Hey all! Just have a few minutes here before we head off to Calgary for another wedding this weekend; but I wanted to make sure that I posted a few images from Shauna and Trent’s engagement session last week. We met these guys out in Turner Valley to do a little exploring and had a great time some of the landscapes with them! We’ve told them that they will have to bring their rock climbing gear when we go out with them on their wedding day later this month, because it seemed like we were doing an awful lot of climbing and scrambling with them! But hey, our philosophy is – we’ll keep on asking and our clients have to turn us down. Anyway, super excited for their wedding in just a few short weeks! 

The biker provides a bit of context of how far we asked them to climb up!

After exploring Turner Valley we headed to the Big Rock in Okotoks. Good times and more climbing!

My favourite!

Round two for our Stampede weekend was with Jenn and Bram.  On their engagement session they were up for pretty much anything and were willing to wade in a river in October, go into the thick bush, and walk with us for what seemed like forever (I think it was 5km when all was said and done!).  I think that pretty much sealed the deal that they would be up for any locations we could throw at them on their wedding day.  Two funny situations happened within a few minutes of each other while we were out doing their formals.  The first was at the back of the Alberta Courts building where they seem to have a security camera every 12 feet.  When we got to that location I warned them that we’d need to be quick because there was a good chance we were going to get kicked out.  Didn’t phase them a bit, they were excited to use the spot so we went in, got set up, and just as we were about to take the first shot a security guard came out the back door and told us we had to leave (in that high-and-mighty fashion that you’d expect from a security guard!).  Well, just as he said that his superior squawked over the radio, “Come on…Leave them alone!”  He must have been watching through all those cameras.  Our friend promptly turned on heel and walked back to the door he came from, though I noticed there was a little less bounce in his step on the way back.

The second situation came when we were walking back to the limo.  We had passed by a bar on our way to the courts building and it had a really cool ambiance that was perfect for pictures.  Since having a bride in a wedding dress is pretty much a key to get into anywhere you want we decided to use the location.  Well, just out front of this bar was parked about a dozen or so buses full of drunk and energetic Stampeders (not the football type) ready to continue partying in the giant beer garden next to the bar.  I think those kids wanted off the buses.  They were rocking them in a way I don’t think buses were meant to be rocked all the while shouting out their congratulations to Jenn & Bram.  I honestly wasn’t sure if a couple of those buses weren’t going to roll over!  All I can say is I feel really bad for those bus drivers!

Anyway, on to the pictures!  First up are a few of the getting ready shots.  Jenn’s sister (the maid of honour) is a hairdresser so she had the opportunity to do Jenn’s hair in the morning.  It’s good to have family connections!

Kevan’s angle on the first kiss.  I think this is one of those “oops” shots when it happened but I really like the way it turned out.

Jenn and Bram are the type of people where we could just put them in a spot and they would just hang out there together.  They have a great connection with each other and I think these next four shots really show that.

I know the picture is a little small but we have a repeat visitor on the blog in this picture.  Jody (second from the left) of Jody and Neil, was one of Jenn’s bridesmaids and we’ll be shooting her wedding later this month!

Dance is a huge part of Jenn’s life.  She runs a dance studio called Alive Danceworks and some of her students came to their reception and did a dance.  They definitely set the stage for the rest of the evening. 

Some weddings we go to see a pretty weak showing on the floor for the garter toss.  Not this group!  These guys all had a pretty competitive spirit and you can see the anticipation for Bram to throw the garter!

A couple more detail shots.

We had been looking forward to Carolyn and Shay’s wedding ever since we met them last fall, even though we knew that it was going to happen right during the heart of Stampede. Does it make me an unpatriotic Western Canadian to say that I hate Stampede? Because I do. A lot. Normally we try to be as far away from the city as we can during this time. Anyway, I am feeling a rant coming on, so I better get back on topic. Or better yet – I better show some pictures from a pretty spectacular day!

Word to the wise – if you make the photographer take a picture of your specialty dragon face, you better expect to see it on the blog! =)

I love it when our clients choose to see each other before the ceremony! It makes for such a relaxed day – they have time to connect with just each other and then when the ceremony comes around they don’t have to leave their family and friends to kill a couple of hours while waiting for the reception to start. If I had it all to do over again I would do it this way in a heartbeat!

Duane told the wedding party that they were going to be out-of-focus props in a shot that he was setting up. I think they were joking about that when I grabbed this shot.

My favourite!

Carolyn walking out to the ceremony…

A quick kiss after the recessional.

After the ceremony we stole them for twenty minutes to explore just below the golf course a bit.

Riding in style! We’ve traveled in many ways on wedding days before (limos, truck beds, helicopters…) but never on the back of a golf cart!

They had a bit of fun with their first dance, which I loved! They started across the room from one another and slowly started moving towards the middle.

Carolyn dancing with her grandfather.

We grabbed a quick shot with them at the end, when Shay decided to improvise a little…

…and then we figured that one good turn deserves another right?

Lots coming down the pipes in the next few days so stayed tuned.

I am slowly learning that creativity often happens when you are least expecting it.

Last night, as I waited for Fernie’s Canada Day fireworks up on our deck (we have a sweet view of Fernie up on the hill and could see the launch area perfectly) I noticed that there was a beautiful car parked below, also taking advantage of our street and the view that it affords. One of the things that Duane and I often talk about is shooting more just for personal enjoyment – it can be a tricky balancing act; especially now that we are in the middle of wedding season. Anyway, something about the way the late evening light was coming together inspired me; so Duane and I ran and grabbed the lightstands and headed out the front door.

The guy driving the car looked at me like I was crazy when I asked if we could take a couple of pictures of his car be said that it would be okay if we did.

I think it was worth it… how about you?