Let's Talk Bouquet

In our humble opinions, flowers are one of the Most Important Details of your big day. They add a layer of classiness and lots of colour pops. 

(We have a couple of favourite florists if you ever need a recommendation; just ask.)

We loooooove these arrangements, which Meagan made herself. (Are you kidding me?!)

We love working with other talented wedding vendors; but these "homemade" bouquets are some of the best we've seen!

And then Nathan picked this wildflower bouquet for Sarah on the morning of their wedding. 

We loved Sarah and Nathan's sweet Colorado wedding. One of our favourite parts about our job is that we get to travel to faraway places and document love. Lucky us!

So whether you are making your bouquet out of your flower pin collection or hiring out your favourite florist, know that these beauties are going to go miles towards making your wedding photos shine.

Can't wait to see your flowers of choice.

xo.

Bridal Boudoir

It's the perfect way to make his jaw drop. Message me (Laynie) to set up your session or to see more samples of my classy, sassy boudoir style.

xo.

What to Worry About on Your Wedding Day.

Even after months of planning, the list of things that could "go wrong" is daunting to think about. No matter how organized you are, it doesn't feel good to think about the unknown "what ifs"...

so we say just don't.

And from a photography/videography standpoint, we'll share how we roll so you can sleep easy tonight.

What if

there is tons of traffic:

We are crazy ridiculous about leaving early. The further away your wedding is, the more (extra) time we allow. We are committed to being on time.

one of our cameras break:

Whether we are shooting alone or together, we both shoot with two cameras just in case. We also have multiple lenses at our disposal. 

We also carry extra batteries for both our cameras and our flashes.

it rains on my wedding day:

I hope it doesn't (though rainy days are my favourite in general).

But if it does, then we'll deal with it. 

I've stood out in the rain before to take photos of families standing inside. We've recently bought some beautiful, clear umbrellas for just  such a scenario. And more than that, it rarely rains the entire day. In our experience, even on the rainiest of days, we've found small pockets of time to take photos outside-as long as you're up for an adventure and willing to get a teensy bit damp, then so are we!

These are all photos from rainy wedding days:

Your day is going to be perfect-tiny mishaps make for wonderful stories later. So just sit back, relax and enjoy the show. At the end of the day, you'll be married no matter what. We can't wait!

xo.

And on this rainy, rainy day, it even got sunny at the end.

As the premier photographers in Guelph, Kitchener, Toronto and Niagara, we love capturing the moments from your wedding day. We also travel internationally and all over Ontario with our work. This stunning moment is from a wedding we documented in Thunder Bay. 

The Case for a #

So many mothers feel your wedding is about them-their status, the wedding they didn't get to have, the friends they want to invite, their chance to show you off...well, you know. The list goes on.

Their list of advice and requests can be as long as Rapunzel's hair and they often don't take "No" for an answer. Their tidbits come in early morning phone calls and late-night texts. They make passive aggressive comments at your bridal shower and answer for you when you're asked a question.

I mean, I love your mom; you love your mom. But let's be real: we all know this can vacillate between being Highly Amusing for the stories it creates and utter frustration.

But this subject my pets, is a story for another blog. 

Because the one thing your mom will neglect to suggest is a thing so commonplace it's often overlooked, but so valuable that you will roll your eyes if you forget to make it happen. Namely this: a hashtag for your wedding.

Last decade we bought disposable cameras and left them on each guest table. This year, the guests bring their own cameras in the form of their phones and snap away. We know you look good, but so do they and they want the world to know it.

But you may not ever see these photos unless you create your simple, (clever if you're feeling extra inspired) wedding handle.

#jonathanloveslayne

#jonathanisTheCutest

#jonolayniestory

It's fun to have the collection to scroll through in the week right after your wedding...and in all the coming months as well. 

Let's be honest; in 10 years, hashtags, like floral crowns, may be gone with wind, but for now, they are shiny and sweet and need to make your wedding cut. Plus, they are budget friendly!

Spoiler alert: we often put different sneak peeks of your big day on our instagram (@jonolaynie) as well as on our Facebook page. We like the love to be spread far and wide.

If you create it soon enough, it's fun to have for your wedding showers and you can continue it through your honeymoon..or even through your marriage if you choose carefully.

But before you jump on your hashtag bandwagon, let's talk about some common # mistakes:

1. Making your # too complicated (this includes tricky spelling). Your guests will love #'ing your wedding away, but if you make it too long or include names that are hard to spell, they may just give up or in their happy, open-bar state, create their own version of your brand. Your eyes will never gaze upon those sweet snaps.

2. Not prominently displaying your sign. People need a big, fatty sign with a couple of helpful announcements from the DJ throughout the night. If you just put it on a crowded table, many may overlook this.

Who knows. Maybe Sally danced with Jonny for hours at your wedding but he failed to get her number. Thanks to your helpful hashtag love, he can contact her the very next day without having to track her down through the string of connections. And boom goes the love. And there you have it, you little matchmaker, you.

Okay, now you are ready-go forth and create your hashtag dreams! We believe in you.

Happy week, peeps.

xo.

A Case for a Trash the Dress (Day-After Shoot)

No matter how much time you give us on your wedding day, I will always want more. You look stunning in your get up and I want more, more, more time to document your beauty.

Many of our couples have been opting for a "day after" shoot, another chance to dress up and capture their love.

They love it; we love it.

If you're wavering or undecided, consider this:

What are the wedding photos you'll hang on your wall for decades to come? Yes, most likely the ones of the two of you together.

Where is your dress going post your wedding? Correct, in the closet for years on end-let's make sure it's documented.

If you can have a photo shoot of the two of you anywhere in your dress and fancy clothes, where would it be? Okay, let's make it happen.

Here are a few samples of post-wedding day shoots.

Message us today to book yours.

xo.

Advice from Past Brides, part II

Meet the gorgeous Rebeckah and settle in for a bit of her wedding wisdom. 

As the premier photographers in Guelph, Kitchener, Toronto and Niagara, we love capturing the moments from your wedding day. 

-things you would do differently

1) The main detail that I would change about our wedding is our guest favours. We spent a long time trying to figure out something that wasn't too tacky or expensive to give to our 150 guests (we ended up having a sparkler at each table place...they were inexpensive, fun, and made for great pictures.) But since our wedding, I have seen a few other couples opt for scratching the favour idea all together, and making a donation to their favourite charity. GREAT IDEA, a lot less work, and way more meaningful. So if you're still pondering the perfect take-away gifts, consider this.

2) Think long and hard about how you are going to do the family-pictures. That was the most stressful part of the day for me, since we have a lot of family. Everyone was wandering off, and wanting to take a pictures on their own cameras, and it made for a very long process. Do your photos, if you can, in a location where there is no distractions - like the bar - for your relatives to sneak off to, and also away from all other guests who end up being extremely distracting!

3) If you're planning on doing a rice throw, consider buying the actual wedding rice (you can buy it at Michaels). We bought the real-deal rice from our cheap grocery store. Turns out real-deal rice is powdery, and Steven's lovely black suit lookedpowdery-grey afterwards (it brushes off, but still...)

-best planning decisions you made

1) We skipped the traditional receiving line after the church, and instead went to each table during dinner to great our guests. This was way more personal, and gave us time to actually catch talk with friends and family without feeling rushed.

2) We had a pretty low-budget wedding so I did a lot of DIY projects. One of the projects that ended up being the best was the bouquets; I made them with artificial flowers. It was WAY cheaper, and I was able to have my bouquets done ahead of time to make sure they matched the dresses perfectly. Plus it was one less thing to pick up on the day of, and my bridesmaids and I were all able to keep the bouquets afterwards.

-favourite parts about your day

1) Our ceremony was my favourite part. It was short and sweet and done exactly how we wanted. We had my sisters sing and play the violin while Steven and I took communion together, which was so special.

2) I loved our butterfly release and the rice throw that followed. The pictures looked great, and it was a fun for us as well as the guests.

-advice to a newbie bride

1) Seriously, don't succumb to the pressure to spend a lot of money on your wedding; you can have such a lovely day without throwing away your money. And honestly, when it's all over, it doesn't matter. I remember stressing over the chairs for our reception; we borrowed them from our church, but they didn't match each other and I thought it would look terrible. We considered spending over $300.00 to rent matching CHAIRS!!! For what?! Looking back I am so glad I let that go; no one, including myself, noticed the chairs, and now we have $300 extra dollars to spend on more important things.

2) Use your wedding day to appreciate the people who have loved and supported you. We found that our parents, grandparents, siblings, etc. were just as excited about our upcoming wedding day as we were, and it was so fulfilling to find little ways to make them feel extra special. Wearing Grandma's jewelry, borrowing my moms garter, asking my grandfather to pray for the meal and opting for just our siblings to sit with us at the head table were all things that meant a lot to them and were tokens of how grateful we are for them.  

Happy Monday, y'all.

xo.

Ideal Photo Locations.

First, I'll let you peruse these images and see if you can tell what all of them have in common:

"Blank" spaces, blank spaces, blank spaces, Space, and lots of shade. That's all we need to create the wedding photos of your dreams.

We are professional photographers and videographers in the Hamilton, Brantford, London, Burlington, Ancaster, Oakville, Cambridge, Toronto and Niagara regions. We bring timeless and breathtaking wedding photography to couples in the Greater Toronto Area like it's our job. Oh wait...it is.

To Video or not to Video

Helllooooo beautiful couples! Welcome to Wedding Monday where we scour our brains and share tips and advice-specifically from a photography/videography standpoint- that we've learned along the wedding journey.

Today's topic: to video or not to video? That is the question. But let's be honest, there is only answer:to video. And let's chat about why.

 In our experience, there are two reasons why people choose to forego video for their special day:

1. budget.

2. they don't think they will actually watch it.

So let's look at both of these.

First of all, as one of my friends once told me behind the scenes, after your guests depart and your flowers dry, your wedding photos and videos are the most significant tangible tokens you'll have from your special day. You can't re-eat the food or re-dance your first dance; you may treasure your wedding dress always but you will most probably never wear it again. Only the photos will hang on your walls and the videos will stay on your computers to be watched and re-watched-your special memories captured for all time.

So while budget is an issue for most couples, I'd urge you to allocate enough of your financials for both photography and videography for your big day. After all, it only happens once. We can help you create a payment plan if it helps you.

And I promise-you will watch your teaser video on anniversaries, when friends are over for dinner parties and as your children are growing up and asking for stories about your nuptials. It's also amazing for faraway friends and family who aren't able to make it for your wedding day. Think about how much you love YouTube and then multiply that by 17 to get an idea of how much you will treasure the footage forever. It will help you remember what it felt like to dance the night away, to eat the tapas, to feel the smiling faces of your friends and family sharing the day with you and your beloved.

Here's a wedding for which we were the photographers and videographers; you can get a feel for how different the two are.

Welcome to Travis and Melissa's dreamy destination wedding in the Dominican Republic:

And here are a couple of more teaser videos from us.

Max and Cambria had an adorable DIY wedding in the woods of Colorado:

Melissa and Chris had an charming wedding in northern California:

And that's a wrap. Have a happy, happy week dreaming of your special day to come.

xo.

How to Timeline your Wedding Day

Happy Monday beautiful brides (brides-to-be and my parents.)

We love sunset photos with our bride and groom. It's one of our favourite parts of documenting any wedding day. 

Today we're going to chat about something that most couples struggle with at least on some level-timelining your wedding so that your day is seamless. 

The struggle is real, and also completely understandable. Presumably you've never planned a wedding before, so you don't have a gauge on how much time to allot for what.

We, the wedding whisperers, having planned our own wedding and documented dozens (hundreds?) of others, are here to hold your hand and help you out. 

Obviously we think that the wedding photography and videography is pretty important so this timeline *may* be a bit biased. 

But hey-you're paying us for greatness; give us time to shine.

We believe in excellence and creativity in all we do. We are passionate about telling your story-it's so worth telling. We work primarily in the Toronto and Niagara regions (Oakville, Burlington, Cambridge, Kitchener), but also document weddings in faraway places-like this one in Thunder Bay.

Let's say you've hired us for 8 hours, our standard day package. Here's how we'd suggest using your time.

12:00 Getting Ready & Details (shoes, dress, invitation, flowers, etccc. It's ideal for these to be in a corner waiting for us. Perfect job for one of your hottie bridesmaids.)

1:00 All Hair and Makeup Finished. Put dress on.

1:15 Travel to first look

1:45 First Look

2:00 Bride and Groom Portraits
2:30 Family Portraits
3:00 Bridal Party photos

3:45 Break for you / details, details, Details for us (we especially like this because it's nice to get all the reception details you worked so hard on before your guests stampede in.)

4:15 Ceremony Begins

4:40 Ceremony Ends

4:45 The Couple (it's pretty sweet to document the first few moments of your wedded life. Why not sneak away and relish it together...and let us document the love?!)

5:15 Couple Joins the Cocktail Hour

6 Reception entrance

6:15 First Dance/s (*we recommend scheduling all the important bits on the front end of the reception-at least all the important bits you definitely want documented.)

6:30-8 Dinner/Speeches

7:30 sneak away for sunset photos

8 Cake cutting

8:05 We sneak away to post a sneak peek on our Facebook page and you party the night away

Obviously you need to make this fit your special day and we're here to accommodate in any way we can.

We understand that timelines get off and we gift you about half an hour of flex time; we don't just rush out the door as soon as our time is up. We want to do an Amazing job for you and capture so many special memories from you day.

There is always the option to add an extra hour or two, even on the day of your wedding. 

Andddddd for some couples, a first look is not in the cards. Perhaps your schedule would look more like this:

12:00 Getting Ready &  Details
1:00 Hair and Makeup Finished-dress on
1:15 Dress On; Final Touches

Getting ready photos are a fantastic way for us to document all the quiet, special moments of your wedding day. 

All of our wedding photography packages come with a layflat photo book and having the full spectrum of moments from the day are a way to share the story of your wedding day.

1:45 ceremony

2:15 Bride and Groom Portraits
2:45 Family Portraits
3:05 Bridal Party

Carmens Lakeview is one of our favourite wedding venues in Hamilton.

Another sweet capture from Jessa and Dan's wedding at Lakeview. Bridal party photos are a fun place to get creative and think outside the box.

3:25 Photos of the two of you.

Having lots of time to document all the LOVE between our sweet couples is one of our highlights of the wedding day. We recommend leaving around half an hour for photos of the two of you.

3:45 Break / Details, Details!
4:00 Cocktail Hour begins
6 Reception starts

Either way, we recommend 1-2 hours for getting ready photos, 1.5-2 hours of official photos (family, bridal party, you two), making sure you account for travel time and prioritizing your reception to get the photos that are the most important to you. (***If you only have one photographer it's especially important to add more time for your photos!**)

In addition, it never hurts to pad your schedule with half an hour here or there for more photos or simply to rest and enjoy your day.

It's better to have more time than less.

Let us know if you have any questions. We can't wait to document your day. And we want to do everything we can to help you feel relaxed and peaceful about all the details we can.

xoxo.

L + J

Let's Schedule in Sunset Photos

This little tidbit is on the top 5 list of important things I'd advise for any couple.

First of all, we always want to prioritize photos of the two of you. 

Secondly, you'll probably be needing a break mid-reception and a breath of fresh air with just the two of you should be just the thing.

Also, the lighting during sunset is unreal, our absolute fave, so why not take advantage? After all, it's YOUR wedding day.

Take a 10 minute break with us at sunset and hang the photos we get for years to come on your walls.

You're welcome-this is why you hired us.

xo.

We captured this gorgeous couple on their wedding day in Idaho. We love that our photography and videography takes us to the corners of the globe to document weddings and families.