Ottawa Arboretum Anniversary Session: Mary-Gail + Michael

Some DJs do what is called an anniversary dance to kick off the evening. They bring all the couples onto the dance floor and as the song plays they slowly dwindle down the group by getting the more recently married couples to sit back down. In the end, the longest marriages stand before everyone and it is always so amazing and inspiring to see them still in love, but more than that, still having a great time together! I don’t think Sarah + Kelvin’s wedding day had an anniversary dance, but if they had Sarah’s parents Mary-Gail + Michael, with 38 years of married happiness, definitely would have been standing in front of everyone at the end of the song.

When Mary-Gail messaged me asking about an anniversary session to celebrate their 38 years together I was not only super excited, but also incredibly honoured to be able to capture it for them! Sarah is one of the sweetest people I have ever met, and it definitely came from her parents as they too are two kind, gentle souls.

I had chatted with Michael for a little while on their daughter’s wedding day about photography a bit, but didn’t get a chance to speak for too long as I had to step back into the reception soon after we started (I had an actual job to do after all), so it really was wonderful to be able to catch back up with them in a less time sensitive setting (although the colder weather on the day of their anniversary session did require speeding up the conversation a bit).

It really was such a perfect start to my day to meet and chat with Mary-Gail and Michael as we strolled through the picturesque arboretum. It was definitely a very chilly fall day, but beautiful nonetheless and getting to spend it chatting with two wonderfully kind people like these two really did make me forget about the cold winds. I am so glad we were able to get their session in before winter hit and we lost all of those gorgeous leaves.