I was delighted to have been asked to be Carly and Josh’s wedding photographer at their Ivybrook Farm wedding at the beginning of November!
Their day was one full of fun and family, and was certainly a relaxing day out with a lunch time reception and ample time to mingle with guests. The time mingling with their guests was foremost in Carly and Josh’s mind when planning their day with only a small portion dedicated to having glamour photos done, which I feel is a really nice way to look at your day.
Still, I was keen to make fulluse of the incredible scenery Ivybrook Farm has to offer!
Ivybrook Farm Wedding Ceremony
My coverage began with Carly and Josh’s Ivybrook Farm wedding ceremony under the large tree nearby the main building of the venue. Their guests were set up facing the tree on the grass, as Carly and Josh both approached the wedding arbour together from the on site bed and breakfast.
The highlight of their ceremony in my opinion was the delightful readings from a family member which detailed the love story of Carly and Josh coming together intermingled with inside jokes and fun stories that had everyone giggling.
IvyBrook Farm Wedding Ceremony
under the IvyBrook Farm Arbour
groom smiling at his bride at Ivybrook Farm
Smiling bridal couple under arbour
Bridal couple laughing during ceremony at Ivybrook farm
Bridal couple listening to reading during ceremony
Bride smiling during ceremony 2
bride and groom closeup of hands
Ivybrook farm wedding ceremony under tree
Bride and groom during wedding ceremony
Exchanging wedding rings during ceremony
First kiss at Ivybrook farm wedding
Bride laughing signing marriage documents
Wedding bands on hands closeup
bride and groom exiting under confetti
Kiss after exiting wedding ceremony
Ivybrook Farm Wedding Reception
Carly and Josh opted to hold a lunchtime reception so as to maximise the time they could spend with the firends and family. The settig at Ivybrook Farm was set up in a delightfully rustic way, complete with Australian fauna and a stunning semi-nude wedding cake set atop a barrel which just made the whole setting pop.
Guests were treated to lawn games, food platters and games for the kids while everyone enjoyed the warm weather before settling down for a pizza lunch.
Lunch was eaten, and speeches were told before we had some time to head out around the grounds to shoot some glamour photos of Carly and Josh. After which we returned for the first dance!
Wedding cake on display at Ivybrook Farm
Sloth wedding cake toppers
Ivybrook farm wedding cake display
Guests enjoying themselves at Ivybrook farm
Smiling guests at wedding
Guests talking at wedding reception
Eating the food
Talking to the bride
Simpsons pig wedding cufflinks
Boys group photo
Girls group photo
Bride and groom entrance to Ivybrook farm wedding reception
Cutting the cake
Ivybrook farm wedding reception
Carly and Josh
Wedding Pizzas
Having fun with the polaroid cameras
bride and groom speech 2
First dance at the reception
Ivybrook Farm wedding first dance
Smiles all round dancing
Glamour Photos
The great thing about hosting an Ivybrook farm wedding is the variety of spots you can head to have your photos done. The area boasts fields of long unkempt grass, or well kept grass depending on what you feel would work best. There are also lines of trees, vineyards and rustic buildings which I certainly made the most of!
Ivybrook Farm group photo
bride with groom in background
Bride and groom under gum trees
Bride and groom in the long grass
Bride and groom in the long grass together
bride and groom walking along the farm track
Bride and groom in the Ivybrook Farm vineyards
Wedding rings on fence post
Engagement ring in rose
Smiling bride through vines
Bride and groom in the Ivybrook Farm vines
Under a big tree together
Smiling for the camera
Bride and groom moody portrait
Ivybrook farm wedding photo
Ivybrook farm wedding photo 2
Sitting on a bench together
Wedding rings on hands close
Thanks so much to Carly and Josh for having me at their delightful wedding!
I always love heading to Ekhidna Wines Mclaren Vale, as it’s one of my absolute favourite wineries in Mclaren Vale to shoot a wedding at! So I was excited to head there once again for Nikki and Trenton’s wedding that took place right at the end of October! The day was a little overcast and windy, but that diddnt hampen the spirits of these two lovely people and their guests!
Preparation
Trenton and his entourage were being prepared in a bed and breakfast on Main street Mclaren Vale, and while Trenton seems cool, calm and collected he was obviously trying to find things to do to keep his mind busy – but he certainly managed to do so, and had his groomsmen nearby to keep the nerves away!
Wedding rings on table top
Wedding rings on grooms shoes
Figuring out the flower
Groom buttoning up shirt
Groomsman walking the hallway
Groom helping best man get dressed
Groom playing funny buggers
The boys looking smashing
Nikki was being prepared a little further away in a hidden bed and breakfast nearber Kangarilla. It was a spectacular location, overlooking the rolling hills the region is so famous for and the building has some amazing architecture! Nikki was being helped to prepare by her sole bridesmaid/maid of honour which made for a very stress-less time!
Helping put on the wedding dress
bridal boots
Helping put on the wedding dress in front of window
Ring in flowers
Smiling bride with bouquet 3
Bride and maid of honour together
Ekhidna Wines Mclaren Vale Wedding Ceremony
Both Niki and trenton were quite excited by their bridal cars so they made a big entrance by driving right up onto the lawn near the vineyards at Ekhidna Wines Mclaren Vale. From there, the ceremony took place with the hills and vineyards in the background and was personalised by some funky personal quirky events Nikki and Trenton planned.
Things such as a coin toss to figure out who says their vows first, adn then their fur baby dog coming to visit as they signed their paper work. These sorts fo things are always guarnateed to put a smile on everyone’s face!
Bride and groom laughing together under the arbour
First kiss Ekhidna Winery Mclaren Vale
Smiling bride after first kiss
Best Man being as imposing as possible
Best wishes from fur baby
Ekhidna Winery Mclaren Vale wedding Ceremony on cloudy day
Kiss to the head of his bride
Glamour Photos
As their dog wasn’t going tostay long we began by taking some glamour photos of both Nikki and Trenton with their dog – however they were a little afraid that he would run off – so I ended up having to photoshop out the leash which was held by one of their sons as he ran with the dog down the vine ally way 🙂
The day’s weather was a finicky beast being cloudy and windy one minute, then sunny the next – but we made the most of it by walking about the vineyards a bit, then using the barrels Ekhidna Wines have on display.
One major reason why I love Ekhida Wines as a Mclaren Vale Wedding Venue is the direction their vine yards face – it always makes for a great drone sunset shot – despite there not being much of a sunset!
Wedding dog
Dog running through vines on wedding day
Bride and groom with their dog
Kiss amongst the Ekhidna WInery vines
Bridal couple walking together amongst the vineyard
Bridal couple through the vines
bride and groom leaning on wine barrels
Ekhidna Winery Mclaren Vale wine barrels photo
Bride and groom in the sunlit vines
Bride and groom kissing over the bouquet
bride and groom walking together in the vineyard 2
Holding one another in the Ekhidna winery Mclaren Vale vineyard
Ekhidna Winery Mclaren Vale vineyard
Drone shot of bride and groom in vineyard
Night time wedding photo
Wedding Reception
To finish up the day, Nikki and Trenton held a cocktail style reception in the Ekhidna Wines cellar door, and also had the SvenStudios photobooth set up! The night was a lovely casual affair, which really picked up once the dance floor opened and everyone cut loose for a bit 🙂 Was a lot of fun to be a part of!
Bridal couples names sign
Wedding favour cookies
Wedding cake topper with names
bridal party entry to reception
Bride and groom entry to Ekhidna Winery
Wedding cake set up at Ekhidna Winery Mclaren Vale
Personalised wedding serviettes
Maid of honour speech 2
best Man Speech 2
bride and groom listening to speeches
Cutting the wedding cake together
First dance 10
First dance 11
Thanks a bunch Nikki and Trenton for having me as your wedding photographer! Hope you enjoy your photos as much as I did taking them!
Ekhidna Wines, or Ekhidna Winery in Mclaren Vale was the stunning backdrop to Sarah and Ricardo’s wedding amongst a wonderful bunch of people who had travelled from far and wide to attend their big day. A big difference between their wedding and many others however was the fact that they opted to do their glamour shoot a few days prior to their wedding day. They instead got dressed up 2 days before their wedding day in mid Januray and had a bit of a ‘first look’ and glamour shoot using optimal light later in the day.
Pre Wedding Shoot
The great thing about what Sarah and Ricardo decided to do was that they were able to dedicate their whole wedding day soley to their friends and family, without leaving everyone at their Ekhidna wines reception while they went off to have their glamour photos taken. As their glamour photos had already been done a few day prior they were able to just party all day! It was also great to me as we were able to make use of the best light during the day, without worrying about getting back inside for speeches or cake cutting. It was a wonderful idea and I can’t believe more pople don’t opt to do this!
Our glamour shoot began as a simple little ‘first look’ between Sarah adn Ricardo in the garden of the bed and breakfast they were staying at that night. It was a very small little garden, but it worked out beautifully as the sun was in a great spot for it to shine in through the leaves of the trees lining the road. Then we head out to the main street of Mclaren Vale where there is a stunning little grove of Olive Trees that are free to walk through as a tribute to the regions large Olive business. I like using this spot later in the day as the sun shines through the canopy of this little grove quite nicely. The next spot we head to was the ‘story bench’ in Willunga which I learnt about back when I was a teacher at the nearby Willunga Primary School. Its a simple little park with large gum trees, a big open grassy area and some nifty, whispy trees I’m not sure what their names are. 😀 We then finished the day back at Ekhidna Wines where Saraha and Ricardo’s dog came to visit for a bit of a shoot throughout the vineyards.
First Look Photo
First look with the sun in the background
Bride looking pretty in Mclaren Vale
Kisses in the MClaren vale Olive Grove
Walking through the Mclaren Vale Olive Grove
Standing together amongst the trees
Holding one another
Close up of Engagement ring
Passion amongst the trees
Walking through the trees
Sitting on the Willunga Story bench
Looking through the tree at his bride
Having fun together
Amongst the wispy trees in WIllunga
Holding each other under the winspy trees
Fun in the sun
Kisses in the sun
Together in the Ekhidna Wines Vineyard
Dog running in the Ekhidna WInes vineyards
Bride and Groom together in the vineyard
Ekhidna wines wedding
Above the Ekhidna Winery vineyard
Bride and groom throught the vineyards
Kisses under the veil
Wispy veil
Dog portrait
Ekhidna winery wedding
Preparation
On the actual day of the wedding, Sarah and her bridal aprty were being prepared at the Ekhidna Wines on-site bed and breakfast which is always convenient as it’s right next door to the wedding venue. I had a little bit of time with Sarah and everyone there and grab a few shots of them all getting ready!
Flower girl dress
Hanging wedding dress
Looking in mirror
Wedding rings box
Getting flower girl ready
Pinning flower on Dad
bride with kids
Kids
Mum helping bride get ready
bride getting ready on her wedding day
Ekhidna Wines Wedding Ceremony
Sarah and Ricardo’s wedding ceremoyn was full of meaningful readings and heartfelt cameos by friends and family throughout, and was of course backdropped to what I feel to be one of the best backdrops to any wedding venue in Mclaren Vale – that of the Hills behind Ekhidna WInes. When there is a little cloud in the sky, it just makes for a stunning backdrop!
Bride approaching her wedding ceremony
Groom watching his bride walk down aisle
Mum and Dad looking on
Wedding ceremony at Ekhidna wines
little one in the aisle
Priest speech
Family member speech
Ekhidna wines wedding ceremony
Bride looking on
Groom looking on
Ekhidna winery wedding ceremony
Wedding
Wedding ceremony
Holding hands during the Wedding ceremony
Exhcnaging wedding bands
Mclaren Vale wedding ceremony
first kiss at Ekhidna wines
Smiling bride during exit
Bride and groom exit
Ekhidna Wines Wedding Reception
To finish up I was at Sarah and Ricardo’s wedding reception on site at Ekhidna wines for a few hours before my wedding photography coverage was at an end. Can you believe I maaged to grab all these shotswithin 6 hours?! 2 hours on their glamour shoot day, and 4 on their actual wedding day and I managed to pretty much cover it all! It was obvious to me that many of those who made speeches throughout the evening were used to public speaking as the quality of all the speeches were fantastic, and tall the guests got right into each one, making the whole experience that much more intimate and special.
Guest book on table
Bride and her bridal party
Groom and his groomsmen
Talking groomsman
Laughing Mum
Kids running about
Happy groom
Drone group shot at Ekhidna WInes
Wedding cake set up at Ekhidna Wines
Speeches
Giving a speech
Dad giving a speech
laughing groom at speeches
Bride smiling at speech
Interpretor
Giving a heartfelt speech
Cheering being married
Cutting the wedding cake together
Sarah and Ricardo, your wedding was an absolute joy to be a part of and I hope you enjoy your photos!
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 🙂
Finishing touches on grooms suit
Getting ready in heart mirror
groomsmen getting ready
Smiling groom getting ready
Smiling groomsmen putting on tie
Best man putting on tie
Groomsmen ready to go
Grooms shoes in woods
Groom leaning on tree
Wedding rings on shoes
Groomsman wearing sunnies
Bunch of groomsmen
Groom looking at camera
Groom playing with cufflinks
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
lacing up the wedding dress
Bride looking pretty in wedding dress
smiling bride with bridal party
Bride looking out window
smiling bride as she gets ready
bridesmaid helping put on dress
Putting on makeup in front of window
Bride walking out front door
bride looking at mirror
bridal bouqet on bedside table
bridal party peeking through window
Bride leaning on door frame
Father of the brides first look
Bride and bridesmaids having fun
Bridesmaids fussing over bride
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 🙂
