The location for yesterday’s engagement shoot was the stunning wedding venue of Gosfield Hall in Essex. I was there to meet up with Shelley and Michael who are having their wedding at Gosfield Hall in May. The weather was very cold but the sun produced some beautiful warm light and these two were great in front of the camera.

Hopefully the wedding day itself will be just as dry and sunny – if a little warmer.

So here are some from our session, that just shows couples that the photographer doesn’t need to monopolise precious time on the day for wedding portraits, and that 30 minutes is plenty to get some stunning wedding photographs.

There is also a slideshow at the end with these and more from the engagement photography session at Gosfield Hall.

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Yesterday saw me at Whitwell Woods for the engagement photography for Danielle and Luke who are getting married at the beautiful wedding venue Van Dyk Hotel.

We needed to make sure that Luke knew what he was doing prior to the wedding so a 30 minute session was the order of the day. These relax the couple as, for many, this is the first time they have been in front of the camera other than for snap shots.

I needn’t have worried as both Luke and Danielle were very relaxed in front of the camera and we showed just how much time 30 minutes is and just much ground you can cover in that time – so there is no need to have to spend hours with your photographer on the wedding day to get beautiful portraits.

So here are some from our very muddy walk and Danielle will choose her favourite and it will be enlarged and mounted for a guest signing board to use at the wedding.

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I had a lovely sunny drive down to the stunning wedding venue, Clearwell Castle in Gloucestershire, for an engagement session with Anton and Gemma who are getting married at this top Gloucestershire wedding venue in April this year. Although very cold and frosty the sun was out and made for some beautiful pictures.

These sessions are a taster for the day and just show what can be done in the minimum of time – so couples get back to enjoying the day with their guests and not spending hours with a wedding photographer.

All my clients get to choose a picture from their session to have enlarged and mounted as a guest signing mat for the wedding day itself.

So here are a few from our 30 minute walk around the grounds of Clearwell Castle !

2011 weddings have come to a close and its that time again to do a quick roundup of the year and also have a bit of a fun competition as well !

So I’ve posted below an image from each of the fantastic weddings I have had the privilege of covering over the year – just a pretty random image from me as I would have spent days trying to pick a favourite wedding photograph from each of them otherwise.

To vote for a favourite you must leave a comment at the bottom of this blog post with the number of your choice. We will run the wedding competition for a couple of weeks and the winning couple will get a stunning 30 x 20 canvas enlargement  of an image of their choice (they might not like what I picked)

You can follow the progress on the front runners over on Facebook

This is a fun way to roundup the year but also it is my way of saying a big thank you to the great couples I’ve had the pleasure of working with over the last 12 months.

So …… here we go and get voting for your favourite wedding photograph from 2011 and get all your friends and family to join in.

Oh and it will take some time to load as there are a lot of images ……..

1. Lisa and Paul

2. Amanda and Ade 3. Deborah and George4. Lucy and Mark5. Charlotte and Tom6. Rebecca and Stephen7. Helen and David8. Jonathan and Karen9. Holly and Dan10. Gemma and Steve11. Angela and Mark12. Laura and Andrew13. Jane and Steven 14. Amanda and Gary15. Charmian and Ian16. James and Heather17. Sally and Daniel18. Dawn and Andrew19. Sushma and Neil 20. Rosie and Jason21. Matt and Sarah22. Leanne and Mark23. Rebecca and Greg24. Amy and Adam25. Clare and Nigel26. Chris and Leanne27. Lisa and Dean28. Laurie and Kirk29. Paula and Mark30. Kerry and John31. Niamh and James 32. Laura and Daniel33. Val and Nick34. Fiona and Richard35. Stacey and Lee 36. Vanessa and Chris37. Kelly and James38. Ellie and James

Yesterday I was at the beautiful Derbyshire wedding venue of Hassop Hall. This is always a great venue to be a wedding photographer as everything is organised superbly, and winter weddings need great organisation! Eliie arrived complete with a hairdo that she promised would withstand the rain and wind – and we later found out that it did both excellently. After some prep shots in one of Hassop’s stunning suites we were on with the ceremony that was beautifully laid out for a Christmas wedding.

The ceremony was just for close family and all too quickly guests started to arrive for the main day’s celebrations in the stunning Ballroom, but we still had time to get some formal groups and Ellie donned wellies to make sure we used the last remaining bit of  daylight to get a few quick portraits of her and James.

I left as they were starting the meal and everyone was getting ready to party the night away !

So here are a few from the day with a slideshow at the end. As usual if you vote for a favourite, by leaving a comment at the end, I will have the winning image enlarged for Ellie and James

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Sunday I was at the second of my wedding photographer duties for the weekend – at Ringwood Hall in Chesterfield. The day started off a little dull weather wise (it could never actually be dull with Daniel around) but it then brightened up even if staying a little cold. First stop was Laura’s parents for some prep shots of Laura getting hair and makeup done, then it was off to Ringwood to meet Daniel and get ready for the big arrival!

The weather held and we were able to get outside for some wedding photographs before it was time for the speeches …… and I think Daniel got off lightly !

I left them as the DJ was getting in full swing and the guests were starting to party the night away.

Here are some from the day – and if you vote for a favourite image from the numbered ones below, by leaving a comment, I’ll have the winning image enlarged and mounted for Laura and Daniel.

There is also a slideshow at the end with these and some more images on from the day

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Well the time had come for the wedding of Kelly and James ….. and Kelly wanted snow – and snow we had ! Great for wedding photography if a little cold for Kelly. We were at the beautiful St Michael’s Church in Taddington for the ceremony and even though the snow had kept the choir from attending, it was a great service.

Afterwards there was a surprise dove release and time for a few photographs in the beautiful snow covered churchyard. After some formal groups (which to everyones relief we did inside the church) we were off to the reception venue, Cressbrook Hall.

Guests were treated to another impromptu event – fireworks and this was the start of the evening celebrations !

Big thanks to Haley for making sure the staff didn’t totally forget us ….. and we left as the dance floor was filling and everyone set to party the night away with the fantastic disco from Paul at Spirits High Entertainment

So a few random shots from the day – and if you vote for a favourite from one of the numbered ones below I will have it enlarged and mounted for Kelly and James.

There is also a slideshow at the end with these and some more from the day.

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It was off down the M1 to Bromsgrove Worcestershire for the wedding of Vanessa and Chris to join Birmingham wedding photographer David Purslow and lend a hand for the day. We started with a beautiful wedding ceremony at St Peter’s Church in Astley and then it was on to the stunning wedding venue of Red House Barn Stoke Prior, Bromsgrove. Vanessa had certainly pulled all the stops out to create a beautiful Christmas theme for the whole wedding day and everything just looked fantastic.

The weather was cold but fine so we tried to make the best of what daylight we had and Vanessa was a real trooper and didn’t moan too much about being VERY cold !

The staff and especially the master of ceremonies at Red House Barn were superb and I can honestly say it was the best I have been looked after by a wedding venue in a long time !

So here are a few shots from the day with a slideshow of these and a few more at the end – enjoy !

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Here’s a new idea for your wedding day: First Look photography.

OK, so you are probably wondering what I mean by ‘first look’, so let me explain: It involves mixing up the traditional order of the wedding day so we can capture the unforgettable moment when you first set eyes on each other. Making time for a special ‘first look’ photo session is a cool new trend from the States which gives extra mileage to winter weddings when the days are shorter.

I’m often being asked to incorporate this as a neat twist to winter weddings – making the most of daylight hours by staging the ‘first look’ earlier in the day, so we aren’t rushing to get all the photos done later. Having a little private time to yourselves before the ceremony lets you savour all the details and overcome any nerves too. Plus you can both then relax and mingle with guests as they arrive.

As a result, we get wonderful photos and everyone is more relaxed. If you’re both easy about re-working old traditions, this could be a great idea for you too.

So winter weddings don’t mean you have to choose between that magical Christmas feel and stunning portraits – with a “first look” you can have both !

If you have already booked and want to alter the schedule to incorporate this – email me ….. or if you are thinking of booking for an upcoming winter wedding – give this some serious thought and feel free to call to discuss it further !!!

Friday saw me at the beautiful Coventry wedding venue of Nailcote Hall for the winter wedding of Amy and Adam. I was there just helping out a great collegue, Paul Goode, and hopefully adding something extra to the days proceedings. Unfortunately  the ceremony being at 4.00 pm meant that there wasn’t an opportunity for using Nailcote Hall’s beautiful grounds for the wedding photography.

The time and weather caused a few challenges throughout the day – but this is what winter weddings are all about and Amy and Adam were oblivious to it all ! Which is exactly how it should be !!!

A hog roast was there and really added to the festivities and a great wedding cake tower constructed of doughnuts seemed to go down a treat. Guests were treated to a live band to kick off the evening events and we left them as the music and dancing was getting into top gear.

Here are some from the day and there is a slideshow at the end of these and a few more

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