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Had a great time on Thursday with the ELN crew. I was there to photograph their ELNstudio at the spectacular Corus Quay building, where more than 200 participants finished the sentence "Toronto would be awesome, if..." and brainstormed over a few dozen issues affecting civic life. Thanks for an inspiring day, ELN!

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I had a lot of fun shooting a FASHION magazine event last week. It's underwraps until the issue comes out, but here's a behind-the-scenes shot.

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Carlo Mendoza, staff photographer for St Joseph Media and perhaps the most patient man I know, shown in FASHION's November 2011 issue. Carlo makes all of our magazines look good, all year round. (Carlo's contributor photo by me)

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Art of Time's Songbook 6 with Steven Page: From the concept alone -Steven chooses 12 songs he's always wanted to sing and the music is set to new classical arrangements- it was bound to be a good show. But I didn't expect to be so re-inspired by the music that I'd be buying the songs from Itunes before I'd taken my coat off. Heartfelt thanks to Nichole Anderson, who not only suggested Art of Time needed some afterparty shots, she got us amazing seats. (Shown here, along with Steven Page and the Right (and truly) Honourable Adrienne Clarkson)

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Working for a parenting magazine has some unexpected perks: I met Barbie. That's right, BARBIE. In a castle. A real one. Needless to say, my five-year-old self is pinching me. (She would have been busy pulling books off bookcases trying to unlock Casa Loma's secret passageways, tripping over herself during high-tea, and too alarmed over dolls come to life to pose for a picture, but she'd be stoked none-the-less). We brought our amazed Canadian Family contest winners to a fairtale setting where we decorated custom-cupcakes, learned new dance moves, made ourselves some serious bracelet bling, coloured posters, watched movies, polished our tea-time etiquette and, of course, got our picture taken with the Barbie princess.

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Great holiday decor idea by the always-ingenious Shannon Phillips for Canadian Family magazine (November 2011 issue). Photo and page layout by me.

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It was a fun afternoon taking pictures of these young Opera fans attending an award for Best Children's Opera.

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Organic farming at its finest.

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Vintage gowns. Fortune teller. Singers. Burlesque Show ...Business for the Arts once again proves they can throw a party like none other. More pictures on their website.

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Art directing and coordinating a shoot with ten costumed young models and hundreds of live animals all set in the beautiful wonderland of the Toronto Zoo doesn't leave much time for picking up a camera. But as a teaser to our October issue, here's a few quick behind-the-scenes snaps of the very serene Alice (heartfelt thanks to the Toronto Zoo's animal caretakers) and our fantastic photographer, Michael Alberstat, with his daughter the panda.

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Apple Pickin'.

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We threw a big (BIG) party at the brickworks in Toronto.

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Great friends. Homemade pasta. Wine. My kitchen getting a workout. Happiness.

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Perfect weekend away in the county.

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I've been busy with great projects throughout the summer, including shooting architecture tours and events for the ever-fabulous folks at Business for the Arts and gatherings for the newly established The Bar (a social club for lawyers). I've been designing packaging for an under-wraps food product (more on that to come) and not least of which, promotional posters for trainers at Shas Studio and the Leslieville bike clinic and advocacy centre, Bike Sauce (shown).

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Shortly after my birthday, I sent out this panicked invitation to a few friends to celebrate. Thanks to everyone who came (much love to you all) and my mysteriously-bottomless glass (you're the best, Robin). Thanks also to The Comrade staff in Riverside for putting up with us all night.

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I've been in Norway with our intrepid travel editor, Tim Johnson, shooting an education story for Canadian Family. (CF April 2011 issue). We weren't the only ones talking about how Norway's got it right - University Affairs magazine also ran a few of my shots from our adventures. We went all the way to the arctic to bring back the facts, and at the border with Russia I picked up a little souvenir (border patrol took a quick time-out to laugh at my purchase). More images from our trip are here.

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Another great evening with Business for the Arts celebrating the years' Arnold winners. (Photos, Colleen Nicholson)

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Fiddlehead pickin' in the rain, by the end of an afternoon of careful/sustainable picking, we had two bins full and all looked like the dog. (Don't ask me where, I was sworn to secrecy. Plus, I'm terrible at directions.)

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Tonight I'm wrapping three small pieces to send over to Alison Lawler-Dean and her sister, the duo behind Heartbeats for Africa. It's an important cause and a great party. Buy tickets to the art fundraiser/cocktail evening on Feb 13th online. All proceeds go to the Stephen Lewis Foundation. www.heartbeatsforafrica.com

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Business for the Arts celebrated the 2009 Bovey award winner Charles Baillie and Arnold Edinborough Award winner Marcello Cabezas in an incredible evening at the AGO. ArtsScene's afterparty, aptly dubbed "Clash", kicked off with Fritz Helder & The Phantoms, Dr. Draw and continued into the small hours with many great artistic performances. Congratulations to the board and committee members (and our winners!) for putting together another fantastic party. Check www.businessforthearts.org for details on the next event. (photos, Colleen Nicholson)