2009 was another incredible year for us.  While I’m assembling this post, I’m amazed at how busy we were!  There are so many things that we were a part of that I’m not going to be able to share, otherwise this post would be 20 pages long. So we’re going to do something different and focus on what we think is most important – our clients.  Even more importantly, the images that they love!  We asked our wedding couples to share a memory and/or favourite image with us.

Here’s the best part – it’s a contest!  Vote for your favourite image, and the winning couple will win a free mini-album of their wedding! The first and second runners up will also receive a $50 gift certificate for Shandro Photo or Shandro Kids (their choice).

Without further ado….the best of 2009!
David & Laura

Diana & Jeremy

Renu & Garry

“The reason I chose this picture was because it is very different and unique. It shows our reflection in the puddle of water.”

Rob & Lindsay

“So our favourite picture is (no surprises here) the one of us smooching on the first hole of Northern Bear. The day was so perfect for us and that picture encompasses that. You see the beautiful green grass, the blue sky and the excitement of being together. It was the picture you used as a preview for our blog. I remember being at the hotel on our honeymoon and excitedly looking at that picture, the first wedding photo we got to see. Haley and Michael (and Andrew of course), we love you guys and love our wedding photos. Thank-you!”

Britt & Cody

“This picture is our favorite because it totally captures the love and romance of our day!”

Nicole & Jesse

Katy & Jon

Jessica & Jeremy

“We’re so happy we did something crazy on our wedding day!”

Shauntel & Jason

Daniela & Daniel

“Daniel and I love the river photo in our album. We explained what we’d like – a shot at the river without looking like we’re in the city – and Michael definitely gave us that. (People ask us where we were for that photo and are surprised that we are still in Edmonton.) Plus to get the shot, he got down and laid in shallow water and rocks in the fetal position. Thanks for doing whatever it takes!”

Clayton & Carly

Rorik & Julia

“Out of all the photos, it’s a hard decision! There are so many we like!”

Param & Ronnie

“Ronnie and I both love this picture because simply put…its perfect. You got the canola fields surrounding us and the temple in the far distance…there were a lot of comments from other people wondering if this picture was taken in India. Everything around us is calm, peaceful and romantic.”

Esther & Nathan

Neha & Sumit

“Best engagement session ever….great pictures and Michael showed us berries we could eat.. we had a snack and a great time! Also I love how you two add Hindi/Punjabi words to get people to look or smile. The guests loved it, and everyone truly smiles!”

Rena & Uche

“Ok…well that’s the HARDEST question ever! I have so many favorites!!! How about if I list a few of them and then you can decide????”

Stephanie & David

Raman & Raja

Cheryl & James

Carrie & Nick

“This is our favourite picture because it shows an amazing moment between Nick and I. We loved working with you and Michael.”

Melissa & Sean

Dayna & Ryan

“We had so much fun on the day of our vow renewals this fall. Y’know, we did have expectations for a great day, but it was so far surpassed I can’t even explain. I have to say, you guys really were such a huge part of that. Not being people who are big fans of having our pictures taken, we were sort of dreading the photo session part of the day. Little did we know, it was going to be one of our favorite times to remember.

We’d both heard horror stories of hours of over-posing and so much forced smiling, ending in sore faces. I’ve got to say that my face was sore from smiling so much, but none of it was forced. We had such a blast. From running through the cold and kinda wet, streets of downtown all gussied up in our finest, to walking into that wine bar, welcomed by an unexpected applause from all the patrons sitting at the tables. It was too fun, and I’ve got to say those drinks were delicious to top it off!

I just want to say thank you again for your amazing work, and really having none of it feeling like work, at least for us. We had such a fantastic day with you and can’t thank you enough for capturing every moment of it.”

Amita & Abheeshek

Ashley & Rob

And here is where you vote for your favourite.  The voting closes on February 19th, 2010.

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That wraps up the contest images. There are a couple of other important milestones and exciting events happened in 2009 that I want to share with you.

This year we celebrated our 3rd wedding anniversary, and our little guy turned one! 

Andrew is a very well travelled boy, having visited Phoenix, Mexico, Texas, Banff, Calgary, and Vancouver all in his first year. 

I know many of you are anxious for an announcement from us that we’re adding to our family. Not yet!  When I posted on Facebook that I had exciting news in December, it was the first thing to leap to people’s minds.  However, the exciting news was that I’m now a full time photographer (yay!) after leaving my day job.  Trust me, we know Andrew is super cute and another Shandro baby would probably be super cute too.  We need to save SOME surprises for the future! For now we are a happy little stay-at-home family of three, working on our business, and enjoying some much deserved family time. 

After losing my dad in November, our life came into a better perspective.  That’s one big reason that I took the leap to leave my day job.  Life is too short, and we need to love the ones we’re with and get as much out of life as we can. Nothing is more important than family.

A bunch of exciting things are coming up for us in 2010, and you’re just going to have to stay tuned!  We started Shandro Kids this year, the baby/maternity/family side to Shandro Photo.  It’s been a great success, and Shandro Kids is going to develop in a big and exciting way in 2010. We have so many amazing couples and families that we’re looking forward to working with this year.

Happy 2010 everyone!

- Haley, Michael, & Andrew Shandro