I have been so incredibly excited to photograph Maria and Tim since Maria emailed about her “someday” wedding almost one year ago. Maria and Tim had started dating three months before… and she knew this was the real deal. When I searched through my inbox for the specific details to write this story, I had to laugh. I’m definitely guilty of texting my dream videographers three months into dating (not engaged!) and asking about availability. It’s sooo fun and wonderful that Maria has been reading my blog for years and years! It was like meeting an old friend when I met up with them on the weekend.

Let’s get into the story about how a girl from a tiny island off the coast of British Columbia met a small town Saskatchewan boy… Online, of course! (Well, they weren’t going to just “bump into each other!”) When Maria saw Tim’s profile, she was intrigued! This is exactly the kind of guy she was looking for! The more she read, the more she liked. When she started looking for a location and read “Saskatchewan…” she groaned a little inside. She grew up on Gabriola Island, surrounded by the ocean, and Saskatchewan? It was so far from B.C. and everything Maria knew!

But she needed to know more about this Tim character. She sent him a message, but noticed his profile had been inactive for months. After a month, she still had Tim on the brain – she decided to look him up on Facebook and sent a “Hello!” message. Tim responded and they started a conversation. Which turned into a couple months of conversations. :)

On October 3, 2014 Maria and Tim met in person for the first time at the Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal. (The same location we chose to photograph their engagement session!) Their connection “in person” was even better than their long-distance chats and soon, they were an official couple. They dated long distance for a year, until Maria moved to Saskatchewan to be with Tim. A couple weeks after she moved, Tim proposed on their one-year anniversary!

I was excited to receive the official we-want-to-book-you email ten months after Maria’s first one, haha! Maria and Tim are tying the knot on Gabriola Island at the end of March and I can’t wait to be their photographer. 

Enjoy their engagement photos!

I have a little story to share with you, readers, about the weather. When we started the session, the sky was overcast. Not bad – what else can you ask for in Vancouver in December? It didn’t look like it was going to rain.

Within five minutes, it started to sprinkle. No big deal. Maria and Tim had prefaced the session saying, “Rain or shine! This is the only time we’ll be in town before our wedding!” So I knew this couple was good to go. We continued shooting through the drizzle.

A couple minutes after that, the drizzle turned into a downpour. Honestly, we don’t get downpours that frequently in Vancouver. It’s like… drizzle for 72 hours and then overcast most of the winter. But pour it did. We walked back to my car to grab a couple umbrellas, I put the hood up on my parka and out we went into the rain. 

It’s hard to see just how much it was raining in these photos but I think this photo gives you a good glance:

My favourite thing about these two is their joy. Maria said she wanted her wedding photography to be in the Jamie Delaine style (why, thank you! best answer to hear, haha!) and Tim said he wanted “fun” photos. ;) I think we achieved both. Boooom. 

The fun is 98% these two, though. Look at those cute smiles. Or maybe it was just laughter at me. Literally my hair was soaked at this point. The fur around the hood of my parka was also wet. My only goal was keeping the glass of my lens dry, so the photos didn’t turn out foggy!

Umbrellas? Who needs em. Better to have hands free to cuddle.

This has to be one of my favourites.

The rain became just a little too much, so we decided to take cover, take off our wet jackets and enjoy this wall for a while.

And then! Within minutes of stepping under cover, the sky behind us broke out into bright sunshine! And across the water, still gray and moody, a rainbow shined through! You can see it faintly above the ferry. :)

With sunshine that bright after the downpour, we had to take advantage. Love these portraits of them!

Pretty wonderful engagement session, I’d say… look at these views!

The very same set of stairs Maria and Tim sat on the day they first met. :)

Maria and Tim, you guys are incredible. I’m so thrilled to be your photographer and experience your wedding weekend with you. Thank you, thank you.

P.S. Maria is an amazing photographer, too! And if you want to read their love story in greater detail, click here!