This is a love story that starts with Chapter One at an institution all Hawke's Bay young people know well - Shed 2. A young, foxy blonde Nicola spied a tall dark and handsome stranger across the room and the rest, as they say, is history.

It gives us the greatest pleasure to introduce to you the latest newlyweds on the block....Mr. & Mrs. Scott. Michelle Fey was their photographer and when she first met Lara quite some time ago, there was much ooohing and ahhhing about the amazing dress that was planned.

Hawkes Bay beach weddings are the ultimate way to reflect the relaxed Kiwi culture, the love of all things outdoors and the sense of togetherness that comes from a great day out with sun and sand.

A year ago, an excited bride-to-be contacted me about a Central Hawke's Bay wedding. There would be a farm that had been in the family for generations...an ancient swing bridge spanning a gully filled with native trees and a woodland dell where lilies grew head high and light motes played in the shade like Tinkerbell.

Here in New Zealand, we like to hold onto our hotties. That's why when Amalie left Hawkes Bay on her world tour and stopped short in Australia for a BLOKE there was cause for concern. But anyone who spends more than half a second in the company of Jason Pearce knows he's a keeper - even if it does take four-and-a-half years to put a ring on his finger.

And so we have her...our winter bride, the very last of 'the season' for the 2013 wedding year, and yet she is first with your hearts and votes and with style, grace and unwavering determination....our Bride of the Year, 2013....Sharon.

The sun is always shining in Hawke's Bay, right? Well, on Ashton and Nicole's big day it just couldn't decide. Passing showers gave our pre-wedding shoot and even the ceremony a sense of adventure as plan A turned to plan B and back again several times.

There was never any doubt that Sarah and Hamish going to get the altar. After a decade together, it was a matter of 'when' not 'if'. Having booked me way back in 2009 (!!!!) we've all been looking forward to this for a looooooong time

One late afternoon at the tail end of Autumn's great big boast of beauty, I met Sarah and Hamish who are getting married with me in tow this September. The landscape then will be full to bursting with spring blossoms so this was an opportunity for us to get comfy with each other and get some beautiful images of them in a totally different natural environment.

It's not often a sneaky little tear escapes me at a wedding. After being part of more than 500 of them, love seems like a fairly common currency (what a great world I live in!). But sometimes, something just gets ya. At Israel and Sharon's wedding, just about everything got me.

The first of the winter weddings is always a treat for me. The bright colours of summer have been stripped back to reveal the delicious warm hues of the empty vines, which beautifully mirrored the tones inside the Old Church Villa, where Sarah and her bridesmaids got ready.

The gilbert girls and I ran wild during our session, which is just the way I like to roll on a family portrait sessions

Views that disappear down the winding Tukituki river....the monolithic Te Mata Peak in the background...what more is there to say? The intimate Black Barn River room is an unbelievable location for wedding photography. End of story.