Heidi and Todd’s wedding day was a beautiful summer day in August, 2017. The ceremony and reception were held at Ashgrove Acres just east of St. Agathe. I had never been to Ashgrove before the wedding, but upon arrival I was blown away the accommodations. They have a beautiful outdoor ceremony area that made
for a beautiful film setting. You can see the outdoor ceremony area in the opening shot of the film. The indoor facility for the reception was impressive as well (and very convenient for photographers and videographers because there was a ton of natural light due to the copious amount of huge windows). Overall, it appeared to be an incredible rural location for a wedding from start to finish.
Heidi and Todd were a pleasure to shoot and very easy to work with as they both looked incredible. Individually filming Heidi and Todd’s vows really showed how much they loved each other and you really can see that in the film. It was one of those days where the story almost seemed to tell itself throughout the day because their marriage just seemed so perfect.
The cherry on the cake was a quick sunset session in the middle of the reception. Heidi, Todd, the photographer, and I headed out to the neighbouring field (benefit of a country wedding) and were greeted by a stunning golden beam of the last few minute of sun over the Manitoba agriculture. It made for an intimate closure to the film and some of the favourite shots of the entire year.
On the technical side, this wedding was the event where I fell in love with a lens I now use as much as I can; my Rokinon 135mm t2.2. Particularly, in the ceremony, when I had to shoot from distance, the soft, open aperture dreamy look I managed to achieve massively impressed me. As a wedding lens, this thing is so killer because it allows me to get a look outside of colour grading that you cannot achieve on most other lenses of that focal length.
Overall, Heidi and Todd were a dream to work for and I’m incredibly grateful they chose me to tell their story. I love how the film turned out and wish them a lifetime of happiness.
Cheers,
Marcel Laferriere