This is a fun environmental portrait of the bride and groom taken after the couple got married at the Cathedral Church of Saint James. Seconds after exiting the church, the bride and groom decided to take a few minutes for themselves and enjoy the beautiful gardens in the park. Sensing the groom's excitement, I challenged him to jump, and I captured the moment in a documentary type of photo. To emphasise the candid nature of the image, I used a black and white processing.
I remember the weather that day was cloudy, which gave me a beautiful diffused light, excellent for wedding the portraits. As a Toronto wedding photographer, I learned how to photograph under various weather conditions, from harsh sunlight to rainy situations. However, this day the clouds were creating an enormous soft box which illuminated both the newlyweds and the park which helped me create this beautiful photo.
Saint James Park is an excellent location for your wedding photos. The 305 foot tall cathedral built in the Gothic revival style is for perfect backdrop for group images of the bride and groom. Also, the park adjacent to the church contains multicoloured plants, which constitute perfect wedding photos backdrops.
From a technical standpoint, this is an environmental portrait, so I used a 35mm lens to capture not only the subjects (the newlywed couple) but also the beautiful gardens. I shot this picture in landscape format, and placed the bride and groom on the second impact point, according to the rule of thirds. The pathway and the wooden fence form natural leading lines highlighting the couple. Also, in this black and white picture the bride and groom's white outfits contrast dramatically with the dark background vegetation. That also makes the subjects stand out.
Location: 120 King St E, Toronto, ON M5C 1G6.
