John Lyons Weddings

This Blog is Toast...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Tue, 06 May 2008 04:23:00 +0000

Hey folks,

We are so excited about our new blog, now located over here.

This Blogger blog has been very good to us over the last 3 years, but it's time to move on.

The new blog features extra tasty, super large images. We'll leave this blog up for a while still, just in case anyone want to trip down memory lane.

Don't forget to update your RSS feeds (if you use 'em), if not just bookmark us www.johnlyonsweddings.com/blog/

See ya over there!
john

Shhhhh, we're giving away a wedding...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 04:14:00 +0000

Okay, don't tell anyone yet, but we're giving away a wedding!

And this just isn't any wedding - it's Saturday, February 14th, 2009; and most of the coolest, hippest shops in downtown Chatham are chipping in to make this the event of the year.

Full details and the official website will be launching in a couple days, so check back by the end of the week. Oh, and one more thing, our secret password is "passionate".

Stay tuned...

Brandi and Jeremey Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 04:26:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago Larisa and I shot Brandi and Jeremey's wedding here in Chatham. We had a gorgeous day. It was our first wedding of the season and we were so happy to finally get out and shoot after a long, cold winter! You can check out the slideshow here, and below are some of our faves...

Make-Up: Presence (Tilbury)
Flowers by: Kara's Rose Garden
Dress by: Jasmine Couture
Shoes by: Crocs (John's Note: yes fer real, they were so cool and comfy!!)
Reception Venue: Wheels Inn
Decorations by: Sherry King, Royal Creations
Cake by: Lisa Roberts, Celebration Cakes
Disc Jockey/Band: DJ Koul

Jade and Vince singing from the left of one of the oldest churches in Canada. This was extra cool, because Vince actually sang at our wedding 15 years ago! And he still sounds great!

Larisa grabbed this wonderful moment just before Brandi's grandfather walked her down the aisle.

Shout out to the William Street Café for letting shoot inside for a few minutes...

A couple of very emotional speaches...

We'll have a couple of engagement sessions to post within the next few weeks,
see ya!

j

2nd Honeymoon!

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:15:00 +0000

I just want to send all my 2007 couples a heads up just in case you didn't see this in one of the Bridal Confidential magazines.

Bridal Confidential is having a special event on Monday, May 12th (my birthday by the way) for all 2007 brides and you could win an all inclusive second honeymoon and a be the model for the next issue.

Yes - that's right a 2nd honeymoon. I'm not sure where they are sending this couple, but the last winning couple went to Belize for a week!! (I'm not guaranteeing it will be Belize this time, but it will be cool) And the odds are pretty good of winning, so don't miss this one!!

The event will be from 5 pm - 7 pm at La Cucina Ristorante, 1614 Lesperance Road in Tecumseh.

It will be super fun - but you have to get your tickets in advance at La Cucina by Monday, April 28th. Tix are only $5.

Hope to see you there!

john

Thank You, We're So Happy...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 05:21:00 +0000

Last month we entered an image from Holly and Scott's engagement session into a photo contest put on by Red Leaf Studios in Regina, Saskatchewan. In addition to being fantastic photographers, Richard and Amy have put out a set of Vintage Photoshop Actions for photographers. For you non-photographers out there, a Photoshop Action is basically a set of pre-programmed commands that run within Photoshop - and in the case of the Red Leaf Actions - give the image their signature vintage colour.

Here's the image that we entered. We used their super awesome Vintage Gold Action to give it that, well, you guessed it... vintage feel. I love how warm and punchy the image is.

So, thank you very much to everyone who voted for us. As they say in Hollywood: it's an honour just to be nominated, because there were some really outstanding images entered. And extra special thanks to Hollie and Scott - a wonderful, loving and super-fun couple - for being such gracious and terrific friends.

And thank you Richard and Amy for putting on the contest and sharing as much as you do. Check 'em out >> Red Leaf Studios.

Our first maternity session (Rated PG-13)

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 02:07:00 +0000

Larisa and I have always talked about one day starting to do maternity and baby sessions. But with shooting 25+ weddings per year, we didn't think that we could find the time. Well, January - April is pretty quite in the wedding world, so we thought we would try to see if we could do a few maternity sessions before the wedding season starts.

Special thanks to the super-awesome folks at the Retro Suites Hotel for letting us shoot in their über-fabulous suite. Our first "victim" was the gorgeous mom-to-be Beverly...

And my absolute favourite image from the session...

So, we would love to take on a few more of these sessions this year (it would be awesome to have a dad-to-be in there as well). If you - or someone you know is interested, please send us a quick e-mail.

Oh and one last thing, these images are proudly shown with Beverly's permission. So don't worry, if we end up doing your maternity session, we will only show off your images if you say it's okay.

Mahalo...

PS - And extra special thanks to Beverly and her fabulous sister Stephanie for coming up to Chatham and trusting us. All the best!!

Katie and Paul Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Sun, 09 Mar 2008 02:56:00 +0000

Last month, Larisa and I shot Paul and Katie's wedding here in Chatham. Paul and Katie are great friends - and while it's a bit nervewracking shooting for friends - I really do love it! Here are some of our faves from the day...

Here Paul just realized that he didn't really know you were supposed to exchange gifts on the wedding day...

Some sexy "getting-ready" portraits at Retro Suites before heading off to the church...

First Dance at Club Lentina's...

It was a super fun reception...

The always awesome O'Hare brothers rockin' it out...

Carly and Jeremy Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 18:31:00 +0000

Last month we shot Carly and Jeremy's wedding in Port Lambton and Wallaceburg. The always awesome Harold Jankowiak from Modern Photoglyphs came along as our second photographer. We braved the EXTREME COLD and got some great images...

Reception Venue: Oaks Inn
Flowers by: Westbrooks
Jewelry by: Alyia Bridal Fashions
Wedding Rings from: Kay Jewelers
Dress by: Alfredo Angelo
Store dress purchased: Alyia Bridal
Wedding Co-ordinator: Theresa Nappi (Maid of Honour)
Decorations by: To Suit Your Fancy
Invitations by: Invitations by Dawn
Cake by: Cakes by Colleen
Disc Jockey/Band: Jay Sutherland

You can check out the favourites slideshow here. Below are a few of our faves from this chilly, but awesomesome day...

Wedding Wire

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 13:50:00 +0000

Hey there party peple,
I'll be posting 2 new super awesome weddings and an engagement session in the next day or so. In the meantime, all future couples should check out the Wedding Wire! If we've shot your - or a friends wedding - I wouldn't mind it if you could write a little review.

Review John Lyons Wedding Photography at WeddingWire

Thanks,
john

Got Facebook...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Fri, 15 Feb 2008 03:30:00 +0000

...then hit me up! I'd love to add you whether you are a past client, potential client, another photographer or just a general blog stalker.

Kevin + Melise

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 06:08:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago Larisa and I shot Kevin and Melise's wedding in Windsor. It was a little (okay a lot) chilly, but we still got some great images! Here's a link to the slideshow, and a few of our faves...

What an entrance...

We were able to take some super cool images at the Art Gallery of Windsor...

This is probably one of favourite images of the year. Funny thing is it almost didn't happen. It was one of the last shots that we took before security gave us the boot...

The reception was held at Ambassador Golf and Country Club, one of my favourite venues. Here's a couple from their first dance...

All the best,
J and L

Kerry + Sash

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 06:28:00 +0000

Right before Christmas we shot Kerry and Sash's wedding in Windsor. Sash hung out with my little brother back in the day, so it was nice to see him all grown up! We had a wonderful day - a little cold - but we still got some amazing images! Click here to see the sneak-peak slideshow. Below are some of our faves from the day...

Reception Venue: Willestead Manor
Flowers by: Maria DiMaggio
Dress by: Pronovias, It’s Your Day Bridal
Shoes by: Fifi, Kray Chic, Farmington Hills
Invitations by: William Arthur
Cake by: Cakes by Renee
Other favourites: Godiva for favours, Papyrus for invitations

Congrats guys!!

2007 Brides

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Tue, 01 Jan 2008 06:00:00 +0000

Happy new year to everyone! I hope y'all had a safe and happy holiday season. I had such a wonderful 2007 - great family, great friends and 24 great couples to share the year with.

Thank you Elizabeth...

Cynthia...

Melissa...

Vanessa...

Kate...

Katie...

Jessica...

Rachael...

Lianne...

Lori...

Ashley...

Kelly...

Hollie...

Jessica...

Chantal...

Jenn...

Nadia...

Maria...

Michelle...

Jenn...
Jennifer...

Lindsay...

Kerry...

And Melise!

Thank you to all of my beautiful brides in 2007! I'll show off the grooms in a couple of days!

Katie and Paul Engagement

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 00:50:00 +0000

We shot Katie and Paul's engagement session out at Lighthouse Cove waaaay back in September. Well we didn't get very far before the weather turned on us and we had to cut the session short. We hoped to return to the Cove and shoot some more for their Guest Signing Book, but timing and life got in the way and we never got it. So now, their wedding is less than a month and we had to go with what we had so we could get the design out to the album manufacturer. It turns out that we captured a lot more than we thought. Here's a few faves...

And 2008 and 2009 brides, if you want to add an Engagement Album/Guest Book to your package, shoot me a quick e-mail.

Happy New Year!

Lynetta and Matt Engagement

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 05:42:00 +0000

Way back before the snow and when the Lions still had a shot at the playoffs, we photographed Lynetta and Matt at Mitchell's Bay just outside of Chatham. It was a bit chilly, but the light was perfect. Here's a few of our faves...

Can't wait for next September guys!!

New proofing galleries...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 23:08:00 +0000

We are super happy to announce that coinciding with our new website launch, we are also launching our new online proofing galleries. Over the next few weeks all image galleries will be moved to our new system. All of the wedding galleries since August 2007 have already been moved and can now be found here. Over the past year we've hosted our images with a variety of service providers and are super stoked our our new PickPic cart.

For any photographers out there that follow our little blog, I cannot say enough good things about Troy and Rebecca from PickPic. Their software is first class and their service is even better! I do need to give props to Chris over at Digi-Labs Canada though. Their solution is a bit different, and they served us well over the last year as well. As a photographer, if you want to outsource your galleries and prodution, Digi-Labs is the only way to go. If you want to bring proofing and production in-house, then PickPic is the easy Pick. After 2 years of on and off with Pictage, a year with another Kart provider, and Digi-Labs filling in where we need them we can easy say they we've made the right decision for our workflow by going with PickPic.

So what does this mean for our existing and future clients. Well, for any of our wedding clients that were on with Pictage, you'll be happy to know that your galleries were the first to be moved. All of the Pictage wedding galleries on online on our new server and we'll expire the Pictage galleries at the end of the month. Clients between January 2007 and August 2007 will be added over the next few weeks. 2006 and prior clients will only be added if requested by the couple. All future clients will be online with the new gallery as well.

And totally unrelated, I want to say thanks to the folks at Operation Rednose here in Chatham. We were at very fun Christmas party on the weekend that involved the consumption of many festive adult beverages. Operation Rednose is a volunteer organization that will not only pick you up and drive you home, but they will also bring another driver so that yoru vehicle gets home as well. All they require is a donation to one of the sponsoring charities. So there's no excuse, please don't drink and drive and make the call to Operation Rednose!!

Lindsay and Matthew Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 20:08:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago, we shot Lindsay and Matthew's wedding here in Chatham.
Here's a link to their slideshow and a few of our faves...

Some gorgeous bridal portraits...

Just a little nervous...

We then cruised around Retro Suites for some more fun. Here's the bridal party in the super new King William Suite...

As you can see, it started raining a bit. Our bride and groom were troopers though and we still managed to get some fun portraits downtown...

We even stopped traffic...

A super awesome "present" cake, yum...

Flowers by: McKellers in Dresden
Jewelry by: Sophie’s
Wedding Rings from: Sonya Roe
Dress by: Maggie Sottero
Store dress purchased: Zena’s in London
Shoes by: ? (borrowed)
Wedding Co-ordinator: Krista Botterill
Decorations by: To Suit Your Fancy
Invitations by: The Paper Pickle
Cake by: Maria’s Cakes
Disc Jockey/Band: Universal Sound Entertainment

Congrats guys!

Jennifer and Jason Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Sat, 08 Dec 2007 04:09:00 +0000

A few weeks ago Brett and I shot Jennifer and Jason's wedding here in Chatham. Here's a link to their slideshow, and a few of our faves...

A little air guitar at Fringe...

All the girls looking awesome...

We did all the family portraits before the ceremony at Retro Suites in downtown Chatham. But before that, Jen and Jason saw each for the first time in Retro Suite's funky new lobby. Here's Jen right before seeing Jason for the first time...

I wonder if either one remembers what Jason first said when he whispered in her ear? Any guesses...

The guys cleaned up pretty well too...

Before heading out to Deer Run Golf Course for the ceremony and reception, we took a few fun portraits downtown...

James McNeil of Kettle Creek Weddings was the officiant...

Jen and Jason each wrote their own vows, but neither one of them heard the other's vows until that moment. Jason wrote the best vows I have ever heard...

Jen liked them too...

Don't ask...

A wonderful and emotional dance with Jen's father...

Special thanks to Brett Foland for coming up and shooting and getting some great images!

Jewellery by: Mark Lash (Toronto)
Wedding Rings from: Devil's Workshop (Toronto - we made them ourselves.)
Note from John - and that's them on the home page
Dress by: Barbra Allin
Store dress purchased: Beckers Bridal (Toronto)
Store shoes purchased: Payless (I'm not kidding!)
Decorations by: To Suit Your Fancy
Invitations by: Jay!
Reception Venue: Deer Run Golf Course
Disc Jockey/Band: Phil at Universal Sound Entertainment

Attention Chocolate Lovers...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 03:03:00 +0000

...my friend Pauline is having an Open House at her most amazing store - Eve Chocolatier this Friday, November 30th. Holiday Luxe - an evening of Music, Fashion, Chocolate and Valet Shopping. Now I don't really know what valet shopping is, but the rest sure sounds fun. You're all invited...

Exciting News....

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Fri, 23 Nov 2007 16:49:00 +0000

...today we're featured on Bludomain's blog. Bludomain has done our website for the last 3 years and we just lauched our new site this week. If you haven't see our new site yet you can check it out here.

One of the last questions on their blog is to pick one (and only) photographer who inspires me. Well this was very difficult because so many people have influenced my photography over the last few years. So I want to take a moment to give major props to those who have helped me - directly or indirectly - get me to where I am today. Here's my Top 7 in no particular order...

Becker - is probably the single photographer who has influenced me the most. I can't say enough about the [ b ] man as his works speaks for itself. Becker has been generous with his time and talent - not only with me, but within our industry.

The Bebbs - we were blown away by Jen and Steve when we went to their "Bebbinar" a couple of months ago. Not only are they one of the Top 10 Wedding Studios in the world, they are truly wonderful people and gifted photographers. We implemented things from their workshop right away into our business and are already seeing positive results. I highly recommend the Bebbinar 2.0 to any photographer who wants to take their business to the next level.

David Williams - David showed me how to "warm up a room" when taking portraits. There is a bit of David Williams in almost every portrait I take. He is one of the most genuine and gifted artists that I have every had the pleasure of meeting.

Jessica Claire - her colour is the most amazing I have every seen.

Jerry Ghionis - His out of camera work is out of this world! He brings high fashion to weddings like no other.

Yervant - I actually went to a Yervant workshop before I shot my first wedding.

Joe Buissink - Joe is the only photographer on the list that I haven't personally met or taken a workshop from. However his ability to "define the moment" has inspired our work so much.

And my Dad - who shot weddings long before there were megapixels...

Thanks to all of you for making me a better photographer. And thank you Bludomain for the profile!

Before and After...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 01:37:00 +0000

The other night while at a pre-booking consultation, a future bride asked me what we do to the images, and how much retouching we do and what was included in our collections. I tried to explain it, but it was impossible to do without images, so I promised her that I would post a few examples on the blog.

I'll actually go one step further and explain a bit about our workflow as well. At a typical 10 - 12 hour wedding day with 2 photographers we will easily capture 3500 - 5000 images. Yes, that's right 5000 images! During the wedding we back-up our images to either a laptop or Epson P-3000 portable hard drive. So we have a back-up of all the images before we leave the reception. Once we get back home we make another back-up to our production server.

Our first task is to then edit the images. That is, we select the best 800 or so images. Sometimes it's less, sometimes it's more. But 600 - 800 images usually does it. Because we shoot RAW, all of the selected images will need to be converted to JPGs for the client and for general Photoshopping. Right now we use Adobe Lightroom for our RAW processing and conversion. During the RAW conversion we brighten up the images, correct exposure, add a bit of contrast and colour correct all of the images. These are the "digital negatives" that we deliver on CD to the couple.

Then the fun starts - from the 800 selects, we choose another 50 - 80 images that we feel are the highlight images of the day. These are the images that together tell the story. These images are all processed in Photoshop - skin smoothened, blemishes removed, dodge and burn, etc, and then a bit of our "special sauce" added. Here are some examples below...

The first image is straight out of the camera with no image manipulation. We intentionally underexpose in situations like this so we don't risk blowing out the highlights in her dress and veil...

This next image is the RAW processed JPG. As you can see it looks better already. If this image wasn't going in the album, then this is the final image that would be delivered to the client...

But since I LOVE this image - Jenn looks absolutely gorgeous - it is going in the album (and a feature image on our new website) so it gets a little bit extra treatment: first a little skin smoothening which adds a little extra glamour feel to the image, darken the edges to draw the focus to the center then convert to black and white and sharpen...

Let's pick on Jenn and Clint again. Here's an image straight out of the camera from their engagement session last spring.

Now cropped a bit tighter, converted to black and white, added some grain to mimic the old film look, burn in the edges a bit...

Michelle and Rob Engagement Session, digital negative...

Enhanced by brightening up Michelle and Rob, adding a bit of contrast and saturation, burn edges...

From Katie and Shane's wedding, first image straight out of the camera...

The digital negative: corrected exposure, brightened up, boosted exposure in Lightroom.

The final image as it appears in the album and in final prints ordered online. We softened the skin just a touch and added a little glow.

So to recap, all of our collections include a DVD of the high resolution files or digital negatives. But you can see a difference between the digital negative and the final print. If you have any questions on this or any other part of our workflow just leave a comment below...

Thanks,
j

Jenn and Clint Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:57:00 +0000

A couple of weeks ago Larisa and I shot Jenn and Clint's wedding in Kingsville and Leamginton. The weather didn't really cooperate with us, but Jenn and Clint still looked awesome and we still were able to get some great images for them.

Reception Venue - Viewpoint Estate Winery
Decorator - Elegance by Design
Disc Jockey - Universal Sound & Entertainment

You can check out their engagement session here, and their wedding slideshow here. Below are some of our favourite images...

A very nervous bride...

Super awesome decorating by Elegance By Design...

Of course, if you have a wedding in a winery, you have to visit the wine cellar...

A little emotion during the speeches...

Congrats guys!!
j and l

Father Knows Best...

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 14:41:00 +0000

I just want to give a shout out to my Dad's blog - Michael's English Usage. His blog was featured in this weekend's Windsor Star. You can click here to see the story here. The funny thing is, the writers at the Star are usually his prime target!

Anyway, congrats Dad!!

Luv ya!

Michelle and Rob's Wedding

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 13:24:00 +0000

I'm a little bit behind on my blogging - but this is a super busy time for a wedding photographer. Even though the season is winding down a bit (4 more to go for 2007) we still have lots of albums and reprints to get out. Not to mention we're meeting with a lot of fantastic couples booking their 2008 and even 2009 weddings.

So, let's get back on track...

A couple of weekends ago Johnny C and I shot Michelle and Rob's Wedding in Windsor. We had a gorgeous day - a bit chilly, but at least no rain!

You can check out their engagement session here. Here's a link to their wedding slideshow, and of course, a few of our favourites from the day:

Michelle looking absolutely stunning...

I love this moment between Rob's mom and her aunt as they exited the church after the ceremony...

We were able to shoot for a bit at Willestead after the ceremony. Willestead is an awesome spot for wedding photography and super popular with other wedding photographer. So getting original and unique images there is not always easy, but I think we got some funky images here...

Their first dance at the Fogolar Furlan Club...

Congrats guys!!!
j

Maria and Angelo

noreply@blogger.com (John Lyons Weddings) — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 01:54:00 +0000

A couple of weekends ago we shot Maria and Angelo's wedding in London (and a bit here in Chatham too). I absolutely love Greek weddings. Even though I don't understand the language, I love all the rituals before and during the ceremony. I also want to send a shout out to Warren Liebmann for second shooting with me. We had a great time and even shot a bit on the UWO campus.

You can check out their slideshow here and here's a few of our faves...

Maria looked awesome getting ready...

I love maria's expression coming down the aisle...

So happy...

Congrats guys!