Arkapena Station Wedding – Wilpenda Pound
Ok, this year has been absolutely crazy for some of the locations I’ve visted when covering weddings. So far this year I’ve covered a wedding in Greece, several in Darwin, and then of course some spectacular spots around Adelaide! But I’m going to have to say that Arkapena Station, right next to Wilpena Pound would have to be the most ‘remote’ and specatularly beautiful in a way that only outback Australia can be! I was super excited to head out this way as visiting Wilpena Pound had always been on my bucketlist as a keen landscape photographer, but never really had the chance or the reason to venture out there until now.
All that being said though, I’m sure you’re keen to see some amazing photos from this spectaular corner of South Australia, but the bride and groom has requested that no images that can identify them be placed online – which means that some of their amazing wedding photographs are not here. Oonly shots from behind their heads, or simply landscape shots of Arkapena Stations and the nearby Rawnsley Park Station, where they held their reception. Occasionally some couples I shoot have requests like this and I’m more than happy to oblige – it just means that many of their amazing photos I can’t show you guys! 🙁
Arkapena Station
The bride and groom generously put me up in accomodation along side many of their guests in the nearby Rawnsley Park Station, where they were also to hold their reception later that night. I began the day quite early as I was keen to get shots of the famous Cazneaux Tree at sunrise before heading to the Woolshed restaurant on site and had the most amazing ‘big breakfast’ and coffee for a very reasonable price. Sorry I dont usually write about what breakfast i had on the day of a wedding – but it was just too good not to mention! 🙂
The bride was being prepared across the road in the house on Arkapena Station, a short walk away from the ceremony location. The whole scene was backdropped by an amazing vista of the side of Wilpena Pound. Was an amazingly Australian setup, complete with dust, flies and jaw-dropping beauty. I ate at least 2 flies.
In order to cut down on nerves and make things a little more intimate, the bride and groom opted to have a bit of a family gathering out the back of the Arkapena Station homestead and have the first look surrounded by close family members. Another reason why they did this was that they were both going to arrive together via helicopter to the ceremony proper later on.
Before heading away on their helicopter flight though, we used the Arkapena Station scenery for a bit of a photoshoot.
Arkapena Station Wedding Ceremony
The ceremony location as I mentioned before was backdropped by the most gorgeous vista of Wilpena Pound, framed by giant gum trees that really made me think of Hans Heyson’s paintings – it was beautifully scenic and a joy to be a part of – the only draw back were the persistant flies… You wouldnt believe how many I had to photoshop out of their photos!
After the ceremony, the entire congregation retired to the homestead for a short little ‘warm up’ reception complete with icecream van and plenty of refreshments to combat the heat. The bride had constructed a wonderful loveheart pinata for the kids, and the rest enjoyed their icecream and drinks surrounded by the wonderful views.
Rawnsley Park Station at Wilpena Pound
Inbetween heading from the Arkapena Station homestead, and the reception location at Rawnsley Park Station, we made the use of the setting sun a bit with more of the amazing scenery for some more landscapey photos.
In case you havent noticed, I had a ball of a time photographing this amazing place and this wonderful couple! 😀
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