I love capturing real people, honest moments & true emotions… with a bit of creativity thrown in for good measure! I am all about the smiles and the joy, the happiness and the laughter… but if you happen to have a little tear on your wedding day I’ll always capture that raw emotion too to really re-create the whole picture of your day so that every feeling you felt will come flooding back each time you look at your photos; a month later, 10 years later or even when you’re old and grey!
Your wedding is quite possibly one of THE biggest days of your lives and the last thing you need is someone telling you what to do and when! I will mix and mingle in with your guests, making them feel at ease too. Every wedding I shoot is unique and I’ll be led by your plans – so my photos will always be unique to you too. If you need gentle direction or friendly hints as to the best light and where or how to stand for some group photos or couples portraits, my 9 years of experience allow me to direct this confidently and swiftly but by no means in a bossy way. I’m very friendly and laid back and hopefully you won’t realise I’m there for most of the day but if you do want a few group shots they should be part of the fun of the day and flow with your plans, not a necessary evil to get out of the way before you start to enjoy yourselves! We’ll have a giggle I promise 😛
As well as people, I love to capture all the details; your dress, the shoes, something borrowed and something blue (!)… all the things you’ve thought of and often made for your day, I will make sure I’ve photographed it all in an artistic way so you’ll never forget the efforts and lengths you went to in order to make your day so special and personal to you. Then there’s the ceremony, the speeches, the cutting of the cake, the first dance – I capture it all and have never missed a first kiss! But what do I do in between these moments? I tell stories through pictures, capturing your memories through my eyes. Your friends ripping it up on the dance floor, mums having a little tear, grandpas with the proudest look in their eye, dads dancing (they haven’t banned this at weddings yet!!), flower girls picking up and re-scattering bits of confetti, grannies having a few sherries and a good old natter, children playing, guests just sitting having a quiet moment or having a kiss and a cuddle (weddings can have this effect on people!)… These candid moments are the ones that make it for me. That’s my style and it’s why I love my job so much, I just become a part of the day, chatting and laughing with your guests when required, shooting from the sidelines when necessary – but never ordering your family and friends about to look at me or stand over here or put their Pimms down or hide their handbags. It’s not about total perfection for me, it’s capturing as many moments that I can that really counts.
On a family shoot I go for what I call a “lifestyle” approach – I join you on a fun outing to the beach, on a countryside or woodland walk or a visit to a picturesque local garden or park. Then you play, throw stones in the sea, build sand castles, pick flowers, have piggy-back rides and generally laugh about with each other and I run around capturing it all. Babies are a bit different – I come to your house to capture them at the newborn stage. Having cuddles with mum & dad, smiling for the first time, sleeping, yawning, maybe having a bubble bath, playing under their baby gym – just capture them as they are, naturally..
The main thing is we get along and can have a laugh together and you feel relaxed with me – having your photo taken I know can feel awkward but my aim is to make sure it doesn’t. And the results….? Fun shots and natural smiles all round, plus a HUGE final selection of my carefully edited high resolution images for you to print for yourselves and share as you wish with friends and family. (I’m very snap happy!)
Find out how it ALL BEGAN here…