THE VENUE: MOUNT NELSON HOTEL, CAPE TOWN
This was by no means a small wedding and the size and grandeur of the Mount Nelson Hotel gave evidence to this. We arrived early – at high tea o’clock - to suss the venue out and had an iced coffee on the patio to bide time and provide short-lived relief from the heat. It was quite easily the hottest day of the year! That said – bright sunshine is better than rain. Sadly, it also provides shadows and the wedding ceremony was set in one of the lower gardens in the dappled shade of several giant palms.
We took a few photos of Denise having her make-up done in her hotel suite, and then getting in to her dress – which was altogether too large for a girl of her petite stature to get into on her own. Once on though, it fitted like a glove and looked simply stunning. Denise was running a little behind schedule so we split up and I ran down to the ceremony area to find Herschel looking nervously at his watch!
The guests were dressed in an assortment of bright colours which made for some gorgeous photos, especially the group shot which proved very difficult to coordinate as there were some 120 guests! We had to recruit the help of hotel staff to re-arrange an entire patio of outdoor seating in order to clear the stage for the shot and keep other hotel guests from walking across the frame! After a string of smaller group photos near the swimming pool we whisked the bride and groom away for an intimate shoot around the grounds in what little time we had.We were welcomed to the reception hall, not only by a room full of waiting guests, but the blast of cool air from the air-conditioner which was VERY welcome!
Tim Holmes (of Tim Holmes Photography) took over from me at the reception as I had a prior engagement to attend. He got down to business tackling the table by table group shots and putting the guests at ease. The reception ceremony included an exchanging of trays of sweetmeats and delicacies between the families of the bride and groom which was a unique feature and started off the celebrations for the evening.
As the proceedings were running a little late and our shift was coming to an end, bride and groom staged a premature ‘over the threshold’ scene in their suite and Herschel literally threw his bride onto the bed. We stopped filming before things got too heated and left the couple to rejoin their guests and party into the night.
Links:
Mount Nelson Hotel - www.mountnelson.co.zaTim Holmes Photography - www.timholmesphotography.co.za
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