I remember we were debating on whether to take their portraits first thing in the morning or later, once the reception was over, since we would have no time between ceremony and reception. We decided to go with the morning and how lucky we were! Their wedding day was actually during the World Cup of Hockey, so getting there at 8am was the smartest thing to do. We got to walk around the Distillery still very empty and now I can share some amazing shots with you!

Congrats, Karen and Yuuki! Wishing you a lifetime of happiness. ❤

Want to check their engagement session? Click here!

Angela got ready at the beautiful King Edward Hotel and from there we went to the Distillery District. Ceremony and reception was held at Airship 37, a very cool venue featured in this blog a few times already (reception was held at click here for other weddings at Airship 37).

Congrats, Angela and Daniel! Thank you so much for letting me capture your big day. ♥

When I met Tara I felt she was very practical. She and Ryan didn’t want an e-session and didn’t want to spend their entire wedding day posing for photos. So we did just a few of getting ready, went straight to ceremony, spend about an hour outside and went back inside to enjoy the reception. Can’t forget to mention they were super brave about having their portraits done during a freezing and windy windy windy night at the Distillery District.

Tara’s and Ryan’s wedding was definitely one of my favorites to shoot this past year: their wedding was really intimate – they had about 50 guests if I remember correctly. What I love about small weddings is that you can tell that everybody that is there really matters to them and they are all so into the moment. And that’s what photographers love – capturing those special non-manufactured moments throughout the night.

Congrats, Tara and Ryan! Wishing you a lifetime of happiness. ♥

Their wedding photos started right at the Distillery District – no first looks nor getting ready photos. Melanie didn’t feel like she needed it and, although I do love taking pictures of those moments, I’m not sure if I would want it either if it was my wedding day (I got married a long, long, long time ago when people didn’t even think of having getting ready photos – hey, I’m not that old, it just happens that I got married at 19).

Decoration at the ceremony was simple and beautiful – super kawaii origami and the blue palette was stunning! It went so well with Melanie’s eyes. I liked it so much because you could truly see how it all came together perfectly. At the reception, instead of games, I had the privilege to watch some amazing Odori dance and drumming performances. Guests were completely blown away by those.

Congrats, Melanie and Jeff! Wishing you a lifetime of happiness. ♥

Loved starting my wedding year with Erin and Mark. I had tons of fun during our e-session last Fall and I was counting the days for their big day at Archeo, a really cool venue for intimate weddings inside the Distillery District.

I remember shooting weddings in March and it was never this freezing cold. I really don’t know how Erin was able to walk around Distillery with no jacket at all. Bravest bride I’ve had so far! We even tried some sparklers photo during the night, but the wind and cold didn’t help us at all – well, at least we got one cute clumsy heart drawing to remember (which you can see at the end of this post).

The highlight of their wedding day was the Pyebaek, a Korean wedding custom. It’s a beautiful ceremony where the parents share some wisdom on marriage. They also throw jujubes (I’ve seen chestnuts at other ceremonies as well) at the bride and groom, which represent their wish for lots of grandchildren. I’m really lucky to live in a country where I can shoot so many cultures and traditions.

Erin and Mark, congratulations! You suit each other perfectly. May your every day together be a joyous ride. ♥

Some weeks prior this wedding, as we were talking about maybe not having enough time for wedding party portraits, I said to the bride that I’d just stick to the classic shots (everybody looking at the camera, boys to one side, girls to the other, etc). For my surprise, she couldn’t care less for these kind of photos. I was over the moon about that, because, in fact, I’m not a fan of those as well.

Shooting this wedding just took me back to when I first started, when I used to be 100% photo-journalistic driven. Then, years went by and I just noticed that some couples missed the classic posed shots, so I decide to incorporate that to my work. Of course I will still be doing those because I know most people would like to have them anyways, but it was so good to capture the whole day the more natural as possible.

Let me share some of my favorites with you.