Speed-Date The 11 Best Auckland Wedding Celebrants in 2 mins.

Finding the right wedding celebrant is hard. A ‘Best Auckland Wedding Celebrant’ list sounds helpful, but seeing one small picture and a brief written blurb doesn’t really capture the true dynamic and personality of each celebrant. Who they are and what they’re about? It’s really hard to know what are they’re actually like in-person from behind a computer screen.

It’s like Tinder for Celebrants. Swipe right on the profile and just hope (fingers crossed) the first date is a good fit…😬

But this Wedding List is different. We’re wedding videographers who over 10 years have witnessed in-person 100’s of different celebrants as they conduct their services. We’ve seen them interact with the couples, we’ve seen their confidence, their charisma and how they calm nerves. 

As videographers, we’ve edited together 11 super-helpful 2 min videos of each celebrant to actually show you how they come across at a wedding ceremony. So instead of swiping right on a profile pic and a couple of written sentences, through these videos, you’ll get a genuine feel of each celebrant’s personality, their vibe and energy before you send them an email.

… I hope you dressed nice. There are 11 Auckland wedding celebrants waiting to meet you in the room through that door. Here’s your dating card labelled with 11 names along with a [No], [Maybe], and [Yes] box you’ll need to tick as you move through them!  So get ready…

… This is Speed-Dating your Wedding Celebrant in 2 mins. 

CARLA ROTONDO

First up, you’ll be meeting Carla Rotondo, she’s well-spoken and has an amazing knack for writing and delivering a ceremony that’s on-point to who you both are as a couple.

After 2 mins you’ll hear a bell. Just move down the row a little and you’ll meet your next wedding celebrant. All the best and I hope you find the one you’re after! 😉

Ok, times up. If you liked your 2mins with Carla you can check out her website here: A few more deets: The wedding was filmed at Waitakere Estate in West Auckland. And you can check out Von and Javeria’s wedding video here.

LEE WEIR

Next up is Lee Weir. He’s a Westie boy who calls a-spade-a-spade. That might not be everyone’s cup of tea so think twice before you give grandma a front-row seat at, but that’s exactly why we love him.

Lee sometimes dates others too (naughty boy), so to check if he’s free to be your marriage celebrant you can get in touch with him here. If you too are a Westie at heart, Brad and Deb’s wedding film titled This Ain’t Bullshit might be worth a watch.

IS A PROFESSIONAL MARRIAGE CELEBRANT WORTH IT?

For a professional marriage celebrant, this ain’t their first rodeo and that point really matters. You might be a bucket of nerves, but having a seasoned celebrant take care of your formalities really helps steer that ship through the sea of butterflies. Small things like asking everyone to stand and sit at the right time, to making sure they get out of the first-kiss shot are just a given for these guys. They do this stuff in their sleep. But what that means is you get more of them! More personality, more connection, more magic. We’ve often noticed that newer wedding celebrants are just focused on getting through the service without messing it up. Professional celebrants know the basics so well they can take your ceremony to another level…

Ok, time for your 3rd date tonight. Here’s Penny Ashton!

PENNY ASHTON  (AKA HOT PINK)

Penny is pure entertainment. So much so she’ll crack up at her own jokes just to let you know she’s funny. But actually though, that laugh…

If Hot Pink is your thang, then just make a note of her deets here, next to the number 3 on your speed-dating card.  Here’s the link to Stuart and Cameron’s Same-Sex Wedding too.

SARAH BLOXHAM

If you swipe right on Sarah, you’ll not only get a celebrant to marry you but she’ll unite your entire guest list and bring them along for the ride too! There’s nothing too formal and fancy here. Just a good connection and lots of love!

You can contact Sarah here and Cory and Joel’s quite intimate gay wedding here.

WHAT MAKES FOR A GOOD MARRIAGE CELEBRANT?

There’s a saying in documentary filmmaking: “Let the story move you before you move the story“. This is the same in regards to a good wedding celebrant. To truly do your wedding ceremony justice and capture the spirit of who you are the celebrant needs to get inside your head and know you well. They need to be a historian and dig a little into your past, they need to be a psychologist to help you find what really makes you tick and most of all a really good listener. They need to understand who you are as individuals and what marriage means to you. Only then, can they start to put together a unique ceremony that reflects the essence of who you both are. One that captures your energy, dynamic and personality. A good celebrant will take the time to listen and be moved by your story first, so they can then move you at the ceremony.

CHRIS MULLANE

Truth be told, there’s not that many male Auckland Celebrants out there! But Chris clearly is one of them and he’s been around for a while. He’s a laugh when ice needs to be broken and will totally calm the nerves if the heart starts to race. (I have a feeling you might see him at the shopping malls around Christmas too!  hohoho, I just made that bit up, but he does come with great presents, I mean presence. 😂)

If Chris pushes your buttons and you fancy the older guys, you can find him here next to #5 on your dating card. The unique wedding ceremony layout of Nick and Ayesha’s ‘circle of love‘ can be found here.

YOGAMANI

Yogamani is a well experienced, warm and just a super feel-good person to be around. Swami Yogamani Saraswati also has special name-making powers and is known to magically take your last name and exchange it with someone else’s. 😲  … On that note, just make sure you put your (current) name at the top of your dating card ok? The host will thank you later.

Yogamani has a fabulous website which you can find here. You can check out Josh and Michaela’s Tara Iti wedding film here too.

Ok. Time for a half-time break with some oranges that will probably get stuck in your teeth (toothpicks are at the counter next to where you walked in). And while you’re fixing that, why don’t I address the elephant in the room…

HOW MUCH DOES A WEDDING CELEBRANT COST IN NZ?

To understand what you’re paying for in a celebrant, it’s best to think of them as icebergs. What you see on the wedding day is 10% and the other 90% happens before the big day arrives. They will first meet with you to get to know who you are. Some will send you a questionnaire as well. They may attend your wedding rehearsal to make sure everything is in nice order and then, that last 10% is actually being there on your big day!

Most New Zealand marriage celebrants will charge between $300 – $700 for their services. Some of the best might be around $1000. But you really do get what you pay for here. Those that charge a little more often make no apologies for their fees. They know their worth and what they provide. If you want a bespoke, personalised ceremony, look to pay upwards of $600 for it.

LAURA GIDDEY

Smiles are a contagious thing. Especially around Laura. She’s a happy, bubbly person who will be there and share the excitement as you say your I-do’s!

You can contact Laura here. Shane and Fiona got married at the lovely Kauri Bay Boomrock. It’s a stunning New Zealand location with views to die for. It’s a great place for a first-date ahh… to get married.

YVETTE REID

Yvette is super approachable, easy to get to know and quickly feels like a friend from yesteryear. She knows her shit (pronouncing husbands and wives since 2010), but still manages to keep things kick-ass at every wedding ceremony.

Yvette has quite an informative website here. Jono and Kate got married at Kelliher Estate. Here are a few more weddings we’ve shot there over the years.

PENE ALLAN-MCKAY

In my completely subjective opinion, if Pene was to suddenly turn into flowers, she’d be a bunch of roses. Timeless, classic and a little romantic… or perhaps that’s my bias from seeing her in front of such amazing florals in said video below! 😉 I’ll let you decide.

You can get in touch with Pene here. Shing and Hao got married at Settlers Country Manor out in Kumeu, New Zealand. And that bed of roses at the ceremony… thank Blush for them!

WHAT THINGS SHOULD I ASK MY CELEBRANT?

That iceberg I mentioned above has quite the girth underneath the surface (look, it’s all about the personality ok). But there are several things you can ask your celebrant in regards to the service they offer that go beyond just the wedding day.

• How many meetings do I have with you?
• What kind of service do you provide? Do I get a bespoke ceremony written just for us or do I just pick from the 3 template scripts you’ve memorised?
• Will you come to my wedding rehearsal. Is that even needed?
• How far do you travel around New Zealand? What’s your travel fee?

HAYLEY GREER

Hayley might be shorter than you, but her excitement for what she does is top-shelf stuff. She’s also really well-spoken and totally knows how to make for a smooth and enjoyable ceremony experience.

Check out Hayley here to see more of her celebrant skills, and some really cool Waiheke Island Weddings here.

ROSIE BROWN

If I was to pick one celebrant to represent the quintessential Auckland celebrant, it would be Rosie. She ticks all the boxes. She’s professional, warm and the image of what you expect a celebrant to be like. So perhaps you and Rosie might be the perfect match?! It’s only 2 mins to find out!

Rose has a website here and Ralph and Chie’s wed at Gracehill out in West Auckland.

Right, that’s the end of tonight’s Speed-Date your Auckland wedding celebrant event. Thanks so much for coming and I hope you found a match! Just a heads up, many of these Auckland celebrants are quite popular so if you want to find a perfect match, don’t dilly-dally ok! The early bird catches the worm.

And if you want to hang around afterwards, the bartender is offering $5 beers for the rest of the night to help you loosen up. FYI, that good-looking celebrant over in the corner keeps glancing at you. They might even tell you… 6 Ways To Create A Rich Atmosphere At Your Wedding Ceremony. They might give you some really helpful and super simple tips in making sure your New Zealand wedding ceremony has maximum Feng Shui!

Till next time, your wedding celebrant speed-dating host, Jared. 🙂