St Laurences Church High Mass Wedding – Alison & Josh

I was privileged to photograph Alison and Josh’s St Laurence’s Church High Mass wedding in mid-November. Their traditional Latin High Mass was conducted by three priests and altar boys in the church’s striking setting. After the ceremony, I also photographed their wedding reception at Tatachilla Estate.

Preparation

I began the day as I usually do at the place where Josh and his groomsmen were being prepared. The morning was quite laid back with some funny moments where someone had given Josh some booklets titled ‘don’ts for weddings, and husbands‘ while also reminicing about other weddings the groomsmen had been a part of.

I arrived at the house were Alison was being prepared just as their make-up was being completed, which is great as I’m then able to flit about taking detail shots of the dress, shoes, etc. The bridal party all had matching kimonos on during the morning, and two little girls were running about causing havok – which was kind of a good thing as it distracted from any nerves Alison may have been feeling. 🙂

St Laurences Church High Mass Wedding Ceremony

As some of you may know, I worked at a Catholic primary school for almost a decade as a Japanese teacher, so I was fairly knowledgeable of the procession of mass, and wedding masses. However, Alison and Josh’s High Mass wedding was something I had yet to witness. The entire procession was quite awe inspiring, with no less than 3 priests and several altar boys conducting the service, all while a 4-strong gregorian chior chanted in the background. The High Mass itself took around 90 minutes to complete, as it followed a strict procession, concluding whith all the guests joining in with communion. The stunning surrounds of St Laurences Church made for a stunning backdrop for the entire ceremony, and it was certainly a ceremony to remember!

Glamour Photos

For glamour photos, we first utilised the wonderful interior of St Laurences, after having the group photo done out the front of the church. We then went for a short drive to South Terrace to Veale Gardens where we made use of the lovely diversity available there. From Australian gum trees out the back, to highly manicured rose gardens, it’s a nice spot to capture a variety of wedding photos. We then head towards Mclaren Vale as a short stop off before heading to Tatachilla Estate for the reception. We usued the wonderful olive tree grove located right off the main street to get a few shots in amongst the trees. Our final spot for glamour photos was the vineyards located out the front of Tatachilla estate. We used the dying light as the sun went down for a few nice shots of just Alison and Josh together amongst the vines.

Tatachilla Estate Wedding Reception

I was told that Alison and Josh’s wedding reception was the first that has been held at the new venue at Tatachilla Estate. Apparently the venue had been recently purchased from the nearby Tatachilla Lutheran School in order to ransform it into a new, large wedding and event venue, and I must say it certainly has potential! It’s a huge space, suitable for gigantic functions, but as it is right now it’s fairly rustic as it had been used as a school camp space for decades.

Alison and Josh’s reception was punctuated by loving speeches, plenty of dancing and scores of people all having a great time!

I’d like to thank Alison and Josh for having me as their wedding photographer, it was a wonderful day and certainly a wedding I’ll not soon forget! 😀