Hey, I'm Meg, welcome to my little corner of the cybersphere!
I'm a Fraser Valley wedding & lifestyle photographer (est. 2014) based in Langley, just west of Vancouver BC.
Take a look around & I'd love to connect with you soon!
the blog
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I’m so glad you’ve found your way here to read more about this elegant Downtown Vancouver Chinese Wedding. I absolutely loved getting to be a part of this beautiful couple’s downtown Vancouver wedding. From the morning’s tea ceremony to the outdoor beautifully sun-drenched ceremony – it could not have been a more gorgeous summer’s day. Adventuring around False Creek & Olympic Village with the bridal party may have been my favourite part of the day!
The Couple
Brian & Linda were so accommodating. I had a great time being a part of the team documenting their day. These two were naturals in front of the camera. We couldn’t have asked for a more beautiful warm day for them! My favourite part of the day was getting to learn more about the traditional tea ceremony that occurred in the morning.
The Wedding Day: Chinese Wedding Traditions
From the offerings of food, door games, to serving tea to elders & family – it was such a privilege to be invited into these moments! It was an honour to be able to watch them pay respect to their family through the festivities in the morning. I loved observing the tea ceremony and seeing the offerings of food that were brought by family. Extended family members that counted over 100 crammed into the house to pass on their blessings. The ladies of the family huddled in the kitchen to prepare food including a roasted pig. All this before the wedding ceremony even took place.
Once their ceremony in Burnaby was finished we headed to Olympic Village Park at False Creek to capture portraits. We had time to capture Brian & Linda with their bridal party on the bridge at False Creek. I love the shot of the bridal party overlooking Science World and the beautiful Vancouver cityscape & skyline. Afterwards we stole the newlyweds away for their Bridal Portraits. These two have high-class, elegance and passion written all over them. They are naturals in front of the camera and it was so lovely to capture these for them.
Downtown Vancouver Chinese Wedding Gallery
Here are a few of my curated favourites from their Downtown Vancouver Chinese Wedding…
Door Games & Tea Ceremony
Wedding Ceremony
Portraits
photographer for the authentic & adventurous
Booking for 2018 & 2019 Weddings
All photos here by Meg Kristina Photography
Wedding Second Shot for Beautiful Life Studios
Portrait sessions are special. Photographing families always provides many moments of love, joy, laughter & more. But, every so often, you meet a family that has this unique sparkle to them. Some sessions are just different. Good different. This one was just that. I was honoured to capture this surrogate maternity session for a local Langley family.
I already knew it was going to be a unique shoot. Capturing moments like pregnancy during a maternity session is always a privilege, but this one was so much more than that. You see, the beautiful O family’s journey to get to this point has not always been easy. It has been filled with joy, yes, but also with pain and loss no parent should have to experience.
Through the ups & downs, these two have come together to seek comfort & strength from the other. Their desire was still to grow their family – to bring a blessed little baby into a family that wanted nothing more than to love it unconditionally. They say it takes a village to raise a child, and in this case it took loving families & a village to bring this baby into the world and that is just SO beautiful. I think there is such celebration to be had here for women coming together to support other women in their journey, whether it be motherhood, entrepreneurship, etc. If you are an expecting mother with a surrogate, PLEASE don’t let that stop you from having a maternity session!! This is something so precious and something you can still have in celebration of your baby & you – a gorgeous mama-to-be!! Sessions like this are exactly why I do what I do.
And so, here we were to capture this next chapter in their journey. This beautiful baby, not yet born, was already so loved. There was something special in the air that day. There was a powerful calming presence in the air that felt comforting, wrapping around you like sunlight and pulling you into it’s warm embrace. It felt as if it was dancing with happiness around this little family. It was incredibly moving to be a part of capturing this exciting moment for these guys.
It was a privilege to meet you and photograph this family surrogate maternity session for you! I am so overjoyed for you all and hope to meet your sweet baby girl soon!!
*update as of April 6, 2018… Welcome to the world Baby Evangeline!
All Photos by Meg Kristina Photography.
Booking Now for All 2018 & 2019 Portraits, Weddings, & Events
photographer for the authentic & adventurous
We are surrounded in our day to day life by technology. We work with it, we connect with it – it’s a part of every aspect our life.
As a part of that, almost everyone has a decent digital camera, whether it’s a digital SLR, point & shoot, or a camera phone – everyone is always looking for the next post for Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, etc.
I recommend couples consider unplugged ceremonies. It can be easy to ask your MC to advise your guests to please put away their smartphones, iPads & cameras and enjoy the moment + ceremony. You hired a professional photographer to take photographs of the ceremony and will be sharing their photos with everyone.
But WHY do I recommend you go Unplugged??
It’s easy!! Guests can be unaware when they’re taking a photograph during the ceremony. They’ve been known to block the middle of the aisles, lift cameras up above their head blocking shots, or have bright flashes going off mid-ceremony – eek!
I’ve attended many-a-wedding where guests got up mid-ceremony and walked right up to the alter blocking everyone’s view with their iPad during vows! This can not only take away from the moment of your day but they can also become caught in otherwise important moments, blocking the photographer & camera lens. As a wedding photographer, it’s sad to see so many weddings where the guests are up wandering around trying to get the “best angle” instead of listening to the words you two say to one another.
These are all things that at the end of the day can also affect the outcome of your photographs as it not only can make a photographer’s job harder to do when “Uncle Bob” is in front of us taking photos but limits the amount of usable photographs you walk away with.
Not only that, but when your guests are worried about getting their perfect shot, they forget to pay attention to the real reason they are there – to witness your love! This day is about celebrating the commitment you two are making to each other and we want your guests to enjoy & embrace this moment along with you as much as possible!
Still not sure? I totally get it! Here’s a few words from a 2017 Groom about how they felt about going unplugged – post wedding:
“A few people were sort of perturbed they had to return their several-thousand-dollar cameras to their vehicles. These guests were much happier in the end after realizing that they too had been candidly photographed mid-ceremony.
I pointed out that these inpromptu photos of themselves turned out much better when they werent manipulating bulky or flashy devices with furrowed brows trying to get the focus right or whatever.
It also meant they could really take it all in and express their emotion, making their photos much more organic and natural.
As you scroll through our gallery, you find stunning images of guests crying, laughing, whispering and really enjoying the ceremony rather than just watching it through a screen.” – Diego & Kerstina Kane
I love it! Without taking the risk and requesting their guests put down their devices, they wouldn’t have these cherished memories of their guests taking in the moment. So tell Uncle Bob to put down the camera, your photographer has your back. 😉
All Photos here by Meg Kristina Photography.
Booking Now for Select 2018 & ALL 2019 Portraits, Weddings, & Events
photographer for the authentic & adventurous
It was the weekend before Valentine’s Day and Taylor & Chelsie had made their way up from Central Washington to downtown Vancouver, the heart of BC’s west coast, for a quick romantic getaway. The sun was out but so was the wind and so, as these two walked along the seawall encompassing downtown, they stopped in at a little coffee shop to warm up before continuing on their way.
The Proposal
Once they arrived at the beach, the cold breeze off the ocean picked up and Chelsie teetered on the edge of the beach, trying to hide, sheltered from the wind amongst the trees. She couldn’t understand why Taylor was so insistent on venturing just a little bit further down the beach. Soon they stopped their stroll, overlooking the ocean – a perfect photo op… Taylor bent down to her bag to grab the camera as Chelsie waited ready for the shutter to snap on the camera. Instead, Taylor emerged from the bag with not a camera snapping memories but a little black box, snapping open, creating its own unique forever memory. Taylor fell to one knee, the box slowly opening, & Chelsie’s face broke into the biggest smile as Taylor’s burst into excited laughter. This was not going to be a getaway they would soon forget.
Reflection
I had the time of my life capturing this proposal for these two lovebirds. Taylor & Chelsie met years ago in a bar where Chelsie was working in Washington. Taylor was there with friends and from the instant, Chelsie saw her, she could not look away. No matter what she did, she couldn’t shake the thought of this gorgeous blonde from her mind. The rest is history as they say & it was such a pleasure helping to document these two taking the next step forward in their relationship. A big congratulations again Taylor & Chelsie!!
Here are a few of my curated favourites from their Kitsilano Beach engagement.
Kitsilano Beach Proposal Gallery
All Photos here by Meg Kristina Photography.
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Booking Now for Select 2018 & ALL 2019 Portraits, Weddings, & Events
photographer for the authentic & adventurous
Check out another recent waterside proposal at Rocky Point Pier
