Ceremony: St Patrick’s Catholic Church, Port Kembla
Portraits: Wollongong Botanic Garden, Keiraville
Reception: Panorama House, Bulli Tops
Assistant Photographer: Kelly Nicholson
This wedding was a big one! We started off at the home of Laura’s mother, full of giggly girls and women, to prepare for the big day. There were so many subtly beautiful moments, nerves and smiles as Laura put on her dress, the flowergirls rehearsed their entrance dance routine, and the ladies added the final touches.
We were hoping the grey skies would hold off, however the rain was unleashed as soon as the other half of the wedding party arrived at the Church. There were many nerves here too, with many loved ones in attendance. The bride was accompanied down the aisle by her father, with one of her nieces playing the organ for her entrance song, just as she’d practiced back home.
The Ceremony was a beautiful Religious ceremony that held many rituals and readings, with Laura and Yerko exchanging soft glances and chatting in hushed tones like kids in class. We recreated a lovely black and white photo of her grandparents for Laura during the signing, before our newlyweds shared a grand exit together.
It was still raining as we headed off to our photo location at the Botanic Gardens, so we hunkered down in our vehicles while I watched the weather radar like a hawk. As soon as I spotted a gap it was all systems go, deploy the umbrellas! We managed to get some amazing shots before the rain started to kick in again so we moved on to our reception destination.
Heavy fog greeted us up at Bulli Tops, so we took it slow and drove accordingly. We still made it with time to spare, and the white fog outside gave an ethereal glow to the room while we captured the decor and details.
The reception was action packed with custom entrances for the entire bridal party, fireworks, and even a video celebrity cameo during the first dance – which was an amazing whirlwind of dry ice fog and fireworks which were otherworldly.
We finished off the evening with some backlit photos underneath the famous gazebo, overlooking the stunning Illawarra region.
