Pool table and pocket squares
Alex was buttoning his collar beside a red felt pool table when we arrived, a silver tie waiting and his hair tied back in a neat bun. Cufflinks next, then a pocket square folded into his navy jacket. His groomsmen gathered under a row of high white windows and clinked glasses, and the laughing started early. Those windows threw soft, even light across the whole group, so we could keep everyone sharp without a single lamp. Out on the timber deck, the boys squeezed together in front of tall gums for a team photo.
Blush pink by the tree ferns
Bec spent a quiet moment forehead to forehead with a loved one, both still in grey robes. Then the gown went on, all lace bodice and soft tulle, and she stood by the curtains while we found the light. In a timber-lined room she turned to show her bridesmaids, who were waiting in blush and dusty-pink dresses. Out on the deck, giant tree ferns made a green wall behind them. A bridesmaid fanned out the train, two kissed Bec on the cheeks at once, and everyone was laughing.
A kiss on the hand
Bec’s dad came out onto the deck in a navy suit, stood beside her for a portrait and then lifted her hand to kiss it. A loved one in a navy floral dress was right there too, beaming. We stayed back for that one, using a slightly longer lens so they could forget about us. Then came hugs from the bridesmaids and a close detail of linked arms and bouquets, with the lace of the gown between the soft pink fabrics. The colours looked like they had been picked from the same autumn garden.
Into the stained glass chapel
The ceremony was indoors in the Lyrebird Falls chapel, a white room with a glass roof and stained glass windows. Alex waited at the front with his groomsmen, and the bridesmaids came in with bouquets of banksia, protea and peach roses. Then Bec walked in on her dad’s arm across the polished timber floor. A glass roof is a gift for a chapel ceremony: light falls from above, faces stay open, and we could shoot the aisle from the back without any harsh shadows on the couple.
Vows, rings and a roar
Alex and Bec held hands between two tall floral installations in rust, peach and cream, and the friends in the front rows were grinning before the vows had even begun. When the kiss came, the whole chapel erupted: a loved one clapping with both hands high, friends cheering, a friend in a pink jacket leaning out of his seat to clap. Bec walked out into the hallway and raised her bouquet in the air like a trophy, and Alex pulled her in for one more kiss by the door.
Confetti on the brick circle
Outside, the guests formed a huge crowd on the round brick courtyard beside the white gazebo, and we climbed up high to fit everyone in as confetti flew. Family groups followed on the same circle, with the dark green garden behind them. Then the wedding party, the boys sitting on a garden bench, and Alex scooping Bec up for a kiss with the groomsmen grinning around them. That courtyard works beautifully for groups: the curved brick leads the eye to the couple and the hedges keep the background calm.
Maples by the gazebo
A Japanese maple near the gazebo had turned gold and orange for autumn, so we walked Alex and Bec underneath it and let the colour frame them from a distance. Then they set off along a flagstone path, Bec gathering her skirt, Alex in step beside her. This is where Lyrebird Falls wedding photos shine without leaving the property: every few steps the garden changes, from bright autumn leaves to deep ferns, so a short walk gives a whole series of different backdrops.
Deep in the tree ferns
The fern gully was our favourite stop. Tall dark trunks, a carpet of green and fronds overhead, and Bec wrapped in a white shawl against the cool air. They touched foreheads, Alex spun her around, and then he dipped her back for a kiss while she held her bouquet up high. We came in close on their hands and rings resting on the banksia and eucalyptus. Under that canopy the light stays soft even in mid-afternoon, so we shoot slightly brighter than usual to keep the greens fresh.
Fairy lights after dark
Later, with the reception underway inside, we stole Alex and Bec for a few minutes in the dark. A hexagon arch strung with lights stood over a white bench in the garden, and they sat close inside it, lit by the glow. Then we moved them in front of a curtain of fairy lights, Bec leaning into Alex with the shawl over her shoulders. Small points of light like these turn into soft circles behind a couple, so a five minute break between courses is all it takes.
