Camellia gardens

It pays to network, I have to admit.

I had a chat with a hair and makeup artist I worked with on a beauty shoot we did a couple of weeks ago, and we got on a topic of shooting locations. I am always on a lookout for those, as shooting at the same spot very quickly becomes boring and repetitive.
She mentioned a garden in the Southerland Shire that she worked at helping with bridal hair and makeup. That place is only 15 min drive from my place, but what a great spot. Immaculately maintained by the council. FREE to enter, although, I am pretty sure they will charge a fee if it was to be used for weddings. A little oasis right in the middle of Sydney.

I thought Wendy’s secret garden in Lavender Bay was a gem, which it is, but this place is even better. With running stream, a couple of ponds with ducks and goldfish, a huge variety of flowers, predominantly camellias and roses. It offers photo opportunities around every corner.

I shot there with Yvonne from www.lakediary.com and we could not be happier with the settings. So much color from the autumn leaves, but also flowers and wild berries.

The council is doing a fantastic job maintaining it. We saw quite a few visitors there late on a Sunday afternoon. Also, a couple of family photography sessions.

I have not seen a nicer looking public park anywhere in Sydney. There are nice gardens in Mt Wilson, but they are private and entry is not free. Not to mention it’s a 2 hours drive to get there.

I will definitely be there again for another portrait session. Loved the settings, the light is beautiful and the colors in the background make the portraits shine.

By the way. Every image is a jpeg file straight from the Fujifilm X-T2 using Velvia Film Simulation. No Photoshop work and no Lightroom filters.