Tag Archives: Kitchener wedding photographer

Colourful Modern Vintage Family Photos

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Do you remember back in February when EBI had a draw for a free family photo session? Meet the winners! The idea was to give back to my wonderful group of clients, but it turned out to be a great experience for me as well. The contest introduced me to Lindsay and her beautiful blended family, and after a few e-mails back and forth and an inspirational Pinterest board, we arrived on a mutual vision for a fun family photo shoot that would involve bold black and white stripes and oversize handmade pink paper flowers.

The setup took a bit of effort to assemble, but it was well worth it when I saw all the elements come together. To top things off, I arranged to borrow a minty green vintage style bicycle from some friends (thanks Fraser and Ellie) and accessorized the set with all sorts of white flowers. Lindsay and her family arrived with black and white and blue outfits and these great vintage updos that pulled everything together. We ended up with alllll kinds of great shots to choose from, and in the end the fam opted to add several extra images on top of their complimentary portrait package. Here are a few of our favourites.

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Announcing Incandescent Boudoir Sessions

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Together, Cailey Brammer and I are pleased to offer you Incandescent Boudoir Sessions this Mother’s Day weekend. Let’s see what’s possible when two experienced creative professionals team up for light and airy styled boudoir photos at our home studio in Kitchener, Ontario.

Boudoir photography is one of the best gifts a woman can receive. Treat yourself, or surprise the lady in your life with a gift neither one of you will ever forget. These photo sessions promise to be a delightful experience for all involved.

Have you been hanging around the boudoir pool for awhile now? Maybe dipped your toes in once or twice? Well this is the perfect opportunity to dive in headlong. Let us transform you into the most lovely version of yourself while you enjoy a glass of Champagne and unwind. We’ll help you with styling and fashion and beauty advice every step of the way, so that by the time you get in front of the camera, you’ll already be glowing.

After an hour getting beautified, and unlimited access to our modern/vintage wardrobe, we’ll move on to the photography. Most of my clients come to me with absolutely no modeling experience. Sure it helps to know your angles, but its really not necessary to capture beautiful images and see yourself in a whole new light. Together, we’ll work through a variety of poses designed to flatter your particular shape. All body types welcome here! Wear as much or as little clothing as you like. We’ll have time for several outfit changes.

Our Incandescent sessions will involve lots of bright white light, simple backdrops and a focus on you. We will have a faux bed setup, window light, and satiny white sheets. To give these images a touch of personality, we’ll also use a turquoise ombre wall and oversize tropical leaves for some images. What to wear? Think cream, blush, pink, soft baby blue, lavender and turquoise.

Since these sessions are happening Mother’s Day weekend, smart participants will plan to make the most of their hair and makeup investment. After your session, why not wrap up your day with a nice dinner or a get together with your loved ones? Show them how good you look after spending a morning or an afternoon on self-love.

When you sign up for an Incandescent Session, Cailey will help you reveal your outer beauty, and I’ll help you capture your inner beauty. You’ll be amazed what the combination of professional styling, proper lighting and posing can do for your image, and for your self esteem.

By the way, Cailey has a GORGEOUS new website that just went live. Have you visited caileybrammer.com yet? You really must go check out her work so you can see exactly what kind of expertise Cailey will will bring to our Incandescent Sessions. Oh yes, and let’s not forget the handmade floral crowns we will have on hand. Because fresh florals make everything more lovely. For Incandescent Sessions, I’ll be turning to the experts at From the Potting Shed to put together these important finishing touches.

After your session is complete, you’ll have 30 days to pick your favourite photos from a private online proof gallery. You’ll receive 3 digital portraits, edited to your specific taste. Of course once you see your proofs, there’s always the option to purchase extra digital images, or create customized art like a wooden print or a personalized mini album. Keep it simple with digital files, or take this opportunity to create a keepsake you’ll treasure for decades to come.

Won’t you join us? Now booking May 13th and May 14th sessions. Visit our Facebook event page for available time slots and all the most up to date information on Incandescent Sessions.

E-mail emily@emilybeatty.com to reserve your spot today. Nine spaces remaining!

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Springtime Florals, From The Potting Shed

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On Sunday, it finally felt like spring was about to make her debut. For months now I’d been meaning to drop in and check out the floral experts at From The Potting Shed, and Sunday, at last, the stars aligned, the sun came out, and we we able to meet the team at their monthly open house. What a breath of fresh air! Visiting this stone cottage was the perfect way to start spring 2017. Finding the location in Galt, Cambridge was a bit of a challenge, but once my husband and I arrived it was easy to see why the business has chosen to call this spot home. The abundant natural lighting alone was enough to make me swoon. Add heaps and heaps of blossoms, and I felt like I’d found a little slice of heaven perched on a hilltop in Cambridge.

My mom is somewhat of an aspiring florist and I had hoped to bring her along for the tour, but that aspect of our plans didn’t work out. Luckily I had my camera bag with me, as we were en route to my grandmother’s birthday party. After our complimentary tour, I couldn’t help but ask the owners if I could snap a few shots, and they were gracious enough to allow me 10 minutes with my camera and their florals. I’m sharing these images because they are beautiful, but also so my mom can see what she missed while she was busy hosting her mother’s birthday party. Thankfully, I know there will be lots of other opportunities to visit FTPS with her in the future.

These folks do some great work, and I’m excited to have them make me up some floral crowns for our upcoming boudoir feature this May. Thank you very much to Elaine, Kathy, Nicole, Bill and the rest of the team for your hospitality, and especially for the little customized bouquet. My grandmother loved it.

The next open house for brides is April 8 & 9 if you want to check out this beautiful business for yourself.

http://www.fromthepottingshed.com/

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May Flowers Mini Photo Shoots

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The flower wall. I had no idea how popular it would become when I started making these giant paper flowers in preparation for our wedding back in the winter of 2014. I experimented and played around and eventually ended up with the combination of white, blue, pink, turquoise, yellow and orange flowers that would be the colour scheme for most of my life for the past 2 years. After all the “I Dos” and hullabaloo, I was left with the wall. THE WALL.

Each individual flower represents at least $5 worth of paper and 1-2 hours of my life. This baby took me so long to make that I knew it had to get set up at least once more so that I could properly photograph it myself. Thus the idea for “May Flowers Minis” was born. I enlisted a handful of gorgeous young ladies for May Flowers portraits and we set out to create joyful photographs that would celebrate springtime 2016. Here is a handful of my favourite shots from our styled mini sessions. Thanks so much to all the lovely ladies that participated in this endeavour.

Emily & Patrick’s Green Wedding Reception at Victoria Park Pavilion

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One hot July day in 2016, two souls were joined in marriage as a plethora of guests from all corners of the globe looked on. After Emily and Patrick’s heartfelt church ceremony, their friends, family, and small wedding party headed for Victoria Park Pavilion in Kitchener where a massive celebration would soon be underway. After the nuptials, the sky opened up for a terrific thunderstorm, but luckily by that point the party had been safely relocated to the Pavilion and dinner was underway.

With many of the groom’s Irish family in attendance, a very green theme made perfect sense for Emily and Pat’s wedding reception. There was plenty of good food and drink on hand as guests took in all the thoughtful little touches that reflected both Emily and Patrick and their mutual loves. From shamrock sugar cookies to family heirlooms and wee bunny rabbit decorations in honour of their pet, Simon, there were plenty of unique things to behold at this wedding.

Then there was the photo wall! After plenty of discussions over the past year, Emily and I agreed that I would attend their reception and photograph some key details of speeches and decor, but my main job would be to create a totally unique customized photo wall that would contribute to their green, green and more green theme. In the end I painted an abstract botanical pattern for the main backdrop, and accented it with handmade giant paper succulents. By setting up a freestanding photo wall on the stage at the Victoria Park Pavilion the day before, I was able to simply walk on set and start photographing the guests the evening of the wedding. As an added bonus for the happy couple, the custom photo backdrop provided extra ambiance to the venue throughout their whole reception.

As usual, the guests took to the photo wall like ducks to water and before long I found myself sorting through hundreds of hilarious group shots. Here are a bunch of my favourites. Emily and Patrick, I hope that as the years stretch on you and all of your friends and family get a real kick out of reliving your fantastic wedding celebration through these images.

Congratulations E & P, I hope you have a wonderful honeymoon and a most excellent life together!!!

xo Emily

Kristen & David’s Intimate Springtime Wedding

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Kristen and David were wed on a romantic misty May afternoon, and I was lucky enough to be there to capture it. I met the bride something like four years ago, when she was a bridesmaid and I was the photographer for her big sister’s wedding. Right away, I felt a connection with this big, warm, fun loving family, so I was thrilled when Kristen contacted me last year and asked if I’d take pictures for a few hours throughout her simple and chic springtime wedding day.

The beautiful couple planned an intimate wedding day that brought their closest friends and family together for a gorgeous casual portrait session at the groom’s parents’ home outside of Cambridge, followed by a short and sweet marriage ceremony at The Charcoal Steakhouse in Kitchener. The groom had his best friend at his side as best man, and the bride chose her 3 sisters to stand up with her as her bridesmaids. After one of the most laid back, relaxed and happy ceremonies I’ve ever participated in, the whole group retired to the bar for some fancy cocktails before a lovely dinner served at one long harvest table. Love and laughter spilled from the private dining room as I left the revelers to their celebrations.

David and Kristen have a beautiful compatibility, and I hope that comes through in the images we captured together.

Thanks so much for selecting me to capture your memories K & D! It was an absolute pleasure to document your big day. Here’s to many happy years together. Cheers!

All The Colour

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Well hello there! Got time for a quick story?

Years ago, while preparing for one of my early art sales, my dad, in an attempt to counsel me, said, “You know Em, you like to make everything really colourful. And that’s cool, but some people don’t have the kind of house that works with that sort of art. Some people like beige.” I gave it some thought and he’s right of course, but I’m too stubborn to let it rest at that, so I replied, “Well if the people want beige, I’m sure there are 100 other photographers in town that can do a great job taking boring photos for them.” I’ve always done things my own way, and I don’t see any reason to stop now. My experiments with more frequent, more stylized mini photo shoots are going well. I want to see my work expand in exciting, more bold, more independent directions. I’m going to stay focused on creating work for clients that I really like and I’m proud of. That means its going to be joy-filled, vivid, fun and always, always, colourful.

It turns out your vibe really does attract your tribe, so in 2016 I’m putting it all out there. My art isn’t for everybody, but those who like it, like it a lot. I’m all about portraits that are packed with a ton of colour, texture, fun angles, and genuine emotions. If you like your life bright, bold and sunny side up, you’re in the right place, and you should be excited because I have a shocking amount of never before seen images coming to the blog soon. Want to collaborate on a shoot? Got feedback? Leave me a comment below, or better yet, shoot me an e-mail, I’d love to hear from you!

xoxo

A Kitchener Waterloo Portrait Photographer’s Top Shots from 2015

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What a year! For me and EBI, 2015 turned out to be a flurry of excitement full of extreme highs and lows, big life changes and unprecedented career opportunities.

The year opened up with elaborate plans for my own “glitter garden party” wedding scheduled for June, escalated with Easter minis, continued with the honour winning a YWCA 2015 Woman of Distinction Award, got complicated when I learned who my true friends were in the spring months, and peaked in June when I vowed (on literally the rainiest, stormiest day in 6 years) to stick with Todd forever. Just our luck.

Me and my business hit the ground running in August and the number of jobs I had on the go steadily increased until holiday minis and then the Christmas rush were upon us. After some personal tragedies and the deaths of 2 family members and my beloved bunny, Todd and I had plenty of opportunities to test the strength of our new marriage. I’m pleased to report that through all the various challenges 2015 presented us with, the two of us have become a stronger team than ever. With his support, I shot and edited more portraits for more clients this holiday season than I would have believed possible in the recent past. For weeks on end I was running on coffee and editing around the clock as Todd delivered photo packages for me all over town. I actually had to turn potential clients away in December because there just weren’t enough hours to fit everybody in before the big deadline on the 25th. I would have liked to help those families out, but I admit it also felt like a bit of a milestone for my business to have reached a point where I can afford to turn people away.

At long last, it feels like I’ve got a substantial client base rooting for me, and what excellent clients they are! In a classic example of Murphy’s law, when my new husband and I finally got a chance to slow down on Christmas day, Santa blessed us with food poisoning and we both rang in the New Year in a rather disgusting state.

It truly was a crazy year, full of far more challenges, joys and sorrows than I ever could have anticipated. These are the images, personal and professional, that stick out for me after the last 365 days of living life and pursuing my dreams at full speed.

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Thanks so much for being here and for taking a few moments from your busy day to glance at my pictures. Wishing you love, peace and joy in 2016.

EBI Has A New Boss

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Emily Beatty Self Portrait 2015 Hello dear readers, and welcome to the next chapter of EBI! That’s right folks, Mrs. Lister is in effect. My name has changed, but my vision hasn’t. I’ve been slacking in the social media department, but I’m here to tell you that ends now.

Last week I found myself having coffee with a close friend in my living room, and saying something to the effect of, “I don’t think I’ve ever gone so long without a big creative endeavour on the go. I feel like I haven’t produced anything cool in a year.” My friend laughed, because she was seated in the opposite direction, facing a brand new gallery style wall chock full of crafty and colourful photos taken at our wedding. Now I’m looking back on the preceeding months and trying to figure out if this has been the most or least prolific period of my career.

If you ask any of our close friends or extensive family members, it was a crazy vivid year of glitter art, party plans and whimsical expectations. There was a month or two where you literally couldn’t get into our home without tripping on some kind of spray painted, decoupaged, sparkle encrusted wedding craft. I busted our vacuum by exceeding its sequin and glitter capacity. Seriously. All my life I’ve loved making pretty things, and as I recognized the early stages of photography related burnout, I decided to embrace party planning like it was my job. It was a new way to channel my creativity within an industry that I’ve been a part of for several years now. The trouble was from my clients’ perspectives, I’m sure it looked as though I was just hanging out. While my personal contact list was getting tired of seeing so many images of cakes and dresses and tablescapes, those of you who have always supported my art and my business saw a dramatic decline in my engagement with social media as I allowed my focus to drift away from EBI in favour of more romantic pursuits.

I didn’t shoot anybody during July. And that for me, is a big deal. It was a decision I made many months previously, a decision to slooooowww things down and get my bearings. For awhile there you see, I was charging forward, camera in hand, digging myself deeper and deeper into a pile of projects I couldn’t begin to imagine my way out of. When Todd proposed, all of a sudden my creative to-do list doubled. I guess you could say I spent the majority of the past year in over my head. Thank goodness I had my mom and my sister and my partner’s fantastic family keeping me organized and focused when it came to planning our big day.

I was awake for what felt like a week solid during mid June as I scrambled to get everybody taken care of so that I could go well and truly off the grid for a week or two following our nuptials. I sent off the final client photo gallery an hour before we had to go to our rehearsal dinner. Then somebody told me the forecast for our wedding day. Oh boy.

Worst summer storm in six years. Perfect day to get married. Our devoted friends and family members pulled together to throw us the garden party wedding of our dreams in teeming wind and rain that never once let up. The party was confined to a tent in my parent’s backyard, but oh the marvels we had crammed into that tent! At the end of the night we were all very cold and wet, very tired, and very glad to be married and moving on from all the matrimonial mayhem that had dominated the last year of our lives.

I’m so glad I had the sense to step back and enjoy the bridal period of my life. It was a whirlwind that I was thrilled to revel in at the time, but now I’m more than ready to get back behind the camera where I belong. To kick off this new era in my photography career, I challenged myself to put together a self portrait featuring as much Emilyness as I could pack into one small faux-wallpapered square. This was also my first attempt at making floral crowns with fresh greenery, and I have to admit I’m rather pleased with the result. I think I see more DIY tutorials and more self portrait projects on the horizon. After all, I’m the only model I know that works night shifts for free with absolutely no prior notice, and the crafty component is something fun and unique that I can bring to photo shoots. Its worth all the effort, because nothing feels as good as capturing an idea out of thin air, translating it with a camera, and eventually watching it roll out of my printer in real life. At long last I feel recharged and reinvigorated to pursue my passion: connecting with awesome individuals by photographing life’s best moments in vivid colour. Thanks for sticking with me!

Picture Perfect Pumpkins at Nauman’s Farm in St. Clements

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Since becoming a full time photographer, my new favourite seasonal tradition is selecting the most photogenic pumpkins in the patch for my annual Halloween minis. I think its an odd genetic trait passed down from my mother. For some reason, we both get strangely enthusiastic about decorative produce.

Three years ago my friend Jessi introduced me to Nauman Farm in St. Clements and I have taken my camera and left with a carload full of squash, gourds, and pumpkins every year since. What I like about Nauman’s is the extensive variety of seasonal produce that they have available. Every year there are new types of squash and pumpkins that I’ve never seen before. If you’re got the time, there’s also an extensive corn maze, and a pretty sweet selection of baked goods and local specialties like honey and summer sausage.

This year, I would like to thank my friend Susan for accompanying me to the pumpkin patch, and for doing all the heavy lifting, and for looking so darn stylish while doing it.

We visited the farm on a cloudy Thursday afternoon just before closing time, and apparently timed it just right. Bumping our way down the lengthy lane way leading back to the city, we paused to admire a subtle sunset that made the surrounding fall foliage glow and illuminated rows upon rows of pumpkins laid out in the fields. Only moments away from the farm, I found myself looking forward to next year’s visit. I know it will be here again before I know it!