ellipsis…

i’m pretty sure i’ve watched the video below at least 2 dozen times already. no joke. i can’t get enough of it. i can never really appreciate the impact that Help-Portrait has during the actual event. i tend to have my attention on making sure everything is running smooth. and with this year having more people receiving portraits, i didn’t really stop to soak up the day. it isn’t until i watch the fantastic story telling of Mr. Steve Tan that i am really able to see the effect a picture can have.

i am always impressed with the calibre of people i get a chance to work with. from musicians, to makeup artists, greeters and hot chocolate backpackers, and of course photographers. one of my biggest joys during a Help-Portrait event is to see photographers so excited to give portraits. the enthusiasm, and huge smiles and laughter, and the eagerness to show subjects how amazing they look puts the biggest smile on my face. the first minute of the video is almost all photographers, i had to fight a tear or two the fist time i saw it.

Steph Forster, you continually amaze me with the relationships you build in the DTES, the paperwork and permits you can negotiate, and the pure drive you have to see us succeed. Help-Portrait Vancouver wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you. we’d just be a bunch of camera geeks that need a lot of help. my amazing core team, Arne, Michael, Tony, Bernard & Leigh, you have taken Help-Portrait to a new level. i would have not been able to keep my sanity without you. Jennifer Ruth, thank-you so much for leading the makeup and hair team. i knew with the team in your hands we’d have a great group of artists to make people feel beautiful. Nelson, you booked so many acts for us! it was great! thank-you so much. watching you jam on the piano was so good. Mr. Danny Taylor, thank-you for stepping into lead the volunteers. thanks for also freezing your ass off for us. and to the brilliant Steve Tan, who’s videos allow me to really see the impact that Help-Portrait has, thank-you!

Help-Portrait Vancouver 2010 (Thank You) from Steve Tan on Vimeo.

the morning crew

the afternoon crew

Help-Portrait 2010 was amazing! here is the first video of many to come from the 2010 event. stay tuned for more!

Help-Portrait Vancouver 2010 from Steve Tan on Vimeo.

i have the privilege of working with such an amazing group of photographers! huge props to Leigh, Arne, Bernard, Tony and Michael! you guys rock!

what am i talking about? well, on Tuesday, November 23rd, 2010, myself, the amazing crew above, the fantastic Steph Forster and a group of makeup artist and stylists had the honour of holding a Help-Portrait event at BC Children’s Hospital for terminally ill patients and their families. the experience was truly amazing! to see the personalities of some of the kids just come bounding out when they are all dressed up and are in front of the camera, words can not describe.

the day started off with a little boy named Kade. he walked in on our pre-event meeting with Diane, the Director of Child Life Department. Kade was dressed to impress, shirt, tie, vest and dress pants. he told us all that his favourite person was Mr. Bean and he dressed up like him. it was evident that Kade was at the hospital for some heavy medical treatment; our initial wide eyes all turned into big smiles as he worked the room. Kade definitely set the mood for the rest of the day.

the day was filled with kids like Kade. Arne made faces to make someone smile and Leigh ended up on the ground to take the picture of a giggling baby. we had brothers have their pictures taken, the older brother commutes in to Vancouver daily to see is little (6 foot 2) brother. he had been in the hospital for 7 weeks and really hoped he could go home in a week or so. 7 weeks was the shortest length of time in our group of patients. along with the kids, it was really good to see moms and dads smile. moms who hadn’t thought about makeup in a long time getting makeovers, and dads having their hair professionally styled probably for the first time.

we were asked a lot ‘why were doing this?’ and Arne’s answer i think sums it up perfectly ‘because we can…’ we have the ability to give something that most photographers take for granted. a picture is worth so much. we are happy, no overjoyed, to give.

stay tuned, this year isn’t done yet! December 4th is our big event at Union Gospel Mission.

go to www.help-portrait-vancouver.com for all of the lates news and information.

Help-Portrait Vancouver 2010 is just around the corner and we have started a food + toy drive. If you would like to be involved you can become a community drop-site and start collecting items. All items need to be collected by December 1st. You can download the media kit here for more information.

Jeremy Cowart and the Help-Portrait team launched a new video that sums up 2009. watch out for details on Help-Portrait Vancouver 2010, things are going to start rolling very soon. if you are interested in being involved please send me an email.

a thank-you video to all of the people who made Help-Portrait Vancouver a huge success.

Help-Portrait Vancouver was an overwhelming success! the Grace Mansion was full of joy and laughter. the makeup artist and hair stylist were buzzing making women and girls look beautiful. Mark Hildebrand and Kathi Reid filled the room with music. photographers were making people smile and laugh and giggle with excitement. and when the printers starting rolling off prints, it was priceless to see people’s reactions to their portraits. it was such an amazing experience to watch it all unfold before me.

the day went off without a hitch. all of my worries disappears as the first family walked through our doors. that was one of my favourite moments. we all had been waiting for our first family and a photographer suggested we take a group photo of the morning crew. just as we were about to take the picture the first family walked in and we all turned and cheered and clapped, we almost scared them away. lol! my heart jumped and the day had officially begun. everyone seemed to get into a good rhythm, a relaxed joyous rhythm. the day honestly flew by so quickly. i’ve watching the videos that Steve Tan has produced over and over again. they capture the day so well.

by the end of the day we took approximately 175 portraits of families & individuals, which translates to having about 430 people walk through our studios. pretty amazing that we were able to touch that many people. this is just the beginning. there is much more Help-Portrait to come!

the morning crew

the afternoon crew

mr. leigh culpin taking a portrait

bernard ng firing away

michael moore’s larger than life personality

Steve Tan, the resident Help-Portrait Vancouver videographer, has produced two videos of our event. watching these videos almost make me cry. they capture the day so well. i’ll let the videos do the rest of the talking.

Help-Portrait Vancouver

Help-Portrait Vancouver “Let It Shine”

this is the first, but definitely not the last post you’ll see about an awesome project called Help-Portrait. the idea around Help-Portrait is simple, find someone in need, take their portrait, print their portrait, and deliver them. the idea is from photographer Jeremy Cowart and he just launch a brand new Help-Portrait website detailing everything. Help-Portrait events will be happening worldwide on December 12th.

here in Vancouver, myself along with a great group of photographers and with the help of the Nehemiah Foundation are holding a Help-Portrait event in the lower east side. the Salvation Army has been kind enough to sponsor us with a space that we can use, and details are starting to come together. i really believe in the impact this project can have. even the video below, which is a test run, shows you how a portrait can impact a person. community is such a big thing for me, both personally and professionally. it’s rare that a single project will bring both together to help the community we live in.

if you would like to be involved with Help-Portrait Vancouver please email me, or visit our Facebook page.