I had the pleasure of taking photos for a CAA Community & Advocacy 2026 issue this fall, and seeing the photos come alive alongside the written article was such a fun experience.
The article, Creating Community at Manitoba Car Clubs, features what matters most for the members, and it’s not necessarily just the type of vehicle. It’s the people.
The event I photographed took place earlier this summer in Winnipeg. It was so much fun to meet the classic car owners and enthusiasts, watch visitors tour the cars, and capture the community feeling of the event.
One of my favourite parts was hearing the stories behind the cars. Classic cars seem to bring out so many memories and pieces of personal history. I got to hear so many interesting stories tied to their car hobbies. It’s not just the vehicles that they like to share about, but it’s also the people, the places and the experiences they’ve lived through these cars that seem to come up the most. There’s so much connection to family and friends, and the cars help to bring it all together.
When CAA asked me to be a part of this documentary photography project, I was all in. There’s something about photography that captures the emotions and personal connections behind a story. It’s the reason I got into photography, and projects like this really hit home how much value there is in photography (and videography too).
Below is a preview of the photos I took but to read the full article and to see the videography I created alongside the photos, visit: CAA Magazine
Screenshot of the online article. Click to see the full article and view the video.
Earlier this summer I had the joy of going to the Saint-Boniface University campus to create some marketing and promotional photography for their website, social media and print materials. I’ve been taking photos for the university’s many different events and marketing needs over the last several years and it’s always such a pleasure working with their staff and students! There is a strong community feel at the university and it’s always such a delight being there to capture it in photos for them.
We started the photo shoot day with professional headshots for some of their staff. We always make sure to capture creative portraits that feel approachable — nothing too formal or corporate, while still keeping it professional. Their atrium’s architecture is beautiful and the space is flooded with natural light: two things that come together very well for professional portraits.
After the headshot session, we moved to several different locations within their space to capture the variety of spaces they have and to showcase how life on campus is enjoyed by students. We had a wonderful group of students who were our models for the day, and I had so much fun placing them in the different spaces we had, capturing both candid and posed shots.
We took thousands of photos, but I whittled it down to a handful of highlights to share here:
I had a wonderful time meeting Brendan Rogers and his team for headshots and group portraits this spring. Instead of going with the classic solid white backdrop, Brendan chose a more dynamic environment for their photos: the Royal Canadian Mint! As far as photo locations in Winnipeg, I had never had the opportunity to do a photo session there. It turned out to be such a great spot for photos. With interesting architecture, large windows, and a mix of light (as well as having to avoid school tours in the backgrounds!), it was a fun challenge to use this space to create professional yet approachable portraits for this team.
For this session I mainly used my portable studio lights but I also included some of the natural ambiant light to add colour and depth to the photos. Here’s a preview of the images we took:
In the midst of a super busy June full of fast-moving photo shoots, this calm and sweet moment of newborn photos with this family was a true delight. Baby C is the cutest little girl, and seeing how much she is already so loved and cared for by her older twin sisters was so beautiful to watch. It was a true joy to come into their beautiful home to capture these sweet moments together as a family of five. Here is a little preview of our lovely afternoon session together.
As a professional photographer with super expensive gear, I have to say that I’ve discovered a surprising love for iPhone photography as a side hobby. I think the delight comes from simplifying the camera, not fussing over complex techniques and creating great results that make me happy.
So today, I’d like to share my top 4 favourite tools for iPhone photography (and videography) to inspire you to take your photography to the next level… not by investing tens of thousands of dollars into professional gear, but by using simple tools to jump into the wonderful world of playing with the iPhone camera.
At under just $200, this two-mic kit has been fantastic for recording reels and videos on my iPhone. The sound is great and the mic is easy to clip on. The whole box is easy to recharge and the mic itself is pretty discreet when clipped on to a shirt. (not an affiliate link)
I create a lot of PDFs, slides, layouts for Instagram and other graphics with my photos, and I find Canva to be the easiest and most versatile program out there. There is a free version, but I upgraded to the pro subscription so that I could have more storage space, add my branding assets and have access to more stock graphics and layouts. (not an affiliate link)
If you are an iPhone photographer, you MUST have the Lightroom app on your phone! It’s the best photo editing app out there, and is great for quickly resizing images. You can create your own presets, copy and paste settings onto other similar photos (to save editing time) and organize your photos into albums. There’s a free version of the app that is great, but the subscription is worth the $16 CAD/month it costs. The pro perks are great (spot removal, masking, bulk editing, etc.)
(affiliate link but I only promote products I personally use and love!)
To learn more about how I use Lightroom Mobile and why I love it, visit my blog post here.
When taking group photos (with you included in the photo!), selfies or talking videos of yourself, using a good tripod with a remote is key. I’ve tried a few over the years, and my favourite is one made by KraftGeek.
It’s super easy to set up, and the phone attaches with a magnet without any bulky grips or clamps in the way. The bluetooth remote lets you start and stop record or press the shutter remotely, so you don’t have to touch the phone or use the self-timer. I love it! It’s $42.99 US but with coupon code GABRIELLE you get 10% off.
(affiliate link but I only promote products I personally use and love!)
And if you’re wondering what I shoot with? It’s an old iPhone 14. It fits in my back pocket, it’s always on me, so I am never without a camera! I love the convenience of photography on the go like this.
Follow me on my iPhone photography Instagram account here.
Get inspired, see what I’ve been up to and learn a few photo tips along the way!
Curious about getting into phone photography?
I have a ton of tips, articles and teaching videos available at:
