Long Shadows and Long Jetties

Went for a bit of a road trip up to the Central Coast last weekend, for a quick surf at Umina then up over to Lake Tuggerah at Long Jetty to watch the sun go down. Definitely one of the best places on the Central Coast to watch a golden sun go down over the hills.


Dane Tucker

INSTAGRAM @THESALTYSHUTTER

Vin and Milly are both pretty creative. Vin makes - and obviously plays - guitar. Milly is an artist and is building her own business through it. Their wedding was aesthetically beautiful, but it also had a hell of a lot of heart. Vin, Milly, and a surprise performance to a new wife in the kitchen that brought the house down.
Next week I’m going to do a big story to try and do this day justice, but for now enjoy Kate’s clearly unexpected transport down the aisle.
They say friends are the family you choose for yourself. Coming into my 30’s this has never been more evident. The people you grow up with, the people you live with, those who you have shared drunken adventures with and consoled through heart-wrenching break ups. Those you’ve fought and argued against and loved and without whom the narrative arc of your life wouldn’t be quite the same. This day really brought this home. Hayley and Rory met in high school, out the front of an old demountable, and became acquainted in the way that only school kids can (“hey, you want to sit with us?”) and quickly became fast friends, before becoming more. They both love the outdoors and camping, and the quiet, shared solitude that often comes with both of those things. So they decided to get married in the Victorian high country, at the foot of Mount Bulla, only a few minutes drive from one of their favourite camping spots, with just a select handful of twenty or so people they love most in the world. People they had years and years of shared time and experience with. They wanted no fuss, no frills, just to be married and to throw a party to celebrate. There was not even to be speeches until Jack, one of their mutual best mates (who also walked Hayley down the aisle) insisted on doing one to mark the occasion. There are so many parts of this day I want to draw attention to, from the beautiful - Hayley shedding a tear at some of Rory’s words as they shared a moment against the backdrop of an outlandishly picturesque sunset over the Victorian hills - to the absurd - Jack snatching the bouquet from out of the air much to the chagrin of one of Hayley’s best friends, who quickly snatched it back - but I think this time I will let the images tell the rest of the story.
These two have one of the best how did you meet stories I have heard in recent times. Out at a bar with friends one night Honey spotted Jairo across the way and thought he was cute. Sometime later they struck up a conversation which - due to Jairo’s recent arrival from Brazil and at the time very basic English - went something like this “Do you have a boyfriend?”, “No”, ' “Do you want?”, “..No”. Somehow Jairo convinced Honey to let him take her out to lunch the next day and told her he would pick her up, whereafter she ended up waiting at home for over three hours wondering where he was - her first introduction to Brazil’s more relaxed social norms around what constitutes being on time. Fast forward a few years and a whole bunch of both English and Portuguese lessons later and here they are as Jairo broke down 10 seconds after starting his speech like a hip hop MC as he explained how Honey’s family had given him the sense of family and belonging he had missed since moving over from Brazil. This one was a great reminder of a lot of things. Of the importance of family and community, of being yourself, of the unexpectedly life changing things that can happen when you take a chance. Of how weddings can be this beautiful platform to share words and gratitude with all the important people on your life. Of living life like Tupac. Bonus shots of the rest of the speeches because they were f***ing great. Link in bio to the full shebang.
I say this a lot - but weddings are about so much more than a place and a dress and some flowers and all the accoutrements that typically surround the occasion. I’m not saying these things aren’t important by any means, but they are important inasmuch as how they reflect you, what you hold dear, the memories and things and places you choose to invest your time and energy into in order to bring yourself, and those around you, joy. Lana and Andy had originally planned to get married on the shore of Lake Crackenback near Thredbo as it is a place they have spent a lot of formative time together, exploring and riding bikes and generally having a great old time, and as Andy’s family has a property in the country nearby that is close to his heart. They were both unbelievably excited about it all. However, only 2 months out from the wedding they got the news that Lana’s dad was ill and needed to start treatment immediately, and so wouldn’t be in a position to be travelling when the wedding was scheduled. And so they set about re-organising every part of their plans, moving the wedding lunch to the backyard of Lana’s parents place, with the ceremony being held in a park a couple of hundred metres down the road. The snow and the backcountry and that part of the world mean immense amounts to both of them, but I think they would both agree that nothing about this day could possibly have been anymore meaningful, or been the cause of anymore joy than it was. It was honestly one of the most tender and jubilant weddings I’ve been a part of as of late.
WARM & HUMAN People often ask me to describe my style and I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how to distil what I try to do every weekend. I think I’ve got it down to two words. Warm - in both temperature and feeling. Human - because the stories, the relationships, the backgrounds, the interactions, the personalities and the histories that people bring to the event is what makes each wedding, each love story, unique. Much like my photos, these thoughts and the way I convey things are imperfectly expressed, but one of the best things about this job is the fact you’re always reaching a bit higher, always learning a bit more, always trying new things. This is a photo of a little unheralded moment taken just after a ceremony, of Honey and a few of her newly minted husband Jairo’s closest friends wholeheartedly embracing, a moment that I love and that I feel exemplifies what I think is most important in this silly excuse for a career, at least for now.
Lana & Andy getting some quality alone time, riding their mountain bikes from the ceremony back to their house for lunch because why the hell not. Am gonna be sharing a whole lot more of this one this week.
Relationships can be defined by different characteristics. Some are intense and cerebral, some are quiet and comforting. These two, to me, are defined by a shared, unrestrained joy of being. I always actively try to make the photo-shoot part of the day an affirming experience, an addition to the day that you’ll fondly look back on as opposed to something you have to get through, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone have quite this much unadulterated fun as these two. That doesn’t say, however, that it wasn’t without depth of feeling, as you can clearly see here.
Little renassiance girls I’ve been very quiet on here lately enjoying my first proper break since last year after the chaotic excitement of the last 6 months and being able to socialise again on the weekends. Looking forward to having the time to share a whole lot more stories over the coming few weeks.
2.5 minutes in the life of Honey and Jairo - a short story AKA 4 03 to 4 05 PM
☝🏼me waking up to this news. These two all round trendy legends just landed themselves on the @hellomaymagazine website 🖤 - this was legit one of my favourite weddings to date for a whole bunch of reasons - link in bio if you want to go check it out or are planning a wedding and looking for some inspo. Also, special shout out to @hellomaymagazine for going to the trouble to explain that my name is Dane - I’ve legit had guests and family members at weddings think my name was Salty before 😂 - go figure. Second special shout out to @thewildside__ for making the venue look a million bucks.
Another one of those images I love that I’ve been sitting on for a million years but haven’t had the courage to post for whatever stupid reason. Bec and Todd, sharing an intimate little conversation exactly a year ago today. Happy anniversary legends! This is also my first weekend off since February, so hooray for me.
Weddings, by and large, tend to be more about the amalgamation of a whole bunch of smaller moments than the large ones - of little interactions with loved ones and each other as opposed to the pronouncement of being married or any grand gestures. They also tend to be about so much more than just the relationship at the centre of it all. I’ve said it before, but one of my favourite things about weddings are that they’re also an excuse and reason to celebrate ALL the love in your life. To critically think about and thank all the people that have gotten you to where you are, shaped the way you view the world, or have just been there for the highs and the lows. Davida’s dad Greg was diagnosed with early onset dementia over a decade ago, and they obviously remain close to this day. Davida wanted to honour and give space for him on the day and so organised to meet up with him before the ceremony, and for him to meet her at the top of the aisle and walk her down the aisle to, along with her mum, give her away to Matt. Whilst these were poignant, beautiful moments, it was the unplanned interactions and long embraces they shared throughout the rest of the day that spoke the loudest to me of the depth of feeling and love there. There are other stories that deserve to be shared from this day, like the time they set aside to spend with Matt’s 99 year old grandma after the ceremony who watched from her wheelchair from the balcony and the life story that got her there, it was the way Davida’s mum silently stood and didn’t take her eyes off of her for a long stretch amidst all the chaos of Davida’s friends fawning over her and helping her get ready, and so many others. When I share posts like this, I’m super conscious of trying not to exploit some kind of heart-tugging-emotion-porn. There’s great joy in these moments and, for me, these are the stories that stick with me the most in the months after the fact - and I imagine for the people in them too. This is the stuff I strive to do justice.
I normally like to provide a bit of context, but I honestly have absolutely no idea what Matt & Emma we’re talking about here at Gunners Barracks after the sun went down a month or so ago. Maybe the fact that she thought he was insufferably arrogant the first few times they met, or the fact she thought he was Greek for the first few months they were dating - which he’s not. Clearly having a rough day.
A series of photos of Kevin and Valerie shot in the car park under Jones Bay Wharf. I’m sometimes apprehensive to post stuff like this as I feel it somewhat goes against the grain of my focus on storytelling and honesty, but more and more I’m enjoying playing with scenes like these. Trying to look at things differently and maybe come away with a unique perspective on a venue or a location that’s been shot thousands of times. I realise most of my captions are about explaining the context and history behind the people in the images, or a bit of advice that’s come from having seen so many weddings (I just realised I’m shooting my 100th wedding next month, so that’s pretty cool), and this one is mainly about me which I try to avoid as that’s not what all this about. But in this case I thought I’d explain a bit of what’s going on in my head at the moment. I - of course - will always put documenting first and foremost, but documenting and being creative aren’t mutually exclusive and I’m learning to embrace that. Would love to know what you think. Also just blogged it for those who want to take a look - link in the usual spot.
Post ceremony stoke and hugs. One of the biggest things people forget to plan for is making time for this to happen. This is always one of the best parts of the day, we should never disappear straight after the ceremony to take photos, you need to give space for all the big love and embraces that are coming your way.
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