I remember driving up to this farm in Maple Ridge and seeing sheep. Being a "city-slicker" this excited me greatly. I don't see sheep very often. Maybe a cat?
There's not much I can really say in words about this wedding that my photos won't mention but perhaps I can give you a brief outline: I met Kevin and his groomsmen and photographed them getting ready in a little house on this farm in Maple Ridge. Jody Nay and I photographed the first look of Kevin seeing Lindsay as his bride-to-be and it was an amazing moment followed by champagne and walking out into the farm field.
As my first post for 2017... I'll post something from 2016. It's been really busy here at Jonathan Desmond Photography but as I've been catching up and looking at some of the photographs taken over the course of the last 365 days, I'm seeing some great stories pop up that I'd love to share with you. Here's one of them!
All photographs taken while seconding Assignment with Todd Duncan Weddings.
The final day of the wedding consisted of a reception at Swaniset Bay Resort and Country Club, located deep within Pitt Meadows. It was great being able to document all the people and friends and family interacting with one another. Also, there was a Lamborghini.
…A prior conversation with Elizabeth gave me the story of Tallie. While initially a dog person, Elizabeth fell in love with Tallie and soon became a cat person (cats tend to do that to us... hehe). I can't recall the reason why Tallie was in the shelter but that's where Elizabeth found her. Tallie was a mother of some kittens at the shelter but as the kittens were soon adopted off, Tallie was left all alone. Elizabeth wanted to adopt a cat that would have a tough time finding a home and found Tallie at the shelter, who approached Elizabeth and they instantly bonded. I found Tallie to be a shy cat but after a few moments of walking in and around the place, Tallie got used to the commotion in her home that was me and my various clattering cameras.
…Photographing in the Blarney Stone presents some crazy lighting challenges. I have in some cases opted for flash (mainly if people want the occasional portrait group shot) but 99% of the time I’m using the existing lighting that is there… and there HAS to be lighting or else… well, how are you going to see the band? Haha. I’ve opted for very fast lenses and shooting at much higher ISO’s (like 1600 or 3200 sometimes), but I’ve found that the best technique is waiting for the rotating strobe lights to illuminate the person at the right time. My style of documentary photographer isn’t simply just blasting away frames with no consideration. I concentrate, wait for the composition, observe, breathe, move to a different angle if I’m getting nothing, feel the flow of the music, observe the rhythm of the strobe lights (they tend to operate in set sequences) and wait for it all to light up and then… click, click click! …..
…Regardless of whether it’s a model, a family, a bride and groom and their friends, a little cat or the people of Chinatown, I shoot documentary photography. It’s my passion and forms a major part of my vision and how I see things. Even on a styled shoot such as this one with lots of posing and a professional model, there’s a lot of storytelling behind the scenes that I desired to convey…So my role was that of telling the story that was going on behind the entire project….
As a documentary photographer who photographs many weddings, I’ve had the opportunity to observe people through the emotional tides that arises from a wedding day and it’s such a privilege to be able to be with brides and grooms in this amazing time of their lives. From anticipation to the sense of relief of having completed the ceremony (without tripping or losing the ring!) to the sense of celebration and exuberance at the celebration in the end, a wedding day is full of moments that are easy to miss in the hustle and bustle of things but are there. I’ve always focused on getting those genuine moment and telling stories through them.
That morning, as I woke up, I noticed that the sun was out. This was amazing. It was November. In Canada... on the Pacific West Coast. Just days prior, when I went to check the wedding site, it was pouring rain. That weather was expected. The sun was not. But there it was, gleaming and shining in all it's glory!
However, it was really cold. Frost was still in the air and as I made my way down to Hazelmere Golf Course, where the wedding was taking place, I could see steam clouds rising from the ground as the sun melted the cold morning dew despite the chill temperatures. Regardless, the sun was great to have that day and made for a great day to an already beautiful wedding for Keith and Jeanine.
I was in the market for a camera as I was looking to make use of the digital Mastin Lab film presets to bring my digital images closer to the way I wanted them to look (like film) and I was also considering a digital full frame that could shoot in demanding circumstances. The type of work I had been doing and the type of demands asked of me made me consider a camera upgrade. Don’t get me wrong, I still love the Leica and my Pentax 645 and Pentax digital cameras but there was a gap that needed to be filled in my line-up. In all honesty, I could probably use any camera to take a photograph but in practice I have found that some tools are much better than others when it comes to certain assignments.
It was the wonder in their eyes and the semi-astonished looks in their faces. We laid out the prints on a large desk and couldn't fit them all despite it being a large desk. There were many 4x6 prints and Stephen and Danielle (as well as my wife and I) were looking over them. Presenting the images in this way really created a new and old experience for us all. It was real. It was tangible. It was the true life of a photograph: Print.
