Olivia, Chris, their family and friends are preparing themselves for a incredible day. The weather was phenomenal, the views incredible and the atmosphere was electric.
Olivia and the girls were busy being pampered, enjoying some nibbles and a few glasses of bubbly at Olivia’s parents house. Olivia owns the hair salon Viva La Glam in Timaru, and of course had her fabulous colleagues helping her to prepare.
Once the girls were all ready to go we grabbed a few snaps outside the house and down at the stables Olivia’s father built for the horses.
Olivia and Chris had seven wonderful page boys and flower girls lead them down the aisle, and also to present the rings (once they found the alter!)
The reception was held back at the farm – Olivia parents house under a funky white marquee.
After a few nibbles and some time to relax with their guests, it was time for speeches.
Olivia’s father taught his daughter how to have her new husband eat how of the palm of her hand and Angus gave up a few choice stories about Chris.
After a beautiful and fantastic day with their closest family and friends, Olivia and Chris prepared for the rest of their lives together, as Mr. and Mrs. O’Sullivan.
[audio:http://www.phunkeyphotography.com/wp-content/uploads/2-Lou-Christie-Im-Gonna-Get-Married.mp3|titles=Lou Christie - I'm Gonna Get Married] Hit the play button above, listen, relax and enjoy!
Kind of love
Just a very special kind of love
Now you give my heart a song to sing Lyrics of the many splendored thing
In a beautiful old farm house, nestled away in a Geraldine garden reminiscent of AA Milne’s ’100 Acre Wood’, I found a hive of energy. Roseanne, her bridesmaids and her honorary bridesmaids were preparing for one of the biggest days of Roseanne’s life.
As I collected together the details of the day (planned and created almost entirely by Roseanne) it became clear to me that this was no ordinary wedding. Every tiny detail had been thought over with careful consideration and everything was personalized to suit Roseanne and Eldon.
Just a very special kind of love.
Roseanne designed her bridal gown and her bridesmaids dresses, as well as their bouquets. As Roseanne wears very little jewelry, Eldon gave her a gorgeous watch in place of an engagement ring, a theme carried through to the wedding as Roseanne’s bridesmaids and Eldon’s groomsmen were also presented with watches for the wedding.
As the girls started to get dressed, it all started to become very real. Guests were beginning to arrive for the ceremony and Roseanne could hear the boys arrival on the tractor.
This Merry-Go-Round of love will never stop
I’m Gonna Get Married And surrey down the aisle on wings of love
Meanwhile, my second photographer Heather was hanging out with the guys. Getting dressed and relaxing. Preparing for the day ahead.
At last, it was time for the ceremony. With the guests and her fiance waiting, Roseanne and her father glide down the aisle towards the man Roseanne’s father was about to give her away to.
After a beautiful ceremony including readings from Roseanne’s honorary bridesmaids, Jordana, Brianna and Becky and a fabulous rendition of ‘Amazing Grace’ Roseanne and Eldon we married.
After the ceremony, Roseanne had organised some games for the guests, a photobooth to play with an an incredible afternoon tea for all to enjoy. Everything was handpicked by Roseanne and Eldon to enhance their day.
Guests were also asked to stamp their leaf and sign their names on Roseanne and Eldons ‘Wedding Tree’ – a print Roseanne had made with their initials engraved into the trunk of the tree..
The farm was the perfect setting for Roseanne and Eldon’s wedding party pictures, and the GTO Pontiac they chose for their transport was just magical.
After their pictures we all made our way to the farm shed for Roseanne and Eldon’s very creative, intimate and magical reception.
Roseanne spent months collecting suitable old bottles and jars, she made table centre-pieces and decorations with flowers and oils as well as hand making bottles of chocolate, apricot and caramel sauce for guests to take away.
The tissue paper flowers hanging from the roof and the wedding cake itself were also all handmade by Roseanne.
Speeches and a meal finished up the evening. Roseanne’s father shared with us their proposal story – a tale of a girl on her travels and a boy waiting patiently for her arrival home. Roseanne came through the arrivals gate at the airport to see her man waiting for her – holding up a card requesting ‘Roseanne Gardner’. As she rushed towards him he dropped the back flap of the card down to reveal a question – ‘Will you marry me?’
After months of planning, prep and hard work… here they are.
Mr. and Mrs. Megaw (that’s EM-EEE-GEE-AE-DOUBLE-YOU – MEGAW!)
Saturday, 11th February 2012. The weather (despite the forecast all week) is phenomenal. The clouds are incredible… and yet not a patch on Kat; my beautiful bubbly bride.
You’ll get to meet her shortly, but first a wee taste into what a fabulous couple Ben and her really are…
Kat choose these goooogeous sparkly shoes, and beautiful white bouquets. Although at first they might seem at odds for a wedding, sparkles and tradition are Kat and Ben all over. Together they are strong in their Christian faith and family values and traditions… but my goodness do they both have sparkly personalities!
Kat’s brother and sister, Rachel (Kat’s Maid of Honour) and Andrew (one of Ben’s groomsman) designed their wedding stationary, including the B&K crest and the print above – a line from one of the hymns in their service.
Kat regularly travels to London for work as she is an event planner by trade. She is currently working on New Zealand’s organisation for the London Olympics… apparently planning her wedding after that was a breeze!!
She choose a fantastic long veil (which proved ‘interesting’ to navigate in the Wellington Wind!) and I found the cute (and very appropriate) wee coaster above in her incredible home where the girls were getting ready.
One of Kat’s friends came round to work on the girls hair and makeup, and the jacket above belonged to Kat’s mothers, mother. It looked stunning with Kat’s dress and kept her cozy through the evening.
Pictured above from left to right; Rachel (Kat’s sister), Halia (Kat’s best friend who is apparently good at debating (and winning!)) and Kate (Ben’s sister) were the most gorgeous and incredible bridesmaids Kat could have asked for.
The girls watched their favourite movies including The Notebook – while frequently acting out their favourite parts… I’m quite impressed by how much Rachel knew by heart!
With their hair and makeup done, the girls dressed and carried out final preparations (lip gloss, etc) to leave for the ceremony.
Some quick bridal portraits outside, and were off to the church!
Kat’s parents were just fantastic. Both are an obvious inspiration and rock for Kat and they were absolutely there for her right the way down the aisle.
Kat’s bridesmaids and her Mum traveled behind us (Kat, her Dad and myself)… they were delighted to see me pop out of the sunroof for a quick piccie while we paused at the lights!
Stuart (Kat’s Dad) just beamed with pride as he helped his little girl out of the car and prepared to give her away to her fabulous fiancee.
Bagpipes played to announce Kat’s arrival, and music accompanied her and her father down the aisle, to meet Ben.
The ceremony couldn’t have been more special. It with stitched with personal details; from one of Ben and Kat’s very special friends and mentors leading the service to marry them (Rev. Michael), all four parents proudly giving Kat and Ben away to each other, to Nana and Petra’s readings, and Rachels stunning strong voice accompanying the signing of the register.
Kat and Ben are so clearly committed to each other and so fabulously in love they seemed to, at times, almost forget we all were there. Throughout the ceremony were many precious looks, giggles and silent expressions exchanged between them both. Communication without words.
We stayed behind at the incredible Old St Pauls church for a few photos before heading down to the reception for some speeches, dinner, dancing and cake!
The speeches were all fantastic. With such a strong family bond at the heart of all of them, several had even me welling up! Some though, were just plain hilarious… funnier though, perhaps was Rachel’s delayed reaction to a joke regarding Ben’s choice of tartan (y’all know what I’m talking about!)
Despite this, Rachel and Andrew (Kat’s brother and sister) absolutely had the last laugh. They prepared a rap, to the beat of The Fresh Prince of Bel Air telling the story of Kat’s life. They had the room in stitches, and Kat in absolute fits of laughter… I honestly can’t express how impressed I am!! Siblings of the year award goes to…!
Once the speeches had finished, and the cake had been cut, the dancing began with Kat and Ben truly rocking out their first dance as husband and wife.
Kat and Ben, I can’t express how blessed I feel to have had the pleasure of capturing the first day of the rest of your lives together. You’re an incredible couple about to embark on an exciting and incredible journey together.
“If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self‑seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.”
- 1 Corinthians 13:3-6 as read during Kat and Ben’s service
Here we go… Amy and Sam! Ohmygosh! What a wedding. Amy and Sam live in Brisbane, Australia but decided to get married in Timaru as Sam’s family and Amy’s parents all live here – they married on the cliff by the lighthouse over looking the ocean and had such an incredible bond with family throughout… check it out:
I started the day off chilling out with Sam and the guys at The Shearers Quarters, Seadown. They rocked it out on the driving range and then headed in for a drink and a bite to eat…
Then I caught up with the girls in Washdyke, Addict Hair and Beauty worked hard all morning to do up the girls who all looked completely breathtaking!
Amy’s big sister, Kerrie was her maid of honour… the best maid of honour ever!
Time for the guys to get ready, I headed back to Sam’s brothers to snap away while the guys made themselves presentable for the wedding… don’t they scrub up well??!
‘Big Red’ (obvious reason…) was Sam’s Best Man… he was my best man too since he kept everyone laughing all day long!
Amy’s dress was incredible. It wrapped around her and set off her beautiful bouquet of roses perfectly.
Kerrie was there to fix the lip gloss and help Amy get into her dress…
Once she was ready, Amy emerged from her bedroom at her parents house as a bride. Her Dad saw his little girl as his little girl for the last morning before he gave her away.
Sam organised a couple of fantastic wedding cars as a complete surprise for Amy and we headed down to the ceremony.
Amy and Sam’s ceremony was fantastic, beautiful and the gorgeous Billie sang as everyone signed the register.
After the ceremony we headed back to the reception venue The Landing Services Building which is just FANTASTIC. The walls and decor are incredible and the service is out of this world.
We cranked out the Polaroid before rocking it down to the old sheds and rail tracks behind The Landing Services Building.
Back to the reception for dinner and some beautiful speeches. Amy and her Dad had even me in tears. Big Red and Sam did fantastically and Kerrie and Chris (the MC for the evening) were just hilarious!
Congratulations, Amy and Sam. It was a true pleasure to be able to capture your special day for you.
Meet Meagan and Kj.
Kj likes surfing, snowboarding, chilling out and arm wrestling.
Meagan likes organisation, second hand stores, anything vintage and wedding planning.
Meagan loves to DIY. Everything! As an event manager by trade, and having been a bridesmaid four times… Meagan knows where it’s at! She’s documenting her journey of planning her own vintage-inspired DIY wedding on my blog, and also has a facebook page where you can chat with her about all things weddings.
Meagan bought the bike below for KJ for Christmas, and beautifully restored it from being suffocated with rust… it even has the most incredible vintage bicycle bell! Love!!
‘Cheese’ – one of Meagan and KJ’s best friends came along for a ride out to Taylors Mistake, where KJ and him spend a lot of time surfing. We hung out at the house bus overlooking the bay for a while, chowed down some beautiful Indian and headed down to the beach.
Meagan brought some bubbles (and some fabulous chairs) although it was a little windy it was quite warm and relaxing chilling out by the ocean.
We had such a blast rocking it out by the gorgeous ocean, we were shooting right up to dark.
Yesterday I met Amy and Sam. They booked me all the way from Brisbane, Australia and are in town for the week to GET MARRIED on Saturday. Since Sam is from Timaru, they decided to get married down here in this beautiful town.
We met up in gorgeous wee Pleasant Point yesterday for a coffee, to hang out and shoot their engagement session – it was so SO hot!
Amy and Sam had brought with them this gorgeous wee chalkboard that they found in an antique store and brought all the way from Aussie for their session! Wicked!!
After the railway we took a wee wander down the road to find somewhere for a picnic. We found the perfect paddock and settled down on the picnic blanket to chill out in the sunshine… then I saw it! Rainbows in the irrigation!!
Amy and Sam were so fab and up for it! Kissing in the ‘rain’ (irrigation!) While I sprint in and out of the way so as not to get my camera wet!! Crazy fun.
Wow. 2 months competing, 9 months of planning and almost 10,000 votes all came down to January 12th, 2012.
I ‘met’ Victoria and Andrew when they entered into our Royal Wedding competition. To enter, Victoria sent the above picture of herself and Andrew accompanied with the following email:
“Tell me about the proposal: It was super cute, he got all dressed up and made a three course dinner! While we had dinner we listened to a playlist he made for the night with all our favourite songs from when we were 16 and first met. When it came down to the proposal he said “becuase you’re my best friend, we have a beautiful family and I love you something crazy.”
Three things you love about your partner:
* His genorosity
* His patience
* The fact that I know he will never stop loving me like he does, through two kids and two degrees.
Choose one word to summarize yourself: Perfectionist!”
They worked hard through the first round of voting and came out in the Top 15. To continue through to the next round of the competition, they sent me the following video for judges to decide on the Final Five.
I can tell you now, they breezed through judging round and were into the finals.
Suddenly, s@%! got real! The competition heat skyrocketed as the Final Five worked the networks for votes.
The Hood family were in the paper, and Victoria was the radio:
It all paid off. Finally, on the 27th June 2011, Victoria and Andrew were announced the official winners of the Royal Wedding competition. Since then, Victoria and her fabulous family have worked tirelessly to organise one the funkiest, personal and most beautifully sincere weddings I’ve ever had the pleasure to attend.
So, without further ado, I present to you a sneak peek of Victoria and Andrews Royal, Roaring 20′s Wedding…
Victoria won a voucher from Amanda’s Bridal Services toward the cost of her bridal party outfits. Her bridesmaids outfits were custom made and her wedding gown was brought in from the states also through Mandy.
Victoria had her bridesmaids write messages for her in blue on the sole of her shoes from Charlotte Bedogni and she had a brooch bouquet custom made by Design Me Vintage in memory of her father.
The wonderful Lucy, of Lucy Harvey Make-up and Hair Design started bright and early at 8am to give her fabulous services for Victoria, her bridesmaids and her mother to have their hair and makeup done… all five girls just looked phenomenal right through to the end of the night.
Victoria and Andrew’s daughter and flower girl, Sophia kept the girls and myself entertained through the morning, dancing in her Aunties shoes, and even helping me with the photography -
Victoria had asked me to take a photo of her bouquet and the bike as I’m told her father used to build bicycles. I took both items outside to photograph and pondered for a few minutes on how best to arrange them.
Sophia sat next to me as we thought… then she say’s quietly ‘I think I know how to do it…’
‘Go on…’ I tell her, ‘you show me what you think.’ She carefully lifts her mothers bouquet and places the bike just so, she slowly slides the stem of the bouquet under the bike and proceeds to instruct me on which angle I should take… perhaps I ought to watch my step – Sophia is coming into business!
Victoria’s two younger brothers, Johnny and Tom came out to the ceremony from Chertsey as their father would have done to walk Victoria down the aisle and give her away to her strapping fiancee. Kirsten was helping him with his buttonhole as he saw his beautiful big sister come out of the hallway as a bride.
He came out with something quite brotherly and sarcastic… but quietly followed it up with, ‘You look really pretty, Victoria.’
While I was hangin’ out with the girls at Victoria’s family farm in Chertsey, my second photographer, Heather was chilling with the boys. The day before the wedding, Andrew and his groomsmen headed up to Christchurch to pick up their suits and also for a cut throat shave!
The morning of the wedding, I’m told Andrew called one of the bridesmaids (Beth, I think!) to ask where the eye pencil was.
‘They’ve shaved off my eyebrows!!’ he says… ‘Just kidding!’ he finished. I’m not too sure how amused Beth was at the time!
Heather and the boys started out at the hairdresser to have their hair ‘twentified’ and then down to Kelly’s for a beer (or two) and some lunch.
After lunch, Andrew headed up to Rakaia to pick the bridal vehicle. A 1987 XJ-S Jaguar. The boys and guests after the ceremony practically drooled over it, and Andrew almost looked a little offended (definitely astounded) when I asked him if it meant we had to drive to Terrace Downs slower than usual… ooops! I think I’ll stick to photography!
The boys had their cigars and a set of cuff links for each groomsmen… I’ve definitely got my eye on that Superman set… *I am not a comic nerd!*
Victoria and Andrew’s ceremony was lead by Father Grey (fabulous guy, by the way! He’s so lovely and absolutely hilarious!) at Holy Name Church in Ashburton. Victoria’s mother and grandmother were both married here, and we took some similar family pictures outside to add to the family collection.
Victoria and Andrew’s ceremony was so special, with Sophia leading down the aisle and Astin, their son presenting the rings there was a very close connection with family throughout. Don’t tell anyone, but I’m sure I spied a wee tear from one or two of the groomsmen!
HotShots Camera Kiosks supplied their photobooth kiosk for the entire wedding as part of the Royal Wedding prize, Victoria and Kirsten organised some fabulous 20′s style props to play with… guests were queuing up all afternoon and into the night to play! The coolest thing, I thought was that you can add a message to your photo for the Bride and Groom and also upload it instantly to Facebook… so family and friends unable to come to the wedding can see some of the pictures right away!! Wicked.
Victoria and Andrews cake was also to-die-for! Made by Cafe Time, one tier Red Velvet and the other traditional fruit, their cake was very 20′s and so fitting for a Royal Wedding with its regal vibe and the Royal V&A inscription.
La De Da Wedding Hire outfitted the afternoon reception area which included a table of family wedding photographs of both sides of the family, for guests to peruse and a beautiful arch under which the cake was presented, for the newlyweds to cut.
After a good catch up, a few drinks and congratulations we hit the road (30 minutes late after eventually finding Victoria’s clutch in Tom’s car!!). I could see Andrew thoroughly enjoying driving the Jag (and to everyone who asked him to be – he was very careful!) although I still couldn’t keep up the whole way… and we lost the bridesmaids/groomsmen somewhere around Methven. I guess we really wont be needing to drive slower than usual huh…!
We stopped traffic (and a jet boat) on the bridge over the beautiful Rakaia Gorge and hurried on up to Terrace Downs Resort.
Victoria and her bridesmaids called into the powder rooms, downstairs from the main reception room to change into their evening accessories, adjust lip gloss and prepare for their grand entrance into the main reception.
Andrew’s best man, Victoria’s Godfather, Andrew, and Victoria’s brothers gave some fantastic speeches – wee Sophia certainly thought so – Rock on gorgeous girl!!
Victoria and Andrew kicked off the dancing to their live band – Redeal. They livened up the guests and had almost everyone on the dance floor for most of the evening. As the final show down, Andrew’s groomsmen Simon jammed it out on the drums.
Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Hood. You’re a fantastic couple, with a beautiful & precious wee family. It’s been a true pleasure getting to know you all and an honour to have the privilege of capturing your special day.
“Because you’re my best friend, we have a beautiful family and I love you something crazy.”
- Andrew Hood.
Victoria, Andrew and I had blast up at Lake Hood (which is aptly named) for their ‘Royal Engagement’ as they were the winners of our Royal Wedding competition. We rode the waves on a particularly buoyant pier, had an argument with balloons, popped out the polaroids and as you can see, did some extreme exploring! Don’t ask me about the explorer pose, I just turned around to see them doing it!
Hello, Kia Ora, Aloha.
It’s nice to meet you. My name is Cathie, (that’s me, to the right and down a bit). I’m a mother, photographer and lover of chocolate. I’m here to give you a wee heads up on Engagement Sessions. Why would you have one? What do they involve?
Get to know me.
Getting along with your wedding photographer is one of the most important factors in choosing the right photographer for you. The only person you will spend more time with on your wedding day is your fiance… So choose someone you like! At your Engagement Session you will get a really good idea of how your photographer works. When I am shooting I’m very excitable, quite loud and I love to have fun, I dance around and do some silly things – it’s just who I am. Every photographer is different, and so are you. It’s important to choose someone you like enough to go out for a coffee with, or hang out together.
Your Engagement Session also gives me as your photographer a chance to get to know the ‘real you’. My favourite thing in the world, is when a bride becomes a friend and generally, this happens through the Engagement Session.
Trust.
Engagement Sessions are fun. We will head out to your favourite location and totally rock it out! We might end up skipping down a pier, running along the beach, piggy-backing through a forest or practicing your ‘dress twirl’. Whatever we end up doing, once you get your images back and see the magic that we created – you’ll absolutely be ready to rock out your wedding day, minus the nerves. You’ll have complete faith in me to make you look truly beautiful on your big day.
For Posterities Sake.
Your engagement photos will maintain a level of ‘normalcy’ and represent more of your every-day lives and relationship. – a nice contrast to the romance and magic of your wedding day. The two complement each other fabulously, resulting in your engagement and wedding photography being treasured for generations to come.
The Hood family were 
After a good catch up, a few drinks and congratulations we hit the road (30 minutes late after eventually finding Victoria’s clutch in Tom’s car!!). I could see Andrew thoroughly enjoying driving the Jag (and to everyone who asked him to be – he was very careful!) although I still couldn’t keep up the whole way… and we lost the bridesmaids/groomsmen somewhere around Methven. I guess we really wont be needing to drive slower than usual huh…!
Victoria and Andrew kicked off the dancing to their live band – 
Get to know me.
Trust.
For Posterities Sake.