Gibran and Brittany’s wedding – Day 1

I’ve been waiting for this wedding for a while now. I’ve known Gibran for as long as I can remember, and met Brittany a year ago. With both of them sharing a passion for Indian food, I knew Gibran had found his perfect match. What’s fascinating about these two is that they come from completely different backgrounds. Gibran’s family is from India, while he was raised in Dubai, while Brittany was raised in the small town of Blackville, New Brunswick on the other side of the planet.

Yet all their differences in their lives don’t even matter when you see them together. Both come from amazing families that have embraced each others cultures so well. Gibran, a city boy also got a chance to drive Brittany’s dad’s tractor (I went for a spin too). Christmases and Eids are celebrated, and their apartment often has the welcoming smell of samosas and banana bread. But the time that I knew how committed these two are for each other was the night I spent with Brittany talking about whether or not she could fly to Dubai. It was around the time the volcano erupted and all Atlantic flights were canceled. She was upset about not being able to see where Gibran grew up, his childhood neighbour and spend more time with his family. It wasn’t enough that she knew who Gibran is, she wanted to know where he came from.

A week and a half after the wedding, I talked to Gibran about how it felt. For someone who loves to joke around, this was one of the more serious answers I got from him – “Its nice to have someone who I can rely on… coming home to her is a very nice and strange feeling”.

Gibby and Britt – Congrats!

Trash the dress!

If you haven’t heard of this, it’s exactly what the title says, trashing the dress. The wedding dress is an important one in every woman’s life, but unfortunately used on only one day of her life. Many decide to carefully preserve their dress, packing it away to hold on to a memory. In the last decade or so, some brides have opted to have one more run in their dress. I will be trying to convince the future Mrs. Me to go for this, I already have a few ideas (is it sad that I know this but have yet to meet whoever Mrs Me is still?). Anyhow, anything goes. I actually did find a picture online where the bride is a stunt woman, and actually lit herself on fire while wearing the dress (No kidding!), she seemed fine.

To showcase an actual shoot to our clients, we set up a photo shoot with a model Anna, both a dress, and well….trashed it:D. Anna braved cold water, sharp rocks and slippery surfaces for this amazing shoot. It was a pleasure to work with such an adventurous person, and I hope that I get the chance to work with her again in future projects.

So what do you get out of trashing your dress? From what I can see, an experience! Many brides I’ve talked to share how they found their dress after careful research, it was an exciting time for them. They all are thrilled about the day they can finally put it on, and once the day is over, the dress is lives only through the memories and pictures. Wearing it one last time, and jumping in a river, going in the middle of a desert, dancing in the rain, bungee jumping, pretty much the sky’s the limit, you’ll gain a memory like no other. And of course, get a lot of unique pictures out of it!

Roadtrip!

Last week, Caitlyn and I went on our first roadtrip, to Blackville, New Brunswick! A small town that my GPS didn’t even know where it was. I figured that once I reached there, I’d ask one of the locals to give me directions, and test out the whole small town everyone knows everyone else theory (It’s true by the way).

Anyhow, we decided our trip there would be better served with a break in Quebec City, one of the most beautiful cities ever. And thankfully, the weather didn’t disappoint, while the sun was out, we were graced with mid 20s C (That’s mid 70s for you Americans).

We did see some weird things on our way, like Krusty tied up to the back of a truck.


We got to Quebec late in the evening, and after a full day of driving, we were too tired to head out. The next morning, we took in the amazing views (not available from the hotel room).

We found the end of the pathway a little intimidating. A little unsure where to go from here (Yes we are childish sometimes)

Caitlyn was fascinated with this nail, I don’t know why.

Finally!!! Old Quebec!

Yes, we decided to get a drawing. First time I’ve ever got it done

View from the hot seat

And no, I’m not going to show the finish product. He made me have a gut!

Did I mention this place is absolutely beautiful?

And if you’re there, do check out the street performers, and make sure to bring a tip

Anyhow, we unfortunately had to leave. By the time we reached New Brunswick, it was sunset, and we had two options, go the long, safe way that would add an hour to the trip, or ignore the locals advice and go through a country road with no civilization for over 30 miles (and I mean absolutely nothing, not even a rest stop), and risk running into moose.

Being the dumb brave people we are, we decided to go the moose route. We did see moose, two of them. Not knowing the full dangers of moose, especially in situations when a car is getting closer to it’s offspring (I’ve heard it charges into cars), I decided to get closer with my high beams so that Caitlyn could get a picture (She didn’t).

Anyhow, with the moose episode behind us, we did trek on, slowly scaring ourselves with ghost stories, imagining what would happen if we saw a little girl in a white dress standing in the middle of the road, or a rusty pickup truck blocking the road, with a crazy man wielding a chain saw, or arriving in Blackville only to realize that everyone has turned into a zombie. (I swear, we’re normal!)

But look at the road, how could we not let our imagination run wild with a scene like this?

Anyhow, we did reach safe and sound. Gibran and Brittany’s wedding was a blast, and I still have fond memories of it. Pictures of that coming soon!

Helia Family Shoot

While I love 20 something degree Celsius weather, I do look forward to the fall colours. I was lucky to photograph Helia and her family during one fall morning last year.

Just right

Leann and Ryan’s wedding was something out of a story book. With Lake Ontario serving as the background, mother nature finally gracing us with spectacular weather, and an amazing couple getting married, Caitlyn and I were thrilled to be a part of their day. Thank you so much! And have a great life together