Archive for dorset
Lindsay and Jonny – Amazing Wedding at Lulworth Castle
Posted by: | CommentsOne of the principles I’ve always worked on was that every wedding gets blogged. Its my job as a professional to bring every wedding to life for both the couple and you, the viewer (obvious exceptions are those couples that don’t want it and I always respect their wishes). However, sometimes life gets in the way and for a whole host of reasons I missed out a few. You have to believe me when I say that it was never a personal thing. Never could this be more true than in the case of Lindsay and Jonny. The fact that they have already taken delivery of their album should help show you how late I am with this. But this was (and still is) one of the most special weddings I’ve ever shot.
It has nothing to do with the amazing weather, the absolutely gorgeous Bride, the tremendous location or the fact there was free ice cream. It does, however, have to do with the Circle of Life style connection I have with Lindsay’s sister Laura. We start with Laura and Leigh. Laura’s Bridesmaid Helen and Ben. Ben’s sister Donna and Mark. Mark’s sister Nikki and Brett (a wedding I shot a few weeks ago). But let’s not forget Helen’s friend Emma and David. Or Laura’s friend Amy and Miles. Then Amy’s friend Beth and Stefan (a wedding I’ll shoot later this year). I have this really uneasy feeling there is another one in there somewhere its just sometimes hard to remember the forensic lines that draw it all together. So to be honoured enough to shoot Laura’s sister Lindsay and Jonny’s wedding. Well, what a delight.
As such this is going to be a mammoth post. Enjoy it. I did.
I shot his wedding…the one on the left that is
“She’s once…twice….thre–no just twice…a lady”
LausieB
First time seeing the dress!
Still loving it…
and still
I shot their wedding…the parents that is
oh yeah…shot their wedding too
That me…there in black. These are my some of my delightful customers!
Laura and Jamie – Wedding on the Jurassic Coast
Posted by: | CommentsOf course I’m not implying that they, or any of their guests, are from the Jurassic period but it would be negligent for me not to mention the location in common locational parlance. This wedding was a week before the start of the Olympics. I had thought even then traffic would be building and things would be mental. Then I got the pleasure of sitting in a cafe in Wareham for an hour as I arrived way too early.
For a change I left Darren at the venue and I got taken by car to where Laura was getting ready. Transport would not be required because on this day it was a case of (PLANES), TRAINS and (AUTOMOBILES) or BUSES. Never has a Bride been so adventurous with her transport plans. Starting at a B&B near the station affords certain privileges. When that station services a steam train to Corfe Castle its even better. But to get to the heights of Kingston Country Courtyard we would also need a bus to get us there. Naturally only a Routemaster would do. Laura’s Dad is a keen transport enthusiast. Even taking it upon himself to bring his yellow hi vis vest to help the bus make a tight turn out of the Corfe Castle. Truly awesome!
Add to that a trip to the cliffs, some fabulous guests, a hoot of a bridal party and spectacular weather and I’m set! Thanks for a wonderful day guys!
Everyone looking the other way…it was one of those “I don’t want to mess up my make up moments”
Dad has less make up…let it out!
Hairspray divas!
Our beloved Andrew…station master…task master…all round good egg…keeping an eye on us
Not your usual ‘driver’
Andrew clears the way
No unattended bags please!
The wheels on the bus go round and round
Thankfully he’s ignoring the stairway to heaven
Tears? to the left of me, cheers to the right, here I am stuck in the middle with you
so……
…..they did
The Somali sailing team (back right) were unaware in the advances of modern Olympic sailing apparatus
Harvest festival
Carve your own…just like Amsterdam
POV to the MAX
A couple from Darren…what a cheek I only include 4!
Shoe Are You?
Posted by: | CommentsA clever play on words from a classic Who hit. But you have to ask yourself…can a shoe be a star?
Now…don’t get me wrong. I don’t turn up to weddings to take endless pictures of details whilst ignoring the human element. I think a few details certainly have their place. For me, shoes fit into that category. I nearly gave up on shoes about 4 years ago. Then I thought (to quote another classic British rock band) “I want to break free”. I decided that a shoe on a box or a pillow just wasn’t for me. Could I tell a story with that shoe (or shoes)? Could I make a statement? Could it be art? Could it be abstract? Could it be something that you never expected? The answer was yes. I won’t lie. Some weeks are easier than others. There is always the fall back option. But some weeks. The planets align and I find myself with the shoe on the other foot. Here’s a selection of my favourites from 2010.
A wee bit abstract. She decided on existing shoes…doesn’t mean they can’t be interesting
the same shoes…completely different place
Light fall off and bathtubs. A sweet combination
Caramel Choo Choo
I really struggled on this day…utlimately it came down to the comparative chaos versus the control
Windows…sensing a theme here?
One Flew Over the Shoe Shoes Nest – sadly Budgie wouldn’t play ball
Another tough location…time to think way outside the box
Sharp tells the story
Flat shoes can be difficult. Time to stop accentuating the flatness.
Would you believe January in Bournemouth?
I’ve always liked this because I knew just how blinking difficult it was to get this. It was sooooo dark.
Lines and curves
They have a 3 year old…that’s why I love this one. Its one day combined with real life.
Thankfully she only had 2 feet
I would have to say this is my favourite shoe shot of the year.
This is the first one. I mostly liked it, but its very busy…why show it?…..
…same shoes, close up on the work surface. No need to remove the ‘character’ as it, in itself, lends to the story
Ooppps…wrong white balance. Forgetaboutit
Luckily it was a hotel, because that light fixture was never as ‘solid’ as when the day starter
Frosted glass and big shoes. Nice combination.
Stare for long enough and nods just like that dog on TV
One that never made the blog…but made me laugh when I thought of it
The absolute scariest shoe shot ever. Falling over the other side meant a 9floor drop to the top of another part of the hotel. To the left the sky line of Tel Aviv (Israel), to the right the Mediterranean Sea
As soon as I saw the blue I knew I had to contrast the patent sheen of the cream. Problem was getting the things to balance on the round part of the rail. Both dropped seconds after taking this.
When you’ve got a full size Ferrari F1 car in your own bar you kind of have to do this
In a sink…again
I had never seen a full blow, bowed window before
Loo Loo relights my fire
I love this one as it just makes you think
“God knows…God knows I want to break free”. Hope you enjoyed that collection of images. They were but a handful of images from the total collection. Enough to tweak your interest and get you asking questions. Have a lovely weekend.
Wedding Photographer Bournemouth – Georgina and Edward
Posted by: | CommentsSay it ain’t snow. When you see the white stuff hitting the ground your first thought is “schools out, where’s the sledge”. Then you realise that school being canceled is actually a PITA because you’re no longer 12 but you happen to ‘own’ a 4 year old. Cue cold feet, wet socks and snow related injuries. Then your thoughts to turn to work…and when this is your profession there are no postponements…no crying off or do overs. So suddenly your brain goes into overdrive thinking about all the possibilities…the ways you’ll have to get there no matter what. In the end it wasn’t really a problem. Once you were able to access a motorway it was smooth sailing. For some reason Bournemouth was one of the few places in the entire UK that didn’t get much snow. So the closer I got to the English Riviera the more I forgot about the white hell that came to Hampshire a few short days ago. In fact my biggest travel related nightmare came in the rather poorly placed ‘pin’ on Google Maps. Who said the big G knows everything. They failed to put the Hotel Miramar on the correct location. I thought they knew everything.
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Dress-da-lier
All the love or you’re standing on my toe?
Factor 15
That’s the problem with Bridesmaids…eat one and you just can’t stop
The coolest veil ever…however it didn’t stay on long :(
Pah-pah-pah-pah-pah-poker face
Frankly I found the church a little on the small side…but maybe that was just me
Leaving time for some last minute January sale bargains
Icy seashells at the seaside
My just one…it was great to see The King of Pop made an appearance
It’s a little game I like to play “how many shots can you get out of a 5 ft square area when its -1C outside”
2
3
4 (and I really dig this one)
5 – fin
It was a rather far fetched story that involved aliens and the claw that gave him his current hairline
Handmade by the Yasmine, Chief Bridesmaid
Ed’s Dad
Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus — and I’m from Woodbridge
It’s true…Pluto IS his favourite planet
Camera manufacturers number one justification of flip out screens
Symmetrical Ed
The Best Man decided to scupper the plans of many in the ‘Best Man’s Speech Time Raffle’ with a complete rendition of Iron Butterfly’s ‘In-A-Godda-Da-Vida’ — all 17 minutes and 2 seconds of it!
Luckily she had 17:03
I really need to clean my sensor
After a 2 Week Break in rehab at The Priory, Darren is BACK!
3 legs short of an octopus
Oh dear…not another King of Pop moment?
Sweeeeet (Duuuuude)
Err..ummm…says nothing, walks away
The Chapel by the Sea
If you would like to be notified when the entire gallery is posted (and get a 15% discount code for the online ordering gallery), click here.
Bournemouth Wedding Photographer – Georgina and Edward – Just One
Posted by: | CommentsI love this ‘Just One’ because of a few reasons. First, because Darren (my trusty sidekick, Tonto to my Lone Ranger, Toto to my Dorothy, Louise to my Thelma) almost dared me to try it. We had just lit a ‘in the snow’ portrait and he said “its all ready to go…go for it”. I debated and decided ‘hell yeah…” I love it because it actually came off and I love it because it fuels the debate of whether Michael Jackson really is dead! (see bottom right)
Drinkin’ whiskey out da bottle, not thinkin bout tomorra
Posted by: | CommentsActually…the title to this week’s blog entry was the original number 1 reason why you should like Kid Rock’s All Summer Long…I can’t believe I forgot to add that in. It was the entire basis of my argument. Anyone who can make bottle and tomorrow rhyme gets my vote anytime.
Well…he returns to the land of the living. Not entirely. Since our last instalment I’ve managed to miss my dear wife’s birthday. Basically, I laid around all day Monday….lather, rinse, repeat for Tuesday. To say that I was public enemy number one on Tuesday night would be an understatement. I don’t think Nicola really quite grasped how I was feeling.
Day broke on Wednesday (27th — the wife’s birthday) and I found myself in the spare bed again for something like the 8th day running. We had decided to go back to the doctor and this time see someone different. We didn’t get a massively different viewpoint but we did get a different set of anti-biotics…but as this was supposedly a viral infection I wasn’t entirely sure why. Call it magic, but by 5 I was starting to feel almost normal. My in-laws saved the day by coming and taking Evan and Nicola out for the afternoon and giving Nic a proper birthday. Once again I laid around saving energy.
I knew that I had weddings on Friday and Saturday. What’s more, they were in Dorset and Somerset and we were heading off to Honiton (Devon) to stay with friends on Thursday. So Thursday again became largely a ‘rest’ day until we left at 4:30. I had a simple plan…hire a second shooter for Friday (as Dorchester is mostly accessible to my referral network), let him/her take on some of the running around, shoot well and be ready to go it alone on Saturday. I was fortunate to find my old mate Simon Kemp available and willing to travel to Dorset. I can’t tell you how comforting it was to know he was there. I could amble from the car to the church after bridal prep knowing someone would be there to take the slack. Simon did a fantastic job and on Friday night I was feeling quite good. One more day.
Saturday was a different experience. The weather was hot, humid and sunny. But with a few litres of water, a can of Red Bull and some great hospitality from the family and guests I made it. It was great to see Helen and Dan (AGAIN!). Perhaps the strangest bit was having a couple come up and say “we know you”. Easy reply, “of course you do, I shot Helen and Dan’s wedding”. “No…don’t know them.” “OK…I also shot Seonaid and Lex’s wedding and Helen and Dan referred them.” “No..don’t know them either — say, do you ever work in Hampshire.” “Um…yes, that’s where I’m from.” “Got it…Rupes and Jenny.” That whole six degrees of Kevin Bacon thing was really taking its toll.
Thankfully, on Sunday, ‘Uncle Paul’ continued his role as unofficial Dad. He ambled through the softplay with Evan. I, meanwhile, slept (yes, slept on a couch at softplay) whilst the world spun around me.
I still have a cough (and man my back hurts as a result). But I’m on the mend!
A big THANK YOU (again) to Simon for helping out and to all my clients who have waited patiently as I attempt to get back from 5 weddings behind. Hence, why this week’s blog entry is coming to you today and not Monday.
A Day at The Kite Festival (Bank Holiday Saturday)
(Ironically, this is probably what totally killed me off…I wanted to spend time with the family…perhaps this wasn’t the best idea)
This year, it didn’t take too much effort to get the kites in the sky
An Evan-eyes view
Well chuffed with himself
Soon after he would remember his picnic
Nicola (now flying our super stunt kite) is in that in between stage so wants everyone to know she pregnant and not enjoying the doughnuts
A different perspective
It just about sums him up really
Caroline and Andrew — Stinsford Church and Kingston Maurward, Friday August 29, 2008
Who knew a dress had some many uses…
“All the great things are simple, and many can be expressed in a single word: freedom, justice, Vera, Wang”
Left, do you take right, to be your sole mate? (I’m dyin’ here!)
Using the dress for a game of tug o’war had disastrous consequences
The Bridal Suite at the Old Manor
When the bride chucks you out to get dressed (why do they do that?), you get a little time to snoop. Here, a photo of her mum and dad on their wedding day
Something about it I just really like
Sometimes, they really do make it all too easy for me
I know…I was totally surprised myself
I was hot…I was a bit sweaty…but c’mon, this is taking it a bit far, don’t you think
Dad refines his speech…remember not only the size, but the attentional to detail for later
It was a judgement call…do I follow Dad in or wait for him to arrive. I reckon it paid off
A last minute bit of advice
A bit different…the signing of the register took place at the front of the church…right in amongst the congregation. BTW, this is the first shot of Andrew as I let Simon take care of the boys at the church. Also, we were forbidden :( from shooting during the service.
I spy with my little eye something beginning with ‘S’
With every means of escape the cake only lacked the courage to make the final jump
I do love a bit o’contrast
Tick!
Andrew (aka Heppie) admits the using a hair straightener (for once, I’m not making that up)
See Simon! I win!
The girlies insisted on a trip down to the lake…
The table jesters start so early these days
Just your average cutting of the cake shot
Bride escapes to loo…bride gets collared on way back. Easy pickin’s
Like Mother, like Son
FOBs speech is on 30 3×5 cards, immaculately presented and pointers for emphasis…the Groom’s conversely was more reminiscent to a cheat sheet after an all-nighter
Andrew listens to item 14.2 on the list of things you must do to keep his daughter happy
Oh man…there are so many jokes I could make about this one. Sadly, I don’t even know why she was doing it.
Caroline gets a call from the Queen shortly before the first dance
Light’m up
Crooner!
My good friend, colleague and general saviour for Friday, Simon Kemp, has also posted a few images on his blog. Click here to view.
Amy and Matthew — Enmore Church and Halswell House (Somerset) — Saturday, August 30, 2008
The bridesmaids dresses hang on the wardrobe…luckily the one who opted to wear the floral pattern dress at the end never showed
Knowing I wasn’t my usual self, Amy took to giving everyone labels for my assistance
I thought we’d already covered the kite flying images
I did say I get up to no good when kicked out the room
Amy’s mum in deep “Who Wants to Be A Millionaire” concentration
Finally…a few smiles from our very nervous Bride
FYI…this is how it all starts!
Not really sure what compelled me to take this one. I mean, why cut off the brides head? Its got something mysterious about it that I quite like.
I can get quite compulsive around mirrors
I have nothing useful to say apart from “that’s what I’m talkin’ about” (said in the way that dude from The Apprentice would say it)
Y-M-C-A
New from Blamo…VIGNETTE…When getting your feet out of the shot is just too darn difficult
Chum chum chum chum chin cher-e (its all Mary Poppins round our house at the moment)
Amy’s mum
Matthew gets his first glimpse
Something I hadn’t seen before…the congregation were asked to light candles throughout the church.
Amy’s uncle does a reading
Just to clarify…YES, that is a Disney Bumper Activity book the vicar is holding — its a long story!
I knew I had 2 shafts of light to get this…cha-ching!
No two of these shots are ever the same
Back at Halswell, they can, if asked, fly a special flag over the house. In this case both Amy and Matt and die hard Gunners fans. I was asked by Matt “please get a shot of the flag over the house”. Without hesitation, I honoured his request…does this work for you Sir? :)
Photographer foams at mouth
Once married, she spent pretty much the rest of the day with this expression
This was one of the fortunate accidents. Not at all the shot I was going for but what I decided fate wanted me to shoot (groan)
Shortly after the who place went nuclear
A balloon message release
Travelling all the way over from South America he also made for a decent bouncer
I can hear my Father-in-Law now!
I only love this shot because I never looked through the camera…right down to the bubble soap dripping off the bottom.
If you zoom in, you can read why she got all emotional (you didn’t think I was going to give it away did you)
The BM (well, one of them) is stumped when he realised that using the phrase “up the Arsenal on a Saturday” can be easily misunderstood when folks hear the phrase but can’t see the capitalisation
Matt’s mum, a bit teary, watches a photo slideshow of Matt growing up. TBH, I was welling up as well. I AM a Dad after all.
Safe shot…does it exactly what it says on the tin…but I do love the figurine on the mantle. So very English.
The whole dance-lighting took a change of direction owing to the configuration of the room
The wonderful Halswell House
