Lethbridge Weddings & Portrait Photography by Tanya Plonka

Jacqueline and Matthew’s Galt Museum late autumn wedding couldn’t have fallen on a better year. The gorgeous fall we had meant they still had fall colours and (sort of) warm temperatures for their wedding day. They chose the exact date of their 10th anniversary to get married since the date was already so special to them. The couple went with a starry night theme with blues and purples, which looked beautiful with the autumn colours.

Their ceremony involved lightsabers and such a huge reaction from Matthew when he saw Jacqueline enter the aisle. So many family members couldn’t stop their happy tears, including Matthew’s grandma who I overheard several times exclaiming, “It’s just so beautiful!” Matthew’s sister performed the ceremony (and managed to just barely make it through without crying too much). Jacqueline has younger siblings so she was able to include them in the wedding party as an older flower girl and ring bearer, matching in the wedding colours. All siblings were included somehow in the ceremony!

Partway through photos, we had their dog Fenrir specially escorted to us. He was so excited to see them that we could hardly get him to sit still! Basically he had an even bigger reaction during his first look with Jacqueline than Matthew did ;)

Congratulations, Jacqueline & Matthew!

For their wedding, Pamela and Gary chose the mountainscapes of Waterton for the awe they inspire and how that relates back to how they feel about each other. Most of their Waterton Community Centre summer wedding was spent outdoors to take in the scenery. We did an incredible job avoiding the crowds on the Canada Day long weekend in Waterton! Not only did we manage to get romantic photos without too many people in the background, but we strategically found parking everywhere we went (the biggest challenge we faced that day).

Gary and Pamela’s daughter Rosie stole the show many times throughout their wedding day, which was only fitting when she is so central in their life together. It was a long day for a two year old, but she stayed awake for the whole day to enjoy every minute with their family members visiting from far away.

We took the couple away from their family for a bit to get some photos with mountain vistas, and were happy to discover the wild flowers were still in bloom. Even better, they matched the wedding colours!

Congratulations, Pamela and Gary!

Remember the Scrabble marriage proposal? I had the honour of joining Meg and Shieghla again for their Bayshore Inn early spring wedding. It really is a privilege to follow people through so many important moments like these, especially when they and their families are so kind and wonderful to be around.

We returned to Waterton where they had an outdoor ceremony at the Bayshore Inn, officiated by MLA Shannon Phillips. Their children played a prominent role in the wedding – not just helping with the proposal, but by being in the wedding party! Shieghla and Meg’s sisters made up the rest of the group and led to some very emotional speeches at the reception.

Originally we hadn’t planned to return to the proposal spot at the Prince of Wales, but with most of the shorelines in town being flooded out from the recent rain and snow melt, we made a last minute change and returned to the same spot as before. Just before the reception, we went to Cameron Lake with only the couple and were happy the lake was finally visible through the snow! Shieghla and Meg were committed to the photoshoot and trudged through quite a bit of mud with us to make it to the boardwalk path that runs along the lake (a place the fires miraculously never touched). So worth the mud!

Congratulations, Meg and Shieghla!

Stephanie and Nathan had to plan around a lot of changes for their Kimberley Alpine Resort wedding. The COVID restrictions were made even more difficult with it being a cross-province destination wedding, and in the end their guests were notified of the final date without much time to plan. Stephanie and Nathan were elated that despite the tight timeline, nearly all of their invites were still able to show up!

They started the day getting ready at the Polaris Lodge and then had a first look before the ceremony. They decided they would be more comfortable privately reading their personal vows to each other rather than in front of all their guests, so chose their first look as an intimate time to do this.

Everyone rode the chairlift to get to their mountaintop ceremony, so there was a bit of sight seeing involved! Between the smoke and incoming rain, at times it looked like Stephanie and Nathan were getting married in the clouds. The cloud cover was just light enough that we still had views of the mountains from their ceremony, and even a little blue sky popped out.

Their guests finished off the evening with a fun reception at the Stemwinder Bar & Grill, with the dance being held outside to help accommodate social distancing.

Both Cam and I knew Stephanie and her family before we even met so this was a very special wedding for us to be a part of. We had even photographed her bridesmaid’s wedding last year! The whole day was like being with family and we loved spending it with them.

Congratulations, Stephanie and Nathan!

Dixie and Trevor had to practice the ultimate in patience for their Pincher Creek wedding. After postponing their initial date due to COVID, Dixie spent weeks trying to find the right date that worked with all her vendors, and then postponing one more time when restrictions didn’t look in their favour. Once she finally had everything ready to go, she learned there was a rodeo taking place the same day where their ceremony was supposed to be held! Luckily the couple have a loving community that rallies around them. Friends and family helped take over to relieve Dixie’s stress and their wedding came together beautifully.

They were still able to have the outdoor ceremony they planned for in the yard of Creekside Community Church, married by someone dear to Dixie’s family. The rodeo hadn’t encroached too much on their original location so we were still able to do their family photos as planned behind the Pincher Creek Community Hall. Everyone out enjoying the creek that day was so accommodating for us for photos!

Their reception that night continued the feel of the rest of the day: full of laughter, their friends and family having an amazing time, and the couple totally surrounded by love. We took so many photos that day because Dixie and Trevor rarely quit laughing!

Congratulations, Dixie and Trevor!

Francine and Clayton are such an amazing couple for how easily they rolled with the changes thrown their way! Their wedding was originally planned for Castle Mountain Resort, but once the event size and distancing rules started being announced, they decided to scale back and keep their wedding small and local to them. That meant a roadtrip was in store for us! Their new plan of an Edmonton Pioneers Cabin wedding turned out beautifully and they were able to keep all of the important parts of their day.

It was so cute seeing how nervous each of them were while they got ready, but that soon melted away once they saw each other at their ceremony. We explored along the edge of Nellie McClung Park for their portraits and didn’t have to go far to get the Edmonton cityscape in the background.

With the size of the venue, they were able to have the fun reception they had always wanted with lots of space for dancing.

Congratulations, Francine and Clayton!