I have such a pretty couple sesh to share with you all this afternoon, chock-full of colourful flowers and summery love! (And yes, I appreciate the irony as I write this with rain lashing at my windows, sigh.) Elreza and Chris, a pair of newlyweds, decided to have a little styled session a few weeks after their big day. Still sporting that just-married glow, they roped in photographer Velani Venter and a team of creatings, then styled up a storm, embellishing a swing with blooms and basking in the golden glow of light filtering through the trees for the most romantic e-session you can imagine!
Rumour has it that the Maboneng Precinct in Joburg is the place to go for an urban chic city wedding, and if today’s shoot from A Bear Photography is anything to go by, you can sign me up! Leon and Diane’s just married shoot is such a sweet exploration of this vibrant corner of the City of Gold, beautifully captured by A Bear Photography. I love the laid back, intimate feel of these images, even amid the hustle and bustle of the city, and the way that photographers Arno and Annerina included street performers, shop fronts and street signs for some authentic local colour. So fun! And so romantic too.
I’ve been so excited to share today’s inspiration with you, because it really does have everything. Beautiful pictures, a gorgeous dress, an incredible love story, Paris… But let’s start at the beginning. Marlene and Gary met when they stumbled across each other on the cobbled streets of the City of Lights (yes, really!). Gary, an English footballer, was visiting family, while Marlene, a German jewellery designer, was on her way to the famous 31 Rue Cambon for some Chanel inspiration. Cue a Hollywood-style falling in love montage with Paris as a backdrop over the next few days. And here’s the really amazing thing – it turned out that they both lived in Vienna, so a chance meeting turned into a full-blown romance (now that’s Fate!). Fast forward to their engagement and the story has another fortuitous meeting, as the couple came across Claudia Magas of Ladies & Lord at a wedding show in Vienna – next thing you know, they were all heading back to Paris for this Chanel-inspired engagement shoot. From the pretty paper goods and Chanel cake and cake pops (!) to Marlene’s couture gown from Austrian designer Eva Poleschinski, dreamy doesn’t even cover it. I think Coco would have been proud! Huge thank you to Claudia for sharing this stunning shoot with us as part of our couture month.
Who says you can’t find the peace and serenity of the countryside in the heart of the city? I’m over the moon about the way today’s super romantic couple shoot combines urban – even industrial-style – locations with soft bohemian style, and of course, a healthy dose of love and romance! Jonty and Melissa are an absolutely adorable couple – they’ve been married since 2012 but decided to dress up again for a couple shoot, and drafted in the talented team at Page & Holmes to capture it on film. There’s an element of styled shoot here too, with Melissa wearing a gorgeous gown from White Lilly Bridal, and a spectacular fynbos floral crown on her pretty head. Combined with Jonty’s sharp suit, it’s a great look for their pictures – and for a wedding!Read More
Oh we have a treat of an engagement shoot to share this afternoon! A bed, in a field, and a pillow fight. Need say more? So ridiculously fun! Add in some thunder clouds, and of course the magnetic connection between Tanya and Johann, and you have all the ingredients for an epic session. The fab Kallah Ohr was on the scene to capture these beautiful images.Read More
Last week I shared loads of love stories in the form of engagements and proposals, but it’s worth remembering that in real life, the love story doesn’t end after the wedding reception with “and they lived happily ever after…”. The end of your wedding planning isn’t a finish line, but the start of a whole new journey. As I’ve watched my friends fall in love and marry, I’ve celebrated with them, and danced at their weddings. As they’ve stayed married, I’ve watched those relationships change, and grow, and become something so much deeper and more wonderful even than they were on the day they promised to spend their lives together. So often here on SBB we honour weddings, but beyond the pretty, what we’re really doing is honouring marriages. I love that today’s couple shoot gives us a chance to do that in a visual way, because rather than an engagement, it celebrates an anniversary. And it just happens to star one of my all-time-favourite wedding people, beautiful Nicola of The Pretty Blog, and her handsome husband Wynand. Nicola’s the real deal when it comes to wedding bloggers – she’s as stylish and graceful (and gracious) off the page as she is on it. And you just have to see the way she and her husband look at one another in this gorgeous, atmospheric shoot by Dehan Engelbrecht to know that their love story is the real deal too. I’m so happy to be sharing it with you! Oh, and PS, the amazing hair and makeup is thanks to Marli Basson.Read More
How much do I love the idea of this shoot? A LOT, that’s how much. A couple, two big smiles and a Polaroid camera. Simples. It makes for such a fun and natural engagement shoot, without being posey but still being cute. Coba Engelbrecht was there to capture every giggle, every kiss and every lovely image of Phillip and Liezl. Which is especially lovely, since the bride-to-be is family!Read More
They say sometimes when you know, you just know. And sometimes… well, your mother knows before you do. That was the case with Shayna and Gavin, who have such an unusual and awesome story (read on for more). And the mother in question (Shayna’s) is none other than South Africa’s own Jenna Clifford, whose name you’ll no doubt recognise from her beautiful line of jewellery. So as you can imagine, this shoot features a very sparkly sparkler too – I just adore Shayna’s ring! This is one for the jewellery fans, for the romantics, and for all the mothers out there who still hope to set up their daughters (except mine, don’t get any ideas mom! ;) ) Huge thanks to the fab Kallah Ohr for sending over her gorgeous pics.Read More
Afternoon, friends! Well, I promised you a double dose of this couple (and of course the fab Jacki Bruniquel too) today, and you won’t be disappointed with this super adorable e-shoot on the family farm. Jax so perfectly captures the mood of each couple shoot she does, and this one is so personal, what with all the memories the farm has for Chantel from growing up there. It’s also the place Brett proposed, making it even more special as a shoot location. And I love, love, loved that they included their three dogs in the pics. Anyone who knows me will know that I am a total dog person – in fact, my family has a standing joke that wherever we are, if there’s a dog in the room it will immediately come up to me (secretly, I love this). So not only am I cooing at how utterly cute these furbabies are, but I’m loving the laid-back happy atmosphere they add to the pictures, perfectly the happy vibes given off by this loved-up couple. They say never work with children or animals… but Chantel and Brett may beg to differ!Read More
I am soooooooop-ah excited about this couple shoot, because you guys, it is not only breathtaking, but it has such an awesome story attached. I’m a huge fan of photographer Claire Morgan (a South African now based in Europe, although she travels, and I would dearly love to feature a South African wedding she shoots, hint hint). I guess an artist is never off duty, because she happened to be wandering around Goa, India (as you do) and came across this gorgeous couple at a picturesque waterfall. Anna and Ilya were on a visit from Russia (where Anna is actually a photographer herself) and after striking up a conversation, Claire offered to do an impromtu couple shoot for them. This is the kind of shoot you can’t style – completely spontaneous and natural and real, but it looks like it could be out of the fashion pages of a top magazine. Claire’s pics have such a sense of place, and Anna and Ilya have such an amazing chemistry – how lovely to hear from Claire that they are since engaged :) This might be one of my all-time favourites – enjoy! And thanks so much for sharing Claire!Read More
