JENN STARK PHOTOGRAPHERS

Hi! We are Jenn & Dave Stark, a husband and wife wedding photography team based near Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Nice to see you!

HI! WELCOME TO OUR BLOG!

Thanks for making your way over to our little part of the universe today :)
We are JENN & DAVE, a husband and wife photography team who call Toronto, Canada home, but we love to travel wherever our cameras take us.

We absolutely love what we do, spending our days photographing couples and their weddings in an authentic and creative way, exploring the world around us, loving life and loving each other. We are passionate about capturing authentic moments of connection between people and telling people's stories through our own unique voice as artists. We love capturing fun, sweetness and movement in a creative way through our images.

Thanks for being here! Scroll down to see our latest blog posts of the couples we're photographing and bits and pieces from our lives too. To see more of our work, please click on SELECTED in the menu bar at the top of this page. To send us a note for more info, click on CONTACT. Can't wait to chat.

*above images courtesy of our lovely friend Anda Marie.

January 20, 2012

YOU JUST NEED TO START

Posted in PERSONAL

You don’t realize it, but the constant stream of “updates” we receive in this life is overwhelming. Think about it. When before have people, normal people, ever been able to publicly share the highly edited highlight reel of their life, online, as we can now? It all sets us up for rather unrealistic expectations of what we, ourselves, should be doing, or how we measure up to our peers. Nobody deserves that on their shoulders. I’ve been thinking a lot on this lately. I mean, we are very rarely privy to the behind the scenes reel of other people’s lives, yet we are face to face with our own every day, bloopers and all. And sometimes it’s not pretty and sometimes it scares us, but we all have them. We all struggle to find our path underneath the polished up versions of ourselves that we show to the world. Anyone who’s achieved anything has at one point started from point A and set off down a path, whether they were ready to or not, whether it was exactly perfect or not. Figuring it out along the way is ok. The point is that they set off.

You can plan out the route you want to take all you want but what you can’t do is pad the sides of the road. You can do that in five-pin bowling, not in life. Anything worth doing is going to be risky. Sometimes you’ll even be forced to veer off onto a different path altogether, maybe out of necessity, maybe out of pure choice. But that shouldn’t stop us from not starting out in the first place. That element of uncertainty is the element of beauty.

That’s where I’m at right now and just thought I’d share. For others, but also for myself. A couple more Hawaii images folks, then I swear I’m done! We’re shortly off to a conference for creatives so it might be quiet on here for the next little bit, but I’ll try to keep in touch. Have a happy weekend!

- Jenn xx

Tags: share

by JENN

show hide 3 comments

leave a comment |

email a friend

January 17, 2012

UNPLUGGING IN MAUI

Posted in PERSONAL | TRAVEL

My parents have been visiting the island of Maui in the island chain of Hawaii for the past few years, and every time they come home Dave and I are bombarded (in the best of ways) with many stories, macadamia nuts, and photos from what has quickly become their favourite place on this planet. And every time they return, they tell us “you should go” and then “no, really, you have to go”, until finally last month they surprised us with a trip down south for a week to wrap up our 2011, and now we get it.

Maui to me will always be remembered as stepping off the plane into a pure and sweet-smelling air (yes, the air there just smells better). I’ll always remember when the breeze blew in the right direction and being hit by the aroma of one gorgeous bunch of flowers after another, or walking along a path that is littered not with garbage but with flowers that have fallen from the trees like leaves in the fall…… I mean, what an amazing place — their litter is mostly made up of flowers! We had a car for the week and got to see the island — some of our highlights include the morning we got up at 3AM to drive up the HALEAKALA CRATER (not before stopping for some sustenance in the form of coffee at the amazing CRATER COFFEE cart) and watched the sun rise from 10,000ft — amazing. Then we enjoyed a lazy descent down the mountain while defrosting (it was chilly up there!) stopping in at a few places along the way and a delicious lunch at a gorgeous tucked away spot called CAFE DES AMIS, which we wholeheartedly recommend if you’re into Indian food as much as we are.

Mostly though, Maui will be remembered as a time where we were able to unplug, from email, twitter, facebook, and this whole online world, take a run along the beach path as the sun rose, stroll over to HONOLULU COFFEE after breakfast for a latte, and just sit out, read through some good books, talk, and just get back to what matters. I really felt like during our time away I was able to shut out some of the periphery and extraneous and just get back to truly listening to my own inner voice. We reflected on the year we’d had and talked through lots of ideas about where to go from here……. Maui will definitely be remembered most of all as a turning point on this great journey of life : ) Enjoy these few frames we shot along the way!

- Jenn xx

Maui, December 2011. For the photography nerds in the crowd, Dave and I both challenged ourselves to manually setting our white balance on this trip (honestly, I usually stick to Auto, or maybe play around with the “cloudy” preset) and I’ve got to say we both really loved the challenge, and the results! I’d definitely recommend trying it out if you haven’t. I learned a lot!

Tags: hawaii travel images | jenn and dave | maui travel images | personal travel images | we like to travel

by JENN

show hide 7 comments

leave a comment |

email a friend

January 6, 2012

ASHLEY & TONY’S WEDDING

Posted in WEDDINGS

Our last wedding of 2011 and I’m so excited to (finally!) have the chance to share a few images on here from Ashley and Tony’s gorgeous late November day……. I must say, we love our jobs all year round but working with these guys was the perfect way to round out a pretty fantastic year. Ashley and Tony are another couple we’ve just loved getting to know, so much so that we kind of followed them on their honeymoon…….. ! Kidding, but only partially — we really actually happened to be in Hawaii at the same time so we met up with them for some post-wedding drinks and dinner while watching the most beautiful sunset over the ocean a couple of weeks ago…… it was lovely to get caught up and reminisce about the wedding day with them, so much so that I wish it were something that we could do with every couple we work with…… and the frequent vacationing would be pretty nice too, ha!

Ashley and Tony and the team of people that came together to make the day what it was were just all lovely…… it was so nice to be a part of it all and see their vision come to life. My absolute favourite moment that I was humbled to witness was the moment these guys had just walked down the length of the aisle and had exited the church, they were just overcome with emotion and the impact of what had just happened, and everything they were feeling just came to the surface and it was just beautiful……. Ashley and Tony, thanks so much for having us there, and thank you for so gallantly shielding us from the flying tray full of drinks in Hawaii — that was much appreciated! Your story has been a lovely one to document and be a part of. Here are a few from their lovely day…..

- Jenn xx

Photographers: Jenn and Dave Stark of JENN STARK PHOTOGRAPHERS | Planner: Leena of LET’S PARTY CONSULTANTS | Florals by: LATE BLOOM FLORIST | Videographers: STUDIO 910

Tags: ashley and tony | creative toronto and destination wedding photographers | jenn stark photographers | ontario winter weddings | toronto husband and wife photography team

by JENN

show hide 1 comment

leave a comment |

email a friend

January 4, 2012

LAURA & RYAN’S WEDDING

Posted in WEDDINGS

Laura and Ryan were married towards the end of fall and I’ve only just had the chance to get a few of our favourites from the day to show on here….. it’s been a busy time in our lives, but I must say I’ve enjoyed going back through their images several months later and re-living the time we had on their day, and I was seriously struck by a lot of little sweet moments. Sometimes in the midst of it all we can’t fully take in what’s happening because it’s all happening so fast…… perusing through Laura and Ryan’s images has allowed me to take it in again, which is an opportunity we don’t often get in life! So glad we got to be a part of their celebrations and witness so many little sweet moments.

I remember their wedding day as being pretty cold, slightly rainy, there being a traffic jam on the way to the ceremony, but nothing could put a damper on the excitement of the day…… nothing would have erased the looks on their faces when Laura walked in. I love that feeling that no matter what else is going on, as soon as you’re with the one you love everything else melts away. These two had that, and I love getting to see that on wedding days, affirming how right two people are for each other. I thought I’d keep it short and sweet for once and get to the images….. I believe Laura and Ryan are actually enjoying their honeymoon week at this very moment (definitely picked the right week to head further south, it’s freeeeezing!), so cheers to you both, hope you’re soaking in the sun and having an amazing time….. lots of love from Dave and I!

- Jenn xx

Venue: The Nottawasaga Inn, Aliston ON | Photographers: Jenn & Dave Stark of JENN STARK PHOTOGRAPHERS

Tags: creative toronto and destination wedding photographers | jenn stark photographers | laura and ryan | ontario fall weddings | toronto husband and wife photography team

by JENN

no comments

leave a comment |

email a friend

January 2, 2012

2012! LOOKING AHEAD AND INSIDE

Posted in PERSONAL | THE BUSINESS

Hope you all had an excellent New Year’s, however you chose to celebrate! Just thought I’d take a minute here while I wait for the paint to dry (is that a saying? I mean it literally though, we really are waiting for paint to dry before another coat goes on the walls of our new office…..!) and as I finish up a delicious bowl of yogurt and blueberries, to think a little bit on the past year, the new one that’s ahead, and what it all means to me. I have some thoughts to share too, if you don’t mind.

This past year has been a huge one for Dave and I in terms of coming into our own as photographers, artists, creatives, and business owners. I think for any creative jumping into their field of choice, it’s a bit like a kid learning to ride a bike, a little bit swerve-y at first, just hoping to stay on most of the time. That’s a lot of what our first year was like, when I think back on it now. There were a few moments to look around, have small successes and enjoy the ride, but it was mostly clutching to the handlebars, trying to push out the fears, and watching and learning from as many other people as we could as we tried to find our feet. This past year was our second full year, and when I look back on 2011 I see it as an immense period of growth and of discovering who I was as not just a photographer but mostly as a person. A person beyond a wedding photographer, or even a photographer or creative, and discovering the reasons behind my passions and the things that get me excited and fired up inside. I’ve spent the last little while really diving into those reasons….. I’ve loved it and have learned a ton!

There’s still a few more shoots that I want to share from 2011, but from here on out I’m taking some time to re-examine the direction I want this blog to go in, one that fits exactly with our hearts and goals. There will be some changes happening over the next few months, for which I hope you’ll stick around to see! I might not be on here as much over the little bit as I want to really focus on these things, but I’ll still be around : )

Businesses are a lot like houses — sometimes you need to paint a few walls, fix a few things on the surface, and sometimes it’s a bigger project. I think you always need to be prepared to knock down a few walls, as painful as that might be, if that’s what it takes to build up something truly great and that satisfies those things you believe in your core. We are looking into 2012 ready to push made up boundaries, expand our horizons, put our blinkers on and stay true to our voice and who we authentically are. We’re digging deep into ourselves to discover what it is that drives us as people and the causes we want to champion that reach out beyond ourselves.

So grateful for each of you that supports us and reads along. Here’s to a bright 2012 where we are all able to hear and listen to our own voice from within…….