I was so happy to cover Nikki and Toby’s lovely St Helens Park wedding in Prospect, North Adelaide. Their original plan when they asked me to photograph their wedding was to hold a small, breakfast wedding later in the year, only to have it change to the beginning of the year, but then COVID hit. So their little St Helens Park wedding, or rather elopement at the end of July ended up being their big day, and I was super happy for them 🙂
St Helens Park Wedding Ceremony
The plan was to meet at the gazebo at the center of the St Helens Park and sort out where the hold the wedding ceremony. One option was the gazebo itself, while I actually suggested the rather neat old tree nearby to stand in front of. It was a pretty neat spot as the sun was shining through the foliage quite nicely while Nikki and Toby shared their vows.
Nikki and Toby’s congregation was as tiny as possible, consisting only of themselves, their celebrant and a family of friends who acted as their witnesses. They opted to hold their tiny wedding due to the complexity of holding a slightly larger wedding during the height of COVID-19 restirctions. I often think these tiny weddings are much more intimate anyway!
Wedding ceremony at St Helens park
Sun through the tree
Happy bride in Prospect
Smiling bride looking at her groom
Smiling groom looking at his bride
Wedding ceremony under the tree
Wedding ceremony bathed in sunlight
Exchanging wedding bands under the tree
St Helens Park wedding ceremony
First kiss under the tree at St Helens Park
Looking at her bouquet
St Helens Park Wedding Photoshoot
In the early days of Prospect city, the area was a private subdivision of Yatala, which intersected at the village centre, which is now st Helens Park. The center piece of this historic park is a very neat old tree which is perfect for climbing and using as a framing device for wedding photos!
After the wedding ceremony, we went for a little walk around the Park, starting at the awesome tree right behind where they held their ceremony, and did a big lap of the area. We made use of the nice trees and nearby playground before finishing up back on top of the tree where they were married next to the gazebo.
Bride and groom holding one another in St Helens Park
Bride and groom together amongst the green
In amongst the trees at St Helens park
Wedding bands on the tree
Bride and grrom on their St Helens Park wedding day
Bride and groom together in the tree at St Helens Park
Walking together on the grass
Bride and grrom holding one another 2
St Helens Park wedding 2
Bride and groom looking at camera 2
Bride and groom having fun under a tree
St Helens Park wedding photo
St Helens Park wedding photo of the bride and groom
I was super excited to head back to the picturesque Thorngrove Manor for Darren and Nahal’s intimate wedding in mid July as I hadn’t been back this marvellous spot for several years! It’s quite a rare thing to shoot a Thorngrove Manor wedding as the owners tend to like to keep the number of people on their property to a minimum – which is fair enough considering how amazing this place is!
It was a magical time Darren, Nahal and I had walking around this gem of a spot for their small, intimate wedding/elopement!
Preparation
My time with Darren and Nahal began with Nahal in amongst the stone-hewn chambers of the bed and breakfast’s Queen chamber of the Manor where Nahal was completing her makeup. While nerves weren’t showing too much just yet, as time drew nearer to make the walk through the garden towards her fiance, it became a bit more of a thing.
Darren and Nahal certainly made their whole tiny wedding quite an easy wedding to photograph though! With two very good looking people and a stunning location like Thorngrove Manor, it’s certainly one to show off!
Hanging Thorngrove Manor wedding dress
Wedding dress hanging in Thorngrove Manor
Engagement ring in box
Bride looking out window at Thorngrove Manor
Bride playing with bouquet at Thorngrove Manor
Bridal approach at her Thorngrove Manor wedding
Thorngrove Manor Wedding Ceremony
Where else to hold a Thorngrove Manor wedding ceremony but right in front of the majestic view that is the driveway leading to the front door of this marvellous house? Nahal walked swiftly the the waiting arms of her finance and their intimate little wedding ceremony began.
Perhaps I should refer to their wedding as an ‘elopement’ as due to the unfortunate events unfolding in the world at the moment due to COVID-19, Darren and Nahal opted to have in attendance only their suppliers – Nahal’s makeup artist, their celebrant and myself, while having the owners of the Thorngrove Manor bed and breakfast act as their witnesses. It was only due to the fact that they were staying the night that they were allowed to use the grounds for their ceremony.
Darren and Nahal had me also produce a ceremony video for them, alongside my usual 360 degree virtual reality video I produce so that their friends and family can relive their precious moment.
Groom watching his bride approach
Smiling groom during his ceremony
Smiling bride on her wedding day
Exchanging wedding bands
Groom looking at his bride
Thorngrove Manor wedding ceremony
Standing together in the sunlight
First kiss at Thorngrove Manor wedding ceremony
Thorngrove Manor Wedding Photos
As their wedding ceremony took place at 4pm, we had around 1 hour to meander around the Thorngrove Manor grounds and make use of it’s manicured beauty for photos. As I had shot here in the past I knew what would and would not work so I devised a little itinerary of where we should go and when.
Despite having forecast to be overcast and rather dreary, the weather was absoutely delightful for Darren and Nahal’s photoshoot. The sun was shining and made for a lovely golden glow through the trees. We did however wait until the sun was a little lower before we took some ‘money shots’ of the Manor’s main keep in the background as it tends to really shine bright in the sun.
I can certainly spend hours using the manor as a backdrop for wedding photos, but unfortunately all good things have to come to an end!
Before I left, Darren and Nahl were sitting down for a lovely looking home-cooked meal, surrounded by the medieval splendor that only Thorngrove Manor can put on show! It looked to be a supurbly romantic evening!
bride and groom looking on as the registry is signed
Bride and groom looing at each other bathed in light
Engagement ring in red bouquet
Wedding rings on slab
bridal couple in amongst the gardens
Bridal couple just married in the garden
Bridal couple holding one another surrounded by greenery
Thorngrove Manor bed and breakfast wedding couple
having some fun at Thorngrove Manor together
in front of the interesting architecture at Thorngrove Manor
Thorngrove Manor wedding couple
Thorngrove Manor wedding couple in front of front door
Thorngrove Manor Portrait
Leaning in for a kiss at Thorngrove Manor
Stained glass windows at Thorngrove Manor
Through the harp at Thorngrove Manor
Thorngrove Manor
Thorngrove Manor wedding photography
bridal couple under the arch
Bridal couple holding one another
Bridal couple on the balcony together
Thorngrove Manor’s main tower
Bridal couple enjoying Thorngrove Manor
Thorngrove Manor wedding at sunset
Bride and groom in the Thorngrove Manor chambers
Congratulations to Darren and Nahl on their wonderful Thorngrove manor wedding / elopement! I’d like to thank you guys so much for having me as your wedding photographer as I had an absolute blast!
Jayne and Pete were super lucky to be able to host their Paxton Winery wedding towards the end of March as it was right at the beginning of the Coronavirus restrictions being in place for weddings. As Jayne and Pete had a number of guests and relatives from overseas in attendance it was a very tight situation! Despite all that, their day turned out to be absolutely awesome!
Preparation
When I arrvied at the bed and breakfast in Port Noarlunga, I was under the impression that no one was home! I had wandered over to the wrong door and was knocking on it for a good 10 minutes before I started to investigate whether there was another way in – turns out there was a large windowed area where Pete’s entourage were milling about in. However there was no Pete! Apparently he had forgotten about having his preparation photos done, and was still in the city!
So after having rushed back to Port Noarlunga, and worrying poor Jayne thinking Pete was going to miss out on his photos, we had a good 30 minutes of photos done where Pete and his groomsmen all got ready overlooking the lovely Port Noarlunga Jetty.
In case of cold feet socks
Groom in tshirt
Looking on with tie
Groomsmen huddle
Groomsman helping put on grooms tie
Hazing the new guy
Grooms shoes
Groom putting on shirt
Wedding rings on tie
After having done Petes photos, I head off up the road a little to Jayne’s bed and breakfast where she was getting ready alongside 3 little flower girls. The atmosphere was a lot more laid back that Pete’s whirlwind photoshoot as we had much more time to get ready!
In fact we had so much time I had a lovely chat with Jaynes relatives and a bit of morning tea before they were starting to move on to Paxton Winery in a mini bus.
Jayne’s Mum wasn’t overly keen on being in front of the camera but I hope she likes the photos I took of her! it was also lovely to see the reaction of Jayne’s father as he saw her in her dress for the first time.
Hanging wedding dress
E pin on flowers
Hanging flower girl dresses
Bride looking in mirror smiling
Flower girl in the makeup chair
Bride having fun putting on makeup
Looking on
Mum helping bride put on dress
Mum helping bride prepare
Bride looking pretty looking out window
Father of the Brides first look
bride and flower girls
Bride hugging daughter
Bride walking down hallway
Bride at front door
Paxton Winery Wedding Ceremony
Jayne and Pete’s Paxton winery wedding ceremony took place on the large grassy area right next to the main building of Paxton winery. The set up overlooks the wonderful rolling hills, topped with vineyards that the Mclaren Vale wine district is famous for.
It’s also a wonderful setup for weddings, as the bridal motorcade can be seen as it drives down the long driveway towards the Paxton Wines cellar door, and then it’s a straight walk over grass for the bridal party to the ceremony location.
The ceremony itself was a lovely laid back affair, with Jayne’s Father giving her away with a little procession at the beginning, and her little flower girls throwing flowers at the couple at the end.
The sun came out during the ceremony and everything was perfect! I only wish the PA system they had wasn’t so tinny – it was tought o edit it out for their highlight video!
Groom waiting patiently
Bridal car arriving at Paxton Winery
Arriving Bridal car
Bride getting out of car
Flower girls ready to go
Groom and groomsmen at altar
Bridal approach at Paxton wines
Bride and Father
Groom’s first look of bride
Father nad bride standing together
Paxton winery wedding backdrop
Paxton Winery wedding ceremony
Smiling at her groom
Holding hands during the ceremony
Close up of holding hands
Smiling at his bride
Bored flowergirls
Celebrant doing her thing
Best man and the rings
Exchanging wedding bands
First kiss at Paxton winery wedding
Flower girls throwing flowers
Celebrate
Bride and groom walking back down aisle
Glamour Photos
After the appropriately socially distanced group photos, and drone shot of the entire winery we set out for our glamour phtoos around the Paxton Winery estate.
A wonderful part of hosting a Paxton Winery wedding is the variety of wedding photography you can capture on site. As it’s a winery there the usual rolling vineyards that are always a treat to photograph, but there is also something unique to this location that I was quite excited about.
Right near some beautiful pepper trees and grassy meadows, there is an old heritage homestead on site that made for a lovely backdrop to Jayne and Pete’s wedding photos!
We also managed to sneak out once it got dark to take some nighttime photos of the large lit up ‘LOVE’ sign Jayne and Pete had hired, while i also got out my ‘smoke in can’ to create some atmosphere within the vineyards at night.
Paxton winery wedding 2
walking together
Bride and groom in the vineyards
Social Distancing group photo
Night time LOVE
Bride stepping on groomsmen
Bride and groom through the window at Paxton Winery
Paxton winery wedding from the air
Groom looking at bride
Bride and groom holding one another in the trees
bride and groom through the vines
bride and groom in ruins at Paxton Winery
Bride and groom through the window
Bride and groom in wedding car
Paxton Winery wedding at night
Paxton Winery wedding night shot
Bride and groom holding one another
Brothers
Bride and groom with the wedding car
Paxton Winery Wedding Reception
The highlight of Jayne and Pete’s wedding reception for me was the incredible bongo drum player they had to augment the DJ’s music! He was slamming and rocking out with the energy of 1000 suns all night! If I were to do what he was doing, I’d be sure to have very sore hands for the rest of the month!
The reception took place on the smaller of the two grassy areas nearby the Paxton winery cellar door, with the original plan being to hold it inside – however due to Coronavirus restrictions it had to be moved outside – which I actually think was the better choice as it was a lovely night and the lighting was beautiful!
The guests had lawn games to entertain themselves, and we were treated to some very good speeches that made everyone laugh over and over. It was a great night!
Wedding tissues
Coronavirus Wedding sign
Paxton wines
Wedding favours
Cupcake wedding cake
Annoucning the bride and groom
Cutting the wedding cake as a family
Laughing near wedding cake
MC doing his thing
bride and groom laughing at speeches
bride and groom listening
Speeches
Dad giving his speech
groom giving his speech
Bride listening to speech
Flower girls listening to speeches
Wedding disposable camera
Dancing guests
First dance at Paxton winery wedding
Bride holding her groom
Groom giving hugs
Bride hugging
Daddy daughter dance
Wedding jenga
Paxton winery wedding reception
Dancing about
Thanks so much to Jayne and Pete for having me as your wedding phtoography at yoru paxton winery wedding! I had a blast and I look forward to getting out to wedding again very soon, once this virus shenanigans has past!
It was a wonderful day that was laid out in front of us for Ellie and Nick’s Belair National Park wedding! The sun was out and everyone involved had a wonderful day celebrating the coming together of these two wonderful people! They turned out to be very lucky with the timing of their wedding being only a week before the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic shutdown in South Australia.
Preparation
My day started by shooting photos of Nick and his groomsmen who were being prepared at a house in Ingle Farm. Nick and his groomsmen were having a bunch of trouble tieing their ties before Nick’s best man and father stepped in to help! It was important for Ellie and Nick to get some shots of their dog in some of the shots too, so we had their fur baby model for us occasionally 🙂
Nick was a little distracted while getting ready partly due to nerves, but also because one of this groomsmen had a shirt that was a little too small for him – so they had to rush off and get a new shirt quickly before the ceremony.
Groom and groomsmen on road
Groom putting on jacket
Groom putting on tie
Groomsman helping out
Father of the groom
Groom getting ready
Groom looking in mirror
Ellie and her bridesmaids were being prepared at a lovely bed and breakfast along Waterfall Gully road. We were so close to the waterfalls it pains me to know we diddnt use them for any photos! The girls were all in high spirits all morning, singling songs and making Elllie smile while doing silly things, the atmosphere was quite laid back and fun!
smiling bridesmaid as she helps
laughing birdesmaids
Bride looking pretty in wedding dress
bridal jewellery
Bride holding bouquet as she gets ready
bride getting her hair done
wow a ring!
Rear of wedding dress
bride getting ready smiling
Bridal party helping bride get ready
bridal party in mirror
Smiling bride as she gets ready
hanging wedding dress
engagement ring in bouquet
Bridal party in kimonos under tree
Belair National Park Wedding Ceremony
Ellie and Nick’s Belair National Park Wedding Ceremony took place in the ‘Joseph Fisher‘ picnic grounds which boasts some very tall pine trees surrounding a lovely grassy area, perfectly suited to a wedding ceremony. Theres also a covered area and toilets on site. The only issue I had was that as it was a very sunny day, the sun was very harsh coming in one direction – thankfully the ceremony itself too place under the shade of one of the pine trees.
Part of Ellie and Nick’s wedding ceremony included a creation of a time capsule where they will open it again if they ever find the need to remind themselves why they married one another and read love letters they write each other while drinking the wine inside. It’s a nice addition to a wedding ceremony to do this, or something similar as it breaks up the usual talking and reciting of vows. Another way to incorporate a time capsule is allowig youselves to open it each anniversary.
Bridal motorcade arriving
Bride meeting flower girl
Groom waiting
Bride arriving
Grooms first look of bride
Smiling bride looking at groom
Groom looking at his bride
Belair National park wedding ceremony
holding hands during the ceremony
Wedding ceremony in Belair National Park
Belair National Park wedding in shade
belair National park wedding under tree
Smiles all round
wedding ceremony
Nailing the time capsule
Bride and groom exit
Glamour Photos
For Ellie and Nick’s glamour photos we began on site within the Joseph Fisher picnic area and made use of a love heart someone had engraved into one of the trees. Ellie was quite keen on getting that shot here! We then moved on throughout the national park to the Old Parliament House and then on to behind the Belair Train Station for more Belair National Park wedding photos.
The photos at the Old Parliament House were rushed a bit due to a small mix up of times which the area was booked – turned out the attendant on site expected us a good hour before we turned up for our photos – but she turned out to be a good sport and stuck around for us anyway 🙂
Belair National Park wedding photo 2
Bridal party photo at old government house
Belair National Park wedding photo
Bride and groom standing together in forest
Close up portrait
Belair National Park wedding photography
Wedding photo in the Old Government House garden
Leaning against a lamp post
Belair National Park wedding photo 3
bride and groom standing in the Belair National park
Standing together under a tree
Walking together in the garden
Bride and groom in an embrace
Bride and groom walking together
Bride and groom dancing
Bride and groom standing in the sun
The Summit Cafe and Function Center Wedding Reception
Ellie and Nick’s wedding reception took place at the Summit Cafe and Function Center at the Summit of Mt Lofty. It’s a nifty little spot, perfect for photographing the sunset from the top of the tallest mountain in South Australia and also the city lights during the night – although it was fairly cold and windy!
Wedding cake
Mt Lofty Summit cafe and function center
Mingling
Bride and groom cutting the wedding cake
Bride and groom at sunset
Bride and groom silhouette
guests having fun
Bride and groom on Mt Lofty Summit
Head table
Maid of honour speech
First dance
Smiling bride and groom
Nutbush at wedding
Bouquet toss
I’d like to thank Ellie and Nick for having me as their wedding photographer at their Belair National Park Wedding!
Brides having fun at their Adelaide Sailing Club wedding
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding – Andrea & Gerry
The sun was hot and bright for Andrea and Gerry’s beautifully intimate Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding at the end of February! Gerry had scouted me out as she was an AUSLAN interpreter at another wedding I had done a few months earlier, and thought I did a good job there so asked me to be her photographer too! It’s always nice to know that people are impressed by what you love doing!
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding Ceremony
I was Andrea and Gerry’s wedding photographer for a short while on their day, seeing me cover their ceremony on the Adelaide Sailing Club’s lawn with the beach in the background through to the speeches at their reception. The Sailing club is set off to the side of the West Beach Boat ramp and looks out over a small ‘private’ beach made by the boat ramp’s water break. I was a little worried about a surf life saving event happening right nearby with a hovercraft making a bunch of noise – but diddn’t make much of a noise during the ceremony thankfully.
It was a marvellous coincidence that both Andrea and Gerry arrived wearing almost identical clothing, neither opting for a white gown as brides; but rather white formal attire. It was lovely to see their reactions as they both arrived together and remarked at what each other was wearing.
Andrea and Gerry’s approach to the arbour was preceeded by a group of young children acting as flower girls and ring bearers, while also being flanked by family members before the two brides approached together.
The ceremony itself was quite moving with their celebrant talking about Andrea and Gerry’s family while also their story of coming together as a couple. The sounds of the waves crashing on the nearby beach added perfectly to the ambiance as the ceremony unfolded, coupled with the loving gestures made by both Andrea, Gerry and their guests.
Andrea and Gerry’s wedding sign
Andrea and Gerry approaching the ceremony
Holding hands
Approaching the wedding ceremony together
Approaching thre wedding ceremony
ready to start the ceremony
Kids out the front
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding Ceremony
Smiling bride during the ceremony
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding
Holding hands under the arbour
Smiling brides
All hugs during the vows
Ring bearer
Exchanging the wedding rings
Just married
First kiss under the arbour
Smiles at their beach wedding
The crowd swamping the couple
Glamour Photos
Often I would bust out the drone to have the group shots done, but the Adelaide Sailing Club is right in the flight path of the Adelaide Airport which means it would be quite illegal to fly there. So the group shots were done by having me run up to the top floor and shooting down at the group from the conveneint balcony. It was fun shouting down instructions while the AUSLAN interpreter was also trying to direct everyone down stairs 🙂
Andrea and Gerry weren’t overly keen on spending too much time having glamour shots done and were more concerned with spending their time with family and friends at the reception. As a result we went for a short walk down to a nearby beach and walked back again.
beach wedding photo
Bridal couple on the beach
Closeup of bridal bouquets
Brides having fun at their Adelaide Sailing Club wedding
Fun beach wedding photography
Walking along the beach together
Casual beach wedding photo
The two brides together on the beach
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding Reception
I really like the reception area available at the Adelaide Sailing Club – it’s a nice big, closed off area with a huge bar and giant balcony perfectly suited to watch the always amazing Adelaide Sunset as it drops below the horizon. Andrea and Gerry had decorated the area with lanterns and lighting which made the whole space come alive with a bit of festivity.
There were also no less than 3 wedding cakes on display, one usual cake and two cheese cakes (as I understood) – that is two rolls of cheese that are made up to look like cakes – not ‘cheesecakes’. It’s something that has become quite a common sight at weddings as it caters to those who arent too keen on cakes, or have allergies, etc
Fun times
Having a chat with one another
Adelaide Sailing Club Wedding Reception
Group shot
Listening to her wife’s speech
Chatting with guests
Lit Candle
Wedding cakes
Close up of cheese
Guest group shot
Having a good time
Cheers
Brides sharing a laugh
Thanks so much to Andrea and Gerry for having me as your wedding phtoographer! I enjoyed myself immensely and I hope you enjoy your photos! 🙂
 