The weather has been very unpredictable lately, but we were lucky on Friday for the pre wedding shoot of Hayley and Gary who will be getting married at Chilford Hall near Cambridge in September. Hayley and Gary are a stylish young couple who were perfect models during the shoot, I’m sure their wedding will be fab and lot’s of fun to be a part of.
It was a glorious afternoon when I met Alison and Matt in Stilton near Peterborough. They both seemed a little nervous at first, though they soon relaxed in front of the camera and we had a real laugh shooting in and around the church grounds. Alison and Matt will be getting married at the end of July with a reception at Hinchingbrooke House.
After a busy weekend, it was nice to start the week with an easy pre wedding shoot with Amanda and Darren, who will be getting married at the beautiful Barnsdale Hall Hotel later in the year. Barnsdale Hall is set on a hill over looking Rutland water. Surrounded by beautiful gardens, the Hall is a perfect setting for some stunning wedding images with such a fun couple.
I met Jayne and Andy for the pre wedding shoot at their wedding venue, Normanton Park Hotel near Oakham. Normanton Park is set in beautiful grounds on the edge of Rutland water and it seemed a perfect choice for the pre wed, though I would have preferred a little less blustery conditions. The couple braved the wind well and were a real laugh, the wedding should be one to remember.
I had a great shoot on Saturday with Isobel and Zak, a couple of cool teenagers. They took me to one of their favourite hang outs, a series of linked ponds, where they like to go and have fun with their friends. For brother and sister, the pair got on great and we got some stunning shots of them, which I hope their parents will love?
When Sophie and Charles arrived at the studio today for their pre wedding shoot, I knew I had my work cut out as I was going to implement my latest brain wave? On the way to the studio, I decided to shoot a number of the images on my iphone, some of which are shown here. I always tell my bride and grooms that their wedding day is about the romance and love they share, the emotion and fun they will have. It’s not about me and my huge case of equipment, it’s not about the grand venue or the church they are being married in, it’s about them and me capturing their dreams. The pre wedding shoot instills this idea in a couple. Most arrive and tell me they hate having their picture taken, but all leave happy knowing they are in good hands. By dispensing with all the fancy camera equipment for certain shots today, I was able to show Sophie and Charles that it’s the love they share that I will capture, everything else like the venue, cake, flowers etc will just fall in to place. Sophie and Charles are getting married at Buckden Towers, followed by a marque reception at their farm in Warboys, I can’t wait.
I like to mix my pre wedding shoots up a bit and hold them in the strangest places. I do this to show the couple that the wedding images are about them, the romance and love they have for each other, that it’s not just about an amazing venue or background. When Alix and Dave (LOL) arrived at the studio and I found that they had parked a few minutes walk away in the village car park, I decided to hold their shoot there. The first thing I saw was two huge concrete tubes, but I just laughed and dismissed the idea I was getting. Anyway the greenery and old building next to the car park proved a perfect setting to demonstrate how easy it is to get great shots of a couple when they are in love.
I was back with the Ireland family this afternoon to capture a few more shots of baby Liam with mum and dad. We last photographed Liam just before Christmas when he was only four weeks old and how he has grown is the last four months.
I shot the pre wedding images of Philippa and Andy at the Old Bridge Hotel in Huntingdon earlier this week. The happy couple will be getting married at the Old Bridge in May and let’s hope that the weather on the day is like it was for the pre wedding shoot. The trees by the river always look beautiful when backlit by the sun, a perfect setting for a perfect day.
I had an interesting assignment on Wednesday when I shot an authors publicity images for her new book. The book is a thriller set in the 1500’s with the main character coming from Cambridge, so finding backgrounds with the right architecture was out first priority. Even though I know Cambridge quite well, it surprised me how many areas we visited that I never knew existed.
