National Museum of Australia Wedding Photos Canberra CBD
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Canberra Wedding Photography

Helena & Xavier at the National Museum of Australia

St Christopher’s Cathedral · James Turrell Skyspace, National Gallery of Australia · National Museum of Australia · Canberra CBD

Church & Cathedral Wedding · Garden Wedding · Urban City Wedding · Region: ACT - Canberra CBD · City: Canberra · Venues: National Gallery of Australia · National Museum of Australia · St Christopher’s Cathedral

Helena came down the aisle at St Christopher’s Cathedral smiling; Xavier was waiting for their marriage blessing at the front. They were already married, and we felt the excitement in the room as their people gathered around them. Outside, her veil caught the breeze and both of them laughed. We then crossed Canberra with the wedding party, from the still pools of James Turrell’s Within without to the mirrored Welcome Wall at the National Museum of Australia. By night, guests were lifting them on the Gandel Atrium dance floor before fireworks and a sparkler send-off.

Xavier adjusts his shirt cuff during groom preparation at Avenue Hotel in Braddon.
Black-and-white portrait of Xavier buttoning his tuxedo jacket at Avenue Hotel, Braddon.
Wedding attendants arrange Helena’s gown and train during preparation at Hyatt Hotel Canberra.
Helena holds a white rose bouquet beside a window at Hyatt Hotel Canberra.
Helena walks down the aisle with an older man at St Christopher’s Cathedral, Canberra.
Helena and her companion walk towards Xavier past seated guests at St Christopher’s in Forrest.
Xavier smiles at the front of St Christopher’s Cathedral in Canberra as Helena approaches.
Helena and Xavier hold hands before a priest during their St Christopher’s Cathedral marriage blessing.
Xavier kisses Helena through her veil during the marriage blessing at St Christopher’s in Forrest.
Helena and Xavier embrace inside St Christopher’s Cathedral in Canberra after their marriage blessing.
Helena and Xavier smile together at the front of St Christopher’s Cathedral.
Helena and Xavier raise their joined hands inside St Christopher’s in Forrest.
Helena and Xavier leave St Christopher’s Cathedral in Canberra with their hands raised.
Helena stands on St Christopher’s Cathedral’s steps with her veil lifting in the breeze.
Helena and Xavier laugh together on the steps outside St Christopher’s in Forrest.
Helena and Xavier sit with their wedding party on a garden lawn in Canberra.
Helena and Xavier walk between wedding attendants as petals fall in a Canberra garden.
Helena and Xavier embrace beside the turquoise pool at the Within without Skyspace, National Gallery of Australia.
Wedding attendants sit on the curved bench inside James Turrell’s Within without, open to the sky above.
Helena and Xavier kiss among their wedding party inside the Within without Skyspace chamber in Canberra.
Helena and Xavier walk out from the stone dome between the turquoise pools of the Within without Skyspace.
Helena and Xavier reflected in still water between the rust-red walls of James Turrell’s Within without.
Helena and Xavier kiss in silhouette beneath the sloping walls of the Within without Skyspace in Canberra.
Black-and-white portrait of Helena and Xavier looking at each other beneath Canberra garden trees.
Helena and Xavier walk hand in hand beside Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra.
Black-and-white close portrait of Helena and Xavier together beneath Helena’s veil.
Helena and Xavier pose beside their reflections in the National Museum of Australia Welcome Wall.
Black-and-white portrait of Helena beside her reflection in the Welcome Wall at the National Museum in Acton.
Helena and Xavier walk along a sunlit wall at the National Museum in Canberra.
Helena and Xavier hold hands before the National Museum of Australia’s angular orange walls.
Helena and Xavier kiss beneath pink fireworks during their National Museum celebration in Acton.
Xavier twirls Helena on the dance floor in the Gandel Atrium at the National Museum in Canberra.
Black-and-white portrait of Helena and Xavier kissing on the National Museum of Australia dance floor.
Xavier dips Helena during their dance in the Gandel Atrium at the National Museum in Acton.
Wedding guests lift Helena and Xavier on the dance floor at the National Museum in Canberra.
Helena and Xavier walk between guests holding sparklers outside the National Museum of Australia.
The wedding story

From a cathedral blessing to the museum dance floor

Braddon & Canberra preparation · Forrest blessing · Parkes portraits · Acton reception

We began at opposite ends of the preparation story. Xavier was fastening his tuxedo jacket and adjusting his cuffs at Avenue Hotel in Braddon, while Helena’s attendants gathered her gown and train at Hyatt Hotel Canberra. At St Christopher’s Cathedral, Helena came down the aisle smiling; moments later she and Xavier stood hand in hand before the priest. We stayed close for his kiss through her veil, then stepped back outside as the breeze picked it up and the two of them laughed on the cathedral steps. Those unplanned little shifts are often where the day feels most like the couple.

From the cathedral, we headed to the National Gallery of Australia in Parkes. First, the wedding party took a breather in deckchairs on the lawn. Then Within without gave us a change of scale: everyone together around the curved bench, and Helena and Xavier framed by rust-red walls and turquoise pools. We used the water for a reflection portrait before moving on to Lake Burley Griffin and the National Museum of Australia in Acton. The museum’s mirrored Welcome Wall let us play with another kind of reflection, while its orange exterior gave us a bold backdrop for the two of them. Inside the Gandel Atrium, the stillness was over in the best possible way. Their guests lifted them on the dance floor; later came fireworks and a sparkler send-off.

Photographer's venue notes

Portraits at the Skyspace, then a reception at the National Museum

Helena and Xavier gave us two very different Canberra portrait settings. At the National Gallery of Australia in Parkes, Within without offered curved lines, rust-red walls and pools that brought their reflections into the frame. At the National Museum of Australia on Acton Peninsula, the mirrored Welcome Wall and orange exterior gave us a sharper, more graphic look before the Gandel Atrium filled with guests for the reception. These are separate stops, so we would leave breathing room between them rather than rush the portraits. That time lets the couple enjoy each place as well as giving us room to work with the light we find there.

The team behind the day: catering by Broadbean Catering, flowers by Janine Florist, bridal hair by Wildflower Bridal Hair, live music from the Baker Boys Band and the wedding film by Cinemotive.

Planning a National Museum of Australia or Canberra CBD celebration? We can help you time portraits around the cathedral, the Skyspace and the museum reception.

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