Blog - Olexandro

Wedding Thank You cards for Ana & Ricardo

January 12, 2017 · Leave a Comment

Is there a better way to thank your amazing guests for sharing your Wedding Day with you than classy, custom-designed thank you cards with a personalized message?

The process of making one is simple. Our couples chose images they would like to have on their card, and we do the rest.

Do we use templates? No. But we have samples from the past that we show to you so that you can say which one you are leaning towards to and what you would like to see changed.

And we are always ready to create a unique design inspired by your ideas!

The beautiful 5×7 cards arrived in about seven days after ordering. And the most amazing thing is that our lab delivers cards with envelopes of the right size so that you can dive in into signing and sending them right away!

Your Best Guest Books Alternatives

November 11, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Regardless of how big or small, your wedding is going to be there’s definitely going to be 50+ guests. We have never seen a wedding with less than 80 people, and medium Canadian wedding ranges from 120 to 150 guests. We’ve also been to weddings that had 350, 500 and even 600 guests.

Now think about this: almost every single person at your wedding will have a wish for you. They are there to congratulate you on the biggest thing in your life. Will you have time to hear out (and remember) every single one of those wishes?

Of course, there’s always a Hallmark card sneaked in the same envelope or box as your wedding gift. But wouldn’t it be nicer if you had all wishes from your guests in one place so that you can keep them all as a part of your family history? And it is definitely great to show your guests that you care and want to hear what they have to say.

There are three most popular ways to achieve that and in this article, we will describe and compare all three side by side.

Wish Tree

Wish tree is a beautifully decorated small tree or a branch. The main point is to have as many little branches as possible. So that you can hang decorations and “leaves” on it. Little pieces of paper are usually cut in a form of leaves and guests would tie them up to the tree after writing their wishes down.

We’ve seen trees (and leaves) drawn on a huge piece of paper, too. The idea is pretty much the same, but in this case, guests would stick their wish to the tree with a double-sided scotch tape.

Wish tree seems to be a popular option for many weddings these days. You can make one yourself or hire your decorator or florist to make one for you.

On the plus side, it is quite affordable and has a big potential to look great. On the other hand, it is quite bulky. And while it looks great in a big foyer of your banquet hall it will really take a chunk of space in a house (especially condo) and will be a real dust magnet. Sooner or later it will end up in the attic/basement/storage container.

91b43a29341602156ce1d5f0d08dfb68

PRICE: $100-$300

PROS: looks great; every guest has enough/equal amount of space to write on.

CONS: very hard to keep after the wedding day; lots of maintenance (dust and spider web cleaning); does not have a single picture of the couple.

Signing board

Signing board has been around forever. They are simple, look great and are very easy to obtain. You can get on on Etsy, eBay, at your local Michaels, or from your photographer. There is usually a photograph (or two) of the couple in the center of the mat that guests sign. There are a bunch of variations like putting your initials instead of the photo, or getting guests use sticky hearts (or other shapes) to sign and stick them to the matt. But it really comes down to a framed signing board.

Seeing almost too many signing boards I can say that the biggest disadvantage of having one is that 20% of the guests that arrive first will use 80% of the space. I’ve seen people using so much space as if they were signing their new record album ;)

Another drawback is again, space and storage. Comparing to the tree this thing needs no space at all. You will have it hanging on the wall for two, five, or maybe even ten years. But later, when you have lots and lots of family photographs and when your decor might not match with the aesthetics of the board it might be moved into storage.

wedding-signing-board

PRICE: $100-$250

PROS: has a picture of the couple, less space required to keep, very little maintenance;

CONS: does not provide equal amount of space for each guest; has only one picture of the couple; takes up wall space that will be valuable in the future

Guest book

There are different kinds of guest books. They range from ten bucks Walmart pieces to high-end boutique albums.

If you are thinking about getting one from Walmart – don’t do it. Better get a signing board, really. These books will simply fall apart regardless of how often you are glancing through them.

Custom-designed guest books look amazing and provide lots and lots of space for everyone to sign. One 11”x11” with 80 pages can accommodate signatures from up to 500 people. This is not achievable with a signing board or with a wish tree. Guest books are also great to store (right next to your wedding album) and need no cleaning :)

In most cases, a custom-designed guest book will hold up to 60 photographs of you and your fiancé entertaining your guests while they looking through it on your wedding day. And bringing the most beautiful memories to your family and friends for years to come.

PRICE: $250-$500

PROS: many pictures; easy to store; lots of space for signatures and wishes.

CONS: cheap (Walmart or Michaels) books will not last long.

Leblovic Wedding – Kitchener Wedding Photography

July 11, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Leblovic wedding was nothing but classy. It all started with the girls preparation at Katie’s house:

girls are getting ready at the bride’s parents’ house

The bride and the bridesmaids

Katie is an amazing person, but she is not a big fan of family pictures… Let me just say that there were too many funny moments and I had to shoot in between :)

[Read more…]

The Engagement Session of Your Dreams!

July 10, 2016 · Leave a Comment

Your wedding preparations are in full swing. What can be more exciting than the anticipation of saying “I do” to the one you love? While you are enjoying this hectic, yet awesome experience, it’s a perfect time for your engagement session! And if you want to make your photos special, we will help you come up with some great engagement picture ideas.

But first, let’s get the right perspective! You’ve probably heard that an engagement shoot helps you to “bond” with your photographer. It also ensures that you have fantastic photos for your invites. Or you could create an envy-worthy guest book with those images. But is this enough to get all amped and go above and beyond? Maybe… Maybe not. How about seeing your engagement session as a beautiful romantic photo shoot with the love of your life? Wedding planning is a busy, but such a precious time, filled with love, joy, and romance. It deserves to be remembered. A photography session with your fiancé is a great way to keep these moments forever. More often than not, this will be your first professional photography session together. Which makes it even more exciting! :)

BE YOURSELF

Whether it’s a location, outfits, time of the day, or accessories, just be your genuine self! It’s all about you and your relationships. We will customize engagement picture ideas to plan the session that fits you and your personality, and not vice versa!

ENGAGEMENT SESSION LOCATION

You can pick a place close to your home, or go somewhere different from your wedding venue. But the best option is a location that is special to both of you, or one that reflects your style and relationship. If you are a downtown type of person, then Queen St., Front St., University Ave., and other busiest streets of Toronto are a perfectchoice!

If you are more of a romantic couple, then your special park is the place. We can go for an urban shoot with your bikes and cycling accessories if you are passionate cyclists, or host it in a gym if you are into bodybuilding. Library, pool, opera theatre, or Rogers Arena… Choose whatever you want, as long as it best expresses your couple.

OUTFITS

You guessed it — make your clothes about you. We will give you just a couple of don’ts rather than dos (please follow these tips only if they don’t clash with your personality) :

Striped outfits rarely look good on photos due to a form of a camera limitation called moiré.
If you are debating between glasses and contacts, the latter always wins.
To pick a perfect t-shirt, try to avoid big logos or dramatic graphics (skulls, bones, rainbows, etc. :)
Bright, multicolour outfits always look better than solid black.
Opt for comfortable shoes! Walking around a lot during your shoot is the best way to get unique photographs.

ACCESSORIES

Here’s a short list of what you can consider an accessory as long as it is in tune with your personality:

jewellery
umbrellas
balloons and kites
pets
flowers
modern designer setups
musical instruments
items of a sentimental value

FUTURE USE OF THE ENGAGEMENT PHOTOGRAPHS

What is the most desirable way for you to put your photos to use? When planning your engagement session, discuss this with your fiancé and your studio. If you have always wanted a portrait against colourful dramatic sky on a canvas, or a small accordion album to fit into your purse and show to your friends, there’s no better time than now to plan on getting those images. So, at the end of the day, your takeaway should be to set your mind on making your engagement session about YOU and YOUR RELATIONSHIP rather than just about photographs. After all, the art of photography is translating feelings, values, and relationships into visual form. And images without a real subject are no more than snapshots. Please feel free to contact us at any time if you have questions about engagement picture ideas or need any other assistance.

Why should You Never Trust a Photographer’s Portfolio?

July 6, 2016 · Leave a Comment

If you think this is a joke or a clever headline, you are mistaken. Take 5 minutes to read this article and see if your perception of “portfolio” changes.

We are being pitched with portfolios every day. And not only when it comes to photography. Custom kitchens, home renovations, menus at restaurants, and cakes at bakeries. The list goes on and on.

What do I mean by “portfolio”? A portfolio is a selection of the best, most successful samples that a client sees when developing an opinion about business’s services and products.

Niagara Falls Winery

Let’s say, you want to replace your old deck. You’ve done your research and have selected a few companies that you will contact. The selection is usually made based on a few factors, such as style, availability, price, and, of course, portfolio. Let’s say that a decking company has been in the business for ten years, and it delivers 25+ projects every year. So, in total, we have 250 finished projects. Will you see them all on the company’s website? I doubt that. You will see 1-2 photographs from 10 to 20 projects at best! An average business showcases less than 10% of completed work.

Which ones do you think those will be? The most expensive and the most successful ones, of course. Does that mean that other projects are bad or worse? Not necessarily. But can it also mean that your project will be not as good as the ones you see on their website? Not necessarily, but possible.

You see where I’m getting?

Let’s put aside the decks and the kitchens. Let’s talk about wedding photography.

In photography, the situation is somewhat similar. I bring around 5-6 thousand photographs from every wedding. After sorting through them, we are left with 1-2 thousand photographs that are delivered to a couple. While most Toronto wedding photographers do not provide this many images, their wedding portfolio will still contain from 15 to 100 images. Best images. From different weddings.

Let’s say, we shoot 20 weddings every year. That means we deliver +/- 40 thousand (!!) images every year! Of course, you don’t want to look at 40k pictures every time you visit a wedding photographer’s website.

University of Toronto wedding photography bridal party walking in the square

Good times at UofT!

But how can you tell if you will get at least one single photo similar to those you see on a photographer’s website? 40k over ten years means 400 thousand images! And the 50-100-images portfolio is selected from those 400k.

That’s why we have Full Weddings section on our website. It is for those brides who like both my approach to business and the portfolio of the best images.

You must have a chance to see a consistency of style. You have to see the consistency of quality. Amazing and genius shots that a wedding photographer will demonstrate in their portfolio might happen at your wedding, but they also might not!

The married couple by auberge du pommier and limo. Bride and groom are hugging

Classy Auberge du Pommier wedding in North York

What you have to keep your eye on is not that one image that might become an addition to your photographer’s portfolio. You have to be concerned about the ones that you will share with your friends and family, the ones that will be on your walls and in your wedding album.

You can check out our Real Weddings page right now to see what I mean.

Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day!

Arthur ;)

P.S. Call me at 647-627-9990 or use the contact form to ask any question. Thanks!

Wedding Album – Lena & Dima

May 19, 2016 · Leave a Comment

A little slideshow of wedding album layouts… Photographs were taken back in 2011 :))

70-200 Engagement Photos taken in Toronto Part 1

November 20, 2014 · Leave a Comment

Canon 70-200 L2.8 is still one of the best lenses for wedding photographers in Toronto or elsewhere in the world. It produces distortion that is actually pleasing to our eye; the depth of field is stunning, and its speed never ceases to amaze me. In other words, this lens gives you that nice “everything else is blurry” touch, it can shoot at night, and makes you look sexy!

Here’s a little collection of our favourite photographs taken with this amazing lens.

Anya and Vova had their engagement photographs taken at a flight simulator. Should I mention that I had a chance to crash my plane? Twice. The guys were fantastic and we even used the studio strobes (in a photo above) to give the session even a more distinct look.

[Read more…]

Nadine Maternity collage

November 16, 2014 · Leave a Comment

We are big fans of maternity photographs. This is a very special time for every family, and the way a woman looks when she’s pregnant is really beautiful. In our family, we say that a pregnant woman is a symbol of eternity, of how life is passed on from generation to generation…

2 days ago, our baby Sonya turned 6 months, and this post might look like it’s a bit overdue :) Still, better late than never, right? A little mask on the belly was Nadine’s idea since we chose to wait until the delivery to find out whether it’s a boy or a girl :) These photographs mean a lot to me now, when Sonya is born. It’s quite fantastic to realize that a little human is inside that big, gorgeous belly, isn’t it?

Your maternity photographs are very important, and same as with wine, the preciousness of a photograph increases with its age. Take a photo today, and it might mean nothing to you, but look at that photo in ten years, and you’ll realize the real value of your memories.

Happy Sunday!

Toronto Family Session | J and A

November 15, 2014 · Leave a Comment

What can be better than a happy family? :) Photographing this lovely family was a true pleasure!

We love little doggies – they make the atmosphere even more family-like. As you can see, it’s tricky to make them smile or look into the camera, and yet, they are really great!

Do you remember about other family session with a pet? It’s surprising that no one brings cats for these photo shoots! Anyone? Ok, let us know! :) We are happy to see you with any furry or feathered family members, be it ferrets or parrots!

Happy Saturday!

Why I love this ENGAGEMENT photo (A and M)

November 14, 2014 · Leave a Comment

The pictures in this collage radiate the pure joy of love. Although the weather was not treating us kindly during this engagement session, you can tell that our gorgeous models are not cold at all. Romance and anticipation are in the air. I love this engagement photo – sparkling feelings and the brightest future ahead!

Wedding Thank You cards for Ana & Ricardo