Monday, April 30, 2007

E-session Colleen and Matt

I am really looking forward to Colleen and Matt's wedding out in Banff this summer. They were a lot of fun to photograph so I am sure I will be like a chubby kid in a candy store at their wedding.






















Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Vibe 98.5 Dream Wedding

The Vibe 98.5 Dream Wedding happened on Sunday. Credit for getting this event going has to go to the people at Vibe and Table Talk who through a lot of hard work made this whole crazy idea happen. It doesn't take a genius to figure out why Vibe 98.5 is a successful station once you meet the people that work there. They are top notch all around.

I am not a writer (anyone who routinely reads this blog will be nodding their head right now), so I'll show some of the photos and make some comments as we go. I should point out one thing though before we get to the photos that I think was really important. All of the contributors involved treated Julie and Anthony like any other paying client and let them make their own choices. I don't think you could call this a "Dream Wedding" if you didn't let the couple define their own dream, so kudos to all those involved for letting the client call the shots.

The entire wedding took place at Hotel Arts. You really get the feeling that the management and staff at this hotel are proud of their work and their hotel. In addition to providing the venue for the ceremony and reception they also provided guest rooms and a custom designed meal, which was outstanding. Their guest robes are pretty cool too!


The team from Newbury Spa did a great job on the make up and also provide spa treatments.


As per usual, the guys were on their own to figure out how to get dressed. Anthony (the groom) getting some help here. Cameo and Cufflinks outfitted the entire wedding party, including the bride and the parents. I have a soft spot for Curtis and Daria (owners) as their business is just across the street from us and they are really nice folks.


Julie taking a moment before the big reveal.


I can't say enough about the team from Table Talk. It is pretty impressive what they get done in a day. They aren't just decorators (which they are amazing at), they are talented event planners and made my job so much easier. I told them I wanted to photograph Anthony seeing Julie for the first time that day in the lobby (a reveal) and they took care of it, plus it happened right on time.





Since the wedding was in the Hotel Arts. I felt it was pretty important to incorporate some of the decor into the photography for Julie and Anthony.





In addition to the dress and shoes, Cameo and Cufflinks also provided all of Julie's jewelry.


The guys.


A casual shot of the girls and the groom. Thanks to the guys at Ambassador Limousines for getting us around town so skillfully and for not asking too many questions about the unusual locations I use or giving me too hard of a time when the limos bottomed out in my "limo friendly" parking areas.


April in Calgary is pretty monotone (i.e., brown), so I wanted to include some color into the photos.








It's always hard picking a favourite photo from a wedding, but this might be it for me. I am a big fan of really simple images, plus I like green! Thanks to Julie for getting up these stairs in her bare feet since the steel grate material was way too dangerous in here high heeled shoes, which still had to walk down the aisle later that day.





My biggest concern with this wedding was actually the couple. I had no say in who the winners were. The typical couple that hires me is quite passionate about photography and it is a very important part of their wedding. With a contest like this it was quite possible that the couple could really care less about photography. So I can't express enough how grateful I am for the attitude, spirit, and effort Julie and Anthony (and their great wedding party) put into their photo session. They were so excited about the photography experience.





Anthony requested a "storm cloud" photo. I didn't ask why, but this is my take on it.


The ceremony venue.


The impressive, yet classy, wedding bands by Breslauer and Warren.


Plush Invitations made all the custom invitations, programs and dinner menus for the wedding. I had a chance to chat to Dione (Plush founder) at the reception and it is so cool to see businesses operated by nice people doing well. This is a photo of the program.


Julie and her grandfather coming down the aisle.











Some more photos of the reception designed by Table Talk.


View from the Head Table.



I loved the cake Barb from Cake Creations put together for the couple.


After the formal program ended the guys from a A Better Way DJ took over and got everyone out of their seats.





Group photo of the sponsors.


There were other vendors who I haven't mentioned and to be fair I should. Links to their websites can be found here.

Sundial Travel - honeymoon for the couple
Zam Zam Designs - gift for the guests
Coyotes - Stag and Stagette
Willow Park Wines and Spirits
Allegra Quartet
Bob Dunn - commissioner
Fairly Vanilla Hair Salon
Perry Thompson Video - videography
The Nosegay Inc - flowers
Frozen Memories Ice Studio - Martini Louge
Production Lighting - lighting for the wedding

Vibe 98.5 Dream Wedding - TEASER

I know there are a lot of people dying to see some photos from the wedding so I am going to post a few teasers right now and in a few more days I will have a more detailed post up. There were so many amazing vendors involved in this wedding and I will do my best to acknowledge them at that time too.

Ok, I know people have probably stopped reading the text at this point :) so I'll just get to it. All of these photos were taken in the Hotel Arts (where the ceremony and reception were held).

Julie. Wow! I know Anthony will start crying when he sees this image.


The Groom.


The reception, a Table Talk masterpiece.


The happy couple.

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

Commercial Work - Kicking Horse Mountain Resort, Golden

I was in Golden last week to team up with the awesome folks at Driven Media who are working on an advertising campaign for the the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort. Unfortunately the 3 days of shooting that were scheduled had to be cut back to one, but we still managed to get some new signature images for them. Here are some of my favourites with a brief description of what is going on.

If you have ever froze on a chair lift you'll appreciate what a gondola signifies to skiers.






KHMR has a lot of different terrain. This one's for the hardcore skiers.


This one's for the SPORE's and little people.


Working with kids is always fun and chaotic. These three little girls were heading up for a lesson.


We spent a few hours working with Ethan, who is 3 and doesn't really listen, but lots of fun.