Lethbridge Weddings & Portrait Photography by Tanya Plonka

Rob and Robbi didn’t need a special occasion to update family photos – they were just overdue for one and had a weekend where all of their grandchildren were available! Their son and daughter’s families joined them for Nicholas Sheran Park family photos just as the beautiful fall colours were starting to come out.

Everyone had a great time hanging out behind the scenes when it wasn’t their turn for photos, especially the cousins! There was no shortage of piggy back rides and flipping the younger girls upside down.

Eva and Corney celebrated 20 years of marriage with a Nikka Yuko wedding anniversary photo session. This was their very first visit to Nikka Yuko Japanese Garden with their six children and one of many fun activities they had planned for that weekend.

We got to privately tour the garden on this beautiful summer evening. It was so peaceful and a wonderfully romantic way to celebrate their anniversary.

They get a special shout out for how well they coordinated their outfits into matching pairs while all following the same colour scheme. The family looked so good!

Emma and Jason planned to have a destination wedding on the coast to be closer to family members, but wanted to start things off by doing photos in the city where they met. I’m glad they did, because they were so much fun to photograph for their golden hour engagement session. We started out in Indian Battle Park (with a few very one-sided tickle fights). The couple then changed into more formal clothes to get a lot less formal with poses! Why do piggyback photos in casual clothes when you can do them in a dress shirt and summer dress?

Congratulations, Emma and Jason!

Mackenzie moved out to Alberta for school and only planned to stay during her studies, but soon those plans involved falling for Chase! Her family surprised the couple with a portrait session for Christmas. The two of them chose a gorgeous spring day to head down to Indian Battle Park with me and take some photos!

The white and purple lilacs were fully in bloom throughout Lethbridge’s river bottom. Everywhere we turned was a beautiful spot for photos! Mackenzie and Chase were so easy to get laughing, whether through piggyback rides or tickle fights with each other. Judging by how sweet they are together, I can see why Mackenzie stuck around Lethbridge!

Amanda and Zach didn’t want any ordinary photos! I met Amanda years ago when I did her grad photos. She reached out again to have me photograph her with the love of her life (Zach) as well as the other love of her life (Cosmo). She came prepared with a list of ideas for their fun West Lethbridge couples photos. In the end, we created an unconventional couples session filled with favourite activities and inside jokes.

One element that made the session even more over the top was that it had just snowed and was freezing out, so they probably turned a few heads when people saw them playing board games outside in the winter weather.

As another cute touch, they brought along the shirts they each wore on their first date!

We laughed through the entire session (even during the more traditional poses) and had so much fun despite the temperature.

Amanda and Jason aren’t getting married for a while but wanted a headstart on their invitations and wedding website. We planned for a Lethbridge river bottom engagement session to make use of the space around the high level bridge, then headed to the Galt Museum. They love the look of old brick, and the Galt is one of the best places to find that!

If they hadn’t told me that Jason was new to having professional photos done and that Amanda hadn’t experienced them much more, I never would have known! The two followed directions so well and were able to switch from silly, cute, and cheesy to serious and romantic within moments. I definitely appreciate when couples will follow my instructions to “skip violently”!