This fun photo of the bride and the groomsmen was taken a few steps from the Harbour Restaurant in Kingston, Ontario.
It was a hot summer day and the bridal party was extremely energetic. They have known each other since elementary school and the wedding was a huge event.
After the bride got her makeup and hair done, we went to a local pub called Merchant tap House for some fun photos. Beer was flowing and that removed the last remains of inhibition in front of the camera. The pub owner was a friend of the couple and we were allowed to take all the shots we wanted. There were no customers so we were very creative.
As the building was somewhat dark and flash could kill all that moody ambient, I used a video light to give the photos a filmic look.
After that, we headed to the Harbour for the ceremony. As the weather was impeccable, with only a few puffy clouds peppering the perfectly blue sky, the ceremony was held outdoors. The Harbour Restaurant boasts a splendid trace overlooking the St. Lawrence river and during the summer there are plenty of boats sailing just under the restaurant walls.
After the ceremony, the bridal party had a few drinks and then we went to do our photo shoot. All plans were derailed by the boisterous crowd and I could not be happier. At one moment, the boys took their shoes off and went into the water knee deep.
The bride and groom followed. Myself and my second shooter waited on the shore and prepared to capture the candid moments that followed.
This image features the bride surrounded by eight groomsmen and the groom. She holds her dress not to get wet and they all look towards her. All the groomsmen wear sunglasses as this shot was taken somewhere around 2pm.
In the summer at that time of the day the light is very harsh so we opened a 7 foot silver umbrella and used a Profoto B1 to light the scene. I underexposed the ambient by 3/4 stops to obtain that beautiful intense blue sky and used the flash to light the subjects.
The blue sky and the darker blue water offer a perfect background for this photo taken at the Harbour Restaurant wedding. On the horizon you can see some red and yellow sailboats that provide perfect accents for the sea of blue.
The fun part was that my second shooter was working extremely hard not to be pulled in the water by the wind. A 7 foot umbrella on the shore acts like a sail and controlling it is a big challenge. Carrying around a Profoto besides the camera bag is tough on a summer day, but I don't regret it one bit as the strong studio strobe allowed us to achieve this look which we could not have done with just the ambient light.
The bride and groom told me this is one of their most favourite moments and shots of the whole day and believe me, we took a lot of good photographs at this wedding at the Harbour Restaurant.
Website: The Harbour
Location: 53 Yonge St, Kingston, ON K7M 6G4.
