Kaleigh & Brendan's Classy Gothic, Rockstar Chic Wedding

What can I possibly say about this wedding that the photos below won’t tell in a much clearer way. To put it simply- it was absolutely nothing short of amazing. Another way to say it; this is certainly the most photos I have ever included in a single blog post. Brittany Frid and her team pulled together a wedding that was truly the first of its kind. “We like to wear black and go to concerts” I understand is the description that led to this show-stopping, classy gothic, rockstar chic wedding. The details for Kaleigh and Brendan’s day were perfectly crafted, from the signing of the “guest book”records to the glorious candelabras down to finest details (see: guitar pick escort cards and the dimension of the menu which match a 45 record). In twelve years of photographing weddings, I have never seen a wedding designed this uniquely or creatively and executed so precisely.
Kaliegh & Brendan’s wedding was full of creativity and beauty, but it was also full of love. You could see it in their faces and you could also feel it in the air. We started out at The Westin and then for their first look we made our way to the location of one of their first dates at the Heart & Crown Pub. It was then to the chapel for these two- or should I say the cathedral. The Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica to be more precise. We ended back at Venue TwentyTwo in The Westin for the party. I could go on, but let’s be honest, you came here for the photos so I won’t keep you any longer. Here is a wedding full of creativity, emotion, motion, and film feels. Feast your eyes and rock on!

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Reception Venue: Venue TwentyTwo • Ceremony Venue: Notre Dame Cathedral Basilica • Planner / Coordinator / Florist / Designer / Decorator: Brittany Frid / Frid Events • Hair & Makeup: Salon Fiorella • Band: Blood Roses • Bridal Gown: Sash and Bustle • Bridesmaids’ Dresses: Revelry • First Look Location: Heart & Crown • Photographer: Joey Rudd Photography

© Joey Rudd Photography www.joeyrudd.ca Ottawa Wedding and Elopement Photographer

Elopement Wedding at The Knox Wedding and Event Venue

In the adorable, historic town of Merrickville sits a lovely place called The Knox Wedding and Event Venue. Built in 1861, this former Presbyterian church now serves as a lovely wedding venue. Its interior smacks of elegance and sophistication with just a bit of historic charm. Outside the venue, the historic streets of Merrickville are a perfect background for wedding photos.
In the early days of an exceptionally warm November I had the privilege of photographing Shannon & Jonathan’s intimate elopement wedding at The Knox. Elopement (micro or Intimate- whatever you want to call them) weddings are perhaps my favourite kind of wedding to document. The intimacy and personally curated details of these events are such an honour to be a part of. Shannon and Jonathan’s wedding was no exception.
Backed by the perfect team of venue staff and family, these two adorable people tied the knot on this lovely November day. I couldn’t wait to share their photos online and neither could the bride! I love hearing back from all of my couples and nothing beats getting a thank you email or card. Here were the encouraging and grateful words of the bride and groom after receiving their photos.

“I have absolutely no words for how beautiful these turned out, I am so grateful that we were lucky enough to have you for our wedding day! We could not have possibly asked for a better person to capture those special moments, thank you so much for being there! I’m going to post some of these this weekend and I look forward to bragging about you and your amazing photography!”

Thank you Shannon and Jonathan for letting me be a part of your day and thank you to The Knox for being such a rocking beautiful space.

Seriously though, if you are considering an elopement for your wedding, let’s talk! Especially if you are considering The Knox- I could shoot there every day and be happy. You can check out my elopement package details here.

© Joey Rudd Photography Ottawa Wedding & Elopement Photographer www.joeyrudd.ca

Sam & Gino's Wedding at Restaurant 18

As a wedding photographer, I am always considering the worst case scenario in order to avoid exactly that. This is why I have backups of backups and the photos that I take are never (not even as I am shooting them!) only in one place.
Over 12 years of doing business I have learned from mistakes (my own as well as those of others) and have contingency plans in place, or at least have an idea for a solution for most possible scenarios. This is why I now always have a change of clothes in my car (see example of time that I fell fully submerged into cold October water during an engagement session). I have even been the contingency plan of others (see example of time that I filled in for a photographer who broke their collarbone weeks before a wedding).

But despite all amounts of planning and thinking about possible situations, sometimes the only way to remain committed to ensuring a couples’ wedding plans are not disrupted in any way is by slapping on a smile and pushing through the pain. This is what happened this fall for me at Sam & Gino’s beautiful wedding. About an hour before I was leaving for their wedding I was out behind our house with my family and while removing a small sapling from one of our trails I managed to glance the hatchet off of the tree and into my foot just beside my ankle. The slit in my boot and the blood on the outside of the boot told me it wasn’t good and this was confirmed after removing my boot and seeing the inch long gash that pulsing blood.

I’ve got to get pressure on this was my first thought. My second was the fact that I had to leave for a wedding in about an hour. I was going to have several hours of being actively on my feet in just a short time. My mind raced with options. This cut fairly obviously needed stitches, but I surely didn’t have time for that. Do I attempt to find a replacement? This being a last ditch effort in my mind- I’d prefer to be dying before taking this step- not going to happen. But without stitches is being on my feet really even an option at this point? My wonderful wife used some of the few minutes before I had to go to zip over to the pharmacy to get some bandages (our First Aid kit is more robust now!).

Several layers later the bleeding appeared to be held at bay and I could walk.
Pretty well.
Mostly normally.
I was quite confident that, with enough extra bandages to switch out with throughout the day as necessary, I would be able to make this wedding happen (perhaps without even the bride and groom knowing how close I was to needing to utilize a contingency plan). I was committed to not only being at their wedding to do the job I was entrusted to do, but also to not have them be concerned about anything like my foot on their wedding day.

To make a long story short, the wedding was lovely and I loved being a part of it. I hobbled around a bit, but the bandages held fast and kept the bleeding at bay. My visions of leaving a trail of blood all over downtown Ottawa never came to fruition and Acetaminophen did wonders at allowing my mind to stay focused on the task at hand.

After the wedding I drove myself to the ER for stitches. The nurse doing my check-in was a bit surprised when she looked at the gash and clarified, “So you are telling me that you did this this morning and then went and photographed a wedding?” I couldn’t help but feeling a bit of pride when I answered, “I sure did” and I would do it again if it meant that a couples’ wedding could happen without a hitch.

Videographer: Armand Adams \ Florist and Decor: Maison Anthea \ Bridal Gown: Revelle Bridal \ Hair Stylist: Hair by Adamo \ Makeup Artist: One Fine Beauty \ Venue: Restaurant E18ghteen \ Officiant: Luc Despatis from All Seasons Weddings