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We managed to get some great photos of Hector, who has so much personality and works the camera so well that he could start his modeling career very young! He is quite simply adorable!

Yep that’s right, textured paper stock and invites printed ONTO wood….. oh yeah oh yeah! A nice ampersand pin holds it all together.

Detail of the wood and paper texture.

So exciting to unwrap the next layer!

Julian and Malia we are so excited to be shooting your day in September… not many more sleeps now! You are two incredibly creative people and your invites reflect that beautifully!

Well I do have a love of leaves and pretty much anything Autumn so to shoot this family we headed into Hagley Park in the nice golden afternoon light. Now to say this family was fun to photograph would be  a severe understatement… they were hilarious. Plenty of dry humour from Daryl and plenty of “aww Dad” moments from the rest of the family. I should probably take some responsibility because I genuinely find Daryl funny so I may have encouraged him along a bit…

We started off with some shots looking down at them, with me balancing quite precariously on a ladder above them… then it looked like OSH would shut us down (or I would fall and crush someone) so we changed to a much more sensible shooting position on the ground.

Making the most of the golden backlight we shot this picture which really captures the personalities of this family at their best.

I was missing my ladder (and the sense of danger that it empowered me with) so climbed up again to shoot some of the siblings throwing leaves at me, which is a great idea to come from the person that doesn’t have leaf debris falling back down and potentially blinding them… but these three are brave and we got some fun shots through it and no one was even un-seriously hurt.

And then a more sensible shot that won’t give them flashbacks of the traumatic leaf throwing shots. These three are seriously cool and as I’m a new Dad myself I was looking for tips from Daryl and Lynda about how you get such good looking kids like these…

Turns out genetics may be a large factor so at least my girl Juliet has good looking genes on her mother’s side. We managed to stop Daryl playing around for a few minutes to get some great shots of him and Lynda. Talk about good genetics aye… not even warm vintage post-production treatment can make them look old!

Rounding things off we got some great photos of everyone individually, while the rest of the family looked on poking fun and eliciting some great smiles out of them…and a perfect model pose from Joel (what a legend!)

And just to finish off, here is a pic of the two brothers Sam and Joel just to show you how awesome Sam is at being the big brother.

It was such a fun shoot and great time spent with you all guys! Hopefully I will see you all again soon!

I love these shoots for two reasons… firstly because it’s a fun way to meet a couple, hear their story and get a bit of insight into their upcoming day and secondly, because it gives me a chance to reassure the couple that I’m NOT some crazy photographer that is going to make their wedding day photos painful!  The light was beautiful and with plenty of golden leaves everywhere I knew this would be the sort of warm tone shoot I love. We set the scene with some nice depth of field in the park.

For two people that had just met their photographer in the middle of the park, Nick and Kim were super easy to photograph and after we got some shots for a secret part of their wedding day (not showing you those ones, you’ll have to wait!) we carried on to make the most of the magical light.

These two are a wedding photographers dream; they’re easy going, very relaxed and totally in love! I just let them share their own moments and photographed from a distance to get a beautiful series like this one…

Then we shifted spots a little bit as earlier I had spied a tree laden with golden leaves and the sun shining right through it… I knew this would be a winning combo!

We finished off the shoot with these photos as the light faded and fingers were getting numb from the brisk Christchurch air.

Nick and Kim it was fantastic to meet you and you were so natural to photograph! We can’t wait for November to capture your special day!

As we arrived at the Convent, we found the Maid of Honour/Sister of the Bride Julia assembling the wedding cake under the marveling eye of her Dad. Not a last minute idea by any means, as Julia is a top pastry chef in Melbourne and was assembling a cake that I could only describe as amazing! (no doubt there is some proper French name for it)

See what I mean about amazing… for those Masterchef’s among you this is actually a triple layered Italian Meringue and chocolate mousse with buttercream icing. Three layers of divine goodness with a layer each of Chocolate, peanut butter chocolate and orange chocolate. As I’m a peanut butter fan luckily I was still around later in the night when we got to taste it!

We headed upstairs to find the girls preparing with plenty of well thought out details and elements contributed from special family members.

Hilary was very calm getting ready and didn’t have far to go to the ceremony in the Convent grounds. Not often will you find Brides doing the makeup of their mothers, Maid of Honour and even their own makeup but here we did! As well as being an amazing fun person, Hilary is an exceptional makeup artist… she even did the makeup for our wedding!

The Convent had plenty of space to get ready with a few close friends and Hilary’s mum joining as the final touches were done.

Then the dress was on and Hilary was ready to go, looking absolutely stunning with plenty of time to spare.

Meanwhile, downstairs the men were preparing in their own way as they found some of the Victorian musical instruments and took them for a spin testing out the concept of a lute based boy band. (Did I hear you think ‘Nun Direction’?)

It could only get more manly from there as the Father of the Groom produced some whiskey, not that there were any nerves but who needs an excuse for top shelf whiskey!

Now is time to mention that Pat is Canadian, not Irish, but celebrating your wedding on your Saintly namesake there had to be some shout outs to the Irish (other than the drinking) and we think you did it brilliantly!

Then the moment arrived, the guests were assembled on the front lawn and Julia led the bridal walk out as Hilary appeared at the Convent doors. There is something so magical about the first time the Groom and Bride see each other and especially when they are as ‘in love’ as Hils and Pat!

Sealed with a kiss.

Hils and Pat are such a relational couple and clearly value people so highly as evidenced by the number of people that had traveled so far to be there on the day.

As the celebrations kicked off we took the chance to get some group photos nearby in the convent gardens.

As there were so many special people that had traveled so far to be with Hils and Pat, understandably they didn’t want to go away for photos. Not that you needed to go far at the Convent as scattered throughout the grounds are exceptional photo opportunities that you could shoot for days and still be discovering things. Hils and Pat were game enough to go for a row on the lake which after a scary looking entrance paid off with some beautiful photos.

Then we headed to the lake shore for some photos while the bridal party set up a picnic in the gorgeous light.

It’s easy to capture how in love Hils and Pat are; in fact it would be difficult if not impossible to find a photo that didn’t show that!

On the grounds of the Convent is a beautiful old church so we headed there for some photos out of the sun.

Then we joined the rest of the guests as they made the most of the sunny afternoon talking, playing petanque, croquet and drinking (although  not all simultaneously that I was aware of).

Then we all congregated on the front lawn for the speeches which where beautiful and so honouring… it’s at times like this that I wish I could share with you the audio of what was said but instead I will show you some of the reactions and you can probably figure out what was being said.

Especially here, when Pat took to the stage to say some very nice things about his Mother.

Which he followed up with some more really nice words about Hilary.

As the night progressed, guests popped into a side room to take some photos in the photo booth that Hilary and Pat had set up there… the thing I particularly liked was that poking out from behind the backdrop was an original C.F. Goldie painting… which again says a lot about the class and character of Old Saint Mary’s Convent!

After dinner and the cutting of the cake, we headed over to the old chapel which provided a perfect setting for dancing into the night.

Hilary and Patrick, it was such a fun day with you in Blenheim and you made it easy to get beautiful photos throughout! Also a huge shout out to the family and friends from all over the world that welcomed us warmly to share this special day with you all!

Two Point Eight Team: Photographer: Clinton Lloyd /// Photographers Assistant: Paul Hunter

Ceremony/Reception Venue: Old Saint Mary’s Convent, Blenheim. I have to add that the venue manager Hannah and her team were so amazing to work with. The venue and the grounds looked stunning and they worked so hard to make everything come together beautifully which it did!

A bit later as the midwife’s did some checks under a warm halogen lamp Daddy took advantage of having a bit more light to get a photo of Juliet wondering who this man making noises with a big camera is.

Juliet weighed in at 8 pound 2 and was 55cm long so wasn’t small by any means but she sure seemed tiny!! So out came the macro lens for some photos of her dark eyes and gorgeous button nose.

Our midwife Kathy (and student midwife Rachel) were fantastic but the real hero of the day is my amazing wife who did such an incredible job. I have to admit I was overwhelmed by the whole labour process but more overwhelmed by how incredible my wife was throughout the ordeal. And to top it off she still looks amazing just a few moments later… I don’t know how she does it!

After a smidgen of sleep I was back at the hospital again overwhelmed by my two amazing girls Anna and Juliet! Lots of sleeping and feeding meant Daddy could get lots of nice photos.

And even some awake time still be-puzzled by this clicking behemoth (that’s the camera not her Dad by the way!)

My hero Anna after a feeding session.

Different expressions and she seems to be changing every day. It really is true that they grow up so fast, I thought that was just something old people said to explain why they are so old…. oh wait… maybe I’m getting old?

I love these photos of my girls framed looking through the various hospital paraphernalia!

Pretty much the last couple of days have been a blur of cuddles, nappy changing, sleeping when you can, tears, visitors, photos and just stopping to stare at moments like this.

Although I often only use a Macro lens for ring shots at weddings, I was pretty glad to have it to get some nice close ups when we arrived home.

The bath at hospital didn’t go so well but the bath at home was a lot less stressful which bodes well as Juliet is going to be around lots of water growing up!

As you’d imagine, there are so many things to do when you have a newborn in the house and such little sleep to be had so I will finish this post with two photos that make my heart melt.

A huge thank you to:

All the Grandparents: Lloyd, Renouf, Kitto and Leeves for their practical help, food, encouraging texts and gifts.You are all incredible and we love you very much!

Friends and church family that have bought gifts and food over so I don’t have to cook. Seriously we really appreciate it! (and are glad that there is a trend of generous people = good cooks as well)

Our midwives Kathy, Wendy and Rachel from Midwifery Associates and the staff at Burwood Hospital Birthing Unit that were fantastic throughout our stay there.

For those interested in the photography aspect of this; My primary kit for all these photos was the Canon 5dmk2 with my two favourite prime lenses (50mm f1.2 and 85mm f1.2) and a 100mm 2.8 Macro lens… I have to say that using the macro lens when you are.. A) Excited or B) Tired or C) All of the above, is so hard to get the millimeter of focus on the bit you want to, while not getting camera shake! Perhaps time to visit the great team at Photo and Video for an upgrade to the image stabilised version!

A beautiful ring shot is always a sign that it is going to be an incredible day and that definitely rang true for Jenna and Scott’s wedding day.

We started off by photographing the girls getting their hair and makeup done at Cardells Hair Salon. With plenty of laughs it was clear this bridal party was going to be a lot of fun.

This was confirmed when we went to photograph the boys and discovered them easing into the day watching the cult classic comedy, “The Life of Brian”. Always a good sign! They even managed to pull themselves away from the TV for a bit to get ready and have some photos taken.Next we went to Jenna and Scott’s house where the girls were getting ready and my macro lens came out to capture all the details. There were a lot, as Jenna had put so much energy into her day, making every little thing just so perfect!

Some gorgeous light while the bridesmaids fitted the wedding dress kept me very happy as I darted around photographing them.

Then we were off to the Miyazu Gardens. As Scott and Jenna had chosen to have the bulk of the wedding photos before the ceremony they planned this location as the grand reveal for Scott to see his Bride for the first time. It certainly was special to see his face as she walked into view!

We took some photos around Miyazu, easily managing to stay away from the cliche “Wedding Photography” areas. It’s always fun to work with a Bride and Groom that want a different perspective on the “normal”!

We had some great fun with the props Jenna had found!

There’s just something about railroad tracks… we got some great photos of Jenna and Scott embarking.

All the while the rest of the party were getting ready for this shot; I love the casual satisfaction that the boys have on their faces!

Next we headed out to Rabbit Island, dropped the bridal party off in a forest and nipped down to the beach for some photos. The weather forecast was for a horrific “Weather Bomb” to hit on the day of their wedding but luckily it hit at 3am in the morning and cleared to nice overcast skies with amazing dramatic clouds in the background!

I love this next shot and I love the fact that Jenna was game enough to do it… it doesn’t look like the water would have come in much but take it from the photographer kneeling in the water that it wasn’t a placid day at the beach. The risk (and sand all through my soaked pants) was definitely worth it with this amazing result.

My assistant Paul drove me to the next location while I got changed in the car and got ready for some cool photos in the forest.

Then we were off to a beautiful old house in the middle of renovations that bridesmaid Jenny had spied out for us to use. This place was gorgeous and Jenna and Scott used it for the big reveal to their parents and some family photos. Again the amazing thought and detail that they had put into the wedding showed through; they had made an antique key corsage for each of their parents to wear.

I made nice use of the beautiful one directional lighting to get these photos…

From there the boys raced off ahead and it was off to the ceremony venue, Woollastons Estate, which really is an incredible venue. Guests were gathered, the sun came out, Scott was waiting at the aisle and Jenna’s Dad walked her in. Some vows, a cute ring bearer and a kiss later and they were officially the newlyweds.

While guests enjoyed canapes and drinks, we quickly snuck into the vineyard for some photos under the frost cloth.

Back to the guests and the Reception got into full swing. I just had to include some of these details here as no doubt it will inspire lots of Brides-to-be. They had included wedding photos of their parents and grandparents and as take home  wedding favours (for the self disciplined) they had a full candy bar that guests could fill up paper bags with. If I wasn’t such a professional (clearly a good level of self esteem) I would have stopped there and just gourged myself for the rest of the day but I carried on with the task at hand. This has to be the coolest wedding cake stand I have ever come across; a section of a gnarly tree = beautiful and it went perfectly with the table center pieces that Jenna and Scott had handmade!

Speeches are always a great time to capture reactions and with the blend of humor and touching raw emotion it was a great start to the night. There were funny stories from their courtship, recollections from childhood and Scott’s brother Greg even managed to dance on thin ice and finish with a very heartfelt tribute of his brother.

I always love coming to the time of the night of the Groom’s speech… Scott you did a stellar job honoring Jenna and it is so clear you adore her.

Once dinner got underway I had the chance to bring out my often neglected lenses and have some fun. Here we have my Fisheye lens showing the amazing venue and then I popped upstairs to use my Tilt Shift lens to shoot some face miniature style photos. Just a bit of fun between courses!

Seen as the reception venue is the cellar for Woollastons Estate Vineyard, it was fitting to pop into the cavern for some quick photos before the first dance.

Then the photo booth and dancing took on full steam with a wild selection of props and a very wild selection of guests.

As you will get the feel from the blog post, it was a big day filled with so many incredible moments. I had so much fun with you and your bridal party Scott and Jenna and have to say that all the creative energy you had put into your day really showed!

Two Point Eight Team: Photographer: Clinton Lloyd /// Photographers Assistant: Paul Hunter

Videographer: Luke Marshall

Celebrant: Tony Barnett

Ceremony/Reception Venue: Woollastons Estate Vineyard

Hair and Makeup: Cardells Hair Salon, Emma Hollis

So when they contacted me to take some family photos with their 19 month old daughter Anastasia I jumped at the chance!  As often is the case with young children, when a stranger turns up at their house with a big camera and wants to take photos, Anastasia was a bit wary (when you put it like that it must be quite odd for a small child to grasp what’s going on)! But not for long as we got her riding her trike around the kitchen and immediately we started seeing her gorgeous smile!

Amy towed her around the house while I got shots of her reactions… gosh I can’t wait to be a Dad soon!

We headed outside for some trike riding down their driveway and it became very clear that Anastasia knew exactly what was going on with this camera thing and she really knew how to work it to get some great reactions like these…

Now if you want to know what a 19 month old Hipster looks like… look no further as the thick rimmed glasses came out, riding a pink ‘fixie’ bike … pretty much the only thing that would have made this more hipster would be if I had shot it on Polaroid!

Making the most of the nice weather we got some great family photos chasing Anastasia on their lawn.

This photo would be one of my favourites and I think really captures the amazing relationship Andrew has with his daughter. Shots like this make me so excited to have a daughter soon!

Amidst all the fun we even managed to get some more formal family photos taken as well.

And even as I was leaving, Anastasia was still playing for the camera. This time she was throwing things from the balcony, over the glass balustrade to Andrew below and I got these cute action shots of her.

What a perfectly timed shoot to get me so excited for my impending fatherhood and a beautiful follow on from an amazing couple on their wedding day through to the early years of their new family. It’s always exciting and such a privilege to have wedding couples come back for more shoots long after their wedding day is over and Andrew, Amy and Anastasia I hope I will continue to track your family through the years!

You have to watch his video here from the wedding of Danny and Michele, which I photographed and blogged about. And when you watch this perhaps then you will understand why so many tears were shed during the song as Michele entered. I guess it’s moments like that I am thankful for an auto-focus setting! Anyway, enough of my talking… this speaks for itself.

Danny & Michele – Popcorn & Polaroids | Wedding Cinema by Lovelight from Craig Forster on Vimeo.

Thanks Craig, you are amazing to work alongside and I recommend you to everyone!