Situated in Calgary, Alberta, Cole Hofstra is a passionate and exciting person whose zest for life can be seen in his approach to photography. Cole is not afraid to get down in the dirt if that is what gives him the perfect shot. He strives to capture every single moment of your special day. Cole covers both destination and local weddings. He pours out all his creativity during his shoots and specializes in photojournalistic and portraiture styles.
Experience
Cole’s work has been featured in several publications such as Bridal Fantasy, Confetti Ireland, FFWD Magazine, Medicine Hat News, Sannich News, and more. He has also been a featured artist at Canon Canada Magazine in 2013. Cole has also achieved the following accomplishments:
Official Photographer for Canadian Freestyle Ski Team
Participant “Exposure Festival” Calgary
Educator / Instructor at Canon Canada
Western Academy of Photography graduate
Internship with Medicine Hat News
Design Studies, Grant MacEwan University
Services offered
Wedding packages are offered by Cole Hofstra that can be easily customized to the client's needs. The business is liability insured and only covers one event per day, to ensure that full attention is given to the client. The following services and photography items are also available:
Second shooter
Additional hours
Custom graphics
High-resolution images
Digital files
Save the dates
Thank you cards
Albums
Canvas prints
Other services
Cole has the experience in both portraiture and photojournalism photography. He also specializes in corporate, lifestyle, sports photography, and outdoor adventure photography. Packages for engagement, infant, child, and family sessions are also offered. Each of these includes an online viewing gallery and online print ordering. Engagement, trash the dress, and boudoir shoots are also covered by Cole Hofstra.
We would 100% recommend Cole every time. We had such an amazing time shooting both our engagement photos and wedding photos with Cole. He is so easy going and makes everything so much fun! His photos are all absolutely breathtaking and I can't stop looking at them. Cole is fantastic at finding the best spots with the perfect lighting and the perfect backdrop, as well as coming up with the coolest ideas on how to take some of the best photos I've ever seen! We couldn't be happier with having Cole photograph our adventures and we will be using him for any and all future life milestones! Cole went above and beyond what I could have ever expected, was able to get amazing candid shots of all our friends and family and got a long with every single guest at the wedding. Our guests were all so impressed with his ease of fitting in with everyone they had assumed he was a friend that we had known way before the wedding! Cole is amazing!! Book with him asap as he books up fast!!! Best photographer out there if you're looking for someone to make wedding photography fun and to take incredible pictures that you will want to show everyone you know!!
Sent on 30/10/2018
Nicholas
· Married on 06/10/2018
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
Engagement Session
Cole was great to work with. Considering how this was our first time doing this sort of thing. (I am sure it is and will be for many.) Cole’s amazing high energy made it comfortable for us! Even his cheesy jokes helped a lot! We really enjoyed the photos he took for us and we appreciate the short turn around time! We would be more than happy to recommend him to anyone for any occasion! Thanks again Cole!
Sent on 23/08/2018
Chris Rodrigues
· Married on 29/09/2018
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
Cole made the day
Having little experience with wedding planning and all that goes with it, my wife and I were totally overwhelmed and really had no idea what we wanted. We googled questions to ask photographers, looked at countless albums, and finally booked a meeting with Cole.
After 5 minutes of chatting with him, there was no doubt that he was the perfect choice. His approachable attitude made it easy to talk to him and we were blown away with his professionalism. Before we even had a chance to look down at our questions, he had patiently walked us through his working style, put all of our worries to rest, and gotten us incredibly excited about our wedding pictures to come.
During the engagement shoot, we were able to see Cole in action and we definitely not disappointing. We had described what we were looking for, and he helped us choose the perfect location. Despite the freezing weather, we had a great time running around in the snow, laughing, and taking pictures (which was surprising because I normally hate having pictures taken).
On the day of our wedding, Cole was a rockstar from he showed up in the morning. He helped to calm both of our wedding day nerves and his ability to wrangle all of our parties took a huge weight off our shoulders. Whether it was setting up fun, amazing group shots or sneakily stealing us away for some romantic, intimate ones, Cole helped us make the most of our wedding day. Even during the dinner, the guests at his table couldn't stop raving about how amazing he was.
On top of being a blast at the wedding, Cole was one of the first emails in our inbox the next day, wishing us congratulations and giving us a preview of some of the most beautiful shots you could imagine. In just those few preview shots that he shared, he captured everything we could have imagined and more. Needless to say, there were a few happy tears as we went through those pictures.
Looking back on the wedding, we were lucky and most of our vendors did an great. That being said, there was no one there (even counting our maid of honor/best man) who was able to anticipate our needs, fix problems before we saw them, and put our minds to ease, more than Cole.
@Cole- If you see this, you were truly the highlight of our wedding and our entire wedding party will be calling you when they get married. :)
Sent on 09/11/2018
Alyssa Janssens
· Married on 25/08/2018
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
Cole is the BEST!
Cole is THE BEST! We met with several photographers before Cole but immediately knew that he was the one we wanted to shoot our wedding. Cole has a great personality – he is easy to talk to, has a great sense of humor and is very professional. Cole was very organized and great at giving direction, so we felt at ease in front of the camera and didn’t have to worry about a thing on our big day! Also, we couldn’t be happier with the photos - they are stunning!! Cole made sure every important moment was captured and gave us such a great variety of posed and candid shots throughout the day. Also, Cole sent us a handful of photos that we woke up to first thing the next morning!! He truly went above and beyond for us and we are so thankful. I highly recommend him!
Sent on 30/10/2018
Erin Petley
· Married on 11/07/2018
5.0
Quality of service:
5.0
Responsiveness:
5.0
Value:
5.0
Flexibility:
5.0
Professionalism:
5.0
Amazing Photographer
Cole was the first photographer that we met, and right away Daniel and I knew he was the one (cliche, no?). When Daniel and I met Cole for our engagement photos, we had no clue what we were doing. We were not ourselves and just felt silly the entire time. Cole instantly put us ease, telling us pretty lame but awesome jokes, and guiding us throughout the evening. I was hesitant that any photo would turn out okay, but was blown away with his skills to make us awkward folk actually look good. When he showed up into our room on our wedding day, singing and dancing, he made me feel that much more relaxed. He took us to a stunning picturesque spot in Canmore for photos, guided us, but also just let us be in the moment. You almost forget that he’s your photographer because he just seems like a friend. He fit in with everyone, and is up for anything. Cole is such an easy-going guy, but is so incredible at what he does. He has an eye for the beauty in the small things, and can capture intense emotions and feelings in the photographs that he takes. He continues to amaze me with his photos, and I can’t wait to see the finished ones from our day!
