Claire & Nathan {wedding}
When I first met Claire and Nathan a few months ago I was very excited to hear their ideas for their wedding day. They'd decided to do "The Reveal" (or what some call The First Look) which I love. It basically turns tradition on its head with the bride and groom seeing each other before the ceremony. (Incidently, that tradition originally stemmed from arranged marriages to make sure the groom didn't run away(!) and had little or nothing to do with superstition.) Regardless of the time on the wedding day that the bride and groom see each other for the first time, it is always special, but the Reveal allows them time to savour that moment. Sharing Nathan's reaction to seeing Claire for the first time on their big day was beautiful. He positively celebrated in her - his focus 100% on his bride - without the additional nerves that a groom is often feeling standing up in front of all the guests at the start of the ceremony.
The three of us then went off to the beach and the river where we got some beautiful location shots before returning to the Celestine Retreat where the bridal party and immediate family were waiting, ready for those group shots. Doing it this way round meant that after the ceremony, Claire and Nathan stayed with the guests, and as the ceremony ended the reception began without the newly-weds disappearing for an hour or two for photographs.
Another idea that Claire and Nathan had for their wedding day was to have an "unplugged" ceremony. In the program they asked that their guests didn't take photographs or video during the ceremony. I was able to capture some beautiful expressions (and tears) of their guests who were fully present and really sharing the moment with them :-) It was one of the most beautiful, intimate ceremonies I have ever photographed and I think that was partly because noone else was viewing it from behind a camera, and partly because Claire and Nathan had settled their nerves and created an intimacy between them beforehand that was very apparent to everyone there.
There's a great blog post about the Reveal by US photographers, The Chansons, here if you want to read more about the idea.
Claire and Nathan both got ready at the Celestine Retreat with the Reveal and some of the location shots also there; the ceremony and reception were at the Southern End Function Centre.
Celebrant: Kate Thomas; Flowers: Snapdragon Florist; Hair & Make-up: Linda, The Rainbow Room; Claire's dress: Aubrey Rose in Leederville.