Jacki Bruniquel is a good friend of ours. When I (Derryn) had just finished studying photography, Jacki was already working as a wedding photographer and needed an assistant for a wedding she was shooting in the Drakensberg. I wasn’t sure if wedding photography would ever be my game, but I knew that an opportunity to watch Jacki work was an opportunity not to be missed. What Jacki taught me was that if you have a good head on your shoulders, are willing to go the extra mile for your clients and are prepared to keep learning, keep practicing and keep moving forward – you will do just fine. It was after that wedding that I had the courage to pursue this career. We love how Jacki’s work is recognisable. She has her own style which she has created from years of experience as both an artist and a photographer. We love how she never half-arses a job, no matter who the client is. We love that Jacki has been available to us when we have had a question or a problem in our own photography businesses. Durban has some incredible talent, but we have Jacki to thank for setting the bar high and giving us something to aspire to. In difficult situations on a shoot or at a wedding, we have muttered under our breath “WWJD” (What would Jax do).
Jax sent us an email with a collage of photos from Pierre and Joelene’s wedding with the words:
Reasons why this wedding was awesome…
1. Day wedding
2. Horses everywhere
3. Most relaxed wedding of all time
4. Bride was pregnant and her friend made her her wedding dress in a week after a failed attempt from China and she looked smashing!
5. Jo is one of Carolyn McNeil’s best friends
6. Pierre is one of my oldest friends
7. They made their wedding their own and didn’t get bogged down with the small stuff
Those are 7 damn good reasons why we are so excited to be featuring this wedding.
This feature is a lot less wordy – Pierre did the interview for us and did a great job at keeping things concise 
Every image captured is filled with such raw emotion, we can’t help but feel as if we were there joining in on the celebrations. Well done for doing things your way guys…you can just see how amazing and true your wedding really was.
HOORAY: Jo your dress is unique. Did someone make it or did you buy it? And pierre is wearing shorts – so awesome. Why did he decide to wear shorts and not pants?
PIERRE: Hehehehe wedding dresses- don’t ever order them online and use a measuring tape from a christmas cracker to send the dressmakers your measurements. Lol. The final dress was made in literally the last two weeks by Jo’s good friends and they did the best dress ever! It’s important that your dress makers know and understands you, as a person, so that they can reflect your personality in the dress. Ah and the shorts- well it was bound to be hot and Im not a fan of formalities and well, the guests needed to know that they could come as they are, be who they are and celebrate the day in their way! Lead by example 
HOORAY: Please tell us about the chapel and wedding reception venue. What made you choose to celebrate at those venues? What did you enjoy most about them?
PIERRE: The people who run it are why we loved it. Aside from the feel of the place of course.. But it really does come down to the fact that we really love the people of the Crab Apple and Kilgobbin farm. Both families have cemented a spot in our hearts and we will always stay in touch with them, visit them. Because these people are so awesome their venues are awesome- simply put, it’s an extension of themselves and we an expression of it.
HOORAY: We could list a thousand things that we love about Jacki. But what do you love about her? Why did you choose her as your photographer?
PIERRE: Jax! We go waaay back and she has always been a good friend. I’ve always admired her talent and having her shoot our wedding was more than a choice, it had a significant meaning in that we wanted her to express our love for each other in her own creative and unique way. It would likely be the most honest depiction of the day since she knew us well.
HOORAY: What advice do you have for couples planning a wedding?
PIERRE: Wing it!
HOORAY: Tell us about the story behind the rock?
PIERRE: The rock was so fitting for us in that the Surname Gallet translated back from french means a rock / pebble was used in the laying of foundations. It just so happened that the cairn leant nicely towards this as Jo and I would become each others rock upon which to build together. The cairn itself is used to signify a point in a route / path and so this ties in nicely with us in that we both start a new journey together on our wedding day.
HOORAY: I know that you have since had a baby. Were you already pregnant at your wedding? If so, will you tell us what that was like?
PIERRE: In hind sight it was really special being pregnant on the day. We have the most happy, chilled and social kid now. I think being in Jolene’s tummy at the time meant the love of the day was felt by our child and in turn has had an amazing impact on her personality. When we fall pregnant with the second kid Im gonna marry Jo again!
HOORAY: Do you have any regrets? Did you run into any hurdles? Feel that you wasted your money on anything?
PIERRE: Regrets- that the day is over. That it flew so quickly, that in the blink of an eye it’s all done. And that perhaps I should have put more effort into planning a better honeymoon- but we got a lifetime of holiday honeymoons more to come! Wasting of money- hell no! To date we still haven’t finished all the wine we bought for the wedding. Wine matures with time Picking the guest list is never easy – balancing family, friends and duties of two peoples lifetimes is a tricky one- especially if you got a budget to stick to.
Supporting Cast:
Photographer: Jacki Brunquel
Chapel: Crab Apple Chapel
Venue: Cairn of Old Kilgobben
Catering: A pinch of Salt Catering
Flowers: Adore Weddings
Hair & makeup: Charelle McAllistair
Wedding Dress: Emma Pallet
Live music: Aden Hinds
Craft beer on tap: The Standeaven Brewery
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