The first thing I ask a couple when they are considering working with us on their wedding day is ‘what elements are most important for you?’ This helps me understand who they are as a couple and how Andrew and I can work with them to create bespoke photography that reflects all their priorities. Every couple is different but the ones we enjoy working with the most talk about a sense of celebration and a focus on friends and family ahead of styling and colour schemes.

It is hard to imagine anywhere with more beautiful views of New Zealand’s ruggedly beautiful coastline than The Farm at Cape Kidnappers. But the exclusive nature of the luxury lodge has meant I haven’t been able to share images from a real wedding shot there before. So I’m really excited that Rob and Angela so generously have let me do so, but also that their tiny wedding was perfect in every way - not just beautiful to look at, but emotionally quite special to be part of.

One of the most wonderful things about being a wedding photographer is seeing how an event with so many common elements can be interpreted so differently by individuals who bring their own story and aesthetic to their day. Michael and Saasha were a fantastic couple to work with because with their wedding, as with their love for each other, they knew right from the start what they wanted.

How many true love stories begin with a girl looking across a crowded room and locking eyes with an 'energetic, sweaty, mess'? Sam must have had quite the pulling power as his future bride, Georgia, was seduced by the dashing airforce chopper pilot (ok so I had to get that bit in early to off-set the sweaty mess vision) as he was grooving away on the dance floor of the Beer Barrel in Palmerston North (affectionalty dubbed 'Paradise City' by the new Mr. & Mrs. Hatrick).

Hawke's Bay weddings pose a bit of a conundrum: coast or country? There is so much of both that it can often be hard to decide, so Nikky and Sam found a little off-the-beaten-track place where they could combine both. Clifton Cafe is authentically Kiwi. From the red corrugated iron through to the simple number-8 fencing wire separating the paddock from the wide expanse of the South Pacific Ocean. Under a home-made floral arch in front of their friends and family, this is Nikky and Sam's love story. We hope you enjoy it!

James and Jo's great love began 14 years ago and it was amazing to see how the emotional energy created by a wedding day was able to take them both back there to the feelings we all remember from the start of a relationship.

There are a couple of things key things that, as a photographer, contribute to making a wedding really memorable and special for me. First, it's good, old-fashioned chemistry. A couple who are IN LOVE, all capitals. It's nothing to do with how they look, it's all about how they are together. Secondly, it's a location that isn't just beautiful, but historical. A place that has generations of family memories layered on it, and I'm a big part of making some more very special ones.