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Roll 07 · sample sheet · 24 exp.

Weddings on film, in the mountain light

I'm Tess — a film photographer in Katoomba, working across the Blue Mountains and wherever you're getting married. This is a contact sheet from a sample wedding day. Look closer, circle the frames that feel like you, and send them with your enquiry.

Move across the sheet to look through the loupe. Click a frame to circle it in grease pencil. Keyboard: Tab into the sheet, arrow keys to move, Enter to circle.

Tap a frame to slide the loupe over it — tap it again to circle it in grease pencil.

Under the loupe —

Roll 07 — sample wedding, Leura NSW — Sat 14 Mar 2026Contact print · grade 2½ · f/8 · 12 s

Tess's own pickFrames are drawn illustrations for this concept site, not photographs.

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    ▸ 01 — Approach

    Slow film, quick feet, and nobody standing around waiting for photos.

    1. 01A

      Film first

      Around sixteen rolls on a full day: 35mm for everything that moves, medium format for portraits. A small digital camera comes along for the darkest corners of the reception.

    2. 02A

      Fewer, better frames

      A roll only holds so many, so I watch before I press. Expect about 500 finished images from a full day — enough to tell it properly, few enough that you'll actually look at them.

    3. 03A

      Developed by hand

      Black-and-white rolls are developed in my darkroom in Katoomba; colour goes to a lab in Sydney. I scan and correct every frame myself.

    4. 04A

      Weather is welcome

      Fog on the escarpment is one of my favourite things to photograph. We'll still plan a wet-weather spot, and I bring clear umbrellas.

    Lookout portraits · 6:10 pm
    Under the gums · 2:12 pm
    Window light · 10:20 am

    ▸ 02 — Packages

    Three ways to book the day

    Every package includes a planning call, a timeline we write together, hand-developed film, and your negatives posted to you afterwards.

    Sleeve 016 rolls

    Elopement

    For two, plus a few

    $2,900 sample

    • Up to 3 hours, two locations — say, a lookout and a café
    • 35mm and medium-format film
    • Around 150 finished images
    • Printed contact sheets, posted to you
    Ask about this

    Sleeve 0216 rolls

    The Day

    Getting ready to first dance

    $5,400 sample

    • Eight hours of coverage
    • Film all day, digital only for the darkest bits
    • Around 500 finished images
    • Sneak peek within two weeks
    • Twenty 8×10 hand prints
    Ask about this

    Sleeve 0324 rolls

    The Weekend

    Welcome drinks to recovery walk

    $7,800 sample

    • Welcome drinks, a ten-hour wedding day and a slow walk the morning after
    • Around 800 finished images
    • Boxed contact sheets and thirty hand prints
    • A second photographer for the ceremony
    Ask about this
    Second photographer, on film
    $950
    Linen album, 30 spreads
    $1,300
    An extra hour on the day
    $450
    Negatives, sleeved and posted
    Included

    Sample prices in AUD for this concept site. A 25% deposit holds your date; the rest is due two weeks before.

    ▸ 03 — How the day flows

    A full day, from the exposure log

    Times from a typical 2 pm ceremony in spring. We'll write yours together about a month before.

    1. Roll 01

      Getting ready

      Window light only. Details first — rings, shoes, the letter — while everyone's still calm.

      400 B&W
    2. Roll 04

      Guests arrive

      A few wide frames of the venue and the weather, then candids as people find their seats.

      400 colour
    3. Roll 05

      Ceremony

      Two cameras, no flash, and I stay out of the aisle.

      400 colour + B&W
    4. Roll 08

      Family groups

      Send me a list of up to eight groups. It takes about twenty minutes, and then everyone's free.

      120 colour
    5. Roll 11

      Golden hour

      Twenty minutes away from everyone, usually at a lookout close to your venue.

      120 colour
    6. Roll 13

      Reception & speeches

      Dark rooms, candles and grain on purpose.

      3200 B&W
    7. Roll 16

      Last dance & sparklers

      The only time the flash comes out.

      Digital + flash

    ▸ 04 — Travel

    Based in Katoomba. Happy on the road.

    Travel zones around Katoomba: A within about an hour, B within about two and a half hours, C further afield. ABC TASMAN SEA LithgowHawkesburyPenrithSydneyBowralKiamaMudgeeOrangeHunter ValleyCanberra Katoomba 50 kmN
    A
    Blue Mountains, Lithgow, Penrith & the HawkesburyWithin about an hour of home.
    Included
    B
    Sydney, Southern Highlands, Kiama, Mudgee, Orange & the HunterUp to about two and a half hours.
    +$250
    C
    Canberra, the far South Coast & the Snowy MountainsIncludes one night's accommodation.
    +$600
    →
    Elopements interstate or overseasTravel at cost, planned together.
    Quoted

    Questions couples ask

    Do we get the negatives?

    Yes. Once your scans are delivered, your negatives are sleeved, labelled and posted to you. They're yours to keep.

    How long until we see the photos?

    A sneak peek of about thirty images within two weeks, then the full set in six to eight weeks. Film takes a little longer — that's part of it.

    Can we have colour and black-and-white?

    Most weddings get both. I carry cameras loaded with each, so your black-and-white frames are true black-and-white film, not converted.

    What if it rains or the fog rolls in?

    We work with it. Mist in the valleys is some of the best light the mountains have, and we'll always have an undercover plan.

    ▸ 05 — Enquire

    Tell me about your day

    Your date, your place, and what you want to remember. I reply within two working days with availability and a few questions of my own.

    Studio
    Katoomba, Blue Mountains NSW
    Booking
    2027 and autumn 2028