About David Stokes: Toronto Wedding Photographer & Videographer

I'm David, a Toronto wedding photographer and videographer, and the creative director behind Maple & Clover. This is where the craft, the training, and the studio itself all came from.

Where It Started: Castle Durrow, Ireland

My career started shooting weddings in Ireland, at my family's own country house hotel, Castle Durrow. That's where I learned my craft and developed the style I still bring to every wedding today.

Ireland has extraordinary scenery for weddings, rolling green hills, sprawling country estates, cozy old pubs. Filming a wedding inside a centuries-old castle has a way of making the work feel inspiring rather than routine, and it shaped how I think about location, light, and pacing from the very beginning. If you're getting married in Ireland or planning a trip there, Castle Durrow is genuinely worth a look, a short drive from Dublin City Airport, with easy access to much of the country.

Formal Training: New York Film Academy

I studied filmmaking at the New York Film Academy in New York City, building a foundation in visual storytelling, composition, and narrative structure, the same principles I now apply to documenting real wedding days as they unfold.

Assistant Director & Grip Technician: Film Industry Roots

Since 2001, I've worked professionally in film production as an Assistant Director, with experience across Ireland, Europe, and the United States. In 2018, I relocated to Canada, and since then I've been an active member of IATSE Local 873, working as a Grip Technician in the Canadian film and television industry.

That ongoing on-set work keeps my technical skills sharp and directly shapes the production standards I bring to weddings calm execution under pressure, technical reliability, and a strong storytelling instinct, even on the busiest wedding days.

From Two Brands to One: Maple & Clover Today

For several years, I ran two separate wedding businesses: Maple & Clover for photography and cinematography, and a dedicated videography company called Solely Love. In 2024, I closed Solely Love and brought everything under one name.

That means couples working with Maple & Clover today get one studio, one creative direction, and one consistent process from first consultation through final delivery backed by over 20 years combined in film production, formal training, and wedding documentation.

If this story resonates with you and you're planning a wedding in Toronto or anywhere else in Canada, I'd love to hear about it.