Iris is the consummate wedding planner, and despite being supremely capable of pulling all the bits and pieces together on her own, also hired a team of wedding co-ordinators to help her share the load. Highly detailed and with military precision, the day was so intricately prepared that when she ran a few minutes late for the ceremony, Andrew found himself feeling very anxious indeed. Sweet man!

It was a classic case of opposites attract. She is steadfast and resolute, while he is more relaxed and laid back. His role in their relationship, he says in his speech that night, is to ‘calm her down when she feels stressed.’ Twenty minutes on and still poached behind the lectern with a firm grasp of the mike, Iris (who had only allotted five minutes to his speech), has no choice but to look on and absorb the endless words of love he had to share! 

We’ve known Shabnam and James for a while, and after having shot two weddings previously with James as a groomsman, it was rightfully so that it should now be his turn. Shabnam's gown was a Maggie Sottero design, and was just about to call it quits on Day 1 of Gown Hunting when she found the one for her and fell in love with it at first sight.

The day was held at Cockle Bay House, a little luxury retreat on the Central Coast. A country manor with all the adornments of an exclusive hideaway - the perfect backdrop for a warm and intimate wedding. Even smaller weddings are not without its challenges Shabnam soon realised, but everything still went to exact plan.

They plan to honeymoon next year in Canada and Iran... what a treat!

Here’s the perfect cure for that bout of Mondayitis. Featuring Mona and Jansen who are just the most charming bride and groom, and were deservingly blessed with glorious weather on their wedding day during this not-so-Spring-like season. The day could not have gone any better.

We started the day at their home to capture their preparation and were greeted by such glorious afternoon light that any other photographer would have been seriously envious. Cause for even greater envy is the good lookin’ bride and groom (you reading this Jansen!?) – lovely in their own right, and striking when together. See for yourself below.

A wonderfully sun-drenched ceremony at Rocky Point Island, followed immediately by lots of love and laughs over a cocktail reception at Bathers’ Pavilion.

People often ask us how each of us as photographers fell into ‘weddings’ as the means of exercising our craft. And although we would have our own individual reasons, probably common to us all is the attraction to a form of photography that encompasses a great many other forms.  What other genre would require you to know everything from portraits and families, to product stills and landscapes? A bride and groom’s personalities really colour every experience so the dynamics of what we do is different each time.

We thought it would make for interesting discussion to create a list of photographers that our own group of Saxon Colers derive creativity from. What we found perhaps the most intriguing was that this list comprised predominantly of photographers who are not within the wedding industry at all.

In hindsight, I guess this makes sense from the point of view that the best inspiration comes from those who compel us to look at things in a different way, in someone else’s shoes, outside the proverbial square. It’s the innovation in the work of these photographers, the power in their imagery, and their left-field thinking that we look upon to spark an idea and nab that unique image.

Edward Weston - an old school pioneer in exploring the female form, body and curves.

Mark Zibert - a UK based concept photographer that has got to be one of the most creative guys we've seen in a long time.

Kelley Ryden - she does some fantastic baby photos, based in the U.S.A. Kelley has become extremely popular with her unique fresh style with newborn portraits.

Urs Bulhman - AIPP Australian photographer of the year 2008. Best known for his amazing car images that he shoots for advertising. We've had the good fortune of speaking with Urs on a number of occassions and he's got to be one of the most passionate photographers we've ever met.

Mario Testino - famous peruvian fashion/celebrity photographer, has shot the likes of Angelina Jolie, Gwyneth Paltrow and Julia Roberts. You may not know the name but if you see some of his images you may recognise them.

Eolo Perfido - One of our favourites. An up and coming Italian photographer known for having commissioned some huge fashion jobs with a little studio the size of half a garage.

and finally, Markus Klinko & Indrani - A strong duo who also shoot fashion with an edge and have a talent for the bizarre and unexpected.

We’ve looked forward to Iris and Kelvin’s wedding for a long while now, and checked in every now and again to see how the planning had progressed. It would be among some of the larger and longer weddings we’ve ever shot, but they were always calm and composed (to us, at least) and didn’t seem at all daunted by the massive number of moving parts they would rely upon to fall magically into place. It all did...  

Welcome back from Japan guys! Now that you should be rested and recovered, there’s a stack of images headed your way to relive the day again from start to finish! Our hats off to a wonderfully planned day. Thoroughly enjoyed every moment.