Slacking Off

So I've been slacking off with my summer project. I've skipped a few days and forgotten to post my images and I've gotten lazy. So today I am posting everything I've accumulated (only three days of images).

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

I've also discovered something about myself that I've known for a long time but haven't been able to admit. I have trouble sticking to plans and having the ambition to finish them. So I've decided to finish this project no matter what. Starting today, I really will take one image a day minimum and post it the day after it was taken. I will finish this and I will prove not only to myself but to everyone that I can do it. Stay beautiful.

Summer Nights

The sounds of a fire crackling and the smell of wood burning. My summer nights are spent with bonfires and good people. This post will be short and simple. Take the time to feel the warmth of your good friends and family and listen to the laughter.

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013© 

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Life's a Beach

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love the beach. The warm sand under your feet, the smell of salt in the air and the fresh water on your skin. There's just something so peaceful and serene about it all. This summer, my boyfriend and I are going to Prince Edward Island for a week. We are staying with my parents who are renting a cottage at cedar dunes cottages. I've spend many childhood summers there and can't wait to show him all the things that made me who I am. I also can't wait to see one of my good friends from the program, Taylor O'Connor. As a local from near Charlottetown, she is the sweetest girl you have ever met. We will also (Hopefully) be visting Angie O'Neil who lives in Nova Scotia. She is fun loving, always has a positive smile on her face and loves just about everyone who's around her. Trust me, there will be many pictures of that week, although I am not sure if our cottage has internet, so I may have to upload them all after our vacation. Stay beautiful!

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

The First Rule of Truly Living

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Kiss the girl of your dreams. Study what you want to know. Love unconditionally. Dream big because there are no limits. Smile and feel the sun on your skin. Go on a road trip with your favorite people and laugh the whole way. Cry so hard your body hurts. Go bungee jumping and scuba diving. Do it all because if anything happens to you, at least you'll be able to say you loved your life. You forgot the bad things people said and did in this world and made it your own.

Get off your ass and do something important with your life. Find a missions and do it. Be amazing and don't let people forget your name. You will be the person who influenced a generation of inspiration. You will make people stop what they are doing and think. You will not be forgotten but written in the history books. So your life may not be extraordinary but you are who you are and you're here for a reason. Fulfill it. Make it happen because every single of you is amazing.

I am going to love freely. Create what I imagine and make people stop and think. I will make others start laughing or crying with the power of images. I will make them feel things that others have never been able to. I will make them feel life and make them feel as though they are amazing. That's my goal and I hope you can all help me accomplish it.

The first rule of truly living: do the thing you are most afraid of. The problem with that is that there are so many things people are afraid of. Afraid of really loving, afraid of taking a chance, afraid of change. The thing is, while you're afraid of all those things, life passes you by. Those sweet moments filled with beauty and love move right past you. An amazing sunset, the sound of a baby's laugh, the color of the sky and the smell of freshly cut grass. Doing the things you love and loving the things you do. Live your life while you can. You never know how short it may be. 

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Selfies

To find someone's true self can be difficult. We focus on the negative things we think or hear and make them true. Rarely do we listen to the people who tell us  we are amazing, beautiful or smart. The only way we can grow as people is to believe these things true. To give no power to the ones who negate us. 

Sophie Fortier 2013

We all struggle with our images and the photographer who can push you past those thoughts is a great one. Which is why I have always found it difficult to do self-portraits. Whether they are photographic images, paintings or drawings, I find myself having grown with each one. To capture someone else's soul seems to come so easily to me, but to capture my own? Just about the most difficult thing I've ever done. 

Man's Best Friend

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Meet Maggie & Dakota. Two dogs who love to have fun and are always greeting me when I come over. They live with my boyfriend's grandparents and are some of the most characteristic animals I have ever met. Maggie, the 120 pound Newfoundlander thinks she is a lapdog. She enjoys waking people up by climbing on top of you, nuzzling the blanket off your shoulders and promptly drooling in your face... all with a giant smile. Dakota is quieter, she is a kind Husky who likes to lay in the sun and laze about the house until you have food. Then she will lay her head on your lap and wait for you to give her a piece of what you're having. If she likes you enough, she'll put her head in your lap and wait for you to pet her, at which point, Maggie gets jealous and saunters over to get a part of the action.

Dogs have always been part of my life and I have found that I've grown to love every one of them (no matter how much drool they may drop on my face...). They truly are some of the best friends a girl could have, especially when others don't always understand. They seem to have an uncanny ability to sense when someone is upset and know exactly what to do. They are loyal and always up for some fun. Give your dog a pat and throw them a bone, they love you more then you could ever imagine. And, as always, stay beautiful. 

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Country Lovin'

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

The smell of freshly cut grass. The feel of sunlight on your skin. The sound of night insects and the crackle of a fire. A full moon in a star-filled sky.

 I have always had an obsession with the countryside. Riding at a young age got me into loving horses and from then I was a goner. Even when I traveled to Europe and Chine, the little towns and country sides were what I loved best.

 The small villages of Germany and Italy took a piece of my heart. The rolling hills of Yangshuo in China remain some of the most amazing things I have ever seen. The simplicity of those lifestyles is one of my biggest envies in life. I'd love to own a farm and live in the country where everyone knows you by name and you don't have to lock your doors every time you leave the house.

Stay beautiful and keep dreaming. Meanwhile enjoy this song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XWyD98rd14&list=FLBc8flQ_Ap3hRtKnSfnJ7-w&index=1

Childhood Bliss

Do you remember being a child and not having a care in the world? You laughed at what you thought was funny and didn't think much about how others saw you. You did silly things and enjoyed yourself  constantly. You made your parents laugh and taught them that no matter how old you are, you can always be a child at heart. These images are perfectly imperfect.They are blurry, silly and remind me of a simpler time in my life; and that's just what they should be. They represent the innocence of being a child and acting like a child when you're an adult. Life can be such a downer at times, it can be hard and it can knock you down to your knees  These are some people who are always able to put a smile on my face and make me laugh. These are the people who remind me that no matter how difficult life may become, you just have to act like a child every once in a while and live in the moment. These are the images of carefree hearts who love to laugh.

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Carefree Hearts

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Carefree Hearts

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Carefree Hearts

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Carefree Hearts

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Carefree Hearts

This post was a double feature, the images of my boyfriend were day 5 and the images of his sister were day 6. Just remember to let it all go and laugh, enjoy the moment and smile. 

Love in the Lines

Today is a simple and quick post. 

Portraiture has always been something I have loved. The opportunity to capture someone's soul at any given moment in time is amazing to me. To be able to deliver so much emotion in an image is what makes a photograph captivating. 

This is one of the many aspects that I love about my Boyfriend.

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©
Day 4

Every Cloud has a Silver Lining

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

Many of us lose faith over the years. There are moments that break us down and bring us to our knees. They tear us apart and drown our dreams. There are people in the world who will always hold us back; make us believe we are less then they are. And we believe them.

It is so much easier to believe the bad things about ourselves then it is to believe the true and amazing things that make us who we are. Comparing yourself or your work to someone else is the first mistake. There will ALWAYS be someone better, more talented, more creative, better looking. But they are not YOU. YOU are unique and amazing in your own way. You are who you are because of the things you've accomplished so far and the dreams you wish to accomplish.

Taking the time to look around at the people who surround you will change your life. Make sure that those people are the ones who will never abandon you when the world comes crashing down, who will pick you up when your on your knees and who will always, always be the positive force on a rainy day.

When someone knocks you down, know that it is because they are either jealous of you or scared of you. Someone who is fit who looks down at you knows that you can lose the weight but they will always be bitter. The one who holds his work higher then your own knows that you can perfect your craft but his soul will never shine through his work. You are the one who can do anything you set your mind to. The others are those who are afraid to shoot for the moon. They figure that if you miss it, you're a failure; but the rest of us know that if you miss the moon, you'll land amongst the stars. 

In other words, every cloud has a silver lining, if you can't see it,  you just need someone to show you.

Stay Beautiful everyone. 

p.s. GO SENS GO (Better luck next year Habs)

Sophie Fortier 2013 ©

It's in the Little Things

Sophie Fortier 2013©

After searching for a subject for today's post, I thought long and hard about how I see my home. Every home has a sort of personality and you can find out a lot about someone through the small things that make up their home. Not the big things that make it a house a couch, a t.v. or the utilities. It's the ivory climbing up the wall, it's the decorations but up meticulously or the art and images on the wall. It's the dishes chosen by the owner and the smell of freshly baked cookies running through the air. It's the sound of laughter and the condensation on the bottle of a beer bottle on the porch. The warm sunshine pouring through a window and smiles of your closest friends in the backyard. It's those little things that make my house a home. 

What's yours like?

Take the time to look around an appreciate all you have instead of wishing on things you don't have. Enjoy the ones who love you and spend some time with them. Grab a drink, sit down in the sun and laugh. Barbecue some good ol' food and have a good time. Ignore the time and let the sun set. Leave the phone in your pocket and laugh with your favourite people. Keep it simple and just enjoy it all. 

Sophie Fortier 2013©

Daily Summer Project

I have decided to begin a summer photography project. Every day for the rest of summer, I will take a minimum of 1 photograph depicting my day. The images will be uploaded a day late so you will always see what I had been doing a day earlier.
First entry (images taken yesterday) :

A lazy summer day learning how to play Crib with one of my best friends Justine and laying out in the sun. Finishing it off with an awesome Sens game at the bar and it was the perfect summer day. Many more to come! Stay beautiful and relax while you can everyone!