Sonya called me from Sydney only about 6 weeks before hers and Claudias wedding day, asking about my affordable wedding photography packages I had advertised.  I am always happy to explain my service but as the conversation went on I began to realise this was a same sex marriage and my first one at that, only months after marriage between same sex couples became legal. I was so excited!  I had voted for the equal rights and had cried when same sex marriage was announced as legal, with a gay brother that I always felt, grew up feeling like he did not fit in…not only not fitting in but in the days when we were young and discovering our sexuality we lived in Tasmania where it was actually at that point in time illegal to be gay, ned alone any gay marriage talk was surely frowned upon.

Sonya was easy to get along with right from the beginning, and the photography of this same sex couple was so much fun!  I had always thought it would probably be a lot easier being with a woman than a man if you were that way inclined but never imagined that even photographing two women getting married on Burleigh Beach on the Gold Coast would feel so much different than photographing a man and a woman.

Claudia and Sonya walked down the Burleigh Heads Path to their gay marriage ceremony in John Laws Park dressed in colourful identical dresses accompanied by a friend playing guitar on the site where their marriage celebrant and their guest waited for their arrival for the morning wedding ceremony. It was a stunning early Autumn day on the Gold Coast, and around 50 colourful guests came from a far.

After their celebrant Belinda Bailey wrapped up the very entertaining ceremony, we went further up Burleigh Hill for a group photo on the slope and into the Burleigh Headland trail where we could get some shade amongst the pandas trees. After those wedding photos the wedding party and I went down on to the very crowded Burleigh Beach for some quick shoeless photos in the sun and then on to Justins Lane Pizzeria on the Gold Coast Hwy of Burleigh Heads for the wedding Reception.  I only had two hours with the same sex couple but when I left I could see they would certainly make a great job that day of celebrating the same sex marriage on the beautiful Gold Coast of Sonya and Clauida.

Two hours of laughter and fun!

Congratulations Claudia and Sonya, I am glad you chose me to be part of it.