Colin and Anne Barnyard Wedding

Going back to my hometown to shoot is always a little more special. Not only that, but Anne is an old friend from college and I was flattered she asked me to capture the day. I was back in Ottawa earlier this summer to shoot their lifestyle / engagement session in the downtown and Parliament Hill area, needless to say, I was excited to get back. This Ottawa barnyard wedding on her parent's farm was exactly what you think it would be, old-school, straight up party inside a beautiful and vintage barn.  The documentary and fine art photography aspect of my job seems a little bit easier when I'm around familiar, although I usually immerse myself with my subjects the hazy, nostalgic like images I got  throughout the evening were more accurate than they were intentional... maybe I'll be lucky enough get to shoot a few more weddings in Ottawa next year.

Farm , wedding , dramatic weather and pure candid emotion, what more could I ask for?

- 3B

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dress - sarah seven, white satin bridal
bridesmaid dresses - david's bridal
suit - moores
jewelry - modcloth
food - bytown catering

Brady and Sarah Backyard Wedding

Brady and Sarah. A combined 13+ ft tall, they're truly gentle giants. Their wedding was as awesome as it gets. It was in a backyard,they had fireworks, they had a crazy dance party, and they had late night pizza.  In all honesty, this blog post could've been solely composed of images of people hugging and crying, goes to show you how downright awesome these two are. 

We had a good time at a Toronto farmer's market earlier this year, but it was nothing compared to this genuinely heartfelt day. Thanks for inviting us to the coolest house party of the year.

- 3B

stylist - studio h
dress - bcbg
suit - j.crew
jewelry - bluboho
food - yoda's kitchen
invitations - paperless post

| Brick Family | Kingston, ON |

I don't normally photograph family portraits, but I was pretty excited to get the opportunity to photograph this family. With the prize of Oreos on the line the two siblings were super awesome and cooperative, hell, it felt like I was working on set for Gap Kids for crying out loud. 

Anyways, I couldn't of asked for a better setting, better lighting, and better natural elements to come into play during this photoshoot. Even the moon made an appearance that we won't soon forget. 

Enjoy the pics from this awesome family portrait session I had while in Kingston, Ontario. 

-3B

| Josie & Mike | Engagement |

| Dine Alone Records | Solids and Broncho |

I had the absolute pleasure and honour of covering the Dine Alone Records 10 Year Anniversary party held at the Horseshoe Tavern in downtown Toronto. Being granted access to the exclusive (and sold-out) show was an absolute privilege. Shooting live music isn't something new to me since I get the opportunity to work for CMT and their Live Concert Series show, but this time it was a little bit different. I'll admit I don't listen to country music often so photographing an intimate concert that features two of my favourite bands is super cool and something I don't take for granted. 

I've had the opportunity to photograph Solids before (check out the pics here!) and it was a high energy, head-bang worthy show, and this time around was no different.  Xavier and Louis from Solids are great dudes that make great music and it's always a pleasure to see them and get the chance to hangout.  

This was the first time I got to photograph (or see) Broncho live and they didn't disappoint. Their new album Just Enough Hip To Be Woman is an instant classic but I've always but I've always been a garage rock / punk rock / alternative music fan so hearing classics from their first album Can't Get Past The Lips  brought forth some nostalgia for sure, although I'll admit I was a bit disappointed they didn't play the song China from their most recent album, but hey, they're coming back in July so maybe I'll get a chance to hear it then!

Anyway, check out the pics from the event below and if you haven't checked out Solids or Broncho yet, then stop what you're doing immediately and hit them up on Spotify.

-3B

| Kingston | Portrait Sessions |

Hey Kingston! We will be in town on May 2 and we want to shoot portraits all day. We are looking for anyone who is looking for some professional photographs. Couples, families, friends, or even pets are welcome.. Fill out the contact form below to reserve your session or to inquire about more information.

| Ganesh Chaturthi | Festival |

The best part about working as a photojournalist and documentary photographer in a huge cultural hub like Toronto is that I get unique opportunities to cover unique assignments that I would otherwise have no access to as a photographer. The Ganesh Chaturthi is a very large and important religious festival in the Hindu culture. I had only heard about it a few days prior to attending and I wasn't really expecting such an intricate and colorful celebration. It was amazing to be exposed to something like this and I'm really grateful that my career can allow me to explore these aspects of the world that would otherwise go unknown to me. 

The amount of rustle and bustle (and huge quantity of people) tricked me into believing I was actually in India once in a while haha, it was a lot of fun and everyone was so nice and helpful in giving me insights on the festival and what to look out for throughout the ceremonies. If you're a photographer and there is one of the festivals happening in your city I highly recommend trying to get a photo pass, the entire festival makes for amazing and unique images and you'll be right in the thick of things when they get intense (to careful tho, I almost got run over by that huge chariot! ).  Some of the images featured in this post are slightly graphic and intense, not necessarily for the faint of heart, be warned!

-3B

| Shawn Mendes | YTV | One2One |

I recently got the opportunity to photograph Canadian Teen sensation Shawn Mendes for YTV.  The hundred of girls that were there were going absolutely crazy when he hit the stage, luckily I had ear plugs or I'd probably be deaf right now.  The behind the scenes images were used throughout the entire episode and credits so that was pretty cool. I grew up watching YTV so it was sort of nostalgic to be working for the TV station now that I'm in my mid 20's. 

It was fun as always and it's always great to be able to do my thing without any real restrictions. The stage setup and lighting made things really easy / awesome for me so I can't really complain.  Shawn Mendes is dropping his new album Handwritten in the next couple of days  and if his popularity continues to rise it's pretty likely he'll be back for another TV performance that I'll get to capture down the line.

-3B

| Shania Twain | CMT | One2One |

I've previously shot behind the scene stills for a CMT One2One episode featuring the Rascal Flatts and I was really excited when I was invited back for another taping of an episode. This time around the show was featuring 5-time Grammy Award winner, Canada Walk of Fame member and country music legend Shania Twain. Any kid growing up in Canada during the 90's and 00's knows some Shania Twain song even a little bit. I mean, "You're Still the One" was probably the most popular First Dance Wedding song in Canada between 1997-1999. It was pretty cool to be part of the entire production experience , it was the first time I actually photographed a country artist that I recognized which added a little bit of nervousness out of the gate, but after meeting her and spending some time behind the scenes it became business as usual and another day at the office.  

The CMT One2One with Shania Twain airs TONIGHT at 8pm EST on CMT, I don't have cable so I won't be able to check it out, but if you do you'll get to see some of my images featured throughout the episode and closing credits! Enjoy the full gallery of the behind the scenes of the entire production and interview. 

Man... I feel like a woman...

-3B

| IMDB | California Sun Portraits |

I setup some studio lights in my apartment and had my friends come over to snap some photos. My friend Chuck Hamilton is a movie Director and just made an awesome short film that features some big names in the industry and I'm really excited and flattered he got me to create his IMDB profile picture (the first image of the series is the one he went with). The black and white look really helped add some drama and gave off a more cinematic feel, I'm glad he went with it.  Afterwards I did a LinkedIn profile picture for my roommate Greg and when we wrapped up the shoot I decided to setup a blue backdrop and create some more fun portraits, I went for a California sunshine look, or a Weezer Blue Album Cover look with the pics, we had fun and I'm pretty happy with the results. 

If you ever need a portrait taken for whatever just give me a shout!

- 3B

| Bridal Shower | The Estates of Sunnybrook |

| Chinese Supermarket | Toronto |

One of the most unique things I got to cover for editorial assignment was a Chinese Supermarket by the harbourfront. There was a crazy amount of people in a pretty small space but it made for some cool images. I wasn't really in the mood to eat the squid on a stick but some people seemed to enjoy it. Oh and another thing, I'll never forget the smell of tofu being cooked. Here's a glimpse of my two-hour stay of the closest thing to China in Toronto.

-3B

| Rogers Cup Final | Toronto |

One of the sweet perks of being a photojournalist is that I get to sit courtside during some major events. I never shot tennis prior to shooting the Rogers Cup Men's Finals, so I can honestly admit I was quite intimidated especially since the legendary Roger Federer was going to be competing against up and coming tennis stud Jo Wilfred Tsonga. Just a little warning for anyone who's going to be shooting tennis courtside in the middle of summer... it gets HOT! It felt like it was 100 degrees down there and went through about 5 bottles of water. It was fun. 

-3B

NBA: Toronto Raptors vs Cleveland Cavaliers

I'm fortunate enough to cover some cool things as a photojournalist, one of my favourite things to photograph is sports, especially basketball. Any chance I get to shoot an NBA game I usually take, but this game was a bit more special since it featured the best player in the World, 2015 Eastern Conference All Star , and 3-time NBA Champion Lebron James. Not to mention it also featured 2015 Eastern Conference All-Stars Kyle Lowry and Kyrie Irving and Toronto's own Tristan Thompson was back where it all started for his him.  Being court-side for one of the most hyped up NBA games of the season was an unforgettable experience.

The game was nationally broadcast across the US on TNT and featured guest appearances from NBA Legend Tracy McGrady and NBA Hall of Famers Dikembe Mutombo and Earvin "Magic" Johnson.  In honour of tonight's NBA All Star Game in New York City, I've re-visited these images since they feature a handful of former and current NBA All-Stars duking it out. Also, two of these Lebron James' pictures were featured as the cover for the Globe and Mail's Sports section their weekend edition, and one of them also featured on USA Today and BleacherReport.com, so that was super cool, but in the end, I'm just secretly a die-hard basketball fan that wanted a chance to sit on the court as future Hall of Fame players did what they do best, ball.  As the saying goes - Ball is Life. 

-3B

| Dierks Bentley | CMT | One Night Stand |

CMT filmed another episode of their live concert series One Night Stand and I had the pleasure of being there as the still photographer.  This time around they had country music superstar Dierks Bentley hit the stage. He was extremely down to earth and shotgunned two beers in the middle of his set like an absolute champ. We filmed at the iconic El Mocambo , a cool little Toronto bar with a lot of history. Some huge names have performed there including The Ramones , Jimi Hendrix, The Rolling Stones and The Beatles just to name a few. Sadly, the place was closing down the following day and the Dierks Bentley concert was sort of a final farewell to the place, it was cool to be there for the final chapter and capture the images of the final performance ever held at the El Mocambo.  Dierks Bentley's album Riser is nominated for Best Country Album at the 2015 Grammys, oh and he recently performed on Ellen , David Letterman and did the Superbowl Pregame Show on NBC, I wasn't aware of how huge of a star he was at the time ,until I realized I was crammed in a tiny bar around 500 screaming fans that were going absolutely nuts. It was kind of awesome.

-3B

| Dierks Bentley | CMT | One Night Stand | El Mocambo Tavern|

| Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition |

One of my favorite clients is a sweet trendy restaurant in Toronto called Parts and Labour. They've recently expanded into catering events and usually bring me along for any special events they are hosting or catering. On Halloween they brought me to one of the coolest events I've ever covered. It was the pre-launch party for the Stanley Kubrick Exhibit at the TIFF Bell Lightbox in downtown Toronto.  I was super excited to cover this event as it was going to feature plenty of costumes and good times, not to mention, Stanley Kubrick is my favourite artist and his movies have heavily influenced my artistic style and approach. (Not to mention he was an amazing photographer before getting into films and his images are incredible and it was truly amazing seeing his original images on display).

2001 : A Space Odyssey,  The Shining and Clockwork Orange are all in my top 10 favourite movies and it was amazing seeing the actual props and equipment used to film those legendary pieces of cinema. Now that the exhibition is coming to an end I can finally release my images from the event for all movie fans to enjoy.

-3B

| Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition | Tiff Bell Lightbox |

| High Valley | CMT: Live at the Edison |

I've had the pleasure of working on CMT's Live Concert Series Show for a little over a year now and I've loved every minute of it. It's really great to be able to just do my thing and have the producers completely trust my vision for pictures.  I've gotten to work with some of the coolest people and gotten to meet some extremely talented and popular country music bands like the Grammy Award Winning Rascall Flatts and Juno nominees / winners such as Dallas Smith and Kira Isabelle. I'm extremely grateful for the opportunity and try to make the most of it every time we shoot an episode. I'll admit, it's pretty cool seeing my pictures used in commercials to promote the episode, and used in the episodes themselves to help with scene transitions and throughout the credits.

Today was the premiere of High Valley : Live at the Edison episode. In honour of the premiere I'm able to release some production stills for you guys. Brothers Brad and Curtis Rempel were some of the nicest, most down to earth artists I've gotten to work with, it was a lot of fun working along side them during this episode. They had a hilarious fascination with my TLR camera and were pretty pumped for me to develop my rolls of film to share with them. They put on a killer show and made the most of the cool setup and detailing by the production crew. Check out the episode on CMT Canada's website at http://www.cmt.ca/show/high-valley-live-at-the-edison/ 

-3B

| High Valley | CMT | Live at the Edison | The Great Hall | Toronto |

| Lives Reimposed: A Series on Joe Bielski |

Every now and then in life you come across people with such amazing stories that you find it difficult not to share it with the world, Joe is one of those people. I met Joe nearly three years ago now during a weird moment in both our lives; Joe was going through a severe battle with depression and I was dealing with my own personal hardships too. This commonality and unspoken understanding created a unique bond between us and Joe instantly became one of those life-long friends, someone I could call up on a whim to chat or hangout.  During my TV documentary class in University I had the challenge to tell an editorial story for one of my final projects and I knew instantly that I wanted to reach out to Joe to see if he would open up and share his life experience candidly through a lens. Luckily, he did.

Below are still images from the "set" (AKA Joe's badass loft) taken during the filming of the short online documentary created by me and two of my colleagues / friends at school. I hope you can take the time to step into Joe's shoes for a few minutes and gain a better understand of his story because he's not the only one who has to face these uphill battles on a consistent basis. On a day like today it's important to remember that you're never alone and there are always people ready to support you and help you overcome whatever you may be facing, just remember that reaching out isn't a sign of weakness, but instead ,  it's truly a sign of bravery. 

- 3B

Here is the final documentation that came out of this project:

| Bell Let's Talk | Toronto, ON |

| Hello |

Welcome to my official blog. 

My name is Brian, I'm a documentary photographer based out of Toronto, Canada. I consider myself a documentary photographer because my main objective is to tell stories through a visual medium. I've always marched to the beat of my own drum and I hope that my personality and personal style bleed through all the images I take and share with you.  

I've worked as a freelance Photojournalist and Documentary photographer for Canada's largest national newspaper; The Globe and Mail,  I've also been commissioned by UFC, The NBA, Country Music Television , North by North East and many more clients from all walks of life. 

I'll be posting here fairly regularly so if you'd like to keep up with what I'm doing feel free to subscribe to my blog via email below, or make sure to "Like" my Facebook page and Instagram 'cuz I'll be sharing unique and select images across different platforms!

-3B