Ottawa Market Walkabout

You may have seen some of this wedding in the new Ottawa Wedding Magazine. It was one of our faves of the summer. We have lots more samples at the studio and free copies of the mag.

http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/coylepublishing/ott_weddings_virtual/2009120801/

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New Ottawa Wedding Magazine

Ta da.........check out which studio was chosen as the main feature in the new
Ottawa Wedding Magazine...
http://www.myvirtualpaper.com/doc/coylepublishing/ott_weddings_virtual/2009120801/
We will have copies next week at the studio free to all who come by for a consultation.

Classic Black and Whites never go out of style.

A wedding coverage just isn`t complete unless we have one classic portrait of the bride and groom. Somehow, I think these will stand the test of time over some of the trendier wedding images and when it comes down to it, being able to shoot both is the key. These shots were done by one of our wedding staff photogs, Elena. Good work kiddo.

Centretown Ottawa Indoor Studio.

We see a lot of photographers advertise their companies as XYZ "Studio".

There are actually only a half dozen "studios" in Ottawa and ours has been quite busy this summer as the Ottawa Monsoon Season was wacky to say the least. We prefer to shoot outdoors and we do have a lot of ideas on alternate locations indoors in case of bad weather. Its really nice however, to have a large centrally located studio in case the weatherman does not cooperate with your plans for a portrait in the park or some wedding groups.

We actually do rent it to other photographers but not on Saturdays as we like to keep it for our clients. There is btw, no extra fee for our clients to shoot in the studio. Even better, we have full time office staff and are competitive with a lot of folks who work from their home.

How do we do it....come on by and I`ll tell you the secrets.






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Candids VS Photojournalism

Just so we are on the same page when discussing wedding styles...the top photo is wedding photojournalism....shooting unposed images. The bottom shot, while a lot of fun, is what is now
being called "candid" groups...ie more fun in posing. These need time and a cool location. People do not naturally do the things that you see in a lot of wedding photos...if you invest the time, we can create some great images.

Photoshop Artistry

We just hung a large new BW in our Gladstone St window and people are really responding to it...I can tell, when cars slow down and folks stare.
I thought it was the perfect time to talk about the issue of digital files. We book a few weddings
per year in which people tell us they are making their own albums. Sooo...in the interest of science I have posted these two files and allowed you to grab them and try your luck at changing
the color file to the bw. If you can create the kind of look we did..hey, good for you. Now multiply
that time by a few hundred images and perhaps you'll see that it might be a good idea to let a professional make your wedding album.

I read recently in Popular Photography that over half the people who thought they had the skills and time to create their own albums hadn`t done so...over two years after their wedding!

We had a bride show up just last week who must have spent 50 K on her wedding three years ago...yup...the photographer (who will go unnamed) didn`t offer an album service and her hubby promised to make the albums..

I can`t imagine how many times he regretted that idea.


BTW, email me the results if you really nail that Photoshop test...we always have openings and lots of work...

Photographs worth a thousand words.

In law, they used to use the term "photographic evidence"...not any more. In the digital age, photographs can be downright misleading...
We see a lot of websites and blogs showing a half dozen shots per wedding. That's no way to judge any photographer's skills. Frankly, even our trainees come up with a few good shots per wedding. The real test is whether they can cover the whole day from portraits to candids.

Sooooo...I thought I would post a recent wedding that shows what we do on a real job. If you want a fair comparison........ask other photogs to do the same.

Ottawa Boudoir and Glamour Portraits.

Here are two more from the session...

Want more...click here!

Something prospective brides might consider when comparing photographers is how well they do portraits. Photojournalism is fine and dandy, but a talented photographer should also know how to make the bride look great. Frankly, even our assistants in training can manage to get a few lucky shots, but they need a couple of years training to do great portraits. Take a look at entire sites, and not just cherry picked wedding shots. Better yet, ask to see an entire wedding...thats when you really know how to judge a photographers talent.

Ottawa Wedding on Youtube

We posted this wedding on Youtube not too long ago and now its up over 2000 hits...wow.
The bride is coming in for a pregnancy portrait next week...I guess that's a
testimonial to my work...and theirs.

New Years Eve 2008 Wedding.

We ended the year at the Delta Ottawa. Right on cue, the elevators stopped working and we were trapped a few times between the rooms and the main floor where the actual marriage and the reception were taking place. One more story for the book.

Ottawa Wedding

Its production time at the studio..a happy time indeed. We are just about finished getting our albums that were promised for Christmas all put together. In going over the files, I thought I would post this one simply because it shows one of my favorite locations, the Hilton at Lac Leamy. I think the art in this hotel is by far the best of all those in the Ottawa region and we make use of it in a lot of our shots. The hotel is one of the few that provides great locations, rain or shine.

Wedding Photographers Ottawa

They wanted no posed shots....but were glad we did this one. Wouldn`t you be....

Ottawa Wedding Photographers

So what I`d like to do first is post some of my faves over the last couple of years and

tell you a little bit about our style....

This engagement photograph was done this spring in my studio on Gladstone Street. The couple were a lot of fun to work with...and it really helped set the tone for their
wedding shoot a couple of months later. Many of their wedding images are now up on our new Flash site, which can be viewed here.

Here is the first wedding EVER at the new Metropolitan Bible Church...

We had a great time shooting at the Mill in Perth this summer. The area is full of great locations, some of which are also on the new Couvrette Site.

Got Bikes? We are the only studio in the city with the ability to shoot motorcycles in a controlled lighting setup. How about bringing your bike in for a coooool engagement portrait.

Here is the first shot of one of my favorite coverages of this summer...Bring on those Italian
Weddings.

Yes... that IS her home, not the Chateau Laurier. We covered this wedding last summer on a beautiful day at her house on the St. Lawrence Seaway. Sara was such a nice bride, relaxed, cordial, and yes, on time for the shoot.

A bit of photojournalism by one of my photographers at a fun country wedding...

Serge captured this one in an elevator... good one buddy.

Here's one I got on a crazy rainy day... we could not resist this old barn as we drove by on the way to the reception.

Once again, Serge caught this shot at what must have been his most fun assignment of the summer.

Okay... so we played with this one a bit in Photoshop.

If I was entering this in a competition I would probably entitle it "Runaway Bride"... but no, she did stay for the wedding.

I shot this at the Bride's parents soybean farm silo this fall. Who knows what you will find when you get out of the city. In Ottawa, some fancy architect would charge you a fortune to put this post modern look on your house...lol

Who says studio portraits can`t be cool...

This was taken at Strathmere... sometimes I see things at locations that many photographers walk right by...

What do you do when a couple comes in for an engagement portrait in full Korean Wedding dress... this was my solution. Somehow they wouldn't have looked right in a gritty street or running through a park... Each couple has a unique image... and our job is to find out how to capture it.