Bridal Fashion shoot at Lytham Hall with Flower Design and Dreamcatcher Bridal

Well here it is at last! A look at some of the shots from the amazing bridal fashion shoot I did at Lytham Hall a couple of weeks ago.

It's been a little while coming as we shot for a full day which resulted in me firing off as many shots as I do at a full wedding and because I process every single shot individually, it takes a little time to turn a shoot of this volume around.

I worked on the shoot with some of the UK's top wedding and events specialists which was a fantastic experience.

Jane and Jason Thompson from Flower Design supplied some unbelievable bouquets, dressed the different rooms we used and were on hand throughout the day as acting art directors, making sure everything in every shot was perfect.

Gill and Georgina from Dreamcatcher Bridal supplied more wedding dresses than you've ever seen in your life! They worked with our models as if they were genuine brides, making sure they looked absolutely beautiful.

The absolutely gorgeous Ella and Erica wore the dresses for us. Ella works at Pure Beauty and doubled up as head make-up artist as well as model for the day! Ella has done some wedding dress modelling for us before (you may recognise her from the Flower Design Supper club post a few months ago) and it still amazes me that she isn't actually a model! She's so composed, enthusiastic, natural and obviously very beautiful which always helps!

Erica works in bridal modelling regularly and it was great to have her experience in all things bridal with us for the day.

Stewart Harland from S&P Hair created a different look for Ella and Erica for each dress they wore - no easy feat when time is against you! He did a great job and reinforced my opinion of why it's so important to work with true wedding professionals. On a wedding day, having people on board who have the experience, are used to working against the clock and can stay calm and get the job done (and a very good job at that) is so important.

Christy, the events coordinator at Lytham Hall had worked very closely with us in the build up to the shoot, advising on interior and exterior locations, opening up the entire hall for us and generally looking after us amazingly!


Here's Stewart creating Erica's first look for the day:





Gill from Dreamcatcher made sure EVERYTHING about Ella was perfect!





So what is the point behind this whole shoot?

There are many points, but from my photography point of view, I suppose it as best summed up like this.

I wanted to create the opportunity for some of the UK's top wedding experts to showcase their unique and individual talents and creativity but also demonstrate how seamlessly they fit into the bigger 'full wedding' picture. Yes, they each have their own fantastic individuality, but when working together, something even better is created.

Why choose a high-end, independent bridal boutique? Because of the guaranteed expertise, the unrivalled individual service and the attention to detail. Not to mention the amazing wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses that Dreamcatcher supply!

Why not buy your flowers from a local chain of florists? Because one visit to Flower Design will change your mind on wedding floristry forever. Do other florists offer the number of pre-wedding consultations that Flower Design do? Do other florists have the style, the creativity, the talent and the passion that Jane and Jason do? Do other florists attend every single wedding, deliver your bouquets personally? Pin on everybody's button holes so EVERYBODY looks amazing? In case you were wondering - the answer is no!

Why pay for hair and make-up to be done when you can do it yourself? Because S&P Hair and Pure Beauty guarantee to make you look amazing and make sure that lasts all day. They have the experience, the skill and how about just giving yourself one less thing to worry about?! The morning of any bride's wedding should be enjoyable, relaxing and fun. Surround yourself with experts and you're giving yourself a great chance of starting off your perfect day absolutely perfectly.

And photography? I hope the shots speak for themselves. These are examples of what can be achieved on anybody's wedding day. No big set-ups, no dragging couples away from everybody for hours. Just using the venue and it's surroundings to shoot beautiful, contemporary, timeless wedding imagery.






Jane from Flower Design shot some of the set-ups to use on her amazing blog - she'll be posting a lot of the shots as well. Make sure you check it out as you'll be able to get a look from a florists point of view - and more importantly, a lot of detail about the flowers she used at the shoot, which I wouldn't dare try and give you! I'd get it wrong and Jane would kill me!



Ella posing with the FD van!



Jane made sure she got plenty of detail shots of her fabulous bouquets.














Jane created some amazing bouquets!






Lytham Hall has got an amazing interior - we used the staircase quite heavily as it is so beautiful!




The grounds of Lytham Hall complement the beautiful interior perfectly:




Please do leave a comment on this post - I'd love to hear everybody's thoughts on this shoot!

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!