We finally made it up to Whistler for an engagement shoot after 6+ weeks of waiting. After rescheduling after rescheduling (mostly due to weather) we made our way up last Saturday. Damien and Joyce wanted both a winter and summer themed engagement shoot because they met in the winter and are getting married in the summer. We originally intended to head up to Whistler early February, but after all this waiting we couldnt wait for the "ideal" weather anymore as the snow was starting to melt due to the warmer weather. We were going to go up regardless of anything short of heavy rain or a snow storm. When we made it up, the weather was slushy wet snow. It was somewhat heavy, pretty wet, but it could have been worse. Regardless we were happy to be there. We started the shoot with a stroll around the village.
While we were searching for a place to eat, we stumbled upon this little wooded area that was perfect for some portraits with nobody around. I really wanted to play around with foreground blur with this shoot and this was an ideal location to start.
After lunch we headed to Rebagliati Park for some pictures. This was a gem of a spot as it offered us a variety of shots that we could play around with. By then the slushy wet snow had stopped and we were getting just the right amount of solid snow and even the sun was starting to come out! We couldnt have asked for better weather. The only downside was that within less than an hour we were starting to get snow blind. Pro tip: Sunglasses.
Joyce mentioned that she wanted to go somewhere with tall trees and a path so I asked my friend Tia who lives in Whistler for some advice. She told me to check out the Valley Trail by the golf course so off we went!
We were running perfectly on time so we had an opportunity to check out my alternate "tall trees and a path" spot. This spot was literally found with google earth and street view. I just dropped into areas that looked like it would have a wooded path and stumbled across this spot along Alpine Way. I think it worked out pretty well for us.
Our last spot was Lakeside Park at Alta Lake. Joyce mentioned she wanted to use a dock for some of the photos so once again I hopped into street view and found one. I didnt expect to find a completely frozen lake this big, but I guess its a normal occurrence for Whistler. It was a fantastic location to end the day and overall I'm very happy with the images that I got that day. Joyce and Damien were a fantastic couple to work with that was always full of laughter. Looking forward to our summer shoot together!
