toronto wedding

Enoch Turner Schoolhouse Winter Wedding

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Joelle + Mike

What a fantastic winter wedding Joelle and Mike had at the historic Enoch Turner Schoolhouse in downtown Toronto!

The weather gods were smiling on these two as it was a beautiful day for a winter wedding and we were only cold for about 20 minutes.

The day started at the beautiful historic King Edward Hotel in Toronto with the girls and the guys getting ready in separate suites. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again, that I love this arrangement for the morning. It simplifies and the schedule so much and lets everyone relax.

Although I will say Joelle and her girls had a WAY nicer room than the guys. :)

Joelle and Mike decided to have a first look which is always a great idea for winter weddings because we’re fighting that early sunset and if we can get pictures out of the way it makes life easier for everyone. After our first location for the first look was a bust we headed outside to do it in front of the hotel. From there we jumped in an Uber (the only way to travel downtown) and headed over to the Distillery District to my super-secret-no-permit-required-because-its-just-across-the-street shooting location. We hit a bit of a wind tunnel and this was honestly the only time we were cold all day!

From there we headed over to St Lawrence Market for some more pictures… this is actually where Mike proposed so it was great to visit somewhere that they had a connection to. Both families met up at Enoch Turner School house for some family pictures and then it was on the ceremony.

Following the ceremony (wedding flowers by Coriander Girl) Joelle and Mike went a little outside the box for dinner and had some amazing food stations for a cocktail like dinner. I usually get to eat pretty well but anytime you give me flank steak with bacon bit infused mashed potatoes I’m a very happy camper. Their caterer, En Ville, did an amazing job. The speeches followed dinner and were really great and touching.

Joelle and Mike took the dance floor for their first dance and were then followed by Mike’s grandparents doing a waltz before the dance floor opened up for the party!

Thanks again to Joelle and Mike (and their amazing friends and family!) for having me be a part of their special day.

You can see some of my favourite pictures above and the full wedding slideshow below.


Archeo Winter Wedding

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Anne + Tim

Lunch time weddings… why has no one told me about these before? They might be my new favourite thing!

Anne and Tim had a beautiful winter wedding at some of my favourite wedding spots in Toronto…. the Intercontinental Yorkville, Trinity Chapel at the University of Toronto and Archeo in the Distillery District.

Began the day nice and early (unavoidable with a 10am ceremony!) at the Intercontinental Yorkville Toronto hotel with the Anne and her friends and family as they all got ready for the wedding. Since the hotel was so close to the wedding chapel, Anne decide to she could easily walk there. Luckily the polar vortex had ended the day before so it was only a respectable -5 for the walk over. Anne also made the very wise decision to no wear her dress for the walk and instead get dressed at the chapel.

The ceremony went great even with a reluctant (but still adorable!) flower girl leading the way for Anne to walk with her mother down the aisle. Trinity Chapel is one of the most beautiful wedding venues in all of Toronto but it does have some strict conditions on photographing there but even with those conditions I managed to great some great shots and even made it up to the balcony for some nice scenic shots of the ceremony.

After the ceremony we hung around for some family pictures and then we all headed down the the Distillery District for some pictures with just Anne and Tim…. and their adorable dog! Anne and her friends also have this great tradition of a leather jacket with ‘Just Married’ bedazzled (???) on the back that they pass down from wedding to wedding!

The reception was great, the staff at Archeo always do an amazing job! The reception featured some great speeches and a fantastic sprinkle cake as requested by Tim!

You can see some of my favourite wedding pictures above and the full wedding slideshow below.

One from the portfolio....

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Renee & Ian finish their first dance in style during their wedding reception at the Fermenting Cellar in Toronto's Distillery District.

Picking up with an idea I got started with last year and then got busy... you know how it is!

Anyways, I'm going to try and continue my series of 'One from the portfolio...' where I take one of my favourite images from my main wedding portfolio and talk a little about the wedding and how I captured the image.

This week, I'm going all the way back to 2014 and Renee and Ian's amazing spring wedding at the Fermenting Cellar in Toronto's Distillery District.   This wedding, like most I shoot at the Fermenting Cellar for some reason, is one of my all time favourite weddings!  The entire wedding from start to finish was near perfect... great group of people, beautiful venue and a great party late into the night!

For this wedding photograph, Renee and Ian were just finishing up their first dance when Ian went for a dramatic dip and kiss at the end of song.   Luckily, he picked the spot where I had my off camera flashes dialled in just perfectly!

The Fermenting Cellar is one of those wedding venues I hear other photographers complain about all the time... it's too dark, there's no white ceiling to bounce their flash off of etc etc... Personally, I love it.  I'm very comfortable using off camera flash so the lack of white ceilings and the low light levels don't phase me at all.

I love the moment captured in this image as well as the pop of colour from the candles and the purple uplighting.

You can see the wedding album I designed for Renee + Ian here.

You can see Renee + Ian's wedding featured on WeddingBells magazine here.

Toronto Indian Wedding

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Shilpa + Rishi 

Shilpa & Rishi were married in a beautiful Indian wedding at Toronto's Liberty Grand.

We started the day with portraits in the beautiful courtyard of the Liberty Grand, we even managed to dodge the raindrops.

It's not many times that the bride walking down the aisle can be upstaged, but since Shilpa had their beautiful daughter in her arms we can make an exception in this case. I actually did a newborn photography session with their baby a couple months ago, check it out here!

Indian wedding ceremonies are always so cool, so many traditions and details go into them.

It was great watching the kids at the wedding ceremony desperately searching for Rishi's shoes in order to sell them back to him after the ceremony (it's an old tradition at Hindu weddings!).  Rishi hid them VERY VERY well.   :)

After the ceremony everyone headed up to the lounge for appetizers and cocktails.

I thought it was really great that even with a wedding of over 400 people Shilpa & Rishi made the time to go around to every table and talk to everyone... it really shows how much they value their family and friends. 

Rishi is a very quiet guy when you meet him but he gave one of the most elequouent speeches by a groom I've heard all year... really well done!

The party was great, the DJ did an amazing job of keeping the dance floor jumping and playing a great mix of music.

A huge thanks for Steve from Tara Lilly Photography for helping out and doing an amazing job second shooting.

Julla from 87 Events did an amazing job planning and coordinating both the wedding and the mehndi ceremony the day before at the beautiful Sunnybrook Estates (check back soon for a blog post on this!)

Check out some of my favourite images above as well as the full slideshow below. 

WEDDING FLORIST  |  Berries and Blooms 

WEDDING DECOR  |  Dance Floor Decor

WEDDING PLANNER  |  87 Events

WEDDING DJ  |  Empire Entertainment

Toronto Downtown Wedding

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Ashleigh + Erik's Wedding at the Queen + Beaver Public House

Small, intimate restaurant weddings are fast becoming my favourite way to spend a Saturday working.  There's just something great about the laid back vibe and intimacy of these events and Ashleigh + Erik's wedding at the Queen and Beaver Public House was no exception.

We started the day with some getting ready pictures at the Eaton Chelsea Hotel which was right across the street from the pub... a wedding photographers dream, I only had to park once!  :)

It was a super relaxed ceremony, not even walking down the aisle.  Everyone just grabbed a pint, sat down and then the ceremony began. After some really emotional toasts, we headed outside for some quick downtown wedding portraits.

The Queen and Beaver definitely lives up to the British pub heritage, putting on an amazing feast of Indian curries and Sunday roast for dinner.  

The partying and dancing were great that night, with Ashleigh's ballet friends and Erik's band (Oh yeah, I forgot... Erik play's the Great Lake Swimmers!  Great band, check them out) went late into the night.

Check out my favourite wedding photographs in the gallery above as well as their full wedding slideshow below!

 

Wedding Bells 30 Most Inspring Wedding Photographers

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Yesterday I got an email from Wedding Bells Magazine that I have been chosen as one of their 30 Most Inspiring Wedding Photographers of 2015.  I honestly had no idea this was in the works so I was beyond surprised.  It was such an honour to see my name alongside so many other fantastically talented wedding photographers from across Canada.

While it's amazing to have my wedding photography work recognized in the industry, I know this wouldn't have happened without my wedding clients allowing me to be a part of their day.  To them I am eternally thankful. 

 Check out my spot on the list of Most Inspiring Photographers here as well as the full list.

Weston Golf & Country Club Wedding

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Vicki + Yuri

Vicki + Yuri had a wonderful wedding at the Weston Golf & Country Club in Toronto this past August.

If you remember, that summer was the hight of the 'ice bucket challenge' and Yuri saved his for his wedding day (before the tux was on!).

After a touching ceremony at the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ Catholic Church we headed over to the country club and their beautiful grounds for some portraits with the family and wedding party and then a great dinner and reception with the Marc Joseph Band playing all night.
 

Check out some of my favourite wedding images in the gallery above and the full slideshow of wedding pictures below!

 
 

Toronto Restaurant Wedding

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Stephanie + Mike

I love smaller, intimate weddings and Stephanie + Mike's downtown Toronto wedding was no exception!

I started off the day with Mike and his best man at what has to be the coolest barber shop in Toronto.  It's called The Crows Nest and is in Kensington Market.

After Mike's trim, I headed over to the Royal York where Stephanie was getting ready in a beautiful suite with her family.  Stephanie's make up was by Rachel Chivers and her hair was by Salon SR.

Once Stephanie was looking amazing in her dress by David's Bridal, Oscar de la Renta shoes and flowers by Dandie Andie, (Okay, Mike looked pretty good in his suit from The Bay's West End Shop too) it was time for a first look in the hotel suite with just the two of them and their son!

Osgoode Hall is a hidden little gem of a park in downtown Toronto that's a great spot for some family pictures... best of all, no permit required!

After all piling into taxis we headed over to Le Select Bistro where the ceremony and reception were held and I had one of the best steaks of my life!

Check out some of my favourite images in the gallery above and the full slideshow below!