Katya Nova Photography » Vancouver Wedding Photographer | Destination Wedding Photographer | Lifestyle Portraits { Intimate Narrative Documenting Your Love }

[b]ecker [b]lew us away. [b]ig time. He has given two full days to the eager wedding photographers of Vancouver and I was lucky to be among them yesterday. Becker broke it down, speaking from the heart. He made us laugh and inspired us to take an honest look at our wedding photography businesses and do what it takes to rock it. We took notes tirelessly, as Becker talked about branding, giving the most killer experience to our clients, workflow, social networking, consistency, supporting each other in the industry, and of course the little things that matter so much. The workshop took place at Miranda & Reilly’s gorgeous Blue Olive studio and was organized by the awesome Tracey and Libby.

Check out Becker in action… [his shirt reads: "Nobody cares about your status updates"]  :)

And some more action:
Lena & Jason of Jaylena Photography kindly volunteered to model for us. They are so sweet!!
Here I am, posing for Becker
There it was, Sherry’s bright red bow in the midst of the gloomy Vancouver gastown alley.
Last but not least, check out this wicked lunch Jonathan Heppner made for us!
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The Vancouver Wedding Fair January 9 & 10, 2010 at the Bayshore Westin was SMASHING, in both it’s literal and metaphorical sense! It was amazing to see so many beautiful brides, their diligent fiancees, and endless helpers - to carry rapidly accumulating amounts of flyers, brochures, business cards, and little gifts from Vancouver Wedding Vendors. Although this was only my 2nd show, it was so great to not only see familiar faces, but even give out a bunch of hugs during bathroom breaks, mostly to fabulous Vancouver Wedding Photographers!

It’s quite entertaining to see myself from the side - now I understand why I felt as if my face was about to fall off from smiling so hard! But I just couldn’t help it

I loved the vase with flowers Evan of Vancouver Boutique Flower-z brought me, what a nice touch!
And a humongous thank-you to Vancouver dating coach Mick Lolekonda for helping me out all weekend - I don’t know what I would do without him!
We put in well over 20 hours over the weekend, not counting the booth set-up and tear-down… It was so great to go upstairs and crash at the Vancouver Bayshore Westin Hotel! I loved the view of Coal Harbor from the 9th floor, even though I didn’t get to enjoy it much. It was about 8 am on the Sunday morning when I snapped this shot before heading out again!
I decided to hold a prize draw for a Pre-Wedding Boudoir session for one lucky bride-to-be:
And followed up with this announcement yesterday…
I won’t make you wait any longer. The winner of a saucy Boudoir Photo Shoot is…

STACEY! (whose fiancee is BRADEN and their wedding date is JUNE 25, 2011). Congratulations, Stacey! I can’t wait to make you look like a movie star!

Thank you so much EVERYONE for your support, for those of you who are disappointed, why don’t we do a Boudoir photoshoot anyway? Please click HERE for details - the Marathon will take place Jan 30, 2010. Private photo sessions are also available.

Wait, there are four more winners! My friend and talented jewelery designer Jolie Mack is graciously giving away these gorgeous earrings. And the winners are …

PRISCILA (Wedding date July 2011)

JILL (Fiancee Omar, Wedding date Nov 12, 2010)

JESSICA (Fiancee Dan, Wedding date June 11, 2011)

MICHELLE (Fiancee Andrew, Wedding date October 10, 2010)

Congratulations, ladies! Phew, that was intense.

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Jamie Delaine is a dreamer. But not your usual kind. She somehow dreams bigger and brighter than most young women her age - at 19, she’s managed to create her very own magical presence. I’ve wanted to connect with her for a while since bringing my wedding photography to Vancouver, and we’ve finally made it happen this rainy Friday morning over coffee and lunch!

The world of wedding photography can be an exciting roller coaster for anyone with the passion and drive to come along for the ride. What Jamie and I have in common is that we like to take the ‘driver seat.’ Oh, and we are also both Leos born on the same day, August 1st!

I was really excited to talk shop with her and share some experiences as wedding photographers in Vancouver. One of the most inspiring things about Jamie is how organized she is - and I thought I was on the ball with that one … until she shared her workflow with me! I’ll definitely be making some changes in 2010 and making my clients’ experience ever more exciting and memorable!

We sipped green tea and chatted about our awesome Showit websites, working with second-shooters, documenting weddings in Vancouver rain, submitting to wedding publications, outsourcing, networking with Vancouver vendors, and of course, our dreams and goals for our businesses in the future. I also shared my 2011 goal of introducing Katya Nova workshops, and was happy to get some great feedback!

We even got a chance to come out and play in the rain with our twin Canon 5D Mark II’s with 50 f1.2L lenses (yumm). I am blown away with her photos of me! It’s such a treat, especially since I’m behind the lens all the time…

And here are a few of my absolute favourites of me Jamie, you rock!Don’t I look so happy and hopeful?! Looking up to catch the rain drops … looking forward to an amazing 2010!

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Getting the perfect website…. Sigh. For every photographer (and many other artists) there is a certain period when the question “do you have a website” makes you break out in a sweat a little bit. And maybe even stutter slightly. Because it’s, errrr, under construction. I really struggled with what I wanted for mine. And being a complete doorknob in technical matters of handling a computer, I knew I would have to hire someone who is awesome at exactly that - website design. I also knew that once you go Showit, you don’t go back! That’s where Nick Haskins and his great team at Spilled Milk Designs blew my socks off and designed something that truly fits. They took the time to get to know me as a person, to learn things that had nothing to do with designing a website at first glance … and that’s what created magic. If you put trust in a professional to materialize your brand, make sure you give them all the right tools. Otherwise, it’s like looking for a memory card in a haystack (hehe). 

Many of you commented on my logo font - indeed, it’s a tribute to my Slavic roots! It’s an old Russian font and I looove it. 
I love what Nick of Spilled Milk Designs has done with my ‘Nova experience’ room. I really want to connect with you and make you feel as if you know me after you’ve visited Katya Nova Photography! Do you feel like you know me?
I’m also head over heels for the Registry page they’ve created for me - it allows photography clients, their family and friends to get photography gift certificates in different denominations! 
I hope my face on the web will make many people smile… Just the way I try to do the same in person!

Featured Vancouver Wedding Photographer

So I’ve been making Vancouver a home. The city has been kind and welcoming - with only one parking ticket and two broken umbrellas thus far! As a new Vancouver wedding photographer, I’ve met some awesome friends and have been lucky to get featured in the Vancouver Wedding Photographers community. Big thank you to Tracy Heppner for the little spot in the sunshine!

With one more wedding to go this year, I feel so grateful for new beginnings as a wedding photographer in Vancouver… There are so many projects I’m burning to share! And of course, a whole lot of Love.

Inspired by your love, created by mine…

Jen & Steve Bebb of Bebb Studios hosted Vancouver’s first SmugMug meeting this past Wednesday, and I felt so lucky to be a part of this awesome beginning. The crowd was great, and it didn’t take long for the cozy room to start buzzing with warm words and sincere handshakes. Jeff of SmugMug opened the floor by introducing the community spirit and cracking a few jokes

Thanks Jen for your inspiration to blog my season’s favorites… And what a challenge to boil them down to 15!

This is my favorite hands down. My best friend is getting married on my birthday…

I usually abstain from calling anything ‘epic,’ but this photo really has been, for my business.

It was pouring outside. Buckets, cats, dogs & all. We were is an old barnyard and Vivaldi’s ‘Four Seasons’ was playing on my boom box. It was wild.

This shot was taken moments before the First Look. Koranne gave me more pizzaz than I could have even hoped for, and rocked it out like a true Nova Bride.

Paige floated about like a modern-day Audrey Hepburn. So much grace and poise. It was starting to rain and we were about 5 min running distance from shelter, but Paige didn’t even stir, trusting that I would get the shot. Soon. The wind was blowing pretty heavily to the left, so I had my assistant Kemi pull the veil to the right and then let go so that I could catch it in mid-air!

Rob and I were having a conversation through the half-open door, as I was looking for good light. This is what I saw when I glanced over - and couldn’t resist. In fact, the first frame I shot only had ‘lieve’ visible, so I had to nonchalantly push the door a bit wider - to reveal the sign hanging above the bed of one of his groomsmen And could the light get any more perfect?!

Not a new concept by any means, but it was so spontaneous and fun! After a ‘french’ picnic of baguette, cheese, olives, and … champagne, we kicked off our shoes for some fun in the fountain. The setting August sun was tastefully diffused by the trees…

Ok, the secret is out - I love giving a bit of direction and making it look like I’m catching my subjects in a more or less candid moment. Kathy looked so elegant in the white robe, so I asked her to go hang out at the foot of the bed… In the few moments of experimenting with the width of the space between the shutters, the whole gang of bridesmaids gathered behind me, curious to see why I was kneeling in such an awkward spot. ‘Awwwwww,’ I heard from them in unison - they were snapping away too! 

I love the flare. And the love. This photo was taken the night before their wedding - this was the sunset marking the beginning of a new journey together. Did I mention I loooove flare?

The sun hid for a few seconds for me to catch this shot. The air was heavy with the promise of rain. I shouted out ‘runaway bride‘ to Sarah just before releasing the shutter. The old Ukrainian-German farm was also amazing…

I just love what’s going on. Not even sure how, but I convinced them to cozy up on the bed! As I looked around the room, I noticed a Marilyn Monroe calendar. Done! 

Clean-up on aisle four!!! Not quite… But we definitely made the day for a few bored Sobeys employees. 

‘No worries, I’m insured,’ I chuckled nervously, as Kristina and I made our way up to the second floor of this abandoned farmhouse. Every step creaked and squeaked, and I kept repeating in my head … ‘please don’t scream if you see a mouse, please don’t scream if you see a little mouse’ - all clear, we were safe. And it was so worth it! This photo was one of my favorites, we found this antique violin case…

I think this is the kind of a moment little girls dream of when they imagine their dream wedding day. I love the energy of the shot. I was up at the front with them, and realized the bride and groom had turned around and were quickly walking towards the church front doors! I don’t think I tripped anyone… but I busted my butt to make sure I got to the door first!

Hana created this magic all by herself. So inspiring. Doesn’t she make you wonder what it is that she’s seeing out of that window?!

All brides are graceful. Seriously.

Some people succeed more than others - it’s a fact of life that can inspire or discourage. Some days I float on clouds, breaking out into a booty dance after booking another wedding or hearing the trembling thank-you’s of fans and clients, other days - I bury my face in a pillow or a bowl of popcorn and season it with tears of frustration and self-doubt after reading a few blogs of wedding photography giants. 

This roller coaster is never a ‘free ride’ and is the life story of many entrepreneurs, not just in the wedding photography business. Surely, an f-word is bound to come to mind at some point, so long as it’s not failure. Because that one word can drive you into the ground. 

I’ve recently devoured a great book by Malcolm Gladwell called ‘Outliers.’ It sheds light on many remarkable stories of success and … demystifies them. It’s easy to point your finger up at something shiny and dismiss its merit because duh, it’s a star. But in reality, more often then not, there is a stupendous amount of work preceding that effortless brilliance. Because practice is not something we do once we get good. It’s what we do like hamsters in a wheel until we’re good. And then we must keep doing it. 

The devil’s advocate on my shoulder is whispering that it’s not so simple. That being good and even great at what you do is just not enough. And often the timing must be just right for you to be the Oprah, Tony Robbins, Kawasaki, Tyra Banks, or Jasmine Star. To fill a niche, a void … and become the next iPod. 

We have to find ways to become a ‘viral inspiration’ and make whatever we sell a natural extension of our identity and personality. 

I’ve recently been practicing some funky hand balances in ashtanga class. And here’s the trick - once you find your balance, even for a second, you must look ahead and not at the floor underneath you - otherwise you will fall forward and hit your forehead. Hard. Trust me. So just do look ahead. Don’t jump up to reach the stars, and certainly forget that f-word. 

I’m off to do the booty dance, to the crackling of my popcorn. 

Happy Sunday… 

Thank you to the beautiful and talented Margo of EyeLush Photography for this shot of me…

Who doesn’t love a great road trip. Especially to a place that is a world apart from where you live. Especially when you are going to a place you can’t wait to call home. For me, that is Vancouver. The road held some surprises - Mick and I went through a crazy snow storm, which made us appreciate the lucious British Columbia even more.

A bridal show is like a wedding - months of anticipation and preparation, but over in a heartbeat!

We had a fantastic corner booth, but the hits of the show were definitely chocolates and the metallic 16×24 gaterboard prints on display, especially that of the screaming “Polina soon to be Lussier” with hot rollers and two coffee cups in hand.

The show was great, with many beautiful brides … and a few Nova brides!!

It makes my heart beat a little faster when I think of all the beautiful weddings next year will bring. I’m inspired every day … and even though the cold is setting in, I feel like it’s the time of new beginnings.

So Green is the new Black. With the all-encompassing mantra of Reuse-Reduce-Recycle. But when it comes to delivering the disc with images to my dear clients, I’ve struggled to find something eco-friendly that is also elegant and celebratory. After some serious poking around, I found Savitris (www.savitris.com), with their unique hand-crafted stationary made from recycled paper. No two are alike, they are so beautiful. Check these out! Yumm.

Feel free to shoot Kishin an e-mail directly at kishin@savitris.com, they are awesome and will take care of you!