Getting Ready with the Bride

It’s a magical moment when you step into the delicate folds of the special dress you picked out so many months before, your mum watching with a tear in her eye, and your bridesmaids fussing around excitedly. It’s one of the essential memories of your wedding you’ll want captured on camera. Its also the time when you will feel most comfortable to have a female photographer working discretely in the background, making sure that you will not need to feel self conscious.

I like to see the whole event unfold, and I will start in the brides dressing room, documenting your day so you can remember every bit. The morning before can be relaxed, fun and intimate, or absolute mayhem! I try to use this time to capture the beautiful details of that exquisite dress you will never wear again, the carefully chosen jewellery and of course those fabulous shoes. Hopefully we’ll have a little bit of time to get a few portraits while you are looking your most glamorous, but I will mainly work in the background, recording what is happening and keeping out of the way. This is a time for you to grow used to the camera and to relax and prepare for showtime.

If you decide to add a second photographer to your package, they will cover the grooms preparations from ironing the shirts to the usual nervous drinks and mickey taking at the pub before the service. These are the parts of the day you will not be together so it’s a great glimpse into what happened on the other side.

The Wedding Ceremony

This is what its all about- the moment you will become man and wife. Whether you choose to get married in church or have a civil ceremony, the rituals and rites of the marriage ceremony will be an essential part of your wedding story.

I will work as unobtrusively as possible, aiming for some quick photos of the groom and his best man, the guests taking their seats and the brides arrival before the ceremony.  As the tension builds I step into the background and shoot pure reportage photography, capturing the ceremony from the sidelines. I’ll document the key moments, as the bride walks down the aisle, saying the vows, exchanging the rings and the kiss. Don’t think about the camera until you see me at the end of the aisle as you walk back down as man and wife.

Bride and Groom Photos

All the commotion and it’s easy to forget your wedding day is about just two people. Sometime before the evening reception we should get together for some photographs with just Mr and Mrs (and me!). Its good for you to get away from your guests and spend a bit of time together, and I’ll capture those essential bride and groom photos.

How long we spend is purely down to you and I think it is important that your photos do not interfere too much with the natural progression of the day. If you want to have a few key shots of the two of you and then get back to the party then I’ll make sure there’s definitely some keepers for the family album. If you have a bit more time we can sneak away and try something more creative, visit some different locations and take a more relaxed approach.

We’re not all models so I’ll try to help you feel comfortable posing for the camera  and who knows you may even enjoy it! I try to give you some space, the time to yourselves will give genuinely romantic moments that make your photos seem more natural and real.  My main aim is to ensure you have a set of photos that will make you feel great, even if you are one of these people that says ‘I dont do photos’

Group Photos

Most couples still want group photos and despite the trend for completely photojournalistic wedding photography I think a few posed group photos is still a great way to commemorate the coming together of friends and family. I’d suggest keeping your list of group photos short and succinct so the photos fit around your day, not the other way round.

I try to keep these informal and relaxed, so when you look back at your album you will see your friends and family enjoying themselves, not standing to attention. We can do fun, stupid stuff too, if you want something a little less traditional. Remember that group photos don’t have to be a formal affair- sometimes its nice to pull together informal groups of friends and family as they are enjoying the reception instead of having a long list of organised shots. If you’ve got a fun bunch of guests a Wedding Photobooth is great for capturing smaller groups without formality.

The Reception

The best photos of your reception will be candid ones as your guests laugh and chat, and you unwind and enjoy the party. I try to work unobtrusively and mingle with the crowd like one of the guests (without the champagne drinking and bad dancing) and hope you’ll feel relaxed having me around. Forget you’re on camera and ask your guests to do the same. No posing,  just natural, fun photographs.

As the celebrations continue into the evening there will still be lots to capture. I offer all day coverage as the key moments are not over with by the time you sit down to eat. I ensure you have photos during the speeches, (my personal favourite!) as you cut the cake, throw the bouquet and take the floor for your first dance. During the day I’ll be sneaking around capturing the little details that you put so much effort into planning, from table centres and place settings to wedding rings and floral arrangements. I’ll grab your mum and dad for a quick picture while they’re dressed up smart, I’ll chase the kids around the garden to get the photos while they’re smiling, and I’ll catch your uncle with his tie around his head dancing to Queen. (well I’ll try..)

Read More: After the Wedding

For most people their wedding is the first time they have ever been the main subject for a professional photographer, and it can seem pretty weird at first. At the pre-wedding meeting I will bring my camera and would like to take a few photos of the two of you to start getting you used to being in front of the camera. You will receive a complimentary mounted 8×10″ print and have the option to buy more if you like.

Engagement Session

If you like the idea of having some photos of the two of you before the wedding why not extend the pre-wedding consultation into a full Engagement photo session for £100.  Everyone should have some great photos of them together, so even if you are already married, or aren’t planning on it yet you can book a couples portrait session. So whatever we call it – Engagement, Day after, Just married, Anniversary, Commitment – it works the same.

If you book an engagement photo session with me we’ll spend around an hour on location, catching a series of intimate, fun pictures of just the two of you. You will receive 5x 8×10″ prints or digital files (great parent gifts!) and the option to choose more as prints, canvas, an album or even as personally designed invitations, thank you cards or guest book.

Read more about couples portraits sessions

Get in touch to book today

What is an engagement session?
An engagement session is the commonest name for a couples portrait session where you and your future spouse have some professional photos taken before the wedding. I offer engagement sessions alongside wedding photography as its a great way for the couple and I to get to know each other and a fantastic complement to your wedding photography package. Everyone should have some great photos of them together so even if you are already married, or aren’t planning on it yet you can book a couples portrait session. So whatever we call it – Engagement, Day after, Just married, Anniversary, Commitment -it works the same.

See some examples in the portrait gallery

What’s involved?
If you book a couples photo session with me we’ll spend around an hour on location, catching a series of intimate, fun pictures of just the two of you. The £100 session fee includes  5 x 8×10″ prints or digital files on disc and the option to choose more as prints, canvas, an album or even as personally designed invitations, thank you cards or guest book.

We can play things relaxed and simple so you can feel really chilled out about the experience and enjoy it knowing you’re going to get some natural photos of you being yourselves. Or if you are a bit of a poser at heart we can get really creative and work together to give you some amazing fashion style portraits. I love trying new ideas and its great to work with people who are up for it.

Where will our portrait session take place?
I don’t work from a sterile white studio, we will shoot your portraits on location with lovely natural light and interesting and varied backdrops. Where we go is up to you- it may be somewhere personal to you both, or just somewhere we think will be beautiful, interesting or suited the season or the look we are going for in your photos. We are blessed with many varied Hampshire photography locations, from the woods and heathlands of the New Forest, the beaches of Bournemouth and surrounds, historical and modern city centres, fairgrounds, castles, cornfields and parks. Portrait sessions can be done at any time of the year, but we’ll have to work with the elements. Wrap up warm and snuggle in with Christmas lights, kick leaves about in autumn or splash about in the warmer summer sea.

What do we wear?
Whatever you feel comfortable in- you might want to get dressed up in your finest, go cool and casual in a funky little dress and boots, or relax in jeans and t shirt. You can even bring a change of clothes for some different looks. Just try and look like you both are attending the same party (but do not wear matching clothes, thats too cheesy!) Make sure you feel good in them. It’s also a nice idea to bring some accessories and props- how about a hat, sunglasses, scarf, a parasol, balloons, your dog…?

Why would I want a couples portrait session?
Most brides and grooms will admit to having very few decent photos of them both together, other than their wedding photos. A couples portrait session is the opportunity to change that (Which will also please your mum.)

Couples portrait sessions are a great idea if you want some amazing photos of you both but want to spend your wedding day enjoying the party and not taking the time out for a long photo session. You can do things completely differently to you wedding photos, different location, outfits, look and even season. (so have that cosy winter wedding and then run around on the beach in summer)

Maybe it rained on your wedding day and you didnt get the photos you wanted, or dare I say it, you were disapointed with your wedding photos (by another photographer obviously ) This could be a great way to celebrate an anniversary or give some lovely presents for your parents. Or maybe you just want some nice photos for your kitchen wall.

So what about Trash the Dress sessions?
Again, its one of the most commonly used phrases to describe this type of session but doesn’t mean you literally have to trash your wedding dress. The idea is that your dress gets one more outing, and you get to pose for some dramatic fashion style portraits, maybe in some less conventional situations than on your wedding day. So you might want to be rolling around on the floor a bit but nothing a dry clean shouldnt get out. Unless you REALLY want to Trash your Dress. Brides can have a trash the dress session with or without their groom anytime after the wedding, whether I was your wedding photographer or not. It works pretty much the same as a couples portrait session, with the same cost and 5 prints or digital files included.

Convinced?
Get in touch to discuss your ideas and book.

If you can’t wait that long I will blog some selections a few days after the wedding, so you can have a little reminder of that whirlwind day. Once you have your disc I will also open up the full online gallery so your friends and family can have a look at all of your photos, from wherever they are, and they can order prints aswell.

Next comes your album design. While I am editing I will also be designing a layout that will feature the best photos and key moments to tell the story of your wedding day in a clean and contemporary layout with a logical flow. With the modern layouts of all my album offerings it is important to allow some artistic license to create the design so I will design the first draft of your album layout and present this to you as a starter.  It’s not that I want to dictate your album choices for you, just that I’ve found through experience that is what works best. Otherwise  normal life takes over and couples can take many months to make their album choices, they will usually be overwhelmed by it, and it usually results in more a difficult design because the couple arent usually thinking about the complete picture when they pick and mix their photo choices. Hopefully you’ll be blown away with the initial design and off it will go to print, but this is the stage where you can add, remove, and swap photos and say if you just dont like this and that page design.  

Once you have approved the design I send the files off to print. Turnaround times vary between 7 days and 5 weeks depending on your album choice. If you stick with the One package Wedding Book, this is printed in the UK and should be in your hands in approximately 10 days. 

Any duplicate parent books must be ordered at the same time as your main album, otherwise extra charges may apply. You may also want to order photographic thank you cards, canvas wall art or framed prints- these can be added anytime after the wedding.

So, album in hand, that’s where we part, but its nice to hear back from you and see how you are getting along, so keep in touch. I hope you will be extremely pleased with your wedding photography and will happily recommend me to you friends and family. Most of all I hope that you look back at your photos in 50 years time and they bring back many amazing memories of your special day.