the blog

“So, I love you because the entire universe conspired to help me find you..” – Paulo Coelho

Teri + Mick’s love story is one for the record books. They met each other in high school where they were both busy discovering themselves – who they wanted to be & where they wanted to go, to find their way to each other, and so they went their separate ways in life. 25 years later, fate intervened and reintroduced these two into each other’s lives. It’s been almost 5 years since they refound each other and formed a love & life together. I am so excited to capture their wedding this weekend with Harrison Lake as the backdrop for this beautiful couple.

Let’s be honest – planning a wedding is a lot of work! It takes a lot of time, effort and sometimes even a few tears but in the end you are creating a celebration of your love and that makes it all worth it.
That being said, before the wedding day arrives, there’s lots of tiny little details that can feel overwhelming – making sure the day is planned out ahead of time can help to alleviate unwanted stress and can also sometimes prevent hiccups from happening the day of! That’s why I’ve put together a few of my favourite wedding planning tips to help ease your stress and take the weight off your shoulders!

Have a Timeline!

• Having a clear scheduled timeline of events can help set your mind at ease on the day of & helps to keep your guests (and vendors) informed! Granted, having a set schedule doesn’t guarantee a day without hiccups but being prepared can help to prevent things before they even happen!
• Creating a detailed timeline for the wedding party and anyone else involved with an hour-to-hour outline of the wedding day events can help your guests to enjoy the day more without creating unwanted confusion on who needs to be where when!

Back-Up Plan!

• Weather can be unpredictable no matter where in the world you are, but especially here in beautiful British Columbia. We enjoy the milder winters but in turn get a little bit more rain than our easterly neighbours.
• If your wedding is entirely outdoors, a rainproof back-up plan is a must-have! It can also be a good idea to check with your photographer to see if they have a good plan for adjusting to rain when it comes to portraits. I always make sure to have extra umbrellas on hand on a wedding day but if you’re worried about it, having some extra clear or white umbrellas for yourself never hurts.
• Don’t forget though, having a back up plan in place doesn’t mean you need to fear the weather! Your wedding will be gorgeous – rain or shine

Emergency Kit & Touch Up Bag!

• Weddings are full day events and more often than not, somethings do go wrong. Having an emergency kit prepared with all the little essentials can always be a good idea. A tide-to-go pen, sewing kit, safety pins, tylenol, water bottles, etc can all come in handy on a wedding day. Depending on your make up artist, some will send you off with a bit of lip gloss for a later touch up!

I hope everyone’s having a great weekend outside enjoying the beautiful warmth and sunshine we’ve been having! Up on the blog this evening is Courtney! Courtney may look familiar to you as this is not her first time on my blog (check out her maternity session or most recent family session here!).

She contacted me a few weeks back to inquire about a Mini Session for herself.. she had a surprise she’d been keeping to those close to her… For the last few months, she has been diligently preparing to compete in this year’s Leigh Brandt Muscle Classic (her first year working towards this goal!) and she absolutely killed it!

It’s hard to believe that Courtney has had THREE kids – she has worked so hard and it has payed off – she looks incredible! (I have to say, this has served as much needed inspiration for myself to get back into being fit..)

Check out my favourites from her Mini Portrait session below and don’t forget to head over to my Facebook page and Like it to see more like this AND to be kept in the loop for giveaways, contests, & more!

Last year, I had the immense privilege of attending ShowIt‘s United Conference in Phoenix, Arizona.

Along with fellow photographer & friend, Emily of Em Rose Photography based in Brooks AB, we met in my home base of Chilliwack and made our way down across the border to Bellingham, Washington to catch our flight. As we sat down at our gate, we looked across the rows of seats to see none other than wedding photographer’s Matt & Carissa Kennedy who were also on their way to speak at the conference! It was great to have the chance to sit down with them before the busyness and excitement of the week really began.

Once in Arizona, we had to make a pit stop before going ANYWHERE at Chipotle’s (us Canadian’s are deprived – you’d be hard pressed to find a Chipotle’s north of the border and I love their burrito bowls!)  We arrived at the resort had a great time getting settled in. The next few days flew by and were filled with styled shoots, lots of hugs & excitement, maybe a little bit of wine ;), and forever memories!

I’m so happy to have found this great community and United was a blast – I can’t wait for United 2016!