Georgie and Tom’s beautiful wedding took place in the intimate settings of Lyndoch Hill, located just out of gawler. The weather turned out to be absolutely perfect with stunning sun and cloudless skies – it all turned out to be a stunning day full of love and joy! Georgie and Tom took advantage of my hourly rate having me cover Georgie’s preparation and their ceremony at Lyndoch Hill.
Preparation
Georgie and her bridal party were being prepared in a house in Gawler, just 15 minutes away from Lyndoch Hill. The atmosphere was calm and collected with little to no nerves visible from Georgie – despite the fact they were running a little late and her father was constantly reminding them of this 🙂
Lyndoch Hill wedding ceremony
Lyndoch Hill boasts an incredible botanic garden surrounding a uniquely shaped boutique restaurant at it’s center. Georgie and Tom’s wedding took place on a small intimate grassy area at the foot of a grand garden staircase lined with roses. The entire cermeony was bathed in the shade of nearby towering gum trees with a dappled light effect caused by the incredible sun we enjoyed throughout the day.
Tom was glad to have his entourage of groomsmen there to calm him down before seeing Georgie for the first time walking down the aisle, but his nerves quickly left him as soon as she was with him at the altar. 🙂
Glamour photos
Straight after their wedding ceremony and family photos we went for a little walk around the Lyndoch Hill botanic gardens for a few glamour photos. We also made good use of the charming bus used by the groomsmen to arrive 🙂
I’d very much like to thank Georgie and Tom for having me as their wedding photographer and I hope they enjoy their wedding photos as much as I enjoyed being a part of their wedding!
Lauren and Nic held their wedding at the historic bed and breakfast known as Oliver’s White Hill, with their reception taking place in the nearby chaff shed that connects up to the nearby Oliver’s Taranga winery. The weather was absolutely stunning throughout and the location always provides for some wonderful photo opportunities. I was chosen to be their wedding photographer for 4 hours of their day which saw me taking photos from just before their wedding ceremony through to around an hour of their reception.
Prior to the ceremony
As usual I arrived a little early so I had a bit of time to walk about, setting up my virtual reality video camera and take a few shots of Lauren and Nic getting ready, although they didn’t expect me to be on site for another 30 minutes or so. They were both being prepared in different rooms of the Oliver’s White Hill bed and breakfast so it was fairly easy to flit back and forth between the two.
Oliver’s White Hill wedding ceremony
The original Oliver family was part of the pioneering history of wine making in South Australia, having established the White Hill property in the 1840’s the Oliver family still to this day maintains the property and cultivates the nearby winefields. Today the rustic old house has been the backdrop of a wide variety of different celebrations, with the first wedding taking place there over 100 years ago. The setting Lauren and Nic chose as the backdrop to their own wedding ceremony was the lovely little lake down at the foot of a large grassy area – looking away from the house itself. It provides a wonderfully Australian backdrop complete with gumtrees and causes the sun to cast it’s light over the wedding ceremony in such a wonderful way.
Glamour Photos
Directly after the wedding ceremony and family photos, we had a short walk around the grounds to take a few glamour photos before heading up to the Chaff Shed for the reception.
Oliver’s Chaff Shed reception
On the same grounds as the Oliver’s White Hill homestead is the Oliver’s Chaff Shed where the owners has transformed an old chaff shed into a cosy little function room, complete with separate bar and modern toilet and kitchen facilities. It would be tricky to host a large gathering here but for small intimate weddings such as Lauren and Nic’s, it’s a wonderfully rustic setting.
Thanks to Lauren and Nic for having me be a part of their lovely wedding at the Oliver’s White Hill homestead! It was a wonderful day, and I hope they like their photos! 🙂
Alexis and Matt were married nearby the Belair National Park at the (now closed) Belair Park Country Club with the original aim to use a grassy area to the front of the complex for their ceremony. This wasnt to be due to the weather, so instead they used the interior of one of the reception halls available on site. I was lucky enough to be chosen as their wedding photographer for the entire day, and despite the early weather, the day turned out brilliantly!
Preparation
I started the day with Matt and his grooms men who were being prepared at their parent’s place in Semaphore Park. One of the first things that Matt said to me was that we wasn’t a smiler 🙂 Nothing wrong with that though as his grooms men were more than keen on playing about, hanging on his nerves 🙂
Lexi was being prepared down the road in a room in the Lakes Hotel. The girls were waiting for me as they were sitting about casually having a bit to eat and joking about. More than happy to help me set up my photos 🙂 The only thing that was dampening the mood was the potential for rain, but if all turned out great in the end!
Belair Country Club Wedding Ceremony
The Belair National Park is one of the oldest National Parks in Australia and it boasts quite a bit of natural flora and fauna. The country Club built nearby in the 90s takes advantage of this incredible setting being surrounded by 835 hectares of the most beautiful scenery you could imagine.
It was a very warm period of the year when Alexis and Matt were wed amongst the Belair National Park, however the weather turned for the worse overnight and the original plan of using the grassy area in front of the Belair Country Club was cancelled due to fear of the ground being muddy. So the Ceremony was moved indoors which turned out to be a wonderful turn of events as it was stunning.
Belair National Park Glamour Photos
Directly after the ceremony and family photos, the bridal party first head out to where the ceremony was originally going to be held to mimic a shot I took at a wedding last time I was here – only to find the ground was fine. We then used the entry driveway of the country club to take photos of the cars before travelling to the Belair train station. We then went for a bit of a trek through the Belair National Park after having realised the ladies had left their flats at the Country Club – so it was pretty difficult going for them walking around in their heels, but we managed! 🙂 It was well worth it too, as we took some stunners!
Belair Country Club Wedding Reception
We head back to the Country Club for the reception, which took place in the upper reception room on site. The room is a lovely setting, complete with a private bar just outside, and room for a large number of guests. The area was decorated with long pieces of beautiful cloth which really completed the entire look of the room.
I;d very much like to thank Lexi and Matt for having me capture the wedding photography at their Belair National Park wedding, and I wish them all the best in the future!
As a wedding photographer, I’ve been privvy to a vast variety of different bridesmaid gift ideas, so I thought I might make a list of some of the more thoughtful bridal party gifts that I’ve come across at my weddings. Giving your bridesmaids a gift before your wedding ceremony – perhaps also at a bachelorette party – is a modern traditions and is seen today as a way for the bride to thank her entourage on a personal level for helping her plan and put together her big day.
Bridesmaid gift ideas
Jewellery
The most common of bridesmaid gifts are pieces of jewellery. Usually given to accentuate what the bridesmaids are wearing on the day in a bridesmaid gift boxes, and also to give a bit of uniformity between the bridesmaids – if that’s the style you’re going for at your wedding. Jewellery can also be very personal, it’s usually small and easy to package as a gift, so it one of the easier gift ideas to manage too! Generally jewellery gifted in this way should be something you’d know your bridesmaids would like to wear and enjoy after the day itself.
Personalised gowns
During your wedding preparation with your bridesmaids, it’s fun to dress up in matching gowns that have been embroiled with either their names, or fun monikers, such as ‘bridesmaid #2’ or even ‘bride’s b****’, depending on your personality 🙂 There are a number of different ideas when it comes to this sort of thing and while the gowns are personalised specifically for this one wedding, they can be used at home for lazy days also.
A services gift certificate
Here’s one that’s not directly related to your wedding! How about gifting your bridesmaids a gift certificate for a massage, or a beauty treatment, or even a portraiture sitting with a professional photographer? This can be a great idea to allow your bridesmaids to pamper themselves after your wedding day and to show them that you think they are all beautiful and care about them outside the sphere that was your wedding day.
Personalised items
One common gift I’ve been seeing lately are personalised items such as wine glasses to drink from at the reception, or even clothes hangers to hang dresses on. These are easy, simple gifts people are bound to use more than once, or at least put them someplace in their home so that they will be reminded about your wonderful day and the role they had to play in it.
Personal artwork
This one may not be to everyone’s taste, but if your the artsy type, one of the most personal bridesmaid gift ideas I’ve ever seen was a personalised piece of art drawn and painted by the bride herself. This is heartfelt, personal and cheap! And it’s something that your bridesmaids will no doubt put on display once they get home. Failing that I’ve also seen professional artists at weddings where they would hand out quickly drawn caricatures of guests at your wedding reception, but this really falls more into the reception souvenir category along with photobooth photos.
Clothing
Be it shoes, a bag, or even her dress, having a formal dress for each girl at a wedding can get expensive, so many brides opt to make this their bridesmaid’s gift. It’s practical too in many ways, as if it’s the type of dress that would not look out of place at a club, or even at work it may get quite a bit of wear out of it. This goes for shoes also, and you can never have too many clutch purses to choose from can you?
There are of course a thousand other gift ideas for bridesmaid gifts, just to list a few other ideas – body products, candy, movie tickets, etc. But really whatever you decide to give, or not give your bridesmaids, I’m sure they’ll love you just the same 🙂