Patrick Chondon 5/27/18 Patrick Chondon 5/27/18

K.I.H.S. Graduation 2018 @ Valhalla Inn

This event was another one that I was photographing for the second time. Last years Keewaytinook Okimakanak Graduation Ceremony took place at the Italian Hall and it was a very intimate yet fun event. However, this time around, I was amazed not only at how many more graduates there were but all the family that attended as well. Whenever I photograph graduations such as this, it's really not that difficult capturing special moments because everyone in attendance is just so happy to be there.

It was a very fun night which had some live standup comedy, awards and of course some games that the staff and the graduates took part in. Combine those with some really good food and a hat toss at the end, and it was a evening to remember.

Congratulations to all the graduates for all of their hard work!

Patrick Chondon 5/22/15 Patrick Chondon 5/22/15

Heather + Jordan Wedding

With a few small weddings under my belt this year, Heather and Jordan’s special day was my first big one of the season. The weather was absolutely perfect so I knew it was going to be a great wedding. (Not that there are ever any ‘bad’ weddings’) The day started at a small little church just off of Oliver Road. As soon as I arrived I got my usual candid photos of the guests, the church itself and just the usual moments leading up to the ceremony itself. You can always feel the anticipation the air and I just love that feeling. I guess that will be me in August when I get to marry my beautiful Fiancé Anne.

Once the ceremony began, that’s when I really went to work. The good thing was that there was a a lot of room to move around so I was able to get some great creative angles and photos without being a distraction. That is one of the main challenges when shooting inside a church of any kind. As a photographer you want to get the ‘shot’ but you have to do so quietly and discreetly as possible. I’d like to think I have become a pro at it.

After the ceremony, everyone gathered in the church lobby and congratulated the couple. We then decided to do the family portraits right outside the church. I found a nice shaded area in front of the trees. Although it was mainly family group photos I never stopped looking for this spontaneous moments. This goes on throughout the entire day.

Heather and Jordan were very smart and left plenty of time for portraits which meant we were able to travel to a few different locations. The first stop was the Marina. We got some fantastic expansive photos at the firepit area along the water. From there we simply chose different spots and just went with the flow. I came up with some ideas and so did they. It was very relaxed atmosphere and the resulting photos showed that.

Once we left the Marina, it was time for me to just focus on Heather and Jordan. We made our way to Friendship Gardens. I had forgotten how pretty it is there. Some of my favourite photos of the entire day took place there. One of them being the one with the windmill in the background. I also found a nice little spot nestled in the trees. It was then time to head on over to the reception, which took place at the Valhalla Inn. Before everyone settled in, I was able to get a lot of detail photos of the decorations and table settings, as well as the cake.

From there, it was just a matter of walking around and documenting the ceremony. I only had a little bit of time to work with so we decided to do the ‘cupcake’ cutting before hand. I did get the opportunity to photograph the first dance and a fun game they did with the crowd. After that, my day was done. All in all, I came away with so many great photos. Thanks as always to Heather and Jordan. It was a very fun wedding to photograph and everyone was fantastic to work with.

Patrick Chondon 5/21/14 Patrick Chondon 5/21/14

Cathy + Family Portraits

Normally when I do family portraits it's no more then a family of 5. In this case there were about 13 people! The occasion was for this session was an 80th birthday party for Cathy's dad Bernie.

Normally when I do family portraits it's no more then a family of 5. In this case there were about 13 people! The occasion was for this session was an 80th birthday party for Cathy's dad Bernie.

The portraits took place at the Vahalla Inn inside the Fireside Room off the main lobby. We decided to do all the group and couple shots right in front of the fireplace which made for a nice setting. Once we finished off all the groupings we made our way to the courtyard for a few outdoor shots.

It was an overcast day with a bit of sun peaking through so it was almost perfect weather. After finding some shade, we took some beautiful photos. My favourite of the entire day was the very last one of Bernie. I got him to lean against the tree and look away from the camera. Suffice it to say he looked pretty cool. Thanks to Cathy for inviting me to spend an hour with her and the family. I know the 'whole' family wasn't there but I hope these photos will bring a bit of happiness to those that couldn't make it.

Patrick Chondon 12/2/13 Patrick Chondon 12/2/13

Brian & Leesa Wedding

My last wedding of the year took place at the Victoria Inn. The happy couple this time around were Leesa and Brian. This being my actual first wedding at the Victoria in, I was anxious to see what it was like. Last year I had the wedding show in the large ballroom so I had some idea of what it would be like but it’s always great to see how everything is decorated. I arrived about 15 minutes before the reception which took place in the room beside the main ballroom. By the time the wedding started it was a packed room I would estimate about 150 people or so.

Once the ceremony started I quickly made my way to the aisle and started taking photos of the wedding party making there way down the aisle. It wasn’t long before Leesa entered the room with her father. She looked beautiful, and I could tell by the look on Brian’s face that he thought the exact same thing. The ceremony itself was very traditional and actually went by fairly fast. With that being said, I did get a lot of great photos.

After the ceremony people gathered in the hallway and offered their congratulations to the happy couple. This was yet another opportunity to get a lot of genuine photos of emotions and reactions. Shortly after this we all made our way to Brian and Leesa’s house near Mountain Road. For those unfamiliar with this area of town it was quite nice. All the homes are located with Mount McKay in the background. Their house was absolutely stunning. It had high ceilings, I great backyard and plenty of locations for photos. The wedding party and I spent a little bit of time outside getting the group shots and then we made our way back inside. Once inside we took advantage of the staircase, the indoor balcony as well as the grand living room.

It was then time to head back to the hotel for the reception. As always, I got there a bit early to get some photos of the decorations and overall atmosphere. Once guests started arriving I continued to snap candid shots of everyone. Soon after the wedding party arrived and would eventually make their grand entrance. Dinner soon followed and it was time to relax just for a bit. The highlight of the night soon followed, which was a performance by a group of belly dancers. They were amazing and the crowd just loved every minute of it! My night then ended with the couple having their first dance.

All in all it was a very fun and spontaneous night for me. Leesa and Brian were the perfect couple to photograph and all the guests I talked were equally nice. It made my job that much easier to have some many great people and moments to photograph.

Patrick Chondon 9/6/13 Patrick Chondon 9/6/13

Katie + Kurtis Wedding

The last wedding of August for me was Katie and Kurtis. It was almost like the best was saved for last! My day started at the Vahalla with Katie and her bridal party. They had rented a hotel room and I was there to capture all the fun. It was a pretty relaxed atmosphere but as the time to leave came closer you could feel some of the nervous tension in the air. But it was a good thing. Everyone made their way down to the limo waiting outside, hopped in, and just like that they were off.

The wedding took place at Whitewater Country Club. This is always a beautiful location. As everyone gathered on the outdoor patio overlooking the forest Kurtis waited anxiously for his future bride to make her way down the aisle. Once she started, everyone stood up and admired the gorgeous bride. She really did look quite beautiful. The ceremony itself was fairly short and the live music playing the background was really a nice touch.

Next up was the greeting line and then it was off to do some group portraits. We didn’t go very fair as there was a nice shady spot just by the clubhouse. Luckily we found some shade because it was one of the hottest days of the year. The entire wedding party was very fun to work with. I even got the guys to jump in the air a few times which made for some pretty silly yet spontaneous results. My favourite shot with the gang was when the bridal party picked up Kurtis. You could see that they were struggling a bit but they pulled it off!

Thankful to get out of the heat we all made our way to the reception area inside. After spending some time photographing the little details the speeches started right away. Instead of just clinking glasses together, guests were required to sink a golf ball on the putting green. Suffice it to say, many guests cheated. The rules would eventually change later in the evening as any guest who didn’t sink it on their first try had to kiss someone from the wedding party. There were some good ones.

Once dinner was done it was time for the first dances. First up was Kurtis and Katie and then Kurtis and his mom. We were then able to sneak out for a few minutes and get some really nice sunset shots. Even though it was very overcast it was still a great setting. I finished the night by capturing Katie and Kurtis cutting the cake. Oh, and the cake was the best one I have seen to date which you can see in the photos below. Thanks as always to the wonderful bride and groom for a great day. I had so much fun.

Patrick Chondon 8/26/13 Patrick Chondon 8/26/13

Amy + David Wedding

Vahalla Inn in Thunder Bay was the location for my wedding with Amy & David. I showed up around 1:30 and immediately started taking photos of David and his party. Upon arriving, all the boys were in a relaxed mood joking and having fun. I spent the next 30 minutes taking photos of them getting ready. We did a couple outdoor shots since they were on the main floor and of course there were also some Jagerbombs which further helped to calm the nerves.

Then it was off to Amy’s room. I got there just as they were tying up her dress. It was quite the lace job but once it was done it looked fabulous! The girls were joking around just as much as the guys were. This was a sign of the rest of the day would be. Everyone was just so easy going and carefree. It really made my job that much easier. It also made for some equally fun photos. My favourite photo from this part of the day was when the entire party pretended they were misbehaving.

I then made my way down the ceremony. This took place in the beautiful courtyard. Since this was my first time shooting a wedding here, I was anxious to see how it all looked. On some of the trees they hung up a whole bunch of photos of Amy and David. This was such a nice touch. Once the music got going and everyone took their seats, it was time for the boys to walk, more like run, down the aisle. Once the girls made their way, it was a lot more deliberate. Surrounded by the trees and eventually the crowd, it made for some great photos.

The ceremony itself took about 30 minutes, then it was time for the portrait session. We spent the next hour in the courtyard getting all the family shots as well as ones of the bride and groom. As I mentioned before, everyone involved was willing to have a bit of fun with the photos as you can tell from the resulting images below.

Once that was all said and done it was time to head off to the reception area. I took some time to just photography the table settings and different aspects of the room, before everyone arrived. As soon as everyone had their seat, dinner started almost immediately. The next hour and bit was spent walking capturing some of the special moments. The cake looked fantastic and food was very tasty. So much to choose from!

All in all it was an action packed day and I was so lucky to be able to be a part of it. Thanks again to Amy and David.