Willow + Rhys … •☾• … O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat Elopement
O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat Elopement
In April, Willow and Rhys got married up above the clouds at O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat. They chose O’Reilly’s ‘Hidden Gully’ as their ceremony site - a magical place nestled in a secluded rainforest setting.
Mountain Time
Everything was a bit different that day… things ran late due to some rain while guests and us were waiting for the retreat’s bus to drive us to the ceremony place. No one minded the delay and staff kept reassuring Doruk and me that we should stop looking at our watches since ‘we are on mountain time now and everything goes at its own pace up the mountain’. So Doruk and I let ourselves fall into mountain time and got carried through the rest of the day in what felt like a day dream.
To us, the most stunning wedding venue, gown, flowers or wedding food are all secondary. The essence of any wedding or elopement is the amount of soul and openness going around in the way couples feel and interact with one another. We knew from their engagement session how truly connected Willow and Rhys are as Lovers and partners in life, but we couldn’t have imagined the strength with which their warmth and love was radiating onto everyone gathered there in the Hidden Gully for their wedding ceremony. If we could shoot elopements like this for the rest of our days, we’d be honoured.
Open Hearts
Willow and Rhys completely opened their hearts during their ceremony and were completely present. This was greatly facilitated by their celebrant Annie from Celebrant Lady Love who completely put us under her spell and busted out a ceremony like we hadn’t witnessed before. As someone who loves all things language, I immediately noticed Annie’s exceptional way with words and rhythm and her intelligent choice of vocabulary, which entirely caught my attention. Add to that a cute hat, a vintage gown and little booties and I was completely in awe and mesmerised at finally having found the Celebrant version of basically us.
Rhys took on Willow’s last name and amongst other things, it was mentioned during the ceremony how Willow had taught Rhys about self-respect. Completely free in their spirits and vulnerable, Willow and Rhys, guided by Annie, made me forget to keep shooting as I just wanted to sit down and listen. There were candles, crystals and a dreamcatcher that they had both made together. After their ceremony, the fabulous team from O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat took us all on a tour around their vast and dreamy grounds for our bride & groom portraits. We crossed creeks, chased cows, inhaled mountain air and marvelled at Crepuscular rays {rays of sunlight that appear to radiate from the point in the sky where the Sun is located… excuse the Latin, but both of my parents are Meteorologists}.
After a day like that, it becomes all the more clear that we’re on the right path to shooting exactly the type of ceremonies and couples that resonate with our souls. Over the years, we have collected moments, friends and vendors who are kindred spirits. All these are treasures to us and Annie the celebrant has been a particularly big and important find. Since the elopement a month ago, we have kept well in touch, have given each other virtual tours of our homes on insta, chatted about life and have reminisced about Willow & Rhys’ magical elopement day. If you’re still looking for your celebrant, don’t settle for the first one you find online, but meet with a few candidates, ask your friends, read reviews and find a celebrant who you believe can truly carry out their role as a guardian of culture and who you know will find the perfect tone and vibe for you and your guests to initiate your marriage. We are long overdue to make our recommended vendors section available here on our website again and will do so shortly. For now, we hope you enjoy Willow & Rhys’ dreamy mountain elopement photos. If you do, please leave us a comment. We always love hearing from you.
RHYS’ VOW
“Most people want to be the sun that brightens up your day, but I’d rather be the moon that shines down on you in your darkest hour.”
Willow & Rhys - with your open hearts and love for each other, we know you will continue to have a ball together and dance through life with ease. Please be sure to stay in touch with us over the years. We can’t wait to see what the future holds for you. All our love, Tina & Doruk xx
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