Elegant fall wedding at Toronto’s Sassafraz
This past October Donya and Richard had their wonderful intimate wedding at the elegant Sassafraz restaurant downtown Toronto.
They saw each other for the first time that day in the lobby of the lovely Victoria hotel downtown and then we headed to Sassafraz for the ceremony.
It rained that day but they did not seem to mind. We still had a few photos taken outside around Yorkville and then decided to hop on a cab and go to the Novotel hotel for more fun. People there were extremely accommodating and allowed us to shoot inside. We took advantage of their modern interior and incorporated a lot of colour into our collection. We had lots of laughs and simply played around. On the way back I left my hat in a Beck cab and the kind driver came to my home next day to give it back to me. It feels so good whenever one comes across good deeds. Makes the heart expand 
This is the kind of day we had together. I also really enjoyed myself with the kitchen staff at Sassafraz (have to say, everybody there is so professional and friendly!) and took photos while they were plating their wonderful, super tasty dishes.
I should also mention the couple’s guests: what a nice crowd! Friendly, caring, entertaining and more!
Donya and Richard, hope your fantastic honeymoon in Argentina is fabulous and can’t wait to hear your stories! Congratulations and may you enjoy lots and lots of travels!
Hugs, Manuela.
Downtown Toronto Iranian wedding with colour and style
Iranian weddings are intricate and rich in meaning. I have always been fascinated with the Sofreh (the display used during the Iranian ceremony) which holds together items that symbolize love, abundance, a sweet life, fertility. It is a beautiful way for the couple to be wished well and sent off on their new journey.
Yasmine and Reza have minutely and elaborately chosen the details for their big day. Starting with the colourful rooms at the Park Hyatt for their getting ready photos and ending with the reception held at the quaint Arta Gallery located in the Distillery District. All in all, the day has been colourful, eventful, emotional. And filled with a lot of high energy.
Their guests greeted the couple with a lot of clapping and singing which made the ceremony feel even more festive. The rhythms were truly exhilarating.
The reception that followed was lots of fun, with nice surprises the couple had reserved for their guests. A joy to witness!
Yasmine and Reza, congratulations to you and may your new life together be nothing short of sweet and abundant!
Manuela
Elegant wedding at the Miller Lash House, Toronto
This past summer I had the great pleasure to photograph a beautiful wedding at Toronto’s Miller Lash House.
Georgia and Gabe are one of the coolest couples I have ever met. Relaxed and laid back by nature, there was nothing on their day that could prevent them from thoroughly enjoying themselves on their big day. Just the way it should be.
They decided to host all the events in one spot and chose the quaint Miller Lash House. Surrounded by a fair number of family members and friends, they celebrated with joy, laughter and a lot of dancing! Once the Jewish Hora started, the crowd was drawn into a vortex of high energy and this has not stopped for quite a while. Hard to keep up at times! There were so many things happening on so many levels and everybody seemed to constantly come up with extremely creative ways to entertain the couple and each other. A riot!
Picking a few shots to depict the atmosphere was quite tough, there are so many more in there that did not make it for the blog, but at least the couple will be able to enjoy a visual series that will surely bring them back to those fun moments.
Georgia and Gabe, big Congrats to you, keep the fun going and thank you for having us witness such an amazing day!
Best, Manuela & Co.
Claudia and Thomas’s fun wedding at the Old Mill, Toronto
Claudia and Thomas’s wedding at the Old Mill in Toronto was nothing short of fun, elegant, laid back, emotion filled. A beautiful celebration with friends and family wrapped in high energy. Simply a delight to capture.
We connected really well from the moment we sat down for the initial consultation. I really enjoyed chatting with them and hearing everything they had to share about their vision of the wedding day. It is always a great pleasure for me to work with such great people and to be there with and for them while they experience some of the most memorable moments of their lives.
Claudia and Thomas, hope you are enjoying your last days in Europe. May these images help you relive your day and always remind you of the joy you have shared.
Congratulations! Manuela & Co.
Beautiful Indian wedding at the Grand Palladium, Jamaica
While sitting in front of my computer and looking at Shivani and Nimesh’s wedding photos, a song popped into my head:
Shirley Bassey’s “Where do I begin”…
This is exactly how I felt while looking at the images that vividly brought back the amazing experience I have had while at the Grand Palladium in Jamaica: a story about love, sea, dreamy beaches with red trees and a gorgeous couple that got united in marriage through the most incredible Hindu ceremony I have witnessed. Considering we were miles away from home and everything had to be flown down, I truly admired the dedication for having had all the symbolic elements essential to such a rich ritual in place.
The space looked almost like a temple with its white columns washed by the great light coming through. In spite of the heat, the humidity and I am sure, the difficulty to wear such intricate outfits, everything took place flawlessly and was a joy to watch.
While wishing for some afternoon clouds (which seemed to come in every day almost at the same time) and luckily not having any rain, the wedding party and I went to the beach and waited for the sun to hide. And it did. Almost at command.
After a nice little break we all met again at the reception. The chosen restaurant, with a beautiful sea and sky view, has demonstrated one more time how skilled the Jamaican cooks really are: they came up with a beautiful series of Indian dishes deliciously flavored.
The super entertaining DJs played some great tunes and the bartenders poured drinks while displaying impressive moves themselves.
All in all, after getting into the groove, the happy crowd rocked the venue. Ya Man!
Dear Shivani and Nimesh, thank you for making me a part of a very unique experience that will stay in my memory for a long time and big Congrats to you!
Gratefully, Manuela
Spring wedding at the Inn on the Twenty, Jordan Niagara
Helena and Andrew could have not chosen a better day to get married. Usually, mid April in Ontario is not the warmest and greenest of times, but this year, due to the unusually warm temperatures, nature came to life sooner than what we are normally used to. What a sight Jordan Niagara was that day! Full of colours, blossoms, exploding with life! I was absolutely delighted for the couple as I knew their imagery would turn soft and dreamy. Very much in line with who they are: artists at heart, people who love and play music. All in all, this ended up being a symphony of delicate soft tones and much love in the air.
The wedding party was a lot of fun, we walked around the Inn on the Twenty and it was not hard at all to find photogenic spots.
Laid back, having fun with each other and enjoying each second of their experience, Helena and Andrew were amazing to work with and be around.
Dear Helena and Andrew, congratulations one more time and hope you have thoroughly enjoyed a romantic time in Paris! Hugs, Manuela.
Vision Art albums, true craftsmanship!
Kristen and Frank’s wedding albums arrived yesterday, they look fantastic thanks to Vision Art‘s wonderful quality!
I would like to share the couple’s reaction to their books:
“Frank and I just looked at all the albums and they are wonderful. I absolutely love the pages, the quality and the overall appearance of them. It is such a classy looking presentation and both of us were so impressed.”
Wedding albums are the best story tellers. And I absolutely love putting them together. It is a fine process which involves a lot of creative thinking and fine tuning and I love its end result which best represents my work. I always have a deep feeling of satisfaction whenever I go through the pages I design, they reflect my vision.
To see more examples of Vision Art books, please go here.
Helena & Andrew married at the Inn on the Twenty, Jordan
Congratulations to a lovely couple! I loved every second of their wedding day, not to mention the surroundings were quite dreamy with lots and lots of blossoms! More photos to come soon.
Gorgeous winter wedding at the Hart House, Toronto
Back in September I got to spend a few quality hours at Jordan’s parents’ farm to take engagement photos of him and his future bride at the time, Kelley. I knew the fun loving couple would be amazing to be around on their wedding day. Their late January celebrations have been nothing short of exquisite, tasteful, elegant. I was delighted to learn that they planned for an outdoor wedding ceremony at the Hart House. And not just any kind, very well orchestrated at the most perfect time of the day, so it could be candle lit. The couple was blessed with a fairly reasonable temperature. Even though it got colder once the sun set, they managed to pull off a magical moment with all their guests in attendance. Very inspiring for a photographer who likes to see things that are unique, creative, out of the ordinary. The best trigger ever! The reception that followed offered a dreamy setting with more candles, fantastic food and great atmosphere, all within the gorgeous architectural setting of the Hart House.
Dear Kelley and Jordan, I feel privileged to have been part of such a special time in your lives, congratulations one more time, stay well and very happy always! Hugs, Manuela & Co.
Wedding planner and reception decor: R & R Designs (www.rnrdesigns.ca)
Ceremony decor: Petals Stems and Leaves (www.petalsstemsandleaves.com)
Winter wedding at the Queen’s Landing, Niagara on the Lake
Elizabeth and I met in Sicily back in 2010. Due to a fortunate chain of events we ended up staying at the same fantastic vila. We connected right away on many levels and I recall our laughs with great pleasure. We truly felt we must have been sisters in a previous life! Since, we have had long, deep conversations over the phone and have exchanged soul soothing emails. She is a special human being and I am very happy to have her in my life. Needless to say, I was super excited for her the moment she announced the engagement to Dan, her boyfriend of a few years. They met in Buffalo while she was doing her Master’s at the Buffalo State College. Fate? I would think so! I have not had the pleasure to meet her fiancé until their wedding day. And I was very content to discover that Elizabeth could have not chosen to spend the rest of her life with someone better suited: a gentleman in all senses. I felt fortunate to get to spend so many hours around them that pretty mild January day and I could have not thought of a better way of part taking in all the emotion while capturing some great moments through my lens. Their choice of a venue was fantastic, the quaint Queen’s Landing in Niagara on the Lake still had all the Christmas decorations up so the celebrations felt even more festive.
Dear Sissy Beth and your lovely Dan, I am wishing you both a new path paved with love, mutual support, fun, health and many wild dreams coming true!! Lots of love, Sissy M.
