PHOTO SHOOT WARWICK HALL

What a great day I spent with some of my favourite suppliers last Monday when we took time out to take some photographs for a new wedding venue Warwick Hall. Val Mariner who owns Warwick Hall has a perfect place for a wedding and it is certainly worth checking out for any bride who has not yet chose a venue for their special day.

Set on the river bank the views from the main house are stunning and with a marquee set out on the lawn the setting is perfect!

Thanks to Carol Galley a fab hairdresser and make up artist who has relocated up here after working for the BBC for many years. Carol is wonderful at putting brides at their ease and knowing what styles suit each client. This comes from years of working on many big projects, film and television sets, she certainly knows her makeup and how to make women look their best in front of the camera.

Edwards of Penrith supplied the suits and thanks to Charlotte and Eddie for all their great menswear and to Lorraine at Country Dreams for the three fab dresses that we used on the shoot. The flowers were amazing thanks to Brenda at Gardenalia who supplied some fabulous hand ties in this seasons new colours. Also thanks to the Murrays at Silver Lady Wedding Cars for bringing style to the shoot with their vintage cars. Also thanks to Pink Leaf Catering for a lovely lunch!

The models were great thanks to Jess, Johnny and Katie and Abigail and James for all the posing you did for me you were all great!

We started out with Jess who looks so classy and stunning on these shots....



The frontage of Warwick Hall. Thanks Johnny for being the model for both brides!







The light was beautiful and soft, the weather was nice but freezing!
A 1936 vintage Rolls Royce from Silver Lady Wedding Cars....



This is Katie and Johnny who have actually booked their wedding at Warwick Hall in 2011 they got some practice in with me before their big day! We loved this part of the grounds which was very tumble down and the old petrol pump looked great in sepia...



Some of Gardenalia's latest hand ties and flowers.



Next was Abigail and James. These two look great together as you can see Abigail is beautiful and I am super excited to be photographing their wedding in a few weeks time at Dalston Hall.



The beautiful interiors of Warwick Hall....





Thanks again everyone! To see a slideshow of the shoot CLICK HERE.

JAMES & EMMA... purple hearts & hunters!

The most important thing for me as a photographer is to try to understand each client their personality, their ideas and how they want their wedding photographs to be. When I first met Emma I knew that she would be a bride who was meticulous in all aspects of her wedding planning and I wasn't wrong. When I arrived at Smiths last Thursday I was loving all the attention to detail that she had put into her wedding. The colour scheme of the wedding was a dash of purple and the men wore black spirit tartan. I started out in the Ash suite of Smiths Hotel.
I photographed Emma's stunning Maggie Sottero gown, her fabulous purple shoes and Vandella flowers. I also loved the PANDORA bracelet the James had bought her to remind his wife to be of this their special day....



You just know that you are going to have a lot of fun when the bride brings along her own props!

I loved the purple Hunters wellies and loved the heart shaped brollie !! I need one of those... Emma looked stunning as she posed on the bath in the bathroom of the Ash suite ...well we both like things to be a bit different from the norm!



James and his twin brother Ben before the ceremony...Emma bought James a series of gifts one of which was a new watch she didn't want him to be late!



The happy couple posing for photographs



I knew those props would come in useful..



The reception details were great all carrying the same theme. James and Emma thanks for letting us share your special day hope you are having a wonderful time in Mexico.
To watch their slideshow CLICK HERE.

PINK LEAF CATERING

Just thought I would share a useful link for any brides who are looking to hold their wedding reception in a marquee or family home.

Jane and Ian Ferguson who run Pink Leaf Catering are the couple you need to talk to. Whatever your requirements they can cater for small intimate dinner parties or large family gatherings. It isn't just weddings they can cater for any special occasion!

I recently photographed some of their delicious food for some new promotional material and having personally tasted what they make I highly recommend them and they are lovely people too!

Check them out! www.pinkleafcatering.co.uk

TO BE 18 AGAIN...

Many years ago I was a school photographer but as the years went on I found my niche my comfort zone what I loved doing the most was documenting weddings. So now I am a wedding photographer and I love it, but lately I have photographed quite a few portraits of families and children which I too have enjoyed.
It is true that in this country we photograph our kids at different stages in their lives mostly when they are cute babies and kids and then as children get older parents don't tend to have that many pictures taken of their kids anymore. In America there is a big trend to photograph teenagers and I notice that that trend could be coming here. More and more young girls are requesting fun photographs of themselves looking good and they say you are at your prime when you are 18-21!! Below are a selection of portraits that I have taken of girls having fun and looking great. Looking back I would LOVE to be 18 again!

SMITHS WEDDING FAYRE

Well it has been a while since I have blogged so I thought I should give some news on what I am up to. I have had a busy couple of weeks with a couple of weddings a portrait and numerous wedding albums getting completed from late autumn weddings. I am also in the middle of organising a fashion shoot that should be great fun in February.

I work closely with Smiths Hotel a contemporary award winning hotel in Gretna, and so I was delighted when they asked me if I could attend their wedding fayre which is on Sunday 31st January from 12-4pm. Because all posts are better with a picture here is one of Karen and Lee's wedding ...they were married at Smiths at the weekend.

Daniel & Stacey ...Perfect white wedding in Gretna

Daniel and Stacey met at work. Their first date was on 17 December 2005 and four years later on 17 December 2009 ....they chose to marry in Gretna on their anniversary! Dan and Stacey came to the studio to meet before their wedding and I knew that I would have a great time photographing their wedding. They are such a great couple together and the day was spent with close family and friends for a cosy winter wedding. I started at the award winning Smiths Hotel for photographs of Stacey getting ready.....



Dan the main man!



I love this look that only winter low light can give..Winter sun streamed through the windows of the Penthouse Suite..The bridesmaids and Stacey were so natural in front of the camera!




They chose to marry at Anvil Hall by candlelight..



As we left to go to the Ramsey McIntosh Suite at Gretna Hall Hotel it started to snow what a romantic end to another fabulous wedding.



Have a great honeymoon in the Maldives!

To see their slideshow click HERE.

The Snow has arrived....

Well I have just spent a fantastic weekend away with family and friends on the island of Bute. We enjoyed amazing food, great company and some lovely moments that always will stay with me.

One of those moments was on Sunday morning it was our turn to make breakfast for everyone (which happened to be pancakes for 20 people!!) and as I pulled back the old wooden shutters on our bedroom I looked out and wow it was like looking out on a magical winter wonderland. It was so exciting I felt like a big kid all over again I do love the snow!

As I write this blog entry tonight it is still snowing heavily, on and off it has been snowing since Thursday when the snow started to fall for Stacy and Dan's wedding in Gretna Green which I shot just before I left. Fortunately this fun loving couple were up for getting out there and having a few pics in the snow which I knew would be a part of their day that they wouldn't want to forget!

The light had gone it was early evening but I was SO happy to grab my flash out of my bag to stop the movement of those snowflakes and hey I think its worked!!. I am stlll editing Dan and Stacey's wedding but here is a taste of things to come.. More to come of Dan and Stacey in the next couple of days..