Kilts, Coastlines and a Hawke’s Bay Wedding

With Natalie bringing her Scottish heritage to the day and Ben firmly Hawke’s Bay born and bred, their wedding at Hygge at Clifton Bay was a brilliant blend of the old world and the new. From handfasting and a traditional quaich full of whisky being passed around, the Scottish elements gave the ceremony and celebrations plenty of personality — and made for some fantastic photographs along the way.

Tucked underneath the soaring cliffs of Cape Kidnappers near Te Awanga, it was also a beautiful example of everything I love about photographing weddings here as a Hawke’s Bay wedding photographer: relaxed people, meaningful traditions, gorgeous light and a day that genuinely reflected the couple at the centre of it.

And interestingly, it was the Ben who I did most of the planning and comms with, and his answers in our Q&A...reinforcing that in a truly modern wedding, the groom is no longer just the handsome accessory to the bride’s day!

Eva: How did you two meet, and when did you realise it was something serious?

Ben: We met on Tinder in April 2021. I thought our first date went well, but Nat refused to commit to a second date! Thankfully, it did happen a few days later, and we both knew it was serious fairly early on when we said “I love you” to each other in late May while we were in Auckland.

Eva: Why did you choose Hygge for your venue, and what did you love most about it?

Ben: Nat is Scottish, so she didn’t have a preference about where in New Zealand we got married, but I am Hawke’s Bay born and bred, so I was keen to have our wedding in Hawke’s Bay. We both love the water, so we wanted a venue near the sea that felt fairly rustic and had a great vibe.

We shortlisted Hygge at Clifton Bay, and as soon as we went there to meet Robyn with both sets of our parents, we knew it was the one. We loved how close it was to the sea, the wooden interior and the different areas where we could have a band, sit down for dinner, hold the ceremony on the lawn, play some back yard cricket and make the most of the great wedding photo locations nearby.

Eva: What mattered most to you when you were planning the wedding?

Ben: For me, I wanted us to have the wedding we actually wanted — something a bit more chilled, relaxed and authentic to us. Shorts were encouraged!

I was onboard with whatever Nat wanted, and ultimately we just wanted our most important people there, for everyone to have a lot of fun, and for no one to be left hungry or thirsty.

Eva: What was your favourite moment from the day — or the moment that surprised you most?

Ben: It’s a cliché, but the whole day was the highlight. From the boys surfcasting and swimming at Te Awanga, to the girls having some drinks while getting their hair and makeup done, the First Look, the weather, laughing our way through our vows, having a celebrant who brought such a great vibe, the speeches, Eva working her magic with our wedding photos, and then dancing the night away.

There were so many little moments throughout the day that made it special, and looking back, it’s hard to pick just one.

Eva: Was there anything you did differently from a “traditional” wedding that made the day feel more like you? Especially can you tell us about the Scottish elements and what that meant for Nat?

Ben: We incorporated handfasting into our ceremony to reflect Nat’s Scottish heritage, although we gave it a New Zealand twist by doing it with the classic “bro” handshake.

Then, as part of the best man’s speech, my best man did a mock handfasting ceremony and gave us a quaich, which is a traditional Scottish vessel used for drinking whisky.

We also had ice cream for dessert instead of a wedding cake, as ice cream has been a big thing for both of us growing up. Then we kicked off our shoes and danced to the band, which felt very us.

Eva: Looking back, is there anything you’d do differently — or any advice you’d give other couples planning their wedding?

We had an absolute banger of a day and wouldn’t change a thing. It was very “us”, and nothing went wrong.

In hindsight, we probably could have relaxed a little more and not sweated the small stuff so much in the lead-up to the wedding. The main thing is having the people who matter most to you there.

Don’t overthink all the tiny details like seating plans, table settings and stationery. At the end of the day, those things don’t matter nearly as much as having an awesome time with the people you love.

Eva: I always pick my favourite images to tell a wedding story in a blog, but if you could pick a few of your own what would they be and why?

Ben: Here are six that really encapsulate our Hawke’s Bay wedding day in a nutshell — fun, family and us.

Thank you to Ben and Natalie for allowing me to share these photos. I was only planning on picking a few favs to share on social media but as I scrolled through everything a few months after the day, I realised there were so many more I wanted to show you because this wedding represented the kind of wedding I love to shoot the most; casual, candid, full of belly laughs and tossing out traditions that didn’t quite fit to make it a day that truly reflected who the bride and groom and what mattered most to them.

Thanks also to the Dream Team:

VENUE: Hygge Clifton Bay

WEDDING DRESS: RSVP Bridal Couture, Hawke’s Bay

BRIDESMAIDS DRESSES: Infinity Dresses

DRIED FLORALS:Freedom Floristry

MAKEUP: Whitefox Bridal

HAIR: Ruby Serena

CELEBRANT: Alex Ness

BAND: The Relatives, Wellington

BAGPIPES: Keiran Chisnall