Costa contacted me via my Facebook page looking to have an engagement shoot done at short notice as both himself and his fiancee will be in town at the same time. Luckily I had a day free as I actually had two weddings on the same weekend that Costa wanted to have their shoot done, but luckily they were on the Friday and Saturday, so I had the Sunday free 🙂 I asked him what time of shots he’d prefer and he suggested something industrial. Really only one place to go in Adelaide for a shoot like that, Crozier Street in Port Adelaide! It’s a super popular spot for taking photos, to the point that on Saturdays you’d often find yourself queueing up behind several other weddings just to shoot there 🙂 We started the shoot at the Grange jetty nearby though for a bit of variety in the photos.
Recently I ran a little contest on instagram in order to celebrate reaching 10,000 followers on the platform. The idea being that people who would like to enter were to select their favourite image I had put up on my feed. Well Boss the Bull Mastiff (@bossthebullmastiff) was the winner and as a result we went out to the Grange beach for a bit of a run about and photoshoot! Was a fairly simple little shoot, we started by walking along the dunes, and then had Boss run up and down the beach for a bit before striking a pose under the famed Grange Jetty. Boss was fairly easy to work with, very well trained and was kept on a leachsh for the whole time – just had to photoshop it out for the photos!
Since expanding my operations to the Northern Territory, in particular Darwin through my website https://svenstudios.com/darwin-wedding-photography/, I’ve been super keen on heading up to the Northern End of Australia to shoot again. So when Jane contacted me via my instagram feed, I jumped at the chance on shooting in the most remote area of Australia I have yet visited.
Jane and David were awesome hosts for a 2 night stay on the islands, where they both work in the local community, and in exchange for their wonderful hospitality I was to shoot a bit of an engagement shoot while galavanting around the island!
The first day
After having spent a few days in Darwin – taking photos of the lovely beaches and the amazing sunsets Darwin has to offer, I head out to the Tiwi Islands on a ferry to meet Jane and David whom were both working, so once I arrived I was picked up by David, then had a bit of time to explore the community before they both knocked off work. It was rather surreal witnessing the Liberal coup where former Prime Minister Turnbull was ousted for Scott Morrison in such a remote part of Australia, from within an Aboriginal community – it felt quite distant an unimportant.
It’s this remoteness I think appeals to both Jane and David who both hail from Sydney originally that makes them love this place. The culture and sense of community surrounding them where they live is obvious in that everyone knows one another, when driving about, everyone waved and one another and the entire town felt very laid back.
Once Jane and david had finished their work, we went on a shot expedition to a small wood with lovely tall trees, through which the sun was beating down in typical Northern Territory fashion, so I made use of it!
Engagement ring
Dancing
Walking through the bush
On the road
Hugs
On the road
Dancing
laughing
On the road
In the forest
Smiles
Walking together in the forest
We then head out of town for a bit to a lovely secluded beach beyond the so called ‘international Airport’ of Wurrumiyanga to make use of the fading sun. I found it quite funny that it was classified as a major airport when considering flight paths and ability to launch my drone as the airport consists of only an airstrip – that is apparently sinking into the ground – and a small shed. But anyway, the beach was stunning and out of range from flight limitations anyway.
From above
On the beach together
Walking along the beach
From above
Tiwi Islands Engagement
On the beach together
Kung Fu!
The next morning, the plan was to get up at sparrows to make use of the sun rising over the local bay – while avoiding the giant croc that apparently inhabits the water around the area 🙂
Smiling David
Smiling Jane
Sitting together
Tiwi Islands Sunrise
Shortly after breakfast we were on the road to a delightful little natural spring waterhole were we stopped to have lunch and go for a dip. I was assured there were no crocs around the place here, but the water was so incredibly clear that nothing would be able to sneak up on us anyway. 😛
Waterhole hugs
Waterhole hugs
Amongst the wattle
Waterhole hugs
Jumping in together
By the late afternoon we had reached our campsite for the night, a long white sand beach at the northern tip of the island. We spent some time fishing from the rocks, however caught more rocks than useful fish, then made use of the spectacular red cliffs and sunset for some more photos, all the while dodging the millions of hermit crabs scuttling along the beach, and keeping a wary eye out for crocs.
On a rock
Twirling
Family portrait
Sun set on the rocks
Sun set
Sun set on the rocks
Sun set on the rocks
Running together
On the final day, once we returned home to town, we spent the afternoon waiting for the Darwin-bound ferry fishing on Jane and David’s boat. It was the first time I had experienced fishing on a boat, and Jane managed to land a huge 90cm Barramundi! Which we released, but she also caught herself a smaller one which David filleted up and gave me a fillet for dinner that night 🙂 I also managed to catch quite a few other fish – including some good sized snapper! All in all, my weekend in the Tiwi islands was not one I will soon forget!
Thanks so much to Jane and David for having me photograph them on the Tiwi islands – It’s a place I would never have thought of visiting otherwise, but I’m so glad I had the opportunity!
Jasmine and Mervyl were in Adelaide for a short while and while here they figured they’d use the time to have a bit of an Adelaide glamour shoot before their wedding next year back in Singapore. They are also planning on having photos taken in Canberra also a few days later, so they’ll have quite a bit of diversity to show on a big screen at the forefront of their wedding reception.
Himeji Hardens
We began our short shoot in the Himeji Gardens, on South Terrace. We were very lucky at this time of day as the weather surrounding the shoot, both before and after was pretty atrocious, with wind and heavy rainfall – so i was happy to make use of any sun we had! Unfortunately the hem of Jasmine’s white dress started to get muddy towards the end, but lucky she had a change in dress! 🙂
Holding one another
Holding one another
Smiles
Sitting about
Walking about Himeji Gardens
Veale Gardens
After about 30 minutes walking about the Himeji Gardens, we head over to the nearby Veale Gardens – a popular wedding venue in it’s own right the gardens boast beautifully manicured grassy areas, with a splash of unkempt Australiana just in the rear which we made use of.
Suave
Amongst the trees
Holding hands in veal Gardens
Walking together
Engagement ring
Under a tree
North Terrace
After a bit of a dress change and makeup touch-up, we continued our Adelaide glamour shoot around the lovely North Terrace buildings, including the Adelaide University and Bonython Hall. It’s at this time when the heavens started opening on us and it looked as though our luck with the weather was running out.
Holidn one another
North Terrace
Holidn one another
Walking alone
On the footbridge
Cathedral
Grange Jetty
We ended the shoot at the historic Grange Jetty, when fortunately the sun peeped out from the clouds for just a minute allowing us to run about in the bitter cold to take a few shots 🙂
Under the jetty
On the jetty
Under the jetty
I hope Jasmine and Mervyl enjoy the photos from their Adelaide Glamour Shoot and hope their wedding in Singapore goes fantastically!
