Michelle and Martin were married August 14th. The ceremony was  at St. Viateur in Limoges, Ontario, and the reception was held in nearby Embrun.  It was a lovely day weather wise. Bright overcast and not too hot – Perfect weather for Wedding Photography.

The Bride and Groom were wonderful and everyone in the Bridal Party was a lot of fun. We really enjoyed documenting Michelle and Martin’s big day, and want to thank them for choosing us.

LJ

Natacha and Ben pose for their wedding portrait

We had the pleasure of documenting Natacha and Ben’s wedding yesterday.  The weather was perfect, and the Bride and Groom were a lot of fun. The couple are both accomplished Martial Artists, and they made this a big part of their day. The reception venue even featured a kickboxing ring!

The ceremony was held at Ste Trinité in Rockland Ontario. After the Bridal Party came to our Plantagenet studio for the wedding photos. We’ve landscaped the garden outside our studio with wedding photographs in mind, and that combined with the great weather lead to some memorable wedding images.

Wedding Portrait

Groom Ben gets support from his Groomsmen.

Natacha and Ben kick box on their wedding day.

We have the best Brides and Grooms, and Natacha and Ben are a perfect example of this. We wish them all the best!

LJ

France and Sylvain

Wedding planning is all about setting your priorities.

In the current economy making sure you’ve covered all the bases, while staying on budget can be a challenge.

You may be tempted to save a few dollars, and forgo hiring a professional photographer.

After all, your friend / relative / co-worker has a nice new digital camera,

and they’ll photograph your wedding for free.

Or you know a student who’s just out of school and looking to build their portfolio.

They’ll shoot your wedding and give you the files on a DVD for $500.00.

I know this will sound self serving coming from a Professional Wedding Photographer,

but you need to remember one simple fact when you’re making this decision:

You get what you pay for.

It’s as simple as that.

I was contacted no less than six times last year by couples with a DVD containing 1200 snapshots from their wedding.

They were overwhelmed and wanted me to fix the exposure, crop, color correct and retouch their wedding images and produce an album for them.

My answer is always the same: “Why don’t you ask the person who took the photos to do that”

The answer is usually that their friend either can’t or won’t do it.

What do you get by hiring me that your friend can’t provide?

• I’m a professional. I’ve been a full time photographer for over 20 years.

• I know how weddings work. I know how to keep things on track, and how to keep the photos flowing.

• I’m excited about shooting your wedding NOT nervous. (There is a HUGE difference)

• I’ve got top-of-the line equipment and a spare for every piece of equipment I use.

• I know my cameras inside and out. I know how they work and I know how to make them give me the result I’m looking for.

• I’m not “Pretty good” at Photoshop. I’m great at Photoshop. All my final prints are fully retouched and you will love the way you look.

• I work with a contract to make sure there are no misunderstandings and you know exactly what you are going to get for your money.

That last point is hugely important. I have a signed contract with all my couples. From the word go, everyone knows what is expected of them.

I’m not going to “forget” your wedding. I’m not going to decide I’d rather go to the cottage,

or get nervous and back out ten days before the wedding.

If one of my cameras develops a fault, I’ll just use one of my spares.

Over the past years, I’ve been contacted by couples looking for a photographer on short notice because their friend backed out for one of the above reasons.

Believe it or not,I’ve even been approached by couples while I was photographing a wedding

asking me to photograph them because their friend didn’t show up.

As I said at the beginning, Wedding planning is all about setting your priorities. One thing to remember though is twenty years down the road,

you’ll be glad you made the small investment of having a professional capture and immortalize one of the most important days of your life.

Good luck in your planning.

LJ

We had a lot of fun photographing their wedding on a crisp fall day.

Here’s a look at their album.

LJ

[View with PicLens]

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During the break, I put together a couple of videos of some of the work we’ve done in the past year or so.

The first video features weddings we’ve photographed in Ottawa, Rockland, Plantagenet, and the surrounding area.

We’ve been lucky to work with some wonderful Brides and Grooms. We’ve photographed weddings that ranged from a small, intimate wedding with less than ten guests, to a memorable outdoor ceremony and reception at a local farm with nearly 300 guests.

And we’ve had a lot of fun doing it.

To all of our Brides and Grooms from 2008, we would like to thank you for allowing us to be part of your wedding day.

To our 2009 couples, we wish you the best of luck in the planning of your special day.

Linda.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpEk1_-OBXk