Kate and Matt held their wedding ceremony in their backyard for an intimate, and simple wedding ceremony amidst the craziness that has come with the COVID-19 restrictions on wedding gatherings. That said however, they did not compromise as their original plan was to get married at a more traditional wedding venue in the future, only to figure they may as well do it right now! So they did woith their nice, simple backyard Pt Noarlunga wedding ceremony.
Pt Noarlunga Backyard Wedding Ceremony
I arrived just before the ceremony was due to take place to Matt and his family putting together some of the finishing touches to the backyard ceremony setting while also playing with their adorable fur baby who was keeping an eye on things. Kate arrived soon after along side a few more family members and the ceremony began immediately.
A lovely, simple affair with Kate and Matt both exchanging their own personal vows before being declared husband and wife. The fun parts were when their dog wanted to join in on the celebrations 🙂
The weather wasn’t the best in the world – but it also wasn’t too cold, nor was it windy, it was just threatening to rain the entire time. Thankfully the rain held off enough for both their ceremony and their glamour shoot down the famed steps of the Onkaparinga River Mouth.
Wedding rings on bark
Wedding dog
Groom waiting
bride arriving
Bride walking to ceremony in backyard
Backyard ceremony
holding hands during ceremony
Together on their wedding day
Bride listening to vows
Groom listening to vows
Socially distanced wedding ceremony
Standing together at their backyard ceremony
First Kiss Backyard ceremony
Pt Noarlunga Wedding Photos
Once the certificate was signed, and the family photos were done, we head down to what possibly would be the most photographed set of steps in South Australia – the steps leading down to the beach at the Onkaparinga River Mouth.
The entire photoshoot was very laid back, with Kate and Matt super keen to crack a joke and make the most of their big day – and as I was only with them for just over an hour the whole process was over pretty quickly!
I made sure to photoshop in some starwars and lightning bolts in the background to make use of the moody clouds in their backdrop – while also producsing some very heartfelt moments while they were cuddling each other and walking along the boardwalk.
Excited groom
Standing together at the top of the Pt Noarlunga steps
Bride and groom on their Pt Noarlunga wedding day
Pt Noarlunga South Wedding
On the Pt Noarlunga boardwalk
Helping one another over the rocks
Walking along the Pt Noarlunga rocks
Port Noarlunga wedding
Hugs on the rocks
Pt Noarlunga beach wedding
Lightning wedding photo
Bride and groom on the rocks on their wedding day
Bride and groom walking along the boardwalk
Bride and groom hugging each other
Walking together back to their pt Noarlunga wedding
Thanks so much for having me as your wedding photographer Kate and Matt! It’s great to get back into the swing of covering weddings again after the COVID restrictions!
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.
Groom putting on shirt
In case of cold feet socks
Groomsman helping put on grooms tie
Hazing the new guy
Grooms shoes
Groom in tshirt
Groomsmen huddle
Looking on with tie
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.
Bride stepping on groomsmen
Bride and groom through the window
Groom looking at bride
Bride and groom in wedding car
Paxton Winery wedding night shot
Paxton winery wedding from the air
Bride and groom holding one another in the trees
Night time LOVE
Bride and groom holding one another
Bride and groom with the wedding car
Bride and groom in the vineyards
walking together
bride and groom through the vines
Paxton winery wedding 2
Bride and groom through the window at Paxton Winery
bride and groom in ruins at Paxton Winery
Brothers
Paxton Winery wedding at night
Social Distancing group photo
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 wasn’t the nicest day to go out and do a photo shoot out and about high in the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens, but I’m so glad Olivia and Dimitiri were keen to head out anyway as the colours you can get here are just incredible! Also the rising mist from early in the morning just made the feeling of their engagement photos that much more surreal!
Olivia and Dimitri were umming and ering over where to go for their photoshoot, thinking maybe a beach, or the Belair National Park but in the end were very keen on heading to the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens, mainly due to it was where Dimitri had originally proposed.
As this engagement shoot was happening only a few weeks after when they were supposed to be married, I thought this was quite appropriate! Olivia and Dimitri had had to postpone their wedding due to the COVID-19 restrictions.
Once a location was chosen, I really wanted to make use of the lovely light either in the late afternoon for the golden hour, or early morning.
We ended up getting up early on the freezing morning for the gates to open at 8:30 as the COVID-19 restrictions had just been lifted and we expected the Botanic Gardens to be packed with people trying to get out and about a bit! The early start, coupled with the drizzly weather meant we had the whole Gardens to ourselves.
Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens Engagement Shoot
We began our photoshoot walk at the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens lower carpark, nearby the dam wall. Our first reaction when arriving was that we were super lucky to still have some colours in the autumn leaves that made these botanic gardens so magical! I was kind of hoping to get a bit of fog into their photos, but it was fast rising.
We quickly hopped up the nearby hill to make use of some trees that were losing their leaves, then head down to the water’s edge as I wanted to use my favourite tree in all of the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens, but unfortunately it had already lost all it’s leaves 🙁
Holding one another at the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens
Laughing through the red leaves
Close up of engagement ring
Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens Autumn colours
Walking along the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens dam
Walking together in the Autumn colours
Cuddles by the water
Olivia and Dimitri certainly made it easy as their carefree attitude was present all throughout the photoshoot and they had plenty of smiles on their faces!
We then head across the dam, which I feel is always an awesome shot to get, making the couple feel as though they are out in the middle of nowhere on ther path way. It’s a very tricky shot to get though as usually the dam walkway is always full of dozens of other people walking across!
Walking along the Mt Lofty Botanic Dam
Couple on the Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens Dam
The big draw of the Botanic Gardens are the wonderfully vivid autumnal colours you can get at this time of year, and thankfully we were able to capture some before they all fell from the trees. The colours, coupled with the misty morning really made for some wonderful scenes!
I had a blast taking photos with Olivia and Dimitri during this weather, but it’s so rare to get a couple to get up this early and head out in bad weather like this! 🙂
Just have a ook at the types of unique scenes you can get in weather like this! from fog, to muted autumnal colours!@ It’s a great time to take photos! Just not so great if you want to stay snug and warm :/
Couple under the yellow leaves
Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens Bridge
Mt Lofty Botanic Gardens in winter
Couple under the orange trees
Laughing and playing
Hugs under the yellow leaves
Walking together with the mist
Hugs under the maple leaves
Looking at the camera under the maple leaves
Looking at a flower
I’d like to thank Olivia’s sister in law Thalia whose engagement shoot had been given to them by her mother for giving Olivia and Dimitri their engagement shoot! It’s always nice to know that people appreciate their photos so much they have their family and friends also have their photos taken with me! 🙂
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 looking in mirror
Groom and groomsmen on road
Groom putting on tie
Father of the groom
Groom getting ready
Groom putting on jacket
Groomsman helping out
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!
Bride looking pretty in wedding dress
laughing birdesmaids
Rear of wedding dress
engagement ring in bouquet
hanging wedding dress
bride getting her hair done
wow a ring!
bridal party in mirror
Smiling bride as she gets ready
bridal jewellery
Bridal party in kimonos under tree
bride getting ready smiling
Bride holding bouquet as she gets ready
Bridal party helping bride get ready
smiling bridesmaid as she helps
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 🙂
Close up portrait
Bride and groom walking together
Bride and groom in an embrace
Wedding photo in the Old Government House garden
Bride and groom standing in the sun
Belair National Park wedding photo
Belair National Park wedding photo 3
Belair National Park wedding photography
Walking together in the garden
Bride and groom standing together in forest
Standing together under a tree
Belair National Park wedding photo 2
Leaning against a lamp post
Bride and groom dancing
Bridal party photo at old government house
bride and groom standing in the Belair National park
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!
Jenna and Josh’s Ekhidna Wines wedding was an absolute joy to photograph! Loving vibes all around and a group of people that just seemed to love life! Jenna and Josh were surrounded by some of their best friends and family and they all made sure everyone knew they were there to celebrate their big day! It was a pretty neat wedding for me as I actually first met Jenna and Josh while I was up in Darwin as a wedding photographer – and they just happened to live up there at the time. I believe Ekhidna Winery actually referred me to them as a photographer.
Preparation
The day started as it usually does, with me at the groom and groomsmen place of preparation at a bed and breakfast not too far away from Ekhidna Winery. I arrived as the guys were just finishing putting on their shirts and everyone was running about making sure everything was ready for the big day. Josh was showing a bit of nerves, always trying to look directly at the camera, or trying to do something, but not really doing any thing 🙂
Bunch of groomsmen
Groom playing with cufflinks
Smiling groomsmen putting on tie
Groomsman wearing sunnies
Smiling groom getting ready
Groomsmen ready to go
Groom leaning on tree
Best man putting on tie
groomsmen getting ready
Getting ready in heart mirror
Groom looking at camera
Wedding rings on shoes
Grooms shoes in woods
Finishing touches on grooms suit
Jenna was being prepared in a bed and breakfast at the center of Mclaren Vale, it was a well set out house complete with opulent bedroom which made for a great staging spot for photos and video. Jenna seemed to be a lot more laid back than Josh during her preparation, having a lot of fun with her bridal aprty and everyone else there. There were smiles all morning 🙂
wedding dress hanging in bay window
Bride looking out window
smiling bride with bridal party
Bride and bridesmaids having fun
smiling bride as she gets ready
bride looking at mirror
Father of the brides first look
Bridesmaids fussing over bride
Bride walking out front door
Bride leaning on door frame
bridesmaid helping put on dress
Bride looking pretty in wedding dress
Putting on makeup in front of window
lacing up the wedding dress
bridal party peeking through window
bridal bouqet on bedside table
First Look
Jenna and Josh opted to hold a ‘first look’ well before their Ekhidna Wines wedding ceremony so that they can spend more time with their friends and family directly after the ceremony, instead of running off to have their photos done after. The bed and breakfast they had booked was well equipped for this purpose, with a lovely little garden that blocked the sun due to it’s copious foliage. Jenna walked up behind Josh and gave him a cuddle and Josh’s sweet side shone directly after seeing Jenna in her bridal gown for the first time. It was incredibly sweet the way he reacted and teared up while Jenna was all smiles the entire time.
First look
bride sneaking up on groom
bride and groom’s first look
bride and groom together in the morning
bride and groom kissing at their first look
boutonniere
First Look Glamour Photos
We then used the grounds surrounding the small bed and breakfast for some glamour photos. The surrounding area boasted a small vineyard and some nice gum trees which we made use of, along with a small paddock which we made sure to get their pride and joy, the car in some shots. The birdal party were more than keen to get on top of the car and just have some fun with the whole situation 🙂
walking together on the driveway
Holding one another in the vines
Holding one another in the vineyard
hugs amongst the vines
under the gums
bride and groom in the long grass
bride and groom holding each other the long grass
bridal party and car
Ekhidna Wines Wedding Ceremony
Jenna and Josh held their Ekhidna WInes Wedding Ceremony overlooking the stunning southern Adelaide hills and the vineyard out the back of the Ekhidna winery cellar door. It’s an incredible vista that makes for a wonderful backdrop for a wedding. They had a triangular arbour, and with 6 people on each side of the bridal party, there were 15 people out the front during the ceremony including their celebrant! Their guest list was not on the small side either! Lucky Jenna and Josh made use of my optional second photographer and videographer to cover all the angles.
Their ceremony was simple and heartfelt, with nerves coming into play on both sides as they recited their vows, but it just made the whole ceremony that much more intimate.
waiting groom
bride walking with father
bridal approach at Ekhidna wines wedding
bride and groom together at altar
Ekhidna wines wedding ceremony
Ekhidna wines wedding ceremony with triangle arbour
smiling bride during ceremony
groom through bridesmaids
wedding ceremony at winery
wedding at Ekhidna wines
best man and wedding rings
during the wedding ceremony at Ekhidna winery
first kiss
Just married
bride and groom escaping under flower pettels
Ekhidna Wines Glamour Photos
As we had done much of our glamour shots before the wedding ceremony, the ceremony itself took place quite late in the day, meaning that soon after the usual group shots of family and friends, the sun was soon fading. We did manage to get a few speeches in before we head out for the sunset though – which turned out to be absolutely incredible. I got some wonderful golden light filtering in through the vines and from above with the drone!.
Smiling bride in sun light
Having some fun
Admiring the groom’s ring
Bridal party on love sign
bride and groom walking into sunset
bride and groom walking into Ekhidna winery vineyards
Ekhidna wines wedding photo
Ekhidna wines wedding vineyards
Bride and groom in Ekhidna wines vineyards
Bride and groom walking together in vineyards
Ekhidna wines wedding at sunset
Vineyards wedding photo
Bridal party walking about Ekhidna Winery
Bride and groom holding one another on driveway
Nightime wedding photo
Bride and groom in vineyard at night
Ekhnidna Wines Wedding Reception
As is the case with any Ekhidna wines wedding reception on asuch a beautiful day, the whole courtyard area was opened up and extended into the grassy area to the side of the cellar door. This was where Jenna and Josh had set up their dance floor. Their photobooth was set up inside, and the whole flow of the night was beautiful. Speeches were heartfelt and natural, while the dance floor was not empty all night. Jenna and Josh’s guests certainly knew how to have some fun 🙂
Cupcake wedding cake
Bride and groom cutting their wedding cake
Bride and groom cutting the wedding cake
Talking guests
guests having fun
Father speech
Bride and groom listening to speeches
Fathers speech
Bride and groom with bridesmaid
Bride and groom speech
Ekhidna Wines Wedding first dance
Ekhidna Wines Wedding dance
Bride on the dance floor
Guests dancing
Nutbush
Bouquet toss
Bride and her friends
Guests
Groom mingling
Thanks so much to Jenna and Josh for having me as their wedding photographer at their Ekhidna Wines wedding! It was an awesome day to be a part of!