Category: Document Love

An engagement Session, or Document Love session as I refer to it is simply a portrait session for couples. You don’t have to be engaged to have a photo session where your story is told through images. You just need to be in love. It could also happen after you’ve already been married: it could be your honeymoon, and it could be an anniversary session. Life is precious, don’t wait for the “perfect” moment to have your story recorded.

I approach Document Love sessions the same way I do weddings:  with a mostly “documentary” approach coupled with relaxed & natural portraits. The goal is to document you, your love for each other and your life together.

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Queen West Engagement Session // Peter & Jennifer

I photographed a Queen West engagement session earlier in the summer with Peter and Jennifer. We started at sunrise at Trinity Bellwoods Park and then walked around the Queen West neighbourhood. I’m not gonna lie, I had to take a nap after I got home but it was totally worth it for the golden light and to have the park almost all to ourselves.

As a photographer, I guess one of the biggest ways for you to feel like you are doing it right is when you have clients who are referred to you by previous ones. Peter and Jennifer were in the wedding party of one of my couples from a few years ago – Maggie and Jack. In fact, they were introduced by Maggie and Jack. So it was really great when they got in touch about me photographing their wedding as well!

Peter and Jenn are so cute together – this became very apparent to me during their engagement session. Peter said that he is probably known at work as a very serious and no shenanigans kind of person but Jenn knows a completely different side of him. But that’s when you know you’ve found the right person right? Someone with whom you feel like you can completely be yourself with and they love you truly for who you are.

Here are my favourites from their session – looking forward to their wedding next week!

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Scarborough Bluffs Engagement // Elly & Johnny

Romantic Bookstore & Scarborough Bluffs Engagement

Elly and Johnny met at a company open house event and for their first date, they went to visit an old bookstore and antique store. So for their engagement session, we picked an independent bookstore in the city that is very atmospheric: Acadia Bookstore on Queen East. They are also both lovers of food, so incorporating St Lawrence Market was also a no brainer. Then we ended their engagement/document love session at the gorgeous Scarborough bluffs.

In getting to know Elly and Johnny, it’s apparent that they are similar in many ways and share similar interests, and they know each other very well. And what is love but to be known by someone? To be truly known by someone I mean. Not just knowing your name, and all those other superficial things. But someone who knows your likes, dislikes; hopes & dreams; your deepest wishes, your worst fears; your history, what makes you you.

Here are my favourites from their session. Looking forward to their wedding in a few weeks!

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Iceland Engagement Photography // Kayla & Nate

When Kayla contacted me at the end of September about her and Nate’s engagement photography session in Iceland, I was incredibly excited despite the fact that this would be my fourth time in the country. I always feel like a kid in a candy store coming here. When my flight landed, and I went through the familiar Keflavik airport, hopped on the flybus and got into the city, everything felt so familiar & warm to me in a way that even coming “home” to Canada does not make me feel. I joked to Mike that maybe I was Icelandic in my past life.

The way Kayla & Nate met is stuff for the movies – they are six years apart and Kayla was in a relationship when they first met, and Nate had just gone through a breakup. A few years later,  a chance encounter and a facebook message led to their first date and the rest was history. The day of our session came, we met up before the sun came up as this time of the year, daylight hours are short and drove out into the countryside. We explored a few places along the south coast, including the famous Black Sand beach Reynisfjara, Dyrholaey peninsula and a couple of waterfalls. They were troopers and braved the strong wind and the chilly temperatures (they are from southern California so the weather was definitely a bit of a shock) and were up for anything – even going behind Seljalandsfoss with a super icy path and going up to the top of Skogafoss.

Thanks Kayla & Nate, for inviting me to Iceland to document your love! It was a pleasure and I’m so grateful for the opportunity. Here are some of my favourites from our little adventure.

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Venice Honeymoon Portrait Session // Hieu & Alex

This romantic Venice honeymoon portrait session has been featured on UK wedding blog Want That Wedding, as well as on Brides Without Borders.

In July I photographed a Venice honeymoon portrait session for Hieu and Alex. Hieu and Alex are from the U.S. (Georgia and San Fran). They were on a 3-week honeymoon in Europe and Venice, Italy was one of their stops.

I was in Europe for 3 weeks myself for a couple of weddings and Venice was my first stop. It had been 5 years since I last visited Venice and I was very much looking forward to my second visit.  I think a lot of people who have been to Venice love it. There are also those who think it’s overrated. The complaints I often hear are: it’s too touristy; it’s not authentic; things cost too much. But I think most “touristy” places are touristy for reason. I don’t think those places are at fault just because everyone want to visit. Yes Venice can be crowded, yes it can feel less like an authentic city compared to other places, but there is more than a thousand years of history that took place in this city built on water. Every canal, every calle, every brick has a story, and I believe all those stories have left invisible marks on the city. You can’t see them, but you can feel them.

We woke up really early for this honeymoon session since July in Venice is quite hot and humid. So we decided to start just after sunrise. It was a more reasonable temperature and it was also before the crowds attacked the city :) We started in their hotel, then we walked over the Rialto bridge, wandered through some small lanes (calles) to Piazza San Marco and ended it with a gondola ride!

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