I actually met Steph & Craig for the first time at the very restaurant they were planning on getting married at, the Drake Commissary. The original plan was to eat some of the amazing food and have some drinks while we chatted about their vision for their fall wedding within this incredibly vintage and throw-back setting the Drake Commissary provides. Out of the two hours of us hanging out, I think we spent about 15 minutes talking about the actual wedding day and their plans, the rest of the time we were immersed in off-the-wall and various life topics that had no theme or topic. These two are that down to earth and genuine that it wasn’t hard to bond over the little things in our lives and our related experiences from living in Toronto and all the alternative things we enjoy and seemingly shared in common. I was especially looking forward to this because a fall wedding at the Drake Commissary basically combines my favourite season (and time to photograph) with a vintage and natural atmosphere that I gravitate to as a photographer. Of course it was the perfect recipe to put some 35mm film through my Leica and to dust off my Hasselblad that I’ve been recently neglecting and shoot some 6x6 medium format film.
The wedding day felt unusually calm without any sort of sense of pressure or anxiety resonating from anyone involved. The day started with Craig and his two BFFs getting some old-school shaves at Rod Gun N’ Barber in the Junction. The over the top manly man’s theme of the barbershop / bar created a fun and casual start to the wedding day for the groom and the majority of the morning was spent playing darts with a few pints and too many laughs. The groom thought ahead and decided to get ready in a beautiful loft in the Junction area that was surrounded by a seemingly endless row of windows that lit up every room with the natural window light that any and every wedding photographer dreams of having on a wedding day. The eclectic decor and colour palettes of the loft just worked so naturally with the groom’s duo-tone maroon suit and I probably could’ve spent an hour with Craig in there just snapping portraits of him looking like he came straight out of a vintage 1960’s fashion mag.
Meanwhile, Steph and her crew spent the morning in a cozy Airbnb prepping the bride’s extremely unique and alternative wedding dress to accompany the hand-crafted jewelry made by one of the bride’s best friends. The jewelry were the most memorable pieces I’ve ever photographed as they were custom made with an alternative flair that highlighted an often overlooked beauty and combined it with future-retro and modern-vintage aesthetic that suited Steph perfectly. It’s hard to describe the bride’s style because it’s so uniquely and genuinely hers, but it’s somewhere in-between vintage, alternative, modern and boho , but also none of those things at all. Steph’s look was authentically her, understated but distinguishable, her fiery hair and overall look were unforgettable and one of my all-time favourites. Her pink leopard print overcoat was truly the cherry on top of what was already a distinctive style that was unapologetically Steph which highlighted an alternative beauty that surpassed the untraditional into a category of its own.
Once we got to the Drake Commissary the whole wedding day was ready to kick-off with the help of a first look that gave us a bit of everything on the emotional spectrum. The bride kept it together until Landslide by Fleetwood Mac started playing through the outdoor speakers and at that point Steph couldn’t fight back her tears providing an endearing and candid moment that really stuck with me because music is one of the things that is so deeply rooted to our emotions and sense of nostalgia and in this moment Steph was realizing she was living in what would be a fond future memory. That sort of emotional presence is something I admire and something that really inspires me as a photographer on the wedding day because it’s so powerful that I can’t help but feel it too. Despite the cold fall day, the wedding ceremony was held outside on the Drake Commissary’s patio, there the bride and groom’s immediate families and closest friends watched them exchange their vows while being surrounded by beautiful florals and the cool fall breeze. The reception and party took place inside the Drake Commissary and the vintage style of the furniture and restaurant blended perfectly with the entire aesthetic of the wedding details. The night progressed with incredible meals and hilarious speeches that brought back some embarrassing memories and provided fodder for potential nicknames for the bride and groom going forward. The hilarity of the speeches set the tone for the Craig and Steph’s first-dance that started with an homage to the the show The Office and the “dinner party” episode that had an awkward dance that Steph recreated to a tee.
As the sun began to set the bride and groom wanted to take some time to themselves and enjoy the golden hour light as they kept each other warm on the chilly day and overlooking the Junction as the sun dipped behind the skyline. The romantic mood of the sunset was brief as most fall sunsets are, but the bride and groom got to soak in the very last ounce of light on their wedding day.
The rest of the night was mostly spent on the dance floor and mingling with guests but not before sneaking off to make use of the Drake’s authentic Photo Booth to get their first tangible photographs as husband and wife. I loved seeing Steph and Craig take a few fleeting moments to themselves to take in the emotions and excitement of the events that were unfolding including taking a moment to to head outside and soak in the moonlight. Steph and Craig were unapologetically themselves throughout the entire wedding day and it’s that authenticity that came through in the images and why I’ll remember this fall wedding day at the Drake Commissary for the rest of my career.
