Mac & Paige’s Winnipeg engagement session featured all the hits: pizza at one of the city’s favourite spots, bowling at an 80 (EIGHTY) year old alley, and most importantly, piling tissue paper on the cat at home.
If You Know Winnipeg, You Know Shorty’s Pizza.
Known for having the best pizza in the city (seriously, their Hawaiian featuring hot peppers is to die for – pineapple belongs on pizza, fight it out in the comments), Mac and Paige started their session at Shorty’s Pizza. The vibe was go with the flow for this session. Keep a relaxed atmosphere and just enjoy a full day of activities and fun.
Engagement Sessions CAN Happen In Pizza Restaurants.
The goal was simple: great photos, great pie, and as much banana pudding as we could physically shove into our stomachs. Using a local favourite can come with it’s challenges: we didn’t want to be in the way of service. Shorty’s Pizza was kind enough to let us in an hour pre-open. We had the entire gorgeous restaurant to play with (and could smell the pizza cooking the whole time).
Two gorgeous pizzas and enough banana pudding to put anyone into a coma later, we were on our way to our second location.
“But What If We Just Put Tissue Paper On The Cat”
Location two was a photo location and a break all in one: Mac & Paige’s house, to visit their cat, Fiji. This session was less “okay stand and pose” and far more “this is how we live our lives”. Paige made coffee, while Mac and Rob chatted woodworking and music in the living room. We all got to experience the magic of Fiji and the living room chair fort. The chair fort taught us two things:
- Don’t disturb the chair fort
- Locations don’t have to look perfect – in fact, a location is perfect when it’s real.
Mac and Paige built Fiji a box and chair fort that became the focal point of this part of the session. The fort had been up for a few weeks, and we took it down for a portion of the shoot, before deciding things felt much better, and way more true to them, with the fort back up.
The Way It Should Be
We spent the afternoon the way any good afternoon should be spent: piling tissue paper on the cat, and discussing the ins and outs of what makes a good cat fort.
Bowlin’ Bowlin’ Bowlin’ (To Limp Bizkit’s “Rollin’) At Park Alleys
Park Alleys in Winnipeg has been around for a whopping 80 years. Mac and Paige love to bowl, so stopping in to throw a couple games was a no-brainer. Planning sessions around well-loved activities means a session feels relaxed, fun, and provides the best environment for you and your partner to connect. For photographers, connection means everything. The photos feel natural, the vibes are immaculate, and you come out feeling your best.
No Schedule, Just Vibes
We bowled, had some drinks, and kept things loose and limber with the schedule. Throwing a strict timeline out the window eliminates the “I have to get the perfect shot and I only have an hour to do it” panic. We’ve found time limits not only restrict the time we’d want to spend with people during their sessions, but couples feel pressure to make perfect pictures happen within a short window, and that’s not good for anyone’s stress levels.Mac and Paige’s engagement sesh was the perfect mix of low-stress, killer locations (that actually meant something to them), and dope photos that give you a glimpse into how damn cool they are.
Thanks To The People & Locations That Made This Happen
- Shorty’s Pizza https://www.shortyspizza.ca/
- Park Alleys https://www.parkalleys.com/
We couldn’t have made this session happen without y’all!
Want To Plan Your Own Authentic Engagement Session?
Do you also want to spend your afternoon piling tissue paper on your own cat? Winnipeg offers such a range of fantastic locations and hidden gems. Hit us up at the link below, and let’s plan an engagement session that feels like you.
