Wednesday 29 April 2009

Charlotte & Pete's pre-wedding shoot

Congratulations Charlotte & Pete!

Although Charlotte & Pete got married a couple of weeks ago, I thought I'd show you a selection of images from the pre-wedding shoot before you get to see anything from the big day!

We headed into Castlefield in Manchester city centre to with a view to shooting some cool, urban imagery. I was REALLY pleased with the results as were Charlotte and Pete.




It's quite daunting for a couple to be stood in front of the lens for the first time, which is the main reason that all my weddings are preceded by this shoot. It gives the couple a chance to experience what being photographed feels like and it gives me the opportunity to see how they react to certain situations, how relaxed they are and if they're not relaxed, work on the best ways to try and put them at ease.



As it happens, Charlotte and Pete were complete naturals from the word go, enjoyed their experience and so looked forward to the photography part of their wedding day.








As far as possible, I try and shoot couples as naturally as possible, giving them as little direction as possible - usually it's as simple as me saying "right, just wander off over there!"




As you can see, Charlotte and Pete looked great on the shots from the pre-wed shoot - just wait until you see the wedding coverage! We got some great stuff and I'll be posting some of the highlights over the next few weeks!

Flower Design Supper Club - March 2009

So here's the first post with pictures!

I'm winding the clock back a few weeks as I have so much to write about on the blog from recent months that it would be a shame not to fill you all in on what's been happening.

So my favourite florists in the world, the amazing Flower Design in St Annes, hosted one of their world famous Supper Clubs at the fabulous Number One South Beach boutique hotel.

The evening was based on a wedding breakfast, with all guests asked to come dressed as they would attend a wedding. So cue glam dresses, hats, fascinators and bags - these ladies weren't holding back!



Guests were treated to a champagne reception on arrival before being shown into the dining room to enjoy a five course wedding breakfast prepared by head chef and owner of Number One, Mark Smith. I was lucky enough to get a place on one of the tables and let me tell you, the food was amazing!



Throughout the evening guests were kept entertained by Howard Wing, a superb wedding and corporate events singer who ensured feet were tapping (more like feet were stood on the chairs!) all night long.


In between courses, Jane Thompson, the infectiously enthusiastic and incredibly talented owner of Flower Design demonstrated buttonholes, bridesmaid and bridal bouquets as well as hugely impressive pedestal displays. She really is an unbelieveable talent and so inspirational with the way she runs her business - make sure you click through to her blog, it's updated daily and gives you the chance to see some of the amazing weddings and events that Flower Design work at.








The climax of both evenings was revealing the 'bride, groom and bridesmaid' for the evening. At the start of the night, Ella from Pure Beauty in Lytham, Ben from Rowley's catering and Christy from Lytham Hall were introduced as the 'bridal party' and while everyone was enjoying their meal, they were backstage, being made over by Jane from Pure Beauty, Sol from Sol Hair and Beauty and dressed by the lovely Gill and Georgina from Dream Catcher Bridal on the first night and then by Stephanie at Dan Kerr Brides on the second night.



The big reveal was a great moment on both nights, with guests being supplied with petal confetti by Flower Design to greet them into the room!


So that brings us to me! As you can see, I covered the event as their official 'wedding photographer' for both evenings and had a great time along with it!

At the end of the evening, Claire and Mark Smith (the owners of Number One) were kind enough to let me borrow some of their AMAZING boutique rooms to shoot Ella in more of a bridal fashion situation. Ella claims not to have done any modelling before, but I don't believe her! She was far more professional and natural than some models I've worked with!









Keep an eye on the blog for updates in the coming weeks, as I'm currently organising a a bridal fashion shoot along with Flower Design, Dream Catcher and Lytham Hall and the gorgeous Ella will be modelling for us again - it will be well worth a look!







Welcome!

Hello!

At last! This blog has been on the back burner for what seems like an eternity but the wait is over!

I've got a lot of recent wedding work, commissions, competition images and even some great landscape stuff from a recent holiday that I'll be posting over the next few weeks.

So keep your eyes glued to this space and I'll get some images posted later today!