Varia Studio Blog http://www.variastudio.com/blog Destination photographer Varia Lebiadzenka Fri, 28 Dec 2007 01:06:21 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.3.1 en Destination wedding in Mayan Riviera http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/destination-wedding-in-mayan-riviera/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/destination-wedding-in-mayan-riviera/#comments Fri, 28 Dec 2007 01:00:55 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/destination-wedding-in-mayan-riviera/ Here are some pictures of Osiris and Juan from their wedding at the Grand Sirenis Resort in Mayan Riviera, Mexico.My experience working with couple was great - I felt I cannot stop taking pictures.On the wedding day - I started shooting while Osi was still getting ready at her room and switched to Juan’s room just before the ceremony for couple of pictures as well. Ceremony was set up just in front of the small Mayan Ruin which set on the property of Grand Sirenis Resort. It was a little bit hot, but the stuff kept cold champagne for the guests and served it right after the ceremony. What I liked about this resort is that you can find so many great locations for photographs. I discovered this rocky beach which was just ideal for pictures, since no one ever was there. I did a few pictures of Osi and Juan just by themselves and continued with formals of family and friends. By the time I was done all the family photos I was lucky to have such a beautiful sunset. Sometimes I bring some extra props for the wedding and this time it was my 5-10 metres of tule. I thought it was a perfect time to use it, since it was quite windy and panarama was so beatuful so I could do some great wide angle shots with “veil” flying away.At the restaurant everything was very quiet until bartender brought a bottle or tequila. In total 27 guests and everyone had to drink a shot. The crowd would yell your name and it means you must do it - even bride’s grandmother had to drink one too. It was fun and I really enjoyed working with Osiris and Juan. I also posted some of the “Trash the Dress” pictures too.    














  

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/destination-wedding-in-mayan-riviera/feed/ Trash the Dress in Portugal http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/trash-the-dress-in-portugal-recap/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/trash-the-dress-in-portugal-recap/#comments Thu, 27 Dec 2007 08:42:01 +0000 Oleg Gutsol http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/trash-the-dress-in-portugal-recap/ Varia was contracted to shoot a wedding in Portugal in September. She usually offers trash the dress sessions to her clients and gets very excited when they agree to participate and go with Varia’s ideas.The wedding ceremony and trash the dress was to take place in Algarve – the picturesque region of Portugal, the southernmost point of the country.We flew to Lisbon and then drove to Carvoeiro, which is located in the heart of Algarve.Trash the dress session was stunning – it started on the cliffs around Praia Don Ana with a beautiful view of the land and the sea, approximately a hundred meters above the beach level. The surrounding was outstanding; it felt like the African savannah met the ocean – great location to start.Then Varia and the couple moved to the beach – and immediately got all the attention of the local people.I guess a bride running down the beach, swimming in the ocean and lying in the sand in the wedding dress was quite a surprise to them. Some of them even followed us for some time, others took pictures of us.It all was going great until Varia got deeper in the water and the couple started swimming. In the midst of the trash the dress shoot Varia tripped over a rock in the water and fell. All the equipment – the camera, flash, sync cord, batteries etc – was instantly dead, but the pictures on the card survived (kudos to Sandisk - their cards do not drown in salt water!).This is the TTD that we called “Trash the Dress and the Camera” session.(And the rest of the stuff was shot with backup equipment).But it was a lot of fun and well worth it.

Trash the Dress, Portugal Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal


Trash the Dress, Portugal


Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

Trash the Dress, Portugal

 

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/trash-the-dress-in-portugal-recap/feed/ A new variastudio.com blog! http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/some-tests-of-the-new-blog/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/some-tests-of-the-new-blog/#comments Thu, 27 Dec 2007 05:20:00 +0000 Oleg Gutsol http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/some-tests-of-the-new-blog/ Hello, World!

Varia just got a new blog!
This one is hosted directly on our own server, the same the main site is on. Wordpress rocks! Easy to setup, easy to manage, easy to use, great themes too. I probably spent another 6-7 hours setting up the theme thought, but it was really about tweaking the little things, so it’s perfect.

Now that I am satisfied, I can retire.

Buenos noches, amigos. 8-)

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/27/some-tests-of-the-new-blog/feed/ Trash the Dress in Mayan Ruins and Tulum beach http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/20/trash-the-dress-in-mayan-ruins-and-tulum-beach/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/20/trash-the-dress-in-mayan-ruins-and-tulum-beach/#comments Wed, 31 Dec 1969 16:00:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/20/trash-the-dress-in-mayan-ruins-and-tulum-beach/




















On my 25th birthday on November 25th I left Toronto for my second time trip to Mayan Riviera this year. It was fun having my friends joining me for this trip to celebrate my “Champaign Birthday” and spending the whole week with them.
Ok, lets not forget the real reason why I came to Mexico!!!
I met Osi and Juan at ” Bridal Bash” organized by Megan Crouse. Megan is Toronto-based destination wedding specialist and a travel agent. Coupe weeks later I got a call from Osi asking me if I would be interested to photograph her wedding in Mexico in two month. Sure, I am always ready for travel and the first time I met this couple I though they would be great to work with and I was right.
We decided to trash one of Osi’s wedding dresses couple days before the wedding. I had this idea of having Mayan Ruins as a backdrop and I could vision it too. Note to all photographers you must have a permit to shoot in one of the archeological sites/ruins in Mayan Riviera. First we tried to get to famous Tulum ruins, but we where told that it was some kind of government event and solders patrolled every possible area. Oh forgot to tell you Osi and Juan are spanish-native speaking which helped a lot to find out that there are some ruins in area that no tourist go to.
We were told to go to Xel-ha archeological which was founded around 100 B.C. Osi, Juan and myself sneaked in for an hour to do first part of “Trash the Dress” session at this great site. And of cause we were respectful to the Mayan legecy. These site offered lots great loactions for photographs: giant trees and ruins were perfect to get some romantic shot of Osiris and Juan. The only thing that bothered - mosquitos!
Our second stop was Tulum beach - beautiful turquoise water and powder-like white sand. I seen this type of beach so far only in two other locations - Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands and Holguin, Cuba.
Osi and Juan are so easy going- they would do anything I would ask them to do - run, jump, laying on sand and wait when the big wave would come :)The night before I order the bottle of champaine to my room so I can bring it down tot the beach and use it for my pictures plus I realize it would make bride and groom more relaxed…lol… it was really cool photographing Osi and Juan opening bottle of champaine while waves would destruct them and move and push them it was same when they were drank it too.

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/12/20/trash-the-dress-in-mayan-ruins-and-tulum-beach/feed/ Destination Wedding in Portugal http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/09/28/destination-wedding-in-portugal/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/09/28/destination-wedding-in-portugal/#comments Fri, 28 Sep 2007 18:08:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/09/28/destination-wedding-in-portugal/ In September this year I traveled to Europe to shoot John and Arlene’s wedding in Portugal. They decided to get married in Algarve - the southernmost region of Portugal known for glorious year-round sunshine and excellent sandy beaches. Most guests travelled from Canada and stayed together with bride and groom in beautiful Villa Lusitana in Carvoeiro, Lagoa.On Sept. 6 John and Arlene got married in very old church called - Igreja De Santa Maria in Lagos. Prince Henry the Navigator lived in this city (Lagos) and was buried in the same church in 1460.

Right after ceremony we drove along coastline to rugged cliffs called Ponta da Piedade. This place is know as the Golden Coast (Costa d’Oiro), because of its yellowish tone of the cliffs. This was one of the most amazing spots to take pictures.

As for final destination for pictures we stopped at Carvoeiro - a charming town with cliffs on either side, small beaches and private villas. We were looking for some small town scenery and this one was perfect - whitewashed houses with doors and windows framed in yellow and blue and old quaint small houses tucked in between the more modern ones.

Guest were all at the villa enjoying the cocktail hour and waiting for bride and groom. When we arrived just before the dinner John and Arlene had their first dance.

All I can say it was really nice wedding with European chic!

P.S. I want to thank Monika W (my friend who went to photography school with me) to referring me to Arlene and John and giving me this great opportunity to travel to Portugal and shoot their wedding!






















]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/09/28/destination-wedding-in-portugal/feed/ The Sleeping Beauty in the Wood http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/17/the-sleeping-beauty-in-the-wood/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/17/the-sleeping-beauty-in-the-wood/#comments Fri, 17 Aug 2007 22:04:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/17/the-sleeping-beauty-in-the-wood/ I was inspired by fairy tale “La Belle au Bois dormant” (Sleeping Beauty) when shooting Lucy in the wood.

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/17/the-sleeping-beauty-in-the-wood/feed/ Trashing the dress in "High Falls" http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/11/trashing-the-dress-in-high-falls/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/11/trashing-the-dress-in-high-falls/#comments Sat, 11 Aug 2007 19:45:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/11/trashing-the-dress-in-high-falls/ This past weekend I shot another “trash the dress” session, this time my brave bride was Anastasia. This beautiful waterfall - “High Falls” is located far from civilization and it takes about 1-1.5 hours to hike to the site. The site is the Peterborough Game Reserve which is around Petroglyphs Provincial Park and it is gorgeous location with its natural treasures and it is definitely worth a hike.
With perfect lighting and great assistance by Natalia, Stan and Anastasia, who climbed the falls and froze in wet wedding dress - I think we did an amazing job and as result got great pictures!

]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/11/trashing-the-dress-in-high-falls/feed/ Wedding in Port Whitby Marina http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/wedding-in-port-whitby-marina/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/wedding-in-port-whitby-marina/#comments Thu, 09 Aug 2007 20:46:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/wedding-in-port-whitby-marina/ On Sunday July 22nd me and my associate Sasha shot this beautiful wedding in Port Whitby Marina. For Sharlene and Phil and their two kids Nashel and Trae this was a really significant “family affair”.
We had a perfect day with blue sky and pretty clouds and refreshing breeze. I found this great location - waterfront Lighthouse , which was not in our plan originally and this spontaneous idea to go there and shoot really adds a bit of a spice to the whole idea of marina wedding!




]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/wedding-in-port-whitby-marina/feed/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/17/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/17/#comments Wed, 31 Dec 1969 16:00:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/17/



















]]> http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/08/09/17/feed/ Engagement portraits of Sharlene & Phil http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/07/19/engagement-portraits-of-sharlene-phil/ http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/07/19/engagement-portraits-of-sharlene-phil/#comments Thu, 19 Jul 2007 02:27:00 +0000 Varia Lebiadzenka http://www.variastudio.com/blog/2007/07/19/engagement-portraits-of-sharlene-phil/ Last week I shot engagement portraits of Sharlene and Phil in Edward Gardens in Toronto.
What a GREAT couple! Sharlene and Phil are the most easygoing couple I ever worked with.
While I was shooting I found out that Sharlene and Phil have a daughter and a son and they are going to be in wedding party as well and it is going to be a FAMILY AFFAIR as they like to call it! I can wait to shoot their wedding this weekend!!!

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