Northview Golf Course wedding showcase
Last year, Jelger and I had the pleasure of photographing Anca and Elis's wedding at the Northview Golf and Country Club. When Northview's fabulous event coordinator Lisa asked us to be part of their wedding showcase, how could we say no! It'd be fun to shoot there again, as we didn't even see all of the beautiful landscapes the course has to offer. :)
I have a confession to make. Jelger and I always said we'd never participate in any kind of wedding show. Why? Because we thought it'd be a scary experience. ;) We envisioned us being stuck in some booth that toned down our personalities and where people would look quickly at our work and walk on. :P Of course we made it worse in our heads.
I decided to put on my big girl pants and go for it! Especially since the event was a smaller one, with about 100 guests. I did have a vision, where we would show our work in a way that showcased our love for spontaneous and adventurous things. Jelger agreed to bring out his inner carpenter and built the pallet backdrop I had in mind. ;) Little did I know I married a man who knows how to do all these things! I've never seen him build anything, but boy, he drew out an entire design to make it collapsable so it'd fit in our car AND he made it stand on it's own. :D It was all very sexy to witness, hahaha.
We also printed out a couple of canvasses with more recent portfolio work. It reminded us of how important it is to print our work. Not just for us! For our clients too. There's something about a piece of art on your wall that can't compete with any image on your computer.
And last but not least, I included some greens (eucalyptus and some succulents/air plants) to it. I was scared to be perceived as a hipster. But so what if I am? Maybe I'm even a closet hipster (and as closet hippie, I added some crystals in the air plant glasses) :)
The entire experience taught me that it's very satisfying to create a visual representation of who you are and what you stand for. And it was a good reminder of the fact that I should always, always be me. It doesn't matter where I am or in what circumstances. Sure, some people couldn't pass our both quick enough and clearly didn't want to talk with us, but others loved it and even took photos of it!
Always try new things!
This was the rest of the room where our booth was! Many options if you're getting married at Northview!
Andrea and Eoin's Sundance Guest Ranch wedding
Andrea and Eoin's "running horses wedding photograph", photographed at the Sundance Guest Ranch in Ashcroft, went (unexpectedly) viral! I've seen it passing by on blogs in languages I can't read. And it won an award at the Shoot and Share Contest. It got featured on huge blogs such as Petapixel, My Modern Met, Huffington Post and Junebug Weddings.
All of this is of course AMAZING, but I do want to share Andrea and Eoin's wedding for more than that! At the time this Irish duo booked us we kinda had an idea that their ranch wedding would be a lot of fun, but boy we had no idea what a blast we'd have! On top of that we got to know them better and I feel that we share a mindset about living an adventurous lifestyle and not settling down. :) And they also got us into car camping.
The wedding day started with the two of them getting ready in directly adjacent rooms (no peeking was allowed:) ). Andrea, who confessed to have spent 'quite some time' on Pinterest (heehee) blew us away with the amount of personal touches and meaningful details she'd hand made. Not a single item in the room came without a background story. I especially loved the handwritten letters and vows they had written for each other and Andrea's bracelet made of their favourite horses' tail hairs (the same ones that they'd ride after the ceremony).
Meanwhile in the groom's room, Eoin was over the moon with the gift from his bride: a custom-made belt with the words "Gra Mo Chroi" (Celtic for 'love of my life') and a buckle with the branding logo of the Sundance Guest Ranch. And since they lived and worked there as wranglers for the past year, it was extra meaningful.
The ceremony took place at Twin Pines Peak, a mountain top overlooking the nearby Thompson River and Ashcroft valley. Again, the couple and their friends had made the entire ceremony setup from scratch: hay bales for benches, a heart out of welded horse shoes on the wedding arch and an aisle runner that told the 10 year story of Andrea and Eoin in pictures.
As soon as Andrea arrived after a bumpy ride up the mountain in the back of a pickup truck a strong wind picked up and played with the string quartet's music sheets and the wedding arch (which Eoin eventually had to hold during the ceremony). Priceless though was the solution for the "signing table": the groom and best man's backs :).
Next came an unforgettable photo shoot with the newlywed couple. We got to join them in as they rode their horses in their wedding outfits. It'd taken Andrea months to train her horse on getting used to the wedding gown, but it was worth it. They rode gracefully through the prairies like they'd never done anything else in their lives. And Jelger and I ran through the tall grass like our lives depended on it, occasionally pinching ourselves and thinking "is this real?" :P
After a short brake for some games with the guests, the magical moment took place where Jelger photographed "the running horses photograph", with his back towards the horses running from one field to another. Every night the ranch holds "a jingle" where the horses run through 'the airstrip', a narrow passage that leads from their day pen to their overnight pastures. The horses get excited knowing the lush, green grass awaits them and race through the airstrip, which is where Andrea and Eoin had planned the photo.
As wranglers they trusted the horses and knew they'd safely run around them, but for me it was a tad too much, so I watched and photographed the moment while sitting on a nearby fence. (even that felt scary!) Jelger and Michael, the fantastic videographer from Story of Eve (check out the video below!) on the other hand were brothers in arms and bravely sat in the eye of the storm.
Finally, a ranch wedding wouldn't be complete with some good old line dancing! Right?! So that's what all the guests did until the wee hours.
Andrea and Eoin, you will always have a special place in our hearts and I know one day we'll visit you in Ireland!
To end this post, I'd love to share the poem that Andrea wrote for us. I can't even say how touched I was. (I am most definitely not as good with words as Andrea is...)
JELGER AND TANJA
Jelger and Tanja speak a thousand words.
Every photo they make, like a bird
Lifts up and floats into your soul, where
Gently it perches and lives there.
Elegant, beautiful, sometimes wild
Romantic and passionate, never mild,
Adventurous always, this bird takes hold
Nesting a home within your soul.
Daring to sing a different song
Tanja and Jelger are strong
And dependable - the perfect choice for your
Nuptuals. For ours, they soared
Joyfully above all our hopes
And dreams.
Love Mrs. Andrea and Mr. Eoin
Ashcroft Sundance guest ranch wedding vendors
- Venue: Sundance Guest Ranch
- Bridal Dress: Dirty Fabulous, Dublin, Ireland
- Groom's Suit: Handmade in Hoi An, Vietnam
- Bridesmaid's Dress: Oh My Honey, Brighton, England
- Bride and Groom's Cowboy Boots: Lammle's Western Wear & Tack, Kamloops
- Make Up Artist: Laine Dagneau, Kamloops,
- Canada Hair Stylist: Janella Vecchio
- String Players - Steenkamp Family Orchestra, Vancouver, BC
- Videographer - Story of Eve, Antrim, Ireland
- Check out their amazing wedding video right here!!
Adventure series: Quarry Rock with Chantell and Darrell
I'm very excited to share our first adventure series blog post with you! In the adventure series, Jelger and I are joining an adventurous couple, that has an interesting story to share on a hike in or close to Vancouver.
Adoration 4 adventure
This story starts with an American and an Australian meeting while backpacking in Cambodia! Meet Chantell and Darrell from Adoration 4 adventure! They've been traveling together ever since :). I'm glad we got to meet up with them before they're going to start their journey through Central America!
Their choice of hike: Quarry Rock hiking trail in North Vancouver. Why they chose this hike? Because it's a fun hike, not too hard and you get rewarded with a gorgeous view. It was one of the first hikes they did in Vancouver. Also one of the first hikes Jelger and I did in Vancouver, btw! We hadn't done it again, so we were very excited!
In true West Coast style, it rained during our hike, but luckily it wasn't too bad and the view at the end was very much worth it! :)
Living a life of freedom
While chatting about life, something struck a chord with me: for Chantell and Darrell living a life of freedom is an absolute choice. Although I think Jelger and I have become fairly adventurous, we're not at the point (yet!) where we'd just hop on a plain and leave for X months without having anything set in stone. ;) Chantell travelled to 30 countries before she got 30 and Darrell is working on his 40 before 30!! They both have a fantastic "just go for it" mentality and we could tell this helps them to think outside the box and make things happen!
Meanwhile, Jelger was very impressed with Darrell's musical side, which Chantelle told me gives funny situations when they do karaoke together. Apparently Darrell sings perfectly and she sings perfectly convinced... ;) It reminds me of Jelger's karaoke skills, which I've only witnessed once on a rather drunk night in Vegas... haha)
Travel tips and couch surfing
Chantelle gave me some excellent advice when it comes to traveling: "write down your travel goals." It doesn't matter when you're going, but create a list with countries that are a priority for you to visit. By making it part of your plan, you'll start working towards it.
Write down your travel goals. By making it part of your plan, you'll start working towards them
The couple also told me about their good experiences with couch surfing :). You'll experience the location where you're staying differently, since you get to approach it with with someone local who knows all the best go-to-places, which you wouldn't necessarily find otherwise. Of course, as a fan Chantell supports the couch surfing community by hosting people on her own couch! So far, Jelger and I have only tried it once but we're definitely considering it again for the future.
And keep in mind (I've experienced this too ;)) if you do end up with not-so-great experiences, they can still make for the best stories afterwards. For these tips and many more, check out their travel blog, where you can also get personalized help with planning out your own adventure vacation. :)
How to live an adventurous life?
The final question I asked Chantell and Darrell (and we'll ask this to all the the future couples we'll be hiking with) is what they would advise to live life more adventurously.
"Whenever going on adventures it is important to be relaxed about plans and keep an open mind. Stuff is going to go wrong - it is inevitable. What you can control is how you react to the situation and your mood. After all some of the worst experiences make the best stories. Also it is critical to be gentle and careful with your partner's feelings - especially when encountering problems while traveling. It's too easy to lose your temper in the heat of the moment. Overall, if you are able to adventure together and overcome obstacles on the road - that can help you grow closer and stronger as a couple."
I have the feeling this blog post only briefly touches the surface of this fantastic duo. :) Follow them on Facebook and/or Instagram to see where their next travel is leading them and get inspired!
Thanks a lot guys for spending the afternoon with us! Maybe we'll get to do this again in a more exotic location one day! The world is a small place! :D
Fun Winter hikes in the greater Vancouver area
My Winter days in Vancouver often looked like this: getting up, hang on the couch, notice the time ticking by and not being able to move myself to leave the house. Before I knew it, it would be 1pm, which meant the day was over. It'd be dark in 3 hours, I couldn't possibly leave for a hike! Might as well just watch an other episode of *insert favourite Netflix series of the moment*.
It got even worse when I checked out Instagram. I followed all these fabulous travel and adventure pages, so when I opened Instagram, my feed was filled with people hiking in amazing mountain views, rivers, majestic forests etc. It looked SO EPIC that all I wanted to do was crawl even deeper into my pile of pillows and ignore the fact that I live so close to amazing nature that I could literally leave the house and be in the middle of it in 30 minutes. :P
I had to remind myself: "Tanja, you love to actually do these things. Go outside and enjoy a small hike. Who cares that the sun sets in 2 hours. You can still have a nice walk and some time to enjoy the scenery."
Adventure time
Adventures don't always have to be hours of intense hiking or activities that you could only dream about but are too hard to even start tackling. For me (and for Jelger) an adventure is to break free of staying inside and doing the same things over and over again, such as social media and/or Netflix. Do something just a little different, something exciting.
Adventure. Even the word itself is exciting. :) Doesn't it make you want to crawl out of your duvet cave? That's what we did this Winter.
Here are our favourite places (so far) that we explored (and keep in mind we usually arrived about an hour before sunset): Rice Lake, Boundary Bay, Minnekhada Regional Park and Lighthouse Park in North Vancouver. Too far away? Pick one of Vancouver's many beaches, such as Jericho Beach.
Even though I had to push myself, I always got back home inspired and excited. :) How about you? Do you like a spontaneous mini trip? Does it have to be an epic hike? Or do you enjoy the smaller moments just like us?
Rice Lake hike in North Vancouver
Boundary Bay hike in Delta
Minnekhada Regional Park hike in Coquitlam
Lighthouse Park hike in North Vancouver
Jericho Beach walk in Vancouver
Decluttering
Ok, here it goes: one of my most embarrassing photos from my student days. This is what my studio looked like at pretty much any typical day. I took this photos when I met Jelger to have a before/after when I cleaned, hahaha.
The first time I invited Jelger over, I obviously cleaned like a maniac. And I also distracted him with a giant meat lasagna. 8 years later he's still around. ;) (ask me for the recipe, really!)
Why am I sharing this? I'm convinced that clutter in my living space, equals clutter in my head. And my head was extremely cluttered in my university days. I wasn't in a good space...
Clutter in my living space equals clutter in my head.
Luckily living together with Jelger helped me to get better at tidying and decluttering. Better, but definitely not perfect. I was still rather messy (in my space AND in my mind)
Moving countries
Moving countries made us get rid of everything we owned (with the exception of 4 suitcases and two cats). Still, as time progressed, without noticing, slowly but steadily I started collecting more and more items I didn't need (or even like!). How was it possible that I went from owning next to nothing to having a pile of things that was totally unnecessary and even annoying?! Think weird little bowls, pepper shakers, books, gifts and even our couch.
Ever since our cat destroyed our couch, we couldn't stand the look of it. So why not just get a new one or go to an upholsterer? We figured we needed a space that evoked more peace and calmness. And since we live in a small apartment, that meant getting rid of it altogether. ;) We exchanged it for a pile of pillows to hang out. Why not?!
Decluttering time
Our big decluttering was evoked by me reading The life-changing magic of tidying up by Marie Kondo. Marie says: "if it doesn't spark joy, get rid of it." Think about it! Of course you have some practical items that aren't making you jump with joy, but why keep all of these I-should-keep-it-because-it-is-still-good-and-I-might-need-it-one-day items? So many of the things in our house were not helping us nor making us happy!
After stepping up our game we got rid of 3 cars filled with stuff. How on earth did that even fit in our apartment?! And why did I keep so many clothes I actually never wore, just because... Crazy!
I also realized that I didn't own many items just for the sole purpose of them making me happy. Everything always had to be "functional". I'm glad we brought home some fun candle holders, little decor elements and some crystals. They make me happy when I look at them! :)
So now I'm living couchless, without an excess of clothes, but with a lot more space in my home and my head. ;)
Amanda and René's Whistler adventures
Jelger and I joined Amanda and René on an amazing mini road trip to Whistler. Yaaaay, road trips!!! And if that wasn't awesome enough, the sky was blue and it was 10 degrees when we left Vancouver!
While hanging out at the gorgeous Alta Lake, we found out that Amanda pets every dog that walks by and is in my opinion a true dog whisperer. They all seemed to know and just walked up to her!
Amanda and René
I absolutely love how playful Amanda and René are together. They both can make each other laugh instantly. :) Amanda took things to a whole new level by "accidentally" pushing René in the lake-that-wasn't-really-frozen. She came prepared with multiple pairs of socks and extra shoes, so of course he didn't have to spend the rest of the day with a frozen foot.
We shared a meal together at a pub in Whistler village (MJG Brewhouse) where they served a Belgian style beer with the name Alta Lake Ale. What are the odds after hanging out with a couple of Belgians at Alta, right!!! (we'll have to try it next time, because we were keeping our heads cool for part two of the shoot)
My favourite part of the day
My favourite part of the day was for sure Amanda and René's epic snow fight, that started of cute and innocent, but escalated to them stuffing snow in each other's clothes and tackling each other. I loooved it! It made me realize that I actually never put snow in Jelger's collar... (*note to self: put on bucket list*)
Jelger loved René's Fire Fly hat. Amanda made herself, btw! (Check out her fabulous work right here) It's the only science fiction series that he (Jelger) absolutely loves.
And at the end: snow angels! :)
Thank you guys for taking us along for a such a fun day! We can't wait until your wedding day!!
Moving countries and "supposed to's"
Jelger and I moved from Belgium to Vancouver about 4.5 years ago. It's such a journey to witness how my feelings about Belgium have changed and evolved over time.
At first when I left Belgium, I was plain angry. Both me and Jelger were pissed off about so many things. One of the main things was how hard it was to become self-employed while coming from a family without any capital to back you up. And of course we disliked certain government policies etc.
Arrived in Vancouver
I had the idea that Vancouver was some kind of "promised land" and that it'd be all butterflies and unicorns. Maybe that was not a bad start, because I needed some idealism to actually be crazy enough to make such a huge leap of faith. ;)
Of course after arriving in Vancouver, I quickly learned that nobody was waiting for us and that if we'd want to build something for ourselves, we'd better be prepared to work our asses off. After a year, when the first love cooled down a bit, I had a bit of a love-hate relationship with Vancouver: everything seemed so impossibly hard. I fought with my accent, I was self-conscious about not being "very Vancouver", I strongly disliked my survival job etc. But we decided from the beginning that we'd at least had to give it a go for 3 years, because how else can you say you really tried?
Visiting Belgium
When I first visited Belgium after our move, I was in a straddle between both cultures and countries. I noticed differences that really bugged me, but I was also very excited to see everyone and visit places that we really liked.
When back in Vancouver, it started to feel more like home, but I also incorporated more "Belgian things" because I tried to embrace my background. I was part of a Belgian association, I chatted about the good beer and foods and just ignored the things I didn't like about Belgium.
Another visit, another insight
Last October I got to visit Belgium again and this time I got hit with a feeling of "I don't belong here anymore". Both Jelger and I felt guilt. Guilty because of how this must come across with family and friends. Guilty for rejecting the country they are still living in. Knowing that I can't connect with the place where I was born, grew up, lived, got married, ... is very confronting.
It's as if you're supposed to feel a certain way about your mother country. When someone asks me "Oh, that's far away. Do you miss it?" I'll say: "Nope." Which usually is followed by an uncomfortable silence or laughter because people expected me to say something else. ;)
But here's the thing: just because you're born somewhere doesn't mean you have to have a loyalty towards this place for the rest of your life. It's ok to think: "Thank you for the wonderful memories we shared, now I'm moving on." The people that genuinely love you, will accept your choice and they'll support you in your new ventures.
I love the West Coast. I feel proud to live in Canada. And in hopefully a year I'm going to be a very proud Canadian citizen. :)
Ps: enjoy these rural photographs we made on our trip to Belgium in last October. :)
Lynn and James' destination wedding in Ypres
I'm excited to finally blog the second wedding of our most photographed couple to this date! It was definitely a first for me and Jelger to photograph two weddings with the same duo and the fact that their second wedding was a destination wedding in Ypres in Belgium made it even more awesome! ;)
When we traveled to Belgium, we visited family and went from one place to another to catch up with everyone. By the time Lynn and James' wedding day arrived, both Jelger and I were happy to be speaking English again (we started to miss that!). James and his family also hooked us up with some Canadian cold medicine. (The things you forget when you move countries, hahaha, Belgium doesn't have anything strong over the counter. :P)
The destination wedding in Ypres, Belgium
Lynn and James found the most incredible place to get ready in the morning, an old 1850's farmhouse in Izegem. The atmosphere was incredible and the rooms definitely spoke to my imagination: all the stories of the people that have lived there... You could just feel the history.
For the group photos and portraits we all headed to Kemmelberg, which is also a place that oozes history. Hundreds of soldiers have lost their lives in those fields during the war and there is a certain quietness you can't shake when you're standing there. Yet to me it's incredible that Lynn and James wouldn't have met if James wasn't there to pay his respects to the war victims a couple of years earlier.
It was very special to be at the place where they did their first hike together and later on, when we went back to the city (Ypres) Lynn and James paid a visit to the bar where they first met and sat in the exact same chairs where they had their first long conversation. How amazing is that! (goosebumps!)
Favourite momens of the day
One of mine and Jelger's favourite moments of the day was when Lynn and James got "photobombed" by Irish nuns. The ladies all looked extremely pleased to be an unexpected part of the wedding photos and they posed like pros!
The party that ended the day was one in Belgian style: amazing food, everybody on the dance floor, plenty of drinks and dancing until the wee hours.
Lynn and James, we're honestly sad we can't photograph more weddings with you guys. You can always change your minds! ;) We also enjoyed our relaxed day in Bruges after the wedding so much!
Ypres destination wedding photos
Ypres destination wedding vendors:
- Getting Ready Venue: B & B De Hulst
- Reception Venue: De Lissewal
- Bride’s Dress: Suère
- Bridesmaid Dresses: David’s Bridal, Yzer Fashion, Sapho,Elena
- Hairdresser: Kapsalon Zimina
- Make-up: Amaris Izegem
- Flowers: L’aturel
- DJ: DJ Bartje
- Car Rental: Patrick Moerman
Wreck beach and a fresh start
Yesterday I went down the 500 stairs from Wreck Beach, discouraged by what I witnessed around me: dozens of people, all dressed in thick coats and many of them holding cameras.
A few weeks ago, I got the idea to start the New Year with a polar bear dip. But since I already did 3 of those at Vancouver's English bay, I wanted to add more madness to the event and do one at Wreck Beach. Naked.
You might think: what, why?! Are you crazy?!
Naked New Year polar bear dive
If you've been following me online, you know there's not a single photograph of me in a bikini anywhere to be found on the internet. Which gives you an indication of how comfy I am with the world seeing my body. ;) Yet when this New Year's idea popped into my mind, I knew I just wanted to do it. I love the symbolism of starting a new year with something nuts, so why not! I wanted to break out of my comfort zone and celebrate vulnerability.
So there I went, down the stairs, playing worst case scenarios in my mind: what if random strangers take photographs of me or what if I post this madness online and people think it's stupid and unprofessional or... All of these thoughts had to do with my fear of being judged.
When I ended up at the beach, still discouraged, I witnessed two girls running in the ocean hand in hand, without clothes, while screaming (it was 1 degree Celsius) and laughing. No tourist was taking their photos, nobody was looking at them in disapproval. All I thought was: Yes!!! You go guys!
So off I went and after blurring out a New Year's message, I ran into the ocean, filmed by Jelger's iPhone (Jelger hates cold water). It was liberating and very symbolic. :)
Thank you Jelger for putting up with my madness and encouraging me to follow my wild ideas.
Adventure travel in Calabria Italy
A little over a month ago, I discovered some incredibly affordable plane tickets to the South of Italy ; Lamezia Terme to be exact. No, I hadn't heard about it before either. ;) I wanted to go South (because it tends to be warmer) and I didn't want a touristy place. Sometimes it's just fun to feel like you're the only one. After a busy wedding season and a trip to Belgium to visit family and photograph (an awesome!) wedding, I knew we'd need a break!
We booked our first night at a local AirBnB apartment, because after all, where better to start than with someone local, who can tell you all about the do's and don'ts. For the rest of the trip we'd figure it out on the go, lead by whatever we found online/in the gps/mentioned by the people we'd meet. Now looking back, it definitely was adventure travel, because not planning everything in advance came with amazing as well as iffy discoveries. ;)
Stick with reputable car rentals
It all started out at the airport, where our rental car company blocked an 800 euro deposit on our credit card and included an interesting list of expenses that could be charged for each individual car part.... Ehm, excuse me? Jelger's gut told us to return the car and it was good we did, because we found out online that this particular company scams people all the time. :p Lesson learned: when you go to the South of Italy: rent from an international company with a good reputation.
Luckily our next experience, meeting our AirBnB host for the night, was great! He cycled all the way from Germany to Lamezia, where he took an extended break to rethink his lifestyle and work. I love meeting people who leave the beaten path when travelling. There's something about getting out of your "ordinary environment" that sparks your imagination. :) (such as visiting Vancouver on a trip and deciding to immigrate there... hehe)
Driving North
After finding out that it was going to rain in the South for days, we decided to drive North. We weren't disappointed: from olive groves to the beach, mountain cities, old castles and tiny streets, to a big nature park and more ocean. We experienced many diverse sceneries in our short trip. I'll include a little map below, because if you're like Jelger, you'll love that.
Other amazingness on our trip: the food was fantastic. We kept a salami, a whole bunch of cold cuts, appies, red wine and a bottle of limoncello as a staple in our car. (nothing wrong with some food decadence while travelling!) And of course we had coffee every time we had the chance. ;)
What we didn't expect was the afternoon siesta (riposo in Italian), which sometimes lasts from noon to 5pm! Don't try to find any stores that are open! Even the big supermarkets are closed in the smaller towns. Luckily we did have our car stash!
Trying hard to be tourists
We were also surprised by the "lack of info" for tourists. For instance: after following signs to a castle, it turned out to have been closed for years. Still, it turned out to be a great experience, because while walking around trying to find the entrance, we enjoyed a beautiful view on the old city below, including it's abandoned parts.
After chasing another sign to giant trees in a national park, we suddenly got tailed by the police, which made us turn around. I guess the locals found it suspicious to have a car driving around on a foggy day in the middle of a national park.
Final thoughts
If you're planning on going to Southern Italy: be open-minded and don't get stuck in a mindset of "I need to see/do this". Otherwise you might end up frustrated. Just go with the flow and trust that you will find amazing places, because there are plenty of those.
I'm grateful to have had this adventure. It had been a long time since we travelled like this: no plans, just a vague idea of an area to visit. Our last trip like that was to Oregon Coast, almost a year ago! Next time won't be that long!
Do you like to travel without making plans in advance? Or do you prefer to have concise schedule in advance? Where are you going next?
Calabria adventure travel photos
Sam + Kyle's sparkling couple shoot at Vancouver False Creek
Last week, we chased the sunset at Vancouver's False Creek together with Sam and Kyle!
An amazing couple that we owe the honor of keeping a car pet. In our case: Cedric the skunk (check our instagram feed and you might discover him lounging in the sun on top of a mountain). During our first meeting Sam told us about Steve, a giant stuffed penguin that lives in the back of her car. He's also their loyal sidekick on their road trips. Steve has made for some interesting looks of border guards whenever they cross the US-Canada border.
We loved the idea of having a car pet and found ours last June. We were scouting the mountain top at the Sea to Sky Gondola in Squamish. When strolling through the gift shop, our eye caught the cutest stuffed skunk. Five minutes later Cedric got his honorary seat in our car and he's been faithfully guarding since.
Back to Sam and Kyle. Since they'd chosen False Creek as their location, we met nearby at the Allegro Café on Cambie Street. It's without a doubt one of our favorite new coffee hangouts. Spacious, great coffee and wonderful gluten free snacks (the coconut macarons are to die for). We talked about life and their (and our) upcoming travels. Since we trust in Sam's choices, we've added their upcoming destination to our bucket list: South Korea. It's awesome when our clients share our love for traveling around the world :).
For the photo shoot, we started out in Vancouver's buzzing Olympic Village. We were just in time to catch the final golden sparkles on the city's skyline. Next, we ventured East along the False Creek shoreline and finished at Cambie Bridge. Sam totally surprised us with how swiftly she moved on her high heels. Even when jumping from rock to rock in Hinge Park (or as I call it: "the little island") she was nothing but elegance. But enough about the locations.
Sam and Kyle are magical together. Hell, it was impossible to miss it! The gentle way of how Kyle pulled Sam closer to him and the tiny sparkles in her eyes whenever she looked at him. What makes the two of them even more special, is that they found the perfect intellectual match in each other. Two smart cookies that will without a doubt invent something revolutionary and world changing. :)
Halfway the shoot the sun had set and we took a break over a cup of tea. But the best part of the adventure was yet to come: nighttime photos. Sam loved the idea of creating some sparklers shots, so what better backdrop than the city lights of downtown Vancouver!
I secretly confess that when it comes to sparkler shots, my handwriting is the one thing that makes me a little nervous. Let's say that it's... interesting :). But things went smoothly and I'm pretty sure it was quite the entertainment for our clients. Not to mention the countless joggers and cyclists passing by: a crazy person running with a sparkler in her hands. The results were great though :)
Sam and Kyle, thanks again for working with us! You two are amazing :)
False creek couple photos
A Wish To Wed
I've never talked about A Wish To Wed Society on our website, but after last weekend, I just have to! For some reason I'm afraid to come across as bragging when talking about our non-profit work. Which of course is stupid, because the more people know about A Wish To Wed, the better!
It all started with me wanting to volunteer for Wish Upon A Wedding, an organization that organizes weddings for couples where one of the partners is diagnosed with a terminal illness or life altering desease. I quickly learned that they only operate in the US and had no intentions of expanding to Canada.
The idea however kept existing in the back of my mind. One day I talked about it to a befriended wedding planner and suddenly the idea became something that could be a reality! Jelger's legal background definately helped us a lot, because easy as it seems, to start a registred non-profit you need A LOT of paperwork, as well as 5 board members. The start-up fase didn't stop after finding board members, as we'd of course needed some money for hard expenses, before we could actually donate a wedding.
When we did raise enough funds, we were facing the dificulty that nobody actually knew about the society! It's a rather specific group of people that we were trying to reach, so it took a lot of trial and error to figure out how to reach possible couples.
Last weekend, after 1.5 years of pounding the pavement, A Wish To Wed donated it's first wedding to an amazing couple, Kim and Andrew. I felt so proud of everyone in the board and the amazing vendors who made it happen. And I learned a lot from our couple, who focus on love and gratitude, which shined trough at their wedding day.
The board members have become like family and I'm excited to have these 3 ladies in our lives: Jennifer Greenman (AWW's wedding planner) who went above and beyond to plan the wedding perfectly and is the sweetest person you'll ever meet, Tianna Tran who is an outstanding hair- and makeup artist, with a big mouth (I love it!) and an even bigger heart and Neet Aujla who also is an amazing hair- and makeup artist and has a special talent for being a very calming and positive influence on everyone she gets in touch with.
Small ideas can grow very big, especially if you are surrounded with people that are 100% invested in what they do and have a heart of gold.
P.S: If you are interested in helping A Wish To Wed with your services, don't hesitate to get in touch at society@awishtowed.com or if you want to donate, you can do that right here.
Lynn and James' Vancouver military wedding
Lynn and James... I don't even know were to start!
Lynn is from Belgium and met James (who's from Vancouver) in Ypres, a Belgian city with a significant World War I history, who was there to attend a military memorial ceremony. The chances of them meeting in a random bar were so slim that it makes me wonder if he was supposed to find her. ;) (goosebumps)
Even though they met briefly, they stayed in touch online. Lynn jokingly invited James to come over to Belgium, except James went for it and booked his ticket! Seeing each other again, they both felt the spark. Lynn made the brave decision to follow her heart, and move to Vancouver to be with James.
For their engagement shoot we went on a crazy hike on Mt. Cheam. It's for sure one of our favourite shoots, so we were looking forward to their weddings(!) a lot! Plural because we're also photographing their second wedding in Belgium!
Before the ceremony, we drove around Vancouver's Stanley Park with the couple and the bridal party and made an impromptu hotdog pitstop at Third Beach. The wedding took place at the British Columbia Military Regiment in downtown Vancouver and we LOVED their setup of tanks and camouflage nets! But James truly made us gasp when he mentioned their shared passion for adventure in his personal vows.
I cried twice during the reception (Jelger once, but he might deny it ;) ). Once during James' heartfelt speech at the reception. And even harder during their amazing first dance. The way they looked at each other made the world stop for a moment.
Lynn and James are also close friends of ours, so after packing up our photo gear, we danced the night away on oldschool Belgian house music.
Thank you Lynn and James for having us! We can't wait for your wedding in Belgium and do it all over again! :D
PS: Did I mention these two traveled a lot? :)
Vendors
- Bartender: Christine from TopShelf Bartending Services
- Catering: OceanWest Catering
- DJ: Chris from BCDJ
- Florist: Flowers on Fire
- Hair & Makeup: Face Addiction
- Hotel: Sheraton Vancouver Wallcentre
- Limo: Star Limos
- Liquor: U-Need-A-Bottle
- Photobooth: Image Cube
- Venue: BC Regiment
Check out another vancouver military wedding that we photographed!
Goodbye Mr. Jums
I wish I wasn't writing this blog post. But here I am. We had to say goodbye to our dear furry family member Mr. Jums.
As often happens with the best things in life, Mr. Jums came into our lives rather randomly: his previous owner (who found this big black cat wondering around) took him in into his hairdresser salon, where Mr. Jums quickly became the star of the place. The customers loved him and he thrived on the attention and all the snacks. Unfortunately the owner needed to find a new home for Mr. Jums after closing the salon, because his wife was allergic to cats.
Jelger and I were excited and happy to get such a sweet and kinda cool cat to live with us. Jums was about 8 years old at that time and we were about to move into our first place together.
At first Mr. Jums first secretly lived in my student dorm room for a month (secretly because there were absolutely no cats alowed). It was an interesting situation, living in a very small room with a very big cat who turned out to have a bad poultry allergy (think tiny space and continuous diarrhea). But of course I quickly grew very fond of him, how could I not. He was always a bit like a dog (but surprisingly clever and with some demands).
When Jelger and I moved in together, Mr. Jums moved in right along with us. He went through a pole climbing fitness program (aka he had to climb to get to his food to lose some weight) and dropped a few pounds (He still had plenty of pounds left ;) ).
He was there during our good times and our stressed out times, always cuddly, all over us and ready for even more attention (Especially in the kitchen, where he loved to stand right behind us when we least expected it. Yes, we tripped many times. :P ).
Leaving Belgium and moving to Canada without Mr. Jums? No way. Even though it certainly made our live a lot harder (try to find a place to land in a new country while having to take care of cats, I challenge you!), there was no way we would leave him behind. It turns out Mr. Jums adjusted faster than the two of us did and soon he was used to the high quality cat food of Vancouver while, of course, taking over our appartment. ;)
Mr. Jums was always present. We laughed about him being "the ever present cat", managing to always be close to us. He was also a very sensitive cat. He knew when I was sad. He comforted me. He had a very sweet way of pushing his nose against my cheek. Even before going to the vet and I was crying when I held him, he did it. I'm sure it was his way of saying that it was ok.
I know we made the right decision. Mr. Jums was tired and not the same cat anymore. Even in his last hours he remained sweet and purring, but we both knew that his old spirit was gone. We loved him too much to drag him through extensive treatment that wouldn't cure him anyways, as he had cancer in his bowels.
He left our world, laying on both Jelger and my lap (he was big enough, we often shared him), loudly purring and gently falling asleep. It was peaceful and it was beautiful.
Now the house is empty. When I will go to the bathroom at night, there won't be a cat pushing his head against my legs. There won't be any "click click click click" on the floor, from Mr. Jums sneaking up on me to take over my lap. When I open our front door, there won't be a cat running out, spreading his body on the floor in front of the door and refusing to come in with loud protesting. (He loved to make a statement about leaving him: "where have you been so long". :P) There's no more little friend making fun noises at the passing crows and squirels. No more cunning theft of meat or food. No more comfy cudles.
I believe Mr. Jums came into our lives for a reason and I also believe he's now gone for a reason too. It hurts like hell to let go of him, but I'm grateful to have had him in our lives. He will be missed.
Sweet dreams, my furry friend.
Erin and Daniel's urban adventures
Jelger and I have known Erin and Daniel for a long time! We met Erin in The Netherlands before we moved to Vancouver. She's a world traveler with a fondness of Germany and everything Europe; not to mention that she always comes back with the most amazing shoes. As for Daniel, he's seen his fair share of the world too: living 3 months in Hungary is the ultimate proof of not being afraid to try something different. ;)
When talking about what they'd like to do for their photo shoot, it quickly came up that they both love books, hanging out in coffee shops, as well going to Stanley Park. Our day started in the Vancouver Library, more adventurous than we anticipated. We almost got thrown out by security, but managed to stay thanks to the friendly staff on the condition that we didn't photograph (or bother) any innocent library customers. Which seemed easy until Daniel cracked some jokes forcing Erin to use all her powers not to squeak.
Next stop: Trees Coffee in Gastown, an excellent choice, not in the least because of the mouthwatering cheesecakes... Daniel and Erin's love for coffee is right up Jelger's alley. (I'm not complaining, I drink the best coffee at home. ;) )
The day of the photo shoot was not your average day in Vancouver, by the way. Because of many forest fires in BC the entire city looked like an instagram filter, because of a thick layer of smoke, as if covered by an instagram filter. We joked about them choosing "the apocalypse" as a theme for their shoot, but no zombies appeared (except for the herds of tourists gathered around the Steam Clock in Gastown).
For our final destination (no pun intended), Stanley Park, Daniel and Erin had planned a little picnic. It didn't last long, because of an attack by a thousand fruit flies claiming the fruit salad. Daniel ditched the fruit and grabbed his camera to take photos of Erin. I'm excited to see the negatives when they're developed.
Erin and Daniel, thanks again for the great times! We loved Daniel's fun video work during the shoot and seeing ourselves at work afterwards! Check it out right here.
