Old Petrie Town Wedding: Beth and Jason’s Perfect Day:
Date: 5th March 2016
Location: Old Petrie Town, Brisbane
Old Petrie Town is one of those places I had been trying to get to for some time but never seemed to make it. If you have never been: go! It’s amazing! Add a perfect wedding day in there and it’s even better!
Jason contacted me a few months prior to his big day asking if I was free to photograph his wedding – I was, so we arranged to catch up at Old Petrie Town for a chat about his plans and to scope out some photo locations. Happily Old Petrie Town is one of those places that looks good regardless of where you point your camera so we weren’t spoilt for choice, and there’s even plenty of spots to photograph should there be rain on the big day!
Fast forward a few months and I was back at Old Petrie Town for real! And it looked amazing! I arrived over an hour early as I usually do when I am photographing a wedding (you never know what the traffic’s going to be like, and it’s always good to check the place isn’t underwater!) and went for a wander. I had only met Beth a few days prior to the wedding as she had been away when I met Jason at the venue, but both bride and groom had been very laid back in the few months counting down to the wedding, as Jason was on his big day when he arrived with his dashing groomsmen!
The location for the ceremony was impeccable – beneath and in front of a gorgeous centuries-old fig tree. What an amazing backdrop! I snapped people arriving and taking their seats and the groomsmen looking nervous and anxious. I love the build up to the ceremony – the anticipation and nervous tension before the bride’s arrival! And even laid back Jason looked a little bit nervous!
But he needn’t have: Beth arrived on time looking stunning and her bridesmaids looked amazing in their matching blue and red dresses and bright red shoes! I took a few snaps of Beth’s Dad lowering the veil: I had been given the heads up that Dad was odds on favourite to shed a few tears on the day and he did; good on him!
And then there was quiet…and the aisle song started. Jason’s face as he saw his bride for the first time was priceless – and Beth couldn’t have looked any happier seeing her man waiting at the end of the aisle. Her dad did shed a few tears too!
The ceremony started with a prayer – during which I caught Beth’s Mum having a sneaky peek at her daughter. Sometimes the best shots are the spontaneous ones!
And for me, this wedding was the wedding of sneaky peeks and lingering glimpses! Check out these photos and the look of love on everyone’s faces! I love these shots – totally spontaneous, not posed or rehearsed, just genuine emotion!
I zoomed in on a few of the details too – its the small things that count after all!
And every wedding album needs a photograph of the parents during the ceremony – my kids are far too young to get married but I know I will be a blubbering mess when they do get wed!
Following a perfect reading of the vows the guys exchanged wedding rings (they fit!) and then came the part everyone was waiting for: the kiss! We headed to a table for the signing and a few more shots and then it was official: here is Australia’s newest couple! Congratulations guys!
Jason and Beth brought along their fur baby along for support – cute! – and he didn’t miss out on a photo opportunity! Then it was time for the hardest shot of the day: the group shot! Happily everyone behaved and using the fig tree as a backdrop we got some fantastic shots!
Jason and Beth had warned me the week prior to their wedding that posing for photos was not their favourite thing! No problems at all – I let the guys be themselves and picked on the bridal party instead who happily didn’t mind the camera one little bit!
Old Petrie Town is filled with amazing rustic barns and outhouses that make for incredible wedding photography backdrops. I could have spent all afternoon there! We did some fun shots, a few posed shots, some relaxed shots and some moody shots with no complaints or tantrums!! Time does indeed fly when you’re having fun!
Happily Beth and Jason are a very photogenic couple and incredibly easy going and made my job very easy indeed!
One of my favourite parts of the day was when Beth asked if we had done all of the ‘nice’ photos. Sure, I replied, why? The bridesmaids all ripped off their high heels and brought out some comfy bright red pumps for the rest of the afternoon! Outstanding!
The sky had been darkening for a short while and it did eventually rain – but I say this honestly: rain is not a bad thing! First of all rain is meant to be lucky, secondly an umbrella makes for an amazing prop and forces you to snuggle up to your new spouse, and thirdly: rain means rainbows! I don’t think I have ever seen anyone as excited as these guys to have a rainbow in their photos!
I used the rain as an opportunity to grab some shots of Jason and Beth sharing an umbrella and we headed towards the other end of Old Petrie Town, to the old train station: probably my favourite part! The rain eased off so we got some nice shots of the groomsmen and bridesmaids then I took off the pace and let Jason and Beth relax and be themselves. That didn’t mean I stopped shooting! I was just a little more inconspicuous about it!
But all good things must come to an end and I finally let the guys chill out and have a few drinks before the start of the reception, which was on site at the upstairs function room of the Heritage Hotel. I headed in first to grab some shots of the table settings and decorations, and a quick portrait of each of the guests.
Then the guys were called in and sadly it was time to leave, but not before a few glamour shots on the stairs!
“Hey Andy, I just wanted to say thanks so much for the photos. You did an amazing job with them, Beth was absolutely pumped!” Jason