Saint Lawrence Market Wedding | Jina + Paul

I was happy to have done yet another urban wedding at the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto. As much I love photographing destination weddings and outdoor weddings in the greatest nature, I also felt that city weddings are always the core of it all. At least for myself, I started in photography with a strong interest in street photography. The people, the faces, the interactions, the movements, the culture, the decisive moments that got captured in a city, on the street always fascinated me. It never failed to give me tremendous fun to have a photo walk in a foreign city. In fact, that's what most of my travel photos were made up of. Lots of candid portraits of people in urban settings. To document love and urban weddings in Toronto's city core gave me comfort and joy. Jina and Paul were city people. They're quite hipster by my definition. I always felt that hipsters were those with a free spirit and an unique style. They're open minded and happy to have an alternative approach to things. They didn't try too hard to be different but they also didn't seem to care for fitting in. Jina and Paul were super easy going when I suggested weird ideas for creative wedding photos. It's such great fun working with these two and their young bridal party and loving friends. 

Lots of love,

Ally

Caffino Wedding | Alysha + Malcolm

 

If you like this Caffino wedding and want to explore other similar venues with a cool vibe in downtown Toronto, you might enjoy seeing photos from my Berkeley Church wedding, Steamwhilstle wedding and this wedding at 99 Sudbury too.

Alysha and Malcolm are two loving souls. They are both registered nurses. When I first met these two they were a bit quiet and very sweet. As we get to know each other more, they appear to be two adventurous and down-to-earth young professionals. They chose a trip to Thailand for their honeymoon and had a lot of fun backpacking. I always adore backpackers as I'm a backpacker myself. I also find Alysha and Malcolm very charming with their professions, life experiences and personal values. In fact, these two almost eloped! It's a lot of fun photographing their wedding. Alysha and her bridesmaids had their getting ready at a cool Airbnb house in downtown Toronto. I had a few brides getting ready at Airbnb. I find that an amazing idea to have an unique space as well as to support local Toronto businesses/ residents. Then of course they picked one of the coolest small wedding venue in Toronto. Located in the heart of downtown Toronto, Caffino is a charming ex-factory space on King West, in Liberty Village. Caffino Ristorante is a cool Italian eatery with eclectic decor and rustic, urban interior design and industrial looking exterior - lots of bricks, concretes. It's a unique wedding venue for intimate wedding and for urban couples. It's a perfect fit for Alysha and Malcolm. The day was also a "when traditional meet modern" kind of wedding day when the traditional wedding ceremony and Alysha's family in those absolutely beautiful, colourful indian wedding guest outfits. Just when I thought the day was good enough, Alysha and Malcolm's guests turned out to be great dancers on the wedding dance floor, the outdoor dance floor where Alysha and Malcolm did their romantic first dance in sparklers.

Alysha, Malcolm, thank you so so much for having me on this cool, sweet, fun wedding day!

Lots of love,

Ally

Click here to see their engagement on Toronto Island. 

Post Wedding Photoshoot | Anna + Dave, Part 3

 

Click to see part 1 and part 2 of Anna and Dave's wedding day at The National Club.

I was thrilled when Anna reached out to me for a post-wedding photo shoot. In Asia, brides and grooms were accustomed to a pre-wedding photoshoot where brides and grooms put on their wedding gown and suit prior to their wedding day and have the leisure of getting their wedding portraits done in studio or outdoor without the stress of a busy wedding day. A post wedding photoshoot is the same idea but as the name suggests it takes place after wedding.  Both pre-wedding photo sessions and post-wedding photo sessions give the bride and groom more time to enjoy not just the process of taking wedding portraits but also each other's company in such an intimate time. Pre-wedding photoshoot sometimes replaces an engagement session. Personally, I find an e-session essential as it's more relax and personal. I like to call engagement sessions a lifestyle photoshoot. If possible, I prefer the wedding day photography to be dominantly photojournalistic as those moments and interactions and emotions with and in front of loved ones are so precious. It worths every effort to document. It's a luxury for a candid wedding photographer to focus on documenting a wedding day as it is. That's where the post wedding photoshoot comes in handy. On one hand it helps the bride and groom to take some stress out and focus on enjoying the wedding day and on the other hand it allows the bride and groom to feel for the intimacy as wife and husband once again soon after a busy wedding day which often goes by too quickly. From their engagement photos to their wedding day photos to these post wedding photos, I witnessed the love between Anna and Dave evolved. At least that's how I felt when I looked at their photographs. 

Lots of love,

Ally

Toronto National Club Wedding | Anna + Dave, Part 2

"Dave and I clicked with Ally right from the beginning! She was very open to our vision and she went above and beyond and created the most beautiful photos for our engagement and wedding. Her photos are unique, mixing vintage nostalgia with an urban flair. We had our wedding downtown in a historical venue. Ally was able to combine our love for things traditional with our love for the city life! It was such a pleasure working with you. Your calm and understand nature kept us sane through one of the most craziest and exciting moments in our lives. Thank you again!!" 

Thank you Anna and Dave for leaving me such a sweet review on Google.

Click here to see part 1 of Anna and Dave's wedding and heart felt description of this Toronto urban wedding.

St Lawrence Market Wedding | Nathalie + Alex

"Ally shot our wedding and engagement and did a remarkable job. She's a talented photographer with a real knack for catching the moments when they occur and documenting events in a natural manner. Neither of us are great or comfortable with posed pictures but Ally put us at ease, rolled with our unconventional wedding and really represented us and our event in all her work, engagement shoot and wedding shoot. We cannot recommend her enough...she truly is one of Toronto's most talented wedding photographers and will surely gain the fame to match her talent in the near future! Get her if you can!" 

Thank you Natalie and Alex for leaving me such a sweet review on Google.

I enjoyed photographing weddings in Saint Lawrence Market. Their wedding reception space in Market Kitchen was intimate and rustic with big vintage windows and brick walls. It's an amazing historical and iconic building. I found it the perfect wedding venue in downtown Toronto for creative couples and hipster weddings. Nathalie and Alex made the perfect venue choice. The two are unconventional at heart and their vintage wedding dress and custom made wedding suit and edgy, DIY decorations blew me away. They had an intimate crowd of off-beat friends and close families which made the space even warmer and cooler at the same time (if this makes sense). Everything on Nathalie and Alex's wedding day was very much eye-pleasing and heart melting.

If you like these pictures, I urge you to also check out part 1 of Nathalie and Alex's wedding featuring their getting ready photos in their sweet home and their ultimate wedding ceremony on Toronto Islands as well as their Kensington Market engagement session. 

I must admit that I am an advocate for creative wedding ideas and alternative wedding photography that focuses on the people. I don't just support the idea so that one's wedding can stand out and be edgy. I promote the idea because I strongly believe that a wedding should reflect who we are instead of trying too hard to follow the traditions, so much so that it loses a sense of identity. Nathalie and Alex's wedding's so cool not just because it's creative and adventurous but that it tells one a lot about who they are. 

Lots of love,

Ally

Special thanks to the following amazing vendors:

Flowers: Botany Floral Studio  | Hair: Nicole Kelly at Curl up and Dye | Make-up: Milena Iaizzo at Blush and Bows  | Venue: The Market Kitchen at St Lawrence Market | Catering: Michelle Pollack and Shauna Teiko McDermott M&S Catering

As featured on Bonjour Bride.

Some Day | Documentary Wedding Photographer

I truly believe that it's the fleeting, unnoticed moments which make each wedding, thus wedding photography, so special. Being a documentary wedding photographer means to be restless - not exactly restless in clicking the shutter and taking pictures, but in observing with an open heart and take that frame at the right moment. In fact, when it's overdone a photographer becomes too noticeable and kills those natural, candid moments.

To me, making documentary wedding photography is a fine art in itself. Making beautiful photos is just an practise.

“Some day you will find out that there is far more happiness in another’s happiness than in your own.
”
— Honore de Balzac