Light snow swirled in the farmers fields as I drove to the the Eastern Townships to photograph Julie and Jamie's wedding. I was heading for Auberge la Raveaudiere in North Hatley, on Lac Massawippi.
Julie chose our 1/4 Day Wedding Photography Package with 4 hours coverage. She wanted to capture the intimate moments with her mum and grandma at the beginning of the day, photos of the ceremony, family photos and some romantic newlywed photos.
Like most weddings, my bride - Julie - was running late when I got there.
She had a blue ribbon sewn into her petticoat there was a sixpence taped into her shoe, but was still working on her wedding vows as people excitedly ran in and out, wondering when the wedding would start.
Initially, the plan was to do the ceremony outdoors but it was too cold so the ceremony was held in the auberge's elegant sitting room.
After the ceremony, it was time to do the family portraits. It was too cold for everyone to stay outside after the group photo, so I hunted around inside the auberge for a place that was large enough to set my flash up.
The only place that was big enough was where the ceremony had been. Anyway, there would be pretty windows and grand piano in the background. Perfect!
Now it was time for the newlywed photos. This is my favourite / most stressful part of the day.
There is always a time restraint with weddings. You can’t keep people for too long. It's a wedding day not a photo shoot. The goal is to get as many different poses and locations as you can in the shortest time possible.
But taking photos has to be fun for couple at the same time. Not just because this is their wedding day and every moment should be special, but because if the photographer looks stressed, then they will get stressed, and you won't get good photos.
After the family groups, I head out the door with Julie and Jamie to take photos down at the lake. As we're leaving, the bride's mom tells us the meal will be served in 20 minutes.
It was a 5-minute drive, each way, to the lake. That was 10 minutes gone. That only left us about 10 minutes for photos.
It was also cold and miserable outside. The light was dull and uninteresting. This was going to be a challenge.
In the end, we managed to get photos at four different locations in 20 minutes.
First, we went the most important location: the dock.
When we talked about what was important for Julie with her wedding photography, she mentioned this dock, and how she had many happy childhood memories here. It was really important to get some photos here.
On the way back to the car, we stopped for a few photos outside a rustic bistro overlooking the lake.
Then, I got a few photos from behind as the couple walked over a bridge.
If they ended up ordering an album - or if they made one themselves – this photo would be the perfect way to end the album.
We got back to the car. Julie was now blue with cold. She had a warm wrap but didn't want to wear it because wouldn't look good in the photos.
There was park beside the car. The leaves on the trees were brown and the grass looked pretty bad, but I still wanted a few more individual photos of her, some of Jamie, a ring shot and possibly a traditional bride and groom photo.
I always take a "traditional" bride and groom photo. I also think of it as my "grandma" photo.
Couples usually want romantic and emotional newlywed photos, looking lovingly into each other’s eyes. But grandma just want a regular picture of the bride and groom. Full length, looking straight into the camera and smiling. This photo goes into a frame and gets shown off to everyone who visits.
I asked Julie if she could stand the cold for 5 more minutes. "Sure!" she said, so off we went.
The newlyweds got back to the auberge at about 15 minutes late, and I headed home. It had been a wonderful day.
Julie and Jame's chose our 1/4 Day Wedding Photography Package. Hiring the best photographer you can find, but limiting the number of hours of photography is the best way to keep costs down without sacrificing quality.
If this sounds like something you would be interested in, contact us today and we would be happy to discuss your options.