Bonnie and Vince - the wedding

Bonnie and Vince - I said a lot about how wonderful they are in this post.

I am in love with this picture. Its a little Picasso (I think I am in a cubist phase at the moment, artistically), and I love, love, love the space between. Generations. Passage. Mother/daughter.

There were so many wonderful things about Bonnie and Vince's wedding. Bonnie radiated calm throughout the day, but the evidence of her planning and attention to detail spoke out in every part of the day.

They opted to do the "first look", which I think is a fabulous idea. In the whirlwind of events that is a wedding day, it allows the couple to have a few private quiet minutes together before the festivities start.

Looking radiant. Bonnie and Vince's wedding was at the First Baptist Church on 109 St, downtown. Its a beautiful space. These pictures were taken in the chapel.

Bonnie and her sweet and gorgeous nieces. We also did the family formals prior to the ceremony - another great idea.

More beautiful details. Flowers by Zocalo. Hyacinth, hydrangea, lily-of-the-valley. And the colours - whew! Love them.

These pots of hyacinth adorned the church windows and travelled to the reception. Awesome idea.

The thing I loved most about Bonnie and Vince's wedding was the thoughtfulness that went into every detail. The wedding was held on the March equinox, and themes of renewal and birth permeated the ceremony. Their minister is a close friend, who Bonnie went to seminary school with and, each of their family members had an important role in the ceremony.

And there was laughter. Lots and lots of laughter.

Vince is Filipino. Here - his sister and brother-in-law are binding them with a cord (bond of love and friendship). They're holding gold coins (spiritual abundance) in their hands and are draped with a veil (union and mutual surrender).

Here, Vince's father is offering a Prayer of Blessing.

Such joy and happiness.

The reception was at the Union Bank Inn. While we waited for the guests to arrive, we took a few shots.

More details.

The reception was beautiful. A mingle-style lunch, buffet and butlered. Lots of laughter and talking.

This is my favourite shot from the reception - Vince's father toasting his son, in response to Vince's thank you. You can see where Vince's big heart and sense of humour come from.

Such love in those eyes.

Thank you so much Bonnie and Vince, for including me in your wonderful wedding. It was a great pleasure.

Solly and Lawrence

Solly and Lawrence had a beautiful, intimate, winter wedding in the Wedgewood Room, at the Hotel MacDonald.

Solly is my kind of girl - she, with the help of her mother and mother in law started planning the wedding only a couple of months ago. You would never know it from how perfectly everything turned out.

A few beautiful details - flowers by Zocalo.


The gorgeous fondant wedding cake, topped with yellow orchids. Check out their names in the icing.

Solly's cousin and best friend help her get ready.

Isn't she gorgeous?! Not only that, but she is fun, smart, full of life and a great mother.

I love these two shots of Solly and her dad.

The Wedgewood Room is great to photograph in.

Usually, the registry signing is one of those "must take" shots, that aren't particularly interesting. This one is a great tableau of the couple, their sweet son Liam, and their attendants.

My favourite shot of the day. I captured this one while doing the formal shots of Solly, her cousin and their beloved Baba. I far prefer the "outtakes" to the formal shots :).

...Although, these formals turned out really well. Solly had all the little details down - her something old in this picture are her great aunt's stole (perfect for a winter wedding) and Lawrence's grandmother's bracelet that both her new mother in law and grandmother in law wore on their wedding days.

The boys, looking smashing.

Love this one.

Liam is 21 months old, and was so good during the ceremony. He was a little discombobulated by all the excitement of the day, but got lots of good lovin' from his mom and dad.

Lawrence's boutonniere.
And, the dashing groom.
First dance. There were a lot of looks between them like this all day. Their adoration for each is awesome.

First dance with Liam. Love this shot.

Solly and Lawrence, thank you so much for inviting me to be a part of your beautiful wedding.

Jodi and Brent - the wedding

I have so many great images from this wedding, I had a hard time narrowing down the pictures to blog.


When I saw Jodi when she arrived at the church, I took one look at her and said "you are going to cry, aren't you?" She begged me to make funny faces at her so she wouldn't. I tried, I really did! But here she is, walking down the isle with her dad, and her mom handing her Kleenex, because the tears had already started.





After Jodi and Brent's beautiful ceremony, we headed to the lake for a few shots. Here is the wonderful couple (and awâsis, inside).





Jodi's best and most gorgeous girls. Spot the awâsis. Actually, spot where the awâsis are not! (And, do you have any idea how many ways there are to refer to a child in Cree?)





The brotherhood! All family, all awesome. Brent is a good people, and has good friends to prove it.







Jodi's dad cleared an old farmstead for our picture taking - how cool is that!? Doesn't Brent make a great farmer?

We saw a vulture while doing this set of pictures, which at first gave me pause, because I am big into animal symbolism (and they are a little creepy). I did a little googling. In Egyptian, the hieroglyph for Mother, is the same as that for vulture. Very appropriate. And, in traditional American cultures, the vulture is the symbol for renewal, cleansing and transformation. I think that is a perfect symbol for Jodi and Brent's wedding.

After the formal photos, we returned to the Dion home. Jodi's dad had commissioned a tipi for the traditional Cree ceremony. Jodi is Big Bear's great-granddaughter.

The baby bears represent Brent and Jodi.

Often, ceremonies are not allowed to be photographed, but after their ceremony, we got some great shots of Jodi and Brent inside the tipi.

My favourite of the day.

Lovely

and handsome.

Ok. Maybe this is my favourite - from the reception.

When I did Jodi and Brent's engagement session, I knew they were magic. This wedding just confirmed it.

Jodi and Brent - thank you so much for inviting me to share your beautiful day and for your family's wonderful hospitality. Can't wait to meet your awasis!