A Video Review of 2013, One Second a Day

There were a lot of beautiful sunsets to admire in 2013.
There were a lot of beautiful sunsets to admire in 2013.

At the end of 2012 I decided to take on my largest video project; recording every day of 2013 and compiling a recap video when the year was over. The concept wasn’t new and in fact I was inspired by a video titled This is What Madeline Did in 2011 to create my own “one-second-a-day” video.

I was initially drawn to the challenges it would take to create a video of this scope. Could I really remember to film something every day? What if there wasn’t anything interesting to record one day? But ultimately I was most interested in what the final product would show. The first month was difficult especially because I was lugging around my DSLR with me everywhere I went. But once I got an iPhone in February, things became a lot easier to record. Read more “A Video Review of 2013, One Second a Day”

From Family to Wine Travel, An Interview with Elaine of Carpe Travel

Traveling with Kids
Elaine with her two Princesses. Photo credit: Elaine Schoch

I first met Elaine back in June when we both attended the Travel Blog Exchange conference (TBEX for short) in Toronto, a global gathering of travel bloggers and travel brands to talk shop, learn some new tools of the trade, and network and meet individuals we may have only had online connections with up till now. We were both at one of the kick off parties and instantly hit it off. As a wine blogger she had me at hello and over the course of the weekend we would bounce ideas off each other at the various workshops and let loose at the multitude of parties together.

I was inspired by her travel stories with her family (yay it’s possible once you have kids!), the decision and process to adopt her second princess (aka daughter) from Russia, some of her favourite wine-travel destinations and her overall down-to-earth, super chill demeanor. As someone who looks forward to the day when I have children of my own running around (but that’s still a while a way so don’t hold your breath), it was great to see someone who I could take some cues from and learn how to balance it all. No doubt the love for wine comes in handy every once in a while too.

I asked Elaine if she would be willing to be part of my Inspiring Travel Interview series and I was so excited when she happily agreed. Read more “From Family to Wine Travel, An Interview with Elaine of Carpe Travel”

Find Your Spark (Or How I Lost Mine and Hope to Get it Back)

Great Wall of China
Contemplating on the Great Wall of China.

Somewhere between the end of last summer and this spring, I lost it. It went out with a snap like a blown out candle, and I was only made aware that it was ever burning because of the lingering smell of smoke in the air.

It’s hard to imagine that just a little over a year ago I came back to Toronto feeling like I was on top of the world, a completely different person than I find myself today. For almost 3 years between 2009 and 2012, I had been living and traveling abroad. Two years were spent teaching English in South Korea, a job with a steep learning curve for this never-before-taught individual and a culture I had nothing to reference it to. But I adapted and learned the language, the culture, and how to fit in with a society that operated differently than my own.

Before returning to Canada, I was off on another adventure, this time backpacking for 8-months through China, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand. With nothing more than what we could carry in our packs and only concrete plans for a week at a time, my boyfriend and I had an adventure of a lifetime. Read more “Find Your Spark (Or How I Lost Mine and Hope to Get it Back)”

Video: 8-Month Backpacking Trip Montage

Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand
Checking out Franz Josef Glacier on the South Island of New Zealand, nearing the end of our trip.

Everyone loves a good montage video, myself included. But when it came time to put my own together, I was confronted with the amount of footage I had to work with. Over the course of an 8-month backpacking trip that saw Tristan and I travel through China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand, we had shot a total of 1862 video clips, amounting to 201.18GB of data.

Just last week, Tristan and I celebrated our 1-year return-aversary. As the months, weeks, and days grew closer to that milestone, I found myself feeling more and more anxious. I couldn’t believe how fast the time was flying and I so desperately wanted to hold on to the incredible memories from our time on the road. There hasn’t been a day since we returned that I haven’t thought about that trip. I knew I owed it to ourselves to put something together that could encapsulate those months. The pressure was on. Read more “Video: 8-Month Backpacking Trip Montage”

The Art of Travel Videography, an Interview With Mike Corey

Travel Videography with Mike CoreyIt’s the second installment of my interview series and I’m so excited to be talking all things “video” with one of the most talented and inspiring travel videographers out there right now, Mike Corey from Kick The Grind. Mike is one of those guys who proves that passion and serious dedication mean a heck of a lot more than training in a classroom. Combining his education in biology, love for travel, and the motivation to teach himself how to shoot and produce videos, has resulted in some incredible travel videography. Seriously, this guy inspires me to step up my game after every video he produces.

I was very excited to be able to talk travel and, more importantly, pick his brain about travel videography.  Read more “The Art of Travel Videography, an Interview With Mike Corey”