toronto wedding photographers Archives

Backyard Toronto Micro Wedding | Nicole & Sean

Nicole and Sean got engaged back in 2018 in Hawaii and were excited for their July 31, 2020 wedding. It was supposed to be a big bash with all their family and friends. But then the world changed – both travel and large gatherings were banned because of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

“We initially had a large wedding planned with approximately 210 guests”, Nicole says. “Fast forward to 2020 and our plans were clearly changing day to day. Ultimately, we decided that after ten years of being together, we just wanted to get married and start our lives together! So long as our parents, siblings and my grandma (who is 93!) could attend, we wanted to move forward safely. When we hit phase two in Ontario at the end of June, we got our marriage license, confirmed with the church that we could still move forward on our day and then it was planning full steam ahead.”

As the virus was unpredictable and the case numbers kept changing, they were unsure what would be allowed when their day (they decided to keep their original date) finally came around.

“Every single day we nervously awaited the changes and updates to regulations on the news,” she says. “Finally, we hit phase three of reopening on our wedding day and we were able to have our ceremony at the church surrounded by 110 of our loved ones (masked of course!). Following our ceremony, we had the most perfect backyard setup for our intimate dinner of 15 and we couldn’t be more grateful for all of it.”

I can only imagine how that must have felt – both the sadness about the possibility of needing to drastically reduce guest count and then the relief and joy at being able to have over 100 people witness their ceremony!

They still decided to have an intimate backyard celebration with their ‘Covid bubble’ – parents, grandmother, siblings and their partners & kids. They enlisted the help of a planner to make it magazine-worthy beautiful. I was in awe when I stepped out into the backyard and saw it!

“We just wanted beautiful, bright warm colours with the glow of candles for a fun summer evening. Our flowers were one of my favourite elements and we worked closely with Amna of Lemon Truffle Designs to bring our vision to life. When Sean and I saw the backyard reception reveal we were so in love—it felt so special and magical.”

They had a delicious dinner with some of their faves from Agora: “It was like our favourite tasting menu brought to life!”

And despite it being a micro wedding, they still had a grand entrance, cake cutting, first dance, parent dances and speeches.

Even though it wasn’t the wedding day they initially planned for, it was truly an unforgettable special day. “Being able to share our speeches in such an intimate setting for 15 was beautiful,” Nicole says. “I asked my grandma before she left our reception dinner if she was tired after such a long day and she answered by saying ‘I wouldn’t have missed it.’ Having these memories and being able to capture these photos, including my first hug with my grandma since March, will always be truly special for us.”

Nicole and Sean, I know this must’ve been truly difficult to go through, but you made it and love prevailed. It has been such an honour to know you and to help document your beautiful love story!

Vendors
Bridal Gown: Amanda-Lina’s
Cake: The Rolling Pin
Catering: Agora
Groom’s Tux: Tolo Clothier
Favours: Craig’s Cookies
Hair & Makeup: Karima Sumar
Flowers & Décor: Amna Rather, Lemon Truffle Designs
Tableware: Table Tales
Chairs & Linens: Chair-Man Mills
Photography: Olive Photography

4 EASY QUESTIONS TO HELP YOU CHOOSE A WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER

Planning a wedding can be overwhelming. I’ve been there, and I totally know how crazy it can feel. There are SO many things to take care of, and so many options for each item on that To-Do list.

With that said, there are some simple things you can think about to help you determine if a photographer you are considering is right for you.

ASK YOURSELF THESE 4 EASY QUESTIONS:

1. DO YOU REALLY LIKE THE PHOTOGRAPHER’S WORK?

This is a no brainer – Make sure you actually enjoy the photographer’s photos!

2. DO YOU GET A GOOD VIBE FROM THEM?

This refers to all forms of communication – email, meeting in person, phone calls… Do you feel like this photographer cares about you & your special day? Do you feel comfortable asking them questions? That they listen and treat you with kindness?

It’s great if a photographer’s portfolio is lovely, but make sure you also like them as a person. You’ll be spending lots of time with your photographer so you want to make sure they are approachable and that you feel good around them. (This will help you look relaxed in photos too! And it just makes the whole experience so much more enjoyable.)

3. HAVE YOU SEEN FULL WEDDINGS THEY HAVE SHOT?

I strongly urge you not to book a photographer based solely on their website portfolio. This is their ‘best of the best’, which is often (though not always) heavily reliant on the professional designing and modelling in styled shoots.

Some photographers post more photos of real weddings on their blogs which is super awesome, but even then, make sure that they are willing to show you some examples of full real weddings so you can gain a more realistic sense of how they shoot a whole wedding day.

Pay attention to whether they capture natural emotions and moments, how they handle different lighting, whether they also photograph the little details couples work so hard to plan if that’s important to you, and whether you like their editing style.

It’s great when you connect with a photographer’s website portfolio, just make sure you also really enjoy the way they capture an entire wedding day since that’s a more accurate representation of what you will receive for your own wedding.

4. CAN YOU AFFORD THEM? OR, CAN YOU RE-JIG ANYTHING ELSE TO AFFORD THEM?

Wedding expenses can add up, but ask yourself what you consider to be the most important aspects of your wedding. Those are where you should feel ok to spend most of your budget.

After the day is done, and years pass, your photographs will be the only tangible thing left to revisit your wedding day.

So here’s something to consider: If you *really* like a photographer but they’re out of your budget, is there anything else in the budget you’d feel comfortable re-jigging to make this work?

This doesn’t just apply to photography – go back to that question of what’s most important to you. Down the road, 5, 10, 25 + years from now, will you be happy with the decisions you made?

It’s easy to get lost in price shopping versus whether you really connect with the work.
Take a step back, take a deep, calming breath, and remember that it’s so important that you actually like what you see.

RE-CAP!

Book with a photographer whose work you really enjoy.
Make sure you actually get along with the photographer – that they are approachable, and that you feel comfortable with them.
Look through their full *real* weddings, not just highly curated website portfolios.
Determine what’s most important to you for your wedding. If photography is one of them, consider re-jigging other items in your budget to afford a photographer you really love. After all, you’ll be looking at those photos for the rest of your life.

How to Choose a Wedding Photographer - Olive Photography Toronto

I hope this mini-guide has been helpful to you! I’m all about going after what makes you happy – if you get the good feels from something, go for that!

If you get the good feels looking at my work, I’d love to hear from you!

Whether that’s to talk about your own wedding or just to say hello. I always love receiving friendly messages and would love to chat with you.

You can reach me here!

Big hugs,
Anastasia/Olive Photography