“Yeah! We go every year!!” Shemara exclaimed when we asked her whether she’d be interested in doing her engagement shoot at The Ex (for those of you not from Toronto, The Ex is the biggest carnival we have).

We all arrived feeling rather excited about the shoot. Charlotte and I had put a lot of ideas together and were stoked to have another chance to try the new 24mm Tilt and Shift lens we’d just procured from Canon. You see, this lens is used by architectural photographers to shift the perspective in a photo - either to make a building appear larger or smaller. The other cool thing about this lens is that it can change the focal plane from being perpendicular to the camera to running at different diagonal angles across the image…. if that’s sounding all rather techie, then just scroll down and you’ll see what I mean.

We spent the shoot wandering around The Ex, going from ride to ride and generally having a great time hanging out as two couples - and getting some cool shots along the way.

The ferris wheel was heaps of fun, but I think the swings and the carousel were my favourite shots by far.

Toward the end of the shoot, we decided to head down to Atlantis/Ontario Place to do some shots with sparklers that Charlotte had brought to play around with. On the way we went past this old building and grabbed an arty shot, then thought it’d be fun to do the retro horror flick look.

If you’ve got a couple of minutes, check out the slideshow to see the whole engagement shoot.

Thanks Mohammed & Shemara - you guys rocked! We can’t thank you enough for being so sweet together and supporting our wacky ideas.

Hey crew,

So Charlotte and I are having a day off today as it IS a 3 day weekend. The reason for this blog post is to share with you the Same Day Slideshows from the 3 weddings we had the pleasure of photographing this weekend. On Friday we were with Nikki & Amit, Saturday with Michel & Elizabeth, then Sunday with Eric & Angela. All three couples are very cool, relaxed and fun loving… and all three opted to have us present a slideshow of their wedding photos at the reception.

It certainly was a hectic few days, but we loved every minute and are very honoured to have been at each wedding to capture their special day.

So here we go.. enjoy the shows!!

Nikki & Amit’s Wedding at Angus Glen Country Club…

Michel & Elizabeth’s Wedding at DaVinci in Woodbridge…

and

Eric & Angela’s wedding at The Manor in Kettleby…

A huge thanks to our assistants for the weekend, Michael & Meagan.

We will be posting full blog entries soon : )

Dave & Charlotte.

Every little girl dreams of a fairy tale wedding with to-die-for details, a spectacular gown, celestial ceremony and a perfect prince to sweep her off her feet and into happily ever after. If there is one thing we absolutely adore, it’s the charm and enchantment of a wonderful white wedding.

Once the day is over, the cake has been cut and the couple has been wished well, the bride and groom whisk away for some relaxing time together as man and wife. But what about the dress..?? It’s such a shame to pack it away and to wear it only once. Why not put it on again, and have a little fun? No time-lines, no pressure, just you our cameras and that fabulous dress.

Dave and I had a blast at this shoot and really loved playing around with our new macro and tilt and shift lenses… totally awesome. Look at what the tilt and shift lens does to the bottom of Amanda’s dress! It rocks, everything looks so magical and surreal!

We always hear brides saying "I LOVED my wedding but it went by so fast!" Everyone has heard of "Trash the Dress" (a fun and sometimes messy way to wear your dress again). Some brides love it, but others can’t bear the thought of messing up a beautiful work of art… their gown! Dave started thinking and came up with a great concept that keeps your dress in perfect shape and gives brides a chance to rock that gown again… like a fashion model, hence~ Fash the Dress.

When we mentioned it to Amanda we knew she would be a perfect candidate and we were happy she was game. She really loved her dress and looked so heavenly in it. The gown was so perfect it was just waiting to be "Fashed". She floated like a cloud as soon as she put it on and once again felt just like she did on her wedding day…over the moon.

Thanks so much Amanda, you were absolutely breath-taking amazing job girl!!

I’ve heard it said that "Referrals are the greatest compliment" and it’s so true.

Over the years I’ve had several brides who continually refer their friends and family who are getting married to us. Angela & Joon, who’s wedding I photographed several years ago in London came through with another amazing referral in Heather & Richard.

I know I always say this, but when I met Heather and Richard I knew they would be much more "friend" than "client".

We did an engagement shoot last year and had a ball, so during the lead up to their wedding this Summer we did start to get a little excited : )

Richard and Heather are such a fun-loving couple, they really had us both rolling over with laughter through most of the day. They were surrounded by a lot of great friends that shared the same wacky sense of humour. One thing is for sure we had fun at this wedding

The church was gorgeous! Charlotte and I loved photographing it in all of it’s beauty. I caught this shot of Heather and Richard for the first time as husband and wife and Charlotte caught the newlyweds with this aerial shot as they left the ceremony. We love getting two different perspectives on things…

We couldn’t have asked for a better bride and groom or wedding party for that matter.  These guys really made photographing their wedding day easy and an absolute joy to shoot. We grabbed this killer shot of the wedding party at Osgoode Hall in Toronto post-ceremony. Great work team!

Sometimes when you meet new people you just click instantly and it really feels like you’ve known each other for a very long time. When Nikki and Amit first came by our studio to chat about their wedding day, we knew we had met an incredible couple we could not wait to photograph!

Dave and Amit chatted about business, SEO and all things techie. Nikki and I chatted about styling the shoot and all the fun things that go into it like…hair, make-up, wardrobe and of course shoes! When these two rolled up in their Porsche Carrera convertible they were dressed to the 9’s and looked absolutely fabulous dah-ling!

Awww…Nikki and Amit make such a cool couple and they’re so sweet together, we just love ‘em!

We started off the engagement shoot at the University of Toronto Campus. All of the beautiful architecture and cobblestone roads make for a dreamy backdrop, no wonder they use it for so many movie sets. Check out Dave hangin’ out in the back of the Porsche… he’s always trying the sweetest angles!

How cool is that. It looks like their cruising along at 100 but I think they’re only doing 10 klicks. Wicked job honey, I do love this pic! I must admit I was a little squirmy watching you shoot this!…p.s. don’t try this one at home kids.

We hit the city streets of T.O. and cruised down to one of Nikki and Amit’s favourite spots and a place we love to shoot…Yorkville. There is so much to enjoy in this little Toronto hot spot. The shops, park, cafes and restaurants are always a great place to experience so we took full advantage of all Yorkville has to offer.

Even the sidewalks are grand and calling out to be photographed! We played around and took a few shots before we reached the park. We were honestly having so much fun shooting these guys it really just felt like we were out on the town with a couple of old friends! Dave grabbed this sweet shot while I was playing around with fun posing.

After a fun-filled hour of laughter and playfulness we hopped back in the cars for one last stop. Nikki and Amit being the amazing, awesome couple that they are had a surprise in store for us. They were taking us to one of Toronto’s most exclusive and delectable dining experinces, Blowfish. On our way to the restaurant, I popped the top to my convertible and Dave sat in the back seat (wearing his seat belt, of course ) so he could get some killer shots of these two in the fast lane!

We couldn’t think of a better end to a perfect day as we sipped Saki, ate Sushi and chatted with this adorable couple. Nikki’s engagement rings were so beautiful, we even got a chance to use our new macro lens. Thanks so much for everything guys and stay tuned to the blog for Nikki and Amit’s wedding day…coming soon!

Tonight we’re off to shoot some of our newest clients, Jackie & Paul. They heard about us through the recent wedding of Jennifer & Brent at The Briars in Sutton. We drove up to meet them a couple of weeks back and immediately hit it off. That night we scouted their wedding locations with them and began planning their big day!

They’re getting married at Lagoon City’s Harbour Inn & Resort…. A beautiful location on Lake Simcoe.

We’re looking forward to catching up with friends Jenn & Brent on the way and being in the great outdoors for the shoot with Jackie and Paul.

Signing out, Dave.

When you truly love, love LOVE what you do, everyday is like a holiday. Each day starts out pretty much the same for us…wake up, grab a piping hot- freshly brewed coffee, play with the doggies, catch an episode of Entourage and get cracking on our jam packed day.

Us humans are prone to routine and lately it’s been the norm for our jammed packed days to continue on until the wee hours of the morning. It is very satisfying almost addicting for Dave and I to see the reactions of our clients…or should I say friends when they see they see their photographs for the first time. It’s really a driving force and motivation for us to keep at this crazy pace. At least we get to do it together!

As per Dave’s parents advice, we were due for a day off. We were both fully on board and wanted to invest in some serious "us time". Dave, Fritzi, Greta and I love getting back to nature and out of the big city whenever we get a chance. Exploring country dirt roads, and photographing old abandoned houses and barns always makes the top of our list.

We saved up until Friday for our big day off and of course it rained cats, dogs and quarter horses . Dave googled the weather network and said "hmmm…80% chance of thunderstorms…possibility of large hail…are you afraid of a little rain?" I was all like…"who..me, no. (did he say hail ?!?)"  Throwing caution to the wind, we embarked on our grand adventure!

As we loaded up the car, I asked Dave if he had any locations in mind. He revealed nothing…we were going on a surprise adventure!!! Unbeknownst to Greta, Fritty and I we were headed to the Badlands. When we arrived, we were all in awe…the Badlands totally rocked…but what exactly were they?! Land clearing left the soft red clay exposed to rain and created rounded hills. Circulating groundwater caused red iron oxide to change green making the narrow green bands. Wow… and only 40 minutes from Toronto- sweet!

We had an hour of fun at the Badlands. Ominous clouds loomed overhead and we knew we didn’t have much more time. At the first sight of rain the dogs ran for the hills. Greta was not impressed was sure to shake, shake, shake the rain drops off her pretty pink raincoat.

Geeesh, you’d think these dogs were made of sugar. We had to quickly dry these little ones off or they would never forgive us! Greta was looking at me like…"Mommy, you should know by now…we detest the rain!"

4 weeks and 3 days…Every day feels like the countdown to Christmas for me and I’m sure Dave too. He just plays it cool and tells me how many sleeps I have until Natasha & Kester’s GLORIOUS wedding in Barbados! I’m checking off the days in the advent calendar in my head until… we’re swept away to sweet, sweet paradise. That’s right…we have another fabulous destination wedding upon us and we’re getting pumped! Natasha’s dress fitting made us both fantasize about all of the amazing shoots and locations we have planned for this super-fab, super-hot, super-awesome couple in the tropics.

We have got to say that this girl knows how to shop! She went to the right place when she walked through the doors of one of the best bridal boutiques in Toronto to hunt for her dream gown. The vote was unanimous, Natasha (or Tash as we call her) looked drop-dead-gorgeous in that designer wedding dress! I guess that’s the reason why "Jealous Bridesmaids" got it’s name he-he.

Charmaine, the owner of the boutique, was so helpful and the experience was so great she just made us all feel like royalty while we were there…sigh. 2 of Tash’s 7 Bridesmaids to be helped her with the fitting and made sure everything was perfect. We all had a blast, it was great having them along. We were all so giddy and excited for her even Dave was like a kid in a candy store!

The cute name of the boutique defiantly got a few laughs. Check out the "Jealous bridesmaids" giving Tash "the stink eye" for being wayyyy too gorgeous in her dress!

**Not to worry everyone. No brides were hurt in the shooting of this dress fitting**

Stay tuned to the blog for more shots of Natasha & Kester’s wedding, it’s going to be a grand and absolutely spectacular event!!

When Andrea stopped by our studio for the first time she told us all about how her and Edy, the love of her life met. Andrea was a teacher in Mexico and actually lived with Edy’s family before they met. One day the handsome young Architect stopped by for a visit and that was it-Andrea and Edy stumbled head over heals and fell in love!

The great thing about these two is they absolutely LOVE photography as much as we do! Andrea and Edy are photography enthusiasts and traveled together photographing Europe and all of it’s old world splendor. We were lucky enough to view some of their amazing work. I have to say that Dave and I were ultra-impressed; especially impressed with the stunning architectural shots they took in Prague. The photos were fantastic!

Since these two have such a great eye and have such a passion for photography we wanted to give them something very special for their engagement shoot. We all left the shores of the busy city behind us and jumped aboard the ferry to the always fun and relaxing Toronto Island. As soon as we hit the deck we started shooting. We got some fab shots of Andrea and Edy as we left shore. It’s always sweet when a couple doesn’t require any coaching and is naturally lovey-dovey and affectionate.

The great thing about Toronto Island is that it’s totally laid back and has a chilled out, cottage country vibe just a stones throw from the busy bustle of Bay Street. No wonder so many people take advantage of this adorable little spot. Dave and I spent the previous afternoon there a-hem "working" scouting out locations for the shoot. Not only did we find a million great spots, but we also met some really cool "islanders" that gave us the 411 on all the island has to offer.

We shot for about 2 hours, we just couldn’t stop, there was just too many great spots to photograph. We walked the gardens, rented bikes, sipped lattes at the cafe and of course hit the famous frisbee golf course!! At the end of the day we wrapped with a super sexy beach shoot a la sports illustrated, splishing and splashing in the tides! These guys were so awesome, check out the slide show of these two crazy kids!

~Thanks so much for all the fun and endless laughter guys, we cannot wait to shoot your wedding this month!

We woke up bright and early on this gorgeous summer morning to make our way to what was going to be one of the most exquisite weddings of the summer. We grabbed our coffee and hit the road with camera gear, our projector and our brand spanking new MacBook Pro (or "Lappy" as Dave calls him) in tow. We had a bit of a drive ahead but when we finally hit Snodden Rd. we knew we were at the right place. Brent’s name has been a part of Sutton, Ontario’s history for so many generations that the road was actually named after his family. We pulled up to the beautiful farm house and met Brent and his groomsmen getting ready for the big day inside.

Once the cuff links had been fastened and guys were looking their best, we took them out for a few shots of "the boys" together before the ceremony. Brent’s house had so many great places to shoot it was too difficult to decide on just one locale.  So we had some fun with it and we got some arty shots of guys by Brent’s barn and then made our way to the bright yellow canola field you can see in the distance.

After a killer shoot with the boys, Dave and I met up with Jen, the charmingly beautiful bride to be.  Jen looked absolutely gorgeous and was surrounded by her wonderful bridesmaids and loving family when we arrived. She is such a sweetie you can see why Brent adores her so much. Everything from her fairytale gown to her bouquet of white roses was done to sheer perfection. You could see her family was so happy and so full of love on this perfect wedding day. Jen’s mom joined in with the girls as they turned their bouquets into microphones broke out into a cover version of.."going to the chapel and we’re gonna get married." It was too cute.

At last! The magnificent Clydesdale horses pulled up with a little white buggy to carry Jen away to meet her groom. I was lucky enough to come along for the ride and shoot Jen on the way to the church, it was sensational!

Jen and Brent have such a endearing love for one another, it’s so sweet. We just love catching those little  candid moments of joy and love between a bride and groom. It’s so touching and this is why we love what we do!

Jen and Brent have been a part of this beautiful little stone chapel their whole lives. It was so important for them to be married there and it held so much meaning for the two of them.

They were so full of excitement once they became man and wife the newlyweds were all smiles as they rode away together in their little horse drawn carriage. When they made their entrance to the Briars Golf and Country Club Dave was waiting in the tower high, high above to capture it all. I love watching Dave work, he’s always climbing things and exploring new angels to get the perfect shot

We ended the day with a surprise slide show that Jen and Brent planned in advance for their guests. When Dave and I projected the special moments from their day on the big screen there was not a dry eye in the house.

Thanks Jen and Brent for being such an awesome couple and making our experience so spectacular. You truly made us feel like a part of the family. Congratulations!

Charlotte and I were out for breakfast this morning at B Cafe - one of our favourite spots (Dundas & Roncesvalles). We were flipping through NOW magazine and were stoked to see an ad for one of our favourite perfomers - Missy Higgins ! Not only that, she was on stage tonight! You see, she’s a huge name in Australia, but is just breaking out over here.

So when we got back to the studio Charlotte made some calls and scored us two media passes for the gig. Needless to say I was twitching all day, just dying for 7pm to roll around!

We rocked up and were excited to discover that Eric Hutchinson was opening the show…. His mellow rocky sound was a great start to an amazing gig. He seemed like a really cool, humble guy when we chatted after the show.

When Missy came on around 9:30 the crowd were totally pumped and were chanting "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie. Oi! Oi! Oi!" It was great. She jumped straight into three of her newer songs and had the crowd on board from the get go.

This was our first time seeing her live, and she definitely comes off like you’d expect her to - friendly, funny, sweet natured and generally just a cool person. Of course, hearing her sing Scar, The Special Two and some of our faves was amazing - her voice is phenomenal.

Charlotte was literally right in front of her and got some sweet angles… check out this one…

And here is the artist at work! I love snagging shots like this of her. Isn’t she a beauty?!

Well, it’s nearing 2am but I just had to post this before hitting the hay. Hope you guys enjoyed the shots.

Dave & Charlotte.

As part of the workshop this past weekend at Casa Loma, we invited our photographers to submit their best 3 images… Charlotte and I spent a long time deliberating, and in the end we were pressed to select just three winners!

We’d like to congratulate you all on the very high level of skill and creativity. You all produced some amazing images.

So, without further ado, we’re pleased to announce the following winners….

Drumroll please……

Congratulations Ken, Dana & Luis. We’re pleased to be able to give you each a $100 credit towards a future workshop! We can’t wait to have you all back soon.

The next workshop is going to be out of this world… Charlotte’s always outdoing herslef!

We’d also like to give a huge honourable mention to Miho. We loved this image but there can be only 3 winners! Ken came through with the goods again - check out this killer shot.

Great work all!

This past Sunday was our wedding photography workshop. Charlotte spent most of the past two weeks putting this workshop together… from sourcing two amazing models, finding the designer wedding gown, sourcing our hair and makeup, getting the right bling, and of course confirming all the details on our location, the grande and wonderful Casa Loma.

We kicked off the shoot in the conservatory (you may recognize it in films such as X-Men, Chicago and countless wedding flicks!) It’s a gorgeous room with very high ceilings, great soft light and marble throughout. Charlotte decided to grab one of the fans and create a fashion look with the cathedral veil Kirsten was wearing. Check it out:

A main goal of our workshops is to teach photographers the importance of seeing where the light is and harnessing that… as well as enhancing what’s already there with careful use of reflectors.

In Peacock Alley we did some very sexy shots of our bride and groom - Kirsten really showed off her fashion background with this amazing shot of her rockin’ out this dress.

We also put our cameras on ai servo / continuous and did several walk throughs of our couple coming toward and away from the camera in very low light… it’s a challenging shot to get and is essential to have the skill for it every time a bride walks down the aisle… Especially backlit in a dark church.

This next photo shows the only time we had the class put flashes on. The exercise here was to play with bouncing flashing off different objects and analyze the results.

Next we scooted into the library for a quick shoot with Josh and some cool stuff with Kirsten playing with her veil (a favourite tool Charlotte uses to get some really cool images at weddings).

To finish up the shoot we headed outside and played on the rampart, then heading into the gardens and finished up with Kirsten taking off her shoes and splashing her feet in the fountain! It did make for some very cool shots.

A huge thanks to Kirsten & Josh - you guys did awesome; Lisa our make up artist; Casa Loma for being so helpful throughout the lead and and during the shoot. Also a special thanks for Laura & little Frankie at Poppies for making the floral consultation such and enjoyable experience. We purchased our gorgeous gown at The Brides Project , a great company/charitable organization helping people with cancer one wedding gown at a time.

After wrapping at Casa Loma we headed to a pub over the road from our studio and all grabbed a hearty lunch and in some cases - ahem - a pint. We chatted for a couple of hours and had an informal q & a time. After lunch we spent about an hour in the studio and headed out for an casual shoot of Charlotte and I to get more practical with lighting, posing, exposure, focusing and all that good stuff.

To our awesome crew: We loved having you all join us for the workshop and have been totally impressed by the quality of your shots! Can’t wait to see you all again at future workshops. We will be posting the 3 competition winners tomorrow night around 9pm… Stay tuned!

Ever since Eric and Angela made first contact and booked us as their wedding photographers, we’ve been looking forward to doing their engagement session… So as Monday rolled closer I was getting pretty pumped… and I think they were too : )

We decided to start our shoot at Rosetta Mclain Gardens… a beautifully manicured park near The Bluffs. We got some really sweet images and after about an hour we headed to my favourite shoot location… the beach!

I’ll be the first to warn my couples that they’re likely to get wet at some stage during an engagement session with me… Whether it’s kissing under a waterfall , dancing in the ocean or literally jumping in a lake !

Here are some of my faves from the shoot, and at the bottom I’m sure you’ll enjoy the slideshow.

Megan and Shaun…what an amazing, cool couple! After seven years of bliss, Shaun wanted to make the woman of his dreams his forever and asked Megan to be his wife. From the first moment you meet them, you can instantly see why these two are so perfect for each other. When Dave and I arrived at McMichael’s Art Gallery in Klienburg on this beautiful summer afternoon we were full of excitement! Megan and Shaun were such a sweet, funny and amazing couple we knew we were in for a great time and a lot of laughter!

We met up with Megan as she was getting ready with all of her five lovely bridesmaid’s by her side. The room was filled with laughter! Megan and all of her bridesmaids have been friends for many years and you can tell that they are all as close as sisters.

Once Megan’s Mother Gai walked into the bridal suite and saw her daughter as a bride to be you could see the happiness in her eyes. She was so proud of Megan, the Mother/Daughter bond between them is very strong and you could see how very meaningful this day was.

Megan’s Father was just as proud of his little girl as he walked her down the aisle. Shaun looked on with such emotion as he saw his bride to be for the first time. Megan was glowing and the way the sunshine hit her veil made her look just like an angel. Shaun’s Mother was so happy for the couple as well and smiled lovingly at the two as they vowed their love for one another.

After the beautiful ceremony we met up with the newlyweds and wedding party for some post ceremony photos. They have such an awesome connection with all of their friends and family it made for so many great photo ops. They all just joked around and had a good time with one another.

These two definitely have it going on! Megan and Shaun both have awesome careers to match their amazing personalities! Megan is the managing editor at Canadian Family magazine and you may also recognize her as a former Columnist for The Toronto Star. Shaun is a little more on the "techie" side of things, he’s a science guy that works on mass spectrometers (It’s a good thing I can type it because I can’t say it!)

Check out Shaun and his groomsmen…sooo Reservoir Dogs!

With a forecast of severe thunderstorms we were a little nervous about which way the weather was going to go. Since the wedding was at McMichael’s Art Gallery, we really wanted to take advantage of the gorgeous greenery and beautiful landscapes and rain wouldn’t have allowed for that. We were all so fortunate and had no problem with the weather. As soon as we were done with the group photos, the skies opened up and Mother Nature blessed the marriage with lucky wedding day rain!

The details and the food were beautiful and well done. Megan choose soft pinks and greens for her floral arrangements and cakes. Every detail was absolutely lovely and added a refreshing lively feel to an early summer wedding.

While the guests enjoyed their dinner, Dave and I set up a photo station with our Ring Flash for the guests. The bride and groom were excited to have a shot of each table with all of the guests at the wedding! Dave invited the the guests to stop by for a group portrait before the dancing began. It’s a great idea to get a fun shot of everyone having a good time at the wedding. The girls loved it, look at all of my new friends lol!

We both love the effect of the Ring Flash! It creates a really cool fashion look!

Well I can’t give all the credit to the lighting, these girls are so gorgeous they all look like models anyway! hehe

The first dance marked the end of a beautiful day and a magical evening. Megan and Shaun are so awesome and so in love it was fabulous just being a part of their special day.

Ohhhh our sweet, adorable, little cutie pie Greta. It seems that no matter how many things you buy a teething puppy dog they always seem prefer your brand new designer pumps over a chew toy. I forgot ho