Guests were wowed by the reception room where giant babies breath floral centrepieces adorned each table. Before entering the reception, guests took photos of one another on fuji instax (polaroid style) cameras and glued them into Kristen & Taylor’s guest signing book & writing them sweet congratulatory messages along the way. Later that evening after speeches and the cake was cut, dancing of epic proportions commenced in the ballroom, to our surprise, it seemed that every guest was singing at the top of their lungs when a certain song came on. Luca and I both looked at each other as the guests danced infront of us “What is this song?” “Have you ever heard it before?” we were totally in the dark for 2 people who listen to the most obscure bands, ones that all of you haven’t even heard of yet! lol. But this song seriously escaped us, I guess we have all been working too hard listening to our old playlists. The song, which it seems that everyone in the world knew except us was Wagon Wheel by: Old Crow Medicine Show.  A midst all the amazing dancing going on Kristen & Taylor snuck off the dance floor and through the crowds of well wishers for a few night time photos. The perfect romantic end to a fantastic wedding!

Congratulations to Kristen & Taylor! Thank you so much for being so amazing to work with.

Cheers

Erika

Kristen & Taylor’s Glenerin Inn Wedding Dream Team

Photographers - Luca & Erika for Rowell Photography

Floral, Design & Decor – Rachel A. Clingen 

Wedding Venue - The Glenerin Inn 

Hair and Makeup – Nicole Richards & Co.

Invitations –  The Wedding paper Divas

Cake and cupcakes – Delightful Desserts : delightful_desserts@hotmail.com

Dress – David’s Bridal (White by Vera Wang)

Bridesmaids dress – J.Crew

Bracelet – Ann Taylor

Belt – Helena Noelle

Taylor’s suit - Coppley (Harry Rosen)

Glenerin Inn Wedding – Mississauga, ON - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Shaun & Jordan will be back on our blog very soon as their wedding is this weekend at one of our favorite locations, Taboo Resort in Muskoka. We can’t wait to capture the love between them and the magic of their BIG day, this weekend.

Thanks again for having us over to your beautifully artistic home. We are so stoked for your wedding!

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Definitely a nice view of the skyline from this Toronto rooftop.

Toronto Rooftop Engagement Session - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Not only was it fun to photograph Mike and Taylor’s gorgeous families and bridal parties but we had the chance to work with some truly awesome vendors. Check out the dream team at the end of the post.

Congratulations Taylor & Mike! We are so honoured to have been apart of your wedding day.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

The Amazing Dream Team at this Thompson Hotel Wedding Toronto

• Planning and coordination: Fabulous Occasions
• Cake: Truffle Toronto
• DJ: As You Like It DJ
• Band: Bluesual Suspects
• Florist: Little Birdie Events
• Officiant : Ceremonies to Remember
• Rentals: FOS Decor
• Lighting: Nth Degree Group
• Ice cream bar:  Hollywood Cone
• Photography:  Rowell Photography

Thompson Hotel Wedding Toronto - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

How dreamy are these photos? What a perfect day for an engagement photo shoot. Even with the cold snap in weather the last few days, during this session it was a scorcher. Katie & Brad you both look amazing in these photos, so much in love, just like the two kid who met at camp not so long ago. We are so excited for your wedding!

Thanks again to Luca for this gorgeous set of images, and without further adieu… Katie & Brad’s Muskoka Engagement Session.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Luca in action! Photo by: Ryan.

Finally getting some use out of my mini chalkboard for this super cute BRAD & KATIE pic.

Muskoka Engagement Session – Katie & Brad - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

For all the Families in the Park Promo details please visit: http://rowellphoto.com/familiesinthepark

We look forward to seeing you all there!

Erika & Ryan

Families in the Park Promo 2013 - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Last year’s family photo promo at Barrie’s Sunnidale Park called  Families in the Park was a great success we had 15 families join us in the park, some I still have yet to blog. Here is the Champagne family, like us they are world travellers, photo enthusiasts and over all a super fun family. These images are just an example of the fun family memories we can create for you!

Stay tuned to our blog for official Families in the Park dates but we are planning for the last week of May. Thank you to the Champagne Family for beging yourselves, and giving us the opportunity to photograph you all at this amazing time in your lives.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Families in the Park – Champagne Family - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

My muddy backyard tells me its Spring time, and that this is my last chance to post winter family photos. It feels like it has been a very long winter and I know that everyone is just dying to get outdoors in the sun. Before we officially say good by to winter; have a look through these hilarious winter family photos, one of our favorite family shoots of the year. I wish we could  photograph these guys all the time, they were so fun. I don’t think I stopped laughing the whole time. Muskoka is no longer just for summers, if you are a true cottager you party all year around down by the lake, frozen or not, around the camp fire, beers in hand. It’s not even a real party until everyone jumps in the canoe  *No lake required.

In the words of the Thompson family: Feel the rhythm  feel the rhyme, get on up, its bobsled time, Coooool Ruuunnnings!!!

Happy Spring Everyone! Thank you to the Thompson Clan for having us as your family photographers.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Winter Family Photos at the Cottage – Muskoka, Canada - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Chris & Anne Marie fell in love as kids, and then again just a few years ago. When they asked us to do something creative for their Toronto engagement photo shoot, we of course were game for anything they had in mind, but this idea they came up with was not the first thing that came to our minds. Actually Anne Marie and Chris knew all along what they wanted to do, and what they didn’t want for their engagement session. Couples who have known one another as long as Chris and Anne Marie, tend to have a unique outlook on relationships.

For their engagement photos they wanted to showcase the opposite of their real life relationship, and really stage scenes that would shock their friends and family. So the 4 of us came up with a storyline for a series of photos where Anne Marie and Chris would repeatedly try to kill one another in freak household accidents,and sneaky revenge plots. Only a couple who possesses a great deal of love and respect for one another could ‘execute’ such a shoot. You have to have a twisted sense of humour to enjoy these photos. For us, this shoot was so much fun, I am still laughing  as I remember us all squeezing into the bathroom with Ryan hugging the toilet to get one of the shots below. Well worth it!

To our nearly dead and nearly wed clients, thank you for such a fun shoot. Your wedding will be to die for!

Erika & Ryan

Disclaimer: All situations appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real situations or persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. No one was harmed in the making of these images. These images were made as a satire on marriage and may not be suitable for sensitive viewers.

Chris & Anne Marie’s Killer Engagement Session - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Last night Tara & Ryan came by to pick up their album and wedding image archive. It made us so happy to watch them spend time looking at each photo, reflecting on memories of the day, the details, the dancing, the mishaps and the emotional moments. The best part of all is that even though the wedding is over, the memories are living on. I love what our albums represent, it is the best of both worlds, a respectful, elegant, and meaningful collection of moments and things.

Congratulation Tara & Ryan! Thank you for choosing us to photograph your Barrie Wedding.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Priests post it note to remember what couples name to say during the ceremony.

This is the chauffer, I really liked him, he was very knowledgable about weddings and very helpful on the day. He even came and sat in to watch Tara & Ryan get married. I thought that was very sweet. He drives for Barrie Executive Limo.

How beautiful is this Barrie sky?! It actually looked this good, actually it looked more intense with color a few minutes after these photographs were taken. Barrie’s Southshore Centre has one of the nicest views of the city.

Father Daughter Dance at Barrie’s Southshore Centre.

Finally the last couples wedding portraits of the night. in front of Barrie’s gorgeous lakeshore.

Barrie, Ontario Wedding of Tara & Ryan - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

Cheers

Erika & & Ryan

In this photo below, Ryan’s little sister Alana is tracing Jackelyn’s baby bump in the sand.

We took in all the sites in P.E.I, the Dirt Shirt Factory, Avonlea and Green Gables.

These next few photos were talen on our day trip around Saint John, New Brunswick. Like true tourists we visited Reversing Falls, Irving Nature Park, and Martello Tower.

The gorgeous sunset over looking Confederation Bridge in P.E.I.

Cavendish, Prince Edward Island - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

So now without further adieu; Kristen & Taylor’s winter engagement! Congratulations guys! We can’t wait to see your wedding photos!

Cheers & Happy Valentine’s Day

Erika & Ryan

Here’s a pic of Luca in action!

Winter Engagement Session Rhododendron-Gardens - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

“We didn’t have it in our budget for a professional videographer, but one thing we did make sure of, is to have a fantastic photographer. Long before we had booked Erika and Ryan; an experienced and dynamic duo, I had been looking at photographs of weddings in Muskoka. I have to say that it is their photos of Windermere House that first got us interested in that particular venue. In actual fact, it probably wouldn’t matter where or what Erika and Ryan are photographing; all the photo’s they have on their website have a beautiful and emotive quality to them. A lightness that I wanted for our wedding. From the start, the emails we received were disarmingly friendly yet professional – I imagine that they were trying to gauge what sort of couple we are, and what sort of photo’s we wanted. They were definately quick to respond to emails, and paid attention to even the smallest details. On the day of the wedding, there was quite a big storm brewing. our ceremony took place under the cover or some angry-looking clouds (luckily with some peeks of sunshine). Immediately after the ceremony and a few brief photo’s, the wind whipped up and rain came down so quickly and heavily. Always on the ball, Erika and Ryan were able to find a few places for us to take our group photo’s (so we actually had a good variety of backgrounds), and when the rain eased up, we went down to the docks to take more shots. While they suggested and photographed a few ‘staged’ poses for us, they also took photo’s of those joyful in-between moments, when my husband and I were just playing around, being ourselves. These, I’ll always treasure. I had been worried that with the lack of sunshine and blue skies, that our photo’s might end up a little ‘dull’. Those fears were quickly eased when we received our photo’s from Erika and Ryan, not long after the wedding. I was so happy to see that the lighting was perfect. The photo’s were beautiful, with a journalistic style that sets this pair apart from others.”
Linda & Stewart

Congratulations Linda & Stew! Your wedding will be one we talk about for years to come with our future couples.

Erika & Ryan

The first photo in this set is a difference of 5-10 mins. After the ceremony the storm whipped in over Lake Rosseau. Notice that the before shot has an island in the background and the 2nd shot is just a white wall of rain.

Having rain on your wedding day can bring along some unexpected creativity. How perfect are these reflections?! Opportunities for shots like this don’t come up everyday.

This is probably our favorite series of photos from the day. Stew trying to get Linda to dance with him on the shaky, slippery dock.

A true Scotsman showing off his Sgian Dubh!

Muskoka Windermere House Wedding of Linda & Stewart - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

For this Muskoka engagement photo session we walked along the harbour near Grace and Speed heritage museum. We hiked up to the top of the rocky cliffs just across from the pedestrian boardwalk, and then wandered the winding paths, inlets, and lane ways throughout cottage country. Gravenhurst was definitely a great choice for these fall engagement photos.

Sophia & Evan brought along a couple of props, and just little things that would make their engagement photos more personalized. Sophia brought along a toy camera she brought just before they came up to Muskoka. This way they could capture a few fun photos of their first visit to our neck of the woods. They brought along their wedding bands to be photographed, and 3 different outfits, one casual, one dressy and one just for fun.

Planning details and props ahead of time with your photographer is a great idea. It makes for more personalized and meaningful images and gives everyone a chance to collaborate on ideas for photos. The collaboration is what makes the engagement session so much fun.

Thank you Sophia & Evan for choosing us to capture your engagement photos, and also for the super cute camera pen gift. We are going to sign all our important photography documents with it from now on Haha.

Congratulations!

Erika & Ryan

One of our favorite shots fromt he rocky cliffs in Gravehurst, Ontario.

Wedding bands from Tiffany’s in a perfect blue box.

Sophia is a chef, and brought a long these super cute Ms. & Mr. Delicious t-shirts. We love it when couples bring fun props that show off their personalities.

Our couples are so awesome! Sophia & Evan love Japanese anime (as do Ryan and I). Ryan had this sweet iPhone app. called Manga Camera. It allows you to take photos and then give you a selection of super awesome options to take your regular iPhone snap shots and turn them into Manga style (Japanese comic book themed.) Check out a few we shot of Sophia & Evan.

Muskoka Engagement of Sophia & Evan - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

We are so lucky to have so many amazing friends, and we really wanted to thank Luca (One of our company photographers) and owner of PicFoundry, who did all the printing for the panels of the booth, and also provided Ryan with the tools and garage to create the album drawer and the secret trap door in. Also Steve and Liz Johnston of Eventdecorator.com who did all the wood cutting for us. Truly the best friends we could ever ask for!

Thank you to everyone who helped build, assemble, print, inspire and to all who visited our booth at the show, it was an absolute pleasure.

Erika & Ryan

We wanted to create a number of promotional materials for couples to choose from. Giving them the chance to pick a postcard they liked, and therefore sending the message that we can cater to their individual unique personalities and style.

Our booth was 18 inches wide on each side and just under 6 feet tall. Each side with photos that blended to the corresponding color we chose, and faded from darker, bolder colours and images to lighter, softer tones.

Our favorite addition to the booth was a small drawer, big enough for a 10×10 inch wedding album. When couples lined up to see the albums they would simply slide out the drawer, and lay the book completely flat at the perfect viewing level.  While one couple would look at the albums, other couples would be looking at images on the iPad. The iPad’s on adjacent sides allowed for couples to swipe through images at their leisure. We prepared a gallery of images for each location we have photographed at in the last 2 years in the hopes that couples at the show would be looking to see images from their own wedding venues. There were 60 galleries to choose from.

We created a secret trap door on one side of the booth for us to keep all our promotional materials in and also the battery we powered the iPads from.

We chose to use some of the coloured squares to further our branding messages, testimonials from past couples, and quotes the represent the overal feeling of our photos and our style as a photography company.

More than anything, we wanted this mini booth to pack down fast. It takes us 10 minutes to pack the entire thing!

The top of our booth is a functioning light! We wanted our logo to be shining throughout the show. Ryan used a strip of LED lights along the inside of the booth, and then created an acrylic box for the top. We had our logo printed on clear vinyl by UCA Branding.

Each panel packs down flat, and the album drawer comes out. We strapped on some simple wheels, and bubble wrapped the printed sides of the panels to protect them as well dragged the booth to our car.

Our design in SketchUp diagram.

Our Wedding Trade Show Booth - © Rowell Photography - Wedding

We love to contrast shoots for the same couple in many ways. If your wedding is in the winter we love to do a summer or spring engagement shoot. If your wedding is in the summer we love to do a Fall or winter engagement shoot. This gives you variety that you wont get from just your wedding alone. Its nice to have different themes of photos hanging on the walls of your home, from your engagement to your honeymoon showing you together starting your married life.

In the hallway of our home, we have various canvases hanging on the walls from places we have traveled together. I often catch Ryan just looking at them for a few moments before going on his way again. I find myself reminiscing over them too. Thanks to the variety of photos we have so much more to look at around the home.

We are so happy with this collection of wedding photos taken in our hometown, its not often enough we get to shoot here and these photos make us feel happy when looking at them. Once the portrait session finished Erin and Derek were off to join friends and family for a very intimate wedding ceremony at one of Barrie’s new restaurants The North Restaurant.

Congratulations to Erin & Derek! Thank you for choosing us to photograph your wedding portraits, and braving the cold winter wind and snow for your Barrie wedding photos.

Cheers

Erika & Ryan

Erin & Derek enjoying the art at McLaren Art Centre in Barrie on their wedding day.

Barrie Wedding Photos at MacLaren Art Centre in the Winter - © Rowell Photography - Wedding