Montreal Wedding Photographers’ Favourite Photos of 2017
Photo – Steve Gerrard Photography
We are excited to share with you some of Montreal wedding photographers’ favourite photos from the past 12 months. The city has some of the best wedding photographers around. Award-winning, creative, talented photographers, each with a very individual style and their own viewpoint on telling the story of a wedding day.
It’s a cliche to say that the wedding photos will be the only thing you have left once the wedding day is over. It’s not really true either. You’ll have each other, you’ll have some nice new rings and you’ll have the memories. But memories fade over the years and your wedding photos will be something that increases in value as the years pass by.
Every couple is different and every wedding is unique. Maybe you’re looking for a wedding photographer that will make you look like a model in every picture. You might be looking for someone who is skilled at taking beautiful photographs of you and your family that will be framed on the wall. A growing trend is for a very relaxed approach to photography where the photographer spends the day documenting moments in a natural yet artistic way rather than directing and staging photos. This is often an area where wedding photographers can really show their skills behind a camera, capturing moments from a wedding creatively without telling people where to stand or what to do.
Your wedding photos should bring back not just the memories of your wedding day, but also the emotions and the uniqueness of the event. A good wedding photographer will deliver a set of images that will transport you back in time every time you look through your wedding photos.
Here at MTL Wedding Blog, we are always on the lookout for wedding photography that stops us in our tracks. It may be an epic portrait of a bride and groom or it may be an image filled with genuine emotion. Sometimes it’s something hilarious that a photographer was able to capture in amongst the craziness of a wedding day.
We asked a selection of Montreal’s best wedding photographers to share one photo from the past year that they really love. The photos that came back are as varied and unique as the photographers themselves.
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Steve Gerrard
Steve is a Brit who moved to Montreal in 2014 and has been shooting weddings all over the world for over ten years. He was voted Best Wedding Photographer by the readers of Perfect Wedding magazine and says his style is “style is modern, creative, relaxed and natural – no cliches, just unique images every time.”
“This photo was from Helen & Marcus’ wedding in October and I love how happy and relaxed they both look in the picture. It also shows off the tipi and lights that they had for their wedding reception. The sun hadn’t long gone down so there was still that blue glow in the sky behind them, which I love. Their wedding was exactly the kind of wedding I love to photograph – relaxed, stylish and so much fun. It was all about having an amazing day with their favourite people and I loved documenting it all for them”
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Avant Garde Studio
Avant Garde Studio – Instagram
Adeline is an award-winning documentary photographer from Avant Garde Studio based in Montreal and captures life events around the world.
“I share a couple photo that I love and mostly because of my subjects. A beautiful couple, just married, in love and very tender to each other. This moment was captured during their photo session right after the ceremony, a moment of happiness, excitement and complicity they shared together.
The bride wore a beautiful long veil and the wind was so friendly on that day 🙂 I couldn’t resist when I saw the flying movement of the veil. Finally, but not less important, I absolutely love black and white photography!!!”
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Prizma Productions
Prizma Productions – Instagram
Prizma Productions is run by Vatche “Vick” Jabarian, a Montreal-based wedding photographer, husband and father who says he is “endlessly inspired by my beautiful family and the stunning imagery that surrounds us. For most of my life, I’ve felt compelled to create artistic representations of the meaningful moments I never wanted to forget.”
“I like this picture especially in black and white, cause it’s in the moment and the couple is enjoying a quiet moment, with a genuine smile, approaching each other, full of love.”
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James Correia
James tells us that, for him, from the very start weddings have meant something different to him. “It wasn’t about the grandiose events, the pretty details, or the elaborate parties. It was always about emotions. Weddings are bursting at the seams with raw emotions. Laughter, tears of joy, unrestrained energy. These are the photos you will cherish. Not epic posed shot. That’s why I love photographing weddings. That’s why I feel every wedding is different and a new experience.
This photo might not mean much to someone who wasn’t at this wedding, but it means everything to those who were. This ceremony within the trees was full of tears from start to finish. Not just the bride, but every guest in the intimate 40 person crowd. This single tear, spotlit through the surrounding leaves, represented it all.”
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Emilie Olson
Emilie is a Montreal based wedding, lifestyle and event photographer, which she explains, “translates to real people and important days in their lives. I would hope my couples remember the day through their photos with the same intensity that they remember thinking back on it; with the addition of some unique surprises. My greatest love for the work is what we catch unexpectedly. Almost every one of my favourite photos is unplanned. The brilliance is in the details, you simply can’t plan for them all.
This is one of the reasons I love this particular photo. It happened quickly, after wrapping up a session in the room. Before leaving I suggested where the couple stand and the outcome is not what any of us expected. Occasionally ideas don’t pan out, but in many cases they do – so, we always need to play and experiment as photographers.”
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Studio Baron
Valerie Baron has been a Montreal wedding photographer for nearly 10 years. “I am so lucky that I get to do what I love with people that become more than clients, they become friends and lifelong connections. I have been privileged to capture so many special days and see people grow into families and create a future that’s right for them. I’ll admit I’m a romantic and can still be caught crying while shooting (don’t worry, there’s autofocus, LOL). It really all comes down to caring about the people that invite me into their lives to capture one of the biggest moments and for that, I say thank you.
It was nearly impossible for me to choose my favourite image, so I chose one that I love and that makes me feel great, especially on this cold winter day. For me, this photo is universal. It could be anyone, and so easy to picture yourself on that sunny afternoon, barefoot allergy with your shoes tossed aside, just married with your wedding rings glinting in the sunlight, your toes in the soft green grass and the water shimmering behind you. It gives me the feels as I look at it and imagine all the times she goes on her tiptoes to reach up to the man she loves. This photo for me is also lovely because it represents so much of how I photograph. I find the little moments, the details and make capture allow them to reveal the special moment that’s happening in an elegant way.”
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Brent Calis
Brent describes himself as a Montréal-based Canadian photographer/ opera singer/ salsa dance fanatic that tries to convey his passion, creativity and energy through every picture he takes. “I combine my background in the performing arts with photography, creating modern, heartwarming and inspiring portraits of life, love and leisure. My goal is to create something that your children can look at when they are older. Their children’s children, and even further down the line.”
He tells us he almost didn’t take this photo! “Most of my best work are those kinds of shots where I put my camera to my face and take a shot just cuz. Not because I should… but because it’s a moment where people are concentrating on something different than being in a photo. They are focused on getting across the street.”
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Yannick Khong
Yannick explains, “I enjoy making cinematic shots that stand the test of time captured in a situation where obsessive technical and artistic research are blended with a dose of “why not” risk.
This photograph remains one of my favourites of the year. I remember that wedding to be the prettiest I’ve shot. The entire day went very well, all the important shots were done and done in the box. After enjoying a few party snaps with the clients. I took a walk to enjoy the success of my day and saw the opportunity to shoot a long exposure of the vineyard as a final conclusion shot to end the album on. After marvelling at the results, I ran back to the couple and asked them to stand still for a few seconds. All agreed it was worth it.”
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Genero Photo
Marie-Christine Genero tells us that “coming from a medical background (I used to be a neurology technologist), I really enjoy spending time with people. Different kinds of people. And I love adapting the way I interact with them based on their personality, what they are going through, etc.
When I decided to change careers and become a photographer, I knew weddings were the perfect niche for me. It involved spending full days when an array of people: from the emotional dad to the stressed-out bride, and even crazy partying guests! Client connection is, to me, the most important aspect of my job. I always remind my potential couples that they need to feel as if I am their friend, hanging out with them, but with the mandate of documenting one of the most important days of their lives. Having this close relationship will allow them to feel more comfortable in front of the camera, and will also keep my excitement and motivation to work up and running. The long, hard, 10-12 hour days are oh-so-worth-it when I am able to go home after giving the couple a big (yet sweaty) hug goodbye.”
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Tim Chin
Tim describes himself as a husband, a father and a photographer. “I am a collector of moments,” he says.
“While the bulk of my work is photographing weddings, my favourite images of this past year come from our family trip out east to Newfoundland. I believe when we make photographs, they return us back to those places, experiences, feelings and people. They remind us of who we were at that time and can give us hints of who we will be. They become our time machines.
This image was made at Cape Spear, the easternmost point in North America. This was towards the end of our two-week tour of the Island, and as we were descending to leave, the light came out to illuminate the boardwalk pathway down, and the textures of the landscape. My family are my most important people, and much of my understanding of life comes from watching my kids put one foot in front of the other. This image brings me back to our adventures together but also excites me for the adventures to come.”
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Isabella Rosa
Isabella is a well-known wedding and portrait photographer and, in the past, worked under the brand Ella Photography.
“I’m a photographer just like everyone else on this list. I’m a traveller and love to go on adventures with my couples to capture the emotion and the “behind-the-scenes” of people’s lives.
Life…. to me… is True Beauty. That’s what I want to show by my photography. I’ve never worked with models… only with people that were very uncomfortable in front of the camera, just like you. My goal is to show you, with my camera, that the life that you own every day, is already amazing. You don’t need to change anything at all.
This photo is one of my favourites from 2017. We were rushing through a VERY hectic wedding day in Italy and we got star struck (quite literally) by this unbelievable sunset by the beach. It was a good reminder that it’s important to STOP and appreciate the little things… especially on days like your wedding!”
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Maurizio Solis
Maurizio is a Mexican photographer who grew up surrounded by colours, joy, music, passion and salsa dancing. He understands deep connections and makes colourful images out of them.
“This photo from Suha and Sean´s wedding shows my style, bold and surreal. I love it because there is an unknown story behind it and it makes the viewer think. They love it because they look amazing and it’s like no other wedding photo they’ve ever seen.”
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Ashley MacPhee
Ashley says of her photo, “Deepti and Scott were hoping for sunshine on their wedding day and chose the Forest & Stream Club to provide the perfect backdrop. Only, rain was imminent. Lots of it!
Still wanting an outdoor ceremony, they rented a beautiful tent. I wanted to make sure we made it special so while all their guests were inside eating away I took them to the tent to get some photos inside. What makes this moment extra special is I asked them what their wedding song was, put it on my phone and here you see them having their first dance together as husband and wife. After their wedding day, Deepti told me that this was her favorite moment of the entire day. And because of that, it’s mine too.”
Thanks to all the photographers for their stunning images.
If you’re searching for a wedding photographer, we suggest taking your time to find one that is going to give you photographs you’ll treasure for a lifetime and document your wedding day in a style that reflects you as a couple.
With wedding photography, there are no re-shoots!
