Wedding Trends

So, maybe now you are engaged and trying to figure out what your wedding will look like in your mind's eye...

Every year seems to have its quirks for trends and themes that influence the style
for the year. Last year we saw an emergence of interest in more environmentally sound event practices. Makes sense that this trend will be even stronger this year. Style and green = win/win!

Check out 2008 trends for a good article that may give you some ideas about dresses, fashion and style trends that you could use as a starting off point for your wedding.

If you have some great tips, please share them!

Longest-meeting-ever!

Margaret+Steve



On Friday, Wedding & Event planner Auli Parviainen (who is now a good friend) introduced me to Margaret and Steve, a couple from Chicago vacationing in Whistler while planning their wedding there in July.

We met at the Dublin Gate Pub in the Pan Pacific Hotel at 3:30pm. Laughter and tall tales ensued and before you know it (and 4 pints of Guinness later), it was 10 pm. As a rule, I like to keep meetings to one hour maximum when I show my portfolio. These two, and Auli, are just too much fun to stop, though!!

Apparently, Auli performed the infamous walk of shame ... she walked/weaved her way through the Village in her snowboard boots at midnight.... at least you weren't in ski boots, Auli. Ouch, I know what THAT feels like. ;-)

Needless to say, I'm looking forward to photographing Margaret and Steve's Wedding on top of Whistler Mountain in the Summer. Hope you enjoyed BC, guys. And thanks so much for making my job the best in the WORLD.
See you soon!

Check out the Mini Slide Show

WED Bridal Opening

~WED Bridal Salon~ Beautiful Gowns @ 3882 Main Street, Vancouver







On Thursday evening, many of the Shining Stars of the Wedding Scene gathered to celebrate the opening of WED Bridal at the Salon on 3882 Main Street in Vancouver. The Owners, Jo-Anne and Gemma put on a great party!

My wife Regina and I were lucky to have a few hours to attend. Our friends Lorena and Ian Chatwell {check out Lorena's great workout wear and lifestyle clothing} played Auntie and Uncle to our little sweetie Saphira, so we could have a night out and drink some wine with friends old and new.

The Gowns at this stylishly minimalist store are just GORGEOUS and can be customized to reflect the tastes of any discerning Bride.

Left to Right in the photo with the dresses are some amazingly talented people:

Photographers Leanne Pedersen,
Lynn Jaksa, Erin Gilmore, Miranda and Reilly Lievers, Wedding and Event Planner Tanya Peters, Photographer Camille Bensler and my LOVELY wife, Regina Noppe.

Some more talented friends that left before I took out my camera that I want to give a shout out to, are: Wedding and Event Planners Sarah Shore and Tara Thorp of Dreamgroup, and Photographers Angela Hubbard and Tobyn Ross.

There are several people I've forgotten but we have to leave to go to our friends Camila and Jason Parks' Welcome Home Party (from Brazil) in Burnaby.

Thanks again, Jo-Anne and Gemma, we wish continued Success!

Check out my Mini Slide Show

Elaine+David

One day a beautiful woman from Brazil met a handsome man from Canada.....

And now Elaine and David are married! Their wedding was lots of fun- a great party while cruising around Burrard Inlet.

Check out the mini slideshow to see some highlights from their wedding.

Congratulations, Elaine and David. You are both such wonderful people and deserve all the best in life!

Baby Connor

My dear friends Linda and Mike had a special visitor arrive into their lives recently. He is a beautiful baby boy and they are going to make wonderful parents!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Charles+Karina




My wedding Season 2007 ended on December 31st. I photographed a wedding until 8pm and then headed to Northvan to ring it in with friends afterwards...

As a start to 2008, one of the cool things was receiving this email from my friend Carla today. She was writing about her brother's wedding on New year's eve at Brew Creek Lodge in Whistler. What an awesome setting tucked away in the forest!

Thanks, Carla and Pius, for referring me to Karina and Charles for their wedding. They are great people and I enjoyed myself immensely (and it was great to see you both)!

Letters like this make my day...errrr, year! :-)


"thanks so much brian ... and we were also thrilled to see you "in action" on new years ... everyone was so impressed with your professionalism and energy (and practical jokes ... mostly charles ;) .. cant wait to see the pictures ... thanks again for making the day even better ... karina was very happy !!"

So, a little story, regarding the "practical jokes"...

You see, Karina, the bride, has a reputation for being serious about planning. Apparently she is the Queen of Lists and Spreadsheets. I didn't actually see ALL of them, but there were purported to be many! And, she was um... a bit anxious about everything going "as planned".

After photographing K & the Girls getting ready, I went to the lovely chapel next door to get ready to photograph the ceremony. There was Charles, at the top of the aisle with his groomsmen, his back to a crackling fire, waiting for his bride to arrive. The place was packed. And one could palpably feel the anticipation in the room. So, I walked up to Charles and apologetically told him that Karina had had an anxiety attack! And wouldn't be there for at least half an hour.

Silence. Dead Silence.

Now, he didn't know that this was wholly untrue, and that Karina was upstairs actually laughing (and crying) with her girlfriends... AND totally ready to go. :-)

Heh Heh.

Omigawd, the look on Charles' face was PRICELESS!

He looked at me as though he could believe me, but maybe, just maybe, my deadpan delivery was suspect.....

He looked very relieved when I told him the truth!

A minute later, Karina arrived, radiantly gorgeous, while my friend (and her brother-in-law) Pius played his guitar beautifully.

At the end of the night, Tammy, one of Karina's best friends and a bridesmaid, told me I really should change my motto from "Images Beyond Your Expectations" to:
"Images Beyond Your Spreadsheets".

Perfect. And I think they will be.... :-)

Happy New Year to Everyone!

Thinking back about 2007

Whoa.

What a year.

So much has changed! Both blessings and challenges...

Got me a WIFE.
Moved to a big new HOUSE in the hills.
Then we had a BABY (to fill up the HOUSE).
So, had to get a MINIVAN (to carry the BABY stuff).
Got a big new CAMERA (to take pictures of the BABY).
And lots more SOFTWARE (to make them look purdy).
HARDWARE (to store & deal with all that crazy data).
Made a new WEBSITE.
And started to BLOG. ;-)

Looking back on the past year, I can reflect on all the changes. The best part was all about people. Firstly, our lovely child, Saphira and her slowly emerging personality. My wife and I have had our challenges starting our lives together and becoming a family so quickly. It really is an amazing feeling loving someone so much and knowing you can count on each other!

I'm so thankful to know all the wonderful couples and their friends and families that I wouldn't ever have met, were I not a professional photographer. It is so cool to walk into the lives of virtual strangers and be treated like a trusted friend. By the end of the day, I feel like we know each other more than would have been possible in any other circumstance in such a short time. So many new friendships. This is the biggest blessing in my career and pleases me so much!

To all my cherished clients, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for enriching my life with your love and sparkling personalities. For supporting me in my ever-evolving career as an artist, I owe you a deep debt of gratitude!