During the couple’s ceremony in Whangārei last Sunday, Eve said photographer Greg Campbell went missing for a while and then returned,telling them to follow him.
“We got up from dinner and followed him straight out. While we were there, he explained the sky and what was happening,” she said.
“He told us he had never experienced anything like that or even seen anything like that.”
Harding said they were both lucky to have a photographer who was aware of what was going on.
“We could tell from his reactions from taking the photos. When we were holding the kiss for about 15-16 seconds, we could hear the caterer who told Greg about the sky say ‘wow’.”
Eve said the photo session did take a while, but was worth it in the end.
Greg Campbell was delighted to capture a new bride and groom in front of the aurora last night. Photo / Greg Campbell
Campbell said it was obvious the aurora was happening.
“I spotted this on a break at 7pm. I went outside, put my cameras down and got out my phone and thought ‘yeah, it looks okay’,” he said.
“Then the caterer ran inside and said ‘Greg, it’s happening!’ so we both ran outside.”
Campbell then called his wife who told him to look up rather than calling her to ask about the aurora.
He then ran inside and told the newlyweds “You two, come with me now.”
After setting his camera up, told the couple where to stand, and adjusted the aperture for the light, Campbell took 20 photos of Eve and Kelsin under the stars.
“About five of the 20 are usable and two of those are spectacular.”
Campbell even used one of Kelsin’s groomsmen to shine a light between the couple.
“Jacob was crouching behind them with a flash,” he said.
“So I would start the photo, and say ‘kiss’, then push the shutter for 13 seconds, saying ‘freeze, freeze, freeze,’ and suddenly say ‘Okay Jacob, go!’ and then he would pop the flash.”
“He would leave the flash, the photo would be finished and we would see what we have.”
“The father of the bride was standing next to me saying ‘oh my god’ and the caterer was standing next to me saying ‘oh my god’ and eventually the couple had to come and have a look.”
Campbell said he shared the photo with a friend of his who posted it on X.
“Within about 20 minutes I received a call from the Herald.”
Kelsin is originally from Whangārei and Eve is from Sydney.
