March 1, 2016

August 2, 2015 was a wedding that I wanted to really impress with my photo skills. I was hired by one of my former photo classmates to shoot his wedding. The pressure was on! lol. James Durant is a talented photographer and artist that chose me to shoot his wedding and I was honoured! It is especially a motivator to shoot some impressive work when you shoot for your peers.

This gorgeous bouquet was created by Patchouli Design.

Robin’s elegant dress was by Maggie Sottero from Becker’s Bridal.

The day was beautiful, hot and sunny. I started my shoot day photographing the gorgeous bride, Robin. She is laid-back and took the morning with ease, taking time to feed and relax with Charlie, the couples’ adorable baby boy.

The bride’s stunning hair and makeup was by Arrowbow.

I was truly impressed that someone would take on their wedding day with a small baby in tow.

I silently wondered how the day would unfold as weddings in themselves can sometimes be stressful. Charlie however was a champ!

He slept for almost the entire day – with a few feeding breaks and only one short crying stint. I was stunned! Perhaps the casualness of James and Robin was a reflection of Charlie’s calm personality. Whatever it was, I will forever have this idea that getting married with your baby is no biggie. 😉

The electric blue suit that James was sporting was such a refreshing change from the typical wedding day groom attire.

The stage is set and ready for the ceremony to begin at the Enoch Turner School House

Arrowbow did a fantastic job with the floral design for the ceremony decor.

Some of Robin and James’ favourite moments together have been the vacations they’ve been on to various tropical destinations. They wanted to incorporate that into their wedding and decided to go with a well loved tropical cocktail…rum punch!

The wedding cake was elegantly simple and made by a close friend, Leah Denov.

The ceremony and reception took place at the adorable Enoch Turner Schoolhouse. Charlie came down the aisle with James and his mother in a gorgeous vintage pram. James looked dapper as ever in his electric blue suit and Robin of course looked classically elegant in her lace gown.

The ring bearers looked adorable and their outfits reminded me of young school boys from back in the day.

Robin and her dad share an embrace as he prepares to give her away.

It’s hard not to get emotional during your vows.

But then when your new husband plants one on you like this…tears be gone!

The moment after the ceremony, was my time to shine. You know – those bridal party and couple photos that I wanted to take to really avow that they chose the right photographer.

And then a photographers nightmare literally happened right before our eyes; A STORM! I’m not talking about a trickle of rain – I am talking about those afternoon rain storms where the clouds roll in black as night. 

Yes, this happened. James looked stunned. I was terrified. We both looked at each other and laughed.

I’ve seen this future for myself – if I ever get married. This will totally happen. It only happens to the people who really understand how much it affects good picture-taking.

To be quite frank – for all the people who have been told that rain is lucky and that clouds are better for photos – it’s all BS. It’s only a comment to make you feel calm. 

Dry is always better and sun can be controlled by a good photographer. So – with our umbrellas in tow – we stuck it out. James and Robin knew the drill and I got soaked.

The rain storm stopped exactly 5 minutes before we were supposed to enter the reception. I could barely handle the irony.

To my delight – in that 5 minutes the sun cracked through the dark clouds, and a glorious pink glow, shone down. We hurried to get some shots in this pink glistening delight and then it was over. HA! 

All in all, considering our severe down-pour and lightning storm I think we did pretty good. We got some great shots in the rain and I am pretty happy with the outcome. James and Robin are too.

After the ceremony, The Enoch Turner Schoolhouse was magically transformed into this gorgeous reception setting, catered by 10tation.

Baby Charlie was a trooper!

The rest of the wedding was heart-felt. Between the family speeches, and James’ good friend singing a tune made just for the couple, I felt like this group of people really knew how to show their love for one another.

There’s no getting out of daddy duty, especially on your wedding day.

How adorable are these two!!

One last “school themed” photo for the night! Blowing a kiss to her groom!

This day was about celebrating the people who bring joy to your world, who make your heart smile and who ultimately you wouldn’t want to live without.

Thank you for having me document your day James and Robin.

xx- april

————————————-VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV————————————-

venue: Enoch Turner School House // caterer: 10tation // bridal gown: Maggie Sottero from Becker’s Bridal // hair + makeup: Arrowbow // flowers: Patchouli Design // cake: Made by a close friend, Leah Denov // favours: Donation to the Heart + Stroke Foundation ( in memory of James’ father ) + cookies with an R + J stamp // music: Kenny Saint // second shooter: Patrick Moher

favourite wedding details: Incorporating James Barbados background and Robin’s Thunder Bay background into the drink specials, decor + music and baby charlie’s outfit and vintage pram