Top KZN wedding photographer Archives - Jacki Bruniquel Photography

Best of 2015 Weddings

by Jacki Bruniquel | Jan 1, 2016 | Best Of

Ever since I decided to become a wedding photographer I have ended the year by doing “a best of my wedding pics of that year” I get a bit emotional every time I get these images together! This year-end exercise reminds me of so many things. It reminds me of what my strengths and weakness are. It is also a way to say goodbye to the previous year and allow the space for improvement. But most importantly it reminds me of how incredibly lucky I am to do a job that I love and how lucky I am to have attracted clients who allow me to do what I do and make a living from this.

Weddings are funny things as they turn grown men to tears, they send mothers into a frenzy and fathers into meek puppy dogs. Families come together and people journey from all over to celebrate and reunite. There is a always a joy and an energy present unlike any other human ritual I know. A bride often feels her most beautiful while she is fluffed and fancied for hours. The men feel sexy in their suits, shorts or veldskoen, and no matter what they are wearing they are all moved when they see their bride coming down the aisle. To be able to capture a photograph of someone where they look at the photo and see the beauty that I see, in that moment is a truly remarkable thing. I see beauty everywhere and in most people. I love taking pictures of brides hugging their grannies. I love taking pictures of kids doing silly things, I love creating narrative portraits of my clients but mostly I love taking pics of people having fun and being human. My personal quirk however is finding the humour in it all and telling stories with my camera.

This year has been a happy year for me and when I look through all of these photographs I feels so darned charmed that I have had so many wonderful inspiring people who have entrusted me with their dear memories. I have found more balance this year than in any other year and between that and having such incredible clients and a very special man in my life I have been reminded of how lucky we are to be alive.

I would like to thank Liz my assistant who has never moaned when we have stayed that extra hour or three because I didn’t feel like I had the shot. Liz, who has made me endless cups of tea and and has my diary organized like a ninja. You are so valued and so talented. Liz has a few pics in this best of 2015 which really says how great she is. Thank you … you rock!!! My world would suck without you.

Huge thanks also to KJ and team from Nanuja who make all my albums. I am such a perfectionist that every wedding album that I produce is like an artwork to me and KJ is so accommodating and goes the extra mile. Thanks also to all the folk at Fotomax who print all my work and also house us and also put up with all our crazy. I do have to mention Teez here. What a gem of a human!

And lastly but not leastly, thanks to all the service providers who have not only made my job easy but so much fun. I couldn’t do my job without all of your genius. Thanks also to all of you who have referred me and to those who have worked with my schedules to get the shots that I do. I can’t name you all but you know who are my specials. Thank you I love you!!!

Thank you to each and every single one of you. 2015 has been such a super year for me and you have all been a part of that!!!

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Best Wedding Pics of 2013

by Jacki Bruniquel | Jan 5, 2014 | Best Of

2013 brought with it some wonderful things to be grateful for but also some incredibly difficult challenges. Huge thanks to everyone for the support over the past year. Thanks also to all my clients … I feel blessed to have walked along a path filled with interesting people who have hired me to explore and create. Lastly thanks to all the service providers who we have worked alongside. I hope the year of the horse will be as noble and magnificent as the real life creatures! Let’s go 2014!

Here are some of my favorite wedding images from 2013!

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Ode to the wedding shoe – My approach to visual communication.

by Jacki Bruniquel | Sep 11, 2013 | My approach to Photography

People often ask me how I come up with such different photos every time I shoot a wedding. Sometimes it’s an easy process and the creative ideas just flow out of me, other times it’s hard and I really have to work at it. It would probably be far simpler and less time consuming to keep churning out the same old imagery on every client, but that is not who I am or what I stand for. I have the spirit of an artist and it is therefore important for me to tell stories with images and to create something unique and different for every client. I like to think that this is one of the reasons that people book me!

So let’s take something rather “boring” and analyze how I approach it.

How about shoes?

I have to say right now that I am not a shoe girl. Yes I have a pair of Meow Boots from Irregular Choice but I am not one of those girls who could think of nothing better than shoe shopping on a Saturday afternoon. I do however see that photographing the wedding shoe is a way of communicating a story.

I always ask my clients if they would like me to photograph their wedding details. Some people couldn’t care less about shoes let alone a photo of their shoes, others have spent years dreaming up which pair of Jimmy Choos they will wear on their wedding day! Every client is different.

The choice of shoes a bride will wear on her wedding day will tell us about something about her. The girl who walks down the aisle barefoot will be very different to the girl with the sparkly slippers.

When photographing details like shoes I use the theme of the wedding to inform where and how I shoot. I want the shoe shot to tell the viewer something about the day of the wedding and the person that wears them. For me, each image I photograph is another link in the overall story.

Here are a few shoe shots so you can see what I mean ……….

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Umdloti couple shoot – Lauren + Tom

by Jacki Bruniquel | Sep 4, 2013 | Engagement

Lauren and Tom celebrated their two year wedding anniversary yesterday. To remember this very special time in their lives they organised a couple session with me. The idea was to do a very sweet and simple shoot on the beach in their home town of Umdloti. Unfortunately the weather had other plans and as we got to the beach a gale force wind started up of epic proportions. I am not afraid of bad weather when it comes to photography but in this case it just wasn’t working so I had to come up with plan B. And my plan B was to look toward the light ……

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Why I take time to push my creative boundaries.

by Jacki Bruniquel | Jul 24, 2013 | My approach to Photography

Are you a photographer who is feeling in a rut? Do you feel stagnant or bored with what you are doing? There are many ways to solve this and one of them is to push your creative boundaries. This is always scary at first but as they say, you only grow when you are out of your comfort zone!

In the past 8 days I have done 5 styled shoots. Anyone who has ever been involved in a styled shoot will know that this is complete madness! But there is method in my madness.

For those of you who are unclear about what a styled shoot is, the name is self-explanatory. Simply put, it is a shoot that is styled. These kinds of shoots always start off with brain storming sessions and a lot of research. A theme is picked and then outfits, location, colours, hair, make up and props, etc are all co-ordinated to tell that themed story. Generally there are a number of creative people involved, which means collaboration and a LOT of organization!

Why do I do styled shoots?

I am a curious photographer and an artist. I like to push myself, I like to explore, I like adventure and I like to create. I cannot do this if I just sit around making the same old work over and over again. I also love working with people. When shooting weddings, I am often left alone to make creative choices and this can sometimes be lonely. I love collaborating with other creative folk to make beautiful pictures. This process is nurturing for me, and I always learn so much and land up doing far more than I ever dreamt of. I also get to experiment with techniques that I wouldn’t necessarily try out at a wedding, especially not for the first time! I have found that if I don’t take time out in my schedule to do creative work I land up stagnating and I don’t push myself to learn more technically. I also know that if I am constantly producing creative work I will find clients who like creative photography and those are the people I love to work with!!!!

Recently I have been on a mission to learn more about light and posing. I have been playing with these two elements to communicate certain emotions and feelings, but also to make my clients look gorgeous! These are the factors I have really pushed in these shoots.

I would like to thank Charelle who has done make up for most of these shoots, Drew Christie who has done both hair and styling, and Carolyn McNeil who has done styling and flowers. Huge thanks also to Tracey Laubscher from Olivelli Durban for lending us the two gorgeous black wedding dresses. To Richard Chennells and Peter Engblom from The George Hotel in Eshowe, you have been so generous and we so appreciate it! Thanks to Sven from Davida for opening your shop for us and for being so incredibly patient. It has been a dream working with all of you talented folk! You all rock! I will be posting each shoot once they are all edited and will then go into detail about all the collaborators.

Last but certainly not least I need to thank my amazing clients. Everyone you see here came to me for an engagement shoot or a portrait session and didn’t quite know what hit them when the giant production unfolded. Thanks for running with our ideas and for being so wonderful!

PS The fifth shoot is top secret as the client bought the portrait session I auctioned off for Jess Nicholson and doesn’t want it blogged.

Hair, concept and styling: Drew Christie of Evolve Salon 031 8377334

Make up: Charelle Mc Allister 072 02 544 53

Olivelli Wedding Dresses: Tracey Laubscher 071 509 3223

Flowers, Styling, Concept: Carolyn McNeil from I Adore Weddings