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We shot Alan and Marianne's post-wedding shoot a while back. I think it was actually towards the end of May. I think that part of the reason I didn't want to post their images on the blog at first was because they were all so good (excuse the tooting of the horn), that I didn't think I would do the shoot justice by posting 5 or 6 images.
They flew in from Vancouver with the hopes that we would go out for a shoot, photo and cinema, and they would come back home with some really nice images. We surprised them. We surprised ourselves.
The shoot was supposed to be 2, maybe 3 hours. We started shooting at 4:30 or so and went all the way to midnight. It was one of the most fun shoots we've ever done.
Here's what we went into the shoot knowing:
// they've been together for 16 years.
// they aren't lovey dovey. come on. they've been together for 16 years!
// they fly a lot to visit family, so airports are a big part of their lives.
// she loves her dress. so we're doing part of the shoot in her real dress to get some really different pictures, and the rest in a secondary dress that she cares less about.
// she's hoping it doesn't rain. we're REALLY hoping it does.
Here's what we came up with.
-amina
Recently, Amber and Jordan came in to see their photos for the first time. As we were going through the images, they stopped at almost every one to tell me something about it. “That's our accountant.” “This couple got married right after us.” “Oh, this is my maid of honour's sister… can you see the resemblance?”
Among other things, we talked about air ducts, lung capacity, education, and finally, we got hungry and talked about thank you cards over subs.
See, that's what I love. We're buddies now. It's not just a “client, provider relationship”. It's so much more. Which is my favourite thing about what we do.
When Amber first found us, she knew that she would have to stretch her budget to have us at her wedding. And she knew that it would take some effort to get Jordan to consider it. The line she told me today was absolutely priceless: “Amina, you guys are worth every ounce of begging”.
So right now I'm in the process of editing Aaron and Melissa's wedding. And while I was looking through the photos a few days ago, I was thinking about their same day edit, as well as the main feature to come. It got me thinking how on one hand, their photo gallery will complement their final film, but also how different the perspectives are.
I wanted to post some of my favourite shots from the day, some that are reminiscent of their same day edit, and some which are completely different. I love that while we all think alike and contribute to each other's art, we are also quite different.
going in blind // aaron + jess’ sde from stillmotion on Vimeo.
When Patrick and I were planning our wedding, we knew we wanted to keep it small. We knew we wanted to have only the closest, most loving people around us and to have nothing but an amazing time. Among our small group of guests were Aaron and Jess, close friends of ours who grew up in the same small town as Patrick. Actually, Aaron and Patrick have been friends their entire lives.
Patrick and I did a first meeting before the ceremony. Justin suggested to us how wonderful it might be for Patrick to walk up the mountain to meet me blindfolded, and to be able to do a shoot together without seeing each other, in part to prolong the anticipation, and to be able to have a very different and emotional experience.
This was probably the best part of the wedding for me. The anticipation, knowing that Patrick was behind me, touching my shoulders, without us being able to see each other… it almost killed me! But once the blindfold came off and I turned around, it was the most amazing thing to finally see each other.
Aaron was the person to walk blindfolded-Patrick up the mountain.
And now, it was Aaron and Jess' turn last weekend, and we thought we would pass the experience onto them. Only this time, they never actually saw each other. They stayed blindfolded the entire time, except to open gifts from each other back to back. By the end, Aaron knew the texture of Jess' dress, the feel of her veil, the tears on her face, but only put the fragments together when he finally saw her coming down the aisle.
Here is their wedding from Justin's and my perspective.
Stillmotion is a family. We've always felt that way, both on a personal and professional level. We are always sharing with each other. When one team has an idea, it doesn't just stay within the cinema or photo team, it gets shared with everyone. This means growth. This means refinement. This means that no matter what, that idea is going to be better as a result of it passing through so many creatives.
For me, personally, it means that I get a lot of different perspectives. It means that I can talk to the cinema team and learn from incredible people that have the same passion for creating fascinating imagery, but have a very different medium in which to create it.
For them, it means the same. They can pass ideas through me, share something they are proud of, and get back something that is so much more than what it was before.
However, there is something they have that I do not -each other.
They are a collective of world class cinematographers who are constantly working together, whether in shooting, editing, brainstorming, critiquing, or educating. They are always building on each other. as individuals, they are all fabulous, but together, their creativity, drive, and focus is immeasurable.
I, on the other hand, don't have another photographer that I can grow with. I don't have someone that can constantly push me. Until now.
And so, with the collective good in mind, we have made an addition to our little family.
Justin Demers.
The random // I love peonies. They're such beautiful flowers. They look like cotton candy.
The random // Danielle loves fondant icing. I think she's obsessed.
The amazing // Not only did Alisha and James have peonies at their wedding and a fondant wedding cake, but they had peonies made out of fondant! Best thing ever…
Alisha and James live in Australia - at least for now. They planned their wedding from afar and came to Canada only a week before the big day. Because we had never worked together before, I insisted that we get together of an engagement session during that week so we could get to know each other better. So on the Tuesday before the wedding, we went out.
And then the big day came. Originally, we were supposed to start out at the hotel after the ladies' hair was done. But they were running a bit behind schedule, so we joined them at the salon instead. Boy am I glad we did! Mirrors everywhere! So Danielle and I decided to take advantage and make the morning all about reflections.
We shot Lori and Steve's wedding at Palais Royale in Toronto. First off, I have to say that I love Palais Royale. It's a beautiful venue with great lighting, but best of all, they treat everyone with such care. As we were about to play the same-day edit, the sound engineer came up to me and said, “I've been waiting to see this. The staff has been raving about you guys all day.” 
All week the forecast called for showers -100%. It rained through the preps, the photo session… wait. no. It rained up until we wanted to do a bridal party shoot out in the open, and then it cleared up for about 15 minutes, but then back to rain. About 5 minutes before the ceremony was to start (inside - which was plan B), all the rain, clouds, and gloom completely disappeared. Not a cloud in the sky! So they delayed the ceremony by 30 minutes to set up the chuppah outside (again)! And after the ceremony, what did it do? It rained. Unbelievable! Lori and Steve got so lucky. It was like the weather knew exactly when to let up.
We've been looking forward to this wedding for a long time now. Vy and Navin are a couple of the nicest, zaniest, and creative people that we've ever had the pleasure of meeting - and their true nature certainly came out on their wedding day.
The day was relaxed but out of the ordinary. First off, the photo session was at 9:30 in the morning. What? Yeah. We started shooting hair and makeup at 7:30 a.m., and were at Canada's Wonderland before the sun had a chance to break through the trees. And in true Stillmotion fashion, we barely shot any of the “obvious” photos at Wonderland. We found a lot of things that you normally wouldn't really imagine shooting at a theme park. But, when Vy and Navin got off the roller coaster (before their ceremony mind you) and Vy's hair was all tousled, we knew this day was going to be a blast.
After the photo session, we had a chance to sit down for a nice long lunch with the bridal party. It's not very often we get a chance to sit down ever at a wedding, let alone for Vietnamese sandwiches with the whole gang. We had a chance to rest before we headed off to their ceremony. And what a ceremony it was… the lighting was gorgeous! We couldn't believe it. We worked with the lighting crew from S4 to create the perfect blend of ambiance, shape, and level.
But the most interesting part of the wedding was the blend of Vietnamese and Guyanese cultures. But we'll be posting a little more about that shortly.
Here's a sneak peek:
We got a familiar remark from a stranger when we were shooting their engagement photos: “You know, there's a really nice area down there that you can shoot in”.
Translation: “Dude. you're crazy. Why on earth are you shooting here?”
Amber and Jordan already did half a shoot with us in the fall, so when we went out for the second half this spring, we wanted to change it up. So we did something a little different from last time. And when they came in to the studio to see their photos, they couldn't just pick a few to enlarge, so they decided to do an engagement book.
Here are a few of my favourite spreads.
Oh… and when they showed up for their shoot, Amber still had her rollers in. I couldn't resist. 
So, you've probably seen a lot of Link and Ngoc lately. The thing is that they have devoted so much time to learning about us and contributing to our other couples, that it's hard not to post everything we can!
Link and Ngoc have become celebrities over the last year and a half. They comment on nearly every post we create and know our work pretty much inside out. But it's never the same when you're looking at someone else's wedding. You get the real experience when it's your images you're looking at.
Welcome back from your honeymoon! We hope you had a great time!
I want to send out a special thank you to Danielle from Mind Castle who shot with me that day (and many days to come). Not only is she a fabulous photographer and got some amazing images, shooting with her allowed me to take some risks and get some shots I wouldn't ordinarily be able to.
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Amina Wojcik, Toronto, Canada
Vendor: Photography
Website: Still Motion
About Me: Amina is sassy, easily combustible, and eclectic. Her images are both timeless and edgy, but most importantly, her images are emotional. They tell not only the grander story of the day, but also the peripheral moments that make up the final feature. She is inspired by both photojournalism and fashion photography, creating a truly unique approach and experience.
