My typical weekday begins at 9:30am where I go through on average 12 inquiry emails from brides/grooms-to-be overnight. I check the clients wedding albums & print status on my supplier’s website I have ordered. Then I head to the post office to mail DVD folio packages for my clients.

The bulk of my work is sorting and culling through an average of 1800 photos per wedding. This can take as long as 4 hours. I then set aside the editing process for the next day so I have fresh eyes.

The rest of the day is taken up with album design, invoicing, paperwork and occasionally I upload a selection of wedding photos on Facebook for my eager brides to have a sneak look.

In the evenings at 6pm I will begin seeing my appointments. I meet 3 – 4 couples per day and will wrap up by 9pm.

At an event, I shoot an average 8 hours per day. Depending on the season and event the day might start early in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid the heat and maximise the natural light. I begin coverage at the bride’s and/or groom’s residence an hour before the ceremony right until the end of reception around 11:30pm – midnight.

Occasionally I’m asked to do all day coverage for big weddings which can means an 15 hour shoot. Most of these are Chinese & Vietnamese weddings with the traditional tea ceremonies before midday as well as the door games played by the groom before seeing the bride. Weddings like these are usually packed with so many activities time flies quickly.

I have also been fortunate to have been asked to work on interstate and overseas weddings. I will usually fly in at least 2 days before the wedding to meet up with the couple before their big day and scout the location in advance.

One of the benefits of working from home is that I love cooking and creating fresh meals. Depending on how heavy my workload is I either eat on my desk or enjoy my lunch on my leafy balcony with the neighbourhood lorikeets.

As much as I love wedding photography, I also have a passion for food and still life photography. During the quiet winter wedding season I often collaborate with chefs food and still life stylists to create projects to shoot. This is a great way of working together as we help each other out in enhancing our portfolio and get a hands-on experience. I am always looking out for emerging chefs to work with, on a cookbook project of mine.

Ms Polka Dot says: Lucy Leonardi gives us a tiny glimpse today of her daily life. We love that she is so passionate about food – my other passion (after Polka Dot Bride of course!)

Lucy Leonardi completed a Bachelor of Fine Arts at the College of Fine Arts UNSW in 2003 and further honed her skills at the Australian Centre of Photography. Lucy seeks to capture the true essence of a wedding, from the important moments of ceremony to the subtle moments of emotion that occur throughout the day.

Images by Lucy Leonardi