Toronto has an abundant amount of beautiful and unique wedding venues but there are some, like the SteamWhistle Brewery that hold a somewhat legendary status among wedding venues in the city. Despite being located right in the heart of downtown Toronto I never had the chance to photograph a wedding there until Neil and Aubrey came along and hired me as their wedding photographer. A spring wedding at the SteamWhistle Brewery was one of the better ways to kick off a wedding season.
After meeting them (digitally, since they live in New York City) and getting to know more about their wild love story and how they met, it became transparent that art is a huge part of their lives and who they are as individuals. The groom, Neil, is a graphic designer and was immensely excited when he found out that we shoot medium format film with my trusty Hasselblad and understood the benefit of the tangibility that film provides to elevate their wedding photography and overall memories of their wedding day. I was all-in for their wedding, the privilege of working within the beautiful historic grounds that surround the SteamWhistle Brewery on a gorgeous spring day could only be made better by shooting it on analog film.
Since the Bride works for Prada, I had no doubt that she would have one of the most memorable wedding looks I would get to photograph as a wedding photographer, and Aubrey did not disappoint, looking completely stunning in her fashion-forward and timeless look. While the bride got ready in her hotel suite, the groom was literally next door in a separate, but attached, suite getting ready with his best pals and soaking in the moment. There was something incredibly unique and special about their getting ready. Although I appreciated the convenience of just walking through a door to jump back and forth between the bride and groom for photographs, the anxiety and nervous energy emitted through the very walls separating them which created a beautiful and honest ambiance to the getting ready that is often rare in these circumstances. During their first look they held hands through a small crack in the door, listening to each other’s breaths until the anticipation overtook them before embracing in a quiet moment.
The bride and groom got ready at a hotel nearby and opted to walk to their wedding ceremony, which took place outside the SteamWhistle Brewery overlooking the historic train yard and the CN Tower as the spring sun broke through the clouds intermittently. We took advantage of the incredibly diverse landscape that downtown Toronto has to offer to capture a few portraits along the way, making most of the rapidly changing light within the surrounding urban jungle.The wedding reception inside the SteamWhistle Brewery was beyond beautiful and surpassed even my own expectations. The rustic aesthetic was utterly authentic and set the scene for an incredibly elegant and sophisticated wedding reception, the bride and groom shared their first dance with the setting sunlight as it peeked through the cracks and windows as they lived in their own world together for 3 and half minutes. The sunset light was so good that Neil actually urged us to head outside and so they could enjoy a moment together and take in the whirlwind of their wedding day.
Once the party began it didn’t show signs of dying down anytime soon as wine and (good) beer were free flowing as their guests from Canada and the U.S. amalgamated with the intention of celebrating the bride and groom’s new life together as one.
I’ll admit, there’s something about Spring that gets me, the revival of life, and seemingly, the world, getting to photograph Neil and Aubrey’s beautiful wedding at the SteamWhistler Brewery was definitely an incredible opportunity for me to exercise that new-found inspiration into something that can be cherished and appreciate for years to come.
Song of the day - You Lost Me There - George Clanton
