Going back to Taku Resort for Nic and Larisa’s wedding felt a little full circle for me.

I photographed a wedding here two summers ago for Kris and Tim, one of the first couples who really took a chance on me when I was starting to photograph weddings. After their day, I wrote a blog about planning a wedding at Taku Resort. Two years later, Larisa found that blog while she and Nic were looking for somewhere to get married around Quadra Island and decided Taku was the place.

When they reached out, their date also happened to be the very last summer weekend I had available.

Kismet, as Larisa would say.

Coming back two years later, knowing the property and getting to experience an entirely different wedding here was pretty special.

A Wedding Weekend on Quadra Island

Nic and Larisa rented out the property at Taku Resort and filled it with their closest friends and family for the weekend. This is probably my favourite way to experience a wedding (if you haven’t heard by now!!). Everyone staying together, kids running amuck, and nowhere else to be but exactly where you are. The best!

I started the afternoon with Nic, his brother and his dad before heading over to Larisa and her best friend. Getting ready photos weren’t particularly important to either of them, so we kept that part really casual. I photographed what was actually happening around me rather than stopping everything to create a bunch of traditional getting ready photos, which is what Larisa had really wanted.

And that ended up setting the tone for most of the day.

An Oceanfront Ceremony at Taku

Their ceremony was right along the beach with the ocean behind them and the wind blowing pretty strong throughout (cinematic? yes.)

One of their close friends led most of the ceremony while their official commissioner was there to handle the legal part. Before getting into the actual ceremony, Nic and Larisa stood together and spoke to everyone who had travelled there to celebrate with them.

There were stories, tears, and huge laughs. And so much joy and emotion for me to capture, its was beautiful.

After they were officially married, everyone gathered together for a shot of brandy, a tradition from Larisa’s family. A very efficient way to kick off cocktail hour, I’d say.

Family Photos, But Not Like That

Larisa was very clear with me before the wedding that she didn’t want traditional family photos. And I was VERY on board.

Family photos can so easily become this conveyor belt portion of a wedding day where everyone stands in the same spot, we work our way down a list and nobody particularly enjoys themselves. Larisa still wanted photographs with the people who mattered to them, she just wanted them to actually fit into the day.

So we didn’t do them all at once. And I feel like this was such a game changer.

After the ceremony, we gathered Nic’s family on the deck of one of the A frame cabins. I got everyone to lean over the railing, squeezed together and looked at each other instead of lining up shoulder to shoulder for me.

Later during cocktail hour, we grabbed Larisa’s extended family and headed down to the beach. People sat on rocks, stood behind one another and piled in wherever there was room.

We did this throughout the day whenever the timing and location made sense. A few people here. Another group there. Different backgrounds, different energy and no twenty minute lineup of people waiting for their turn.

And it was seriously the best, for both them AND me.

And yes, sometimes you absolutely need the photograph where everyone is looking at the camera. But I also think we can make those photos a little more fun. More importantly, I want to spend the rest of the day photographing your family actually being your family. Laughing during cocktail hour, crying through speeches, hugging you after the ceremony and dancing together later that night.

Those are the family photos I want to make, and the ones I know will matter the most to you.

Cocktail Hour on the Dock

After the ceremony everyone wandered over toward the big house on the dock for drinks and food.

This is where wedding weekends are so good. By this point everyone has been living together at Taku for a couple of days. People know where they’re going. Shoes disappear. Kids have made friends. It feels less like everyone has arrived at a wedding venue for six hours and more like you’ve been dropped into the middle of a giant family weekend.

Which is exactly where I want to be with a camera and what I love most about documentary photography.

And then of course the iconic dock photo which we had to capture!

Dinner & Speeches by the Beach

Dinner was held underneath the tent beside the water and everyone settled into their seats for speeches.

Larisa comes from a big family with three sisters and a brother, and you could feel how close everyone was throughout the entire day, but especially during speeches. There were a lot of tears. A lot of laughing. And plenty of me turning away from whoever had the microphone because half the story was happening in the reactions around the tables.

I think that’s one of my favourite things to photograph during a wedding. I’m obviously listening to the person giving the speech, but I’m watching everyone else too. The little things happening around the edges. Tears, genuine smiles, hand squeezing. And it’s the best part to document.

Okay And Then Things Got Very Mamma Mia

After dinner we moved down onto the sand for Nic and Larisa’s first dance. The sun had dipped behind the trees and everyone gathered around the little dance floor beside the beach. And then Larisa’s sisters had a grand surprise.

Out came the glittery one piece suits as they stepped up on a little stage that had been set up with shimmering tassels blowing wildly in the wind. And suddenly we had a full choreographed dance number to ABBA happening on the beach.

The perfect mashup of Super Trouper, Waterloo and Voulez Vous.

It was hilarious and wild and so much fun. And it also made complete sense after spending the day with their families. Like, of course this is happening, this is so Larisa’s family, duh.

Nic & Larisa’s Taku Wedding on Film

I photographed the majority of Nic and Larisa’s wedding digitally, but I also carried my film cameras with me throughout the day, which is what is highlighted here in the blog.

Film worked especially well for this wedding because there was already so much happening. Big families squeezed together. Wine and brandy shots. Tears. Glitter suits. A dance floor in the sand.

The film frames aren’t trying to show every single thing that happened. They’re just little pieces of it.

By the time I packed up for the night, a huge yellow moon had started rising over the horizon and the party was still going behind me.

I walked back across a property I had first photographed two summers earlier, listening to everyone dancing in the distance, and thought about how strange and wonderful it was that a blog I wrote after that first wedding had somehow brought me back here again.

And I really hope it’s not my last.

Thank you Nic & Larisa and all your family and friends for including me in such a wonderful, bright, fun, and perfect weekend on Quadra. I felt like I was part of your family, and that means so much to me.

Kismet, indeed.

Vendor Love

A big thank you to all of the people who helped bring Nic and Larisa’s Quadra Island wedding together, including so many pieces made by their own family and friends.

Venue: Taku Resort
Coordinator: Natasha Doduk, Your Plus One
Hair + Makeup for Larisa: Wedding Makeup by Kenya
Wedding Party Hair: Alli B Hair Shop, Quadra Island
Catering: More Eatery
Larisa’s Dress: Katherine Bass
Nic’s Suit: Indochino
Florals: Dirtco Flowers
Boutonnieres: Handmade by Larisa’s sister, Taisa
Rentals: Timeless Party Rentals
Rentals: All in One Party Shop
Invitations + Signage: Made by Larisa
Hand Drawn Doodles + Map: Made by Nic
Custom Candles: Laykhaus, made by their friends Jack + Lucy Shaw
Gift Bag Details: Made by Larisa’s mom
Photography: Rae Terrillon Photography

Planning Your Own Taku Resort Wedding?

If you found this while dreaming up your own wedding at Taku Resort, maybe we’ve come full circle again.

I photograph weddings across Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands with a documentary approach, and my work is now entirely on film using a mix of 35mm, medium format, and Super 8. I especially love wedding weekends like this one where everyone gets to settle in, spend actual time together and let the day be a little less structured.

You can take a look through my wedding collections here, read my Taku Resort Planning Guide, or get in touch here and tell me everything you’re dreaming up! I can’t wait to hear from you!

x Rae