My favourite Engagement Session Locations

Picking a location for your engagement session can be a little overwhelming because there are so many beautiful spots! Here are some of my favourite locations that I know will provide you with beautiful backdrops for your engagement photos!

Dundurn Castle

Hamilton Ontario

Dundurn Castle is a stunningly grand location that does not require a permit for engagement sessions! There is a wonderful variety of green space and architecture and the property is big enough that even on a busier day it is easy to take pictures in a way to make it look like you are the only two there! An added bonus is that parking is plentiful and the parking lot offers an easy meeting spot!

Bonnieheath Estate Lavender

Farm & Winery

Waterford, Ontario

Bonnieheath Lavender farm is a beautiful property! It doesn’t have a ton of variety, but it is perfect if you want to curate a specific look surrounding their lavender fields. Sessions need to be booked with the farm require a permit and are limited to when lavender is in season.

University of Toronto

Toronto, Ontario

The University of Toronto is a photographer’s dream! It has a large variety of architecture, pathways, green space and flowers. It is a little splash of Europe in an otherwise modern looking city. Permit’s are required for Weddings but I find they don’t ask for permits for engagement sessions unless you wish to take photos inside some of the buildings. With any downtown location I always suggest arriving a little early in order to park. There is a small parking lot located on the corner of Hoskin Ave and Tower rd which can double as a meeting location. Weekdays tend to be a little calmer when the students are in classes.

Niagara Botanical Gardens

Niagara Falls, Ontario

Niagara’s Botanical Gardens is the perfect location if you love greenery and florals. From topiaries, rose gardens, treelined pathways, ponds, and a quaint ivy covered building this location gives a great deal of variety and does not require a permit. There is ample parking but be prepared to pay for parking.

Scotsdale Farm

Georgetown, Ontario

Scotsdale Farm is a favourite for many of my fellow photographers! The location has beautiful rolling hills, a long treelined entrance, quaint heritage buildings, a weathered barn and a lovely large porch if you need a little shelter from poor weather. There is a parking lot located at the bottom of the driveway which is the ideal place to meet. If that parking lot is full there is another at the top near the entrance but be warned it is a bit of a walk and it might be better to arrive early and wait for a space to open up in the lower parking lot. The parking lots tend to fill up quickly on weekends. There is no permit for Scotsdale but they do ask for donations which go towards the upkeep of the property.

Scarborough Bluffs

Scarborough, Ontario

Scarborough Bluffs is a breathtaking location that looks like it should be located in California, not Ontario. With the curvied beach and high cliff edge it makes a mesmerizing backdrop. The location is tucked away from the parking lot and requires a short walk so be prepared to bring an extra pair of shoes instead of your heels. This location while beautiful has recently had some issues due to sections being roped off due to falling rocks. While there are ways around having the ropes in your images, it does limit the beach availability and if you go on a weekend you might be bumping shoulders with other photographers and couples to get the perfect shot. There is no permit required to take pictures here.

Alexander Muir Memorial Gardens

Toronto, Ontario

Alexander Muir Gardens is a lovely, tucked away spot in Toronto. It requires a permit but it’s beautiful Parisian looking staircases make it all worth it! I love locations that have a mixture of stone and foliage! There is ample parking and it is a short walk to the location!

Charles Daley Park

Jordan, Ontario

Charles Daley Park is a small beach front in Niagara. It has a lovely patch of beach, a pond and beautifully tall bullrushes. This location can be busier with beechgoers and picnickers on the weekends but it is lovely for a warm, summer ,weekday evening. There is no permit required to take pictures here.

Cherry Beach

Toronto, Ontario

Cherry Beach is a great location if you are looking for a bit of a natural space within Toronto. It has a great wooded area, a nice beach, drooping willow trees as well as a dog park if you wish to bring your four legged friend! There is a large parking lot but make sure to arrive a little early to beat the beach goers if you wish to visit on a weekend! There is no permit required to take pictures here.

WHY I LOVE INTIMATE WEDDINGS!

With the Corona Virus changing the wedding industry, I thought it would be a good idea to share why I love intimate weddings! So many couples are having to make the hard decision of postponing their weddings or severely cutting down on their guest lists. These decisions can be extremely difficult but there are always silver linings to every situation and here are some of the amazing reasons why having a more intimate wedding could be the best decision you make!

LESS STRESS TO PLAN

Having a more intimate wedding can be far less stressful to plan. With a smaller wedding all of the hours of planning get reduced because there is less to coordinate. You don’t have to worry about as many invitations getting lost in the mail or an overload of meal choices and dietary restrictions. You spend less time on seating arrangements and worrying about whether each table will get along, and there are far fewer guests who could possibly arrive late and delay your ceremony. There are always so many more factors that can go wrong when you are trying to organize large groups of people and having a smaller wedding eliminates a lot of those factors.

LESS STRESS ON THE DAY

Having a smaller guest count also means less time trying to see every guest to give them the attention they deserve. Having a large guest count can be extremely overwhelming on the day. One of the things I constantly hear from brides is “I am honestly so exhausted.” When you have a large wedding you end up spreading yourself extremely thin. You want to spend time with everyone, or at the very least say hi and thank them for coming, but with 150 + people this can take up a huge portion of your cocktail hour and reception. I often see couples, blank faced and zoned out, trying to get through large receiving lines or going table to table to say hi to everyone. Your wedding is a long day and there is very little time to relax and soak it all in. Having a smaller guest count greatly increases the time you can spend having meaningful conversations with your friends and loved ones. You will also remember the day far better because you are not overwhelmed!

LESS FAMILY STRESS

One of the more common stress factors is accommodating family guest requests. I cannot count on my hands the number of times couples have said to me “I don’t even know half of these people.” Finally there is a reason to have a small, intimate wedding that your family can’t be mad at you for. The Government has restricted large gatherings, what can you do? To help satisfy your familys’ desires to have their friends and distant relatives there, maybe compromise with a live stream of the wedding so they can still share your day with those they wished to invite.

BUDGET BUDGET BUDGET!

Right now budget is heavy on a lot of couple’s minds as postponements often come with added costs. One of the best ways to not only stay on budget, but save on your budget is to have a more intimate wedding. The largest wedding costs are typically the venue, food, flowers, and alcohol. All of these factors are very dependant on guest list size! The less people you have, the less food and alcohol is consumed and the less flowers you need to decorate tables. You can also now look at a venue that accommodates small weddings if you don’t wish to proceed with the hall you booked. You can even have your wedding on a family property! Having a more intimate wedding can also help you prepare for the future, which might look a little different than what we all expected. You might be able to put more money away for a down payment on a house, or start financially preparing to welcome children into your home. You might even need to take some time to figure out new job security and avoiding a large wedding bill could reduce some of that stress. A smaller wedding can help with all of these financial burdens.

I am sure you are thinking, it is very easy to preach the idea of small weddings with everything currently happening around us, but I have always been a huge fan of intimate weddings! My fiancé and I are actually still hoping that our under 40 wedding will be able to proceed this fall. After 8 years in the industry I can honestly say some of the happiest couples I have seen are those who chose to spend their wedding with their closest family and friends. They were much more relaxed and able to soak in the day which is why I was so set on having a small wedding. For those who are anxiously awaiting the dance floor, remember, the party is one part of a wedding and it doesn’t necessarily have to be on the same day! My fiancé and I decided we wanted a small, primarily family, wedding, but we plan on having a party later with our friends to celebrate this huge life step. This way we get the best of both worlds!

I hope this post has inspired everyone to look at intimate weddings in a more positive way! I truly don’t think you will be disappointed!

PS, All of these images are from a wedding I photographed 3 years ago where I was present for 3 hours and the guest list included only 6 people! Not only did they have a small wedding, but it also rained and these two were the happiest, most in love couple I have seen in a long time! :)

Styling Your Engagement Session

         Currently I am booking a lot of engagement sessions and I find my couples asking a plethora of questions regarding locations and how they should "style" their engagement shoot. Figuring out what looks best on camera can be challenging and so today I am going begin a series of posts over the next few weeks to give some helpful insight in regards to clothing, make-up & Hair, props, locations, time of day to book and how to get past the photo jitters. 

Today’s topic of discussion is Clothing

One of my most frequently asked questions is what should I wear? Now while it is difficult for me to give very specific tips on what you should wear (because I don't know what is in your closet) I can give some broader advice to help you find that specific outfit that will look fantastic in your photos. 

Dress to Impress!

Wear something that makes you feel fantastic! Dressing up a little not only makes you feel classy it also tends to give you a little more confidence in your photos. If you feel you look your best that confidence will definitely read on camera. Dressing up also makes photos look more chic and well designed. I personally love it when couples wear more formal wear!

Make sure you fit the season.

Dress season appropriate so you don't feel too hot or too cold on the day. If you feel uncomfortable it typically changes how you act as well as your posture. You also want to avoid being covered in goose bumps or sweat/shine. All this being said, if you are really determined to wear a dress even though it is a little too chilly out, I am always ready to take breaks throughout the shoot for you to warm up in order to get the look you have your heart set on.

Neutral tones yay! Busy Patterns Nay!

One of my most common suggestions is to wear neutral tones and to avoid a lot of pattern. If you do want to have a patterned dress or dress shirt, try to have your partner wear solid colours so the photo doesn't look too busy. When is comes to colour and patterns in photography, I always find less is more!

Budgeting Is Easy When You Know The Numbers!

Getting engaged has really opened up my eyes to what it is like to be a customer as opposed to the business owner and one of the things that I have found difficult to wrap my head around is the lack of transparency when it comes to prices. It is really hard to create a budget and one that you can stick to if you don't have solid numbers to work with. Often I see websites that read "contact for pricing" or "packages starting at $xxxx.xx", and even when you do contact that person getting a solid quote can be like pulling teeth. This is why I made my prices available to see. I can create custom packages if you don't see one you like, but even with custom packages it is easy to figure out what the price will most likely be based on my website. For example, If you like a package that includes an engagement session, but you don't need the engagement session, you can look at my engagement package prices and subtract that price from the wedding package you like and know what the final total will be. Money is tricky and emotional but knowing you have solid numbers makes the decision more mathematical and less daunting. Every client deserves to know how much your services are going to be and they shouldn't have to deal with undisclosed costs down the road. Attached is a link to my price page so you can see and plan your photography investment. http://www.livishaw.com/prices/

This year's weddings have been so beautiful!

Here are a few sneak peaks from our wedding season so far!