You might have already noticed that Gerlof from Geebz Photography and I love to stir some photoshoot excitement every now and then, therefore it is with great pleasure that I would like to present to you the extraordinary work of all those involved while celebrating #pridemonth #loveislove #lgbtq
We all decided that while we’re waiting for the big and exciting changes to happen, we could get creative and that creativity once again lead us to produce something magnificent, but I’ll leave this for you to judge 😊
Another motivation for us was the success of our Autumnal Photoshoot in November 2020 and we simply knew there was so much more we could do, therefore in this blog I will present to you our spin on a spring boho style city elopement in some of the most picturesque locations of our glorious capital city of Edinburgh, so allow me to take you on a journey in the next few paragraphs…
HAIR AND MAKEUP
For hair and makeup, we were inspired by natural makeup and free flowing locks. It was very important for us to ensure that hair and makeup wasn’t too busy, too heavy and too arranged – our aim was to achieve a very natural look for an outdoor wedding. I think that the team behind Bryony Quate Hair and Beauty Couture managed to pull of this inspiration so perfectly, don’t you think?
Bryony jumped on board with us as soon as I said that we were working on a bridal photoshoot and I wouldn’t expect anything less from this top-class team!
What stuns me about working with Bryony and her team is how they manage to create an atmosphere of celebration at the point of morning hair and makeup – Bryony’s team is young, fun and vibrant and immediately uplifts the atmosphere in the room and deflects the nerves among the Bridal Party!
OUTFITS
Mette from Freja Designer Dressmaking is absolutely outstanding – not only did she supply us with those two beautifully complementing looks, she actually made them from scratch for this photoshoot, now that’s dedication!
Mette – the designer says: “I was delighted to be invited to take part in this photoshoot with this amazing line up of suppliers. I was told it would be a same sex wedding, taking all the good from micro and outdoor weddings and in a beautiful setting. I wanted the brides to wear something which was modern and easy to wear on the hill, but which had some elements of traditional bridal wear and feminine details. The dress was made of beautiful guipure lace, it was soft and contemporary, the skin showing through the lace. I felt the sequins would add a little bit of sparkle in the sun, without looking garish. The trouser suit, had the traditional corset style top and illusion neckline with lace motifs on the skin and drapes on the back, again similar to a veil but in a new and contemporary way. I am so pleased with the photographs and felt it all came together to the same vision"
In the initial conversations with Mette, I only suggested that we wanted two distinct, yet complimenting looks for this same-sex elopement photoshoot. We didn’t want long trains as majority of the photoshoot was planned for the outdoors and I suggested a tea-length dress and a jumpsuit, Mette just jumped at this idea with excitement and run with it.
VENUE
The dream was to have the entire photoshoot at the Edinburgh’s iconic Arthur Seat, which we had the pleasure of featuring on the day! Having been in this wonderful and creative industry for many years now, I knew we couldn’t bank on the weather (especially this year!), so I ensured to work with one of my highly recommended wedding venues to have another unique backdrop to our photoshoot!
Therefore, we started our day at the SkyBar of the Doubletree by Hilton Edinburgh City Centre and featured our ceremony and drinks reception shoot against the absolutely breath-taking and uninterrupted backdrop of the Edinburgh Castle. If you haven’t been to the SkyBar before, you should definitely check it out, they regularly host ticketed and bar events there mid-week to experience this unique location.
We then proceeded to climb Arthur Seat… well… not exactly, we settled on St Margaret’s Loch and the beautiful hill there overseeing the Auld Reekie! This is where the weather cleared, and we got to enjoy true Scottish spring and the iconic city views in the distance. The scene was romantic and simply perfect for a city elopement wedding!
STYLING
For this photoshoot we were inspired by moody, yet rich and vibrant colours of our Scottish spring! We focused on two scenes, indoor ceremony and outdoor romantic city view picnic scene.
Lynsay Borthwick Weddings and Events once again exceeded our expectations – we’ve asked Lynsay to create the perfect frame for our ceremony view encompassing the views of the Edinburgh Castle. She produced this trendy ivy and rose drooping copper frame for us along with cylinder vases filled with pillar candles.
On the hill by Arthur Seat, she set the scene perfectly with your dreamy picnic scene complimented by seasonal moss, floral accents, carved out wood trunks and earthy finishing touches.
Massive thanks also go to Dawn Stafford from Your Scottish Wedding who stepped in to help us with the setup on the day of our photoshoot – we couldn’t have done it without you!
FLORISTRY
Once again, we had the pleasure of working with the best of the best in the wedding industry and Kathrin from White House Flowers hasn’t disappointed! Planning for this photoshoot we wanted something different, rich and lively, yet natural looking for our boho idea.
We’ve asked Kathrin to create two similar, yet slightly varied looks for the bouquets and headpieces, in order to give off a slight bohemian vibe.
Kathrin says: “When Oskar approached me to be involved in a photoshoot that celebrated the love of same sex couples, I jumped at the chance. Creating 2 flowers crowns that were the same - but different, was something I was really interested in doing. Providing complimentary bouquets that were individual but also cohesive, one with pops of spring coral - the other more classic, was also fun. I guess I saw it as a marriage of flowers too. I loved working with this team of professionals again. It makes my job as a wedding florist just brilliant.”
PHOTOGRAPHY
Now, let’s focus on the fabulous duo who captured the amazing work of all suppliers involved in this photoshoot!
We had the pleasure not only to be guided by Gerlof from Geebz Photography and Beate from BBPicture Photography on the day, but we’ve also been greatly entertained by them both – you wouldn’t expect anything else though! This is why these two don’t just make your wedding photography a tick box task on your special day – they make it a very special and fun event in itself and create special memories to cherish! All of us involved in this photoshoot can assure you of that!
VIDEOGRAPHY
We didn’t only settle on photography – this time we decided to involve a videographer to show behind the scenes footage of this truly beautiful elopement wedding photoshoot in one of the most picturesque locations!
You might not know this, but Daniel from Fern Photography is venturing out with a new string to his bow – videography!
It was amazing getting Daniel involved in our photoshoot and the scenes, views and settings he’s captured for us in his short trailer video showcase the beauty of all of our work!
ACCESSORIES
The wonderful team at ScotlandShop came to the rescue when we realised that Spring this year is very much unlike anything we’ve seen in the past few years!
Anna, Susan and Monja couldn’t have been more helpful – when I approached them about getting involved with the photoshoot, they invited me to their shop in Queensferry Street where they presented me with a vast variety of choices to keep our Brides warm on the photoshoot day!
We could choose from wraps, shawls, scarfs and structured jackets and we made sure to feature them all in our photoshoot!
PLANNING AND HUMANIST CEREMONIES
I said this many times that I am lucky to be surrounded by a network of some of the best Scottish wedding suppliers out there and it is an absolute honour to be entrusted by these fantastic people to plan such an important event like the showcase photoshoot! I am especially humbled to be working with such a loyal and dedicated team on these very creative projects, where we all can allow ourselves plenty of freedom to showcase our best!
This time wasn’t different! Not only did we put together something special, but we had a brilliant time doing it – just like we do at the weddings we all work together on!
Massive thanks also go to our fabulous, stunning and fun to be around supermodels – Holly and Ellie, you’ve not only been a pleasure to work with, but you’ve embraced every element of this photoshoot and it is also thanks to you that we’ve got such an outstanding work to showcase now! Thank you!
On another note, in this photoshoot, I decided to focus on another element of wedding I could work with you on – humanist ceremony. For those of you who haven’t heard yet, I am also a fully qualified and licensed Humanist Celebrant with Fuze Ceremonies and although I can’t offer this most important part of your day as part of my wedding planning services, I am sure I can help many of your elopement planning couples to ensure your ceremony is truly special and meaningful.
Massive thanks to all photoshoot partners - without your enthusiasm, vision and determination this fantastic project wouldn’t have been possible!
View The wedding guru Oskar, the bespoke wedding planners advert with us here