🌈 University Club at Queen's University Wedding Reception + Backyard Ceremony | Dan & Huw 🌈
On the chill factor vibes, this gay summer wedding got 11/10. 🤩
That reflects the nature of the two grooms, Dan and Huw. They had the great wisdom to know what was important to them and what wasn’t, and to include all those things that were and none of the things that weren’t.
When we first met, they told me they were going to have two locations for their wedding:
👉 A backyard ceremony at Huw’s parents’ house + cocktails & snacks w/ mimosas after
👉 A reception at the University Club at Queen’s, which would be an open party with a bar
In between, we would drive downtown to grab a few photos of the grooms spending some time together, just the two of them. And visiting their favourite hangout spot, the Toucan, for a beer.
Stuff that was less important: pomp and stuffiness. No ties, no suit jackets, just chill vibes and cool suspenders! haha.
So sit back and relax, and enjoy reading this blog, and seeing all the photographs.
Then, at the end, leave me a comment and tell me if you liked it, and what you liked about it!
The forecast called for rain on the day of Daniel and Huw’s wedding. Lots of rain. ☔️
Wedding-day rain is supposedly a good luck omen. But whether that’s true or not, it’s important to preserve some memory of the rain. So here you’ll see I started their wedding photo album with two photographs that showcase side by side Huw’s mother’s flower garden (recently rained on!), and then a plastic screen in the back yard, with many raindrops on it. This screen was actually part of the wedding tents set up in the backyard.
I’ve been to lots of backyard weddings where just a small tent will suffice to hide folks from the elements. If you’ve not feeling cool with people walking into your house, then renting a tent is definitely the way to go. And hey, if the weather is nice and sunny, the tent is still helpful: it offers respite from the heat! Tents at this wedding came from bustiniscatering!
I’m jumping ahead in the day a little bit, but below you can see what the full tents looked like! And you’ll also see the two grooms’ very cute pup!
Another thing we have to talk about is the flowers. These wedding day florals - supplied by the consistently amazing Pam’s Flowers - were spectacular. You can see the raindrops on the rose petals. They loved the rain!
Ooo, very moody. I adore the way the dramatic clouds are breaking in the background. They allowed us to have 30 dry minutes for the ceremony, before the downpours began again!
So let’s see what happened.
Wow, just look at that sun!
It’s hard to believe the weather can change so quickly, but it truly went from a downpour from which furniture needed to be rescued, to this bright and sunny affair. (but it wasn’t finished yet…)
Before the ceremony, the guests got a chance to mingle a little bit.
At this point, I snuck into the house to catch a few photos of the grooms getting ready. They helped each other pin their boutonnieres (they go on the left side, if you’re wondering), and share a little cute moment.
There’s a cinematic feel to this living room in Huw’s parents’ house, where Dan and Huw got ready. The directional light from the left side, the wood-panelled walls, the racks of vintage books.. it spoke of untold stories, and urged one to wonder how life passed by in this very living room. Anyway, I totally digress!
Alright, time to go outside again, because we have just minutes to the ceremony. Boutonnieres are pinned of both dads, and Huw has time for a quick hug with mom. ❤️ (Actually, there is always time to hug someone you love before your ceremony. Never forget that 🤗)
The ceremony begins. This is always the chance to snag a photograph or two of the guests, because they are always very excited. The grooms up front are focused and excited, so the energy reads in a different way. The guests are just there to witness. So the excitement needs to be captured. In this case, it comes in the form of an intentional photo of someone taking a video.
A photographer’s rant about unplugged ceremonies/wedding photographers being bothered by people with cell phones or cameras in the ceremony photos:
I frequently see posts about this on photographer forums. Many wedding photographers get upset if you ‘allow’ your guests to bring their own cameras or cell phones and use them during the ceremony. I don’t feel this way.
If you choose to have an unplugged ceremony, that’s totally cool and your absolute right!
It should be your choice. Not the photographer’s.
I’m speaking only for myself here, but I, as the photographer, don’t mind having other folks taking photos or videos.
In fact, I get it and I like it! This is how some folks live through experiences - by documenting them.
So yes, if you choose an unplugged ceremony for you, then that’s wonderful and I’ll absolutely support it.
Just don’t feel like you have to choose it for me, as your photographer. I firmly believe a good photographer should be able to work around other cameras in their shot, and still make a great photo.
And sometimes I love to incorporate other cameras into my wedding photographs! Because my goal isn’t to scrub the photograph of reality. It’s the opposite - to highlight the dynamic nature of the reality, just as it was, and show people how awesome it was!
/rant
Brenda Hamilton was the officiant for this wedding. I’ve always loved working beside Brenda. She is professional and kind and has a wealth of experience with all sorts of wedding ceremonies. When I see Brenda at a ceremony, I know we’re in good hands.
There are a few must-have shots at every wedding, and those are the ring exchange and the first kiss. This is just customary, and no matter how much I rage against the shackles of industry rules, this is a rule I like to follow :)
Sometimes I get in close to capture the ring exchange, and sometimes (as in this photo above and to the left), I use my zoom lens.
For the first kiss shot, I wanted to have some of the beautiful flowers in the shot to frame this magical moment between the grooms. If the background isn’t quite as stunning, it’s okay to go in a bit closer with a tighter crop.
Dan and Huw shared a quick spot of bubbly and orange juice to celebrate being official, and then they turned to their cheering guests, and then we all took a photo with the happy couple!
We now head over to the tents, as it’s starting to rain again!
(you can see in the cake-cutting photographs below, the background is big raindrops coming down! Yikes).
This three-tiered cake by @ashleeyskitchen was spectacular. I just love all the flowers on it, and Dan and Huw had a lot of fun cutting into it. They posed for this photograph and laughed about it. We don’t take ourselves too seriously at the best weddings. You do what you want to do, and just have fun - that’s what your wedding is supposed to be about!
We had a very cute and furry bystander, who was perhaps hoping for something from this charcuterie platter by @tulipsandmaplekingston to drop on the ground…
I know this photograph isn’t exactly “magazine”-worthy, but I put it to you: WHY?
Why can’t real details of the day, curious and interesting moments, make it into magazines? Why can’t we celebrate the real?
It strikes me that weddings like this have a much more European feel. I’m a European, you know. And I’ve noticed that in European wedding photography, making glossy wedding images is secondary to capturing what IS.
This furry friend made it over to the group photos as well. Below you’ll see one of my favourite photographs of Dan and Huw trying to get organized for a photo with Huw’s nephews and nieces. It was a funny moment, and of course, I had to include it in their wedding album design ❤️
Moments later, these youngsters decided it was time for a dip in the waters of Lake Ontario. I believe some of them came from Saskatchewan, and… not that they don’t have lakes there, but you know - it’s always exciting to jump into someone else’s lake, eh?
Or so I hear. I myself am not a water/lake person haha.
This is where having a zoom lens is handy. Cause they got pretty far out into the water, and as I said… I’m not exactly a water lover. If the water was warm and knee-deep, sure I’ll get in. But for this wedding day, no water-wading was necessary for moi. Phew. haha.
As I’m walking around the backyard, I get fascinated by this young man, who seems to be having fun in various ways (even lying on the grass, pretending to sleep). It’s always my aim to take photographs of the guests’ personalities at weddings, so with these three photographs above, I tried to do just that.
“Do I need a second photographer at my wedding?”
When you have a large wedding with more than 75 guests who are important to you, I always advise you to have me bring a second (and even third!) photographer. Not because I cannot handle the wedding day by myself - sure, I can! - but because it takes time to capture the personalities of so many different people, and having help with this ensures you get more magical photographs in your gallery that are true to life and will bring you joy in the decades to come.
If, on the other hand, you invited a bunch of people there who are not as important to you (let’s say, they are friends of your folks or something… and you were obligated to invite them), then none of this applies haha.
Alright, folks, time to switch gears into the couples’ photos.
When we’re planning the couples’ photos on a wedding day, I always recommend including something that makes sense to the couple. I had a winter wedding once, where we went to Lemoine Point and fed chickadees. I had another one who had a picnic at Churchill Park. There are lots of fun things you can do during your wedding day, and it can be a bit of a stress reliever. A chance for you and your partner to connect, away from the hustle and bustle.
Dan and Huw wanted to go downtown Kingston and grab some photos by City Hall first.
We also walked to the front of City Hall to grab some fountain shots! I liked these sweet moments, one where you can see their faces and the other where they’re walking hand in hand, facing away.
The two photographs below are two of my favourites. Yes, they’re a bit posey, but no, they didn’t take long to do. I composed the photographs so that the grooms wouldn’t be dead centre, because I wanted a bit of interest and the background with the tower filled in the middle of the shot in a natural way.
The puddle-reflection shot. I just couldn’t resist. Tacky? maybe. Fun? You bet! Haha. We had a lot of fun here.
And now it’s time to make our way to the Toucan. It’s where Dan and Huw unwind sometimes with a drink, so of course it was a nice way to break up the hustle of their wedding day and just chill out together.
As you can see, Dan and Huw received a very warm reception from the Toucan bar staff. They’ve obviously well-loved in the community!
This is where I’m in my element as a fly on the wall. Yes, there are other patrons there, but with a combinatiof of my long lens, and quietly popping in and out of spaces, I can get multiple angles of Dan and Huw enjoying their beverages while giving them space to connect and relax.
Now, the third chapter of the wedding begins. The party.
Dan and Huw wanted to celebrate with friends, and some of the folks who were at their backyard reception went to both events, whereas the party also welcomed a few friends who hadn’t been at the ceremony earlier. I liked this casual way of being able to invite everyone to something they could attend, without obligating everyone to spend the entire day at the wedding.
I always like to include a few photographs that set the scene. This includes shots of the exterior, including these cinematic views of Wolfe Island (above, left), as well as the interior shots showing the table filled with food and the wedding cake! (or at least, the portion of the wedding cake that made it over to the party venue.. strategically turned around, so that you don’t see the big cutaway piece haha.
Since I got to the venue a little earlier than the grooms did (they were still finishing off their beers at the Toucan while I made my way to the University Club at Queen’s), I was there to catch the ‘grand entrance’.
It was a fun and celebratory moment, followed by a little twirling and a kiss. Aww 🥰
For the remainder of the evening, I took photos both inside and out on the patio, of the guests happily celebrating with Dan and Huw. There was laughter, hugs, and reminiscing,
I caught some fun and silly moments, too! I like to include a little bit of everything, because that’s how you Dan and Huw will get to relive their wedding day.
Even with a small patio wedding party like this, it’s impossible for the grooms to be everyone all at once. So I like to take photos to show them what was going on with groups of guests, while they were busy talking to other groups. That way, you give folks a chance to see things they weren’t there for, and I think it really fleshes out the wedding gallery in a meaningful way! Do you agree with me?
Before I left, we took a couple of photographs which were important to Huw. Specifically, the chalice you see below. This is an engraved chalice that belonged to his father, who was President of the Club in 85-86. We took a photo of Huw drinking from the chalice. Even though Huw’s father was unable to attend this party, he was thought of.
In fact, earlier in the day, we’d made sure to capture this photograph of Huw with his parents, as we knew they wouldn’t be attending the party later due to Huw’s father’s mobility issues.
All in all, this was a beautiful and relaxed way to celebrate their wedding. I hope you got a bit of that atmosphere in the photographs. There were many more photos. I’ve shown you just the tip of the iceberg here.
I had a tremendous time photographing Dan and Huw and their friends and family. I wish them so much happiness together, and many more adventures - fun times and parties, and chill times with a drink at the Toucan.
Most of all, I wish them the very best that life can offer: love, joy, and peace.
Oh, and I almost forgot!
I LOVE this photos of me with the grooms, just before I took off and left them to enjoy their evening.
Here’s the full list of wedding vendors that helped make this wedding magical:
Suits (without the jackets, of course!) 👔 @muranosformalwear
Hair 💇♂️ @allurekingston
Officiant 💒 @dolce_vita__kingston_officiant
Catering 🍽️ @tulipsandmaplekingston
Gorgeous florals 💐 @pamsflowergarden
Tents and chairs 🎪 @bustiniscateringt
Party venue with indoors and patio🏛️ @uclubatqueens
Stunning three-tiered cake 🎂 @ashleeyskitchen
If you’re thinking of getting married and looking for fun and chill ideas for a backyard wedding, or an afternoon party at the University Club at Queen’s, I hope this gallery has given you some inspiration. Feel free to get in touch and we can discuss your potential plans for your wedding, and see if I can help you be there and take photographs.
I especially cater to gay, lesbian, trans, nonbinary, and queer folks of all colours. Or folks who have queer loved ones who will be guests at the wedding. If you’d like a queer-positive and super friendly/dorky wedding photographer, look no further.
Also, I love working with shy folks, or folks who feel a bit uncomfortable in front of the camera (I feel you, and I UNDERSTAND you!).
I’m quirky and I’m a geek, and I welcome any like-minded people with open arms!
Book a consultation session at the button below (no strings attached).