Friday, April 23, 2010

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Thursday, April 22, 2010

Yvonne & Victor: Engagement session Downtown

On Sunday we hung out with two very very smart people: she's a lawyer, he's a doctor...good combo!! Not to mention they are the sweetest, nicest folk you ever did meet! We met Yvonne & Victor last summer at Ramona & Kevin's wedding and feel so happy to be capturing their day later in July. Can't wait guys ;)


We met up with them at their fantastic condo building. They live kitty corner to the Shangri-La downtown and their building has a lovely roof top deck and pool! And then we got a little jealous...they have a wicked view!

And Kat shot this wicked Pano when Dan wasn't looking..... I think I was changing a battery or something. Great shot babe!



It was SOOOO windy up here....like 45 floors up!!  Cool shot, but it was nice to get back inside and warm up in the elevator on the way down.


Finally it feels like summer so we decided to get a little wet... Just a little though, our cameras aren't waterproof...only water resistant! Still, after this one Kat had to dry her camera a little...




After this shot, Dan... and his camera were very very wet! Those out-of-focus blobs.... yeah that's water on the lens!  Lighting: courtesy of Kat on camera right :)


A posh couple posing for us.... oh yes, that's our couple in front of the Convention Center, looking so guuuud!




Some lovely candids by Kat.... shot wide open @ f/1.4 because we can.... and love to!




Absolutely stunning ring. Yvonne had to stay PERFECTLY still as Kat shot this one. Why??? Because it was ON Yvonne's lovely dress!


We had to share the Convention Center with another engaged couple, but that's all good. It's a popular place ;) Tee Hee, jumping by the giant rain drop!

We played with lighting... as always... but this time our powerful, and usually super reliable Norman was failing us... but not before we grabbed this last shot! Take that daylight! We overpower you :p...

Hey you two, thanks for being so awesome and putting up with out finicky light, it's already at the shop getting a make-over! So no worries!

See you in July, can't wait!!!

Dan, (and Kat)

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Kim & Shane: Adventures in the Wind at White Rock!

White Rock Engagement Session

She's short, he's tall.
She's Irish, he's Fijian
She listens to John Mayer, he prefers Rancid.

She is Kim,
He is Shane,
and they're SO FUN!!!!


These two are so very very different, but so so adorable together... Once again, we are graced with fun people to photograph who are up for anything... including ninja moves ;) We met up with Kim and Shane in White Rock for some fun picture making at the beach. We kept postponing this shoot because of weather, but fortunately and finally it held out for us this time around!


Some train track candid stuff to start off!


Then some lying down on the train tracks...


Kim had such cute shoes! Shane, a man's man with his hiking shoes...





Playing with the sun :)


Those ninja moves we were talkin' bout earlier!


Hi-YAH!  He actually DID kick her, though not hard.... we laughed, they laughed... hope there are no bruises! 


Under the pier for some close cuddly shots.  No more kicking ;)


Kat's lovely shallow Depth-of-Field thang... with one of her favorite f/1.4 lenses that I got her!


The tide was coming in a bit fast so we hurried and got these before our location was under water.





At this point EVERYONE around was watching us! We even ran into another couple and their photographer doing an engagement shoot too.


And yes Kat stole Kim's bling for some creative ring things with her macro lens.


Oh yes, and we went ON the pier too. Lots of people on this lovely Sunday afternoon, but we found a few gaps in the crowd to get some shots of Kim and Shane only.


This last one is certainly my favorite image of the day... cause it's ummm..... weird and fun!!!  (But it was Kat's idea!)  Kim's hair is so AWESOME! 

Thanks you guys for being so much fun and being willing to dangle upside-down for this shot as I tried to figure out his lighting and make you giggle and smile while blood was rushing to your head Kim and while your biceps were flexing madly Shane!!

See you guys in MAY!!!

D&K

Check out their SlideShow HERE!

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Stephanie & Michael: E-Session at G-Island!

Granville Island Engagement Session

Saturday we hung out with Stephanie and Michael at one of our favorite locations for engagement sessions...yepp Granville Island! And although we've been there a bunch of times, we thought we could create something new and fresh. We arrived early and scouted out our old favorites and then kept on searching to see what new corners, nooks and crannies we might uncover.

Stephanie and Michael were so awesome to get to know and work with. They are totally natural in front of the camera... even though they don't think so ;) They were also playful and up for just about ANYTHING... with a little encouragement or course... I mean she was in heels!

This is what we found and created! Enjoy...


Oh.... and PS. The above shot was taken with Barry Calhoun of HipWeddingPhotography's Canon Shift lens.... Yes Canon....GASP! There was a time when we almost changed sides, but our Nikon loyalties prevailed. Thanks Barry for giving us a hand on this one! ;)


A couple of candids...


And some not-so-candids... ;)


Yes we played on the kids playground... They're were no fewer than 20 or so 3-foot-somethings running around us as we shot!


The water park was thankfully not in use yet and we took full advantage of some of the unique spaces we found as a result of the "dry" water park.




Our favorite alley next to Emily Carr...


Here is a shot that Dan was envisioning and with the help of Barry lighting, we got this wicked look. How to make a metal wall look cool? CTB anyone?


Our favorite local crane, great angles and old steal + bright yellow paint = a couple of photographers in love with a really really BIG prop. Sephanie was reluctant to jump on this thing.... She braved it though and after showing them some images on our LCD they wanted to climb on more stuff.




So we went over to the bridge and climbed on some more stuff, oh yeah and took some more pictures! Tested out our new jeep in an under the bridge adventure. The Burrard Bridge is also one of those favorite locations so we dropped in and played around with some poses, lighting and super WIDE lenses!


Well yeah okay, long lenses too...


Cute, we know! So fun and playful!!




A little lighting to look like night.... Well kinda like night...for 3pm at least ;)


And everyone loves to get dizzy!

Thanks so much Stephanie & Michael. Dan had to laugh at the end of this one cause when we started shooting it was all business with the boys. They shook hands and said "good to see you again" in a very properly fashion, but by the end, Dan and Michael were all about the "Man Hugs"!!

We had such a blast guys, looking forward to more good times, fun photos and "Man Hugs," okay maybe not.... if it's too awkward now...JK!

Best,
DK

Check out their SlideShow HERE!

Monday, April 5, 2010

Sara & Steve: Edmonton Wedding!

Dan and I had the privilege to be part of Sara and Steve's March wedding in Edmonton, Alberta.  We arrived late on the Thursday night, scouted most of Friday, and then shot all day Saturday, and BOY was it AWESOME! 

We started in the morning at Sara's place.  She rents the top loft of an AMAZING heritage house, and we were allowed to use the entire house for creatives!  A photographer's paradise!  It was so overwhelming to be surrounded by such exquisite art and furniture and decor!  Our jaws literally DROPPED when we walked in the house.  HOLY COW!  We could have spent a WEEK there, but only had a few hours.  Regardless, we had lots of fun and it was a great experience! 



I took Sara's shoes and accessories and did creatives in the dining room.  I was literally running around to every room whispering to myself, "Oh my gosh....this is so overwhelming, there's not enough time!"

The front entrance of the mansion is so gorgeous.  The floor has a wonderful pattern and great morning light coming through the front door and windows.  Beautiful dress Sara!


Every room had an amazing chandelier, which serves has a perfect and elegant way to hang a wedding dress.  Sara wanted to get ready in this bathroom specifically, because it is like, SO gorgeous!  I asked if we could do just one shot I had in mind before she put on her dress....and thanks Sara for being up for it!  I shot through the door into the bathroom, with Sara in the bath tub.  It was cute when all of Sara's bridesmaids were behind me peeking through whistling and cheering!


Sara and her mom getting ready, and it was great to be part of this moment.  Sara wore her mom's veil from her parent's wedding.  So touching! 




Over at Steve's downtown loft, Dan hung out with Steve and the boys after dropping me off at Sara's.  You don't see a deer wearing an baseball cap everyday!


Dan got some sweet shots of Steve getting ready, my fav is the one above on the right :)


Steve's a fireman in Edmonton, and so there are tons of firemen trinkets around his loft.
 

After the boys got ready, then drove over to Sara's place to do some creatives, because GOSH this house is amazing.  But before that, Sara and Steve still wanted to have that moment of seeing each other for the first time, as they decided to do lots of creatives before the ceremony.  It was a great moment when Steve was standing at the doorway as Sara came down the lovely staircase and they met.  It was so romantic!




By now it's obvious that the front entrance is a beautiful location and a favorite of ours as we used this area for many shots!  Great posing and lighting by Dan, this shot of Sara is so pretty!


Sara and her classy ladies, everyone looks so elegant!


It's always fun to see what Dan shoots throughout the day, as I usually don't see them till the blog post.  No doubt he and the guys had a kickin' time around the mansion.  They definitely had a fun!  Look on...!


I'm not sure WHO found swords in the mansion, but someone did!  And what do you get when you mix groomsmen with swords, and Dan with a camera?  Voila!   (No groomsmen...or photographers were harmed during creation of these images ;)
 

Sigh....so happy and wedding-like....haha! Boys will be boys!




Dan discovered this really cool technique and decided to try it out at Sara and Steve's wedding.  Basically, he thew his camera up in the air with a fisheye lens on the camera and this is what we got!  Let us know what you think!


We just had to shoot in this cool sitting room, sweet windows, sweet floor, and again, sweet chandelier!  Everyone in the wedding party was so great and fun, we had an wicked time with everyone!


Just a few last shots of Sara and Steve before we left the house.  This was a special request from Sara, to get some shots of her and Steve incorporating the beautiful floors somehow.  I just love the image above on the right that Dan took!


Dan loves this image above that I quickly snapped...
Steve had given us this location to check out the day before the wedding:  Caffe Sorrentino.  He had made a call days before to clear with the manager for all of us to head over and take some photos.  Such a great idea!  The staff was super nice and the place is so cute and trendy!  Really good chai lattes too :)




I have to say that these two are so much fun.  They have so much personality and character, it was so easy to capture their essence.  They are such a sweet couple and Dan and I had a rockin' time with them. 




On to the ceremony at the Lendrum Mennonite Brethren Church.  The officiant is Steve's brother-in-law, and his sermon was hilarious and he got lots of people laughing.








Best exit ever!


As Steve is a fireman, it's of course so fitting to drop by one of the fire stations in Edmonton.  Dan and I dropped in the day before as well, and the guys there were so kind. They washed the trucks and tidied up, just for us!


Jumping shots always a fav!


As we were about to get Sara in the driver's seat in one of the trucks, Steve's trained ears picked up on a beeping sound coming from the truck that the rest of us hadn't noticed.  An alert!  Of course!  Just as we were getting really creative with the trucks, there was an emergency call! So unfortunately, the firemen had to leave right away with their trucks, but duty called! 


See ya!  Good luck!


The firemen at this hall were kind enough to still let us use the inside of the hall...


Sexy!!


This is my favorite shot of the day, because it just shows how comedic and fun Sara and Steve are!
 

And yes....an epic shot of course!


Sara was craving some slurpees, so we make a pit stop at a Mac's before heading to our next location.  It was a beautiful sunny day, and it was even a little warm!  So slurpees were totally justifiable.


Our next location was at the staircase to a parkade right across from the University of Alberta.  Fortunately our bride and groom were willing to hike up to the sixth level!!  The light here was SO amazing!  Good thing we had those slurpees 'cuz it was hot in this staircase!






After the staircase, we headed out to the roof top!






Yes....Dan was dangling off the side of here to get the shot.  God forbid he dropped his new lens!! JK ;) I think we should invest in a harness for Dan...



The U of A has this really cool yellow building called the Butter Dome (if I remember correctly).  Thanks again Sara and Steve for willing to get up on this high ledge!  Man, we ask our couples to be daredevils sometimes! 




Steve must have connections all around the city.  He pulled some strings to we could get into Fort Edmonton for some photos for FREE!!  Such cute buildings!


Sara pulled out this cute cute cute blue antique umbrella that totally matched the theme of Fort Edmonton, and Steve had a wicked cane.


Reflections!




Umbrella and cane!


Our last building at Fort Edmonton was the little white church, great shot Dan!


Of course there were little firemen trinkets around the reception hall at the Edmonton Country Club


Steve's nieces and nephew were so adorable, and loved the camera!


We almost forgot we were in Edmonton, until the Oilers jerseys came out.  Sara's parents were celebrating their patriotism to the Edmonton Oilers, and pointing out to everyone that Steve (a very talented and gifted hockey player) is a hockey star!  There was one guest who is a Canucks fan, and they totally picked on him and made him put an Oilers jersey on!!  I went up to him later and jokingly said us photographers had his back haha!
 



Tower of cupcakes!


An on to the dance floor for the first dance, and the father-daughter dance...





Dan and I truly feel so blessed to have been part of Sara and Steve's wedding.  It was so great to get to know them better, and to see that these two are hard-core Christians and value a God-centered relationship.  It was a really inspiring to see such faithful people, and it honestly inspired Dan and me to be more Christ-like.  Sara and Steve are such kind people, and most of all FUN!

Thank you to everyone we met at the wedding, everyone was so kind to us!  And it was awesome to see Ashley and Cory again :)

And thank you Sara and Steve for such a memorable day, it was a delight to have been there!

Check out there slideshow HERE!

Check out there PhotoBooth HERE!

God bless,

K&D