Unique Images Photography | Weddings | Portraits | Fashion » Wedding, Portrait, and Fashion Photography Blog

Congrats to Mike and Sarah! From the time I arrived and saw the note to Mike on Sarah’s door I knew that this wedding was going to be full of their personalities, and as you look through the photos below you’ll see lots of images of them laughing or tearing up. As you’ll see, Sarah had trouble keeping a straight face most of the time; if she wasn’t smiling she was laughing. Oh, and I loved the vibrant colour of her room, too! There were a few minor getting-ready emergencies involving wet bridesmaid sashes and having to repair the wedding dress, but we soon headed off to the Galt Museum for a moving wedding ceremony.

After their ceremony we did most of the portrait around the coulees near to the Galt and at the river bottom. Sarah and Mike were great to hang out with—really easy-going and obviously very happy to just be with each other.

At their wedding reception at the Grandstand, there were more touching moments as the speeches started, as well as some really funny lines from Mike’s brothers. And Mike and Sarah cut their wedding cake with a real sword! It’s an heirloom sabre that has been in Mike’s family and is rumoured to be haunted. As soon as I knew it would be there I had to get a photo of it. Sarah had also organised a cake for Mike, decorated with the Transformers logo. That was cool.

We finished our day with some more portraits taken downstairs below the Grandstand. I like the bright colours of the walls. I think the bright colours suit Mike and Sarah’s personalities.

When Elizabeth called to set up the time for their engagement session, she told me about their love of gardening and immediately had an idea that included something gardening-related. The three of us also share an off-beat sense of humour, so that crept into the photo as well. We actually ended up doing the photo—the first one below—in Jamie’s parent’s backyard, because it is so beautiful and verdant.

This was a very relaxing and enjoyable engagement session. We basically went for a walk along the river bottom in Lethbridge and whenever I saw something that looked like it would make for a good place for photos we stopped and hung around there for a while and then ambled off somewhere else. It was pretty loose and ad-libbed. And the light was so nice, too!

Here are some of my favourite images from their session. I look forward to photographing their wedding, which is very, very soon! Oh, and don’t worry Jamie, I’d never, ever mention that mysterious wet patch on your pants.

Grace is a local model and a really fun person to have on a shoot.  Take a look at the photos and you’ll see what I mean!    I did this shoot with Jessica, whom I will be introducing on this blog very soon.  Grace was awesome to work with!  She was really naturally talented and hard-working, too.  I love how she was able to add her own flair to create something that really suited the clothes and environment.  It was more like she took on the role of a character and acted it out than just simply posed.  Very cool.  Check out the crazy clothing she wore when we hit the alley downtown!  It was so funny; she turned so many heads when we were setting up and shooting that scene.    One car actually drove past us, then stopped and reversed so the people in it could stare at her.  Lol!  That’s the first time I’ve had that on a shoot.  Hmm.  Perhaps if I dressed like that I’d get it more often.  What do you think—should I borrow that outfit for my next wedding? 

Allan and Wendi, the Global TV Wedding Wish winning couple, were a very cool couple to work with.  Of course, I would expect nothing less from them after knowing their antics in trying to win the Wedding Wish contest. You can read more about them and their masked adventures on their Facebook page.

Allan and Wendi saw one another before their ceremony and I set up a romantic meeting for them.  Then we did most of the rest of their portrait images before the ceremony around town, including inside Henotic restaurant, which has become my favourite place for indoor photography in Lethbridge. The decor and ambiance is probably the best in Lethbridge. The owners are friendly and accommodating, too.  I was first there for photos during Heidi and Clark’s wedding last January and I’ve been back a few times since then.

Allan and Wendi’s wedding was on the grass at the top of the coulees just behind the Galt Museum here in Lethbridge on a nice sunny day without too much wind—for Lethbridge, anyway.  Allan and Wendi both wrote their own vows and you could tell immediately how much love they had for one another. Their words were so touching and meaningful. I have a photo of Wendi wiping away tears during Allan’s vows. This was the most well-videoed wedding we’ve been to, with a big news camera from Global TV as well as two, only slightly smaller, cameras wielded by George Gallant, a instructor who teaches video production at Lethbridge College, and his son. These guys all knew what they were doing and we had no problem with them getting in our way or anything like that. I’m hoping to get some footage from George to put up later as well to show you how I shoot at weddings. Stay tuned for that, too.

The reception entertainment for the evening was provided by J.R. Matthew, Entertainer Extraordinaire. His show was fantastic! If you’re ever looking for someone who can keep things alive at your reception, he would be on the top of my list. With his wife Lyn working the sound for the evening they did a very fun game show that had everyone madly competing in crazy events to win points. I will be posting some of those images in the slide show, so make sure you check back at the end of the week to see some hilarious photos of the wedding party guys in drag, and more.

The first dance started out normally and then there was a brief moment where it looked as though Lyn and JR had messed up the music, but it was all a prearranged stunt and Allan, Wendi, and Allan’s brother and his wife all launched into the Evolution of Dance routine. This was something that was going around YouTube a little while back, but it’s the first wedding we’ve been to where anyone has done it. They did it really well!

Here is a slideshow of some of their images. 

Vanessa came to us for some headshots for her drama and acting portfolio.  As well as the headshots we also got a bunch of other portraits as well and those are the images I’ll post here.

We started out at the new Henotic restaurant in the old fire hall, which is a really cool place for photos.  The decore and ambiance is awesome.  Actually, a few weeks ago we took a wedding party in there for some really funky images and I’ll be blogging those very soon, too.  Our next stop was the Lethbridge Lodge and then we finished up at the top of the Coulees behind the Galt museum just as the un was starting to set (which was my plan).

As well as acting and teaching, Vanessa also does martial arts and she did some awesome kicks and splits, which you can see below.  Vanessa has such a vibrant and fun personality and she was such an easy person to work with.  We wish her all the best with her career and hope to see her on stage or on screen one day. 

Congratulations to Panos and Donell! They were married here in Lethbridge at the Ukrainian Orthodox church and Sherri and I were honoured to be their photographers for the day.

Panos, whose name is apparently pronounced to sound similar to Bono—though I think I kept messing it up on the day—and Donell are a great couple who were so easy to work with. They were relaxed and fun and generous. We started out at Reflections hair salon near the old fire hall, which is currently my favourite hair salon to take photos in. It has big windows that let in lots of bright sunlight, which is more flattering than artificial lighting, and the booths where you get your hair done are fairly close together. You always capture more fun moments when the bride and bridesmaids can talk with each other without yelling across the room. There’s a tip if you’re taking notes.

Then I left Sherri with the girls and headed out to take photos of Panos and the groomsmen. As soon as I arrived Panos offered me something to drink and gave me a set of cufflinks. It felt more like I’d popped over for lunch than was working. I surprised the guys by choosing to take their photos in the basement—”Oh, you won’t want to take photos down there”, they said—ha! And then I headed off for more photos of the girls. Donell was going over her vows and laughing with her bridesmaids, which makes it easy to get fun shots!

I’ll say one thing about traditional Greek Orthodox ceremonies: they give you plenty of time to get a bunch of different and interesting images! I actually enjoyed it, even though it was a long ceremony. It was really hot that day, but I like the heat, too.

The reception was catered by Luigis on the north side and the food was excellent. The dessert was the best I have ever had at a wedding so far. I never usually eat sweet stuff and I ate the whole thing. The DJ was Shad, from Sound Barrier Entertainment, and he did a great job of keeping the music and lighting rolling. I gave him a bunch of photos from the wedding day and he was able to project them onto a screen right then and there. The night finished for us with everyone doing Greek dancing, which is super fun to take photos of!

I’ve posted some photos and also a short slideshow at the top. Click on the play button and give it some time to load—it’s short but big.