Latest Queensberry Album

I've just said 'goodbye' to my latest Queensberry Album. Absolutely gorgeous. Cover in Twilight Silk (the most vivid deep blue - stunning), ivory mats and delicate mist to surround the photos.

Hand-made to order for me in New Zealand - mine for a brief moment then - whoosh! - out the door, and on its way by courier to Chantal and Mark. Their wedding was in Shrewsbury Castle and was a wonderful day of laughter - even the formal groups were fun. This shot made the album!

Singing sensations!

A wonderful evening in Dulwich with Helen Hampton's Popchoir. (Yes - she's my sister!) The admiring audience of family and friends enjoyed an end of term concert at which the choir performed a sensational set of numbers - some with six part harmonies!

Only available in South London at present, it's for anyone who likes to sing but hasn't found where to do it before.

The choir is a bunch of people, who spend an hour and a half every week getting that feelgood factor one only gets from singing and making new friends in the process. If you'd like to know more check out http://www.popchoir.com/

Fun in Manchester

The Spring weather makes everything much more fun. Just returned from my second pre-wedding meeting of the week - this one was with Wendy and Wayne in Manchester.

After discussing the details of their day (Scarborough in August), we went out and about and found some great locations for their pre-wedding shoot. I think they enjoyed it as much as I did. Here's one of the shots to be going on with.

Really looking forward to your wedding, guys!

Antigone - shooting theatrical productions

I can't believe we're nearly at the end of March. I've been very busy in this 'quiet' time of the year, not just shooting portraits but also indulging - pro bono - in one of my passions, photographing theatrical productions.

I hadn't seen the production before, and - just like a wedding - all the shots were taken without setting anything up, just as the rehearsal happened.

In the old days of film, ISO 800 was about as high as you could go and get anything usable. You had to use a tripod and so the angles you could shoot a production from were severely limited if you didn't want to miss anything. The new digital cameras have changed all that. Some of the shots were taken at ISO's well over 1600 as the stage lighting wasn't available at the start of the rehearsal; I also had help from the image stabiliser on my EF zoom lens.

Capturing Perfect Moments

Some potential wedding clients ask me about the cameras and lenses I use (it's often a boy thing); some ask me how many photos I will take. I usually can't answer either question very accurately - because my equipment is just a means to an end and I take as many images as I see for as long as I am shooting. For some clients these seem to be very important questions, but I can't answer them very well because that's not what I'm selling.

I'm selling a split second, a moment, caught in time forever. A discreet glance that is the look of love. The image that sticks in the mind after you've seen it. This is priceless. It's not just a record of the day, it's the emotion, living in the images long after the champagne has been drunk and the guests have departed. You cannot add it back in afterwards. It isn't a Photoshop 'plug in'.

The most important thing I do is to capture the emotion in the special moments of the lives of the people that populate my work and make them live forever. It's a privilege. As the year draws to a close, I'd like to thank all my clients, both past, present and future for entrusting me with the task of capturing their perfect moments for eternity.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Trash the Dress on TV!

I've just completed a fantastic Trash the Dress shoot with a client which was filmed for TV.

Shooting took place in Norfolk on a private estate using a wide variety of locations. These ranged from beautiful gates, to an ancient tractor, a water sprinkler in a potato field! Finally we went to the beach where my client Susie was game enough to go into the sea! The weather had become somewhat windy and stormy by this time but we got some amazing shots. To view the video, please click on the link below. Please note that although I have usage rights, copyright is with Reuters, thank you.

Advice on Choosing Your Wedding Photographer. Recent Publicity - Wedding Venues & Services

Featuring one of my favourite informal photos from Elissa and Michael's wedding, I contributed to a piece in this summer's Wedding Venues & Services magazine: Ask the Expert

What interested me most on reading it was that all five of us featured - some of the top names in the wedding photography world - gave essentially the same advice to prospective clients seeking to choose a wedding photographer:

See at least two complete recent weddings; you get what you pay for in photography - the better the photographer the more they charge;

see client testimonials as well as wedding photography; check experience, & whether the photographer is full or part time;

check they have client liability insurance (an absolute must have);

choose someone you get on well with;

look for passion and emotion in the images;

choose a reportage photographer with great care, not all 'reportage' images are flattering - make sure they can also take the other type of shots that matter e.g. groups, lovely portraits of the couple.

In terms of trends, each of us picked our own trend, but I agree with all of them:

1. Image manipulation - there is currently a fashion for heavily manipulated, fashion style images.

Whilst I think this can work well for a portrait shoot, for a wedding I offer this style to clients on one or two photos only from the hundreds taken. I prefer wedding photography to be 'real' rather than fake, to tell the story of the day. When I do show such an image I usually recommend that it is a stand alone image, rather than one put in the album.

2. The best of both worlds - Not just reportage or portraiture.

More Brides are realising that posed photographs don't have to be stiff and formal and that reportage shots aren't necessarily relaxed! The best photographers are combining both, I certainly do.

3. Trash the Dress - the big trend coming in from the USA.

This is becoming more and more popular both with my existing clients and with Brides who have used other photographers for their wedding.

4. The importance of the classic wedding album

Digital only packages are popular, but invariably clients realise that a wedding album is more than a collection of photos - it's an heirloom, and a repository of their memories of an extra-special day.