Winter engagement sessions can be tricky in Winnipeg as it’s SO cold here! If you’re looking for a modern and classy shoot location, look no further than the historic Fort Garry Hotel. Located in downtown Winnipeg, this spot is gorgeous inside and out!
the couple
Hannah and Grant have been together almost 10 years, and got engaged (finally!) this past August in none other than Hawaii! They’re actually good friends of mine and have been photographed by me a few times already, so they wanted to do something a bit different for their session!
I sent over some of my ideas and we brainstormed, tailoring the shoot to their personalities and relationship. We ended up going with a bougie hotel vibe, and had so much fun exploring and just being creative!
the location
The Fort Garry Hotel is over 100 years old, opening first in 1913, adding tons of character and history to the engagement session. It’s traditionally catered to the upper crust of society, hosting balls, galas, and black tie events! This obviously made the Fort Garry our first pick for old-money hotel style engagement photos.
These two decided to make a WHOLE date night out of it, booking a hotel room for a staycation and eating at one of the Fort Garry’s two beautiful restaurants. This is one of the many perks of doing your shoot at a spot like this! It is a public space so we were respectful about shooting there, and any time other guests walked by, but the hotel staff were so lovely. There’s a ton of beautiful architecture and fun spots to eat within a 5min in case the hotel gets a little too busy for photos.
Ideally you’d be shooting here around sunset or just before, and I think any season works!
parking:
I don’t know about you but parking downtown is such a nightmare! I opted to just park in the paid lot attached to the Fort Garry and call it a day.
the outfits
Hannah + Grant totally nailed their outfits and accessories for this shoot! Both were dressed up quite a bit more than normal to match the bougie, elegant vibe of our shoot. Hannah wore classic white for her engagement session, with a dress from Princess Polly. Both of them went for fairly simple outfits/accessories as the Fort Garry can be quite detailed and busy between its architecture and decor.
the theme
Okay so I’ve mentioned already that our overarching vibe was some sort of combination of classy, romantic, hotel engagement session. I was thinking very 1920s flapper, bougie, old-money vibes when planning the shoot. Hannah and Grant have been part of several photoshoots before this so they really wanted to lean into something unique. We wanted to highlight the old architecture as well as the beautiful elevator (Pinterest worthy!), and they, of course, brought some wine to celebrate with at the end!
We opted for quite a few flash and direct flash photos, not only because the hotel itself was quite dark, but because it fit our theme SO well.
My personal favourite moments from the shoot came when we went back to their hotel room for some celebratory wine and jumping on the bed!
Section: fun ideas to build on their session
We had SO much fun, and really enjoyed exploring The Fort Garry Hotel together. However, because of timing issues, we weren’t able to do any photos outside! The hotel has such a gorgeous exterior that I think belongs in your gallery – so 100% add time to do photos not only in front but on the stairs, and maybe even in the neighbouring areas.
Hannah and Grant are some of my, and my husband’s, best friends and I was so so happy to get to capture this season of life for them in such a unique and fun way! My heart is so full and can’t wait for their wedding day!!!!
