ROMINA & JOSH’S WEDDING

As always the cold Winter months tend to be fairly quiet for wedding photography. This year I’ve had a really good break, and while I enjoyed having lots of weekend time with my family,  I was very keen to begin a new wedding season and especially excited to be photographing this lovely couples’ big day.

Romina and Josh were married in mid September at the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Bendigo, with a reception that evening at the Boardwalk Restaurant. This was such a beautiful wedding, and really felt very family orientated. We began our photographic coverage at Josh’s parents home with Josh and his groomsmen getting ready. The guys all looked extremely suave, and I loved their slim-lined grey suits. The home has a great staircase with white balustrade, which I featured in some of the images. After leaving the guys we moved on to Romina’s parents’ home, where the ladies were getting ready. Romina and her mother were so well organised and had everything ready for us when we arrived. We spent some time photographing all of Romina’s gorgeous details, then it was finally time for her to get into her wedding gown. Romina looked absolutely amazing, and her parents were glowing with pride at the sight of their beautiful daughter all dressed up as the bride! Romina had her sister, Josh’s sister and a close friend attending her as bridesmaids, and they looked so elegant in their navy blue dresses. It was such a classy colour theme, set off with cream and green bouquets. One little extra SPLASH of colour was hidden underneath the hemline of Romina’s dress. Orange, suede shoes! How brilliant! I knew we would be showing those shoes off later in the day, but I didn’t realise just how perfect they would be. More about that in a minute….

After the ceremony we asked the wedding party, family and all of the guests to assemble on the steps in front of the cathedral for a group photograph. We also arranged some formal family photographs before moving on to doing creative and artistic shots of the newly weds and their bridal party. Romina and Josh wanted to feature the cathedral where they had just been married, so we stayed for a while longer to capture all that this magnificent building has to offer.

We then moved on to the Chinese precinct and gardens. This location was actually Josh’s request, to honour his family’s heritage, and long standing connection with the Bendigo Chinese Association. I absolutely loved taking photographs in among the brightly coloured and ornate Chinese decoration. It wasn’t until I lined the bridal party up underneath the elaborate entrance to the gardens and asked Romina to hitch up her dress a little to show off those shoes, that I realised the intense colours of the Chinese decorations actually matched the colours of the wedding party! Deep blue and bright orange. I still don’t know if this was coincidence, or by design. Did you plan this Romina? Either way the resulting images are amazing! I must say this is my favourite image from the day..

.

Next we went to Lake Weeroona to capture the beauty of the sky and water at dusk, before rushing to our last location, the Bendigo Town Hall. I love taking photographs in the city when it’s lit up at night, and though we didn’t have the luxury of very much time, we still managed to get some stunning images. I thought I was going to be arrested by a policeman in a hilarious but heart stopping moment. My sister Sue and I were demonstrating how to do a dancing twirl in front of the Town Hall, possible obstructing the traffic just a tiny bit… when the police car pulled up beside us! I still can’t work out if the Police Officer was angry, confused or amused at what we were doing, but I babbled a mouthful of gracious apologies and basically ran away. Ha ha ha…. luckily he just drove off. Ooooh I am such a rebel, and I’d do it all again to get the amazing photographs that we ended up with!

So here is a collection of some of my favourite photographs from Romina & Josh’s brilliant wedding. I hope you enjoy them…..

 

YOU CAN SCROLL THROUGH THE IMAGES WITH THE ARROWS ON YOUR KEYBOARD  ◄   ►

.

Romina & Josh, thank you for your faith and trust, and for allowing me to be part of your amazing wedding. I really enjoyed working with you and your wedding party. It’s such a joy when everyone is so nice, easy going, and having fun. One of your groomsmen (Sam) even called me an ‘extreme’ wedding photographer as I wobbled on the top of my step ladder at the lake…. a comment that still makes me laugh.  I’m not as extreme as I would wish to be, but I do love what I do, and a day like yours just re-affirms how lucky I am to have this job. It was a pleasure meeting your families and friends, and my honour to be your wedding photographer. I look forward to seeing you both again soon, and showing you the rest of your photographs.

.

Neil Colton - Absolutely beautiful work! The use of color and texture are simply elegant and so very natural. What a wonderful style you have.

Romina - Annie – you are amazing! We are so happy with what we have seen so far. You have been able to capture what a wonderful day it was and how happy we are. A BIG thank you to you.
P.S and yes, it was a coincidence the dress colour and shoe colour matched so well!

RichardBFlores - Incredibly beautiful work!!! I love the color and elegance of all your shots. Definitely my type of style!! Great Job!!

REB6studios Videography - Wow! I love the details shots! amazing work as always!

Gary Porter - Hi Annie, your photo are amazing your eye for detail is incredible, regards Gary

Delaware Wedding Photography - Gorgeous work, great job on the SUPER HUGE group photo.. Once again the detail shots are awesome!

LISA & JAMES’ WEDDING

Lisa and James were married in Bendigo on the 16th of April at the Sacred Heart Cathedral. This was a wedding I had been really looking forward to, and will certainly never forget! I first met Lisa and James early last year and was instantly drawn to them. They are both truly beautiful inside and out, and I really admired their enthusiasm during the planning stages of the wedding and their obvious love and respect for each other. I also took engagement photographs for Lisa and James mid last year, but never posted any of the images because many of them featured in the gorgeous guest book they had at their reception, and I didn’t want to spoil the surprise for their guests. Now they’re married I will post some of those engagement photographs here on the Photo Journal soon.

Alright… back to this utterly gorgeous wedding. It had it all. Beautiful details, stunning bride, debonair groom, lots of lovely family and friends, kids, puppy dogs, fabulous dancing, laughter, tears, and lashings of love. Unfortunately it also had an element of loss, as James’ father passed away suddenly in October last year. I really don’t want to say too much about that, other than to mention how deeply moved I was at the courage, love and support that was demonstrated by this very close family and everyone present. It never felt like a sad day, and even though the emotion was very apparent, it always felt very positive and like a true celebration for James and Lisa.

We started the day photographing James and the groomsmen getting ready. James was so cool, calm and collected, and looked amazing in his wedding attire. James and Lisa have two dogs that they adore, and had asked me if it would be OK to include their ‘babies’ in some of the photographs. James had Aero the Border Collie with him, and Lisa had their Cavoodle, Nala with her at her parents house. Both dogs were very well behaved, and I just adore the photographs featuring these furry friends. After we left James and the guys we moved on to where Lisa and her bridesmaids were getting ready. Seeing Lisa in her wedding gown for the first time quite simply took my breath away. She looked utterly stunning! I also really loved the soft green bridesmaid dresses. The ladies looked amazing, and the two little flower girls were as sweet as can be. Lisa has an identical twin sister, which as a photographer was a first for me. It was a little surreal look through the lens at them together!

After the ceremony and family formals at the Cathedral we chose to stay a while longer and take some photographs of the entire bridal party at this gorgeous location. We then moved on to Victoria Hill to take advantage of the last golden light and gorgeous sunset. It was quite cold and we had to move very quickly as the light falls fast at that time of the day. Thanks to a fantastic bridal party and James and Lisa’s dedication we got some truly amazing images. Once we found ourselves standing in almost complete darkness we finally gave in, and moved on to the reception at The Platinum Room. I think I actually gasped out loud when we first walked in! The room was decorated so beautifully, and was a culmination of Lisa and James’ creative ideas and the amazing and talented Miranda from The Eternal Vase. The only thing more amazing than the room itself was the awesome dance moves the bride and groom pulled out during the bridal waltz. Woweee… yes they’re in love, but can they dance? Ummm… YES they can. That’s a great big “yes”! I hope you enjoy the slideshow of this amazing day. James and Lisa’s wedding….

 

YOU CAN SCROLL THROUGH THE IMAGES WITH THE ARROWS ON YOUR KEYBOARD  ◄   ►

 

.

Lisa and James… I want to thank you so much for giving me the honour of being part of your special day. I think you’re an amazing couple, and it’s perhaps your strength and immeasurable support for one another through such a difficult time leading up to the wedding that I am most taken with. I loved your wedding, and I absolutely loved spending time with you, your wonderful bridal party and families. I also really appreciate your true love for photography, and how much importance and emphasis you placed on the photographic part of your day. As a photographer I just could not have asked for more! As a person, I am simply grateful to know you and call you my friends. I am sorry you have waited so long for this Journal post, and I thank you for your patience. I just hope you love your photographs as much as I do!

.

James & Lisa O’Brien - ANNIE!!
When we saw the 10 or so edits you had done straight after the wedding, we didn’t think it could get any better, we were amazed, in awe, and in love with the photo’s (but of course not as much as with each other.. haha).

And then tonight we get a call from you, saying you had done this post, and we were straight onto it.

When I said that we couldn’t believe how good they were, we meant it!!!
Every small detail captured, every feeling caught, we could not have asked for more!

We also want to thankyou so very much for the kind words written in your blog.
It means a lot to us to have had you on board as our photographer, but also we have developed a truly unique friend.
Your talent is not measurable and we feel that no-one can compete.

Thankyou, thankyou, thankyou.. so very much.. from the bottom of our heart’s.
You are a rare gem.

James & Lisa.

Jim Boyer - Well Annie,
I actually shed a tear looking at the photos. I am so proud of Lisa and James with what they achieved on their wedding Day. Your pictures truly do capture the day.
A great Job.

Kelly Brereton - So beautiful Annie! You’ve captured everything that Lise and James are about :-)

Matt Sea - Beautiful shots that really do capture a wonderful day! James and Lisa are lucky to have such a collection of wonderful images to look back on. Well done :)

David Akesson - I take a gander at your blog every so often. Find it quite inspirational. There’s a classic simplicity in your photography Annie. But I reckon you’ve excelled yourself on this wedding. It’s a brilliant collection of professional photography. Thanks for showing them.

Marie O’Brien - Annie, I’m sorry I haven’t posted a response earlier, every time I come onto this site I end up in tears remembering what a truly beautiful day it was. My son and daughter-in-law make an amazing couple and, as shown by your fantastic photography, are truly a very photogenic pair. You have captured the day, the feeling and the beauty of that day completely. Thankyou soooooo much for your unique talent. I am sure James and Lisa will be able to relive that day every time they look at their photos.

Leah Tamblyn - I’m with Jim – I too shed a tear looking at the photo’s. I am Marie’s neighbour (James mum) – but we’re more like family. These photo’s are just beautiful, what a wonderful photographer you are. Lisa and James wedding day was just perfect in every way and you have captured the love between them in your photos. WONDERFUL, LOVE YOUR WORK, but then again you had two beautiful people too work with xoxox

jav photography inc. - Beautiful photos!! You really captured their day for them :) Love the ones at night (near the end) in front of the tree!!!

Dajuan - Annie, every single image is exquisite! It’s like their wedding is feature Hollywood production. I’m so glad to see these photos, because words couldn’t explain this adequately. Awesome!

Chris - Wow! I love the sunset photos!

LAUREN & STEVEN’S WEDDING

This was a beautiful wedding, and Lauren and Steve are a truly wonderful couple. They were married in March 2011 at Cape Horn Vineyard in Echuca, with a beautiful and very emotional ceremony late in the afternoon on the bank of the Murray River, surrounded by their family and dearest friends. I first met Lauren at Tina & Josh’s wedding in January last year, where Lauren was one of Tina’s bridesmaids. When Lauren phoned a few months later and asked if I would photograph her big day I was absolutely thrilled. It’s always so lovely to photograph people who I’ve had the pleasure of working with before, and to see so many familiar faces among the family and guests. They had a large bridal party with 5 attendants each, making for a fabulous, fun group of 12.  I have to say they were one of the most attentive groups I’ve ever worked with, making my job very easy and lots of fun.

Because their ceremony and reception venue was a 20 minute drive from Echuca and they wanted to be married in the late afternoon, we decided it would be a great idea to take the majority of their photographs before the ceremony. We arranged a special meeting in Lauren and Steve’s new home, which is not yet completed. This was the first time they saw each other on their wedding day, and it was a very special moment. The builders and painters got to have a short break from their work, and seemed highly entertained at the proceedings! After Lauren and Steve’s emotional meeting we moved on to some locations, including  a lovely private property on the Murray and the old Echuca Court House. On a whim I decided to get the bridal party to dance around Lauren and Steve in front of the Court House. I just love the colours and joyous mood of this photograph.

Back to the start of the day. We began in the morning photographing Steve and his groomsmen getting ready. The guys looked so dashing in their charcoal suits, and they were all in very high spirits. Steve looked very suave, and was calm, confident and very easy to photograph. After leaving the guys we moved on to the house where Lauren and her bridesmaids were getting ready. The girls were very well organised, and we had lots of time to photograph Lauren’s gorgeous details and her preparations. Lauren looked stunning in her wedding gown, and was positively glowing with the excitement and anticipation of marrying her wonderful man! Her bridesmaids were a gorgeous group of ladies and looked brilliant in their flowing, coral pink dresses. Now on to the slideshow. I hope you enjoy the following highlights from Lauren and Steve’s amazing wedding day.

.

.

It was such a pleasure photographing your wonderful day Lauren and Steve. Everything was beautiful, and the entire day was very relaxed and enjoyable.  I think your ceremony location was absolutely breathtaking, and the beauty of the Murray just added to the emotion of the event. I wish you both a lifetime of love and happiness, and feel very honoured to have had the pleasure of meeting you both and spending such an amazing day with you, your friends and family.

.

Alex Harrison - Annie, these photos are absolutely gorgeous. The posing and composition in them all is just perfect – what a great job you did!

Julie Weisberg - Annie these are amazing! I love your style! My favorites are the images at the construction site. The tree is a great find too, The bride looks like she’s leaning into an elephant trunk. Talk about talented!

Joe Miles - What a great set of shots! I love your lighting on them all-so natural.
You’ve got a great eye for composition. The couple looks very relaxed and at ease infront of you too so must have been a joy to take their pics.

William Ng - These pictures are wonderful !

Neil Colton - How cool is this! What a wonderful style you bring to the work. I’m a bit envious :) Great work, Annie! ~ Neil

Krystal Radlinski - Positively lovely images Annie!

Agnes of Neusse Photography - Annie, your work is absolutely beautiful. The composition, the emotion, and the color are simply pleasing to my eyes, and completely inspiring. Thanks for sharing such a beautiful wedding. Lauren and Steve are simply gorgeous to photograph; congratulations on your marriage and all the best to you both!

F A C E B O O K