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Adelaide Botanic Garden Wedding – Sophie & Robert

  • SOPHIE & ROBERT

    Adelaide Botanic Garden Wedding

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A beautiful, sunny day greeted Sophie and Robert on their gorgeous mid-February Summer wedding amongst the Adelaide Botanic Garden. The sun was shining, and so were the personalities of the bride and groom, amongst the smiling faces of their friends and family as they took the plunge and exchanged vows amongst the tall pine trees at the center of the gardens.

I was asked to be their wedding photographer for their entire day after having been recommended by one of Robert’s groomsmen who I had cover their wedding for back in 2016! It’s always nice to be recommended by previous brides and grooms like that as you know you’re doing something right!

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Preparation

When I arrived at Robert’s place of preparation, south of the city I was greeted by all the boys admiring Robert’s Mini, which was unfortunately so I gathered, sitting idle in the garage for quite some time – apparently it was one of those hobbies that Robert has , but not really done much with 🙂

The morning went smoothly with his groomsmen making sure no nerves were showing on Robert’s face and playful banter echoing throughout the house.

Sophie and her bridesmaids were being prepared quite a bit closer to the Adelaide Botanic Garden, in a room of the Mayfair hotel in the city. While the room was fairly cramped for around 10 people getting dressed and prepared for the wedding, we managed to all get ready in high spirits. Sophie, by her own admission later in the night was really feeling nervous throughout the morning so her bridal party did a great job in getting her looking fantastic for her big day!

I always love capturing the response of the parents, in this case Sophie’s father, in seeing the bride in her dress for the first time, so when Mum and Dad came into the room it was lovely to see the beaming smile light up Dad’s face as he saw her ready. The flower girls were flitting about being helpful in their own way but were not super keen on having photos done, except when asked and I think they turned out great 🙂

Adelaide Botanic Garden Wedding Ceremony

Sophie and Robert’s wedding ceremony in the Adelaide Botanic Garden took place in the spot known as ‘Araucaria Avenue‘, a delightful spot, lined by pine trees and on top of a hill which creates a sense of intimacy amongst the congregation. Later in the day, as Sophie and Robert’s ceremony was, the sun creates a delightful backdrop of light that filters directly through the trees behind where the arbour is usually setup. The trees surrounding the area also provides ample shade for the entire congregation on a sunny day, but the sun can cause annoyance for the bride trying to catch a glimpse of her groom as she walks on her approach to the altar 🙂

Sophie and Robert’s ceremony itself was sweet and to the point, punctuated by heartfelt and humorous vows to one another which made the otherwise formal occasion that much lighter, causing ripples of laughter from both the bride and groom, and their family and friends.

Glamour Photos

As the day was fairly warm – as you can expect from Summer weddings in Adelaide, I attempted to keep to shaded photo spots around the Adelaide Botanic Garden as possible, so once the ceremony and family photos were done, we set off south, directly towards North Terrace before working our way North through the gardens, taking our time, and enjoying the warm up sounds made by a nearby Adelaide Fringe concert that was also taking place within the gardens that night.

Just on a side note, I cannot write an overview of Sophie and Robert’s day without mentioning that I was super impressed by their organisational skills when it came to family photos! What they did was organise their friends and family into dozens of groups which were then given a number within their wedding program. When it was time to take the family photos, all I had to do was shout out the next number and that group came to the fore! Now of course those of you familiar with family photos at a wedding know that it never goes that smoothly, with family members wandering off, but I admired the effort!

Adelaide Botanic Garden Restaurant Wedding Reception

While I’m at the Adelaide Botanic Garden quite often for weddings, its always delightful to know that the reception is right in the center of it all, at the Botanic Garden Restaurant. Not in the least because they serve great food, but because of it’s exclusive location within the gardens, which are usually closed off to the public during the later hours of the night. which allows for some nice night photography. That said however, there was  Fringe concert also occurring at the same time as Sophie and Robert’s reception, so that exclusivity was non existent for their night.

The iconic restaurant boasts a delightfully vintage, round sitting area suitable for small to medium sized reception parties, while in Sophie and Robert’s case their dance floor was outside on the brick pavement.

I’d like to thank Sophie and Robert for having me cover their wedding photography and I hope they enjoy their photos! 🙂

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Kuitpo Hall Wedding – Leah & Jarron

Kuitpo Hall Wedding – Leah & Jarron

I was super excited to head out to the lovely Kuitpo Hall for Leah and Jarron’s wedding in mid February as I had heard stories about how awesome the venue was through my years of being a wedding photographer, but I had never actually covered a wedding there until now. It’s a beautifully little rustic venue, complete with large grassy areas to entertain larger crowds, while also having some of the best photo opportunities just across the road in Kuitpo forest – and boy did we get a great light show for Leah and Jarron’s photos!

 

Before the ceremony

While waiting for Leah to arrive, I was floating about taking detail shots of Leah and Jarron’s set up while also mingling and taking care to be as much of a ninja as possible shooting people enjoying the finger platters and drinks that were already available for everyone. Jarron seemed to keep busy running about greeting everyone while sorting out the final details before Leah arrived.

Kuitpo Hall Wedding Ceremony

Leah arrived in a long black limo a little late, but that’s pretty much expected in this day in age 🙂 Before walking around the back of the Hall, Leah stopped to have a chat with her family and also made sure everyone was in position for her entrance.

Leah and Jarron chose to hold their ceremony in front of the rather eclectic corrugated iron fence that lines the back of the boundary of the Kuitpo Hall’s grounds, meaning there was only just enough room for some chairs and some standing room inbetween the back of the hall and the fence for their congregation. Thankfully their congregation wasn’t on the larger side so it was ample room for all 🙂

Kuitpo Forest Glamour Photos

I absolutely love heading to Kuipto forest for photos, especially during the time of day we were able to head just up the road to the woodcutter’s cabin. The sun was in the perfect spot to create some beautifully orange lens flares while cascading through the tall pine trees making a scene I was totally nerding out about all the while I was shooting Leah and Jarron’s photos and video. I had a great time 😀

Kuitpo Hall Wedding Reception

As I was only asked to be Leah and Jarron’s wedding photographer for 3 hours, I wasn’t with them for much longer after getting back from the Woodcutter’s Cottage, but I did manage to get a few more shots of everyone having a wonderful time in the dying light.

I wanted to express my sincere gratitude for entrusting me with the responsibility of being your photographer at your Kuitpo hall wedding Leah and Jarron! It was an honour to be part of your special day and to capture the beautiful moments and emotions that unfolded throughout the celebration.

I am thrilled to have been given the opportunity to document your love story and create visual memories that will last a lifetime. As a professional photographer, my aim was to not only capture the events of the day but also to convey the essence of your relationship and the emotions that you shared.

I hope that when you look back at the photos, you will relive the magic of your wedding day and that these memories will bring you joy and happiness for years to come.

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Grange Beach & Crozier st Engagement shoot – Georgia & Nick

I was excited to hear that Georgia and Nick wanted an engagement shoot done before I cover their wedding in October, 2020. So after considering a few different locations for their shoot, Georgia settled on heading down to the Grange Beach and Jetty for some beach shots, then heading over to Port Adelaide’s Crozier St for some industrial shots to add variety. I suggested to begin rather early in the day so as to avoid people enjoying the beach on what was a rather hot week, so we met each other at just after sun up at 7:30 am!

Grange Beach

Once meeting I got into having Georgia and Nick walk together amongst the Grange beach sand dunes while I was a fair distance away in order to get Georgia and Nick a bit more relaxed before heading down to the shoreline for shots along the waterline and under the jetty.

Crozier Street

Everything went rather swimmingly at the beach so we head over to Crozier st a little earlier than expected, but that was good as we got to spend a little more time in my favourite street in Adelaide! We however were not the only group with the same idea with another photographer and model using the street as a backdrop while we were there! This isn’t overly unusual as Crozier st is very popular amongst photographers. 🙂 The great thing about this street is the wonderfully aged concrete and wooden doors lining the road which make for wonderful backdrops.

Looking forward to covering Georgia and Nick’s wedding in a few year’s time!

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St Laurence’s Church Wedding – Sarah & Mal

  • SARAH & MAL

    St Laurence’s Church Wedding

    Kiss in the Pews

Sarah and Mal had me as their wedding photographer for 6 hours on their big day backdropped by the beautiful St Laurence’s Church in North Adelaide. The weather on the day was super hot and dry which made it a bit of a challenge to get everything done in time, and all the while Sarah was quite a way along in her pregnancy 🙂 That being said however we did get everything we wanted done, except perhaps some photos out the front of the Bonython Hall on north Terrace, but is was a small thing to skip in order to keep the day rolling 🙂

Preparation

I started the day with Mal and his groomsmen being prepared together at their house in the North of Adelaide. All the boys were sitting around having a chat when I arrived and jumped into action, putting on their shirts and outfits just after. It was a bit of a whirlwind as I only had around 30 minutes before heading over to the girls.

The girls were being prepared in an apartment nearby the St Laurence’s Church in North Adelaide. The goal was to be ready within 30 minutes and head off to the university of Adelaide for ‘first look’ photos on the footbridge over the Torrens. Makeup was running a little late however.

First Look Photos

Once we got to Adelaide uni we first went about doing a little ‘first look’ on the Torrens footbridge where Sarah walked up to Mal and surprised him with her dress, we then moved as quickly as we could up through the uni campus and used the buildings behind the museum and along North Terrace for some photos.

St Laurence’s Church Wedding Ceremony

St Laurence’s Catholic Church in North Adelaide is a historic church built in North Adelaide in 1868 in a time when North Adelaide was still used as farmland. The period in which it was built is showcased by it’s architecture, complete with a dark wooden roof inside, it’s walls are covered with white paint and large stained glass windows with illuminates the interior quite well for such a historic church.

Sarah and Mal’s congregation filled a little over half of the available pews within the church who witnessed a shorter version of a traditional Catholic wedding where Sarah and Mal were sat up the front while the priest would direct proceedings.

East Terrace Continental Wedding Reception

Once the family photos were done – unfortunately in the beating sun out the front of the church – everyone retreated to the East Terrace Continental hotel to recuperate at their wedding reception. It was quite warm in the small space of the hotel upstairs, so once we cut the Marvel-themed cake and had a few drinks, we head out to the Adelaide Botanic Gardens for some more photos.

Botanic Gardens Glamour Photos

My aim was to keep to the shade for photos around the Botanic Gardens as we had already run about quite a bit during the day and I felt everyone was feeling the heat a bit. Thankfully we could take our time a bit at this time of day as there was nothing we had to get back to super quick. Once we were done, I head back to the reception with the bridal party for a few more group photos before heading home.

Thanks so much to Sarah and Mal for having me as your wedding photographer! 🙂

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