Best of 2016: Moments

best-of-moments-2016

Before we end our Best of 2016 series, I wanted to look past the details (much as we love them) – the pretty dresses and delicious cakes and fabulous decor and spectacular bouquets – to the heart of what we do here on SBB, the heart of weddings, the moments. Even though we don’t know most of the brides and grooms whose weddings we feature, that’s one of the joys of a great photographer, that they capture these slices of emotion that are real and true, even if you don’t know the story or the person behind them. There have been so many times we’ve smiled or shed a tear over the year through these images and stories, and at the end of the day, that’s what makes this so much more than fashion or decor or style. It’s the love. It’s sharing the love. And it’s always a privilege. Here are twenty of those moments, and they’re also the perfect way to finish off our 2016 content. So here’s wishing you all a very happy new year – and we’ll see you back here in 2017!

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Best of 2015: Moments

We’ve come to the end of our Best of 2015 series, and as of Monday, we have some super exciting things happening here on SBB. But first, I wanted to look back at some of the moments – the images that made me smile or laugh or just get that feeling of joy you feel when you witness the love and happiness of two people who belong together on the happiest day of their lives. Beyond the details and the dresses and the bouts and the bouquets, this is what really makes my job worthwhile. It’s the moments and the love stories, and sharing them with you every day. So here’s to more of these wonderful moments in 2016, and to all the talented photographers who capture them so beautifully.

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Best of 2015: Showcase

Hello lovelies! Can you believe we’ve hit the last day of 2015? It’s been a funny old year for many people, I know, but as we look back at the year that was and look forward to the days to come (and break out the champers to celebrate both), I thought it was a good time to put together an album of beautiful images – images full of love and laughter and light, and everything that makes a wedding so extra specially beautiful. I put the word out with some of our photographer friends and asked them to pick a few of their own favourite pics, and they sent me such incredible ones, I was really spoilt for choice. But here’s a little collection – be sure to click through and see more of their work, because they’re all talented and wonderful! We’ll be back tomorrow sharing the last of our Best of 2015 posts, and then next week… well, exciting things are happening! But in the meantime, be safe and be happy this new year’s eve, and here’s to 2016 :)

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Ask the Photographers!

Afternoon, lovelies! I’m just stopping by to let you know about an exciting feature we have in the works with Luis and Kerry of Piteira Photography. Not only am I a big fan of their gorgeous photography, but this husband and wife team are just the loveliest, and I’m happy to count them as friends. In fact, I’m looking forward to seeing them when they’re working in South Africa this summer wedding season (December/January) and this is where the great news comes in – they have some availability, so if you’re still looking for a wedding photographer over the busy season, you can nab this awesome pair! Their work has been featured all over the place: Style Me Pretty, 100 Layer Cake, Ruffled, Bridal Musings, The Pretty Blog – and of course, right here on SouthBound Bride – so you know you’re in the best hands.

To celebrate their South African trip, Luis and Kerry have offered to step in as our experts for the day. They’ll be answering your questions about wedding photography, posing, light – whatever you’re wondering about. They also planned their own (gorgeous) South African wedding from abroad, so they have awesome insight into planning from afar. So here’s the deal: just leave your question at the end of the post (or on our Facebook page) and we’ll put all the answers together into a special post.

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Mothers {Sponsor Showcase}

Here at SBB, we’re a big fan of moms. Partly because it seems like every friend have gave birth in the last year, but more importantly because my own mom is kind of a rockstar. She’s a poetry-quotin’, environment-savin’, best lasagne in the world makin’ little legend, who has not only taught me a million things about life and love, but has taught human rights and conflict resolution to people from Papua New Guinea to South African prisons. She does things that matter. She has a voice so sympathetic that even when I’m on another continent and I call her to tell her I have a cold, it makes me feel better. She’s also probably the only person on earth who calls me out on rare mistakes in spelling and grammar, which is probably how I ended up being an editor in the first place. So ja. Moms are awesome. With mother’s day last month, I started thinking about the role that mothers play in a wedding day – they often don’t have a formal role, like dads do, and they don’t usually walk you down the aisle or make a speech, but they’re such a huge part of how a wedding day runs. Best case scenario? They help you plan a wedding you’ll love, by supporting you and making your ideas come to life, beam at you from the front row and get the first hug once the marriage is pronounced. I asked our photographer friends to dig through their archives and find pictures that celebrated motherhood in all its wedding day forms, and they came back with such lovely pictures, including some of brides who are moms-to-be themselves, funny moments, touching moments. All of them so very special. I hope you enjoy them as much as I have!

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Shoes {Sponsor Showcase}

SHOES, you guys! Sorry, I’ll calm down. A while back, a bunch of wedding bloggers used to post pictures of shoes every Tuesday – doesn’t seem to happen anymore, but as a shoe fiend myself, Tuesday Shoesday used to brighten up my day. Well, get ready, because our photography sponsors have put together a delectable selection of shoe shot just for you. Now I know shoe pictures aren’t everyone’s thing – they are literally the thing my friend Abigail hates most about wedding pictures nowadays. So if that’s you, well, look away now. For the rest of us, a shoe shot can be a fun way of incorporating the details of the getting ready, picking up a dash of the signature colour (great for tying your wedding album together, actually) and just generally celebrating what some of us consider a wearable piece of art. It’s also a great way for our sponsors to show off their very different styles – have a browse and be sure to click through and see more of your favourites’ portfolios!

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The Kiss {Supplier Spotlight}

Hello friends! One last piece of Valentine’s inspiration for you today (and a welcome slice of happiness with the horrible news of this morning). To celebrate all that is love, I asked the SouthBound Bride photographer sponsors to share their favourite kiss. I worried it might be cheesy, but when these pictures started coming in, I was reminded just how lovely that moment is – what a simple, intimate connection a kiss can be. Not cheesy at all. Every one of these pictures captures that moment – each gives me a big smile and makes me want to cheer for love, which is exactly what today is all about. Hip hip hooray! And don’t forget, if you love a pic, show the photographer some love by clicking through to their site or leaving a comment!

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Q&A with Anneli Marinovich

Good afternoon my dears, and a good afternoon it is when I get to introduce my readers to one of my very favourite industry people. Anneli Marinovich is a long-time supporter of the blog – she was one of our first sponsors and since then I have had the pleasure of getting to know Anneli both as a person (she’s lovely!) and as a businesswoman and photographer. And let me tell you, this girl is going places. Not only does Anneli shoot the most beautiful pictures that really capture the moment, but she’s super switched on, which has made working with her a pleasure. In fact, Anneli and I are currently working on a special project that I can’t wait to announce very soon! In the meanwhile, I thought it was high time I got my friend to answer a few questions for us. And remember – although Anneli is based in the UK as I am, she also shoots during the season in South Africa, and she’d love to hear from you!

Hi Anneli – thanks for joining us on SBB today! How did you get started as a photographer?
I’ve always enjoyed photography, especially travel and street photography and after we tied the knot in Cape Town in 2009, having had a wonderful experience with our own wedding photographer (Andre van Niekerk), I decided to look into wedding photography. I took an intensive course focusing on building a successful wedding photography business when we returned to the UK and realised that this was what I wanted to do… full time. I shot my first solo wedding in London in May 2010 and absolutely loved it. The decision to leave my full time job in advertising came in July 2011 after having shot weddings part-time for just over a year as well as second shooting with established wedding photographers, and I haven’t looked back since!Read More

The Bouquet {Sponsor Showcase}

Time for some inspiration from SBB’s photographer friends! I have to admit, I am a huge sucker for the subject of this month’s pics: bouquets. I know not everyone loves flowers as much as I do, but for me (having been a bridesmaid three times now), the moment the bouquets are delivered is one of the most exciting of the day. I absolutely LOVE how not only has floristry really become such an art but how for wedding photographers they’re no longer just a thing the bride holds, but the opportunity for both breathtaking still lifes, and a way of showing the personality of the bride or wedding. So when I sent out the call for this month’s showcase, I asked SBB’s wonderful photographers not to necessarily choose the most stunning bouquet, but the pic that best represented their style. And wow. Every single one of these images (which actually do show beautiful flowers, by the by) had me floored. So have a look through and be inspired in more ways than one – and remember to show our sponsors some love by heading over from their links to check out more of their lovely work!

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Q&A with Lizanne Higgs Photography

Hello friends! Just before our Friday comes to a close, I have someone lovely to introduce you to. I met photographer Lizanne Higgs towards the end of last year – she had been living in London for a while, but has now made the move back to SA with her husband – congrats, Lizanne! Before she did, I was able to get to know her a bit, and she answered a few questions for me over a glass of wine. I’m sharing what she had to say together with some of the pics from her first Cape wedding – both were teachers, so there was a bit of a school decor theme going on, how cute is that?

Hi Lizanne – thanks so much for chatting to us today! How did you get started as a photographer?
Hi Gaby, this is so exciting being interviewed for your amazing blog, SouthBound Bride. Thank you!
I have had a desire in my heart to do photography since my high school days and now I am finally living the dream. Unfortunately I could not afford to buy a digital camera back in those days and so I set that dream aside and slightly forgot about it… until a few years later when I read the book by Joyce Meyers, I Dare You: Embrace Life with Passion. The book inspired me and I remembered what I wanted to do with my life as a profession, I wanted to be a photographer and within a month after reading the book I bought my first camera in the UK (on my credit card!). I starting taking photos of scenery and eventually a few friends asked me to photograph their weddings and newborn babies and from there on I could not stop. Every photo shoot was more exciting than the last and the adrenalin rush I got on some of the photo shoots was mind-blowing! I LOVE photography. I had some awesome opportunities in second shooting weddings in the UK and from there on shot my first solo wedding in London.Read More