Port Elliot Memorial Gardens Wedding – Jess & Jake

November 28, 2016/0 Comments/in Wedding preview, Wedding /by Steven Duncan

Jess & Jake
Port Elliot Memorial Gardens Wedding

I’m pleased to present the wedding of Jess and Jake which took place in the Port Elliot Memorial Gardens during a very busy weekend during October! I say very busy as SvenStudios managed to cover 3 weddings this weekend, with the wedding of Jess and Jake here photographed by Ross Daly, and editing done by yours truly.

Preparation

Jess and Jake were being prepared at McCracken Country club which boasts a magnificent view overlooking the golf fairway and a lovely intimate reception center. Ross was caught up with preparations on the day so saw himself walking in between rooms, taking photos of both Jess and Jake in turn.

Bride and maid of honour

Bride

Smiling bride

Wedding shoes

Back of wedding dress

Engagement ring

Wedding dress

Makeup

Best Man

Groom and Best Man

Groom

Watch

Port Elliot Memorial Gardens wedding ceremony

During World War 1, Port Elliot was a place of recreation for soldiers on leave. The gardens were originally established as a community project for soldiers, and then officially dedicated as a Soldier’s memorial after the planting of the memorial trees lining the park. The trees were planted in a tribute to the local soldier’s contribution and includes a tree planted to fallen New Zealand soldiers. The Park also now includes trees planted in commemoration of Australian soldiers involved in other conflicts as well, with 24 bronze plaques dedicated in May 2012.

Blushing Bride

Groom looking nervous

Port Elliot Memorial Gardens wedding

Holding Hands

Maid of Honour

Holding wedding ring

Wedding Certificate kiss

Glamour Photos

After the wedding ceremony, Ross, along with Jess and Jake’s videographers led the couple around the Port Elliot Memorial Gardens for some glamour shots. The gardens provide for a wide range of different backdrops, including weaving paths through flowerbeds, huge lining trees and even a beach scene.

Going for a walk

Walking in the garden

Sitting on a bench

Looking out the trees

Walking in the garden

Sitting on a bench

Kissing amongst the roses

All smiles

McCracken Country Club wedding reception

The McCracken Country Club always puts on a good fare at a wedding. Their function room overlooks the country club’s fairway and is spacious enough to host a decent sized wedding party without feeling too cavernous. I hadn’t been back to McCracken since I was the wedding photographer at a wedding last new year’s eve, so I was a little envious of Ross!

Wedding Cake

Wedding lollies

Doors of McCracken COuntry Club

Cutting the cake

Smiling Bride

Mt Lofty House Wedding – Amy & Aaron

November 22, 2016/0 Comments/in Wedding preview, Wedding /by Steven Duncan

AMY & AARON
Mt Lofty House Wedding

Amy And Aaron were wed at the historic Mt Lofty House on a cloudy day in October. Despite the less than favourable weather for such a lofty (sic) location, Amy and Aaron had a wonderfully memorable day, full of love and joy displayed by all who attended. They opted to take advantage of my flexible hourly coverage option, having me as their wedding photographer for much of the day.

Preparation

The original plan was to have me take photos of Aaron and his entourage for a while before heading over to Amy and her bridal party. But Aaron was running a little late so I went over to the girls first. Amy was being prepared in the beautiful old cottage run by Mt Lofty House across the road. The House provided a wonderfully rustic vibe throughout. Was a wonderful place to take photos in 🙂

Bridal preparation at Mt Lofty House

Bride and Mum in doorway

Blushing bride

Smiling bride

Bridal makeup

Remember Love

Wedding dress

bridal preparation

Laughing bride

Once the boys turned up, we walked around the gardens that surround Mt Lofty House to take a few pre-wedding photos. As the boys had already got dressed, preparation photos were limited to the application of their causages and adjusting of ties. As is often the case, the boys had a bit of trouble applying their flowers, but thankfully the wonderful staff were on hand to help out.

Groomsmen walking through garden

Groom and groomsmen

Groomsmen in the library

Groomsmen

Adjusting flower

Dad adjusting tie

Groomsmen walking through garden

Mt Lofty House wedding ceremony

Despite the weather being quite windy and chilly, the guests were kept waiting a little bit before Amy arrived – as per tradition, but perhaps not by design. 🙂 Their wedding ceremony took place on a little outcrop of grass overlooking the valley adjacent to Mt Lofty. It’s a beautiful setting, and one which any guests to a wedding at Mt Lofty House will remember for some time.

Mt Lofty House was built between 1852 and 1856, originally serving as a summer residence for the Hardy family, and later their permanent home. The Hardy’s estate at the time included the land now known as the nearby botanic gardens and numerous small buildings and cottages, now used as accommodation.

The Ash Wednesday bushfires in 1983 destroyed all but the stone walls on the property after having just been purchased by a young couple 2 weeks earlier. The devastated new owners sold Mount Lofty Estate without ever taking residence here. The ruined property was sold to a local architect who began the restoration into a boutique hotel, recreating its former splendour which we today know as the current Mt Lofty House.

Wedding at Mt Lofty House

Wedding Party

Grinning Groom

Bride looking Happy

Wedding at Mt Lofty House

First Kiss

Holding Hands

Bride and Groom

Glamour Photos

Surrounding the hotel are splendid green gardens, perfectly suited for wedding photography so I made good use of the opportunity! The surrounding area even boasts a small vineyard and the interior of the house is wonderfully opulent, which was good as the weather outside was not ideal to be in for long periods.

Forehead kiss

Bride and groom under tree

Groom and grils

Bridal party

Walking through the gardens

Bride and groom having a rest

Bride and groom sitting together

Eating pizza

Close up of wedding rings

Bride and Groom in front of Mt Lofty House

Mt Lofty House wedding reception

The hotel has built a small canvass-covered area suitable for hosting weddings if the weather turns bad, and it also doubles as the venue’s dance floor. It connects to a small, intimate dining area complete with bar and open fireplace. The area makes for a classy place to hold a wedding reception. Amy and Aaron impressed their guests with a wonderfully choreographed first dance, complete with well executed twirls and heartfelt hugs. 🙂

First dance

Cutting cake

Wedding Cake

First dance

Placemat

Sitting Down

Groom speech

First dance

Before I left at the end of the night, we went for one last walk around the property to make use of the building at twilight for a few more photos.

Sitting in the Library

Kiss in the stairwell

Mt Lofty House wedding

I certainly had a lot of fun at Amy and Aaron’s wedding as their wedding photographer, and I wish them all the best for the rest of their lives together!

St Andrew’s Church Wedding – Vanessa & Justin

November 15, 2016/0 Comments/in Wedding preview, Wedding /by Steven Duncan

VANESSA & JUSTIN
St Andrew’s Church Wedding

Vanessa and Justin’s wedding took place at the historic St Andrew’s Church in Walkerville, north east of the city. The church provided some beautiful surrounds to what was obviously a love filled ceremony to celebrate two wonderful families coming together. I started the day at St Andrew’s Church for the ceremony, and saw us venture into Port Adelaide for some industrial-themed glamour shots and then to the Royal Australian Yacht Squadron for Vanessa & Justin’s reception. vanessa and Justin opted to take advantage of my flexible hourly package for 4 hours. The weather on the day was absolutely stunning which enabled some amazing photos to be taken. Enjoy!

St Andrew’s Church Wedding Ceremony

I arrived around an hour early to the wedding which enabled me to float about capturing Justin and his entourage putting the final touches on their suits and adjusting their hair. Justin was all smiles which just a touch of nervousness sneaking in, but he hid it well 🙂

Groom smiling

St Andrew’s Church is a historic church being built in 1848 on land enthusiastically donated by a local brewer. It’s claim to fame are its magnificently preserved stained glass windows, the majority of which are from the British Company of James Powell and Sons of Whitefriars. The insides of the church provide a wonderfully dimly-lit atmosphere perfect for a sacred ceremony such as marriage, plus it’s cavernous ceilings give great opportunities for epic photographs.

St Andrew’s Church

Priest

Bride walking down aisle

Bride and groom

Inside the church

Bride and Groom at altar

signing registry

Groom smiling at bride

Inside the church

First kiss

Bride and Groom at altar

Lighting candle together

Glamour photos

Wedding rings

In front of the church

After the ceremony and group photos out the front of the church, we headed down to a very popular wedding photography spot in Port Adelaide. So popular in fact that we had no less than 3 different weddings there at one point! While we waited for the other weddings to leave at the Port Adelaide Wool Sheds, I suggested we head around the corner to a more quiet location with wonderfully industrial walls to use as a backdrop.

Bridal party with wedding car

Brick walls

Port Adelaide Wool Sheds wedding

Wedding car

Port Adelaide Wool Sheds wedding

Wedding car

After the other weddings had left, we had the roads in front of the famous Port Adelaide Wool Sheds all to ourselves, and the sun was fantastic! I used the sun’s flares to great effect behind Vanessa and Justin to create a beautifully lit, dreamy backdrop. I had loads of fun 🙂

Port Adelaide wool sheds wedding

Sun backdrop

Wedding shadows

Bridal party

Groomsmen

Flower girl eating berries

Bridal party on brick wall

Port Adelaide wool sheds wedding

Before the reception started at the Royal Yacht Squadron, we had a few minutes to utilise the stunning backdrop of the marina for a few more photos. This was mainly due to having tried Semaphore beach for some shots with the jetty, but not finding a park.

Groom and his Groomsmen

Royal South Australian Yacht Club wedding

Lovey Dovey

Royal South Australian Yacht Squadron Wedding Reception

I’ve been down to the Yacht Squadron quite a few times now for different weddings and receptions. It’s become quite a popular venue due to its neat backdrop of million dollar yachts and close proximity to beaches like Semaphore. The clubhouses have been upgraded to have a modern, clean feel overlooking the marina and the staff couldn’t be nicer.

Gifts

Kids being kids

Bride and Groom laughing with guests

Wedding cake

Cutting the wedding cake

Bridal entrance

Bride and Groom laughing with guests

I’d like to thank Vanessa and Justin for having me be their wedding photographer on their wedding day, and I hope they enjoy their photos!

Adelaide Botanic Gardens Wedding – Dolores & Mauro

November 4, 2016/0 Comments/in Wedding preview, Wedding /by Steven Duncan

DOLORES & MAURO
Adelaide Botanic Gardens Wedding

I was lucky enough to be chosen as the wedding photographer at Dolores and Mauro’s Adelaide Botanic Gardens wedding in October this year. The weather was absolutely sublime considering the lead up was less than fine. In fact at a meeting with Dolores on the Tuesday prior to the wedding, it was raining the entire time! Despite a minor setback in the morning with Dolores running back to her hotel before the ceremony for some forgotten items, the day went beautifully, culminating with their reception at the Adelaide Wine Center.

Preparation photos

I started the day, as I often do at the place of preparation of the groom and his family. The magnificent house Mauro was being prepared in was in Wattle Park, East of the city. He was joined by his best man, and relatives including a trio of sharp looking kids, one of which was apparently not feeling very well. Mauro was quite calm and collected, despite breaking the stem of one of his flowers and had the attitude of ‘what happens happens’. The house provided some wonderful vantage points for some stunning preparation shots so I made good use if it.

Putting on Flowers

Nerve calming shots

Kids

Flower Girl in mirror

Groom preparation

Adjusting flowers

Wedding Rings

Flower Girl twirl

Dolores was being prepared in a less roomy hotel room at the Majestic Roof Garden Hotel. She was joined by quite a few people causing the small room to feel quite cramped. Her little boy was a bit of a camera hog, so many of the photos I took there had him in it!

Bridal hugs

Boy under table

Putting on makeup

Bridal shoes

Boy looking suave

Cheeky

Engagement ring

Wedding shoes

Adelaide Botanic Gardens Wedding Ceremony

It had been a while since I covered a wedding at the Adelaide botanic gardens. The last being in April, 2014. But the Adelaide Botanic Gardens are such a wonderful place to shoot a wedding, the time just flew by as we wandered about using the amazing scenery the area provides.

From the very first sketches for the plan of Adelaide city, colonel light always intended for Adelaide to have a ‘botanical gardens‘ and are therefore some of the best planned and laid out versions of the concept anywhere. However, it wasn’t until 1854, after a public appeal to the Governor, Sir Henry Young that gardens were established at the current location. They were officially opened in 1857. Amongst many scientific and educational displays of various fauna, the gardens hold one of the earliest propagated specimens of the Wollemi Pine tree, which was discovered as recently as 1994.

As a wedding venue, the Adelaide Botanic Gardens provides room for at least 3 weddings to be held simultaneously and boasts some of the most stereotypically stunning Adelaide wedding photography locations.

Adelaide botanic gardens wedding

Exchanging wedding rings

Groom looking happy

Page boy with sign

Wedding congregation

After first kiss

Adelaide botanic gardens wedding

Bride looking happy

Signing of regisrty

bride meeting Groom

Vows

Glamour photography

We are so lucky to live in a city like Adelaide with sprawling botanic gardens such as these, as a wedding photographer, one cannot ask for a more diverse location for natural scenery than what’s provided right in the heart of the city. From hundred year old elm trees, toi weeping willows, and even wetlands and ultramodern architecture. The timing of our lap around the gardens was well timed too, as the sun was just going down for a marvellous finale to the day.

Close up of Wedding rings

Adelaide botanic gardens wedding

The epic surrounds of the gardens

Under the weeping willow

Sun silhouette

Sitting on a bench

Kids running after a duck

The Elm walk

Walking through the gardens

In the wetlands

National Wine Center Wedding Reception

The National wine center is a stunning modern function center built right next door to the Adelaide Botanic Gardens so it provided the most convenient of locations for Dolores and Mauro’s reception.

Opened in 2001, the Wine center contains an exhibition of winemaking, introducing visitors to the technology, varieties and styles of wine. It also has a wine tasting area, giving visitors the opportunity to taste and compare wines from different areas of Australia.

Dolores and Mauro’s reception took place in the Wine function hall, suitable for up to 120 guests. The room overlooked the wine center’s courtyard and had easy access to the end of the Botanic Gardens. A beautiful setting to round off a beautiful day.