31st Annual NADF Awards - Valhalla Inn
NADF returned to the Valhalla Hotel & Conference Centre in Thunder Bay, ON on Friday, March 24, 2023 to present the 31st Annual NADF Awards Gala.
NADF returned to the Valhalla Hotel & Conference Centre in Thunder Bay, ON on Friday, March 24, 2023 to present the 31st Annual NADF Awards Gala. The awards gala showcases Northern Ontario’s Aboriginal business community and celebrates the determination and perseverance of individuals and businesses that continue to bolster the economy under these very challenging times.
Special guests included PAUL RABLIAUSKAS entertainer Paul Rabliauskas, mast of ceremonies Ron Kanutski and Reception Entertainment Robin Ranger, Dino Pepe and Mario Potestio.
Jennifer + Carmine Wedding
One of my last weddings of the year took place at Valhalla Inn with Jennifer and Carmine. I was so excited to spend a day with such a beautiful and kind couple, and also the rest of their family and friends. The good thing about the times we are in now, is that weddings have no choice but to be smaller and much more intimate. I really do enjoy smaller weddings, I almost feel like I’m part of the family. My day started with the getting ready shots. It was a nice way to ease into the wedding day.
One of my last weddings of the year took place at Valhalla Inn with Jennifer and Carmine. I was so excited to spend a day with such a beautiful and kind couple, and also the rest of their family and friends. The good thing about the times we are in now, is that weddings have no choice but to be smaller and much more intimate. I really do enjoy smaller weddings, I almost feel like I’m part of the family. My day started with the getting ready shots. It was a nice way to ease into the wedding day.
As with almost all of my wedding photography, I focused on candid, natural moments. I get so much joy out of anticipating and reacting to split second things throughout the day. Having photographed so many weddings over the course of my career has definitely helped my timing, but I am always evolving as a photographer.
After spending about an hour photographing the getting ready portion of the day it was time to move out to the outside courtyard, which is always such a lovely venue to get married. Rain threatened most of the day but it held out long enough to fit everything in, which I was super thankful for. The ceremony itself was very sweet. Anytime a dog is the ring bearer, means it’s going to be a good wedding!
The ceremony and the remaining portion of the day was very relaxed which was perfect. Everyone was super easy going. Once the ceremony was done, everyone kind of just relaxed for a bit. The videographers took the newlyweds aside to shoot some footage and I tagged along to get some nice candid ‘behind the scenes’ moments. The cake was eventually served along with a wonderful array of meats, cheeses and fruits.
Before the wedding Jennifer had asked if we could do the portraits at Trowbridge Falls. That was an easy answer of course. So once everyone was nice and full and relaxed, we all met over at the park. It took a bit longer for some people to arrive but it was a great opportunity to get some more photos in the parking lot of the wedding gang. Plus, we actually headed into the park ahead of everyone else to get some photos on the nice bridge overlooking the water. Those ended up being some of my favourite photos from the entire day. It was an off and on light drizzle, but in all honesty, I’m glad it was overcast. It made everything look that much better.
Once everyone arrived, we made our way down to the water and did all the family portraits there. The rain started coming down a little harder so we used the cover of the bridge to cycle through the group shots. That meant I was out in the rain, but I’ve been in much worse situations. Plus, it was barely raining. We finished off down on the water with a few quick portraits of the beautiful couple, and then it was time to head back to the cars. When we got back to the parking lot, we got a few more family photos with their grandmother who had such a great sense of humour. I loved the way she talked.
The last stop of ‘my’ day with the couple was Tim Hortons. Yup. You heard that right. The reason being that that is where they first met. So it was only fitting to get a photo there. Along with one outside, I captured a couple nice ones of Jennifer and Carmine sitting at a table. It was such a perfect end to the day for me. I still can’t get over how many moments I captured throughout the day. Below are just a few highlights, but some of my favourites nonetheless.
I still can’t believe wedding season is almost over. Even though it’s been challenging (for everyone) it’s has still been memorable and full of nice surprises. As I write this, I have my last wedding of the season tomorrow. I only hope it is as beautiful as this one!
K.I.H.S. Graduation Ceremony 2019 - Valhalla Inn
This was my third year photographing the Keewaytinook Internet Highschool (K.I.H.S) Graduation. It’s always such an amazing and rewarding experience. Each year I have photographed the event, the number has graduates has gone up. This years event was no exception, with a graduating class of 32. Just like last year, Valhalla Inn played host to the graduation.
This was my third year photographing the Keewaytinook Internet Highschool (K.I.H.S) Graduation. It’s always such an amazing and rewarding experience. Each year I have photographed the event, the number has graduates has gone up. This years event was no exception, with a graduating class of 32. Just like last year, Valhalla Inn played host to the graduation.
As soon as I arrived I worked with the organizers to get all the graduates outside for their formal portraits. It actually went pretty smoothly seeing as how last year we tried it at the end of the event and it was definitely a lot harder. I also managed to get some create candids outside and of course some family and friends photos too.
Once we were done outside, the rest of the evening was spent inside in the ballroom. There was of course a delicious 4 course meal, a couple presentations and even some live entertainment. The evening went by extremely quick for me, but I still came away with a lot of great photos. It helped that everyone was super excited and happy to be there.
For those of you who would like to learn more about what K.I.H.S does, I encourage you to visit their website. I’m already looking forward to next years graduation. I heard that there are going to be even more graduates than 2019!
NADF CCP Workshop 2019 - Valhalla Inn
Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund (NADF) are a not-for-profit Aboriginal Financial Institution serving entrepreneurs, businesses and communities in Northern Ontario. They hosted a 3 day workshop focusing on community planning. It took place at the Valhalla Inn in Thunder Bay. I was there to cover a couple hours in the morning on the first 2 days. While I was there during the first morning they announced their new website launch which was super exciting. There was also a keynote presentation by Dan Longboat.
Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund (NADF) are a not-for-profit Aboriginal Financial Institution serving entrepreneurs, businesses and communities in Northern Ontario. They hosted a 3 day workshop focusing on community planning. It took place at the Valhalla Inn in Thunder Bay. I was there to cover a couple hours in the morning on the first 2 days. While I was there during the first morning they announced their new website launch which was super exciting. There was also a keynote presentation by Dan Longboat.
The second morning, Juliet Rickard shared her story with all the attendees, which was really great to listen to. After that, there were a variety of breakout sessions which included a general overview of CCP, How to work with different groups, and a mentors panel with Alice Sasines and Prescilla Graham.
Both days for me were a lot of fun to capture and I also learned a lot while doing so. That’s why I very much enjoy capturing events like this.
If you are interested in learning more about NADF I encourage you to check out their website here.
NADF - Business Awards
The Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund Business Awards took place this past Friday at the Valhalla Inn. I was hired to photograph the event and I had a great time doing so. The NADF is a non-profit Aboriginal Financial Institution (AFI) providing business financing and support services to Aboriginal entrepreneurs and businesses to establish, expand, or acquire a business in remote, rural and urban communities in Northern Ontario. The awards presented celebrate the contribution of Indigenous people to the economy of northwestern Ontario.
The Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund Business Awards took place this past Friday at the Valhalla Inn. I was hired to photograph the event and I had a great time doing so. The NADF is a non-profit Aboriginal Financial Institution (AFI) providing business financing and support services to Aboriginal entrepreneurs and businesses to establish, expand, or acquire a business in remote, rural and urban communities in Northern Ontario. The awards presented celebrate the contribution of Indigenous people to the economy of northwestern Ontario.
As you can tell from the photos, everyone had a great time and it was such a good cause. It's amazing just how much talent there is in the region and NADF recognizing and embracing it helps promote new business.
For anyone interested in learning more about the event, there is a great write up on the Wawatay News Website here.
Raeanne + Lance Wedding - Valhalla Inn
Raeanne and Lance recently got married this past September and I was fortunate enough to be entrusted to document their day. Each wedding I do is a new adventure and challenge and this one was no exception. Both Raeanne and Lance were such a great couple to photograph and follow around for the day. That also goes for the entire wedding party. Everyone was extremely easy going and that just made my job that much easier.
Raeanne and Lance recently got married this past September and I was fortunate enough to be entrusted to document their day. Each wedding I do is a new adventure and challenge and this one was no exception. Both Raeanne and Lance were such a great couple to photograph and follow around for the day. That also goes for the entire wedding party. Everyone was extremely easy going and that just made my job that much easier.
My day started at the hotel where the ceremony was taking place. I still think the Valhalla in is one of the nicest hotels in Thunder Bay. Raeanne and Lance decided to have their wedding in the courtyard which is such a beautiful spot to have a small and intimate ceremony. After the guys and then the girls did their walk down the pathway, the ceremony got started. It was filled with a fair share of tears as well as some laughs. I often photograph the crowd to capture some candid moments and from what I saw, everyone was having a great time.
Before I knew it the ceremony was over and it was time for the guests to congratulate the happy couple. They went inside for that, but not for too long. We decided to just do the family portraits back in the courtyard, that way they didn't have to travel to far. Once we were done that, it was off to Kam Park for portraits with just the wedding couple. I would say this was my favourite part of the day because we came away with so many great photos. It's such a good venue that I don't think a lot of people know about or really take advantage of. After about an hour we headed back to the hotel for the reception.
The reception was a great time as well. Not only were the speeches funny and sincere, the food was awesome as always. My night ended shortly after the first dance but before I left I did manage to get a lot of candid moments along with the some really fun dancing shots. I couldn't have asked for a better wedding couple to photograph. Thanks as always to Raeanne and Lance for choosing me to capture their day!
