OK, so I haven’t blogged in a little while, which isn’t like me – I apologise. To make up for it, I’ve blogged Danielle and Ben’s Wallalong House wedding in the Hunter Valley. There are over 200 images in this blog post, which is more than I’d usually upload, but I’ve put these up because I think that this wedding was a great start to 2018, and I think that you’re in for a little treat 😊.
A couple of years ago, I photographed Lisa and Jean-Marc’s Regatta Rose Bay wedding; a lovely celebration on the water in Sydney’s eastern suburbs. So, one of Lisa’s best friends – Danielle – who attended Lisa and Jean-Marc’s wedding was also planning her own. Danielle wrote me one afternoon, and I was too happy to get together to chat wedding photography. Danielle and her fiancé Ben, although Australian-born, are based in the UK. They were planning on returning home for their wedding; reuniting with their families and friends in the Hunter Valley.
A year past, and before long I traversed up the M1 to Wallalong House – a truly beautiful estate in the Hunter Valley. The area around Wallalong House is lovely. I made a quick detour via some side roads and found a field of lavender, thinking that we’d return here at sunset for a few more portraits later that evening. I can’t really think of any other way to describe Wallalong House other than to say that the estate is stunning; a broad homestead perched atop a shallow rise in the countryside northeast of Maitland. The homestead sleeps 16; where Danielle and Ben’s family and bridal party rested over the weekend. Although Wallalong House itself is grand, the wedding reception space is actually under a massive Indian tent just outside, perfectly set up with a permanent concrete-cast bar, and best for long tables.
I arrived early in the morning. As you can see on my pricing page, I don’t work on a per-hour basis, rather I prefer to attend all day to provide full documentation. Danielle and Ben’s Wallalong House wedding was a warm one – in the peak of the Australian summer. Good thing the venue has a pool 😊. Danielle and Ben both got ready at Wallalong House – the ladies in the front half and the gents out the back. They did well to not see each other before the ceremony. In the middle of the house was a large kitchen, where Danielle’s friends essentially transformed the room into a temporary florist and produced all of the floral arrangements, including a massive wreath to hang from the trees in the front courtyard.
Once ready, the bridal party made their way to Immaculate Conception Church in the nearby town of Morpeth for Danielle and Ben’s nuptials. Following some family photographs, we stopped by the local pub for a cool beverage, and then returned for some wedding photographs at Wallalong House. During the evening meal, Danielle, Ben and I ducked off for a quick sunset shoot in the lavender field I found earlier in the day, and I’m delighted that we did – the setting sun was beautiful.
Travelling outside Sydney for weddings are always loads of fun, and I’d say was more-so enjoyable for Danielle and Ben’s guests. As a wedding photographer, I relish the opportunity to play a small part in an otherwise very intense day for the couples that I work with. If you’d like to discuss wedding photography in Sydney or even Australia wide, please drop me a line here.
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