This wedding was a union between two families… I love it when that happens.  The girls were wonderful and I could tell they were happy and maybe even excited to become sisters.  It was a small get together a little bit different many of the other weddings I have seen in the past few years.  The day even included a gymnastics competition in the morning, that doesn’t happen very often on the wedding day.  Imagine getting up early for a competition and then running around to have hair and make-up done and then finally slowing down to enjoy your special day.  Priceless.

This last picture needs some explaining…. Karla realized that we had left her bouquet at one of the places we had stopped for pictures.  That wouldn’t normally be super bad but since they hadn’t yet been married she kind of still needed it for the ceremony.  Oops.  Gord, being the gentleman that he is took off running to go look for it.  While he was gone Karla and I had some fun and did some pictures just for her.  This is Karla, looking completely beautiful and Gord as he is running back after being gone for 10 + minutes.  Run Gord, run!  I hope you are feeling relaxed and wonderful after your fantastic honeymoon.

I love weddings, I really love weddings.  For the past few years I have been second shooting or assisting numerous Alberta photographers and I have been enjoying it more than I probably should.  So much so that I have been happy to continue doing just that instead of advertising myself as a wedding photographer.  Good?  Bad?  I’m not sure I have the answer for that right now.  I have done a couple of weddings for another amazing Calgary wedding photographer as well as a couple under my own business name each year  but have been fairly selective.  Every once in a while though a wedding comes up that I just can’t help but say yes to.  They are more than a lot of work and stressful but oh so worth it in the end.

Soooo.. I thought I would share a few of my wedding images here…

Last week I met with Jeremy and his family for some portraits in Fish Creek Park.  It was chilly no doubt but the snow made for a beautiful backdrop.  Sometimes going out to do portraits, even if it is in the cold and the snow, is a wonderful way to get some fresh air.  The surroundings are so beautiful and quiet.  Even Jeremy’s Mom and Dad noticed it and were thankful for some quiet time during the rush of Christmas.

Jeremy and his fiance will be married in New York in the springtime.

Sometimes winter in Alberta can be cold and brown or even warm and brown but Chris and Andrea had one of the most beautifully snowy winter days ever.  Yes, it was cold at -30 degrees celsius for the whole day but it was worth it for the beauty.  I totally expected some complaining to be going on as we trudged through the snow and cold but with hand warmers, toe warmers, the girls in boots and the chapel close by for warming up in the wedding party gave it all they had.  :)

I loved the choice they made for the wedding venue.  Andrea’s family grew up spending summers at Camp Kuriakos in Sylvan Lake so what better way to spend time with family on your wedding day.  Many of the guests came a few days early to stay in the bunk houses and cook together in the kitchen for meals.  To me, spending time together is what weddings are all about and on the wedding day it is often difficult to find the time to visit so this was perfect!  We could tell during the speeches that these 2 families value the company of their loved ones and seemed to fit together perfectly. Chris and Andrea are very fortunate.

A special thank you to my friend Gabe of Perspectiveye who volunteered last minute to help out when family circumstances prevented my other friend/photographer from being able to make it.

You can see the engagement photos of Chris and Andrea here.

I guess I have to stop somewhere or there will be no surprises left.  :)