Union Photography Blog » Wedding, Portrait, Maternity and Lifestyle Photography by Jon Thorpe

I really love engagement shoots for the way that they allow me to connect with couples, make them feel comfortable and help them break down any walls that they may have when it comes to being in front of a camera. I had a fantastic time hanging out with Melanie & David for an evening and came out of the shoot with some fantastic and playful imagery that they will be able to cherish for a lifetime.

One thing that you will notice from these photos, is that my sessions are fairly long and can bridge a number of different environments and times of day. It allows me to provide my couples with a diverse range or imagery that is exciting, intimate and unique.

Thank you so much for spending an evening with me, Melanie & David. It was a pleasure working with the both of you!
I have to say that I am in LOVE with the last shot of you in your Toronto FC jerseys!

Some days I just can’t wait to get to work. Yes. You read that correctly!
I have been waiting all weekend to post these exciting images from my last little Lifestyle / Engagement shoot, featuring this all-too-cute couple.

We managed to beat the weather last Friday as the rain and clouds lifted and treated us to fantastic shooting conditions all through the evening. Beautiful summer like light, a vibrant twilight sky and temperatures that were on the mild side. It was absolutely perfect for a quick trip to the park, followed by a stop at a few more industrial locations to add some diversity to the imagery.

Please comment away!

Thanks Karen & Peter, for spending a fun evening in front of my lens! The next time I see the both of you, it will be as you walk down the aisle!

It’s always extremely flattering and quite the privilege when I am asked by other members of the photographic community, to capture the special moments in their lives.

I have known Sam & Laura for a few years now and they are one of the sweetest couples that I know! So when they brought me the news that they were going to have a baby, I just had to take them up on the opportunity to photograph some fun maternity photos that leaned on the side of lifestyle imagery.

I had a great time hanging out with the both of you for the afternoon and I can’t wait to meet the little one!

The weather outside may have been fierce, but high winds and rain could not extinguish the fiery passion of Mary and Ed  - and definitely didn’t dampen the excitement they carried throughout their big day.

I was extremely privileged to have Mary & Ed as my first couple of the 2010 wedding year. Their positive energy, passion and commitment turned a dreary March day into a vibrant and exciting event for everyone who was lucky enough to be with them, either in person, or through a web connection on other side of the country!

The day started off at Mary’s family’s home, which was awash in beautiful natural light and was followed by a simple but beautiful ceremony at Transfiguration of Our Lord Catholic Church in Etobicoke (Toronto).

The magnificent Liberty Grand set the stage for their reception, with live music, great food and plenty of details – even a surprise performance by Ed’s band! Another hi-light of the evening were the scratch and win cards that Ed & Mary had custom designed as a centerpiece giveaway game. How unique and fun!

A big thanks also goes out to my second photographer, Ryan, who helped me out throughout the wedding.

Thank you so much for inviting me to capture the moments of your day Mary & Ed!

For many years, black and white photography took a back seat to the advancement of color imagery, along with the vibrancy and excitement that it brought along. Some will say that B&W was never left far behind, but it is also true that much of the art in it’s processing was lost to the “Convert to B&W” tool found in many photo editing programs.

Hand finished black and white photographs can give your moments an nostalgic feel by simply removing the distraction that color can sometimes bestow on an image. You can feel the emotion, the romance and timelessness of the subjects. The effort of dodging (brightening) elements of a photo can bring out life and energy in a subject, while a light burn (darkening) can provide a needed separation from the background, enhancing texture and balancing the tonal relationships within.

Each photograph ordered through my studio receives this loving and detailed treatment. If a picture is worth a thousand words, those words should be spoken with clarity.

For 2011, every photo that leaves the studio will be receiving a hand finishing that includes retouching, tone adjustments and more. It’s my dedication to quality service and to the art that photography is.

Below is a selection of imagery from this past season, showing how proper, subtle editing can further enhance great imagery.

Well, it’s the New Year and one of my resolutions was to keep on top of the blog. So far – utter fail!

But I do have the excuse of being super busy here. The photo booth has been a HUGE hit and has been occupying a lot of time, bookings are through the roof (only a few spots are left for this year) and I have been working on many little (and big) side projects, to fill in the gaps.

I do have a number of past shoots to post about though, so I will try getting to those over the next while. Stay tuned!

One wedding that I will post, is that of Mira & Kyle. I was actually second shooting this one with my good friend Catherine at Documentographer. She’s always fun to shoot with, as we collaborate and challenge each other throughout the day and it always leads to some spectacular captured moments. Our styles are slightly different, she is more organic and candid, while I really love posing people – it’s always great having different eyes.

I started off the day with Kyle at the Hyatt in Toronto, where we grabbed a few shots before heading over to the stunning house at which Mira was getting ready. The ceremony, reception and other festivities all took place at the beautiful Beth Tzedec Shul, located in Toronto.

Through the course of the wedding season I am usually quite busy managing my own weddings, but I occasionally have the opportunity to work with other photographers to create some truly fantastic collaborative work. I am not going to do full posts on these weddings, but thought I would toss up a few selects for you to enjoy!

The crisp fall air and changing leaves in Sudbury, Ontario provided the setting for a fantastic day and evening of celebration for Kate & Dave’s wedding. I was shooting along side the fantabulous Catherine Farquharson who had been climbing Mt.Kilimanjaro only a day prior and required me to be available as a stand-in just in case. It of course never came to that, as Catherine is a seasoned jet setter, so headed out to enjoy a fantastic fall shoot with a fun couple!

I Just LOVE red roses. The simplicity of Kate’s bouquet really set things off and I just couldn’t keep my lens off it!

Faye & Micheal’s wedding was shot with Dave, who is one half of Dave & Charlotte. The Berkeley Event Center was the setting and is a Toronto location that I truly love shooting at. It was my 3rd wedding captured there and the weather was absolutely perfect as was the ambiance of the venue.

One thing that I love about the Berkley Church is the combination of vibrancy and texture that all of the different hallways, rooms, nooks and cranny’s provide. I feel like I can shoot there 100 times and have a different feel and flavor each time.

I have to say that I am extremely excited to be sharing this ’spilling of the beans’ with you right now!

For the past 6 months or so, I have been working on a secret project which has consumed nearly every spare second of my life and today is the day that I get to share the first tidbits of information with you. It all started off as a simple idea and skyrocketed from there. I wanted to create a classic photo booth with a very modern flair and not only did I want it to look sexy, but I also wanted its design to be influenced by my background in professional event photography.

And thus it was born – A photo booth created by a photographer. Simply and affectionately called ‘booth’.

There will be more information coming soon and the website www.getthebooth.com will be the place to find all of the details as I release them. The booth is, as of today, available for pre-bookings for the Holiday season and it will undoubtedly be very popular with both weddings and corporate parties.

So stay tuned and please let me know what you think of the booth!

Well, I promised myself that I would get this beautiful wedding blogged today and here it is! Elisabeth and Ian’s boutique wedding took place at the George Restaurant and Verity Hotel under blue skies and… the roaring sound of Jet Fighters?  Luckily it was not an aerial invasion, but rather the high flying acrobatic maneuvers of F-18’s as they took part in the Toronto Air Show. Our minister had to speak up a little at times, but it was kind of neat having the extra entertainment!

So this is what you get when you combine a beautiful and fun couple with a fantastic venue on a beautiful day! It really could not get any better! I really have to thank Elisabeth and Ian for letting me steal themselves away from the party to take the last shot… It was well worth it!

Enjoy the memories!

Where has this summer gone? It seems like it was just a few days ago that I had photographed Joanne & John’s wedding in the city – yet weeks have passed. I really must get back on the blogging bandwagon – because I have so much to show all of you!

So back to the story. Joanne and John are one of those special couples whom can light up an entire room with their energy and passion for one another. I love working with couples like this as the energy translates into joyous, natural and generally fantastic imagery!

Their ceremony took place at the Toronto Korean Presbyterian Church, which I loved because of its bright interior, open format and modern architecture. This was followed by local photos (we found a few amazing spots at random!) and then a reception to remember at the Sheraton. Wow what a day!

You guys were awesome and I really feel privileged to have worked with you, your family and friends!

These guys had a ton of fun when it came to the kissing game! Superman imitation!