Category: wedding
Earlier in May we worked together with Corston Couture on their Autumt/Winter 2020 campaign.
Producer & styling @corston_couture
Photography and Videography @premaphoto
Hair & Makeup @reneesayedbridal
Model @chadwickmodels
Jewelry @roxyjacenko.accessories
Location @luxico @renatodettorrearchitects
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Juanny & Yuri – pre-wedding photography
I get asked to do a lot of pre-wedding film and photo sessions and I think they are a wonderful way to capture the excitement a future bride and groom share before their special day. This beautiful pre-wedding shoot for Juanny and Yuri took place at one of the best Sydney locations. This lovely couple also works in the photography industry and it was amazing to be able to deliver the best results to colleagues who value captured memories as much as we do at Prema Photo.
Juanny and Yuri first met at their workplace in Sydney, Australia. Juanny was so charmed by this handsome Russian coworker and after getting to know each other, they found that not only were they great at working together, but they also had similar values and goals in life. It didn’t take long for the two to fall in love.
It was December 2019 when Yuri proposed to Juanny, and early January 2020 they started to plan their Sydney wedding. Vendors were picked and a wedding dress was purchased; the happily engaged couple was beyond excited to become husband and wife. With their family being so far away, in Russia and Brazil, both the bride and groom-to-be had only one thought in mind … to fly their parents out to Australia and have a big celebration with family and friends.
But just as their plans were coming together, the worldwide Covid-19 crisis began. Things began to close down and everyone was told to keep their distance from one another. Things were uncertain and even scary. Throughout March and April, no one could have imagined how lives would be affected by this pandemic. Sadly, like most engaged couples planning a wedding during this time, Juanny and Yuri postponed their wedding for at least a year or two until it would be safe for their family to travel by airplane.
Even though the wedding date was extended, they still enjoyed the excitement of an engaged couple. Before the pandemic started, Juanny and Yuri had booked a pre-wedding photography and film session with me. They decided to go ahead with the booking and make it a “rehearsal” pre-wedding photo session and they used this opportunity to test make-up, visit favorite locations, and create unforgettable memories. This worked out great as they were not pressured by a schedule and they didn’t have to worry about leaving guests after a ceremony and this would help them be more relaxed on their real wedding day.
The session started in Kirribilli, Sydney, and we followed the standard routine with the groom’s first look at the bride. From there we traveled to the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney and then the Cronulla Sand Dunes. The weather was perfect during this shoot and everything ran smoothly and was so enjoyable. The future bride and groom showed their true selves and were laughing and dancing the whole time.
We captured so many gorgeous photos and it was clear their love was so much stronger than the fear which was wrapped around the world. The couple surprised their families with photos from this shoot and their families were thrilled to receive them – the photos reassured everyone there was still a beautiful wedding to look forward to.
I hope Juanny and Yuri’s story will be a reminder to everyone that even during tough times we can still be joyful and share positive energy with our families and friends. The team at Prema Photo was happy to provide our services to Juanny and Yuri and we are looking forward to photographing and filming their real wedding in the future.
With love, Diana.
Prema Photo has been making professional photography and videography since 2013 and strives to reach the highest expectations of each client by delivering elegant, high-quality films and photo galleries.
Press the link if you would like to see more wedding videos and photos or get in touch to ask a question and book your session. We would love to hear from you.
Make sure you’ve read part one of a story of Polina and Artur
Life is full of surprises and wedding days are no exception. Elopements don’t require as much planning as traditional weddings, even so, great results always lie in a proper pre-production.
Prema Photo always has a meeting with couples before their wedding in order to finalize all the details. Everything is planned out during these meetings so the day will run seamlessly and to ensure couples of our experience so they will be nothing but confident on their big day.
A timeline of the day is drawn out so we can shoot in the correct natural light. We also look for the best backdrop options and play around with light.
When choosing locations for a wedding film and photo session we anticipate being flexible and always have a Plan B – such as an indoor location for a shoot or even for the ceremony.
The rest is very simple. We focus on capturing the deep love and happiness of the newly married couple.
In this film and photo session with Artur and Polina, we ran into a couple of unexpected conditions. From a golf club, we drove to Long Reef Point to capture the ocean but were met by torrential rain. We were flexible and waited in the car for about half an hour until the rain stopped. Our patience paid off because a magnificent rainbow showed over the ocean which is a sign of blessing for the beginning of a new family.
In any situation during a shoot, couples are never pushed to do something they are not comfortable with. As professionals, the team at Prema Photo does their best to help the couple relax and just enjoy themselves as much as possible.
Stills from Prema Photo videos aren’t an alternative to investing in wedding photography. The different camera settings in video mode are very different than traditional photography.
The stills appear more like a pause on your favorite movie scene. I use them to give the couple a sneak peek a few weeks before the final film is delivered because not every cut goes into the highlighted film.
Each film we produces is unique. While we still make sure the film reflects our elegant style, the vibe and tempo are always a little different. The film and photos we capture reflect the couple’s love and their special day.
Prema Photo has been making professional photography and videography since 2013 and strives to reach the highest expectations of each client by delivering elegant, high-quality films and photo galleries.
Press the link if you would like to see more wedding videos and photos or get in touch to ask a question and book your session. We would love to hear from you.
With love, Diana
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Photo – Polina & Artur – Sydney Elopement
I believe everyone at some point in their life has wished to meet someone special, fall deeply in love, and then escape the flurry of life to elope. It’s everyone’s secret fairytale dream.
For Polina and Artur, this fairytale dream was so very real and the team at Prema Photo was honored to capture videos and photos for their intimate elopement in Sydney.
Their love story began when Polina was eighteen. Her mother arranged a dentist appointment for her and then accompanied her to the clinic. While in the waiting room, a handsome young man wearing converse sneakers and colorful ear plugs came riding into the office on a scooter.
All the staff greeted this young man in a very official manner. Polina gazed at him in fascination and then realized – he was her doctor! She turned and gave her mother a “let me meet him alone” look.
The appointment that only needed to last thirty minutes turned into an hour and a half. Polina was glued to this young dentist’s chair. She and Artur couldn’t stop talking and later that same day they went out together and ate dinner at a restaurant. It’s truly a story of love at first sight.
After three years, their deep love and affection compelled them to fly away from their hometown and for a secret and thrilling destination elopement in Sydney, Australia. Their adventure began with an overnight stay at the Novotel Sydney Manly Pacific hotel and we joined them the next day to document their beautiful day together.
We chose intimate and romantic locations for their photo and video love story. The hotel rooms had a magnificent ocean view of Manly Beach. Your eyes can’t help but widen in amazement when you gaze out the window. We had planned to shoot on the hotel rooftop, but rain had kicked us off and we had to shoot in our backup locations.
Our session began by capturing the bride and groom’s intimate relationship as they relaxed in the hotel room. Then we moved outside to capture their playfulness as they strolled by the pool.
We shot more darling moments in the hotel’s reception room where Artur and Polina danced slowly across the floor.
Polina adorned two Corston Couture dresses during this session that, she said, made her feel like a million dollars. The first one was intricately detailed with flowers on the bodice and beads on the tulle. The second was light and dreamy and made entirely of silk.
The rose bouquet Polina held during the shoot was made by Wild Forager, a local flower company run by two sisters, Sarah and Sophie. Their business is well known and recommended on the Northern Beaches. The blush pink flowers complimented Polina’s ethereal beauty perfectly.
The couple chose Sydney for a destination wedding hoping to be photographed with the Australia’s famous green landscape as a backdrop. Unfortunately, 2019 was Australia’s hottest and driest year on record and many parks and lawns were dry and yellow. However, I made a couple of quick phone calls and arranged for us to shoot at Manly Golf Club; one of the few places in Sydney with lush green grass.
Our favorite moment captured on the golf course, was when Artur pulled Polina in his arms, lifted her off the ground, and spun her around with her silk dress trailing gently behind her.
The session ended at Long Reef Point where there was a magical sunset over the ocean. Warm light covered the bride and groom during the golden hour and a light breeze played with Polina’s dress and hair.
It was incredibly easy to capture Artur and Polina’s love for each. Their intimacy and connection were expressed in the sweet joy and happiness they shared through the entire shoot.
Their fairytale elopement was truly enchanting and the team at Prema Photo was thrilled to film and photograph their special wedding day.
Click here to see the video and stills from Artur and Polina’s wedding elopement.
Prema Photo has been making professional photography and videography since 2013 and strives to reach the highest expectations of each client by delivering elegant, high-quality films and photo galleries.
Press the link if you would like to see more wedding videos and photos or get in touch to ask a question and book your session. We would love to hear from you.
With love, Diana
Last spring, I traveled to Europe on holiday and stopped at a bar while passing through Lisbon, Portugal. It was there I spotted a certain young couple sitting near my table. I couldn’t help but notice how in love they looked and caught a glimpse of a beautiful engagement ring on the woman’s finger.
I asked them how long they’d been engaged and the couple, Selina and Duarte, answered that they were only engaged for a few days. As we chatted, they learned I was a videographer from Sydney, Australia and revealed that they were just looking for someone to make a pre-wedding film for them while they were in Lisbon. I had all my equipment with me and knew it was possible to organize a shoot in a few days, so I agreed to help them out.
We met up the next day to plan the future shoot and discussed locations that meant the most to them (and were a must-see for me). We decided on Cabo da Roca, which is a cape on the westernmost point of mainland Portugal, and decided to film there at sunset – the golden hour.
Selina (from Barcelona, Spain) and Duarte (from Madrid) were both freelance models. In fact, they met while on a photoshoot in Lisbon less than a year before their engagement. They spent all their time in between shoots learning about each other and exploring Portugal. When their job was finished and they returned home, Duarte would visit Selina in Barcelona every chance he could get. And eight months later, he proposed to her as they were traveling through Lisbon.
The day was cloudy, but there was a sort of elegance in this shoot with the cape as the backdrop. The feel was immensely romantic because, although Selina and Duarte lived in front of cameras for their modeling career, they didn’t pay any attention to my camera during our film session together. The young future bride and groom were completely absorbed in one another.
You could truly see the connection they shared by the way they laughed together as Duarte gave Selina a piggy-back ride into the ocean and the way they looked at each other as she would brush back the curls in his hair. There was no staging at all – it was just the two of them being in love, and the simplicity of that was beautiful.
Organizing a shoot in just a few days is possible if you just have a good plan set in place. It’s important to discuss the location (and scout the area if you are able), know the time of day you would like to shoot, and have appropriate attire for the environment and weather. This pre-wedding engagement shoot is a perfect example of how Prema Photo prepares and executes a session with little time.
I was able to provide Selina and Duarte with four minutes of highlighted film and one hundred high-resolution photo stills for them to treasure for their whole lives.
Congratulations Selina and Duarte! May your marriage be filled with every blessing.
Prema Photo has been making professional photography and videography since 2013 and strives to reach the highest expectation of each client by delivering elegant, high-quality films and photo galleries.
Press the link if you would like to see more wedding videos and photos or get in touch to ask questions and book a session. We would love to hear from you.
With love, Diana.
It’s always an honor when friends ask me to film or photograph their wedding day. Me and my team at Prema Photo get excited to be able to closely share in the joy of the bride and groom.
This Vedic wedding took place in Govinda Valley, a yoga retreat center located just south of Sydney in the Royal National Park. This was my second time photographing a Vedic wedding ceremony here.
Govinda Valley is a wonderful place that brings people together. Anyone can book a weekend just to relax in the green forest or to join a yoga retreat. Many years back, I was able to stay for free in exchange for volunteer work.
It’s where I met Akash. And where Akash, met his future bride, Renee.
Their paths crossed at Govinda Valley during a yoga festival where they became fast friends.
Akash moved from Sydney to Melbourne to study and to be closer to Renee and their relationship blossomed from an exciting friendship to a more serious romantic relationship. As soon as they were engaged, they both knew exactly where they would celebrate their marriage.
When the time came, friends traveled from all over South-East Australia to celebrate the marriage of Akash and Renee in this traditional Hindu wedding ceremony called Vivaha-yajna.
It was a perfect warm sunny day in the middle of an Australian winter. The bridesmaids rose early to help the bride get ready in her room.
While preparing for the ceremony, the bride was suddenly overcome by joy. I didn’t want to miss the chance to photograph her at this moment, so I ask everyone to leave the room. I captured her gazing out a window imagining the beautiful married life she was about to spend with her best friend.
The ceremony began with the sounds of kirtan (chanting) and a sign that went before Renee saying, “Akash, here comes your bride”. The whole gathering was ecstatic. The bride was led out by her parents and bridesmaids. She was covered with red silk scarves and adorned in a beautiful red sari with opulent golden embroidery.
During this ceremony, the bride and groom perform a fire sacrifice promising to the Lord Vishnu to be a husband and wife, not only in this lifetime but for seven sequential lives. Ancient Vedic mantras are chanted, and guests give their blessings to the newly married couple to live a long and happy life under God’s protection.
Showered in flower petals, Akash and Renee stood before each other smiling, willing to bond their lives in front of the Lord Vishnu, their family, and friends. There are no kisses exchanged during Vivaha-yajna, yet immense love and devotion is expressed throughout the ceremony.
The bride and groom offered their obeisance to the deities and to their parents, and after exchanging rings and gifts, they tossed puffed rice into a fire and circled around it seven times. Then seven final steps were made through petal circles where they exchanged vows. At last, the bond was sealed, and Akash and Renee were finally husband and wife.
A group photo session followed the ceremony and I was able to capture Akash and Renee’s excitement of being husband and wife in the vibrant green locations around the retreat area.
At their modern hipster reception, we ate a feast of Indian-Asian cuisine that was followed by speeches, cake cutting, and live music by Akash and his best mates.
The remarkable thing about this wedding was that friends and family helped with all the preparations and personalized it with DIY decorations for the bride and groom. Through the whole celebration, the newlyweds were surrounded and cared for by all the people they loved. It was a wedding to remember!
Renee and Akash, I’m forever grateful to be able to capture your special day and witness your love for each other.
I wish you prosperity, mutual respect, eternal love, and endless happiness.
Prema Photo has been making professional photography and videography since 2013 and strives to reach the highest expectations of each client by delivering elegant, high-quality films and photo galleries.
Press the link if you would like to see more wedding videos and photos or get in touch to ask questions and book your session. We would love to hear from you.
With love, Diana.
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Gratitude is a key
Thank you Diana for taking such amazing photos of our special day. We could not be happier with your professionalism and also the support you gave both of us to help us through the ceremony. You were so calming and not intrusive. We can recommend you to everyone.
Jason & Erika
