiful and so sure of herself. Would she even want to be friends with me?
Well you can guess what happened. instant click. I had my sister I had never had. 
We have gone through everything together: first jobs, boyfriends, cars, a marriage, some babies and a move to the city. Both changing into extremely different women in the process. The time spent together did change but that bond was always there. When people who have only known us in the last few years wonder how we are friends we can’t explain it. How do you explain something you yourself are in awe of? A friendship so strong and deep it can carry you through the big life changes and different paths taken in life.

3. Darci & Ginger

My husband and I moved to a little quiet town in Alberta called Didsbury in 2007. I was 9 months pregnant with our first baby and went into labour 3 days after we moved into our new little house. I didn’t know anyone in Alberta, and especially in Didsbury where we were going to start our new life with our new baby named Lily Rose who was born in Calgary on November 28th 2007 at 1:36am. I would be alone with no friends and no family while my husband commuted one hour each way to work in Calgary.

Two weeks later we were in the quaint little grocery store in Didsbury with Lily in tow and a woman (Darci) came up to me smiling and asked how old our baby was. We told her and she was shocked to find out that Lily was born on the same day as her new baby Neve. We then figured out that Neve was born just two minutes after Lily at 1:38am and in the same maternity ward!!! So after we figured out we were pushing out babies at the same time, Darci gave me her number and a picture of Neve and we soon got together with our two babes.

Our babies were astrological twins and Darci and I instantly became great friends having so much in common and having an instant connection to each other. Over the next few months we went out together all the time, Darci showing me around the area and Calgary and all the cool spots to go, farmers markets, great restaurants, u- pick farms and tea houses, and where to get the best beef-jerky in the municipality! We would have Yorkshire tea almost everyday together and we would have many a bbq with our 2 families. Our girls all became friends and Darci and her family came to Manitoba for our wedding last summer. We had such a great time with them at the wedding and then at Victoria beach the following week!

Sadly, my husband and I made the move back to Winnipeg and had to leave our fabulous friendship with Darci and her family behind. But only physically! We still talk almost everyday on the phone and we are still making plans for some big adventures this summer. Yellowknife maybe?

Darci is one of those special people in my life that I instantly loved and will love for the rest of my lifetime. We know that our two beautiful little girls brought us together for a reason, and we will make sure that they grow up knowing each other and hopefully they will find that same connection over their lifetime.

We would love to have another reunion here in Manitoba with the four of us together again! Any excuse!

4. Deana & Jenni

When my best girlfriend sent me the link I started to think about what made her such a great friend. She is night to my day!!  She is wonderfully organized—I’m an organized mess .   She is a gorgeous tall blond— I’m short and darker.  She is as comfortable behind the lense as she is in front of it and I don’t see any reason ever to take a picture!!  But when it comes to things like knitting, shopping and conversation you just know that it was a friendship meant to be!!  We have been friends for almost  11 years now—if I said 12 like she thinks then I probably would have received an invite to her wedding!

Sadly we don’t live just blocks apart anymore—some how the miles don’t seem to matter.   She’s the first one I call or tell and when it comes to finding just the right outfit there is no one I trust more!  In a perfect world friends would never move away but with her I know that many years from now she is the first one I will call to help me cooridinate my house coat and bedspread at the old folks home!!  I also have the added bonus of having her as my hair stylist—how many girls can say that!!

I can’t think of anyone else I would love spending the day with doing something like this!!  I know that she will totally be in her element  and love that she pushes me to expand mine!  If nothing else it’s a day to enjoy hair, make up, clothes, and fun with my best friend!  What’s not to like and maybe, just maybe, we will come away with a picture of the two of us!! Like I said earlier—I don’t really do pictures and so we have no digital pics together—the last one of us was before one of us had a digital camera!! Sad I know!

-Jenni  

Hi!  To tell you the truth….I don’t even have ONE digital image of my best friend and I!!!  We have been friends for about twelve years now, and haven’t managed to get a photo together….crazy I know!!!  Anyways, let me tell you about my friend.  She is the best.  Even though we live apart now, she always saves my spot on her couch when I come to visit.  I love that I can call her anytime of the night or day, and she always has time to chat or just give me her opinion on what clothing items work together!  It is true….we are opposite on lots of things, but also complement eachother greatly!  I don’t think we have ever had a girl’s weekend away…probably because we would break the bank with our shopping…but always getting the best deal.  I don’t think I will ever live down not inviting her to my wedding, but we seriously just met!!  Had I know we would become the closest of friends, she would have been standing right up next to me.  But we can’t go back in time…just forward.  If we won this, it would mean capturing 11ish years together.  I just know we would have a blast!  And she deserves to feel as beautiful as she looks! 

-Deana 

5. Jenna & Kristin

Hi I’m Jenna and my best friend is Kristin. 
Kristin and I are the ultimate best friends because we love each other no matter what and even though we’re different we just can’t get enough of each other. I go to university in Winnipeg, while Kristin works in Morden. We always make time for each other on weekends and keep in touch as much as possible even though we still tend to miss each other during the week. The one thing that makes us different from regular best friends is that we don’t know how we came to be best friends. We pinned to a day that we played at fun baseball tournement in Plum Coulee, and went to the bathroom together and from there its history. We have been best friends since then, which was 3 years ago. Our friendship is not perfect, but thats what makes it so interesting because sometimes we fight like we’re dating and don’t see eye to eye. In the end we always work it out and we still love each other. We both to go camping and do random fun things, like hide in her brothers truck box to scare him, teepee peoples cars and ly in the middle of the road and watch the traffic lights change, like in the notebook. Even though we love to do things we can spend a whole day together and do absolutely nothing, and be totally content with that. Kristin is my very best friend and I think that this would be an excellent way to start off an exciting summer of living closer together and seeing each other as often as we like. 

6. Kayla & Heidi

My name is Kayla Fehr and this is a picture of me and my best friend Heidi Wiebe. As you can probably tell we are crazy, goofy girls who like to do some of the strangest things together. I met Heidi my first year at Winkler Bible Camp, 16 years ago, and we have been pretty much inseparable ever since! It takes a very special friend to stick with you for so many years. Together we have survived the perils of jr. high, the fears of starting highschool, family deaths, broken hearts and the uncertainity of life after highschool. She’s been there to pick me up when life has knocked me over, a shoulder to cry on, and a willing listener when I’ve needed someone to talk to. She’s also given me tons and tons and tons of laughs, so many crazy adventures and wild ideas. From pictures in an alligator pool in a tennis court, to taking photos of a dressed up cooked chicken, to finger painting in the cafeteria during grade 12 spares she has filled my life with many great stories and warm memories and extremely hilarious adventures! What makes us such special friends is that we can be absolutely bonkers together and have tons of laughs and she’ll still be there with a hug and a box of kleenex when life gets tough. She is the most amazing best friend a girl could ever dream of and I wouldn’t have made it this far without her. She’s loyal and trustworthy and always dependable and I hope and pray I have been as good a friend to her as she has been to me. Since we often like to have our own random little photoshoots I thought this would be the perfect thing for me and her, and perhaps a small way of saying thank you for all the years of friendship that I just couldn’t live without!

7. Kelli & Karla

Kelli and Karl’s
Thoughts on a special friend

My special friend

She is a beautiful person inside
and out, there was a powerful bond that brought us together about 12
years ago.

Our friendship was instant as if it was planned to have
happened like clock work. We are a perfect blend together and we bring
out the best in each other.

We are such special friends because of the
respect we have for one another, the loyalty we show towards each
other, the interpersonal ties we share, the in depth conversations we
have and the fact that we don’t and will never let each other stand
ALONE in a crisis.

Our friendship is valued as if we were sisters; we
enrich one anothers lives and are blessed to have such a great gift of
friendship for one another. She is my best friend and I will always
cherish our time together.

My special friend is:

A ray of  sunshine

Pure as water

Trustworthy

understands my feelings and moods

there  for the bad and the good

Honest

Kind

Supportive

Caring

Most of all my sister I never had and my best friend!

8. Laura & Mary

Once upon a time there were two eleven year old girls, who were ten days apart in age. The first girl, Laura, could not wrap her mind around the other’s family structure. The other girl, Mary, had five brothers and sisters. Laura had never known a family so large. While Mary, thought Laura was a little nerd.

One cold Winnipeg night the girls were sat side by side in a Babysitting prep class. Together they practiced bandaging each other up from fictitious wounds and learned to change diapers, laughing the entire time. The laughter still continues to this day. Mary now knows Laura is a nerd, but appreciates it. Laura loves Mary’s large family and enjoys spending time with them.

The two have been best friends for more than eleven years. Although through this entire time the girls were not side by side, they were always close. They have been there for each other through every achievement, heart break, and fashion mishaps alike.

You can often find them shopping, dreaming up capers, or, most often, laughing till it hurts.

Because they think the other is hilarious (and have the same size feet), they are best friends.

9. Lorraine & Amanda

Amanda and I met about 12 years ago in high school and
became great friends from the start.  We were roommates in high school and after graduating spent numerous days and nights hanging out and having fun in our care free, youthful days.  We got married around the same time and were each other’s maids of honor.  Over the years we have always supported, encouraged, advised and celebrated with each other through trials and triumphs.  More recently we have both become mothers.  This has strengthened our bond and even though our lives are very busy at the best of times, we have always made a point of making time for each other as we are now more than just friends. 
But with the ever growing demands of our lives we sometimes feel as though we’ve lost ourselves, finding it hard to find time to just be “you”.  We hope that this contest will give us an opportunity to have time to reconnect with ourselves and each other, giving us the time to enjoy our friendship and add to the many memories we’ve created over the years.  The photo shoot would be a record of our time together and reflect how much we mean to each other.

10. Merrilee & Sheryl

My Sister…. My best friend!  Sheryl and I are 6 years apart but the age difference feels smaller as time passes.  We have always been there for each other, through thick and thin… Even way back in the day when I was so into her boyfriends, that she would have to lock me out of the room…. Tee hee. I missed her and her bubbly and optimistic attitude the minute she got married and moved out of the house.  For years, I saw their home as my second home, and basically grew up being there every weekend.  Still can¹t believe that she let me hang out at her house them being newlyweds and all but I will forever be grateful for the great example and friend she was to me then and now.  Now that we are both married and have children of our own, we continue to grow in our friendship, and in the things we have in common. I adore her little princess¹ as I don¹t have a girl of my own, and she loves my boys as they are her own, which is something that you can¹t even attempt to put into words.  Her friendship means so much to me, and knowing that she is ready to talk, laugh or even cry with me at any time of the day (even if it is past midnight and Tim Horton’s and a shoulder to cry on is in order) is something that I feel very blessed to have.  Sheryl is incredibly intelligent, positive, funny, hard working, spontaneous, a great listener, incredibly beautiful, and filled with an incredible amount of love.  She has an incredible heart and I love her for how she continues to encourage and motivate me to be a better person…. to take risks and aspire to make all my dreams come true.  We are constantly asked if we are twins and have come to the point where very often we will just smile, and pretend that the person who is smiling at us, is someone we know (to avoid people thinking that the person they think we are is snubbing them off… Ha ha). Friends like this are irreplaceable and I cherish her with all my heart and soul. There is nothing I wouldn’t do for you girl friend!!! Love you Sheryl!  XOXOX

11. Sarah Joy & Michelle

My name is Sarah Joy. The pictures I attached (one silly and one of us normal ) are of myself and my best friend Michelle. Michelle and I have been friends since we were in College about 4 years ago. There are a lot of things that make us special apart but more importantly special together! We have both had our struggles and extremely hard times, but with the love of sisters, even if not by blood, we have endured them together. In college Michelle and I both struggled  with different situations but no matter what I knew that she was there for me and she knew the same of me. We made it through a long distance friendship even when she was living in Thunderbay and I was here in Winnipeg. I am lucky now that she is only as far as Portage La Prairie . Through out my years I have had many different friendships and they are all unique in their own way but Michelle and I have grown to be more than friends. We share the important situations, her wedding, my break off of a wedding…etc, and we love each other completely. I respect her for the intelligent, beautiful, and fun woman she has become. I could not imagine her missing out on my triumphs and failures in life. We’ve recently hit another rough spot in the road, but as always I am right by Michelle’s side, if not physically, then in spirit, and I know that we’ll get her through.

Apart Michelle and I are both vibrant, fun, and sociable girls. Together we are strong, loving, supportive, and most of all…best friends

Thank you for having this wonderful contest! I think it’s important that women remember just how important the “non blood” sisters in our lives are to us!

12. Sonya & Joelle

To actually describe what a best friend is, would be utterly impossible, and the description of the friendship Joelle and I have could not fit in a single paragraph.  Joelle and I have been through so many ups and downs, twists and turns, and rocky roads, but yet our friendship holds strong.  I’d say the one thing that binds us is our sense of humor.  This is a priceless quality.  We seem to bring out the comedic sides in each other.  Whenever I am with her I am sure to expect a dose of the laughter, whether it be our amazing music video of our rendition of “My Milkshake Brings All The Boys To The Yard” or having a “who can make the ugliest face” contest, documented by many photos over the years!  We can now look back and laugh at the fact that years ago we dated the same guy (not at the same time), and it’s hilarious to us now.  Only best friends can make the best out of an awkward situation.  There are times in life when I probably would have never made it without my best friend.  When Joelle’s mom was diagnosed with cancer, I was there.  When I went through a rough break-up, Joelle was there.  She is the first one I call when things just aren’t right in life.  I can tell you this.  If I was ever thrown in jail, I probably wouldn’t call Joelle to bail me out.  She would be the one sitting beside me in the cell.  She is my Godsend and I love her to pieces!

13. Tonya & Katie

Katie and I have only been friends since, my second year at Minot State University.  Our love for art brought us together, now we are inseparable. I am Katie’s model for her photography classes, and she is my brainstorming partner when coming up with ideas for graphic design projects.  Until I met Katie I was focused on being a mature adult but, she has taught me that having fun and acting silly is much better.  So we are crazy even when everyone else is watching but, who cares.  That’s what friends are for right?

14. Tracy & Steph

Hey!  We are tracey fehr (the blonde one) and steph thiessen (the brunette one) and we the bestest of friends!  We became sweet friends at the start of grade eight… all of stephs best friends had switched schools and so tracey prayed the night before that she and steph would become better friends, so steph would have someone close to have fun with at school.  our friendship has since grown stronger through being there for fun and advice – good news, bad news… she’s the first one i go to.  we ecourage each other and support each other and we have crazy fun times together – all the time!  we’re like part of each other’s families; we do almost everything together.  we have so many things in common, like our love for christmas, banana split milkshakes, the colors pink and purple!, snowboarding and of course batman (the dark knight).  but we have enough differences that make being with each other always interesting – like steph is incredibly independant and outgoing and tracey is much more dependant and shy and while steph can bring tracey out of her shell, tracey can mello steph down.  it’s never a dull moment, we always have too many adventures, too many stories… not enough ears.

VOTE HERE!!!

I couldn’t help but blog this one today after Reid’s newborn shoot.  I LOVE this shot.  How do you ask a brand new mom and dad “hey can I put your baby on the stairs?” lol.  Thankfully Reid’s mom loved my idea and didn’t think I was crazy.  

Hey ladies, last chance to get in on this amazing contest! We’ve had an amazing turn out of entries so far and we’ve enjoyed reading all the stories sent to us….don’t miss out on your chance to win a photo shoot with your best gal-pal!

Send a photo of you and your best friend along with a paragraph about what makes you guys such special friends to becky@b2photography.ca
Contest closes April 18th and winners will be announced May 1st. The photo shoot is scheduled for Sunday May 24th, in the Winnipeg, MB area.
The contest is open to all girls/women that can make it to a Winnipeg shoot on May 24th. The shoot will be an all day event!!!

ALL the details can be found in this post.

This sneak peek is LONG over due!  After a weekend being on flood watch and fighting the flu blogging took a backseat, but i’m happy to report i’m feeling better and my home is not floating down the Red River.

Last weekend I had a visit with Alex and Gabrielle, we checked out their bedrooms, played with Lego, ate marshmallows and Alex told me about his MANY occupations….athlete, cowboy, knight, artist…and the list goes on.  Check out the photos of these gorgeous kids!

Love this shot of Gabrielle in her very girly room!  So cute!

Check out those way cool kicks!

Marshmallows…the perfect afternoon snack

I was lucky enough to photograph the adorable Kennedy and McCallum this weekend.  They were both so sweet.  McCallum is one of the most polite (almost) 3 year olds I’ve ever met, at one point when he didn’t quite hear what his dad said he responded with “pardon?”  I was so impressed with the manners his parents have instilled in him at such a young age….what a gentleman!  Kennedy was as sweet as sugar!  She was very content during the shoot and just showed off her pretty blue eyes the whole time!

This shot of McCallum on the stairs is easily one of my favorite shots of the shoot!

Love this one of the ladies too!

More to come of this gorgeous family next week, but I couldn’t help but share just a few!  Check back early in the week for the full blown Sneak Peek!