Tears of joy ...

Weddings ...  a roller coaster of emotions

• excitement
• nervousness
• laughter
• tears of joy
• relief
• happiness
• admiration
• pride

Alex and Jade's wedding was no different.

The house was calm and full of giggles on arriving at the Bride, the two Bridesmaids were sat cross legged on the floor putting the finishing touches to favour boxes and the Bride was having her make up applied.

The hair dresser came and went and left all three ladies, looking beautiful with just the finishing touches of make up to be applied before getting dressed.

Jade came down stairs to put her dress on and the emotion kicked in, "Hero" by Enrique Iglesias was playing - "their song"  ... tears welled in her eyes and it was like a sign that everything was perfect.

The Groom mean while was nervously waiting at the church with his Best Man and Woman and his grooms people.

The service was full of smiles, laughter and tears, with Alex's Mum, finding it hard to hold back the tears as her baby boy said his vows.

Alex and Jade who were once full of nerves, finally looked relaxed and calm knowing they would be spending their rest of their lives together as man and wife.  They smiled freely as they signed the register and laughed and joked with the Pastor and family members.

The newlyweds posed for photographs with family and friends outside the church in the beautiful sunshine before venturing off to celebrate with a few glasses of bubbly and some very emotional and heart felt speeches.

All the speeches were great, and the nerves within some of the speakers were running high, especially with Jade's Dad and the Best Man.   Jade's Grandparents were so proud of their son when he stood up and spoke about Jade, and it was a really moving time for all.

However, the best line in the speech goes to Alex and it has stuck with me for the last week, during his speech he thank Jade's Mum and Dad as said that they never had to give him another birthday or Christmas present ever again, as by allowing him to marry Jade was the best present he could ever ask for ever.

For young people, they have wise hearts and very full hearts that are bursting with love and affection for one another and family and friends.  If there was ever a couple destined to be together, it's Jade and Alex.

Congratulations Mr and Mrs Rawkins,  and

Ten un buen viaje y disfrutar de sus vidas juntos

xx

I love weddings ....

I'm sorry, I went quiet again !!

I've just been really busy with wedding related work.


So I ended March with a lovely, intimate wedding with a white and red theme.  The bride looked lovely in a toga style flowing dress.

The older bridesmaids looked stunning in a deep red strapless dresses and the flower girls wore white dresses with a sparkly bodice to match the theme of the sparkly shoes that they were all wearing.

The setting was a lovely Hotel in a tiny village just outside Romsey, where the Groom, the Best Man and the Page Boys waited patiently in the stunning, modern yet cosy bar.

A lovely day was had by all attended, and there were a lot of smiles, and even more laughs.

Mr and Mrs Barker

In my previous post, it mentioned a wedding that I was going to have the pleasure of photographing ... and yesterday that day arrived.

The wedding of the super-organised and wonderfully creative Dave and Shelley, the new Mr & Mrs Barker.

Idioms can be over used or used inappropriately, however this one seems to sum up Dave and Shelley .

"two sides of the same coin"

Two people that share the same passions, dreams and thoughts.  Who asked me the same questions when I entered the room after leaving the other.  Who got each other similar presents without realising.  Both different, just fused together through mutual love, admiration and respect for one another.  Shelley is bubbly and outgoing, where as Dave is quite shy, however they compliment each other beautifully and one doesn't overshadow the other.

Dave and Shelley chose to have a beautifully intimate wedding in a Black and Cadbury Purple theme, in which most of the guests also followed the theme.

The Civil Ceremony closed with the lighting of candles, where both Shelley and Dave lit named candles and then lit a larger candle simultaneously with their individual candles... twin flames joining together to burn eternally as one.

Every part of the day was filled with detail from the fleur de lis on the brides nails and grooms belt, to matching chalices, to the coat of arms by the tower of sumptuous cupcakes topped with a single tier cake delicately decorated in black damask.... perfection!

I can honestly say that I believe they rivalled the best wedding planner with their planning, attention to detail and execution.  They say that the build up and planning of a wedding is supposed to be as much fun as the day itself, and judging by the fun everyone was having yesterday, Dave and Shelley must have been in their element planning their wedding.

It was a joy and an honour to capture their day and I wish them both a long, happy and healthy marriage.

Congratulations Mr & Mrs Barker, I hope your twin flames provide you with light when you see dark and warmth when you feel cold.

First wedding of the year...

With love in the air, I am very lucky to have my first wedding of 2013 on Saturday, to a very special couple.

I thought I was organised when I planned my wedding, but I have been out-classed by this couple, they have intricate detail planned, designed and organised down to the last leaf on the floral arrangements.

The time, detail and effort which has gone in to planning their wedding will certainly make it  a wedding to remember for them and their guests.  The personalisation of everything to represent a piece of them and their lives into the day is amazing, and I am honoured to be capturing their wedding.

Congratulations Dave and Shelley and look forward to seeing you both on Saturday.

A wedding with a difference

So about three weeks ago, I was asked to photograph a very intimate wedding by someone very dear to my heart - MY DAUGHTER !!

My daughter is 5 and asked if she paid me £1 would I photograph her teddy, Princess, getting married.  Of course, what photographer and mother would refuse the opportunity to capture a special moment like this.

She planned the date, the staging and even used her own money to buy her teddy some new shoes for the big day.

God help the man who decides to marry my daughter, he will need BIG, DEEP pockets to keep her happy.

I hope you enjoy an in sight into Mr & Mrs Bears special day.

xx

Beautiful Twins...

So I thought I would share a sneak peak in to this mornings shoot with the gorgeous 8 month old twins I enjoyed snapping this morning,

Being identical twins, I really thought I would struggle with names, how wrong was I, already at 8 months, they are completely different personalities.

Ellen, first born of the twins, smaller, chattier and very much loved posing for the camera, however on her terms.

Sian, the cheeky monster, trying to be actively mobile and very determined little girl loved giggling, dribbling and blowing bubbles just not for the camera.

Both beautiful girls and their full time dad does a brilliant job of juggling the girls (not physically) and keeping them entertained.

They love their older brother and really look up to him, however I think he may need to watch his back as when they are older they may gang up on him and get him in to trouble ... all three have stunning blue eyes that make you melt when you look in to them ... so I think daddy best start saving for those weddings now as he will have many a boy knocking at his door when they are older.


Now can you guess which is which ?

Apologies for being quiet

So I must apologise for being quiet, however it's been quite a hectic week or so for me...

I had the pleasure of photographing another pregnant lady last week and I'm sure bumps are getting smaller, either that or I was so massive everyone looks tiny compared to when I was pregnant!

I also had a lovely meeting with an engaged couple about capturing their wedding in February 2013 and I found it really hard in containing my excitement about wanting to capture their wedding.  It's going to be intimate, different and truly amazing as the amount of work the couple  have put in is phenomenal to make it unique and extremely personal to them.

February can't come soon enough ... and I will apologise in advance as the couple would like snow, so if you can pray for a little dusting of snow that weekend that would be great !

Here's a sneak peak of the "bump" shoot ...

I have twin girls to capture on Thursday .... can't wait !!  

Beautiful bumps ...

Afternoon,

What a lovely autumn day, the sun is trying to shine, and the frosty chill makes it perfect to watch the different colour leaves dance across the road...

Autumn a season of colour and change.

Today I had the pleasure to visit a lovely lady and capture her baby bump, and what a tiny little bump it was, with only 15 days before her beautiful baby is born, she doesn't look like she is about to pop just quite comfortable.

Here's a sneak peak of whats to come ...

Last minute wedding

I have been invited to photograph the most exciting wedding of the year (for me) in two weeks time.

The details are beautiful and am honoured to be able to capture this couples special day.  I wish I could share more, however when you see the photos you will realise why this wedding is under wraps and I'm sworn to secrecy.

Can't wait to share the photos ... it's going to be amazing

Emily ...

I've had the pleasure of photographing Emily before and always look forward to capturing her because Emily is special, she is affectionate, helpful, and an amazing big sister to Isabelle, and adores her big sister Danielle.

No two moments are the same will Emily, however she has a smile that will melt even the coldest of hearts so how honoured I felt when on my second shot, I got this image.  

This beautiful little girl turned 6 recently and I was amazed at how much she had grown and changed since I last photographed her in January. So much more confident, chatty and playful.

until next time Miss Emily 

xx

Friday's wedding ... full of style

Fridays wedding was full of style and sparkle ... from vintage two tone shoes to 50's music and dresses, from kilts and pipers to starry socks ... definitely a day of surprises 

The rain did not dampen anyone's spirit and in face the gorgeous venue of Lains Barn was positively glistening and glowing with the twinkling of hundreds of tea lights.

However, I am so glad the Bride did not throw the bouquet ...  it was full of beads that shimmered and shone and sparkled in the lights of the flashes of the family and friends camera flashes... and was very heavy.

It was a great day for me as photographer and family and friends definitely had a fabulous day.

Surprise shoot

About six months ago I ran a competition on a local community facebook page and a young lad won a voucher for a free shoot.

He donated the shoot to his mum, and the shoot was organised for last Monday, the day after the his mum got married.

It was a great shoot, they were both all photographed out from the previous days weddings, and the weather was not the Indian Summer expected, however they still managed to smile and hold composure  and their sense of humour whilst I was being snugged by their dog.

Congratulations to them both and I hope they both have a very long, and happy marriage. x

Similarities

Some things amuse me more than others, and it is usually the simple things in life ...

Yesterday we celebrated my Dad's 60th birthday and my family were all around to celebrate ... including my Nephew.

Jack is 6 and we have a few things in common ... we both love football, we share the same birthday and we both hate having our photo taken...

I'm not sure why as he has the brightest blue eyes and the cheekiest of smiles, and is really quite photogenic really (unlike myself) 

My parents used to moan that when they had their photos developed there were loads of pictures of me like this ... thank god for digital cameras now 

one day i will have the pleasure of posting a picture of his face... :)