On a mild November day, I photographed Tara&Derek’s wedding with my close friend and fellow photographer Vicki Rivers.

I arrived at the Tara’s sisters house in the morning and was greeted by the usual pre-wedding chaos; hair spray flying and Christmas music playing (..in November??!) So escaped upstairs for a few minutes to get some detail shots.

During our pre-wedding consultations Tara asked me to capture this special photo of her niece.

Tara’s mother passed away when she was young, and subsequently Tara and her sister, Kelly, grew up very close. It was just the two sisters in the room while she was getting dressed, it was a sweet moment. Kelly’s hands shook while she was doing up her sisters dress, nerves&excitement that you would expect from the mother of the bride.

When I met with Tara before the wedding, I could tell how much she loved her three beautiful Sheltie’s. She brought the dogs to her sisters house so I could capture a few photos of her babies on her wedding day. A lot of Brides I’ve photographed worry about their dress getting dirty or ripped throughout the day, but not Tara, she let her dogs to sit on her dress – what a trooper!

After photographing the guys in the morning, Vicki met up with me at the church. While waiting at the church Tara told us about how much Derek loves hockey and her surprise for him – a hockey glove, instead of a pillow, for the ring barrier to walk up the aisle with!

Throughout the day Tara&Derek had photos and little reminders of their relatives who had passed away so they could be there in spirit to share the day. After much laughing – and spilt sand – Tara&Derek’s unity sand was complete.

We did the formal photos at Oak Hall in Niagara Falls, a great venue! [I’m a sucker for old buildings!]

It’s a very special day for the Bride&Groom and often times they don’t have any alone time.  Throughout the day I like to give the Bride&Groom a little time  to relax, talk to each other and just enjoy the moment.  This also gives me the opportunity to capture some completely natural shots like these two.

I wish Tara&Derek all the best with many years of happiness.

View some Behind the Scenes images from Tara&Derek’s wedding!