By Jennifer Cox

My parents were married in Montreal at Loyola Chapel, which now sits on the campus of Concordia University, in 1979. Decades later, when I started studying Journalism at Concordia, I loved walking by the chapel and looking at the front steps where all of my family, including grandparents who were no longer with us, had walked, stopping to pose for pictures in front of the big wooden doors. I was never the little girl who dreamed about her wedding, but when I saw the chapel in person, I knew that that was the one thing I wanted for my own special day: to get married at the same chapel as my parents.

And we did. Just two weeks after they celebrated their thirty-year anniversary, my husband and I got married in front of the same altar, with our guests lined in the same pews, surrounded by many of the people who had witnessed my own parents tie the knot.

To really remember the significance of getting married at the chapel, I met with our photographers (the incredible davina + daniel) months before and gave them some of the pictures from my parent’s wedding. They were clever enough to photograph them so, on our wedding day, they were able to refer to the pics and then “recreate” the same photos. It worked beautifully – we had about a dozen shots that looked like mirror images from my own parent’s wedding. I later put them in side-by-side frames for my mom and dad.

Jennifer Cox is a Montreal based freelance journalist who loves everything from weddings to foodie news, photography & candy!

Photos of Jennifer’s wedding: Davina + Daniel

I love unusual things – and that applies to weddings too. Which is why I thought these pre-wedding photos shot at the bride’s father’s carpentry shop were really neat! What a great setting! Meaningful, unique and tad edgy. Photos by Indonesian photographer, Ian Photography.

I love these photos taken by This is Photography at Bay Breeze Stables, in Summerside, Prince Edward Island (PEI happens to be one of my favourite places on earth.)

Julia grew up riding horses. She is a country girl at heart and wanted to do a shoot that incorporated horses and the feel of  hat day at the derby. Growing up she loved watching the hat day at the races where all of the ladies would get dressed up and wear fancy headpieces, so her love for horses and memories of the fancy hats are what inspired the shoot (and the fancy headpiece).

Thanks Heather, for the photos! See the full shoot over here.

Love this shot by Agnes Lopez Photography.

I find trends fascinating. Oftentimes they defy logic. Take fake moustaches at weddings. They’re were hugely popular in 2009. Why? And who would have predicted that? Then there’s the striped sock phenomenon. And Converse All-Stars. And typewriters. And clotheslines. And mason jars. And birds.

I’ve been spotting another trend recently: train tracks. They’re all over the place. Not that that’s a bad thing. I happen to love trains. They really are a metaphor for life’s journey. And honestly, if you ever feel down about the human race, drive on over to the nearest train station and park your rear end down on a bench. You will witness the most profound emotions on this earth: love and longing. I bet you’ll have to stifle a few tear drops as you watch people reunite with loved ones, and say farewell to others. And then there’s the haunting whoosh of the train fading away.

I think it is the symbolism of train tracks that makes them a great backdrop for wedding photos. But there’s also something aesthetically beautiful about them. The symmetry. The way they wind through the landscape. And the fact that there is something timeless about them.

Here are a few of my favourite railroad track shots:

Caution: Do not attempt this after cocktails. Photo: 6:8 Photography

Photo: Clayton Austin via WedShare Daily

Photo: Snorri Gunnarson

Look out you two… there’s a train coming down the pike! Photo: Steller Photography

Love that kilt mister! Photo: KD Photography

Elegant. Photo: Unique Images Photography

How uplifting! Photo by Steph Goralnick.

By Carey, IW Bride Blogger

Photography is an integral part of my life, and Nathan’s. I can’t tell you how many cameras we own… dozens! Okay, so maybe they don’t all work but they all did at some point. I love thinking about who once owned this camera, and what might have been captured with that one. Did they wait with anticipation for the image to develop before their eyes. Maybe she was in a dark room, or maybe it was 1986 at a family reunion when instant film was both affordable and available (oh, Polaroid)!

You might even say photography is what brought Nathan and I together. He was a boy who took photos, and encouraged photos through the collaborative art project The Head Project. And, I was a girl interested in photography (mind you with the cheapest, yet dearly loved hp from 1999!!) who found the boy’s work through random online searching. My interest and appreciation for photography inclined Nathan to buy and send me a Polaroid camera years before we met.

So it is shocking that we would (or rather could) not consider spending thousands of dollars on wedding photography. I understand it is a priceless art form, but our budget allowed us to pick one – location or photography. We chose location. Luckily we know a fine young man with a camera – my brother, Drew Kirk.

My brother got in to photography much later than I did, and really not all that recently. And, I must admit he has surpassed his big sis. I am impressed daily by what he is able to capture, and the light in which he does so. Drew sees so many beautiful things most people never notice, and his composition is fantastic! We are so lucky that he will be capturing our big day!

Drew also took our engagement photos in February which could not have been easy for him. Nathan was slightly self conscious the entire time, and I couldn’t believe he was getting any of the GOOD moments. But the pictures were beyond my imagination! This is when I realized you really have to trust your photographer, and they will get it right.

I know not everyone will have a talented brother or friend to take their wedding photos, but it is never a bad idea to reach out to your guests to see what they would like to contribute! Talent is everywhere these days, and in my case my brother was really honored to be our photographer.

We are also setting up a flickr account for our guests to upload photos of the wedding from their cameras. Candid snapshots can be some of the best moments! And, of course we will be using polaroid film! I actually bought quite a bit today in support of The Impossible Project.

Photos: Drew Kirk

Magical.

Wildly talented British Columbia photographer Helene Cyr captured this.

It’s funny. I look back at our wedding photos (we’re approaching our 8th anniversary on September 1) and I am reminded of how much things can change in less than a decade. Not only have we all aged a bit (or as one author puts it, become a little ‘suburban soft’), but the photos themselves are clearly from a different era. The era of film. The era of print albums, not digital. The era before Photoshop Actions, where what you see is what you get.

The blue in my eyes is the real deal. It hasn’t been brightened or made more dazzling. My bouquet has not been ’sharpened’ or made to look ‘vintage’ with a myriad of computerized enhancements. It is what it is. And there is an undeniable beauty in that. It’s honest. Real. There is no “rock star” veneer.

I can look at my photos and I remember the exact yellow of the roses in my bouquet. I can look at the faces of my loved ones and  know that they were not enhanced, modified, blurred, ‘dodged’, boosted or ‘lomo’ ed in the name of sexy photos.

Our wedding photos are not sexy. We do not look like rock stars. But they are authentic, and for that I love them.

But that doesn’t mean I don’t like the transformation that wedding photography has taken. Digital photography has been responsible for an explosion of creativity. Digital photography encourages photographers to experiment, to play, and to take risks because there are no rolls of film to run out of. Without the expense of film, digital photographers have the freedom to click, click, click, click, without worrying about the end of the roll. Some argue that there is a downside to this freedom, in that the photographer doesn’t “make each shot count” as they would if they were shooting in film. An interesting argument, but I think freedom enhances creativity.

And without the expense of film and darkroom equipment, it has become a whole lot easier to enter the photography profession.  I don’t have any stats, but I know for a fact that the amount of photographers out there making a living at taking photos has skyrocketed. (There are downsides to this.)

Nowadays, you don’t have to be messing around with toxic chemicals in a darkroom to make magic happen. Photographers with Photoshop skills can transform decent photos into downright dazzling photos. I know this firsthand. I dabble in photography with a Nikon D70s (a dinosaur to most digital photographers) and I’m blown away at what Photoshop Actions can do to transform my photos. It’s downright addictive!

Even though I embrace the digital age with open arms, I am nostalgic for film and I have huge respect for photographers who still shoot in film. Like Claire Lewis, a wedding photographer and author of Exposed: Confessions of Wedding Photographer.

I loved Claire’s book (stay tuned for a review in the upcoming weeks) and I think she makes some really great points about shooting in film. And one of the strongest points is precisely what I discussed: the authenticity of it. (It’s funny because prior to reading Exposed, I honestly wondered if there were any wedding photographers out there who still shot with film.)

I don’t believe that film will ever die. Trends come and go, and I am certain that someday, couples will be clamoring for the honesty and nostalgia of film-based photos.

Until then, most of you will choose a digital photographer with a good grasp of Photoshop. Just make sure you choose her wisely. As I mentioned earlier, the digital age has sparked the entrepreneurial spirit in many men and women. And some will offer their services at a bargain price. But remember: if something is too cheap, somebody is paying. And that somebody might very well be you.

I have a thing for the East Coast. And for some reason I am drawn to images of rainy day weddings. This wedding captured by Daria Bishop really caught my eye. I love the ‘real’ ness of it and the fabulously colorful background.