Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron | Russian Orthodox Church | Auckland wedding photographer

DARIA & DMITRY

What a great traditional wedding I been photographing in Russian Orthodox church in Auckland and Royal New Zealand Royal Yacht Squadron last weekend. Daria & Dmitry - amazing couple, so beautiful and crazy in love! It was such special moments to capture!

It all started at a small Russian church where guests, parents and groom patiently been waiting for brides appearance. It was just a magic moment when the bride come to the groom on the little passageway. 

Ceremony been in Russian orthodox traditions. Not my first time taking pictures on traditional ceremonies like this, but every time its so special. I just love this atmosphere and some moments when souls come together to start new life.

There was not much space to move around but I tried to do my best in these conditions and capture special moments from different angles. 

Then was congratulations, family shots, way to Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron - amazing place for reception, and our small location shoot near the water, yachts, Harbour Bridge with view on Skytower from the  balcony and amazing pictures! Pity starts to rain but we manage to get through it really fast :)

Our guests been waiting for young couple to come in and been introduced by our host Anna Moroz (wedding MC). She with her husband Andrey (DJ) done an amazing job with organised different contests, games and running all evening smoothly with fun and relax atmosphere. Well done! Highly recommend this team for your special event! :)

Evening was full of different traditional events (karavai ceremony, prayers and speeches, different activities (magic heat, guess the bride, guess the groom, bride bouquet toss, groom bow toss), family candle ceremony) and a lot of dancing! Everyone had so much fun! Grooms friends lift him and his bride up to the air, what fun!

It was a pity to leave this wedding but so many enjoyable moments to move through the pictures when I downloaded them to computer. Amazing moments!

Enjoy it!

Daria & Dmitry, wish all the best to you, your & family, happy future together, harmony and understanding!  

Gallery:

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

My 365 Project | September | Auckland Lifestyle photographer

It's time to share with you my monthly post with pictures from personal 365 project. Every month is different and brings lot of new events, emotions, fun and real life moments.

It was a busy month for me with personal and business changes: we moved from Auckland to Hamilton with family (kids just love outside area in new house, plenty of space to play), but it was an exhausting move (everyone who moved house can understand all these packing-unpacking and cleaning stuff ;)

Also there was a lot work with organise photo sessions, big wedding shoot (just love this atmosphere) and the main event for me at the end of the month Grand Wedding Show. It was really enjoyable to see all lovely brides & grooms and their families and support team, talk with other vendors and show my stall; how I feel my photography and style. Truly it was hard to turn head around set it up, we till last moment been not sure on the details. But I been really happy with results at the end. Thank you so much to my husband for help with set everything up and to my friend / photographer Sonja for helping me on the day. I really appreciate this great help, I just can't do it all by myself (no matter how strong I am, ha-ha :)

Another news - our pictures been published in New Zealand Weddings Magazine, so exciting! Its a big honour and enjoyable moments to see pictures goes live :)

I also got a new photography toy - a Lensbaby Sweet 35, and just love it! I started practicing with it in my daily life and took  pictures with manual focusing, not easy, but results totally worth it! I always try to learn something new in photography, practice, progress. Its a whole world around and my study never stops :)

So here it goes - my everyday lifestyle moments with kids, clients sessions and more, enjoy it!

Contact me with any questions!

Wedding Photography Giveaway Winner | Auckland | Hamilton Lifestyle wedding photographer

Thank you so much everyone for coming to the Grand Wedding Show and viewing my lifestyle wedding photography stall, LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY.

We have a special surprise for our guests who entered the draw to win a FREE wedding photography experience for up to 6 hours!

I am delighted to announce the winner - Ailsa Reilly. Congratulations!

But there's more good news for all who visited our stand….

We are offering 20% OFF any wedding package to our participants which includes a free engagement shoot! I am committed to making your wedding day the best day you could ever ask for, so the couples' session/engagement shoot will help me get to know you better so you feel as comfortable and relaxed as possible in front of the camera on your wedding day so we can capture your true emotions of joy and love, without the nerves!

Please feel free contact me with any questions and tell me more about your wedding day! I can't wait to hear from you!

* if winner is not reachable during 7 day | date is not available | or any other reason for cancellation, prize will go in a draw again

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Wedding Show Skycity | Auckland-Waikato wedding photographer

We are so excited to announce: this Sunday we are happy to see all our lovely brides and their families at the Wedding Show in Skycity (27 September 2015, from 9 am till 4pm).

LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY, lifestyle family and wedding photography, prepared special surprises for our guests:

- 20 % off vouchers, applied to any wedding package

- compliment engagement session (included in package)

 - and main surprise: an opportunity to WIN a FREE wedding photography experience!!! 

Conditions apply:

* up to 6 hours coverage ($250 for each extra hour)

* one photographer (second photographer extra $50 per hour)

* travel expenses extra fee (Auckland | Hamilton area no charge)

* online gallery with best artistic retouched images included

* wedding date is subject of availability

Good luck!

Look forward to see you all! Come and say Hello (stand 44) :)

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Engagement-Couples Photo Shoot | Auckland wedding photographer

Engagement and couples photography is one of the special genre of portrait photography with mix of lifestyle moments.

Its all about showing the connection, emotions and relationships. Sounds easy, but its not :) Of course some couples easy going, not shy at all to show to all world about their love. But what I found, a lot times successful photo shoots could be archived only when you pay attention to details, ask questions, understand couples character, interests, what they love to do together and apply this knowledge to create a perfect relax atmosphere at photo session. Its really short time, just 1-2 hours, which we need to use to create a little love story, from moments of starting love to really tender and strong feelings.

We can talk (and I love to talk a lot, ha-ha), make a jokes, dance, play around, have posed and unposed moments.

What helps a lot is a find real moments, leave couple along for some time and just watch their quiet moments, which show a lot how they connect to each other, how they speak and relax.

Everyone loves to have down time :)

Also good use of space (shooting in all possible points - shade, open sun, sampled light etc.), and different angles (shoot from the top, eye level, down, side, back, close, far etc.) helps to create unique images and gives more opportunities to make variety of shots what best suits this couple.

I love to hear all these special love stories, how you meet each other, who doing cooking, who is bossy etc. Ha-ha! Sometimes answers vary, but it always helps me to full in love with the couple and even become good friends, then we meet again at exciting special wedding day.

If you have the opportunity to have an engagement shoot before the wedding with your photographer, its helps a lot on your wedding day, believe me. Its makes it all more relaxable, enjoyable and everyone knows how we all roll :)

I also found couple in long relationships really treasure our sessions, its like special psychology session for renew / refresh their relationship. Im so happy to help with it.

Have a look at my last engagement | couples sessions. I just love all these moments:

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Everyday lifestyle moments | 365 personal project

We decided to put together some of our lifestyle moments captured during last few days, which not been posted yet. 

Its just usual everyday moments, but Im sure they will be treasured when we look back in few years (or maybe even few months time) and remember all these little details with children :)

Im not just a photographer but also a Mum of too little ones who made my life really full of different events, surprises coming every minute, and its not just positive ones, ha-ha :)

Kids - kids - kids :)

Contact info@levienphotography.com

Still life | Photography Genre {Auckland-Hamilton NZ photographer}

As the saying beauty in details, everyday moments of our life. We often look at portraits, trying capture emotions, mood, connection, move. But something else around us, something what we not notice too much, especially when we in rush or busy with other questions.

Its all world around waiting when you put attention on it and see the details.

Its a still life! So beautiful and mysterious at the same moment. Its all about beauty in simplicity, light, details and moment.

You just need to look with attention and wait when some moments just speaks to you and make your heart to sing!

Thats my moments, have a look at these pictures (During my 365 Project I find out that shooting a still life or other photography genres feels really refreshing and inspiring). This gallery from this afternoon shooting till past months random moments what speaks to me (you can see here some mix of genres - macro, abstract etc.:

365 Project

Contact me with any questions!

Wedding Show Double Pass Giveaway | Lifestyle wedding photographer Auckland

We are really excited to share with you this news: you can meet LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY and other wedding suppliers at Wedding Show in Skycity, Auckland 27 September from 9 am till 4 pm. 

Its a great opportunity to see each other face to face, talk about your wedding day plans and look around for other suppliers for your special day.

You can also take part in our Wedding Show Double Pass Giveaway!

Simply visit our Facebook Page before 20 September 2015 (Midnight):

1. Like our page,

2. Like Giveaway post. Share the post (optional)

3. Leave your comment and tag your friend.

4. See Giveaway results at 21 September 2015.

Look forward to see you there! 

Other surprises are coming on the Wedding Show day! Don't miss the opportunity to win some exciting prizes. Details are coming soon!

Contact me for details

Wedding Portfolio

Couples/Engagement Portfolio

Big Changes | Lifestyle wedding photography | North Island, New Zealand

If you wonder why it was so quiet in our Blog during the week, the answer is simple: we were really busy moving house from Auckland to Hamilton, New Zealand.

Yes, thats right, we relocated :) Its so exciting! New changes, new hopes, new life! (and a lot of packing, cleaning, unpacking, big task, ha-ha!)

If you ask me is there any changes for clients / friends, I will answer: absolutely nothing and everything :)

Aucklands clients still get the same level of service, Hamilton just 1 hour away what sounds like nothing for girl originally from 5-million citizens city St-Petersburg where travel to work could take 1-2.5 hours one way :)

Its also means wider zone coverage: we service now not just big Auckland area, but also Hamilton and all Waikato area (Thames, Coromandel, Taupo, Otorohanga) and Bay of Plenty as well (Tauranga, Rotorua) and surroundings!

More opportunities and we love to travel. Destination weddings and lifestyle family sessions are welcome!

Look forward to all exciting changes!

Contact me with any questions!

Personal Project 365 | August | Lifestyle Photography Auckland

Its always surprising to look back at the start of the month and see images what you took FOREVER ago. Yes, thats how its feels, and then you realised it was not a long time ago, just start of the month.

So much happening: different sessions, events, news,  few commercial projects and kids around, of course :)

Here are my personal everyday moments in 365 Project. Capturing real life and emotions, remember treasure moments.

Enjoy it!

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR SESSION}

Cornwall park Couples-Engagement Session | Auckland Wedding photographer

What a beautiful couple I met last weekend for their engagement session at Cornwall Park, Auckland. 

Julie and Ettienne such an amazing and fun loving couple!

I love every single moment of our session together: all these lyric, romance and fun moments, posing and un-posing, relaxing talking and moving around. We even been dancing!

This couple is so gorgeous! It was interesting to hear their love story, how they met and where they come from: Julie a real kiwi girl and Ettienne from South Africa (name sounds really French and romantic! :). We found a lot in common - passion to dance (Julie doing latin dancing) and figure skating (Ettienne love to skate and practice on ice as me :).

What a great time together! Thank you guys!

So excited about your upcoming wedding!

Happy future together!

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Flash vs Natural light | Photography tips | Family and Wedding photographer | LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY

Im often saying Im a natural light photographer. I take a pictures outside in beautiful locations: parks, beaches, reserves, rocks etc. Also use gorgeous window light at lifestyle family / newborn / baby / couples sessions.

I love to watch light, I love to use light, I love to play with light (detract, side, back light which looks just amazing, believe me!).

But there are some situations when light just doesn't works how you want it, how you imagine it in your head. Maybe not enough to light your subject, or opposite - overpower and making a lot of hot spots on the face, or it sampled light. At this cases the best option is a flash, especially off-camera flash.

I love to use flash to bounce light in the room where there is not enough light (clients houses, newborn sessions, wedding receptions, family formals), or where needs to fill with light, or even overpower the sun. 

What an amazing result you can get just before the sunset with off camera flash to show beautiful background full of colours and also give some light on the faces (couple, family, maternity, kids, portraits etc.). Here some example from my last couples session on the beach. I will show you natural light picture and picture with using off-camera flash. See the difference in feelings, different effects and looks what you want to archive. Its works just great when you want to give the variety in the gallery and put so different but so beautiful pictures at the same moment of time. Flash give you a big power to have choice and apply your vision on the capturing moments:

Main tips with using flash:

1. know your synchronise speed (for not get a black stripe across the image)

2. put it closer to the subject (to get nice light)

3. control flash power manually

4. use the manual mode in the camera to control aperture and shutter speed.

5. and practice! :)

You can also put flash in TTL automatic mode but its not I've you much ability to control the flash.

Good luck with your shooting! Just take a camera, equipment and go with the flow! :)

Talk to you soon!

Contact me if you have any question info@levienphotography.com!

Kariotahi beach couples photo shoot | Auckland wedding photographer

OLGA & MARTIN

Kariotahi beach in South Auckland (not far from Waiuku) is a stunning location for any couples photo shoot. This weekend I met my lovely couple / friends just before the sunset to make special pictures for them.

This couple few years married and had 2 year old little one. Good time to show their love and connection. As Olga been joking during the photo shoot - this type of session should be included in all psychological course for every couple who wanted to refresh their relationship and remember how much they love each other. What a great idea! I should think about it, how to make all families live happily ever after :)

We start our session next to the beach at grass areas then walk at the sand and finished session on the top of the hill meeting beautiful sunset. 

Olga and Martin; so romantic and fun loving couple. I really enjoyed to watch them cuddling each other, joking and playing around. It was a cute moment when Martin helped Olga to move sand out of the shoes (she might be feel like Cinderella) and put flower in her hair. 

Love all the moments of our photo shoot. Enjoy it too!

Contact me for any enquiries! Remember we had complimentary engagement session for wedding bookings during August 2015 (limited availability)

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR SESSION}

Wedding celebrant - Featured Guest in the Blog | Auckland wedding photographer

Meet a new guest in our Blog - beautiful wedding celebrant Valeria (Lera) Antipenko! 

I love to meet a new people in the industry and hope this information can help our brides to made their wedding day run smoothly. More surprises coming soon in the Blog ;)

First what I think when remember Lera its a high energy and passion: love to her profession, to dance and how she speaks and care about people. So meet Lera Antipenko (www.nzcelebrant.nz):

"Choosing a celebrant is an important part of your wedding planning process. These days, not everyone is after the same thing.

I am a registered marriage celebrant and have completed a celebrant course through the Celebrant School of New Zealand. I design wedding ceremonies with traditional international customs that are tailored to create special intimate moments for your ceremony.

Are you looking for an open minded, passionate, energetic, well organised, committed, approachable, flexible person who will guide you through your ceremonial process? Then I would love to assist you create your special day.

I'm all about creating a fun, relaxed but enthusiastic environment. After all, you're getting married and this should be one of the most special days of your lives! The only thing that limits you is your imagination.

This process is all about your dreams, your personalities, your relationship. Every wedding ceremony is as special as the couples with whom I work. A great deal of time is spent creating a custom-designed ceremony. 

In addition to being your celebrant I can also coordinate your special day and provide entertainment. As I am a professional Latin American dancer and entertainer I can provide dance lessons so your first dance will be one to remember.

Available for marriages anywhere in New Zealand. I'm contactable 24/7. Any questions or queries please give me a call 02102432052 or send me an email info@nzcelebrant.nz."

Thank you Lera! Look forward to our next meeting (possibly on another wedding in excited environment :)

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

My 365 Project | Everyday moments | July | LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY

New month, new changes and challenges :)

What a busy month it was! Four destinations sessions in one month: Otorohanga, Lake Taupo, Rotorua (Lake Tarawera) & of course Auckland. What a big fun, love to travel especially for exciting sessions!

My lifestyle everyday moments with kids is challenging as usual :) Trying balancing family life and photography (what from few days a week became almost full time job (sessions, meeting with clients, post processing, running website, Facebook page and Instagram, blogging etc.), Even at night time answering for letters and checking enquiries, busy life! :)

Enjoy my 365 project. July. Really interesting to look back and see all these pictures, feels like they been captured looong time ago :)

Lifestyle photography

Full Wedding Package Special: Compliment engagement session | Auckland, NZ wedding and elopement photographer | LEVIEN & LENS

I have great news for you:

If your booking a wedding during August 2015 engagement session is complimentary (included in full wedding package).

It will let you save a lot which is great as it helps me to get to know you better, and helps you to get to know me and feel confident and relaxed on your wedding day.

I would love to use this opportunity to make your special day less stressful and make it run smoothly and flawlessly, when we already had a great experience together and happy with our choice!

Lets have some fun together before the wedding day and save our time at the wedding and your money! I really want to make a success from all our photography experience!

Love to capture natural moments and raw emotions!

Look forward to hearing from you! Exciting!

Contact me with any question 

Check our packages and specials at Pricing page

Wedding | Elopement Photography

Engagement | Couples Photography

Manukau Wedding | Auckland Botanic Gardens | New Zealand Wedding Photographer

LUKE & DEBBIE

Wedding in Manukau Baptist Church, Auckland Botanic gardens and Bronco's - what could be better!? Luke and Debbie decided to have a nice quiet ceremony with close family and friends and share these happy moments with me.

Need to mentioned this couple connected to me as relatives: Debbie is my husband's cousin, but I still been at work (shooting, trying to catch and capture all important moments, raw emotions, happy and crying moments during this day. So no talking just action :)

Its so important to see all these stages of the special day for couple: prepare the church, groom waiting the bride, bride with bridesmaids arrived on retro old cars, guest reactions, ceremony moments, crying and laughing, congratulations from friends and family, bridal party fun, quiet moment away from the guests, reception - emotional speeches (Debbie's dad in the hospital at this moment, so it was really sensitive moment to heard his speech and seen bride reaction and how groom supported her) and much more different events :)

What a great day, what a good place to be, what a beautiful couple!

Did I mentioned the wedding cake? It's amazing piece of art: two Minions, shows this fun loving couple character and they looks just gorgeous!

Congratulations Debbie and Luke!

Happy future together!

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Auckland Botanic Gardens Pictures | Family lifestyle moments | LEVIEN & LENS PHOTOGRAPHY

Auckland Botanic gardens is a great place to spend time with family, relax and walk along the beautiful surroundings (and I actually did a wedding photo shoot at location in this place :) - pictures coming soon, I promise!

Life always turns unexpected way. We just visited sad family event - great nana's funeral. Death and life goes together.

When I look at my kids I see how they full of life and active, running around, exploring everything, having fun! Great nana always enjoyed to watch these little ones, she might be happy to see it.

We visited Gardens on the back way and enjoyed peaceful and quiet atmosphere just before the sunset. I been lucky enough to capture some pictures for memories.

Life, nature and kids (in memory of Elsie Mary Richards):

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland Wedding Photographer

Every little girl dreams about beautiful wedding dress and often dresses up in some long mummy's dress and put her shoes on. Do you remember all these moments?

How lucky Kim from www.nzweddingsareus.co.nz creating her own wedding dresses. :) I had the honour to be chosen to photograph her wedding dress collection at the weekend in Otorohanga (few hours drive and I'm there, catch up with Kim and her 3 girls who were the models for our photo shoot: Hallie, Sassie, and Christina.

I asked Kim what inspired her for this wedding collection and received the answer:

"My inspiration is around making dresses for the curvier figure. I am a big girl and find it hard to find clothes to fit. And when I got married had to pay a lot of money to get a dress made for me.. and I thought the prices are ridiculous. So I make them for a fraction of the price and gives girls the opportunity to have a designer dress for affordable price".

Dresses look just amazing by the way! Any curvy bride should look with attention on this collection, and every girl too!

We enjoyed our time with girls (few hours gone really fast!) having shots at the lake and near beautiful bush, trees and fields. Otorohanga is such a great place, they have a kiwi house I hear (didn't have the opportunity to visit it but love the surroundings!

We had so much fun! Kim done a great job with dress fitting, drive girls to location, change their dresses one by one and do it all again and again. Might be exhausting! 

Girls changed a few stunning dresses and its fit, looks just amazing! They even seem to have different characters in each dress. What a beautiful transformation. It's true what people say - dress makes you feel so special. Even Coco Chanel said:

“Dress shabbily and they remember the dress; dress impeccably and they remember the woman.”

and another one (one of my favourites:

"Simplicity is a keynote of all true elegance" and "Beauty begins the moment you decide to be yourself" and these girls dressed in these elegant dresses just showed real personality (maybe even hidden from themselves, I tried to capture their real character and direct and posed them to complement the dresses best way.

What a great day in amazing company and environment! Just a dream come true! One little girl and a lot of wedding dresses! Ha-ha :)

Enjoy our pictures and feel free to make an enquiry to book your wedding, commercial photography  or made an enquiry for your stunning wedding dress to Kim Clark-Ware (she definitely knows how to make your dreams became true)

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Wedding Dresses Collection Photo Shoot | Auckland-Waikato Wedding Photographer

Contact me with any questions!

{BOOK YOUR WEDDING}

Spring and Summer Wedding Photography Package

Spring and Summer are coming and it's a beautiful time for a wedding!

We want you to save money on wedding photography package (save up to $500) and we will do something what we really love to do:

to capture natural moments of your wedding day, lifestyle candid shots and some formals, emotions and feelings, some fun and joy in flawless manner.

Would you like to tell us more about your wedding day, your plans and ideas? Feel free to contact us with any questions and ideas! info@levienphotography.com.

Use the opportunity to get a special price for your wedding photography (limited availability). Check our Pricing and Packages.

Elopement package is available on request.

Check our Engagement | Couples Pictures and

Wedding Portfolio

Look forward to hearing from you!

Lets make this Spring / Summer day special and treasure your memories forever with stunning images!

DO you have a wedding at different time of the year?

Check our Early Bird Wedding Package 2016 and Winter Wedding Special at Pricing page (limited availability)!