monni and kyle met six years ago while they were attending kwantlen university together. both were there on sport scholarships – he played for the men’s baseball team and she played for the women’s basketball team. their love for sport was what drew them together. they are an active couple and enjoy spending time together and with their families.

we began our day with the bride and her girls at their hotel in chemainus. monni had the most beautiful wedding gown! i loved all the detail in it!  their wedding ceremony was held at st. edward’s catholic parish in duncan, bc. for their formals, we went to the groom’s grandfather’s property in maplebay. while talking to his grandfather, i learned that his property was the original site where camp imadene was once located. it’s an amazing location and we were forever grateful that he allowed us to photograph the wedding party there.

congratulations monni and kyle! i wish you many years of joy, love and happiness! enjoy your honeymoon!

and thanks again shannon for coming over to shoot with me! you are the best second shooter, ev-ah!! love ya!

the simple, yet beautiful wedding bouquets were created by leaf and petal custom flowers, duncan, bc.

i love this next image! kids being kids! perfect for a wedding portrait, don’t you think?

their ceremony took place at st. peter’s parish in duncan, bc.  lindsay loves old fashioned, vintage things with a modern twist and designed her wedding with that in mind – everything from her shoes to her jewelry,  to using her Mom’s jug collection and other antique containers for the floral arrangements, which were all designed by the very talented jenny and vanessa of verbena floral design, victoria, bc. it was great meeting you both!

lindsay and peter chose to have thier reception at merridale estate cidery, one of my very favorite local places! it’s such an amazing venue for portraits! and as fate would have it, the rain stopped just long enough for us to get some ah-mazing portraits!  a huge thanks to my most favorite second shooter, the lovely and talanted shannon stevenson!

lindsay and peter, congratulations to you both! i wish you many many years of love and happiness! and i hope you are having an amazing time on your honeymoon… in PARIS!! how romantic! i just loved working with you both!

the wedding cakes were made by the pure vanilla bakery, oak bay, bc.  and they were delicious!

on august 1st, they celebrated their wedding ceremony at st. anne’s academy in victoria along with their family and closest friends.  on a side note, i was pleasantly surprised when i arrived at st. anne’s and  met the minister who would be marrying jaclyn and brad – it was the same minister who married my husband and i almost 15 years ago!  after the ceremony and garden reception, we headed to beacon hill park and and then to the ocean for some formal portraits before we made our way to the delta ocean pointe resort and spa for their wedding reception.  when jaclyn and brad decided to get married on august 1st, they had no idea that it would coincide with the victoria symphony splash in the inner harbour.  as a bonus, their evening was topped off with an amazing fireworks display! it just doesn’t get any better than that!

congratulations jaclyn and brad! it was such a pleasure meeting you both and i am thrilled to have had the honour of photographing your wedding day for you! i wish you both many, many years of love and happiness and cannot wait to meet your children one day – all 12 6 of them!

and a huge thank you to the fabulous shannon stevenson for second shooting with me and capturing this amazing shot of jaclyn and brad’s wedding at st. anne’s academy!

the beautiful bouquets were made by andrea and mary-jane of poppies, the island florist.  absolutely gorgeous!

this wedding is also featured in Real Weddings on The Wedding Chicks Blog – check it.

congratulations jacque and daryl! thank you for allowing me to capture your wedding memories!

jim and catherine met through mutual friends about 5 years ago. at that time, jim’s wife had been diagnosed with cancer and he was seeking help thru others. about a year later, after his wife had lost her battle, he began to ‘notice’ catherine and wanted to know more so he asked her out for a cup of tea. both were nervous but enjoyed each other’s laughter and decided to visit again soon and share more tea. over the next few months, catherine also shared her own story with jim – family loss thru divorce.

in their early discussions, both agreed that friendship was their priority. however, it wasn’t long before it turned into much more. weekends became too short. holidays together were planned and enjoyed. and then they decided to take a big step forward and began living together. they became an informal couple and decided to call each other companions – always reminding themselves we were friends first. they purchased a farm house, bought some cultivating equipment and seeded their first garden. there were successes and failures in the garden but they knew, regardless of the outcome, the plan was right for them. omnivore acres was alive and so was their love for each other.

this fall, while discussing birthday presents for each other, they soon agreed to celebrate more than just their birthdays. they decided to formalize their love and life together through marriage and share the same last name. rings were made and a private ceremony was planned for december 28, 2009 at the oswego hotel, victoria, b.c., with only witnesses present.

that’s when catherine contacted me. they attended a wedding that i photographed earlier this year and loved my work and asked if i was available to capture them exchanging their vows.  i am so honoured that they asked me to be a part of their special day. and i love that i am able to help them share the love and joy captured with the images below with all their family and friends around the world.

they are now more than friends, companions, partners and lovers – they are jim and catherine gowans. congratulations to you both.

back in september, i took the ferry to vancouver for the day to second shoot a wedding with my good friend and totally awesome photographer shannon stevenson from lucy lime studios. it was a beautiful day with an amazing couple. these are a few of my images from the day.

enjoy!

a couple of weekends ago, i got to go to vancouver to be second shooter at a wedding with my good friend and fellow photographer shannon, of lucy lime studios. i had a blast shooting with her, as i always do! it was a long day, filled with beautiful people, lots of love and good times had by all.

here are a few of the images i captured throughout the day. you can go and check out shannon’s blog to see a picture of me in action getting this first shot. (and, btw, no – that’s not my beer – someone must have just set it there without me noticing….. ) {snicker, snicker}

shannon found the coolest location to do all the fun wedding party shots! just look at the awesome old barn. i love how the bridesmaids are fussing over the bride to make sure everything is perfect for her pictures! love it! and the lighting that afternoon was AMAZING!!  i always love me a little  sun flare!!