Lethbridge Weddings & Portrait Photography by Tanya Plonka

Graduations may still have been smaller in scale for another year in a row, but there’s nothing in the way of still having a fun session to celebrate! Teddy had his Pavan Park spring grad photos with his parents and brother right after all the green came out in the river bottom. Pavan Park was gorgeous that evening. Even the new, loud swarms of bugs left us alone.

This family has such great energy together and made each other laugh through the whole session.

Teddy and his younger brother love mountain biking, so they brought their bikes along to use in the photos. This was the first time either of them had tried biking in formal wear, and it went surprisingly well! The true question is whether that will be the last time they bike in suits. :)

Lauren had her Pavan Park high school grad photos in the daytime before her grad ceremony. She was one of the few lucky high school grads who still got to have a ceremony, thanks to the small size of her school. This meant her whole day got to be a celebration!

Lauren chose a powder blue dress with a fun poofy skirt. She really personalized the look by adding cowboy boots! She left no detail forgotten, even having a manicure to match her dress. Lauren was a natural in front of the camera and I appreciated her willingness to climb through and sit in all the coulee brush I asked of her :)

Heather’s family had a very non-wintery set of Christmas photos for two years in a row now! We were able to make use of a rare windless day for their Pavan Park warm winter photos. Braxton had just as much fun as last year, especially since I got him to do all kinds of action shots! He even insisted on wearing sneakers to the session in case I made him run (which I totally did). That kid knows what’s up!

Nicole and Brandon’s Italian Canadian Centre autumn wedding was well worth the wait! Their wedding planning started pre-COVID and they were finally able to have the wedding they wanted with all of their family and friends there.

Back in high school, they had made a bet with a staff member that if they got married, she would come to the wedding. That bet came to fruition, and they had her perform the marriage ceremony! Their vows were full of laughter and happy tears, especially when they first saw each other in the aisle. All of Brandon’s tension melted away when he had his first look at Nicole, and she was overcome with very teary smiles.

They booked a fantastic car to get around for their photos, a classic Lincoln from 94 Cabs, which made for amazing photos. This was the very first wedding the car has been used for since it was restored, so it was quite an honour to try it out. We had such a great time out for photos with them, especially thanks to their hilarious friends who had no shortage of great poses and jokes to make the couple laugh.

Congratulations, Nicole and Brandon!

p.s. A huge thank you to Matthew from Aspire Photography who helped me out when Cam wasn’t feeling well!

Andrea and Jeff had always planned to keep their Via Church autumn wedding small, but had no idea it was still going to fit within the new rules when they were only booking one month out! With just their immediate families and a few close friends in attendance at Via Church in north Lethbridge, they didn’t have to modify their guest list at all.

This was a very special ceremony for them. Jeff’s father is involved in the church and performed part of the ceremony. Andrea’s son was their ring bearer, a very important role when they otherwise didn’t have a wedding party.

After their ceremony, we headed to Pavan Park for family photos. All of the cousins loved playing together in between posing, and luckily everyone was a really good sport in the usual Lethbridge wind! Once their family headed out, Andrea and Jeff finally got to enjoy each other’s company and really relax together.

Congratulations, Andrea & Jeff!

Rebecca and Colin planned their Trinity Reformed Church autumn wedding with splashes of yellow, which worked out perfectly with the fall colours in Pavan Park that day! We were originally going to do portraits at Henderson Lake, but after a windy week I’m so glad we made the decision to switch spots.

I first met Rebecca at her sister’s wedding a few years ago, so it was amazing to see her again so in love. Her and Colin are a perfect match, constantly making each other laugh. I think there were a few times they got so caught up in the moment with each other that they forgot their wedding party was even there!

We did all of their portraits with their wedding party before their ceremony, which was a perfect way to spend the warm afternoon. Their families then met us at Trinity Reformed Church for their ceremony. The church’s long aisle and steps to the alter were perfect for showing off Rebecca’s beautiful long lace train on her wedding dress.

Congratulations, Rebecca and Colin!