About Joshua Mikhaiel
A professional third wheel.
I am Josh. I have spent the last decade photographing love stories around Australia and a fair chunk of the rest of the world, and I still think it is the best job going.
How I work
Story listening, not story telling.
I photograph weddings the way a documentary works: I turn up, I pay attention, and I stay out of the way of the thing that is actually happening. To do that properly you have to get inside the story a bit — meet the people, understand why this particular Tuesday-afternoon friendship matters, know who is going to cry and when.
Which means on the day I am listening more than I am directing. I participate. I am in the kitchen while your mum is panicking about the ice. That is how you end up with photographs of your wedding rather than photographs of a wedding.
I am not going to spend half an hour recreating something you saved on Pinterest.
I am the one looking for the quieter things. Late light landing on a floral arrangement nobody is looking at. Your reflection in a window mid-conversation. A tangled veil, a small collapse into tears, the particular way your grandfather holds your hand. Those are the details I get excited about, and they are the ones that hold up in ten years.
Still shooting film
Because it still does something digital cannot.
I have carried a film camera alongside the digital bodies for years. Not as a gimmick — because the colours, the grain and the way film renders skin are genuinely different, and I have never managed to fake it convincingly in a raw file.
A few rolls through your day gives the gallery a second texture. Slower, warmer, and unmistakably of the moment it was taken.
Why I believe in this
I have been on the other side of the camera.
The only reason this job matters is that marriage matters. I am not here to produce content. I am here so that in thirty years you have something that drags you straight back to how that day actually felt — not a highlight reel of how it looked.
See the workJoshua... what didn't you do? You scouted out the area before we even arrived so that we could have the variety we wanted; you were our witness; you pinned jewellery in my hair; you chauffeured us; you carried flowers, beer, sunnies, shoes and laptops; you made two people who don't enjoy being photographed feel perfectly comfortable in front of a lens for FOUR hours; and you have captured the most amazing shots of a day that was very special to us. A little message to express giant appreciation for your eye, professionalism, advice and warmth. Thank you. Deirdre and Niall x
Photographer extraordinaire. Josh, thank you so much for capturing our engagement and wedding so perfectly. We cannot even start to narrow down the photos we want to hang around the house, there are too many! For two people who are self-proclaimed non-photogenic folks, Josh had us looking like absolute naturals in front of the camera!
We couldn’t be happier with stress free our experience was with Josh, he took so much care in exploring our location, getting to know our guests and ourselves, planning around any foreseen obstacles and respecting our emphasis on a natural environment. I can’t say enough amazing things— any event you are looking to have documented forever, Josh is #1.
As a marriage celebrant, I see a LOT of wedding photographers and a lot of their work. I can hand on heart say that Joshua's photos are some of the most spectacular I've seen. They are dreamy and romantic and edgey and amazing.
The best thing about Joshua is the vibe he brings to your wedding day. Remember - photographers are with you THE WHOLE DAY, so it's important the person you choose is a legend. Joshua is chilled, fun and funny, and a real addition to your day. Highly recommend his vibe. Lock him in before he's snapped up by someone else!
- Based
- Southern Gold Coast
- Shooting since
- Over a decade
- Weddings a year
- Deliberately limited
- Reply time
- Within 24 hours
Say hello
Tell me who you are.
I would rather hear a bit of your story than a shot list. Start wherever you like.
Every enquiry gets a reply within 24 hours.