What’s it like, Behind the Scenes of a Melbourne Wedding Supplier Collaboration.

It’s been a while since I’ve been part of a collaborative wedding photo shoot.

Normally, I like being the boss and being right at the front of the creative direction — occupational hazard when you’re a wedding dress designer! With a collaboration, though, it’s all about teamwork. My main responsibility is usually supplying the wedding dresses, and sometimes I’ll also style the complete look with accessories.

About 90% of the time I don’t actually go along to the shoot. I send the dresses off and wait to see what everyone creates.

This time was a little different.

Steph mentioned that she was a little nervous about getting the model into the wedding dresses, the shoot happened to fall on my day off, and it was reasonably local, so I offered to come along.

And I’m very glad I did.

It rained for most of the day, which meant there was a lot of carefully lifting skirts, watching trains and making sure our beautiful wedding dresses didn’t end up wet, muddy or dragging through the gardens!

Despite Melbourne doing its best to challenge us, we had a fabulous day — and it was a lovely opportunity to work with a group of talented wedding suppliers from Melbourne’s South East.

So, before I show you more from the shoot, let me introduce you to the team.

Jack from Amazing Day Photos

Jack will have you relaxed and ready to pose in no time. I loved his positivity and felt so comfortable around him that he even let me take a couple of photos on his camera — something I probably enjoyed a little too much!

You can visit Amazing Day Photos here or follow @amazingdaysphotos.

Jack has also photographed past Leah S Designs weddings, including:

• Laura & George
• Casey & Josh

It’s always lovely working with a photographer who has already photographed some of our real brides.

Steph from Skn Artistry — Organiser Extraordinaire

Steph was the person who took a little idea and turned it into a full-blown wedding photo shoot.

Location, photographer, model, dresses, hair, makeup and all the little details that need to come together on the day — she made it happen.

If she can coordinate all of that, I’m fairly confident she can have your bridesmaids sitting in their chairs and ready for makeup on time!

Have a look at her beautiful work at @skn_artistry.

Steph has also done the makeup for one of our past Leah S Designs brides:

• Laura & Taylor

Danielle from Dream Hair Artistry

Apparently Danielle is my doppelgänger?! The difference is that she can actually get her hair right — a skill I am still working on.

Whether you’re looking for a beautiful bridal blowout, soft waves or an elegant hair-up style, Danielle will have you sorted.

See more of her work here or follow @dream.hair.artistry.

Danielle has also styled the hair for a past Leah S Designs wedding:

• Laura & Taylor

Olinda Tea House

I feel as though Olinda Tea House almost needs no introduction.

It’s such an iconic location in the Dandenong Ranges, with its Japanese-inspired gardens, dedicated reception space and, most importantly, delicious food.

Leah S Designs has also enjoyed gatherings here in the past, so it was lovely to return in a completely different setting.

And considering how much rain we had on the day, we were especially grateful to the team for looking after us and allowing us to create around the venue.

Thank you for hosting us.

You can find more information about Olinda Tea House here.

Emily — Our Model

Our lovely model for the day was Emily from Silhouette Management.

One thing you don’t necessarily appreciate until you’re at a shoot is just how much work the model does. There is a lot of changing, waiting, posing, walking, re-posing and doing it all again from another angle.

Emily handled it beautifully — including having me fussing around her making sure every section of the dress was sitting exactly where I wanted it!

If you’re feeling creative and would like to organise a photo shoot of your own, you can find Silhouette Management here.

Yolanda — Socials & Behind the Scenes

While the finished professional photographs are always the exciting part, there is a whole other side to a shoot happening behind the camera.

Yolanda was there capturing the behind-the-scenes moments and social content throughout the day — all the little pieces that show how the final images actually came together.

Sometimes those candid moments are just as much fun as the finished photos. Find out more information here.