This wedding on the outskirts of Edmonton was another sweet wedding road trip for Brittni and I. More photos to come! Beautiful couple!
Every wedding I do has something special about it…But I have to say, this one definitely had that extra bit of something for me. Tyler and Erin had the kind of wedding that not many people have the guts to pull off. Totally intimate. Just family. Completely chill. No wedding party. No big fuss. But yet still an amazing celebration of their love for one another.
Erin contacted me late last year when I had already booked myself pretty solid but I couldn’t resist this girl’s sincere compliments on my work and the thought of doing a wedding that I had always dreamed of capturing. The wedding was to be held at their family cabin at Weyakwin Lake. Only 18 guests were to attend and the afternoon would be spent taking photos of just her and her groom, Tyler. Incase you haven’t figured it out yet, this type of wedding is a photographer’s dream…
Anyway. I only met Erin about a month before the wedding but even based on our email communication, I already felt like she and I shared a special connection. I love when that happens! I took a friend with me for the wedding and we camped for a the weekend at Weyakwin. I had never been before so it was a new adventure (which I am always up for!!). We went running on the gravel roads and swam in the deserted lake, made amazing campfire meals and even played crib under our carefully crafted tarp when the rains came down and the thunder boomed. The wedding day was totally relaxed and even though it rained for a time during photos, we still came up with some amazing ones. And the 1/2 an hour Tyler and Erin and I just sat in the truck and watched the rain on the beach while we chatted was one of my favorite parts of the day!
The ceremony itself was simple but still very touching. There is something so special about a marriage that takes place in a very sentimental setting. Being that Erin and her siblings pretty much grew up at their family cabin in the summers, it meant a lot to her and her family that she chose it as her venue. And if all this wasn’t perfect enough, Tyler and Erin also had some surprise news up their sleeves for the weekend. They found out they were expecting a few weeks before the wedding and had the amazing idea to announce it to everyone after the ceremony! But there was a twist, they wanted it to be a sweet surprise and they wanted my help! For the group photo, instead of saying my usual ‘1-2-3 look at me’, they wanted me to take a few photos of the entire group in attendance and have everyone say ‘Tyler and Erin!’…but once I had taken a few keepers, I was to switch it up to “everyone say ‘Tyler and Erin are pregnant!’” It took a few repeats of this for everyone to catch on but the reactions were simply priceless and I absolutely loved that I got to spill the beans for this couple and their awesome news! It was so fun!
So needless to say, this wedding is going down in the books (seems I have had a few of those this year…). There’s more exciting stuff that came out of this wedding that I’m not ready to share quite yet, but trust me, it’s totally fantastic!
Without further ado, meet Tyler and Erin and enjoy the photos of their beautiful wedding. Thanks you guys for your amazing hospitality. I can’t imagine having not said yes to this wedding!
by jesslaine
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Well this was quite the special treat. When Josh and Erin approached me last year and asked me to do their wedding in Osoyoos, B.C., I gladly obliged. Knowing this was a special setting for the couple, I knew that the wedding would be nothing short of amazing and looked forward to it all year! I graduated high school with Josh, and Erin is none other than the best friend of my talented and beautiful future sister in law, Brittni (who is also usually my assistant!) so I was fairly well aquatinted with this couple and knew of their good taste and extreme kindness. What more could you ask for in a client!?
Like most of my destination weddings, I try to make them a bit of a holiday for myself as well and usually take extra time to explore and adventure about and this was no exception. My brother, Brittni and I set out on a road trip towards the valley about a week before the wedding so we would have time to hang out a bit before the work began! Though the unusually rainy weather and less-than-stellar tent sort of ruined our camping plans for the week, we still had a great time wine tasting and enjoying the laid back atmosphere in this quaint little valley town. Josh and Erin and their families were very hospitable and even took us on a couple awesome wine tours! Josh once worked at TinHorn Creek Winery and so that was a special destination for us during the photos. What a fabulous view and such friendly staff!
Coincidentally, a photographer based out of Osoyoos, Erika Pfahl of Element Photography, contacted me about a year ago through my blog and we have become emailing buddies. When I found out I would be doing a wedding out west without the help of my assistant, Brittni, I asked Erika if she was interested in helping me. Being that we both have similar styles and life situations (She is a pharmacist in her other life, I am a registered nurse), she enthusiastically accepted! It was neat to meet her and have her help for the day. We got along great! Head over to her website and check out her stuff, especially if you are thinking about getting married in the Okanagan! Thanks again Erika!
There were so many special details about this wedding that I loved and it was seriously elegant and classy. The meal was catered by the amazing staff at Dolci Deli & Catering and their amazing flower arrangements were designed by Kelly-Anne at Polka Dot Door. It was cool to see theses local talents shining through at this wedding. And all of Erin’s special graphic design touches were amazing as well! Josh and Erin have wonderful chemistry together and I love their high school sweet heart love story. I enjoyed getting to tear up the dance floor with some old high school friends and it was a once in a lifetime wedding to photograph. And who doesn’t like coming home with a few bottles of wine to try out? So many great things about this wedding. Congrats Josh and Erin on your marriage, I was so glad to share the day with you!
by jesslaine
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This was a seriously amazing wedding up at Weyakwin Lake. I can’t wait to share more of it! Such a chill time and so many great opportunities for photos! This couple is truly something special!
by jesslaine
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I work with Lyndsey’s mom and way back last fall she asked if I could do photos for her beautiful daughter. Naturally, I agreed! This was another really fun session and of course this grad looked gorgeous! Lyndsey was so pumped about it which made it that much better! I love when people are having fun in front of the camera!
I pulled another embarrassing stunt and forgot an important lens, so we had a slight delay in the shoot but once we got going, it was a great success! I picked out some spots that I thought would compliment her dress and I was really happy how they turned out! We even got a few shots with her boyfriend! (who she thought he looked super cute in his tux and tie
) Thanks Mel for setting this up and thanks Lyndsey for your awesome enthusiasm. Congrats on your graduation and best of luck in your future!
by jesslaine
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