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A big thanks to Ashton and Breanne for braving the cold in Calgary for their engagement session. And an extra big thanks for lending me a jacket when I forgot to bring mine!

We met up at Calgary’s Confederation Park and, unusually for me, stayed at that one location. But it’s such a nice area, with quite a few different cool little spots in it, that we didn’t need to go anywhere else. We started out in an underground walkway and I got grungy-style images in the tunnel there, while we dodged joggers and people walking their dogs, including one guy who was wearing two totally different shoes. That was pretty funny, though I won’t laugh too hard, because at least he had a jacket.

The leaves were just turning to their fall colours in the park, though it wasn’t until the end that I really worked them into the photographs. It’s funny how sometimes what’s right in front of me won’t inspire me, but something out of the way in a corner will really appeal to me. (There are a bunch more images with the fall colours in their private gallery, but I like the ones below best). Confederation Park has really tame ducks! We were able to get so close to them and we didn’t even have food. Ashton and Breanne tempted them over with leaves.

Anyways, it was great to meet you both and I look forward to seeing you again at your wedding next year!

Congrats to Mike and Gillian! They were recently married in a moving ceremony in Calgary’s Baker Park.

We did their engagement session back in February down in Lethbridge and they were both happy and easy-going, so it was great to catch up with them again on their wedding day. I started the day with the bride’s dress going on—well, photographing Gillian in it—while my assistant photographer Jessica photographed the guys. Their ceremony was outside at Baker Park, near the Bow river. The leaves were just starting to turn yellow for the fall—though most of them were still green—and it’s a beautiful place, full of trees and really peaceful. There were lots of smiles and tears throughout the ceremony, mostly tears from Gillian and smiles from Mike.

After their wedding ceremony we stayed in the park for nearly all their photos, stopping on the way back to the reception to wander through the Safeway where Gillian and Mike had met. Their reception was also an emotional affair with teary speeches and loads of laughs. Here are a handful of their images.

On the morning of Susanna and Greg’s wedding my wife Sherri went into labour. You can read more about that HERE.

My second photographer and I met Greg at the church as he was waiting for Susanna to arrive in an old fire truck. This was one of those weddings full of quirky personal touches, which make a wedding so memorable and fun. I really love the little old church they were married in! It’s like one of those tiny white wooden buildings you see as you drive through the prairies, sitting alone in the middle of a field. The light was so beautiful inside! It definitely had the best natural light of any wedding ceremony we have ever photographed. In fact, it is the first church we’ve been to that was actually bright inside and not dark. Ah, yes, the things that excite a wedding photographer.

Susanna and Greg had so many cool things worked into their ceremony. This is the second of three weddings we have this year with a Scottish bride or groom and Greg and his groomsmen were all done up in kilts and tartans and the other traditional Scottish garb. Not only were there personal touches to the ceremony, but their love for each other was so clear, with Greg wiping tears from his eyes and Susanna choking up as she saw Greg waiting for her. And I really liked the Scottish influences during the day. Greg even read Susanna a poem by Robert “Rabbie” Burns during the ceremony.

After their ceremony and toasts of scotch we did their photos on the same property, an historical village with a little old jail and loads of cool rustic buildings. There were tons of great spots and I could have photographed there for hours. Plus, the wedding party were fun and really easy to work with.

Their reception was back in Lethbridge and it was filled with lots of fun and laughter. They also had the most multicultural dinner I’ve ever seen, with dishes from about a dozen different countries. Their wedding reception tables were also named after different places that meant something to them and their families. Greg and Susanna also did a very nice thing for me, too. Because I was there while Sherri was in labour they sped up their reception events so that I could photograph them and leave. Although my second photographer, Jessica, was very capable of taking over in my absence and they really didn’t have to do this, they did their cake cutting, first dance, father-daughter/mother-son dances, and the bouquet and garter tosses all back to back. (In case you’re wondering I was with Sherri for the last three hours of the labour and birth. )

All the best to Susanna and Greg! Click below to start the slideshow and give it a little bit of time to load.

I recently wrote some tips for beginning wedding photographers on the Digital Wedding Forum—which is a handy resource for anyone wanting to learn more about wedding photography—and I thought I’d share them here as well, for the starting photographers who browse my blog. There are a lot of people getting into wedding photography these days and most of them find out the hard way that it can be very difficult and a lot of work. Many of the problems that beginning photographers—and even quite a few pros—face seem to pop up regularly. So here are my tips on how to avoid some of the more common pitfalls before they occur.

How To Not Suck: Avoiding Common Problems

1. Say ‘no’. People will approach you for all kinds of photography. If you really don’t want to do something let them go to another photographer who will happily do this work for them. The clients are happy, the other photographer is happy, and you don’t get the stress of accepting work you don’t like.

2. Do your research before accepting a job. When someone asks you to do something that you think might be outside of your experience, look into it and get back to them later. If you think you won’t enjoy it or might stuff it up, either turn it down or set aside enough time to learn how to do it well before you take it on. Scout locations to see what you’ll need to have or to know.

3. Learn to do things that you might need someday. For instance, even if you love to shoot in natural light, it still won’t hurt to learn how to use flash well. You are not obliged to use it just because you know how, but one day it might mean the difference between sucking and succeeding.

4. Know your gear. Learn to shoot with everything in manual mode. Although there plenty of photographers who get wonderful images shooting in a semi-auto modes, the more you are aware of how the settings effect the results, the better you’ll be at quickly adapting to challenging environments or gear malfunctions.

5. Get paid as a professional. We all have to start somewhere, but not charging professional rates hurts everyone. Very cheap sessions might seem like a good way to get work now, but it will bite you in the future.

6. There is no such thing as a casual agreement. Get everything in writing and cover as many points as you can as clearly as possible. Even if you are the best of friends with your client, get them to sign a contract. No one remembers every last detail you thought you explained to them.

7. Have back-up gear. Have back-up locations. Have a back-up plan. Have an emergency number in case you get stuck.

8. Buy a GPS. Buy a UPS. Buy a screen calibrator. Buy a backup solution for your computer.

9. Half of the websites out there have a bio that starts something like this: “I’ve always had a passion for photography and I love that I can do my passion as a career”. You need to really ask yourself why you like photography. Be specific. This will it make you a better photographer, because you will identify areas that you want to work towards or stay away from. For instance, you might realise that you really like photographing kids, but not adults. That helps you to direct your career and make it more rewarding.

10. Finally, some compositional tips: get close, find the action, find the light, explore the space, and plain backgrounds are everywhere.

Stephanie and André were married in the beautiful Crowsnest Pass, on Stephanie’s parent’s property on the outskirts of Blairmore. Admittedly, everything about a metre from the main street of Blairmore is in the outskirts, but I digress. I’d been looking forward to this wedding since we booked it, because Stephanie and André sounded like a really fun couple. And so easy-going, too! In fact, when I let Stephanie know in advance that Sherri was pregnant and so I was going to bring our other second shooter, Jessica, Stephanie said, “If the baby comes during our wedding, you should go and be with Sherri. Don’t worry about us; you have your priorities.” Isn’t that the coolest attitude from a bride, ever?

Also, André’s invites were the most unique I’d seen. Why did that matter to me? Because it indicates that they’re both personally involved in the planning of the wedding and that usually means they’ll be more into their wedding on the day. There’s some wedding psychology for you.

Their ceremony was held outdoors in an area with a little pagoda surrounded by trees. It was a gorgeous location. Somehow it managed to have great views of the mountains and still be cozy and personal. After their ceremony we did a mini Coleman photo tour, hitting a couple of locations that André and Stephanie liked to get their photos. The reception was at Crowsnest Mountain Resort and we took advantage of the clear view of Crowsnest Mountain for a few more images of the bride and groom before heading into their reception. The reception was awesome! Touching, funny speeches, toasts with a liqueur that had real gold in it, and a really great vibe throughout. Plus, I love the colours in there!

After the main dancing, there was a surprise for the guests: one of the guests is a male bellydancer and he put on a show for everyone. I’d never seen a male bellydancer before and I didn’t know what to expect, but Viraj was a fantastic entertainer! If anyone is looking for something to spice up your wedding receptions (or other event), check out Viraj’s site HERE. I have so many photos from this time. It was really hard cutting them down to just the few I ended up choosing for the blog. Really, really hard. He was all over the place, first grabbing Stephanie and André and always building audience participation through the performance. I was sweating and tired just from chasing him around the room with the camera and I wasn’t the one doing all the crazy moves!

Ok, enough talk. Images are below.

Congrats to Jolene and Matt! They were married recently in Waterton, at the Bayshore Inn. Well, in the nice grassy area near Waterton Lake outside the Bayshore Inn. Of all of our couples these guys are right up there with the most laid-back and easy-going we have ever met. They were really great to work with and their guests were a fun bunch, too.

This was one of the rare weddings from this year where we have been there for the entire day, from the hair and make-up right through most of the reception, instead of just from the ceremony or when the dress goes on. I love being there for the whole process and catching all of the behind-the-scenes preparation and emotions. Jolene and her bridesmaids were getting ready at the Bayshore Inn and were a cool bunch to get photos of as they hung out and ate their Fun-Dips. I also popped over to catch the guys, who were at the Bayshore as well, and I grabbed a few images of them getting ready before we went down near the lake for some pre-ceremony portraits.

It was a great day for an outdoor wedding ceremony; sunny with a strong breeze to keep the heat down. After the ceremony we did their family portraits around the Bayshore area before heading off to the Prince of Wales hotel for the bridal party and bride and groom photos to take advantage of the fantastic views from there.

The reception was held back at the Bayshore, with the evening’s entertainment provided by Pyramid Entertainment—oh, and the guys’ dance-off.

Here are some of their images!

Last night I had the pleasure of experiencing a fantastic concert! Well, two of them, really. The concert was held at the Yates in Lethbridge with proceeds going to support the charity organisation Bridges of Hope, a very dedicated organisation of people who raise funds for the care of people in need in Africa, especially in Burkina Faso.

To be perfectly honest, I wasn’t really looking forward to this concert. I had arranged to take photos for the concert on a professional level, but I thought the music would bore me. I know, I know, how could I be such a cultural Philistine? But my main prior exposure to world music was listening to a friend’s new age music CD. And the music sounded like whales farting. So, armed with this utterly inaccurate view, I slunk off to the Yates Memorial theatre with my cameras.

Noumoufassa was supported by Joshua Reuben, along with vocalist Bridget Yarwood and percussionist Kurt Langrud. These guys opened the night and they played both original compositions and cool reworkings of recognisable tunes. They were a great start to the evening, blending virtuoso performances with a light, fun mood. They were joined near the end of their set by keyboardist and percussionist, Rex, from Noumoufassa, who added some funky bass to their songs. Then, after the intermission, Noumoufassa exploded onto the stage with highly energetic playing and acrobatic performances. I have to say that this was one of the best concerts I’ve ever been to in my life, and as a lapsed musician, I’ve seen my fair share. These guys put everything they have into their show and it really comes alive in the most incredible-sounding and visually-entertaining way.

Twice during the evening Daniel Zopoula, the founder of Bridges of Hope, came and spoke quite briefly about the organisation and their goals. He is a passionate and well-educated man, but not someone who rants or bludgeons you with emotionally manipulative speeches. One thing he said really struck home to me and that was this: when the 2004 tsunami struck the nations around the Indian Ocean, around 200,000 people died and many people in the world rallied to provide aid. Yet approximately 150,000 people die in Africa every month. To learn more, please head over to the Bridges of Hope website.

You can still catch the show at two more locations in Alberta, in Red Deer and LeDuc. For more information check out this link. There is also a little YouTube video you can watch there to give you a bit of an idea of the music. However, with no offense to the people who made the video, it really doesn’t come close to capturing the energy of the actual performance. You really have to see them live to appreciate the show. If you’re anywhere in the area, go. You’ll have a whale of a time.

These images are not really edited, because I haven’t had the time, but I wanted to get something up on the blog right away. Most of them are shot at around ISO 6400, with some at ISO 8000.

Congrats to Rick and Keely! They were married at The Norland Bed and Breakfast, which is a beautiful place for weddings in Lethbridge. It’s so green there in the summer! Their ceremony was outdoors with chairs set up on the lawn and a little pagoda for the wedding party to stand around. Rick and Keely had their dog there as part of the wedding party and I later asked a really stupid question when Rick requested some photos with the dog. I said, “Oh, that’s your dog, eh?” Uh, no, Mark, one of the groomsmen just felt like bringing his dog to the wedding. At the end of the wedding ceremony Keely’s dad played them a song on the guitar. I love her expression as she watches him play.

We stayed at the Norland for the photos, since it’s such an attractive and diverse location. Keely specifically asked for a huge group shot of everyone, so we did that first, with the help of her dad getting everyone organised. The whole wedding party was so easy to get photos of! And Keely was such a stunning bride I couldn’t go wrong. For one of the images below—the one of Keely and Rick with the reflection—there was a brief moment of confusion where I was saying to Rick, “Ok, serious shot now; no smiles” and he kept smiling bigger and bigger. He just heard the word ‘smile’ and thought I had been telling him to smile more! I ended up getting some serious shots, but I actually prefer the photo of him smiling.

Their reception was held at the Lethbridge Sandman Inn. The speeches for the evening turned out to be a bit of a roast Rick night, but he was laughing along. These are the best weddings, the ones with lots of fun, tears and laughing. I would be happy to shoot weddings like this every week.

We had an interesting start to the weekend. I had a wedding to shoot and my wife Sherri woke up with contractions two minutes apart. I texted my second shooter, Jessica, and told her that the labour was starting (the implication being that she may have to cover most of the wedding with someone else helping her, without me) and then called Sherri’s mum and asked her to come and be with Sherri. After that I left for the wedding, telling them to call or text me as soon as things started to really heat up and I’d drive in to be with Sherri, leaving my second to finish up.

Sherri went to the hospital and they told her that, yes, she was in labour, but she had a while to go yet. In the end, I shot the wedding for our contracted time and got to the hospital for the final three hours of labour. The couple were really understanding and even sped up their reception so we could get the important shots and then leave! They did their cake cutting, dances, and bouquet and garter tosses back to back. I certainly didn’t suggest this and Jessica would have easily covered this on her own, but they wanted to give me something in return for me being there for them that day.

When I got to the hospital I didn’t want to bring a camera. I wanted to be there as a father and husband and not as a photographer. Sherri and her mother pretty much told me to bring a camera though, so I grabbed a D700 and single non-zoom lens. I took a shot as soon as I arrived, to make sure I had the exposure and everything set. Then I left it on the side-table.

Sherri did really well. She did not have any drugs of any kind or really any medical interventions. Our main nurse was very nice and the obstetrician was great, too. The pushing part went from 11:15pm to 12:43am, when our baby girl was born. Sherri saw her and cried, “She’s so beautiful!” while I thought, “She’s kinda goopy and very similar-looking to other newborns”. I have since revised my assessment. I think the moment of birth, both visually and Sherri’s reaction, will be with me forever.

When she was born I was hovering over the N.I.C.U table as they examined her and Sherri called out, “Take photos!” So I scurried across the room for the camera. The images that I took were more from obligation than something that I took any thought about. I pointed and clicked. They’re not even cropped or properly edited. Funny how I feel more attachment to them than anything else I’ve ever photographed.

The N.C.I.U people said, “She’s so perfect it’s not even funny” and left her with us. We stayed there over night, since it was already very early Sunday morning, and we left in the afternoon. Here are a few photos. I’m holding some back to respect the privacy for the hospital staff in them.

This wedding was photographed on my behalf by my friend from Australia and wonderful photographer, James Day, while I was shooting another wedding. Check out his fantastic work at his website here. I edited the images, but since I didn’t photograph them you will notice a different style of photography this blog post.

Although I have met Amanda and Jeff I was not at their wedding, so I gave James a call and chatted to him about the wedding day. Here is Jeff and Amanda’s story, as told to me by James and then paraphrased by me for the blog:

“Amanda and Jeff were all about having fun and they were laughing and having a blast all day. I started the day with Jeff and the guys as they got ready at a friend’s place in Calgary. Jeff has actually been to NHL training and his groomsmen were all hockey buddies. (Amanda is also a pro beach volleyball player and recently she and her team won a big tournament in Vancouver). After watching the guys joke around and throw up (well, one of them, but we’ll keep those photos private for now ) I was off to join Amanda and the girls as they got ready at Amanda and Jeff’s place. Amanda was excited and dancing around to her R ‘n’ B music all morning. She’s also a fan of the America’s Next Top Model and every so often would strike a pose for the camera and really ham it up.

Their reception was wild! Once the dancing started up people were all over the dance floor and really getting into it. Jeff and Amanda had brought their dog to the reception and put him in another room, but from time to time he’d escape and run onto the dance floor. Throughout the night, Jeff was also defending his title as reigning beer-pong champ and I’m sure he kept his title. Thanks for having me at your wedding, guys. It was heaps of fun. ”

If anyone who was there has something to add, please put it in the comments area below! We can do the first ever community blog post.