erin + lawrence || the practice paid off

Wow, our first highlights film of 2011. We booked this wedding a little last minute but we are so incredibly glad we were able to apart of it. Erin + Lawrence are an amazing couple. They went to high-school together but it wasn't until after they graduated that they discovered how perfect they were for each other and fell in love. Lawrence is a little camera shy but when Erin is around it doesn't seem to bother him. Erin loves her dog Kiwi with all of her heart, but she loves Lawrence even more. We were really struck about how much these two care about family. The entire reception was filled with loving speeches and incredible musical performances by loved ones. Even Lawrence took a turn on stage to play a heartfelt violin piece for his new wife. We had such a great time with Erin + Lawrence and we are so happy we get to kick off 2011 with their highlights film. Check it out below and let us know what you think!

Photography by Dragonflight Photography

Techy Stuff: Cameras and Lenses

We've recently received a few emails, DM's on twitter and vimeo comments asking about what gear we use. I've been holding back on doing a techy post on this for a while but now I think it's time that I answer some of your questions on the bliggity blog… two specifically. 1. "What cameras do you use?" - We shoot exclusively on Canon HDSLR's. More specifically the Canon 5D MKII and Canon 7D. You might be saying to yourself, "but Mac you crazy guy, those cameras were designed for taking photos!". And to that I'd say Yes you are correct, however the built in video options give us the ability to achieve an extremely beautiful filmic look. These cameras allow us to approach shooting weddings in a whole new way. Instead of shooting a wedding with a traditional camcorder and fixed lens, we are able to film with multiple lenses to achieve the look we want in any given scene. I won't go into too much techy jargon but these cameras are amazing tools and we love using them.

2. "What lenses do you shoot with?" - Our 'go to' lenses that we shoot with most often are the Canon 35mm 1.4L and the Canon 50mm 1.2L. We LOVE these lenses. These lenses have very low apertures which gives us the option of a very shallow depth of field. We can really compress the subject we are filming and direct the audiences eye, a huge tool in storytelling. Now you again might be saying to yourself "but Mac, you nut job, why not use zooms?" We prefer shooting with prime lenses so we can get the most out of the lens. Most zooms have a higher aperture and don't allow us to take as much advantage of the compression. Also, the sharpness, colour and contrast of L series primes is unmatched in our opinion. Shooting with primes allows us to think more about what we're shooting. Instead of zooming in to whatever focal length we need, we think about what lens we need for every situation or setup. Ultimately this has made us better cinematographers and storytellers.

Those are some brief answers about the gear we use. If you want to know more about our gear and our philosophy behind using it, please feel free to leave comments on the blog, Facebook, @replies/DM's on twitter, or email us with any techy questions you have. Once in a while I'll post more "Techy Stuff" blogs to answer your questions.

And now I leave you with the song of the day... take a listen here, it very well may blow your mind.

Sheetal + Davinder || Wedding Highlights

Meet Sheetal and Davinder. An amazing couple to say the least. I met the two of them last summer when we went out for coffee to talk about their wedding. When they told me it was to be a three day Sikh wedding I was super pumped. Up until this point we had never filmed a Sikh wedding and we were so excited to shoot something different. On the first night of the celebration we were struck by the beauty and elegance of the wedding. For the next three days we watched and took part in a truly amazing event. Being able to watch and film such touching traditions and personal moments between families was truly an honour. We had such a incredible time with Sheetal and Davinder. This is a wedding we will never forget. Below is their highlights film.

Photographer: Jana Vackova

Bring it on 2011

Tomorrow is 2011. I can't believe it's already here. It always seems to amaze me how fast the Christmas season goes by and how quickly we're thrusted into the new year. 2010 has been an awesome year. We've been able to film some amazing weddings with some incredible couples, travel to some awesome destinations, and best of all I got engaged. So to cap off 2010 I thought I'd do a fun blog post of some of my favourites things in 2010. Random movies, books, tv etc. Feel free to leave a comment and let me know what your favs are!

Movies: (Being a film school snob it was really hard to narrow this down but here it goes.)

1. Scott Pilgrim VS. The World - This little gem did terrible in the box office but is an incredible film. You should see it asap. 2. The Social Network - Fincher at his best. 3. True Grit - The Coen brothers do it again. Simple and engaging. 4. Harry Potter - I'm a super geek when it comes to the books so it's a must. 5. Black Swan - Mind bender

Albums:

1. Arcade Fire - Suburbs 2. Tokyo Police Club - Champ 3. Broken Social Scene - Forgiveness Rock Record

Books:

1. American On Purpose - Craig Ferguson 2. When I Stop Talking You'll Know I'm Dead - Jerry Weintraub 3. Rebel Without a Crew - Robert Rodriguez

Websites:

1. www.vimeo.com - amazing community of filmmakers 2. www.berrics.com - skateboarding through and through 3. www.slashfilm.com - for all of your film geek news

TV:

1. Community - Incredibly hilarious and self aware. 2. 30 Rock - Classic 3. How I Met Your Mother - Single handedly keeping the traditional sitcom form alive. Hilarious!

ok and I need to let my techy geek side show for a moment…

Gear:

1. Canon 5D MKII - full frame glory 2. iPhone 4 - huge leap forward 3. Canon 50mm 1.2 - beautiful

Apps:

1. Pano - Shoots really cool panoramic photos 2. 8mm - Awesome super 8 mm camera filters 3. Instagram - Vintage toned camera phone