Documentary filmmaker & photographer · Guelph, Ontario

Films that actually mean something.

I’m Alora. I’m a documentary filmmaker and photographer based in Guelph, Ontario. I film people, brands and weddings the same way I look at life. I’m interested in what’s actually happening underneath the obvious stuff.

Real people. Real sound. Real moments. Nothing staged just because there’s a camera in the room.

◉ DOCUMENTARY FILMS◉ BRANDS + CREATIVE PARTNERSHIPS◉ WEDDING FILMS◉ GUELPH, ONTARIO + TRAVEL

See the work ↓ Start a project Instagram · @elevatedvisions.film ↗

Brand and Lifestyle

Black-and-white fitness photograph of a bodybuilder lifting dumbbells in a gym — Fitness and Commercial

Documentary photograph of a woman working in a workshop, wearing ear protection — Documentary

Wedding photograph of Steph and Brae walking back down the aisle as guests applaud — Weddings

The work lives in a few worlds DocumentaryBrandsWeddings PhotographyAthletes & coachesFounders WellnessEducation & lifestyle

01 / WORK

Selected Work

A bodybuilder training. A founder building something they believe in. A couple getting married. A person talking about something that changed their life. They look different on the surface. I approach them the same way. I watch, I listen, I notice, then I build the story around what’s actually there.

Brands

Ongoing Creative Partnership · Film + Photography · 2 photos

I don’t want to sell brands random content. I want to understand the people behind it and what it actually stands for. That’s when the work gets good.

1 / 2

Fitness and Commercial

5 photos

A lot of my earlier work came from bodybuilding and fitness. I’ve spent years filming athletes, coaches and people who have built their lives around what they do. I’m not a fitness videographer though. I’m a documentary filmmaker first, and that’s how I shoot this work too.

I’ve worked with some of the biggest names in bodybuilding — Sam Sulek, Nick Walker and Regan Grimes — and brands like HD Muscle, GAT, IFBBAMA and Jacked Factory.

Black-and-white fitness photograph of a bodybuilder posing in a doorway

Black-and-white fitness photograph inside a gym, a camera operator filming a man seated on gym equipment

Fitness photograph of Sam Sulek doing a double biceps pose in a gym, wearing red shoes

Fitness photograph of a bodybuilder posing on a competition stage with his arms raised

Fitness photograph of Nick Walker grimacing while training on a gym machine

1 / 5

Documentary

4 photos

This is the heart of where I want my career to go. Films about interesting humans and ideas. People who have gone all in on something, people who see the world differently, people who have changed direction. If you have an unusual story sitting underneath what everyone else sees, I want to hear it.

Documentary photograph of a woman holding a handpan and smiling at the camera

Documentary photograph of a woman working in a workshop, wearing ear protection and holding a tool

Documentary photograph taken from behind the camera while filming a woman in bright pink traditional clothing

Documentary portrait photograph of a man in a patterned traditional robe sitting with his hands clasped, looking at the camera

1 / 4

Watch the films

Wedding Films

Documentary Wedding Film · 5 stills

Wedding film stills from Steph and Brae’s day. A wedding already has a story. I don’t need to manufacture one. The nerves, the vows, the speeches, someone crying when nobody notices, the chaos and the quiet parts. That’s what I’m there for.

Wedding photograph of Steph and Brae standing outdoors in wedding attire

Wedding photograph of Steph and Brae walking back down the aisle as guests applaud, bouquet raised

Black-and-white wedding photograph of Steph and Brae kissing, with soft motion blur

Wedding photograph of Steph and Brae kissing behind a large MR & MRS sign on a lawn

Close-up wedding photograph of Steph and Brae nose to nose, smiling under the veil

1 / 5

Watch the film

Steph & Breadens WeddingWatch ↗

02 / HOW I FILM

How I Film

This is how my brain works. People are hiring how I see.

Story first

Before worrying about shots, I want to understand what the story actually is. What should someone feel when this ends? What should they understand about this person that they didn’t understand before?

Real over perfect

I will take a real moment over a technically perfect fake one. I don’t want somebody performing their life because I showed up with a camera. Sometimes the imperfect shot is the shot. Sometimes the laugh after the answer is the story.

Pay attention

A lot of filmmaking is noticing. The thing somebody says between takes. The look between two people. The weird detail in a room. The moment everybody else thinks doesn’t matter. Those are often the pieces that make a film feel human.

I use real audio heavily. Voices, vows, conversations, breathing, laughter, gym sounds, room noise, little comments people make when they forget the camera is there. Those things make people feel like they were actually there.

Real sound · Alora

03 / WORK WITH ME

Work With Me

I don’t just show up with a camera and ask where you want me to point it. I ask questions, I help figure out what the story is, and I’ll tell you when an idea feels forced. I’ll also change the plan if something real happens that’s better than what we planned. Some clients hire me for one film or campaign. Some work with me consistently over months or years. Both are normal here.

Documentary films & personal projects

For: people with a story underneath the obvious stuff. People who have gone all in, changed direction, see the world differently, or are obsessed with their craft. I’m also interested in projects around consciousness, wellness, alternative ways of living, plant medicine, creativity and identity.

What this can be

Independent documentaries and commissioned documentaries
Short films and collaborations
Personal projects
Story development, direction, shooting and edit by me

Good to know

This section is meant to feel open. If you’re thinking “I need Alora to film this,” that’s exactly who it’s for

Brands + Creative Partnerships

For: founders, athletes, coaches, wellness brands and businesses. I work heavily in fitness, wellness, education and lifestyle, but those aren’t the only people I work with. Long-term work matters to me. Eventually I stop just filming what the business does. I understand the people, the language, the personality and what the brand actually stands for. That is when the work gets good.

What this can include

Brand films and founder stories
Campaign films and YouTube
Social content and ongoing monthly content
Photography and creative direction

Ongoing clients

For some clients I’m an ongoing creative partner and handle ongoing social content too, including filming, photography, creative direction and content management. The scope depends on the client
For others it’s one film or campaign. We figure out what fits on the call

Documentary Wedding Films

I’m intentionally taking on more weddings and bringing the same documentary approach I use everywhere else. I’m not interested in turning your wedding into a production. The story is already happening. I’m there to notice it. I’m booking a small number of weddings so each film gets real attention.

What I’m looking for on the day

The nerves before the ceremony, someone fixing somebody’s dress, parents looking at their kid
A stupid joke between friends, the vows, the speeches
Someone crying when nobody notices, the chaos, the quiet parts
Real moments and real sound, nothing staged

Good to know

This is focused on wedding films first. Photography lives elsewhere on this site, it’s not a main wedding service here

Photography

Photography is another way I pay attention. I like images that feel lived in, not everything perfectly posed or perfectly clean. Personally that’s street photography, black and white work and documenting everyday life. Commercially I photograph athletes, people, brands and environments.

04 / ABOUT

About Me

Not a corporate bio. Just how I got here.

I’m Alora.

Before filmmaking, my life went in a bunch of completely different directions. I was in the military. I worked at a nuclear plant. I fought forest fires. I competed in powerlifting.

Then I picked up a camera.

Looking back, the common thread makes sense. I’ve always been interested in people who go all in. People who become obsessed with something. People who build their lives differently. People who make you wonder why they chose this life in the first place.

Filmmaking gave me a reason to sit with people, ask questions, pay attention and understand worlds I wouldn’t normally get access to. It gave me access to those worlds, and a way to stay in them long enough to understand why people chose the lives they did.

I’ve spent over six years professionally filming athletes, founders, coaches, weddings, businesses and people with stories I couldn’t stop thinking about.

Now I’m trying to make more of the work that made me pick up a camera in the first place.

Documentaries. Stories about humans. Things that leave you thinking about them after they’re over.

Elevated Visions is my filmmaking and photography company. It’s not a generic content agency and I don’t want to box it into one niche. The long-term direction is documentary work, and everything else I shoot comes from that same place.

Day to day work, behind the scenes and new films land on Instagram first: Instagram · @elevatedvisions.film ↗

Black-and-white studio portrait of Alora, wearing glasses with her arms crossed, tree tattoo on her forearm

Alora in a gym holding her camera and looking down at it, wearing clear glasses with a red arm

Alora standing in a bright white room, laughing and holding a camera, wearing a black t-shirt and light jeans

05 / STORIES I’M FOLLOWING

Stories I’m Following

Not a service. The documentaries and stories I want to pursue next.

I’m interested in people who have built their lives differently. Obsession. Identity. Consciousness. Creativity. Plant medicine. Wellness. People who walked away from one life and built another. People who are so deep into something that I want to understand why.

Some of these become commissioned films. Some become collaborations. Some I just can’t stop thinking about.

If you know a person or a story I should be following, tell me.

06 / PROCESS

Process

Simple on purpose. It doesn’t have to be figured out before we start.

Tell me what you’re thinking

It doesn’t have to be figured out.

We talk

I ask a lot of questions. We figure out what the story actually is and what you’re trying to make.

We build a plan

Enough structure that we’re not guessing, but enough room for something better to happen.

We film

Then I pay attention to everything we didn’t plan.

I disappear into the edit

This is where all the pieces become the story.

07 / FAQ

Before You Ask

The questions people ask first. Anything else, put it in the inquiry. I read every one.

Do you travel for shoots?

Yes. I’m based in Guelph and work across Ontario, and I travel for the right projects further away too. Tell me the location in your inquiry and we’ll scope travel in the proposal.

How far in advance should I book?

For weddings, as early as you can. I’m only booking a small number, so dates go quickly. For brand work, a few weeks usually works, but don’t leave it to the same week as the shoot.

What’s the turnaround?

It depends on the project and it gets agreed in the proposal before you book. A documentary and a batch of social content are not the same timeline, and I’d rather give you a real date than a fast one I miss.

Do I need to know exactly what I want before reaching out?

No. Some of my favourite projects start with someone saying, ‘I have no idea what this is yet, but I think there’s something here.’ Tell me what you’re thinking and we’ll figure out what it could become.

How do delivery and revisions work?

Details are agreed in your proposal before we start.

Do you work with clients ongoing, or just one-off projects?

Both. Some clients hire me for one film or campaign. Some are ongoing monthly clients and longer partnerships where I become part of their creative world. For some ongoing clients I also handle ongoing social content, including filming, photography, creative direction and content management. The scope depends on the client, we talk it through on the fit call.

For weddings, is it film or photo?

Film first. I’m a documentary wedding filmmaker, that’s the focus. Photography is a big part of my work generally, but I’m not positioning wedding photography as a main wedding service. If you’re looking for a wedding film that feels like your day actually felt, that’s the conversation to have.

What does it cost?

It depends on the story, the days and what you need delivered. I don’t list a one-size price here because it wouldn’t be honest. Send the inquiry with a rough budget range if you have one, and the proposal will be clear about what’s included.

You don’t need to know what the film is yet.

You just need to know there’s something here. We’ll figure out the rest.

08 / START HERE

Start a Project

If you have a story worth telling, I want to hear it. Fill this in and send it straight to my email with the button below, or copy it and paste it into an email to aloragriffiths@gmail.com. You can also DM it to me on Instagram at @elevatedvisions.film ↗.

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