{facebook fundraising...}

In the last month or so, I’ve had a number of people approach me about getting pictures done for the sole purpose of getting a decent facebook profile picture. At first I thought that they were kidding but sure enough, people actually wanted to pay me to help them put their best face forward in cyberspace! Who knew?!?! Getting a good head shot isn’t usually very hard and certainly doesn’t require a lot of time so I really wasn’t sure how to go about charging for this service. That’s when I remembered that my most favourite weekend of the year was coming up and it was going to provide me with the perfect solution to my dilemma!!

This coming weekend is the National Capital Race Weekend when literally tens of thousands of runners descend upon our city to run any number of different races; from the 2km family fun run to the ultimate of running achievements…the 42.2 kilometre marathon. For nearly the entire time that I’ve been running, I’ve been training for one of these weekend races and personally, the experience never ceases to amaze me!! This year my husband and I will run the half-marathon together for the first time…an endeavor that I am very much looking forward to because in the five previous years that I’ve run it, I have yet to experience to honour of crossing the finish line with him!!!

Even better still though is the fundraising that is created as a result of this event; all of the money raised from personal pledges go towards the Ottawa Hospital Foundation as the official local charity…a organization quite near and dear to our hearts. Our friends and family are no strangers to the assistance provided by the Ottawa Hospitals and this year alone, my husband and I have gone through its system more times that we would have liked, so that’s why I generally choose the Ottawa Race Weekend as my one fundraising occasion of the year and devote all of my efforts to it. That’s why the solution seemed perfect when I decided that instead of charging my clients for head shots, I would create a “Facebook Fundraising Special for the Ottawa Hospital Foundation” -- I would provide twenty minute photo sessions for facebook profile pictures in exchange for a pledge towards our half-marathon this coming Sunday. The offer has proven to be quite a success so far and so much so that I might even consider making it an annual thing!

Here are some of my favourites so far…posing for a good cause!

This client was a little bit more hesitant about having an overly close up picture done, so we veered away from the traditional headshot and went a bit more casual. I have to say...she was a total natural in front of the camera!

You may remember Samantha from my previous post; she is actually the inspiration behind all of this because when we were planning our session together, she specifically asked if I could work in a good facebook profile picture for her...and from there, everyone else just followed suit!

Thanks so much everyone for your amazing contributions to this great cause! Anyone else still wanting to get in on the action...you have four days left then it's time to lace up!