Peach roses and a locket
Our day started with the details laid out together: the invitation, the rings and Sarah’s bouquet of peach and white roses with silvery eucalyptus. Pinned to a blue and white lace garter was a small oval locket holding an old black and white photo, the kind of keepsake that carries someone along for the whole day. We shot it close with the flowers soft behind, because those little details are easy to miss once things get busy. Then her bridesmaid in peach satin lifted Sarah’s veil into place by the window, and Sarah checked the whole look in a tall mirror.
Faces around the doorway
Word got around that the dress was on, and a little crowd of loved ones peeked in around the doorway, grinning before they had even stepped inside. Sarah laughed with a loved one in royal blue, posed with her bridesmaid and stood with her dad and the family for a few lounge room photos. Small rooms are fine for this: we stand back against a wall, keep the window to one side and let the faces do the work. Our favourite frame came on the way out, with Sarah at the open front door and the daylight pouring through her veil and train.
Cufflinks and a garden toast
Up the mountain at Tatra, Glenn was getting ready in a room full of window light. A loved one in a leopard print jacket fastened his cuffs while he grinned down at her, and once his jacket was on he had the easy smile of a groom with nothing left to worry about. Out in the garden, he and his best man clinked glasses in front of a wall of leaves. Ten acres of greenery make a ready-made backdrop, so we kept the family groups in the shade of the shrubs, where the light stays even across every face.
Candles and old photographs
Before the ceremony, a little table held framed black and white portraits beside a sign for those who are forever present in their hearts, with sprigs of greenery scattered in front. Another table carried white roses, blush flowers and three candles, one for each family and one for the two of them. Inside the main building, Sarah waited on a bay window seat between red and purple cushions, her bouquet in her lap. That deep window wrapped her in soft light from three sides, which is about the most flattering light there is for a bride in white lace.
Down the gazebo steps
The ceremony was set for the wrought iron cupola on the lawn. Sarah’s bridesmaid went first, down the curved stone steps from the gazebo, and then Sarah came out on her dad’s arm, her long lace train following them down every step. We stepped back across the lawn so the round tiers of the stairs led the eye straight up to them. Her dad handed her over at the cupola, then sat down with her bouquet held carefully in his lap for the whole ceremony, a frame we love. With a small group of white chairs on the grass, every guest had a front row seat.
Happy tears under the cupola
Sarah and Glenn sat side by side under the iron dome, holding hands, while a family member lit the candles on the stone ledge beside them. Then came the vows. Sarah read hers from a folded page and Glenn wiped his eyes, and when it was his turn she was laughing with a hand over her face. Her bridesmaid was dabbing tears in the front row. In a ceremony this small we work quietly from the edges with a longer lens, because the reactions on the chairs are half the story. The rings went on, and the first kiss followed.
Arms up on the gazebo steps
Signing the register at a little round table under the cupola turned into a kiss on the cheek, and then family took turns standing behind them for photos. Sarah and Glenn walked back out between the chairs with loved ones cheering, and we gathered the whole group on the stone steps in front of the gazebo. One frame was the proper one. The next had every arm in the air. A small guest list makes group photos quick, which leaves more of the afternoon for portraits, so we finished a few family groups and headed into the garden.
Tree tunnels and rhododendrons
For Tatra Receptions wedding photos, the garden paths are the secret: they are made for walking portraits. Under a spreading old tree Sarah and Glenn kissed beside a lamp post, then again in front of rhododendrons in full bloom. In a green tunnel of trees on the gravel path, the bridesmaid and best man joined them, and Glenn and his best man linked arms with Sarah and held the bouquets high. Out on the open lawn Sarah spun her train across the grass, looked back over her shoulder at us, and later flicked her skirt as they strolled hand in hand.
Ferns, a white bridge and chandelier light
Down among the tree ferns, the white wrought iron bridge made a perfect frame: Sarah and Glenn on the arch, lace train spilling down the boards, then a kiss with fronds all around them. From further back we used the ferns to frame a wide shot that shows how deep in the forest this garden feels. As the light softened we brought them under the gazebo, where the chandelier and the little lights in the roof gave off a warm glow, and finished with a quiet kiss in the lamplight before they rejoined their guests for the evening.
