Jessica & Faruk: Under my Umbrella
Sunday, October 5, 2008
We were both so excited to do our first shoot with Jessica and Faruk. When they booked us to shoot the beautiful wedding they have planned at Graydon Hall next year we could not wait to get out with them for a practice round to prep them for the big day!! We were so pumped for their engagement shoot not only because they were bringing their overly cute and gangly puppy Harley, but because they really are a blast to hang out with. Jessica is bubbly, outgoing and absolutely hilarious!


She was giggling, smiling and entertaining us with her infectious laugh the whole shoot. Jessica’s finishing school and a soon to be a fabulous interior designer. I’m sure you could tell she has an impeccable eye for style. Everything coordinated beautifully from her black and white Coach wedges and Faruk’s striped dress shirt, the umbrella and lets not forget darling little Harley he was the inspiration after all
Faruk is a hard working Lawyer Downtown Toronto, he’s a super-cool guy and you can tell that he loves Jessica and little Harley very much. These two just kept us and each other in stitches the whole time.

We have to say at first we were thinking of canceling the shoot when we checked out the weather network. Rain, thunder, lightening… and sunny breaks (of course?!?). We decided to take our chances and make the wild weather our friend turning it into a rainy day themed shoot. I have to say that looking back we were extremely happy with the forecast in the end. I love the look of the brewing clouds and the way the sun beamed through the sky lighting all of the playful drops of rain . There is something beautiful and romantic about stealing a kiss under an umbrella in the rain… these two are such a perfect match and sooo hot for each other… Yowza!

This ones my fave shot of the day. Like our doggies, Harley looooves his free range chicken strips and will do ANYTHING for them! I was inviting him for a tasty treat while they held on for dear life and Dave shot away. Little Harley is pretty powerful even though he’s still a puppy he’s got a lot of “pull” in this family. You can tell by his leash he wanted that treat and had one thing on his mind, devouring the whole bag. He was such a good boy, we didn’t make him wait too long to gobble down a few scrumptious snacks.

Here’s another one of my faves. Dave should probably work part time as a stuntman with all of his daredevil moves he does on shoots. He pulled himself up and on to the roof of this charming life guard house to get this crazzzzy sweet ariel angle. I love how the water looks so tropical, who knew Toronto was so exotic?!

Since we were all getting a little peckish and we were already in the heart of the Beach, we grabbed an amazing dinner and a glass of vino at Nevada. We chatted about their wedding and all of the things they love to do together, like traveling and road trips while we ate dessert. They gave us advice on the hot spots and must sees in the States when Dave, Fritzy, Greta and I tour the U.S. this month. They really got us excited and we are sooo looking forward to cruisin’ America together and having a great vacation with our dogs. Thanks so much guys, it’s people like you that remind us… we LOVE what we do!!!

Off to Barbados
Monday, September 15, 2008
It’s been a busy few weeks for Charlotte and I… We’re very excited to be heading off tomorrow for a week long stay in Barbados to photograph the wedding of Natasha & Kester. Over the past year we’ve become very good friends with both of these guys and can’t wait to spend the week documenting them as the wedding finally approaches!


We have several highly creative shoots planned during the week, so stay tuned for some cool shots when we return (we may get a chance to post while we’re there).
So until next week, we’re signing off… Dave & Charlotte.
Michel & Elizabeth + Tilt & Shift = Pure Joy
Monday, September 15, 2008

Michel & Elizabeth. How to describe them… Quirky, cool, funny, wacky at times - But mostly, they’re deeply in love.

The four of us decided that a cool location for their engagement shoot would be “graffiti alley” (recently featured in the film, The Rocker - Go Toronto!). We began the shoot in an art/media house downtown … It had some really sweet exposed brick walls throughout, artworks, windows, stairs, overpasses, underpasses… You get the idea!

We cruised up to Queen Street via the back alleys and shot some very low light images using the street lights that were there. I have to admit, there were a few shady characters who were hanging around. Later on we decided it may not have been the best idea to chat to them! (what can I tell you, I like meeting new people!)

If you haven’t ever been to Shanghai Cowgirl - a cute little greasy spoon on Queen just east of Bathurst - check it out next time you’re in the hood. They make a mean burger with roasted garlic, they’re insanely good. Charlotte grabbed this shot of Michel & Elizabeth using the tilt and shift lens - ah, the joys of controlling the focal plane… cool right?

We sat down and grabbed a drink and chatted with them after the shoot. Thanks for the fun night out guys. We loved shooting you both and can’t wait to see you again soon : )

Check out the slideshow… we had fun doing the stop motion section in the middle!
Engagement Session at The Ex!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
“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.
Nikki & Amit: Love in the Fast Lane
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
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!

Andrea + Edy’s Engagement Session on Toronto Island
Sunday, August 3, 2008
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!
Eric & Angela’s Engagement Session
Thursday, July 17, 2008
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.






Heather & Jamey’s Engagement Session
Friday, May 30, 2008
Let us introduce you to a totally sweet, totally cool, totally awesome couple…Heather and Jamey! Dave and I are so excited to be shooting Heather and Jamey’s wedding this July. Heather is such a cool girl with a great personality, us girls got along so well right away. Jamey is awesome too and has a great sense of humour, which rocks because Dave and I love to joke around and make our clients laugh.

We met up with the couple outside of the venue for their wedding and chatted about locations for shoots. Dave and I had already scoped out a few hot spots before the couple arrived but we wanted to see if they had any particular ideas in mind. They’re getting married at The Scottish Rite in Hamilton, which is great because there is such a great mix in the way of old world architecture and cool, trendy modern buildings in that area for us to choose from.

This old abandoned building was one of the hot spots on our list. It was this absolutely stunning reddish-orange brick warehouse we found on some lonely side street. Sadly, It will be gone soon for a condo development but for now we thought it was a beautiful backdrop for our engagement shoot.

I love this shot I got below of the two of them. The richness of the bricks just pops off the page and Heather’s hair just looks soooo beautiful with the colours of the bricks.

Heather and Jamey have been in love for 6 years now and this July they will vow the deep love that has blossomed over their years together. You can tell they really are best friends and have a sweet love for each other.

I had to sneak this one in! I shot this one of Dave when he was shooting with the Telephoto Lens. He looks so cute, doesn’t he!

So much thanks goes out to Heather and Jamey, we had a great time doing your engagement shoot! We also have so many more amazing locations we can’t wait to choose from for your wedding day. Stay tuned for more photos of Heather and Jamey after the wedding!

Fiona + Darren’s Engagement Shoot
Wednesday, April 9, 2008
During our trip to Jamaica this week, we had the fortune to meet a lot of really cool people - both locals and fellow travelers. Fiona and Darren are two people who Charlotte and I got chatting with and really connected with. They’re Canadian too, so we all decided to have some fun one evening and did a little shoot for them… enjoy the show!







