North Stradbroke Styled Bridal Shoot

The North Stradbroke-styled bridal shoot was in its conceptual stage for longer than some of my more recent shoots. The main reason the shoot was to take place on this small island, just off the coast of Brisbane, was the mammoth sand dunes, that on a good day, climbing it, you would need to have superhuman fitness, as you do not realise how steep or high it really is until you are halfway up; or maybe my fitness is not as good as it was several years back. Let us go with huge sand dunes.

I never saw the view from the top, but our awesome photographer Lauren, from Lauren Joy Photography, did and suggested we focus on other beautiful location shots, as the storm that passed through earlier that day, had left the sand wet and not the look we were after.

I was not initially bothered by the storm, as my trusty weather guide app. I use to navigate all my styled bridal shoots, has never let me down. I was not worried when the wind and rain rating started to climb the day before, as the weather still looked good from 1pm onwards, which is when our styled bridal shoot was to start. I did not worry when the makeup artists’ husband rang to see if the shoot was going ahead, as the storm had well and truly taken over the Gold Coast. When my concerned and loving husband rang, to see if the shoot was cancelled, due to the weather warning, I was not worried.

We were in Cleveland, and the rain was heavy and the sky a dark grey to green and looked like it was going to continue well into the afternoon. It was at that time, I kicked myself for not bringing the clear umbrellas, I so often use during wet weather shoots, but my awesome crew reassured me the weather would be fine and this shoot was going ahead rain, hail, or shine. And just as quick as the storm showed up, it was just as quick to disappear. The only thing it did, delayed the start time as it slowed down the styling from Run Wild Flora, but with my fantastic crew, the afternoon went through without a hitch.

If you are a creative person, you will understand where I am coming from, when I say, the universe can often place something in your path that steers you into an alternate future. A better future, you could not have planned, even if you tried. We had the morning storm, which delayed set up, which delayed our start time, and then security guards from the Prime Amazon TV crew not allowing us to travel on the beach in the 4WD we bought over, all reduced the shoot time and locations. The results though were better than we could have asked for.

These images, showcasing my incredibly talented crew of wedding industry professionals, are amazing and if you hire any of them for your wedding, you can rest assured, that any last-minute hitch (Dare I say the “C” word?…… COVID), will not ruin your wedding day, as these professionals are prepared and creative enough to overcome everything.

Hang in there everyone. The current lockdowns are hopefully a small hitch, and if we are extra careful, will be over soon and we can all enjoy life again and celebrate our special events.

If all the future brides and grooms have as much fun, on their wedding day, as we did, creating this inspirational styled bridal shoot, you will want your special day to continue for more than one day and will be fondly remembered by all.