It was at the busiest point of our 2015 season that we took a 7‑hour road trip up to Timmins, Ontario to be a part of an editorial shoot for WedLuxe Magazine. Laura from Laura & Co. had reached out to us and filled us in on the project — there was talk of foxes, falcons, and the great northern wilderness.
We were convinced before we had even finished reading the e‑mail and were ready to move heaven and earth to be a part of this project.
So having just shot Andrea and Jeff’s wedding on the Saturday, we charged our batteries, backed up our cards, and packed to drive up on Monday, shoot for the next two days, and come back for Thursday to get everything ready for Crystal and Jer’s on Friday.
We left around noon on Monday, taking a small detour to Neo Coffee Bar for some good coffee and snacks. We had heard a lot about this place but honestly, it was love at first sip and is now one of our favourite coffee spots in Toronto.
3 hours outside of Toronto, landscapes start to look really beautiful and you start to question whether you’re even in Ontario anymore. We stopped for a small hike off the highway with some jaw-dropping rock formations. Things got a lot more awe-inspiring as the ride progressed, but as roads got wetter and the day withered into darkness, we started to really feel the need to get to our destination and refrained from stopping for any photos. The pitch-black country roads winding through mountains and cliff sides mixed with the constant warnings of moose crossings made for a particularly horrifying combination, but we made it there in one piece, albeit a couple hours late (40km under the speed limit is our go to when things get scary).
The theme of the shoot was “Into the Wild” and our experience in this little northern getaway couldn’t have been a closer reflection of that. In the few days that we spent up there, we encountered landscapes reminiscent of the Group of Seven’s, crossed paths with a bear or two, held a couple of foxes, tried our palates with some beaver, and captured some truly amazing people doing what they do best.
On the technical side of things, we wanted the viewer to be able to easily identify the setup portions from the finished sets within the film. Slow-motion is something our Canon C100 Mark IIs are capable of by shooting in 60p and conforming down to 24p in post — it’s something we’ve always been interested in doing but have never had a project that called for it. So we decided that we would shoot these finished scenes in slow-motion on the Movi M5 — the epic results communicate the grandeur of these sets that everyone is working so hard to create.
The idea of the Into the Wild shoot was to combine modern elements with this theme of rustic wilderness. We wanted the final color to be a reflection of these opposing ideas — a combination of vintage film and the clean, sleek look of contemporary cinema. The final look we decided on was vibrant, reminiscent of Super8 or Super16 film, but clean and sharp. We also added a bit of grain to each shot to refine that film aesthetic.
The editorial was published in the current issue of WedLuxe Magazine and our making-of-film was featured on their blog last week!
Photography, Art Direction • 5ive15ifteen Photo Company Producer, Concept Creator and Stylist • Laura & Co. Events & Rachel A. Clingen Wedding & Event Design Stationery • Paper & Poste Cake Design • Fine Cakes by Zehra Gown • Valencienne Bridal Design Hair and Makeup • Fancy Face Inc. Chairs • Detailz Couture Event Rentals Animals • Animals, On The Go! Venue • WildExodus Adventure Travel