MARLI KOEN

Wedding aisle decorated with blue flowers at Boschendal Olive Press while a guest waits quietly before the ceremony.
Bride and groom surrounded by their parents as the priest blesses their marriage during their ceremony at Olijvenkraal Olive & Wine Estate.
Bride lifting her dress to step into a golf cart, revealing green wedding shoes as her mother admires the bridal bouquet.
Bridal bouquet in the foreground as a mother gently comforts her daughter before the ceremony at Boschendal Olive Press.
Bride and groom running together at sunset, smiling at each other with mountain views behind them.
Bride and groom running together at sunset, smiling at each other with mountain views behind them.

Documentary
wedding photography rooted in presence.

Bride walking to the ceremony at Kalmoesfontein as her bridesmaids and siblings help carry her wedding dress.
Bride walking to the ceremony at Kalmoesfontein as her bridesmaids and siblings help carry her wedding dress.
Bride in wedding gown with puffed sleeves walking up outdoor stone stairs at Johannesdal, Stellenbosch.
Bride in wedding gown with puffed sleeves walking up outdoor stone stairs at Johannesdal, Stellenbosch.
A smiling bride and groom in wedding attire sharing a joyful moment after their Johannesdal ceremony.
A person in a white suit is holding a wedding ring in open palms, offering it to another person in wedding attire at an outdoor wedding ceremony.
A person in a white suit is holding a wedding ring in open palms, offering it to another person in wedding attire at an outdoor wedding ceremony.
Bride's mother embracing the groom before the ceremony as the bride and her father look on at Saronsberg Cellar.
Bride's mother embracing the groom before the ceremony as the bride and her father look on at Saronsberg Cellar.

I photograph weddings through movement, light, and quiet in-between moments.

No directing. No interrupting.
Just knowing where to look.

  • Every wedding has its own rhythm.

    I pay attention to the whole picture: the people and their relationships, the way light moves through a space, the small details, the atmosphere, and the moments unfolding just outside the obvious ones.

    This approach allows me to follow the day as it happens, allowing the photographs to build into a considered visual story that feels entirely its own.

    I photograph weddings throughout Cape Town and the Western Cape, with a particular connection to the Cape Winelands and Tulbagh Valley.

Bride and groom kissing outside the Bosjes Chapel with the surrounding mountains reflected in the chapel windows
Bride and groom gently touching hands outside the Bosjes Chapel, highlighting the bride's gown and the groom's tuxedo.

VIEW
CAPE TOWN WEDDINGS

Bride standing by a window after putting on her wedding gown, looking over her shoulder towards her mother before the ceremony.
Black and white photo of a wedding reception with guests smiling and taking photos of bride and groom during their first dance at Nooitgedacht. Elegant chandeliers and large hanging lamps illuminate the room, which has high ceilings and rustic decor.
Black and white photo of a wedding reception with guests smiling and taking photos of bride and groom during their first dance at Nooitgedacht. Elegant chandeliers and large hanging lamps illuminate the room, which has high ceilings and rustic decor.
Bride and groom walking through an olive orchard at sunset, with the groom carrying the bride's bouquet at Olijvenkraal Olive & Wine Estate.

“All the small moments we missed, she saw and because of her we did too.”

- Jessica Wilkinson

  • A group of people standing outdoors on a grassy area, with some holding umbrellas to shield from the sun. There is a brown dog lying on the grass, and a historic stone building with umbrellas and a wooden door in the background.
  • A group of people smiling and chatting at an outdoor social event, with string lights and trees in the background.
  • A bride and groom standing together outside, holding hands under a shade with blue walls and greenery around. The bride is in a white dress, and the groom is in a dark suit with a white shirt and tie. The bride is looking down, and the groom is smiling directly at the camera.
Bride exchanging emotional moment with her parents, brother and best friend moments before their outdoor ceremony at Nooitgedacht Estate in Stellenbosch
Bride exchanging emotional moment with her parents, brother and best friend moments before their outdoor ceremony at Nooitgedacht Estate in Stellenbosch
  • Bride and Groom attentively listening to speeches at their lunch reception at home in Tamboerskloof Cape Town
  • Black and white film photo of bride and groom holding hands entering their reception at Nooitgedacht Estate
  • An moment on 35mm film of bride getting dressed in front of mirror at Saronsberg Wine Cellar, Tulbagh

I work across digital, analogue film, and motion film.

Each medium carries atmosphere differently.

  • Film slows me down. I watch a little longer, listen a little more and become more deliberate about when I press the shutter.

    The different mediums become part of the visual language of the day rather than separate products. Each allows me to notice and hold something slightly differently.

    I don't simply want to give you a record of everything that happened. I want the photographs to bring back the people, places, energy and quiet moments that made the day yours while revealing connections you may not have noticed while you were living it.

Bride sharing a quiet conversation with her father on the staircase of her childhood home in Tamboerskloof after the wedding ceremony as guests gather in the background.
Bride sharing a quiet conversation with her father on the staircase of her childhood home in Tamboerskloof after the wedding ceremony as guests gather in the background.
Two flower girls sitting on the back of a sofa to peek out the living room window before the wedding at the bride's childhood home in Tamboerskloof.
Groom's father smiling as he watches the newlyweds during the confetti celebration at Webersburg Wine Estate while guests gather on the manor house steps.
Groom's father smiling as he watches the newlyweds during the confetti celebration at Webersburg Wine Estate while guests gather on the manor house steps.
Bride taking a quiet moment to admire her bridal bouquet before the ceremony at Langkloof Roses.
Bride's mother smiling up at her daughter as they share a quiet moment before the ceremony at Langkloof Roses.
Reception table styled with green and yellow floral arrangements, candles and layered décor at Langkloof Roses.
Groom jumping into a river after the wedding lunch in Stanford.
Groom jumping into a river after the wedding lunch in Stanford.

Some moments can’t be recreated.

They are lived once, in passing.

That is where I work.

Bride and groom walking through the gardens of Johannesdal 1207 with the surrounding mountains framing the scene.
Bride and groom walking through the gardens of Johannesdal 1207 with the surrounding mountains framing the scene.