Distillery District Winter Wedding

Last week I wrote about the beautiful engagement shoot my former bride Kim had last Fall so I figured it only right to share with you some of her gorgeous wedding pics from her Winter Wedding in Distillery District this past December!

Distillery District is always a popular destination for Toronto brides as it's one of the few places in the city that captures a sort of old world feel w/ it's cobblestone paths and brick buildings while still being very centrally located in the city!

Christmas time can be an especially fun time in Distillery District as it's also when they host their very popular Christmas Market.  This can be good and bad of course for weddings.  It can make for some very crowded and difficult picture moments but I have to hand it to Caitlin Free she did an amazing job with that!  In fact to see more pictures from Kim's wedding check out Caitlin's blog where she features lots of outdoor shots.  I really love how Kim worked her love of nature into her bouquet and wedding decorations.  It all had a very earthy and woodsy feel which was perfect for a Winter Wedding!

As I mentioned before Kim was a very natural bride and I actually went even more natural on the wedding day (as per her request).  I kept the eye makeup very light using only soft pink shadows and smudged brown liner.  I was able to convince her in the end to go w/ a few false individual lashes...thankfully...didn't want her bridesmaids outshining her lol ;)  We stuck w/ the airbrush foundation which really did create a flawless, light and airy canvas and covered up all the natural redness in her skin.  I love the soft, flushed glow on her cheeks and natural nude/pink lip.

I didn't do the hair for Kim but I did handle all the bridesmaids' makeup and my team member Becca did the bridemaids' hair.  Really fun group and a great bunch to spend a nice Dec. Sat morning with.  I really love the pics Caitlin took...seriously check out her blogpost...I told her she should submit them somewhere lol!

Really Great Pics of the Bridesmaids!

Perfect "Canadian" Engagement Shoot

I've mentioned before I think engagement shoots are a really important part of the whole wedding process.  I know a lot of couples don't see the value or importance of the added cost but I often explain it as a "practice run" before the wedding day.

Most ppl aren't comfortable or "naturals" in front of the camera so it allows them to practice and get a feel for what it's going to be like on the wedding day...and it's typically a lot more intimate and less chaotic than the wedding day so that can be good too!

Plus it allows the couple to get to know the photographer and vice versa.  You guys get to feel comfortable w/ each others styles/personalities and you (as the couple) get to see what works for you in posing and what you might what to talk to your photographer about or change up for the wedding day.

I also think it's really important when planning an engagement shoot to try to capture the essence of you as a couple.  If you like the outdoors incorporate that into the shoot, if you're big on city life and that sort of thing do a cityscape shoot...whatever it is it should try to capture your personalities.

Hair and makeup are of course an important element of the shoot too.  Now that doesn't mean every bride should get their hair and makeup done for the shoot but if it's within their budget I'd definitely recommend it as I find it really worth it.

For my one bride Kim who did her engagement shoot in the Fall she was able to do her makeup trial before her engagement shoot.  Now this doesn't always work out b/c of scheduling but it did on this day.  I'm really glad it did too b/c she really got to put the trial to good use and I in turn got some gorgeous engagement shoot pics to show you guys!

Just like getting use to the photographer and how you look in front of the camera seeing the makeup in person and seeing the makeup on camera can often take some getting use to.  Kim was a NO MAKEUP person so any makeup pretty much felt like a lot to her.  She actually thought the makeup in her engagement photos was too much...I'm pretty sure you'll disagree but this often happens with brides who aren't use to makeup.  I think brides that don't normally wear makeup will find it even more useful to hire a makeup artist for their engagement shoots than brides that do wear makeup b/c they'll make sure they look fresh and polished for their pics at a level they probably wouldn't be able to do on their own since they don't know how to do makeup at all lol...let alone for professional pictures!

As mentioned before Kim is a very "natural" girl so it only made sense for her and her (now husband) Kyle to get back to nature for the engagement shoot.  They did their shoot in the woods and on a lake in a canoe and the pictures by Caitlin Free are just gorgeous!

As mentioned before for Kim's makeup I kept it super natural and soft w/ a very natural brown/cream shadow combination, a flushed cheek and a soft nude lip.  I used airbrush foundation which was great for evening out Kim's naturally reddish complexion but still keeping it looking flawless and lightweight!

I think you'll agree with me kind of impossible to say this is "too much makeup" lol...I love these pics and I think they look natural and gorgeous and really capture the couple beautifully!

Love this shot!