These guys went all out on the details. Liesel’s dress was made from her grandmother’s wedding dress, part family history, part couture, part childhood autobiography. The wedding cake was cut with a sword that Liesel’s parents used to cut their wedding cake. I loved all the little touches that made everything so personal, from growing their own wheatgrass and lillies to the personal messages on the placecards – mine read “Dror if you’re reading this you’re not taking killer bee images, go go go.”

To go a bit off topic, I was sitting at a wedding recently and someone turned to me and said, are you the guy with the killer bee catch phrase? I hadn’t realise I used killer bee so often that it has become a catch phrase, its actually a Kinkyism. If you get a chance to read any of his books, he is funny as beans and actually exists in real life, as do the Texas Jewboys.

Anyway, Liesel and Darren, definite rockstars, and yes the twirl during your entrance worked, and if you’re reading this in Zanzibar, you aren’t enjoying your honeymoon, go go go. I hope you’re having a killer bee one.

We’d been having a quite a few Uncle Bobs recently (guests with cameras who insist on posing the b&g, jump in front of us during the first kiss, ring exchange etc), so I was quite grateful when Rev. Chunky, noticing how many cameras were flashing during the bride’s entrance asked that only the official photographers photograph during the service.

wedding photographs, hertford hotel, liesel and daren wedding, lieselanddarren com, 

However many hundred weddings into our career, and somehow couples still have the ability to surprise us. Chris and Lorna were spontaneous, and fun, and easy to photograph and surprised us by making the long, difficult, slightly muddy walk to that perfect bit of light just by the right tree, just outside of The Hertford … too far for the waiter with the snacks to find us, but not so far that we couldn’t hear the hum of the electric fence – you know me and light. My favorite surprise though was a three meter long veil.

Saturday, and I was shooting with the inimitable Andrea Carlyle at The Hertford. This time we were photographing Gill and Shaun, who flew in from Australia, with a whole lot of friends and family. In typical Joburg summer fashion it started pouring during the ceremony, the skies were turning black and the older folk looked wisely at the sky and muttered under their breath that it will pass.

I quickly posed the formals on the balcony of The Hertford’s reception hall, while standing in the rain under an umbrella. Beautiful light and some of the nicest formal group shots. Then the rain mysteriously and suddenly stopped, the sun came out and the clouds turned that fiery shade of red that they sometimes get just after an African rain storm. At this point I had given up hope that Gill would be up for going through the wet and muddy veld to the area we wanted to photograph in, and was suspiciously eyeing the gazebo and the stained glass windows as possible dry alternatives. Fortunately she proved that she was up for some serious bundu bashing and we made our muddy and slippery way to a spectacular view of the sun setting over wet grass and reeds. I think the pics are worth it, dramatic and classic. Gill is one of those people who can look effortlessly glamorous and natural in front of the camera – and yes, she is also one of those people that says she hates being photographed.

Anyway, I’m exhausted, those caffeine headaches are not going away and last night’s wedding was the last one for at least a month as we start slowing things down and start working on albums, albums, albums and you got … albums. I’m also grateful the rand is recovering a bit. Its been a bit of a roller coaster as we pay for all our albums in dollars.

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No clouds were harmed in the making of these photos.

the hertford, 

If you were out and about in Joburg this Saturday, you may have noticed that it bucketed down. Andrea and I were at The Hertford out by Lanseria, it stormed through most of the ceremony, there was lightning and thunder and buckets of water turned the dirt road into a mud adventure during the reception. In between the rain and the storm, there was an hour of beautiful golden light. I’m still backing up and sorting things … there will be more images from both weekend weddings as soon as I’m done – this machine seems to be getting slower every day.