Philip Hawkins Photography

Photo Magic

2012-02-02T03:25:00.000-08:00

Well I’ve had lots of portrait sessions booked since writing last weeks blog with clients wanting to get shoots in before the wedding season kicks off in April. January is also a busy time for taking wedding bookings, too, so plenty meetings with future bride and grooms. It’s always nice as an Edinburgh wedding photographer discussing couples wedding plans. I’m often able to help with suggestions and recommendations for other aspects of the wedding day planning as well as I know most of the leading wedding suppliers in Edinburgh and can point folk in the right direction and to the best companies and people. Funnily enough I get many couples contacting me for advice on venue choices. The date and venue is of course the first thing to get booked when planning the wedding, so usually when the couple start turning their attention to a wedding photographer the venue has already been chosen. However, I must say I really enjoy being asked for input on venue recommendations, it’s quite an honour! When I chat with other wedding photographers in Edinburgh it’s apparent that I get asked for venue recommendations far more than what is usual. I’m not altogether sure why this may be case. I have been commissioned to do a fair amount of venue reviews over the years for the likes VisitBritain, North Country Guides and various magazines so I’m not sure if that has any bearing. Anyway, in the light of this I am soon going to start work on a Wedding Venue section on my website with information that may help couples in deciding where they want to tie the knot. But that’s all for sometime in the future of course.Another important aspect of my job is album design and also photo manipulation. When designing albums photo manipulation where necessary and appropriate is a normal part of the work but I also periodically get special requests, too. Just this last week I’ve been working on a number of these so I thought I’d share the results with you. There is of course a plethora of task we can achieve with photographs from airbrushing, blemish or scar removal, slimming people down, removing objects (and sometimes people, lol), improving the weather, etc, etc. But here are a few recent jobs that illustrate some of the results that can be achieved with a little time and skill.The first two photographs here are Melville Castle. The first shot is the original, taken in the summer. However, the client later wanted an image that had a winter feel to it, but with no people in it. Most of my photographs of Melville Castle in the winter have been taken at Melville Castle weddings and so on this occasion didn’t really fit the bill. So, I fiddled about with the original photo you see here and after doing a tricky little black and white conversion produced the second image which has a nice wintery look to it.The next two photographs from Morag and Alastair’s wedding at first glance may seem to be identical. The shot was taken on the marble staircase as part of their bride and groom session at their wedding at Craighouse last year. If you look closely you will notice that the shoulder strap of Morag’s dress has come out of place over her left shoulder. At the request of Morag’s mother I “fixed” the strap so it went it back to exactly how it should have been.

The other image I’ve been working on this week, in fact only just finished it lol, is also from Morag and Alastair’s wedding and on behalf of Morag’s mum (she enjoys thinking up challenges for me!). The two photographs on the left hand side are from Morag and Alastair’s group shots. A couple of weeks ago, having been suitably impressed with my ability to fix Morag’s straps, her mum contacted to me to ask if it would be possible to create a new group photograph of specific people that she hadn’t thought about asking to shoot on the wedding day itself. So the picture on the right is the result. If you look closely you no doubt can work out that I’ve taken Morag, Alastair and Morag’s sister (Maid of Honour) from the bottom photo and then Morag’s mum and dad from the top photo and combined them together to give the new family group photograph.The last example I’m using is the two photographs of Floors Castle. The original shot is the top one which is a good image in its own right. However, at the time I took the photograph I also zoomed in on a deep, saturated portion of the sky where the colours were very rich and vibrant and took an additional shot with the idea of switching the skies later in the post production. The lower image is the result. Personally, although it does look more dramatic and punchy I think I prefer the original, but having the two gives me more financial options so I’m not complaining, lol.

Lots of portraits

2012-01-25T06:36:00.000-08:00

This time of year is when I do most of my portrait sessions. Between December and March all Edinburgh wedding photographers experience a drop off as less couples get married this time of year so it’s always nice to be busy doing portraits and I’m usually able to fit in some commercial work, too. It’s particularly enjoyable to do portrait sessions with former brides and grooms whose wedding I photographed when their first baby comes along. Here’s a few shots from some recent sessions.When it comes to portraits, especially children, smiles are always what parents are hoping for. But it doesn’t always have to be about looking at the camera and smiling. The opening photograph here illustrates that. This is Emily. I did a variety of different of photographs with Emily and she was a delight! I also became one of her best friends, too, so feeling very honoured! For this particular image though I asked her to turn away from the camera and look up into the light. She is almost in profile but crucially you can still see both of her eyes which are the focal point of the photograph. A back light (also known as a hair light) helps separate her from the background and the overall effect is quite dramatic and timeless, especially when converted to black and white.By contrast the last photo here is totally opposite. This was shot at the end of a family session where I had time to try something experimental. A high key white background had been used throughout the shoot for the two girls and their baby sister. For this shot however I deliberately over powered the lights and allowed it to flood in and around her from behind. I love this shot! The experimental lighting gives it great impact but at the same time it’s caught the nice, natural expression on her face. Again I’ve converted to black and white. This often works very well with children and babies.All these photographs were taken in the clients living rooms. I don’t need much space to set up my mobile studio and as you can see from the results we are able to achieve that distinctive studio look whilst remaining in the comfortable environment of your own home. For babies under 6 months I use a specialist baby poser that moulds around the baby keeping them both comfortable and secure whilst being photographed. The baby poser can be manipulated into several different shapes and options all the while keeping the baby safe and happy.If you like the look of these pictures and perhaps thinking about booking a portrait photographer in Edinburgh why not give me a call and I can book an appointment with you?

This weekend I am doing a shoot for the Royal Terrace Hotel. Lots of interior photography for their showround book and I also have two models coming in as a bride and groom on the Saturday afternoon. I’m really looking forward to it! We’ll get lots of typical wedding shots but also it gives me the chance to do some more experimental stuff as well. The photos will be on here in due course.

I’ve just been invited to attend the next Wedding Weekend at Ocean Terminal Debenhams. The dates are February 25th and 26th if you wanted to pop them in the diary. I’m the only wedding photographer in Edinburgh invited along together with a few other selected wedding companies. So if you are looking for high quality wedding photography but haven’t yet booked a photographer I’d be happy to chat with you, answer all your questions and show you the very latest albums. And of course I’m always available to meet with you at any mutually convenient time, too. Just give me a call to make an appointment. Remember the Royal Wedding album offer is now into the last week!

Some magazine articles

2012-01-18T07:36:00.000-08:00

Well I had a lovely time on Sunday at the Malmaison wedding fair. A really nice mix of visitors from couples due to get married in only a couple of months time to newly engaged couples just beginning to collate information and idea’s. As anticipated my Bellissimo wedding album generated great interest and it looks like I’m going to be designing quite a number throughout 2012. There were only two wedding photographers in Edinburgh invited along (this was an invitation only event, not one where exhibitor spaces are sold) and the other Edinburgh wedding photographer was carrying a different album range so it was nice for couples to be able to compare the differences.

The weddings for this year won’t really kick off for me until April and I’m really looking forward to it. I have some fantastic couples and weddings lined up this year and can’t wait to get going! In the meantime I try to fit in as many portrait sessions as I can up until the end of March as well as some commercial and magazine work. I don’t do as much magazine work as I once used to as I started cutting it back a little a few years ago so I could cover more weddings but there are a few publications that keep asking for me so I try and cover these during the winter months when there are less weddings around. Just for a change on this weeks blog I’m popping a couple of articles up so you can see some of things I do. It can be quite varied and much of it requires me to do some writing to accompany the articles, but it’s interesting and it’s always nice to see your work in print. I’ve scanned two recent articles so I hope the lower resolution of computer monitors allows the text to be readable, if not just enjoy the the photos, lol.

If you click on the pictures it should open up as a larger version should you wish to read the text.

Royal Wedding Album

2012-01-12T05:04:00.000-08:00

Well I can hardly believe we are already close to half way through January! I had a nice break over the new year holidays and now getting back into the swing of things again this week. On the photographic front I’m busy with portrait session and also a little commercial work. On the design side of things it’s predominantly wedding albums and venue showround books.January is also a busy month for meeting future bride and grooms who are looking to book their wedding photographer. I’ve had a few more enquiries this January than usual mainly generated from the magazine articles I had published towards the end of last month and the beginning of this year and so I am looking forward to an even busier year than 2011 was! As an Edinburgh wedding photographer around 60% of my weddings are in and around Edinburgh and the remainder covering the rest of Scotland and north of England.For all bookings taken in January I am running a special Royal Wedding album offer. You may recall back in June of 2011 in my Royal Wedding blog article I let you in a little secret regarding the wedding album that Prince William and Kate Middleton had chosen for their wedding photographs. Well the news was confirmed just a few weeks ago and the Royal couple have taken delivery of their new Bellissimo wedding album. The Bellissimo is the undisputed market leader having recently been voted Wedding Album of the Year and winner of numerous awards in the wedding and photographic arena. I have always believed that high quality photography deserves to be showcased at its very best and so in the range of albums that I offer my clients the Bellissimo is my flagship. My normal price for a Bellissimo is already one of the most competitive, but this month I am offering couples a 40 page, 100 photographs Bellissimo album for the amazing price of just £495! It is so far proving to be one of the most popular offers I’ve ever ran! For more details click my Royal Wedding album offer link.The pictures in this weeks blog are some of the photos and spreads from the wedding books and brochures I have just finished working on. The opening shot is from a Harburn House wedding last summer and is one of a selection used in their new wedding brochure. The next two pictures are double page spreads from the new Melville Castle Weddings showround book. The line running down the middle indicates the page crease by the way, just in case you thought there may have been a mark on my camera lens, lol. Likewise the next is a double page spread from the Beautiful Weddings at Norton House Hotel book. Last shot up is from a commercial shoot I did at the highly fashionable Point Hotel, another of my favourite Edinburgh wedding venues.Finally for this week I will be at my first wedding fayre of the year at Malmaison Hotel in Leith on Sunday afternoon. If you haven’t yet got your photographer booked and/or if you’d like to see the just why the Wedding Album of the Year is so impressive come along and see me. The above Royal Wedding album offer will apply and if you bring me along a medium coffee (white, two sugars please) from the nearby Ocean Terminal’s Costa Coffee I’ll give you a further £50 discount (terms & conditions - it must still be warm!!!) Now there’s a good deal! ;)

How to choose your Wedding Photographer - Top Tips and Trade Secrets

2011-12-13T04:30:00.000-08:00

I'm going to cheat today. Hope you don't mind. I have been asked to write an article for a wedding magazine on the above topic. As it's a subject I thought would be of interest to many of my blog readers I'm simply going to publish it here first, which of course saves me some extra writing. The final version may of course get edited, altered or even spiked! :O Fortunately none of these affects my fee, lol ;) So here goes with the original and full 1200 word version...

On October 5th 2009 newly weds Mark and Sylvia Day made history by becoming the first couple to successfully sue their wedding photographer for "woefully inadequate" service. No doubt you will recall all the news and media coverage this generated both in the UK and across into the USA, too. After seeing this item headline the BBC news I decided that I’d write an impromptu blog article that week on the subject. To be honest because it was done on the spur of the moment it wasn’t the best article in the world and it wasn’t really intended to be. It was simply a few brief thoughts on the hot topic and some comments that I thought may help other couples in the future from booking the wrong kind of photographer. However, somehow google quickly found and indexed my article and it suddenly started appearing on the first page of their results for "couple sue wedding photographer". My visitor stats for the next few weeks went through the roof! The piece very soon became my most read article by a country mile and continues getting many hits even now, over two years later. Of course if I had known this was going to happen I wouldn’t have thrown the feature together so quickly!

What is interesting though is despite all the publicity generated and subsequent advice that proliferated wedding magazines, websites and blogs we’ve seen at least three more couples since then sue their wedding photographer and according to what you read in online wedding forums there’s many more couples preparing to do likewise! So what exactly is the problem and how can you avoid experiencing the same disappointment?

The first thing I must say is that there are a great number of superb wedding photographers out there! Sadly, however these are greatly outweighed by the poor wedding photographers. Why is this? Well the wedding photography industry in the UK is un-regulated which means that quite literally anyone can buy a half decent camera and then declare themselves to be a professional wedding photographer. It is estimated that in the UK well over 60% of those purporting themselves as wedding photographers are in fact Weekend Warriors (part time Saturday snappers). With so many excellent online resources it is possible for a first timer to instantly create a very impressive and business like website, too, which can make it quite hard initially to determine exactly who or what they are. How then can you separate the wheat from the chaff?

It is most important that you learn to develop a discerning eye for quality. Many people make the mistake in thinking that all photographers are very much the same. This is far from true! Just as a perceptive person can distinguish between Banana Split Delight and Chanel No.5 if you learn what to look for you can do likewise when comparing photographers. Here’s a few tips...

Study the photographs carefully. What is your first impression when looking through an album or gallery? Are the photographs eye catching and pleasing or are they lacklustre? Do they have impact and do the people in them look good? Now study them more closely.

In the reportage type photographs (also known as photojournalistic where the couple have been photographed unknowingly) has the photographer consistently made the couple look good throughout the whole day or is he a 'warts n all' snapper? Do these images tell a story in their own right or are they merely candids that could have been taken by anyone? Can you see clearly the reason why the photographer has taken each shot or do some images leave you somewhat mystified?

In the staged or posed photographs, particularly the bride and groom set, are these photographs fashionable and stylish? Do the people in them look good? Does the lighting and angles used make the couple look flattering? How are they posed? Do they look natural and relaxed or stiff and awkward? Remember, if a lot of the couples look ungainly and frumpy it is highly unlikely the photographer is going to suddenly learn a whole new style and skill set for your own wedding.

You can also learn a lot about the photographer from his main portfolio or his adverts. The photographs that he has chosen are the shots that in his own mind are his very best photographs. Look at them carefully based upon the questions considered above. If you feel these images do not meet the criteria then there is probably no point looking any further. Just an aside, I often get asked about unusual photographs such as where everyone is asked to start jumping up and down, all the guests being asked to charge across a field, or all the ladies kicking their legs in the air, and similar. If you look through the portfolio’s of the top wedding photographers in the country you will find that virtually none of them do this type of photograph, which may reveal something about their creative merits.

In addition to the above there are a few other 'tells' that can help you avoid post wedding disappointment. One of these indicators can be price. In the UK the average spend on wedding photography is approximately £1500. All photographers set their own prices so they will do so generally based upon where they perceive themselves to be on the market ladder. If the photographer himself estimates his own value as low as say £500 obviously that does not reflect well on his competence or skill levels. Another necessary consideration is insurance. All bona fide professional photographers will be fully insured. The account of a wedding photographer who slipped while taking a shot and stepped backwards into the cake is of course a rare occurrence but one that emphasises its importance. For a wedding photographer insurance is a very expensive item yet one that many part-timers decide they can do without. Make sure your photographer has both Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance.

I don’t want to bore you with talking about equipment but here’s something you may never have thought about previously. Your wedding day is of utmost importance and to ensure we capture it to the highest standard possible we invest in the very best equipment costing several thousands of pounds. We have to have two or three of every item for backup purposes. This also includes our hard drives where we store your wedding photographs after and during their editing and our monitors and printers which are carefully calibrated to make sure that our albums and prints are perfectly and accurately produced. Again, problems of a technical nature occur very rarely but it is worth while checking your photographer has everything covered just in case.

I hope some of the above is of help in weighing up and choosing your photographer. Whilst some couples have been successful in suing their wedding photographer that can never alleviate their disappointment or bring back their precious memories. By contrast there is nothing more thrilling than when you see your photographs or album on your return from honeymoon and seeing just how stunning you look and what a fantastic job your photographer has done in capturing all the magic of your special day! Choose your photographer wisely and you’ll never ever regret it!

A Melville Castle wedding

2011-12-01T03:05:00.000-08:00

Well I have no more weddings at Melville Castle this year but no doubt will have many to look forward throughout 2012. There will be a new team in place in the new year and this beautiful wedding venue will be taking bookings once again for weddings and events.

Lynne and Alasdair booked me for their wedding at the beginning of 2011 and their original wedding date was May 2012. However, when the Aurora Group made the decision to pull out of Melville Castle at the end of this year they moved some of the wedding dates they had booked for 2012 forward into 2011 and so Alasdair and Lynne ended up tying the knot several months sooner than they had planned. Although that of course generated a lot of frantic work and effort for them, in the end it was such a fantastic wedding I’m sure they didn’t mind one little bit!

Lynne and Alasdair had booked me for just about the whole day, starting with pre-wedding photographs through until the first dance. When they booked me they were both living and working up in Aberdeen and came down to Edinburgh one weekend to do some wedding organising. After using the internet to search for and then compare wedding photographers in Edinburgh they finally narrowed down their shortlist to three and thereupon had made appointments to meet with the three of us over the weekend. Unknown to me at the time I was the Edinburgh wedding photographer who had the first appointment on the Friday afternoon with the other two photographers scheduled for the Saturday. However, Lynne and Alasdair phoned me later on the Friday evening to say after meeting and chatting with me and looking through my albums they had cancelled their meetings with the other two photographers for the following day and were going to book me. Well I just LOVE clients like that! :)

I was due to start the photography from 12 noon at Melville Castle. So I duly arrived in good time to find I was actually there ahead of the bride! It’s not often that happens! lol Lynne had gone into the city to get her hair and make up done and ended up running a little late. She arrived at around twelve thirty and we went down to the bridal suite where upon I began doing some dress, shoes, flowers and other detail shots. As Lynne had already had her hair and make-up done there wasn’t opportunity to get this type of 'getting ready' shot but instead that gave a little extra time which I used to do some pre-wedding bridal portraits. If you read my blog regularly you will be aware that I am currently competing in the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers - Photographer of the Year contest. Each month the SWPP runs a monthly image contest across the main wedding and portrait categories where all professional photographers can enter one photo per category. These are then judged and the results announced the beginning of the following month. So far this year I have managed to win awards in one category or another every single month, which I am absolutely delighted about! One of the photographs from Lynne’s pre-ceremony set scored me a 'Bronze' in the Traditional Portrait category. Little did I know at that point that I would end up entering four more photographs from this wedding with all five of them winning awards! (The categories I entered were Weddings Traditional, Weddings Photojournalism, Weddings Contemporary, Monochrome and Traditional Portraits)

The first photograph in today’s blog is the one from the Weddings Traditional category. All the other shots today are all reportage or photojournalism shots, as I promised last week that I would use more of this style in my next blogging. I did a tiny bit of cheating with the girls on the staircase photograph as I quickly asked them to pause for one second when they had all reached the perfect spot so that I could see all their faces at the same time in the picture. Strictly speaking this doesn’t classify as a photojournalism image as the SWPP contest rules are quite rigorous and state that a 'photojournalism' shot must have no intervention whatsoever by the photographer. Knowing this of course meant I wouldn’t try and enter this particular photograph into that category but it wouldn’t stop me shooting it nevertheless as it still is good Storybook photography. All the remainder of today’s photos definitely do fit the photojournalism criteria and as you study them you will see how none of them have been staged, faked or re-created. Personally, I never try to re-create or stage a supposedly storybook moment as I believe to a discerning eye you can always tell that it isn’t really authentic. On the other hand a truly genuine spontaneous moment is absolutely priceless!

The second to last photo shown in this blog is the shot that won me the award in the Weddings Photojournalism category. It occurred a split second after the first kiss and capturing it was purely down to experience and timing. As the ceremony is progressing towards its conclusion most wedding photographers are readying themselves for the first kiss photograph. You never know for sure at what exact point this will occur as every officiate differs as to when they will utter those immortal words "You may now kiss the bride". Some of them never say them at all which makes things all the more harder for us! lol You also never know for how long the first kiss will last. Some couples will linger their kiss for several seconds which is great for us photographers allowing us to shoot several photographs possibly getting both full length and close ups. For other couples, particularly if they are feeling quite nervous, the first kiss can be the briefest moment imaginable and then we have to really be on our toes! So you’re doing your best trying to anticipate when the moment will come and then of course making sure you are in the right place at the right time and fire the shutter at the perfect instant. This happens very fast and there is a natural tendency for a photographer to instantaneously check the back screen on his camera to see if he caught the moment or not. However, from experience I have noted how on many occasions immediately following the kiss the couple will share a warm, intimate gesture which is often more emotional than the first kiss itself. This may be an embrace, a touching of heads or the whispering of some private words. For this reason I never lower the camera but instead am more alert than ever. I think the shot here from Lynne and Alasdair’s ceremony really illustrates the rewards of this and shows the difference between simply a nice wedding snap and an award winning image. It has captured the full gambit of emotions - happiness, joy, contentment, love and excitement that the couple have for one another and that they are feeling at this exact, precise second. This instant in time lasted for literally a split second and will never ever occur again. I can tell you it is exceedingly rewarding capturing these never to be repeated, fleeting moments and one of the reasons I love my job so much!

A November wedding at The Quay, Musselburgh

2011-11-22T06:34:00.000-08:00

I love November weddings! Mainly because you don’t have to wait until 10 o’clock for a sunset! lol In all seriousness though weddings that occur towards the end of the year always have such beautifully atmospheric lighting due to the fact that the nights are drawing in quicker. Jemma and Mark’s wedding at The Quay in Musselburgh turned out to be a perfect example and from the 393 photographs that we took throughout the day we got some real crackers!

This was the first time I’d photographed a wedding at The Quay and hopefully I will get many more here in the future. It is a very popular wedding venue and as an Edinburgh wedding photographer I will very much look forward to working here again. I was already very familiar with The Quay as I live only a short drive away and have carried out several magazine commissions in and around the Firth of Forth coastline including the picturesque Fisherrow Harbour which sits adjacent to The Quay. I have also eaten many times in The Quay restaurant which is well known throughout the Lothians for its superb food.

Jemma and Mark booked me for their wedding photography as last year I had photographed the wedding of one of Jemma’s friends, Gillian. Gillian and Gary had a fantastic wedding at Craighouse which I thoroughly enjoyed photographing. You can see some of their photos in the next issue of Best Scottish Weddings magazine which comes out the first week in December as it is being run as a Real Life weddings feature.

Jemma and Mark had booked us for pre-wedding 'getting ready' photos through until the first dance. As we drove through to Jemma’s parents home on the morning I could see that the weather was shaping up pretty good and with a bit of luck we’d get a nice sunset at the end of the afternoon, something all wedding photographers in Edinburgh enjoy! We arrived just before noon and started with a few photographs of the wedding dress, shoes, flowers, etc before grabbing a few hair and make-up shots. I also snatched a couple of photos of the wedding cars parked outside the house just as we left to head down to The Quay for some photos with Mark and groomsmen.

Jemma and Mark’s wedding party was quite large, somewhere in the region of 140 guests. Most wedding photographers in Edinburgh will probably agree that 80-90 day guests is about the average. The Quay complex is equally large however and also has several function rooms so can accommodate things with no problem at all. I did the photographs with Mark and his bestmen, two of them, in one of the side rooms overlooking the harbour. Although I had planned on doing the group photographs after the ceremony in front of the large window of the ceremony room the way things worked out following the newly weds exit I could see it would be more advantageous to use this same room instead. Most weddings never go 100% to plan and its part of the job to be flexible so that everything still runs smoothly.

As usual I captured plenty of photographs of the ceremony itself working quietly in one of the corners. Everyone enjoyed a wee drink for a few minutes following the marriage and then we got the group photographs underway. I deliberately timed these carefully so that we’d finish for around 4pm. I knew the sunset time was quarter past four and I really wanted to be outside doing the bride and groom session so that it would coincide with the setting sun. Things went pretty much perfectly here and we got out for some photos on the beach and then by the harbour for the first ten minutes or so before I took Mark and Jemma around to the opposite side of The Quay so that the sunset would be behind their heads. As you can see the sky was a glorious colour!

Following the sunset shots the other image I wanted to finish with was the bride and groom at the main entrance to capitalise on The Quay’s lighting. Most lighting is enhanced at night when things get darker and subsequently the artificial lighting appears more dramatic. However, the secret with night photography is to catch the sky as it turns deep blue. It is quite easy to assume that night photography will always have black skies, but in between the dusk and the skies becoming black there occurs a brief period of time where the skies are actually deep blue. This is the optimum time for night photography as it is far more dramatic than having a plain black sky. The last photograph here is a reasonable example. It is not perfect as really I would prefer the sky to have turned a touch deeper blue but I am aware that at this time of year I don’t want to keep my bride and groom outside too long as I don’t want them becoming cold. As I knew that the sunset shots were going to be stunning I was happy to compromise on the night sky.

Mark and Jemma’s evening reception went over beautifully. Some great speeches, a scrumptious meal and lots of fun! Between the meal and the cake cutting I had plenty time to do a few requested photographs for some of Jemma and Mark’s family and friends, and I also made sure I got a photograph of Gillian and Gary, too. We were then back in for the cutting of the cake which was carried out on the dance floor before going into their first dance. All the photos I’ve blogged today are from Mark and Jemma’s bride and groom session, simply because I love the striking November lighting. When I blog next week’s wedding I’ll try and use more of the reportage images.

Engagement Shoot at The Point Hotel

2011-11-09T06:14:00.000-08:00

A busy period just now what with wedding fairs, Edinburgh portrait sessions, album designing and still a couple of weddings to photograph before the end of the year. Last weekend was the Edinburgh Corn Exchange wedding fair, the biggest in central Scotland, and then this Sunday I’m down in Newcastle for the Great North East Bridal Show, one of the leading wedding fairs in the North East of England. I really enjoy doing wedding fairs as it’s a chance to showcase my albums and Storybooks which being bespoke designed makes them really stand out above the template system of designing used by most wedding photographers.I fundamentally believe that a photographers work should speak for itself so I love having the opportunity to lay out three or four albums and then just step back and allow couples to browse through them and see the quality of photography that I provide. I’m not much good with clever sales tactics and I don’t have the gift of the gab so it’s probably just as well I have a more laid back policy, lol.

As we are in the middle of the autumn wedding fair season I’m going to take the opportunity to talk about pre-wedding Engagement Shoots. My last engagement shoot was with Nikki and Russell just two weeks ago. I took them to the Point Hotel in the centre of Edinburgh who very kindly gave me use of the stunning Penthouse Suite function room that looks out across the city towards Edinburgh Castle. I’ve photographed many weddings at the Point Hotel Edinburgh and also do a lot of photography for the hotel which is why they were happy to allow me use of the Penthouse for the photo shoot. If you haven’t yet booked your venue for your wedding and wanted to consider the Point Hotel I’m sure we could arrange an Engagement Shoot for you which would give you a chance to see around the Hotel for yourself and also sample how great your wedding photographs would be if you held your wedding here. Please drop me an email or give me a call if you’d be interested.

Engagement Shoots are pretty much win win events for all involved. Firstly, it gives you the chance to work with a professional photographer who can coach you through the secrets of how to look good in front of the camera. We can try different poses and sequences and experiment to see which ones you feel most comfortable with and that work best for the style and look of the photographs you’d like. If you are the type of person who doesn’t really like having their photograph taken, or feels uncomfortable in front of the camera lens this is an excellent opportunity to learn tips and tricks of how to relax, look good and feel confident in front of the camera. If you haven’t yet booked anyone for your wedding photography it also lets you assess your photographer and the quality of his work. Very often I run promotions offering free Engagement Shoots for this very reason as the quality of the resulting photographs is so high the couple will go on to book me to photograph their wedding.

A typical Engagement Shoot will last around 45 minutes. I try not to make it too much longer as a 30-45 minute slot is quite close to the time you will have for your main bride and groom session on your wedding day and it allows me to demonstrate how I can produce a large variety of different images within a modest time frame. For Nikki and Russell we ended up with around 50 different photographs.
They will then pick their favourite image which I will have printed and mounted up into one of our wedding signature mounts which goes on display on the wedding day for guests to sign and leave congratulatory messages on the special signature mounting board. For the photo shoot itself and the signature mount print I currently charge £90, but keep a look out for special offers and promotions. You can purchase any of the remaining photographs from the session at the normal print rates or we can compile all the images from the shoot into an Engagement Image Book. The first picture you see in this blog post is the opening double page spread of a 12 x 8 inch Engagement Image Book.

I don’t know how many other wedding photographers in Edinburgh offer Engagement Shoots but I’m sure they will become more and more popular. I had a thoroughly enjoyable time with Nikki and Russell and love their photos! I think they loved them too. Here’s a quote from an email I received from Nikki after sending through her photo proofs...

"Many thanks for your time yesterday. We were both surprised how much fun and comfortable it was. The photos are stunning! I was gob smacked when I saw them especially as neither of us like having our picture taken. I will email you later in the week what pictures we want to get and as soon as I have a confirmed date I’ll be looking to book the date with you."

I mentioned in last weeks blog, Karen and Norman’s wedding at Barony Castle, how I’d entered two of the photographs into the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers monthly contest (October) and I’ll be entering a couple of the photographs in this weeks blog into next months contest, too. I managed to win two awards in the 'Bridal Portraiture' category (the back of the dress shot of Karen in the window) and the 'Weddings Contemporary' category (2nd to last shot from last weeks blog of Karen by the mirror) both Bronze. The last time I did an Engagement Shoot I managed to pick up an award in the Contemporary Portraiture category with one of the shots so I’m hoping I might do well again with the images that I’ll enter from Nikki and Russell’s shoot. I’ll let you know in due course.

Another Barony Castle wedding

2011-10-27T03:38:00.000-07:00

I’ve photographed many weddings at Barony Castle but this was the first one where I ended up photographing the newly weds in the bath at the end of the day! In fact it’s the first time I’ve ever photographed the bride and groom in the bath! But first I’ll back track and go from the beginning.

I first met Karen and Norman many months ago at a Melville Castle wedding fair. Impressed with my Storybook albums they made an appointment with me for later in the week at which they booked. I meet with all my couples again about four weeks before the wedding day for their pre-wedding consultation. As a part of this meeting I discuss with them album design and preferences. Norman and Karen had chosen to add the award winning Bellissimo album to their overall package, which of course recently won the industry’s Wedding Album of the Year 2011. Every album I design is bespoke to each couple and their wedding, I do not use the generic album design software that most wedding photographers use as the template system results in many of the pages being duplicated by many photographers and therefore all the albums end up looking much the same. Starting from a complete blank canvas is just so much more creative. The page designs and layouts will be tailored to fit the wedding and the couple themselves giving them a unique and exclusive album. One of the reasons I like to discuss idea’s ahead of the wedding is just so I can have a good idea of the look and feel that each couple will like so that I can get my first draft as close as possible to how they want it to look.

For their photographic coverage Karen and Norman went for eight hours coverage so we’d start with some getting ready photos at Karen’s parents home and run through until the first dance. Karen’s parents live just outside Edinburgh so not far for an Edinburgh wedding photographer to travel. Karen’s sister was to be bridesmaid and her two young sons pageboys so we got some great shots at the home of everyone getting ready and enjoying the pre-wedding preparations. We are able to get plenty of details shots at this point including things like the dress, shoes, bouquets, jewellery etc as well as getting the reportage shots as the hair and make-up is done. It was a nice warm, sunny morning and time seemed to fly by.

I finished up at the house around 1pm and set off for Barony Castle to be there in time to get a few photographs of the groom and groomsmen prior to the ceremony. I was really looking forward to the wedding. My last two Barony Castle weddings both resulted in me winning awards from the SWPP (Society of Wedding & Portrait and Photographers) so it’s a venue I’m fond of. Amazingly, in the short time since leaving Karen’s parents house and arriving at Barony Castle it had started to rain. Although this isn’t a problem as there are plenty of alternatives for photographs on a rainy day I knew Karen had set her heart on taking the walk along the riverside up to the gazebo for some photographs, so I was hoping for her sake things might clear up.

After doing some photos with Norman, his bestman and ushers myself and Mike, the videographer from Watch the Birdie, were patiently waiting in the lobby for the brides arrival. By now it was raining quite hard and as there was limited space, both in the lobby and at the castle entrance car park, we worked out the best way of working to ensure we both got the photographs and footage we wanted. I’ve workedwith Watch the Birdie many times (probably because I recommend them so much lol) and they are a great company to work with who produce a high quality product. It was nice on this occasion to be working with Mike for a change as Geoff (the owner) usually eats half my dinner and dessert at the weddings we work together! At least today I wouldn’t go home hungry ;)

Karen duly arrived and we dodged out to get some shots in the back of the car and then a couple of posed photographs before we hit the aisle. From here on in I’m working photo-journalistically all the way through until the group photographs. The declarations, vows, ring exchanges etc always make for great moments and I move quietly from one corner to the other capturing these. The ceremony room at Barony Castle creates quite a difference in light levels when everyone is standing compared to when they sit down and I know from experience this upsets the camera’s metering (you would think a £2000 camera wouldn’t get upset over anything wouldn’t you!) so I switched everything to manual and selected the settings myself as we went through the proceedings.

Drinks and canapés after the ceremony, then the group photographs followed by a half hour session with Karen and Norman. It was still raining so we did everything inside using a few well known locations together with a couple I’d earmarked on my pre-wedding venue check. After these the rest of the day is photographed photo-journalistically again with shots of everyone enjoying themselves and having fun and of course speeches and toasts. At the end of the meal it had momentarily stopped raining so I asked Karen if she wanted to nip out for ten minutes and get the photographs along the riverside and at the gazebo. She was delighted! When we returned the band were running a little late and so Norman asked if I’d go up with them to the bridal suite and get a couple of photographs there. I’m there to do whatever my couples want on their wedding day so was happy to oblige.

We went up to the bridal suite and did a few shots positioning them in various locations in the large, spacious room, including the mirror shot you see here which I’ve just entered into this months SWPP image contest (so fingers crossed). When we finished Norman and myself were commenting on how gorgeous the bathroom was. Which resulted in me suggesting how about you climbing into the bath for the 'bride and groom in the bath' photograph that appears here. As you can see they were happy to oblige!

We still had a little time before the dancing got underway so Karen instructed me to go down and get something for myself from the chocolate fountain. I ran down eagerly down the stairs however once I’d gotten there I discovered Mike had beaten me to it and all that he’d left was a strawberry! Pfff! Come back Geoff all is forgiven!

Win Your Wedding - Norton House Hotel

2011-10-13T06:50:00.000-07:00

Things are incredibly busy right now and I’m loving it! The wedding season is beginning to tail off a touch and so I’ve been doing a lot of portrait sessions and shoots following a highly successful promotion after being signed up by Edinburgh’s Great Deal’s. I also think it’s highly likely that a well known fashion name will be running a Kool Kids photo contest in Edinburgh sometime before the end of the year but at the moment that’s top secret so please don’t tell anyone.

I had a great time at Ocean Terminal last weekend for the Debenhams Wedding Weekend and now I’m getting ready for the Edinburgh wedding fair this Sunday at the Hilton Edinburgh Hotel. That’s providing I survive my shoot at the National Mining Museum Friday night, of course. For the first time in over 30 years the National Mining Museum Scotland is going to be illuminated at night and the Switch On is this Friday. The switch on itself is being carried out by a top secret prominent well known person (yes lots of secrets this week) and after photographing them pressing the Switch On button the museum want to hoik (my spell checker is telling me that 'hoik' is spelled wrong...it doesn’t realise it’s this weeks new word) me up on to a precipitous, over hanging rooftop so I can get some dramatic photographs of the floodlit Colliery. I’m really looking forward to it! The photos will be amazing!

Last weekend of course I photographed Diane and Steven’s wedding at Norton House Hotel. Diane and Steven were the lucky couple who won the Forth One Win Your Wedding contest. This is justabout the biggest prize on Scottish radio where Forth One pooled together some of the finest wedding companies in Scotland who donated their services for free giving the winning couple a dream wedding day worth well over £15,000. The wedding venue was the superb Norton House Hotel, one of Edinburgh’s most popular and delightful wedding venues and other winning prizes included Diane‘s wedding dress, flowers and decorations and arrangements, wedding cars, honeymoon, hair and make-up, photography, wedding cake, piper, fly over by the Red Arrows and first dance song performed by Lady Gaga. I missed photographing the Red Arrows flyover because Lady Gaga was busy asking me if I thought her hair would look okay in the photographs ;)

The day went great with nice sunny weather and a fun filled humanist ceremony. As with all weddings I am there to do whatever you want me to soI was more than happy to do a few family photographs with Steven prior to the ceremony and then I was awaiting the bridal arrivals. I got a few quick photos of Diane with her bridesmaid and flower girl both in the wedding car and then at Norton House entrance. I also photographed her alongside her Uncle Eddie who was going to be walking her up the aisle and giving her away before we headed inside, too. I love the Ballroom suite at Norton House because it is so spacious and I was able to photograph the ceremony from many different angles and vantage points whilst remaining as unobtrusive as possible. Earlier in the day I photographed the set up of the room, the floral arrangements and decoration as well as the cake that was on display just for the benefit of the other companies who had supplied them. I do this at most weddings as I’m always happy to help out other wedding suppliers with photos and images of their beautiful products.

I received a phone call this week from Sky TV’s 'Four Weddings' who are wanting me to put forward one or two of my future brides to be featured on the program in the near future and also later in 2012. So if you have booked me for your wedding photography or are about to book me please let me know if you are interested. I’ve discussed this with one or two of my forthcoming brides so far and the consensus of opinion is that it seems a rather scary proposition! lol. Anyway, if it’s not too scary an idea for you let me know and we can work things out.

If you are planning on coming to the Edinburgh wedding fair this Sunday you may be interested to know we will have the new Kate Middleton replica Royal Wedding dress featuring in the exclusive Pretty Woman fashion show. It looks absolutely amazing close up - even to a guy! There will be complimentary drinks and canapés, performances throughout the afternoon from Scotland’s finest string quartet, John MacKintosh will be piping the opening of the fashion show, I’ll have the award winning Wedding Album of the Year 2011 on my own stand and there’s also the chance to win a free engagement photo shoot followed by a romantic meal for two at the Hilton in the Prize Draw at 4pm. If you stick around for a while after the conclusion of the fashion show we should be doing a mini fashion shoot with the models which you are welcome to watch. I’ll even do you your own portrait too if you like :)

I won't win the VOWS this year :(

2011-10-06T07:14:00.000-07:00

With the announcement of the VOWS awards nominees having been made since my last blog I thought I’d take the opportunity to say a big Thank You to all the newly weds whose weddings I had the pleasure of photographing this year and who gave me a vote. In the photography category to reach the final shortlist of eight each company required 15 votes and sadly I just missed out with 25 (scratches head confusededly).

If you read my blog regularly you will know that I have been thrilled to pick up a remarkable number of awards for my photography so far this year. As the year progressed and I photographed more and more weddings I received some lovely Thank You cards and gifts from my newly married couples. Although I have never actively promoted the VOWS many of these couples mentioned in their cards that they had voted for me in the VOWS awards and when the number reached 16 I began to think it might be a good idea to write to some of my other couples asking if they would consider giving me a vote too. So at the beginning of September (closing date for VOWS votes was Sept 20th) I did this and nine couples replied that they would indeed send in their votes for me.

I was rather chuffed about this. I target 30-35 weddings a year (as most of my couples usually add on a Storybook album to their packages this allows me to dedicate enough time for their album design as well as to fit in some portrait sessions and magazine assignments, etc) so I thought 25 votes was a pretty good percentage. However, when the short listed finalists were announced I was not among them (breaks out the violin, lol). To be honest I wasn’t unduly concerned as I’m an Edinburgh wedding photographer who runs a small family company and I do not employ other photographers so obviously I don’t photograph as many weddings as the larger companies. But I was interested to know how my votes compared against the finalists so I emailed the VOWS organisers for the stats and figures. They kindly sent back the following information...

In the photography category they received a total of 1,059 entries. For a company to reach the eight short listed places as finalists they needed 15 votes. Philip Hawkins Photography fell short having only 11 votes. Pooo! (Please note the organisers didn't actually say 'Pooo', that was me!)

I certainly cannot see 16 couples, totally unprompted, sending me Thank You cards which say they have voted for me making it up. I hadn't even mentioned anything about the VOWS to them. And even if none of the other 9 remembered to vote if my maths is right I'm still above the 15. Oh, well, I guess next year I’ll have to ask the counting officers to check under their desks and chairs, lol.

Although it does sound rather confusing (btw, I hope you spotted this weeks new word earlier) I didn’t dwell on it for long as the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers results for the September monthly contest were published beginning of October and I managed to pick up no fewer than four awards in the categories of 'Weddings Contemporary', 'Weddings Photojournalism', 'Weddings Traditional' and 'Bridal Portraiture'. All from the same wedding! So I was a very happy photographer! (Grrr, I meant to say wedding photographer Edinburgh as it’s good for my SEO, lol) So the four images are the ones you see here.

It’s a big day for lots of people tomorrow (Friday) especially Diane and Stephen who were the Radio Forth winners of the Win Your Wedding 2011 contest. I’m charging up all the batteries and stuff as we speak in readiness to do their photography for their Norton House Hotel wedding in the afternoon. I’m then at Ocean Terminal shopping centre Saturday and Sunday for the Debenhams Wedding Weekend followed by the Edinburgh wedding fair at the Hilton Hotel the next again weekend.

I am already receiving great interest in our first photography course in Edinburgh for 2012 (details are now up on my website). Date is January 7th at the Edinburgh Hilton Hotel. It’s an all day course Getting to grips with digital photography. So if you know anyone who has perhaps recently taken up an interest in photography or maybe receives a new digital camera as a Christmas present or anyone who simply wants to understand their camera more or improve their photography level please pass on the details to them. Places are limited so its first come first served. We also have several other classes and courses coming up too so you may like to bookmark the link.

Once again may I say thanks to those of you for all the Thank You cards, emails and presents. I’ve popped a selection of them up on the Testimonials page on my website and I’ll also be using others in various promotional and marketing materials. I know that last week I was talking about news and rumours so I’ll finish up today with the rumour that one of my weddings will be a feature article in the next issue of Best Scottish Weddings magazine and another one will feature in Hitched Real Life Weddings!

Wedding news, rumours, Royal wedding dress

2011-09-29T05:17:00.000-07:00

Things are hectic just now with lots going on and even more lots coming up (excuse the grammar, lol)! As we are approaching the end of summer traditionally the weddings start to slow down a little. It’s this time of year when I am able to accommodate more portrait sessions and photo shoots (so feel free to give me a call and check available times) and I’m also involved in doing some work for some of the Edinburgh wedding venues as they look to update websites and portfolio’s and bring out new brochures. I’ve been in a bunch of meetings this week with four top Edinburgh venue’s, and also two bridal shops, who are arranging for me to come in and do new photography for them. The first one is this Friday!

We are also approaching the autumn wedding fair season and there’s lots of new and exciting things coming up in readiness for that which I’ll tell you about in a minute. One question many folks keep asking me is what do I think will happen to Melville Castle? Well here is my official answer - "dunno". Okay, now for the rumours…The Aurora Group who currently have Melville Castle in their portfolio along with Airth Castle, Glenbervie and a couple of other new venues, will be releasing Melville very shortly. They only have 3 or 4 remaining weddings and then that’s them finished. Melville Castle will then return to the Haye family. Regarding future Melville Castle weddings at this point in time I am not sure what will happen but the rumour is that the Haye’s are looking to re-open the Castle as a Hotel again or at least a wedding venue. I believe Melville Castle is far too beautiful a place for it to go to waste so I’m quite optimistic I will be shooting weddings here again sometime soon.

Here’s some additional exciting news that is definitely not rumour! As you know I organise the Edinburgh Wedding Fair at the Hilton Edinburgh Hotel and the next event is October 16th. The brand new Kate Middleton replica Royal wedding dress will be featured in our fashion show! We are all really excited about this as the dress is creating huge excitement and this will be one of the first opportunities for future brides to see it. I was in the Pretty Woman bridal boutique just yesterday to see for myself that it is really true, lol. I have to say it does look absolutely stunning!

The Radio Forth Win Your Wedding winners have their wedding next Friday, October 7th, so check back in a couple of weeks to see their photographs from their Norton House Hotel wedding. Straight after that I will be at the Debenhams Wedding Weekend at Edinburgh’s Ocean Terminal Saturday the 8th and Sunday the 9th. The event is hosted by Debenhams and they invite along half a dozen "experts" from various other wedding sphere’s like flowers and arrangements, designer cakes, photography, etc. Apparently, I am the wedding photography 'expert' :) So I will have a range of different wedding albums and books, including the award winning 2011 Wedding Album of the Year, and I’ll be available to answer any wedding photography related questions. Although I am privileged to be the only Edinburgh wedding photographer at the weekend you are welcome to discuss any questions or subjects whether you book me for your wedding photography or not.

I have also had a few further meetings this week concerning the introduction of Philip Hawkins Photography courses, training and seminars in 2012. Things are shaping up nicely and details will be available soon. The Edinburgh Hilton Hotel are also in discussion with me about running Edinburgh Photography Weekends based at the Hilton. So I’ll be bringing more news about that fairly soon. I’ve had a few enquiries already about the photography courses so if you’d like to add your name to my email list you’ll be the first to receive details when everything is firmed up.

I know there’s only a couple of photographs this week but if you want to see one of my latest wedding Storybook slideshows click the link to take you to my Youtube channel.

Bestmen have talent

2011-09-21T05:54:00.000-07:00

Being a professional wedding photographer means I get to hear and see a great many wedding speeches each year but at Vicky and Danny’s wedding a couple of weeks ago I enjoyed the most entertaining bestmans speech I’ve ever seen! Its always exciting on a wedding day when something completely unexpected happens and Danny’s bestman really made sure of that! He was so brilliant he even out shone the professional wedding entertainer!

As a photographer its great when something dramatic happens particularly when your style of wedding photography is predominantly reportage or photojournalistic. However, it can also prove to be challenging too which, for me, is something I revel in!
As Vicky and Daniel’s guests were getting organised for the line up myself and the videography team were scoping out the marquis in readiness for the wedding speeches. Much of the marquis was quite dark but the top table was positioned in front of a row of windows which meant the backlighting was very strong. From a technical point of view because everyones faces will be looking into the room this can cause the problem of them appearing too dark against the very bright background. To get around this the videography crew decided to set up external lighting positioned slightly in front of the top table and providing illumination from within the room. Usually I will do likewise in this type of situation however for today it was easy enough for me to simply utilise the lighting from the video set up.

When we set up external lighting it is operated by an infra red transmitter attached to the cameras, so when we fire the shutter this triggers the lights. This allows us to move around the room and shoot from the best angles and vantage points knowing that our preset lighting is going to give us excellent results without us worrying about it. From experience though I never connect all the camera’s into the system as I like to have at least one or two camera’s fixed with their own dedicated flash gun which allows for greater manoeuvrability. The problem with using external lights is that once they are set up in the optimum position you cannot really move them until the speeches are over. I learnt this lesson a long time ago from one of my first weddings at Norton House Hotel wedding where during the speeches the bestman had arranged for a friend dressed in a gorilla suit to come charging into the room, scaring all the guests half to death and then uplifting the bride from the top table and whisking her off into the night. This of course had been organised as a surprise so nobody had been expecting it and, has had been hoped, it did indeed cause great hilarity! Back then I didn’t have mobile lighting so it was no problem to simply run after the galloping gorilla and shoot him as he carried out his gorillaring. Although nowadays I have much more equipment at my disposal I nevertheless remember that occurrence and I’m mindful of the fact that if I had been relying on external lighting alone, albeit far more effective than a camera speedlite, it would have been impossible to manouver it to keep up with the swift moving proceedings and I would have lost a lot of potential photographs. As an Edinburgh wedding photographer it’s not just gorilla’s I’ve had to shoot over the years. I recall a rather large penguin at a Harburn House wedding, a bouncing bunny at a wedding at Houston House, a roomful of popping balloons at a Royal Terrace Hotel wedding, a mad monk at a Craighouse wedding and a vampire bat at Barony Castle!

So Danny’s bestman began his speech and he really was a great orator! We got some excellent photos as he stood at the top of the marquis making everyone laugh. But then as he came to the end of his speech he requested that everyone remain seated and allow him 60 seconds to set something up. He left the top table and made his way to the opposite end of the marquis and over to the sound system. A flick of a switch and suddenly a soundtrack burst into life. Although no one knew what was coming I had noted that he had carried the microphone used for the speeches with him all the way to the back of the room so I had a feeling something unusual was on the cards. Sure enough as the music started up he announced he’d like to perform a special song he’d written just for Vicky and Danny.

I immediately ran to the back of the marquis and started photographing him as he launched into a most hilarious song. I have to say he had an amazing voice and the lyrics were side-splitting! He also had some great moves too and as he sang he danced and weaved his way between all the wedding tables as the guests tried their hardest not to fall off their seats from laughing. He eventually made his way to the front again and concluded his song right in front of the bride and groom at the head of the room. A standing ovation ensued! Vicky’s mum told Diane later that if they had known how good he was they could have saved a fortune on the entertainment! lol

Louise and Richard's wedding at Melville Castle

2011-09-15T04:42:00.001-07:00

Well I was delighted to pick up three awards last month (August) in the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers monthly contest from three recent weddings. One of the winning images I had used in my blog a couple of weeks ago from Lisa and Richard’s wedding titled When it rains on your wedding day. It’s the black and white shot of my bride Lisa that appears midway through the article. And today I’m going to start with a shot that won in the 'Weddings Traditional' category from Louise and Richard’s wedding at Melville Castle.

For me, this photograph has just about everything, and I love it! It is a classically posed shot, hence why it fitted the 'Traditional Weddings' category, that capitalizes on the grandeur of the venue but also, because I’ve included all the guests milling around enjoying their drinks in the background and also managed to retain a relaxed look in the pose (the reason I asked Richard to have his hand in his pocket) it harmonises well with my storybook style of photography. I lay on ground to take the photograph as this angle creates more impact to the background increasing the drama of the skies and the castle. To avoid the technical problems of having either the couple thrown into silhouette or losing all the detail in the skies I exposed for the sky and bounced some external light up into the bride and groom. The image worked out exactly as I hoped and winning the award is ample compensation for the dry cleaning bill for my suit after clambering up off the damp grass, lol.

Throughout the day I constantly overheard guests commenting on how the beautiful Louise and Richard’s flowers were. You can see from two of the bride and groom photographs here how well the deep,rich colours looked in the photos. I’ve also included a couple of their detail shots too so you can see how their table arrangements and also their wedding cupcakes tied in with them.

You will know doubt have noticed that I have had many weddings this year at Melville Castle. This is because, as you may have heard, the Aurora Group will be releasing Melville Castle from their portfolio at the end of the year so a number of weddings that were already booked for 2012 have been re-arranged and brought forward to 2011. I have been Melville Castle’s main recommended photographer for many years now which is why I photograph so many weddings here. As to what will happen with Melville Castle from 2012 onwards we will have to wait and see. There’s a few possibilities being discussed just now and I’m sure it will continue to be used in some way as it’s too nice a venue to go to waste.

Richard and Louise had come up from the north east of England to marry at Melville Castle and they were really fortunate to have such gorgeous summer weather given all the wind and rain we’ve had in Edinburgh the last few weeks. I think all the wedding photographers in Edinburgh will agree that this year we’ve had some of the craziest weather I can remember! Anyway we all had a brilliant day and came away with a superb set of photographs! This is an extract from their Thank You card I received just a couple of days ago...

"Dear Philip,
Just a quick note to say thank you for everything on the day and for some great shots that we will treasure forever! Everyone has commented on the great service you provided on the day and the way you and your wife made our guests feel so relaxed and were so approachable meant that not only were the portrait style pictures fantastic but also the capture the moment shots are great too. Great news about the award too, much deserved! Thanks again.
Louise and Richard"

I’ve now got their card sitting on top of my 2011 pile for when I update the Testimonial page on my website at the end of the year.

Next for me I'm back for a wedding at Barony Castle on Saturday so really looking forward to another trip down there. Hope I don’t fall in the river, though :O

Melville Castle weddings, Louise and Paul

2011-09-07T07:02:00.000-07:00

This has to be one of the most diverse wedding seasons for weather we’ve ever had. I think I’ve photographed a wedding in every possible kind of condition. But the strange thing is it has been so changeable from one day to the next. A fortnight ago I blogged about Lisa and Richard’s wedding in the rain, then last week it was glorious sunshine for Jimmy and Julie’s wedding at Auchen Castle and then Louise and Paul’s wedding at Melville Castle which is todays blog, was the day after Jimmy and Julie’s, and it was not only raining but blowing a gale too! On top of this of course are the weddings when its rained and sunshined (sunshined is this weeks new word, lol) at the same time like Alana and Colin’s Norton House wedding and Jo and Richard’s Harburn House wedding. Anyway, if you’ve wondered what I do when it rains on your wedding day (and you haven’t already done so) you can find the answer by scrolling down the page to the article When it rains on your wedding day and for now I will tell you a bit about Louise and Paul’s wedding whilst trying hard not to repeat myself.

The bridal suite at Melville Castle is room 11 located in the west wing. If you have a preference for some where else they will try to accommodate your request and there are a couple of nice alternatives up on the first floor, one overlooking the front lawn and another overlooking the rear. However, today room 11 was in operation for Louise and her four bridesmaids. It was here that I started with some detail shots of Louise’s dress, flowers, shoes and such like before running back up to the lobby to grab some pictures of Paul and his groomsmen. I was then hurrying back down to the bridal suite as Louise wanted photos of her bridesmaids lacing up the back of the wedding dress, which is always a great fun thing to photograph. I also wanted to get a quick posed photograph of Louise and the girls before they made their way along the west wing for the ceremony. Today’s registrar from the local Dalkeith office was Lyn who I’ve worked with many times before and because she knows I’m quick and unobtrusive she was happy to allow me to set the shot up in the corridor outside the room where there is a lovely large skylight providing beautiful overhead lighting even though it was time for the girls to be making their way to the Ballroom for the ceremony.

At Melville Castle when the bride uses room 11 they give her the choice of
coming along to the Ballroom either through the main lobby or taking her up in the lift to the first floor which allows her to descend the staircase. Most opt for the staircase as it is so distinguished and makes for a more dramatic entrance. Of course, descending the staircase does not take very long but I used to get a good range and diversity of photographs by sitting side saddle style on the banister at the top of the staircase and then sliding down the banister backwards whilst photographing the bridal procession as they make their way down. However, this in itself looked so spectacular that I had to stop doing it as the videographers used to end up filming me instead of the bride! (those of you whose weddings I’ve photographed at Melville Castle know this is a slightly exaggerated story but I just thought I’d throw it in to liven up the narrative)

During the ceremony there was sufficient room for me to move quietly around behind Lyn and use both corners of the room enabling me to shoot the expressions on both Louise and Paul’s faces. This is particularly nice during the declarations and vows which of course are said to each other and often produce those unique, spontaneous moments which make reportage photography so enjoyable. I know many photographers like to try and recreate these afterwards for photographs but in my opinion these never equal an authentic, unrepeatable moment of spontaneity. I’ve used three examples from the ceremony here which as you can see have captured genuine, spur of the moment emotions that are completely natural.

I know a lot of Edinburgh wedding photographers who don’t like to move from side to side during the
ceremony as the changes in light from one corner to another is so dramatically different it can upset the camera’s metering. Videographers often encounter the same difficulty and so they select a spot in advance and choose to remain there for the duration. When working from the window side of the room the camera will give a good accurate exposure reading but when moving to the opposite side where you are then facing the window the camera will usually underexpose everything. From experience I just switch the camera to manual and select my own settings which for the benefit of any other Edinburgh wedding photographer reading this are f4 and an 80th of a second when it is raining outside. If you want to know what settings to use on a sunny day please
check back next week or book yourself on one of my photography courses which start next year (plug, plug, lol).

As you can see from the second last picture I came back and used the staircase later too when I did the bride and groom session. This is one of my favourites looking straight up with that gorgeous light flooding in through the huge ornate windows on the top floor. The final shot I’m posting for today is one of the group photographs taken in the grand lobby. I love the smiles on the parents faces but most of all I just adore the expression on the baby’s face :)

Another beautiful Auchen Castle wedding

2011-09-01T05:34:00.000-07:00

Auchen Castle weddings are always a delight! A beautiful, idyllic Scottish castle set within its own glorious grounds and surrounded by gorgeous woodland and the Dumfries hills. It’s no wonder this wedding photographer in Edinburgh enjoys the trip down here so much! Since my last Auchen castle wedding the venue has had a change of ownership but the same high standards of customer service remain and it’s a delight to work with the staff here!

I’ve photographed several I photographed the smallest wedding possible where there was only a bride and groom and the two witnesses ended up being myself and a member of weddings at Auchen Castle but you may recall I set a record last year whenthe Auchen Castle wedding team! However, for this wedding the guests numbers were considerably higher as Julie-ann and Jimmy’s families had all come across from Ireland. As you can imagine with the strong links and close proximity of the two countries its always a great day when the Irish come over to Scotland for a wedding, so I was really looking forward to photographing things.

I was booked to start about an hour before the ceremony through until the guests were to go for their wedding breakfast. As usual I arrived in plenty time and was able to have a good look around the castle and grounds just to double check if anything had changed since last time and also ascertain the lighting. The first photograph here shows how the day was shaping up to be warm and sunny which would be perfect for the outdoor ceremony. I also double checked the lighting for the group photographs as this is critical on bright sunny days as you cannot have people screwing up their faces and squinting into the camera. What I look for is a nice location where the group will be backlit. I know if the sun is particularly strong doing this can pose technical problems for some photographers but as from the beginning of next year I am teaming up with a couple of premier venues who have asked me to run photography courses and workshops, so feel free to book yourself onto one and I’ll happily show you how it’s done (just had to insert a free advert there, lol).

Many wedding photographers in Edinburgh and throughout the country have their own style and format for carrying out the group shots. For myself I prefer to keep things nice and relaxed and use the style you will see in the likes of Hello or OK magazine wedding. This is a nice and smooth formula and generally allows me to complete all the formal group photographs in around twenty minutes. With Julie-ann and Jimmy this all went perfectly and following the family group photographs I finished with a Big Group shot of all the guests on the Auchen Castle lawn.

For the bride and groom session we did my usual mix of classical, romantic, fun and contemporary photos. At such an elegant venue as
Auchen castle it’s nice to get some classical wedding images utilising the grandeur of the castle itself as such a gorgeous backdrop. Although these photos are posed, or directed, my aim is still to get the couple looking relaxed and natural as you can see from the images here. This is especially important as my style of working is for most of the day primarily reportage photography and it means both the formal group photographs and those from the bride and groom session will blend perfectly
with the whole days sequence. If you tend to over pose people or spend a lot of time on creating elaborate, sophisticated scenes it is very difficult to then marry these images into a finished album or Storybook.

Jimmy and Julie-ann asked us to finish up with some photographs of the Dining Room set up before everyone came in and sat down to eat and we also did a mock cake cutting with the great Auchen Castle ceremonial sword whilst we were there.

When it rains on your wedding day

2011-08-24T09:03:00.000-07:00

It poured down with rain pretty much all day for Lisa and Richard’s wedding. Quite often on rainy day weddings you get a break when you can pop out for a quick ten minute session before it starts back up again. But not so today! It just got worse and worse!
I know many brides worry about rain on their wedding day, but as a full time photographer I’m working day in day out so I’m used to photographing weddings in all conditions and all types of weather and no matter what happens on the day it’s my job to ensure that all my couples come away with a superb set of photographs from their wedding. And to be totally honest, I really don’t mind rain at all as it presents some exceptional and unique photographic opportunities. So, here’s what we do with a rainy wedding...

Most of our equipment we bring to each and every wedding anyway, especially the mobile lighting as it produces such stylish, fashionable images I like to work with it even on sunny days. But the two items we use exclusively for the rain are our wedding umbrella’s. One white, one black. Our white wedding umbrella is beautiful for wedding photographs so of course we give this to the bride and groom should they wish to go outdoors for a few shots. You may recall the shots we did by the River Tay with Nicki and Stuart at their Dunkeld House Hotel wedding a couple of months ago. It is especially made for wedding photography so not only does it look 'photogenically weddingy' (new phrase of the day lol) but it’s also made with extra strength to keep it rigid so it won’t blow inside out if it’s windy too.The black umbrella is for me. Diane will use this to keep me dry if I need to stand out in the rain for any length of time. Or, to be more accurate, to keep the camera lens dry. I use large, deep lens hoods to keep water splashes off the front of the lens but the brolly is useful in very heavy rain to ensure none of the pictures will have rain spots on them from drops of rain hitting the lens whilst taking the photographs. It’s also extra protection for the equipment which I will explain the importance off on rainy days in a couple of paragraphs.

For Lisa and Richard’s wedding I didn’t use the umbrellas as I wasn’t going to be standing in the rain for very long. I positioned them both in the Castle entrance, which is under cover, and then just ran out into the rain and fired off a few swift and smooth shots. I asked them to move into a couple of different positions for a few alternate compositions and within two to three minutes I’d shot about a dozen different photos. You can see from the two examples coming up at the end of this paragraph the diversity that I managed to achieve. Firstly we’ve got a classical, traditional wedding photograph with Lisa and Richard standing together under the entranceway. I photographed this pose full length, three quarter and close up. After a couple of quick changes of position and composition I finished with the black and white close up which is a nice contrast from how we started being very contemporary and fashionable. So despite the pouring rain we’ve still got a good selection and variety of outdoor photographs.

Okay let me bore you for a paragraph about equipment, lol. You will have heard the saying "it’s not the camera it’s the photographer that’s important". And without question that is most definitely true. However, on days where the weather is bad equipment choice can prove critical. I only use top of the range, professional camera’s and lenses. The main reason for this is that I want the ultimate image quality. However, the other reason is build quality and reliability. As you are aware water and electronics do not go together. Consumer camera’s, and even semi-pro enthusiasts equipment, are not designed to be used in inclement weather. Whilst they may initially take a few photos in the rain it’s no good when they suddenly stop working a few minutes later having got their electronics wet. I don't know if any camera can claim to be completely 100 % waterproof, which is why I have water proof camera covers and use the umbrella when needed, I knew I didn’t need to worry about working in the rain with Lisa and Richard as my gear is sufficiently sealed and water tight to withstand a few minutes of Scottish downpour. I am an Edinburgh wedding photographer after all! lol

Obviously for wet weddings a lot of the photography will be carried out inside. For this I use portable lighting. These are basically lite versions of studio lighting, more lightweight and mobile yet producing the same visual effect. Ideally I’ll fit these with what we call shoot through brollys but sometimes when the weather is wet it means all the guests have to remain indoors too and so with working in less space it may not be practical to fit a brolly so instead I have a compact soft box that takes up less space but gives the same results. This set up is what we will also use for a fashion shoot and as you can see from the two pictures on the black spread and the staircase shots (note the rimmed effect halo lighting on the photo of Lisa leaning on the banister above), it gives such a contemporary, stylish feel to the images that I will often use it for the bride and groom session even when the weather is dry. This is the type of thing that makes the difference between a nice wedding photo and an award winning photograph. At Melville Castle weddings or indeed any castle wedding it is crucial not to kill off the character and ambience and the beauty of the studio lighting is that I can move it and manipulate it at will that gives so much creative control.

Many people may say that it helps to have such a beautiful and grand venue as a Castle for wedding photos when it rains. But as a wedding in photographer in Edinburgh I’ve worked at all kind of venues in the rain, Norton House Hotel weddings, weddings at The Royal Terrace Hotel, Harburn House weddings, weddings at Craighouse, weddings at The Point Hotel, Houston House weddings, Dalhousie Castle weddings, the list goes on and on which I hope illustrates that no matter where you may be getting married please do not worry if it rains. You’ll have an amazing day and your wedding photographs will be fantastic!

An "epic" church wedding

2011-08-15T06:29:00.000-07:00

Any wedding photographer in Edinburgh who has never photographed at the Church of the Sacred Heart is amazed when they first enter the building! From the outside the church appears very unobtrusive sitting quietly in the shadows of Lauriston Place. But walk through the doors and you are suddenly encountered with what my friend Adam, the videographer from Inspire Video, described as an "epic" interior! As regular blog readers are aware I love working in historical buildings more so than any other wedding photographer in Edinburgh, primarily due to a life long love of history and previous exciting magazine commissions. It just adds something to a wedding day when not only are you looking to capture great photographs of the bride and groom and the magical moments of their wedding but also the majesty and splendour of their venue and occasion. Although I must add that I am happy to photograph a wedding in absolutely any venue, big or small, grand or modest, and you will still get stunning photography whichever.

Whenever I’m selecting images for my blog I always try to choose about 8 or so that may fit along a particular theme or illustrate a certain point or topic that I am writing about. Of course most of my weddings have online galleries so if there is ever a wedding featured in my blog where you would like to see the entire set of photographs just drop me an email and I’d be happy to send you the link. There is also always 'Real Life' wedding galleries to see on my website, too. Choosing the first image from Susan and Michael’s wedding photographs was easy enough because straight away I picked the photograph with me in it! lol This of course was taken by Diane from the church gallery and as you can see, after getting my quick photograph of the bride and father at entrance to the church, I’ve ran ahead and taken up my usual position about three quarters of the way down the aisle for the shot of the bride and father walking up the aisle. The second photo posted is the one I took before moving off into the corners of the church to capture the rest of the proceedings.

Throughout the ceremony I’m looking to capture a good all round mix of photographs. You will always get some wonderful yet fleeting moments during a wedding ceremony. These may include solemn moments, laughter, smiles and romantic interactions between the bride and groom. Most of these are caught due to anticipation, which of course comes from experience, aswhen they actually occur you do not have time to lift the camera up to the eye and try and grab the shot. It really is a a split second, fleeting instant of time so I have to already be in place and viewing things through the camera lens in order to fire the shutter at the crucial second. And of course, as mentioned at the outset I’m wanting to include a variety of photographs that off the location and that encapsulate the majesty of the venue.

Michael’s family were all across from Ireland and being staunch Catholics a mass was incorporated into the ceremony. As you know I always work away very unobtrusively at weddings and it was very nice to have so many of the family commend me afterwards for the most unobtrusive photography they’ve experienced at a wedding. Getting superb wedding photographs is a must for me, as it is of course for any Edinburgh wedding photographer, but I feel I have to do so within the dignity of the occasion and therefore without causing any inappropriate distraction to the ceremony or any part there of.

The second to last photograph I’ve posted is a collage that illustrates Storybook style wedding photography. I had spotted one of the guests creeping up on Susan with a box of confetti so knew what they had planned, lol.
I tracked them with a telephoto lens and when they were in position locked focus on Susan and shot a sequence of six images. As you can see each photograph is good in its own right but together they convey a much more powerful statement as they tell a pictorial story of the event. That is one reason why your wedding photographs will always look best in a Storybook album because they have much more power and impact.

We finished off at the church with this posed photograph of the newly weds and then I grabbed another one of them in the back of the wedding car before we all headed off back to the hotel for some group shots and the reception. Susan and Michael had absolutely beautiful weather for their wedding day but the next wedding I will blog was the opposite! Rain, rain and more rain! Will rain on your wedding day spoil your photographs? No way! Check back next week and see some stunning photographs from a wedding with all day torrential rain.

More Norton House Hotel weddings

2011-08-02T04:32:00.000-07:00

Last two weeks for some reason have been exceptionally busy. In addition to the fact that we are right in the middle of the wedding season, so my camera’s hardly get chance to draw breath, there’s a few wedding venues working on new brochures right now so I am at the same time trying to fill their requirements for fresh images and new photographs as well as the magazine requests I mentioned last week. I have a sneaky feeling next week will be even busier as I have back to back weddings starting Friday and through until the middle of the week which I have been looking forward to since the beginning of the year.

When it comes to weddings I am of course exceptionally fortunate that I get the most fantastic couples book me for their weddings. Last weeks wedding was yet another example. Alana and Colin first
saw my wedding albums at the Corn Exchange wedding fair. There’s always around ten Edinburgh wedding photographers at Edinburgh’s largest wedding fair and we are all slightly different, both in price, quality and style of working. For me, the main thing I want couples to do when they visit my stand at a wedding fair is look through my albums because they are what enable me to stand out as different from the other wedding photographers in Edinburgh. On the Saturday Alana and Colin visited the wedding fair I was away photographing a wedding so they had a chat with Diane and she showed them our albums. A couple of days later they were on the phone making an appointment and subsequently booked me to do their wedding photography and an Engagement Shoot.

We did the engagement session five weeks ago and had a great time! It’s a good opportunity to work together, do some coaching, and come away with a gorgeous set of photographs. As with all my Engagement Shoots Alana and Colin selected their favourite image from the session which we had printed and set into our wedding signature mount that is then put out on display on the wedding day for all the guests to sign. Check out the portrait page on my website for more details if you’re interested in booking an engagement session.

Alana and Colin wanted photography from pre-wedding 'getting ready' shots through until the first dance. So we started at Alana’s mother’s house with a few detail shots, then hair and make-up finishing with some posed photographs in the garden. For the most part I carry out the photography at the home photo-journalistically, so I like to just move around as unobtrusively as possible and capture things in a natural, relaxed way. You can see the advantage of this in the first photograph here, which is one of my favourite photos taken at the house. Alana had bought presents for her bridesmaids which she was wanting to give them once the two of them were ready. I quietly made my way to the top of stairs and without any interference took a series of photos as she handed the bridesmaids their gifts and the girls then opened them. It’s one of those lovely, natural moments that show the happiness and pleasure on all the girls faces.

We arrived at the church half an hour before the ceremony was due to start giving us plenty of time to get some photos of Colin and the groomsmen and a quick word with the minister. The bridesmaids arrived shortly after and I did a couple of posed shots of them with the flower girl on the church steps before photographing Alana arriving with her mother. Running ahead I then photographed the walk up the aisle before heading over into the area the minister had designated for the photographers at the front on the left hand side. I work with a mix of lenses that enable me to get a variety of photographs during the ceremony including wide shots showing off the grandeur of the church, mid range photographs that capture the setting and also close ups which are more intimate, particularly when going through the declarations, ring exchange and vows.

The register was signed in a small ante room and then the bridal party proceeded out of the church. Colin and Alana had requested three family group shots on the church steps as they exited, which of course didn’t take long, and then following all the congratulations we were heading off for Norton House.

As an Edinburgh wedding photographer I’m by now very familiar with Norton House as its one of the most well known wedding venues in the capital. This was my third wedding here so far this year and I am due back twice more, including the winners of Forth One’s Win Your Wedding contest. It was a mixed day with sunshine and showers and Alana and Colin’s wedding was in the Garden Suite. Norton House can accommodate two weddings at the same time using the Garden Suite and the Ballroom Suite, however, today Colin and Alana’s was the only wedding booked so we were allowed to do photographs in both sides. Whilst it was dry we quickly did their group photos on one of the lawns within the walled Garden Suite. We had a small shower following this so I used the cover of the walkway canopy for the first ten minutes of the bride and groom session and then we moved across to the main house and borrowed the staircase for a further ten minutes.

I mentioned in last weeks blog that the wedding flowers and bridal bouquets were all done by Flowers by Rhona. Rhona also did the flowers and bouquets for Alana too and being a friend of mine I deliberately colour touched the black and white shot of Alana, keeping the bouquet in colour, as I knew Rhona would love it. Not only is this a very eye catching photo but also very natural as well. I had initially posed Alana for a photograph of the dress and after taking it she thought I’d finished and looked off to smile at someone just out of shot. I was quick enough to zoom in and catch her smile, which of course is the most important element of the photograph, but at the same time I composed things so you could see her wedding band and the bouquet at the bottom of the frame.

Following the half hour of bride and groom photographs it was back into photojournalism mode as I moved around the guests as unobtrusively as possible capturing people having fun and enjoying themselves. It wasn’t long until everyone was called through to be seated for the wedding breakfast and the speeches which were to preface it. The cutting of the cake ceremony was held later in the evening prior to the first dance and I got some great atmospheric photographs of both in the low disco lights. Another great ending to a great wedding!

More Melville Castle weddings

2011-07-27T06:58:00.000-07:00

Now as you know Melville Castle is one of my favourite wedding venues and as I’ve photographed more weddings here than any other Edinburgh wedding photographer it does feature in my blog quite a lot. So this week, in an attempt to avoid boring you all, I am going to tell you something about Melville Castle that you will never find recorded on the blog of any other wedding photographer in Edinburgh. In fact, you will be hard pressed to find this little detail anywhere at all.

I came across this several years ago long before I had photographed any weddings at Melville Castle. I had been commissioned by a publishing house to do a series of magazine articles on historical castles in and around Edinburgh. This included not just the photography but also doing the writing as well. Although it’s the photography that I love above all else I was pretty cool about doing the writing too as it doubles up the fee ;) Anyway, I had started off with Tantallon Castle across on the coast and then worked back towards Edinburgh photographing and researching Craigmillar Castle, Crichton Castle, Craigcrook Castle, and Edinburgh Castle. The next two on my list were Lennoxlove House and Melville Castle.

When I was making the arrangements for the shoot at Lennoxlove House I was very surprised to get a phone call from the Duke of Hamilton himself. If you are not aware of it the Duke of Hamilton is Scotland’s highest ranked peer, and if Scotland were ever to become an independent sovereign it would be the Duke of Hamilton that becomes King. The Duke owns the Lennoxlove Estate and is a very keen photographer and said he would welcome the opportunity to give me a personal tour of Lennoxlove allowing him the opportunity to pick up some photography tips from me. Well, as you can imagine I felt very honoured, albeit a little nervous, too. Anyway, to cut a long story short, and because I realise I have strayed completely away from the subject of my wedding at Melville Castle, lol, I went through to Lennoxlove and spent a very nice afternoon with the Duke of Hamilton. The Duke is of course closely related to, or maybe to be more accurate, a family descendant of Mary Queen of Scots, and hence his home literally teems with items and details about Scotland’s most famous monarch. I have always loved history and so lapped up as much as I could possibly take in, and the Duke, after giving me a personal tour and answering all my questions, very kindly gave me free run of the house as well which allowed me to examine all of Queen Mary’s belongings that have been passed down through the family and many documents and personal items. I think I learnt more about Mary Queen of Scots in that one day than in all the subsequent days of research and reading. And (at last we come to the point of this extemporaneous ramble lol) amongst my findings was a little snippet of intriguing information relating to Melville Castle. I only noticed it because Melville Castle was the next historical place on my list.

Okay, I will now get back onto the wedding theme and slip in my Mary Queen of Scots tid bit. There are many, many reasons why I like Melville Castle weddings. Amongst them is the fact that it is the perfect distance from Kinnaird Park’s Costa Coffee. I can therefore pick up my coffee, pop it in my cars specially designed Costa Coffee cup holder, and by the time I arrive at Melville Castle it has cooled to the perfect temperature. (I bet you thought last weeks comment about me being the only Edinburgh wedding photographer who gets free coffee from Costa by giving them a name drop in my blog was a joke, eh? lol) As I always get to my weddings early I usually have time to enjoy my coffee before we start work. Now as I am a person who likes to visit Melville Castle regularly I am among good company because this was also a favourite occupation of Mary Queen of Scots!

In Mary’s day Melville Castle wasn’t quite as grand as it is today because back then there was no Costa Coffee near it and it only had hunting lodge status. However, Queen Mary used to ride through the Melville Castle grounds often, and she had an ill frequented little spot not too far from the river bank where she used to enjoy sitting quietly and savouring her surroundings. You can find it approximately half way between the gatehouse and the castle itself. If you know where to look you can push back the over grown foliage and still see the small indentation in the ground from her little royal bottom. It is here that I like to pause too and enjoy my coffee. As not many people know of its existence it is always nice and peaceful and very easy to imagine how it must have been very similar on the occasions Queen Mary sat here. It was here that Mary contemplated where exactly she should plant her tree. She picked a spot mid way between where she sat and the Castle, and her tree is still here down to this day.

A couple of centuries after Mary planted her tree Melville Castle passed to Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount of Melville who went on to become Duke of Lauderdale. It was around this time that the castle was demolished and subsequently rebuilt at the end of the 18th century. The new castle was designed by James Playfair and it is this building that you see today. The photos in todays blog are from Pauline and David’s wedding who married here a couple of weeks ago and are not long back from honeymoon. The beautiful floral decorations and bridal bouquets were done by Flowers by Rhona. I don’t have any new information on possible new ownership of the castle at the minute but I still have several weddings coming up between now and the end of autumn so will keep you informed. Maybe I should take it over myself, eh???

Morag and Alastair's wedding at Craighouse

2011-07-21T05:44:00.000-07:00

Going to do something slightly different today. Usually every time I blog I choose which photographs I am going to publish to illustrate whatever wedding or topic I’m writing about. I have to tell you this is always a very hard process. I spend ages poring over a set of wedding photographs trying to decide on around 8 or 9 to use. Its doubly hard this week as at the same time I’ve been asked to select 5 weddings from all those I’ve photographed within the last 12 months to send through to a magazine Editor who's currently planning a future wedding article. Only one of these weddings will actually go on to be used in the magazine but by that stage it’s down to the editorial team not me, lol. Anyway, as I’ve just completed the album design for Morag and Alastair as well as the Parent Album, I’m going to use 8 of the main photographs they selected for their wedding album on this weeks blog.

It was a breezy and sunny day for Morag and Alastair’s wedding in Edinburgh. The ceremony was at the Greenbank church then we were back to Craighouse for the reception. I arrived at the church nice and early as I knew the narrow street can be difficult for parking. I had of course brought along my customary Costa coffee so I was quite content to sit and sip and enjoy the warm breeze. Did you know that I’m the only wedding photographer in Edinburgh who gets free coffee from Costa by giving them
a name drop in my blog? If Aston Martin are reading this I would just like to add that I’d be happy to come to a similar arrangement with them. ;)

Alastair arrived about half an hour prior to the ceremony and I did a few photographs
with him and his ushers and bestman before nipping inside for a quick word with the minister. The minister requested that we only work from the back of the church, which was fine as the church was incredibly spacious and also had a rear balcony that would be a great vantage point. I love the first shot here with Morag and her father proceeding up the aisle with the
bridesmaids in her trail. You will notice that Alastair has turned to look up the aisle thus catching his first sight of his bride. Immediately after I shot this image Diane handed me our second camera which has the telephoto lens and I also grabbed a close up of the expression of pleasure on Alastair’s face as he see’s Morag approaching.

Readings in a wedding ceremony are an important element and I always endeavour to get a photograph of the reader. Morag’s sister Rona carried out one of the readings. I shot a close up of her and also the image you see here which I like for the fact that it also shows Morag and Alastair listening and enjoying her reading. The second image of the set here was Alastair and Morag’s exchange of rings. The album they selected is an upright 8" x 6" Image Book and this photograph is one they chose to feature as a full page.
The following image too, signing the register has also been used as a full page. As you can see I had come down to the front of the church to get photographs of the register signing. Most ministers allow me to come forward and set up a couple of photos at this point which of course doesn’t take me long anyway.

We then exited the church, had a quick pause in the doorway for a photo and then I moved the fringes as the guests came out of the church and swarmed up
to offer their congratulations. There’s always a great buzz at this point in the day and I just move around capturing things quite informally. When the bridal party were ready to head off to Craighouse I jumped in the front of the wedding car for a second to get a shot of the newly weds in the back seat and then I was off back to my own car to scoot around to Craighouse.

The wedding car arrived at Craighouse before the coach with all the guests so I took advantage of the
situation by getting the driver to stop right at the entrance and got a few images of the bride and groom with their wedding car whilst the background was uncluttered. All Edinburgh wedding photographers and all wedding photographers in Newcastle and up and down the country love fancy cars! Cool cars, magnificent venues and gorgeous dresses...what more could one ask for?

The last three photographs here are from our bride and groom set a little later in the afternoon. I was especially pleased with all the photos from our half hour bride and groom session because Morag’s parents, Valerie and Duncan, when looking through the wedding photographs for their
Parent Album complimented me on capturing Morag and Alastair looking so natural and relaxed when in reality neither of them like having their photograph taken. My personal favourite from the wedding is the last one shown here in which not only do they look great but I think captures there personalities brilliantly!

More Harburn House Weddings

2011-07-13T05:30:00.000-07:00

So blog post is early this week as I have weddings Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Yay! I love back to back weddings! Friday and Saturday I’m in the Newcastle area and then the Borders for Sunday. With blogging a couple of days early this week that allows me to be a little a late next week, ok? Of course it does! lol

Regular readers of my blog know how much I love weddings at Harburn House. It’s a popular venue for many wedding photographers in Edinburgh as it has such
gorgeous grounds and offers the entire Estate as exclusive use to couples for their wedding. I’ve been on Harburn House’s recommended wedding supplier list for a few years so photograph weddings here on a regular basis. Harburn House weddings are particularly enjoyable when the ceremony is at the Haymains as it means the bridal party will be travelling between the main house and the granary and then back again which affords numerous photo opportunities.
We were booked from noon through until the first dance for Joanna and Richard’s wedding. I arrived at about 11.30am as I wanted to just go round everywhere double checking all the photo locations. No matter whether its wedding photography in Edinburgh or wedding photography in Newcastle or anywhere in between I do this at every wedding day even though I will have already carried out a full venue check a couple of weeks earlier. It always proves beneficial especially when you have such spacious grounds at your disposal. It had been raining for a few days earlier in the week and a couple of spots I would normally include in the bride and groom session I found the ground to be a bit too wet and muddy so I wouldn’t be bringing Jo and Richard to these. With such a plethora of beautiful locations for photos this of course wasn’t a problem.

At noon we started with some details shots which included the wedding dress, veil, flowers, shoes etc. Also some getting ready photos as Jo had her hair and make up done. I also squeezed in some photos of the marquis being decorated and set up even though I planned on getting some more later in the day prior to the wedding breakfast. Sometimes as the day unfolds circumstances can change and if the proceedings start running behind time its good to know I already have some good shots of things already in the bag.

The ceremony was scheduled for 2pm and by 1.30 everyone was just about ready. This enabled me to get some nice posed photographs of Joanna and the bridesmaids at the house and then head up the Haymains where the guys would be ready. I did a few shots with Richard and his bestman and then brought in the ushers. The pyramid shot came after I’d finished and the guys started discussing whether they could do a pyramid in their kilts. They’d done one earlier in the morning when they were all attired in jeans but the thought of trying it again in kilts was more of a challenge. I think this is something they’ve perfected on the rugby training ground (Richard plays for Stewarts Melville RFC and has also played for Scotland) and it certainly worked in kilts! I took the shot laying on the ground so that I was slightly looking upwards which lent a bit more impact to the photo.

Joanna and Richard’s guest list was around 150 so it was a fairly tight squeeze in the Granary for the ceremony. Their was also a string quartet performing up on the top platform so it was impossible for me to get in behind the minister, so after shooting Joanna and her brother coming up the aisle I moved to the rear of the room and switched toa telephoto lens. The curtains of the Granary had been closed to prevent the guests seeing Joanna as she made her way from the car to the ceremony which meant very low lighting. I do not use flash during a ceremony as it kills the atmosphere and I also feel it is rather disrespectful of the occasion. When I used to do more commercial work I developed a reputation of being something of a low light specialist and I spent a year being sent around the country photographing many of our iconic building and landmarks including their interiors. Nowadays, with the majority of my work being weddings I find the skills and experience I learnt during that year to be invaluable particularly with weddings in old and historic buildings like Castles and Stately Homes.
Once the ceremony was over everyone was transported back to the main house for drinks and canapés on the front lawn. It was here I did Richard and Jo’s group photographs before taking them away for their bride and groom session. Prior to the ceremony there had been a small hiccup with the coach which had delayed things somewhat so Jo and Richard asked if we could just do a quick ten minutes as they felt they hadn’t much time with their guests. Although we had originally planned on doing a little longer than ten minutes I’ve photographed enough weddings to know that things rarely go 100% to plan and as my
style is predominantly reportage or photo-journalistic this is no problem whatsoever. You can also now see the importance of things like my pre-wedding venue recce and also the double check I carried out on my arrival. I can now use this to select the best locations that are in close proximity and that will provide the maximum amount of photographs within a short ten minute segment.

Following the bride and groom photos we were across to the marquis for the cake cutting, speeches and the wedding breakfast. After the meal we were back for the first dance, something I always enjoy photographing as it's great fun and very atmospheric.

The Talented Dancing Uncle - a Melville Castle Wedding production

2011-07-07T05:44:00.000-07:00

I have to admit I just LOVE this opening shot! It makes me smile every time I look at it. It was taken at Kirsty and Simon’s wedding at Melville Castle following the wedding breakfast. I’d been moving around the edges of things looking for informal shots of everyone enjoying themselves and then worked my way round to the rear lawn to get a shot of all the guests sitting on the pavilion patio with the castle as a backdrop. Throughout the day Kirsty’s uncle had been kind enough to frequently impart his great photographic
advice, "get as many shots of me as you can", lol. That's one of the things I enjoy about my job, the banter and camaraderie you can enjoy. Anyway, as he spotted me moving through the trees he duly struck up a pose. I was happy enough to oblige and after taking the photograph I gave him a thumbs up of thanks and then walked away. However, I had a feeling it might be worthwhile keeping my eye upon him, and sure enough he began to dance around for his friends entertainment. As he did so I quickly spun round and framed up the shot and patiently waited for his dancing feet to twirl him about so that I’d catch him facing the camera. A couple of seconds later he pirouetted into the spot I’d hoped for and I fired the camera. I’m not too sure Kirsty will select it for her album but we’ll find out soon enough
as they’ll be back from honeymoon next week.

While I’m on the subject of reportage wedding photography I was delighted to pick up a Bronze award from the Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers monthly contest last month (June) in the 'Weddings Photojournalism' category. I entered the photo of Gail that you saw on my blog four weeks ago from her wedding at Barony Castle. I also won a Bronze award in the monochrome category for the black and white image I posted in my Dalhousie Castle wedding blog three weeks ago. So far this year it means I’ve won awards in all six months of the SWPP monthly image contest,
so I’m pretty chuffed!

Sometimes I am asked about the difference between the SWPP wedding categories. Well, there are three separate categories, and of course we are only allowed to enter one image per category. They are - Weddings Contemporary, Weddings Photojournalism and Weddings Traditional. The Traditional category is posed shots or photographs that we have direct or set up. Weddings Photojournalism (also referred to in many bridal magazines as reportage) is the opposite in that it is a purely natural moment that has not been set up in any way at all. A photograph that tells a story. This is often the hardest category for wedding photographers as there is no intervention permitted. Its all down to skill and
timing. Personally, I love the strictness of this category as so many wedding photographers today claim to provide reportage style wedding photography because it is a buzz word, yet, in reality there is a great difference between true photojournalism photography and grabbing a couple of candid’s during the evening reception. So the stringency separates the men from the boys, lol. The Weddings Contemporary category is for modern, stylish images that show exceptional innovation.

Forgetting the dancing uncle shot for a minute, the following three photographs are examples of reportage/photojournalistic wedding photography.
The first two show Kirsty and her father descending the staircase on their way to the wedding ceremony in the Melville Castle Ballroom. I simply ran ahead of them and photographed them from as many different angles as I could fit in during the duration of their descent. I really like the wide shot which shows off the entire staircase and the wonderful light pouring in through the top floor window above them. Wedding photographers in Edinburgh are privileged to have so many superb wedding venues with such dramatic staircases. I always believe its important if the wedding is in a Castle or Stately Home to include a good set of photographs
that really show off the magnificence of the surroundings. Later this year I’m doing some wedding photography in Newcastle at very similar venues, so the same rule applies. The third image we are talking about here was taken during the ceremony itself. Of course I get many photographs like this one from the ceremony as the couple say their vows and declarations to each other and go through their exchange of rings. They are so engrossed in each other and the wedding proceedings that they do not even know they are being photographed, hence, they look completely relaxed and natural.

The next three photographs are examples of
Traditional wedding photography, where I have directed or placed Simon and Kirsty in a specific location or pose. A good knowledge of the venue is key here. With Kirsty and Simon I’ve photographed more weddings at Melville Castle than any other wedding photographer in Edinburgh so I know it intimately and affectionately, along with many other venues in Edinburgh and throughout Scotland and North East England. I also carry out a full venue check ahead of every wedding too so I know in advance of the day all the best locations and spots that we’ll use as well.

We photographed the speeches, the cake cutting and then the first dance with the superb Corra who are absolutely awesome! I took several full length photographs as Simon and Kirsty took to the dance floor and then I switched camera’s (I always work with two camera’s, each one having a different focal length lens) for some close ups. Again I like to get an all round mix of full length photos of the couple dancing, some wide shots showing off the whole setting and then the closer ones which are usually a little more warm and intimate. I’m also happy to shoot dancing uncles too!

Two Royal Terrace Hotel weddings

2011-06-30T06:05:00.000-07:00

I was very privileged to photograph the first ever official Vow Renewal ceremony in Edinburgh recently at The Royal Terrace Hotel. And then three days later I was back for a Royal Terrace Hotel wedding with Raye and Howard. One of the major differences between a wedding ceremony and a vow renewal ceremony is that while marriages are required to be legally registered, vow renewals are not. In fact, due to the Edinburgh registrar office being so busy with handling wedding requests they do not normally do vow renewals. It is possible of course to arrange a private vow renewal ceremony, perhaps with a local minister, but this would not be registered or have any official status. So how did Sandra and Damien manage to obtain an official, registered vow renewal ceremony?

Well as mentioned above Edinburgh applications for vow renewals are usually rejected with the couples being advised to make their own private arrangements. However, Sandra and Damien’s application landed on the desk of a new recruit and in ignorance it was processed and authorized along with the marriage applications. When senior members of staff saw the mistake they didn’t have the heart to cancel and disappoint Sandra and Damien so they decided to undertake their first ever legally registered vow renewal ceremony. So that of course now means that I am proud to be the first and only Edinburgh wedding photographer to have
photographed an official vow renewal ceremony and the Royal Terrace Hotel is the first Edinburgh venue to hold one all thanks to a lovely couple from Ireland whose application must have been blessed with the luck of the Irish, lol.

It was a very pleasant ceremony with just myself and the registrar enjoying the proceedings with Damien and Sandra. It lasted about ten minutes and then Damien and Sandra were given their official vow renewal certificate together with celebratory champagne from the Royal Terrace Hotel. I photographed the ceremony itself from the corners of the room similarly to how I would for a wedding ceremony and then we did
some relaxed photos in the private garden that the Royal Terrace Hotel has at the rear. Sandra and Damien were a fantastic couple and it really was a pleasure to do their photography and be involved in such a unique event!

Three days later we had another sunny day in Edinburgh for the wedding of Raye and Howard at the Royal Terrace Hotel. As you can see from the photos conditions were idyllic for an outdoor ceremony. Most wedding photographers in Edinburgh enjoy outside ceremonies and the private rear terrace of the hotel is very spacious and makes for beautiful outdoor wedding ceremonies.
It is also flanked by three private walled gardens, one of which has a gorgeous athenic gazebo. Of course, none of this is visible from the main street so the terrace and gardens remain exclusive and secluded. Royal Terrace itself is one of my favourite Edinburgh streets. It sits on the lower rear slope of Calton Hill overlooking Leith and for such a wide and broad beautifully cobbled road is surprisingly serene and quiet. I am also in good company because the Royal Terrace is also a favourite of Sir Sean Connery who tried very hard to buy a home here, but no one on the Terrace was willing to sell to him despite his extremely generous offers.

I have photographed many weddings at the Royal Terrace Hotel so it was a delight to be here again for Raye and Howard’s. I was booked to do photography from ceremony arrivals through until the wedding party went in for their wedding breakfast. I started with a few photographs of the rear Terrace set up and ready for the ceremony, shots I always like to get if possible as I know the brides rarely get to see this on the day itself as all their guests are seated when they get their first view of things. Raye had requested some photos of her and her sister up in the hotel room about
fifteen minutes before the ceremony was due to commence and after taking these I photographed the rest of the proceedings in my normal reportage style. I always endeavour to remain as unobtrusive as possible as this enables me to capture the genuine emotions, feelings and moments of the day. Apart from the group photographs and the bride and groom session which of course require some organisation and direction, working coolly and quietly means for the most part I can take photographs without anyone knowing they’ve even been photographed producing very natural, relaxed images.

Every couple I’ve spoken to after their wedding day have been glowing in their praise of the Royal Terrace Hotel, the staff and the food. I’ve also done a few anniversary parties here too with similar compliments. So if you’re considering the Royal Terrace Hotel as a wedding venue I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. If you wanted to fix up a pre-wedding engagement shoot here and sample it before hand just give me a shout and we can book something up for you.

Nicki & Stuart's wedding, Dunkeld House Hotel

2011-06-23T05:33:00.000-07:00

As it says above, in the opening spiel to my blog, I am very fortunate to get opportunity to travel around the country visiting and doing photography in some of the most beautiful places.
Perthshire has always been one of my favourites and I’ve been here many times both professionally and personally. The majority of occasions in a professional capacity have up until now been magazine shoots, including the occasion at Scone Palace when I gave the Earl something of a fright, but I’ll save that story for another time, lol. Personally, Diane and I love the Perthshire countryside and take breaks and holidays here quite regularly, which puts us in good company as Beatrix Potter and her family enjoyed doing the same thing. However, our visit on this occasion was for Nicki and Stuart’s wedding at the idyllic Dunkeld House Hotel.

This was my first visit to Dunkeld House Hotel and I hope I get opportunity to come back for many more weddings in the future as it really is a stunning venue! It’s located on the banks of the country’s longest
river and surrounded by gorgeous Perthshire woodland. Not only is the hotel very picturesque but the gardens and immediate surroundings are magnificent! For a an absolute dream as it abounds with so many choice locations for photographs!

We were booked to start at 11am with some getting ready photographs through until the speeches. Weather was an unknown quantity on arrival as it looked like it could go either way, and as you will discover that is indeed what happened. We’d arrived in good time allowing us to enjoy a coffee in the Dunkeld House lounge and thereafter we headed up to the bridal suite. Hair and make-up was underway for the bridesmaids when we entered and we got a few natural photos of them and some of Nicki with the wedding dress as we did the detail shots wedding photographer it’s
of the flowers, shoes, dresses, etc. The bridal suite windows overlooked the hotel lawn so we could get a good view of what was going elsewhere as the morning proceeded. The chairs were set out on the lawn ready for the wedding ceremony and when we spotted Stuart and his bestman we flitted down to do some quick photos with the two of them pre-ceremony too.

When I finished with the guys it was back up to the bridal suite as I wanted to get some photos of Nicki having her wedding dress laced up. This is always a fun time of the day and makes for some nice, natural relaxed images. As I was shooting the lacing up of the dress out the corner of my eye I spotted Anna, the flower girl, gazing out of the window. There was some gorgeous light pouring in around her so I quickly spun away from the dress lacing for a second and shot the image of
Anna that you see here. The original photograph was shot in colour but I also had a feeling it would really suit a black and white conversion. During the editing I experimented with a couple of monochrome conversion techniques I like to use and settled on this one which has an edgy infrared look to it. I really liked the effect so I entered it into the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers monthly contest and was delighted to pick up a Bronze award for it!

When Nicki was ready I did some nice bridal portraits and then some group shots in the room with her and the bridesmaids and then a couple including her parents as they had just arrived. We were then ready for the ceremony. At the top of the grand staircase I paused bride and father for two swift photos, full length and close-up, and then I ran ahead to the bottom of the stairs to photograph
the bridal party as they descended. Wedding photographers love staircases for photographs and the Dunkeld House Hotel staircase was no let down. However, when the bridal party were half way down two members of staff came running in frantically motioning for them to stop and wait. Unfortunately, right at this critical time the rain chose to come down! All the guests had been seated outside duly awaiting the bride but now they were all picking up their chairs and dashing for the Garden Suite! This is one of those occasions when my pre-wedding venue check proves so beneficial. When I carry this out ahead of the wedding I do so planning for every contingency, so although I’d been expecting and planned for the outdoor ceremony I had also scoped out the Garden Suite for the best vantage points, angles and lighting as well.

We all waited patiently until everyone was seated and then the piper struck up and lead the bridal procession through into the Garden Suite. The ceremony itself passed off beautifully and also created a great laugh when the
registrar unwittingly called the bride Gail instead of Nicki. Gail, of course, is Nicki’s sister and one of the bridesmaids. Stuart thanked the registrar for quickly correcting herself as he said he couldn’t afford to marry both of them!

Drinks followed the ceremony and then I took the bridal party and family back into the garden Suite for the group photographs as it was still raining. It didn’t take too long to run through these and then it was outside with Nicki and Stuart. I knew that one of the reasons for Nicki and Stuart selecting Dunkeld House was its beautiful location and they had really wanted to get
some photographs down by the riverside. The rain had eased off somewhat and as we have a lovely white wedding umbrella Nicki and Stuart agreed that we should definitely go for it. We also have waterproof camera covers that fit to our equipment. I know you’re probably not too concerned about the poor camera’s but I mention it simply because a friend of mine was at a wedding a few months ago where the photographer refused to do outside photographs as he didn’t want to get his camera wet! lol

Anyway as you can see we
got a good mix of pictures beside the riverbank, some of them utilising the over hanging foliage and other very natural images as Nicki and Stuart enjoyed walking along in such pleasant surroundings. Even in the rain Perthshire is idyllic! We finished off the photographic coverage with plenty of shots of the wedding cake made by Gail, which had the most amazing intricate, detailed work followed, by the speeches and a ceremonially glass breaking (family and friends will know what I’m talking about lol).

Royal Wedding at Dalhousie Castle

2011-06-17T03:27:00.000-07:00

I’d never met Rachel and Paul until their wedding day. They were coming over from the USA with a small party of twelve to marry
in a quintessential Scottish Castle. This is quite a popular occurrence in Scotland and the north of England with the Americans particularly since Madonna did it. In fact, it was the best thing Madonna’s ever done! lol I didn’t actually get Madonna’s gig but I have done a number of weddings up along the far flung northern Sutherland coast in some idyllic Highland strongholds. Dalhousie Castle is much closer to home sitting on the edge of Midlothian. I’ve photographed many Dalhousie Castle weddings and they are always a delight!

In looking for a wedding photographer Paul had done what many do and started an online search. There was plenty to choose from as here in the UK we were right in the middle of Royal Wedding fever with the build up to Prince William and Kate Middleton’s big day. On the run up to the Royal Wedding ITV had been running a ten minute wedding slot each day just before the 6 o’clock news and I was fortunate enough to have been one of the top twelve weddings photographers featured by them.
Paul had found me on their associated website which was suitably impressive to lead him to booking me directly. The power of television, eh? lol

I met Paul on the wedding morning in the Dalhousie Castle Library and after introductions and a chat I did a couple of relaxed photographs with him, one of which is the first one posted here.
I then made my way to the bottom of the staircase for Rachel to come down with her two young bridesmaids and after a quick posed shot I ran ahead to photograph the ceremony proceedings in my usual reportage style. Civil ceremonies generally don’t take much more than 15 minutes or so and then when the register had been signed the newly weds and their twelve guests went back up to the grand lobby for drinks and canapés. Dalhousie Castle were a bit worried that with only twelve guests they may have made too many canapés and
so they asked me to help out with the eating of them. Having been brought up with impeccable politeness and good manners I was duty bound to assist ;)

This was the first ever wedding at Dalhousie Castle that I’ve been too where there has been no cars parked right at the entrance. So never one to pass up a golden opportunity we did a group photograph of Rachel and Paul and all the guests outside the main doorway. For the bride and groom session I took Paul and Rachel for a walk around the castle grounds. For the most part the photographs with the bride and groom are set up or directed. However, as my
photographic style is reportage or photojournalistic I am looking to take images that will fit in with this natural and relaxed feel. Therefore, I direct or ask my couples to do things that are natural, fun or romantic. Modern wedding photography is predominantly about good pictorial storytelling. If you start asking couples or guests to do strange or bizarre things that are not natural elements of a wedding day it will throw the whole sequence of photographs out of synch. From experience of working for so many magazines I can tell you that the editor will be looking fora set of pictures that tell the story of what has happened on the day and/or captured the essence of the event. Any images that do not fit in with this harmony are immediately 'spiked' (rejected). This of course includes the shots that you have directed or set up. They need to marry with the overall feel of the day itself and require a classy, fashionable look even if they are traditionally posed. Magazine and publishing housing editors have unbelievably high standards and in my opinion its important the same standards are applied to a wedding day.

I finished up with Paul and Rachel back in the grand Dalhousie Castle lobby. Rachel wanted a photograph of herself sitting on the throne so we did this before they went in for their wedding breakfast. I had been booked to photograph from the ceremony arrivals up until going for their wedding breakfast, a total of three hours. We ended up with just under 200 beautiful photographs. Rachel and Paul have opted to add on to theirpackage the award winning Bellissimo Perfetto album (recently voted wedding album of the year 2011). It is rumoured (top secret this, from an insider source) that this the album Prince William and Kate Middleton have ordered for their Royal Wedding photographs, so they are in good company! If you currently planning a wedding and interested in having a Bellissimo album yourself get in touch and I will be happy to show you some samples. I do a 40 page album which holds up to 100 photographs for £695. It really is the finest wedding album in the world!

Philip Hawkins storms Barony Castle

2011-06-10T03:01:00.000-07:00

Gail and Robin were married at one of my favourite Border venue’s, Barony Castle. Edinburgh wedding photographers really enjoy making the short trip down the A703 to this idyllic white walled castle on the outskirts of thebeautiful Eddlestone village as it is such a glorious setting for photographs. You will recall that the last time I was here was for Zena and Scott’s wedding in the autumn of last year, so I was really looking forward to coming back again in the spring!

I first met Robin and Gail at the Edinburgh wedding fair last year. As soon as they had finished looking through my albums they booked me immediately. I then did an engagement shoot with them at the Hilton Edinburgh Hotel about a month before the wedding day and they were so good throughout the session, and we ended up with so many great photos, that I knew their wedding day would be even better! If you’ve never considered doing a pre-wedding engagement session its well worth considering it. Generally, we’ll do about 45 minutes and I’ll shoot a whole variety of images, many of which will be similar to things we’ll do on the wedding day itself which gives us a chance for some coaching, and also as it’s a little more relaxed and informal we’ll get a nice set of informal and contemporary photographs. We ended up with between 45-50 photographs from Gail and Robin’s shoot and they then select their favourite to get printed and mounted into a signature display board for all the guests to sign on the wedding day. The opening photograph posted here is the one they chose from the session and if you scroll down a little you’ll see how it looked on the wedding day after a few signatures had been applied. As a full time wedding photographer in Edinburgh I have good working relationships with many of the top fashionable venues in the capital and as many of them also use me for marketing and PR work they are happy to let me bring along my wedding couples for engagement shoots, so just let me know if you’d like to arrange one.

For the wedding day I’d been booked for pre-wedding 'getting ready' photos through until the first dance. Getting ready pictures are always good fun as well as getting many timeless memories. I started off in Gail’s room as she had her hair and make-up done and then flitted back and forth between her room and Robin’s. Robin and the groomsmen had been given a small function room to get ready in which had two huge bay windows. I shot some natural photographs as they grappled with their cravats and shoe laces and then did a few posed shots when they were all ready. One of my favourites is the one of Robin you can see here. I just loved the way the light was pouring in through the windows of the room so I asked Robin to stand just on the edge of the nearest bay window so that he was slightly side lit and I then moved position so the far window was showing just over his right shoulder. This gave the effect of the window light cascading in around him but at the same time retaining detail in his face and kilt tartan. Given that this was taken just about twenty minutes or so before the wedding ceremony, possibly the most nervous time period, I think he looks remarkably smart, cool and relaxed. It also marries nicely with their engagement print too as it has a similar look and feel.

The wedding ceremony itself went off beautifully! I was working alongside Robin’s brother, Bruce, who was doing the wedding videography. Bruce is a television cameraman and the last wedding he shot before Gail and Robin’s was Prince William and Kate Middleton’s. Robin, Gail and all the family were very grateful to the Royal couple for allowing Bruce to get in some practice ahead of the big day!

I’m going to now jump ahead a little to the Big Group photograph. Many couples request a Big Group shot, and if there’s opportunity to do one I definitely recommend it. It’s quite special having a photograph of all the family and guests. If it all possible I will try and take the Big Group photograph from a height, ideally an upstairs window. With so many guests the easiest way to ensure you can see everyone’s faces is to have sufficient height. I knew ahead of the day that Robin and Gail wanted a Big Group shot so I checked in with Barony Castle the day before to see if they could make available an upstairs window, which they said would be no problem. As it turned out, on the wedding day, I wanted to do the Big Group in the central courtyard and Barony Castle said they had a door that opened out onto the conservatory roof which overlooks the courtyard. So once I’d got everyone positioned I ran inside, and the hotel staff took me upstairs and into a little office type room whereupon I was told I’d have to scramble out the tiny window! To be honest I didn’t mind this at all. I’ve scrambled out of tighter and more uncomfortable spots than this to get good shots, lol. But once I climbed up onto the window ledge I had to jump off and down onto the roof, and unfortunately I didn’t see there was a drainage gutter teeming with water so I ended up landing right in it! I jumped out of it as quickly as I could to be followed two seconds later by Bruce doing the same thing. Fortunately, it was a nice warm day so our shoes and socks dried out fairly soon.

The Big Group photograph I’m showing here is the full frame, wide shot. I shot it this way because I wanted to not only get the whole
group but also show off the lovely location and surroundings. To add an additional point of interest I asked the piper to stand in the background too, which he was delighted to do. The quality of the photograph files I shoot are so high that should Gail and Robin prefer to have the group itself emphasized more I can just crop in tighter around them all and eliminate the background.

After climbing back in through the tiny window I went back downstairs and we did their family and bridal party group photographs before heading up alongside the stream to do the bride and groom session. The last time I was here it had been raining beforehand so the stream was more like a river, but today it was much shallower which made it easier for me crossing out onto
the small stone walkway across the water to get the shot of them at the head of the tiny waterfall. Before we finished up and went in for the meal I took Gail and Robin round an ill frequented corner of the castle for a shot in front of one of the circular turrets and then around the front of the castle for one with the square turret. In the post editing of this image I had to remove a car that had parked right underneath the main turret and was sticking its nose into the photo. Grrrr! I don’t know why castles have to have car parks located right up to the front facades! They should move them further back so they don’t encroach on our pictures! (Rant, rant)

Anyway we had a fantastic day, which passed so quickly, and we ended up with well over 300 photographs. Robin and Gail are now making their way through them selecting which ones they want to go in their album. I can’t wait to get started on the design! I’m back here for another wedding at Barony Castle in a couple of months so looking forward to that :)

First Melville Castle wedding of 2011

2011-06-03T04:35:00.000-07:00

I have lots of weddings at Melville Castle coming up this year. I’ve been their recommended photographer now for several years so I’ve photographed more weddings here than any other wedding photographer in Edinburgh. So it’s fair to say I know the venue pretty well! lol Melville Castle have a recommended suppliers list for couples booking their wedding here, and there’s three Edinburgh wedding photographer’s on it. Well, two to be totally accurate as one of the three isn’t actually an Edinburgh wedding photographer, he’s from Glasgow, lol . However, at the beginning of the year I was in for a meeting with the wedding co-ordinator at Melville who informed me that following a meeting with the company’s senior management they had agreed that for personal recommendations they were only going to be putting my name forward to couples. Of course, I was delighted! So this year I will end up shooting even more weddings here than usual! Yay!

So my first 2011 Melville Castle wedding was Gillian and Paul on the 20th May. The day started off rainy and miserable looking, but amazingly as you can see from the pictures it turned around and ended up being glorious blue skies and lovely sun! Melville Castle was booked for the reception with the ceremony being held at St. John’s church in nearby Dalkeith. As we were booked to start at Gillian’s parents home first it meant we got the equivalent of three different venues, which is always nice for a great diversity of images.

We arrived at 1pm and had a lovely time chatting and playing with the cats. I also took some photos too ;) Starting an hour before the ceremony, which was to be 2pm, meant Gillian was able to get a few nice pre-wedding photographs with her bridesmaids as they prepared to set off for the church. I grabbed a few last minute getting ready shots and then took them out into the garden for some portrait style photos. We did combinations including all three girls together, then one each with Gillian, and of course Gillian by herself. For every grouping I always endeavour to shoot a full length, three quarter as well as a close up. The full lengths are nice as you want to see the beautiful dresses, and then the close ups are a little bit more intimate and relaxed. Iwork with a zoom lens so once I’ve posed everyone nicely I can shoot the three images within a couple of seconds without having to move and without the subjects knowing which I’m taking so no one has time to feel nervous which results in natural, relaxed photographs.

We left about 1.20pm to arrive at the church for half past. I did a few quick shots with Paul and his bestman and groomsmen and then quickly went to grab a brief word with the minister, only to be told by the church officer he never turns up for weddings until the very last minute, lol. It wasn’t too long until the first car arrived with Gillian's mother and Stephanie and Debbie the two bridesmaids. I had time to pause the three of them at the church entrance for a couple of quick shots (full length and close up as before) and then I was back on the roadside awaiting the brides car which duly arrived a couple of minutes later. I paused father and bride in the back of the car as that’s a shot I really like and it often becomes a favourite for the father, and then again I paused them in the doorway of the church shooting the full length and close up before I headed off to the front of the church to photograph them coming up the aisle.

As St. John’s is a large spacious church there was plenty of room for me to move around unobtrusively behind the minister and get a variety of wide angle shots showing off the whole setting and then zooming in for the bridal party as we went through the vows and decalarations, etc. The table for the register signing was positioned next to a huge window which created some beautiful, strong side lighting. I always get the chance to set up a couple of shots after the register has been signed but the one shown here was completely natural and shot without anyone knowing I was taking a photograph. I’ve had to do a slight amount of airbrushing as there was some church equipment encroaching into the foreground of the image which I’ve now removed.

Once the ceremony was complete and all the legalities finished I ran ahead and photographed the newly weds as they made their way up the aisle and exited the church. A quick pause at the church doorway for a nice 'just married' shot and then I like to step back and just photograph all the fun as the guests come pouring out the church and congregate around the bride and groom offering their congratulations. Gillian and Paul wanted to do a few photographs of the bridal party on the church steps before heading off back to Melville Castle where we’d do all their family group photographs on the lawn in front of the castle.

Before leaving the church I had a word with the driver and arranged for him to bring the bridal car down the narrow track beside the castle upon arriving at Melville which would enable us to position the car on the south-east facing corner. This is the most dramatic setting for using the castle as a backdrop for photographs and the only location where it is possible to position a wedding car. Most times the wedding car will drop the bride and groom at the main entrance to the castle, but as this sits at the heart of the car park it is impossible to get a full shot of the castle from here. Because I’m at Melville so much they are quite happy with me bringing the car down the siding and around to the south-east corner. The car company were too when they saw the photographs afterwards!

Following the formals we did a half hour bride and groom session and then finished up with the line-up and then the speeches. Gillian and Paul have just got back from honeymoon and now are about to start selecting the photographs they want to go in their album. I spoke with Gillian earlier today and she is so delighted with her wedding photographs she wants to book me to do a photo shoot with Kaiser, her 10stone, 10ft tall, immensely hungry looking puppy! So if you never see me again...

Myra and Simon's wedding at Norton House

2011-05-17T05:30:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know I’m wayyyyyyyyyyyyy behind with my blogging! Lots been going on during April and May! Weddings, engagement
shoots, the first ever Vow Renewal registration in Edinburgh (I’ll tell you about that soon), wedding fairs, and lots and lots of meetings with future bride and grooms. As you may know Radio Forth has been running its 2011 Win Your Wedding contest the last few weeks. This is the biggest prize on Scottish Radio with the lucky couple winning their entire wedding - the venue, wedding dress, groomswear, cake, cars, flowers, hair and make-up, honeymoon, and pretty much everything else and I was chosen by Forth Radio to provide the photography for the prize. Well the
contest has now come to a close and the lucky couple are Diane and Steven from Dunfermline! But throughout the contest, and particularly since it came to a conclusion I’ve had myriads of enquiries and appointments come rolling in due to the huge exposure! In addition to this, STV ran a small wedding slot on The Hour program with Michelle McManus and Stephen Jardine for two weeks on the run up to the Royal Wedding and I was one of twelve photographers in Scotland featured by them on the STV website which also produced a plethora of enquiries and bookings. So all in all I’m very happy! And that’s my excuse for being behind with the blogging! lol

Anyway, as Norton House Hotel is the venue for the Win Your Wedding contest let me tell you about Myra and Simon’s wedding at Norton House Hotel a couple of weeks ago. This will be the first of five weddings for me this year at Norton House, unless of course I pick up a couple more bookings here towards the end of the year. Norton House is a well known wedding venue amongst Edinburgh wedding photographer’s having beautiful grounds and a well organised wedding team. The ceremony itself was held at Corstorphine Old Parish church, a venue I’ve photographed at several
times before (Paula and Gordon’s wedding was my last one here). It’s quite a magnificent building and makes for incredibly atmospheric photographs for photographer’s who don’t mind working in low light. As the minister here knows me well she allows me to use the small gallery that over looks the aisle. There is the tiniest, narrowest stone staircase that winds up to the gallery, very similar to those of the higher level of Scot’s Monument, except this is even tighter. Because of its tightness it’s impossible to get up and down quickly, so as it was more important for me to be working at ground level we put Diane up in the gallery with the telephoto lens which enabled us to get great mix of different angles and views of the proceedings.

Following the ceremony coaches were laid on for the guests to make their way to Norton House while Myra and Simon used the wedding car. You may
recognize the car from Gillian and Gary’s wedding as it was the same one. Ecosse Classic Wedding cars are one of the most well known and highly regarded wedding car specialists and all wedding photographer’s in Edinburgh love it when they hear their clients have booked their cars with Ecosse as they know they’ll get beautiful 'wedding car' shots! The wedding car arrived at Norton House a little ahead of the coach which allowed us to get our car shots before all the guests arrived.

After a few drinks (the wedding guests not me btw, lol) we then took the bridal party down to the huge lawn in front of the Ballroom for the group shots. When we finished I did a few photos with Myra and Simon whilst still amongst the flora and fawna of the gardens. One of my favourites is the black and white shot shown here. The background here is simply the foliage of the trees that I positioned Myra and Simon in front of. In the post production I converted the image to monochrome but applied an infra red effect which along with the tilt of the shot gives a very contemporary and modern feel to the image.
We finished the bride and groom session on the steps and within the entrance to Norton House and then we were running in to be ready for the cutting of the cake.

Once everyone was seated Simon and Myra were piped in and taken over to their wedding cake, which was baked and created by Simon’s mum. We got the cake cutting shots and then moved around for the speeches. I have to say, Simon’s brother, Alistair, gave one of the funniest speeches I’ve ever heard! The way he recounted boyhood stories of them both, particularly the hair cutting by their mother account, was hilarious! All in all it was another wonderful wedding and I’m looking forward to be being back here again in July.
The next two weddings for me are at Melville Castle on Friday and Barony Castle on Saturday. Both I’m fairly sure will find their way onto the blog at some point but I’m not committing to when! lol

Royal Wedding build up and wedding cakes

2011-04-21T03:49:00.000-07:00

Wedding season really gets under way for me from this week onwards with weddings every week through until October. On Sunday I was at the Royal Terrace Hotel in Edinburgh for Raye and Howard’s wedding, on Saturday I’m at Norton House Hotel and the Hilton Edinburgh for engagement shoots and then next week I’m at Craighouse on Tuesday for Corinne and Stuart’s wedding and then back there again on Saturday for Morag and Alistair. So having such a busy week already booked up is the reason I can’t do the Royal wedding on Friday ;)

Royal Wedding fever is of course beginning to grip the UK as we build up to next Friday’s wedding. As you already
know I am involved in Radio Forth’s 'Win Your Wedding' competition which is now down to the final four couples. One of these couples will win their entire wedding! Norton House as their venue, wedding gown from Emma Roy, honeymoon from Bryton Travel, photography from myself and much much more including their wedding car, flowers, cake, groomswear, rings, etc. It’s one of the biggest ever prizes on local radio! However, coupled with that Scottish Television's "The Hour" program is featuring a wedding slot every day running up to the Royal Wedding next Friday and I am one of their selected wedding photographer’s being showcased on their website. So things are really exciting just now!

However, you may wonder why I’m posting a couple of wedding cake photographs. Well periodically I do a
google search of "Philip Hawkins Photography" just to see what comes up and where my images are being used. I also regularly use the search term Wedding photographer Edinburgh, wedding photographer’s in Edinburgh and Edinburgh wedding photographer, to check that my website ranks on the first two pages of google. Sometimes it can be quite surprising the places I find my photographs or the websites that quote from my articles. And that was the case this time. A well known wedding information website was running a 'Wedding cake inspiration' feature. Alongside their advice and information they were using a few photographs to illustrate the piece and also perhaps provide inspiration for other couples. I was delighted to see the majority of pictures were mine!It also got me thinking too. Yes, I know that can be dangerous! lol When I’m at weddings I do of course take a great many pictures and because I work for most of the time photo-journalistically I like to obtain photos that will capture the entire day pictorially including many elements of the day during the time for which I’m booked. The wedding cake is of course a central element and I’ve taken so many photos of wedding cakes I’ve lost count. However, when I select images to be used for promotion or advertising or when I’m asked to supply photos to the Radio and Television stations I invariably use photographs that have the bride and groom in them. Or perhaps just the bride depending on the purpose. I don’t think I’ve ever used a photo of a wedding cake. So, hmmm, I’m now thinking in future maybe I should consider it. Anyway, here’s the wedding cake photographs that were used and I’ve also included Raye and Howard’s cake from Sunday’s wedding...just to let you know I’m telling the truth, lol.

Wedding horror stories

2011-03-22T08:29:00.000-07:00

Well if you have the latest edition of the Scottish Wedding Directory magazine you may have read about the terrible upset Carol and Nick went through when they received their wedding photographs. They were aware on their wedding day that their photographer didn’t appear to be as good as what they had originally thought when booking him but when they returned from honeymoon and actually saw their wedding photographs…well let me quote their words directly from the article..."We had no idea things were going to be so bad. When I saw the photos I cried and my husband just sat shaking his head in disbelief".
You can read the full story in the magazine but it reminded me of something similar that occurred two years ago when another disappointed couple were so upset with their wedding photographer they took him to court and sued him. Shortly after that event I wrote a blog article about it and it subsequently has become my most read article and my most searched for on google (if you type 'wedding photographer sued' into google it comes up about two thirds down the first page if you’re interested in reading it). Now I’m going to tell you a story of my own but first let me address a couple of points that I think are important.
How do you select a wedding photographer? Price? Friendliness? Likableness? Value for money? Album? Overall package? All these things come into the equation but first and foremost it has to be the quality of their photography. It doesn’t matter how likable the person is, or how reasonable their pricing or how beautiful their elegant leather albums are…if you end up with mediocre photographs all these things become irrelevant. Interestingly both Carol and Nick and the couple who sued when first meeting with their photographer instantly liked him, got on with him great, found his prices reasonable and were happy with the package he was offering. They even sat down with him before the wedding day and discussed exactly what they wanted and he promised they would get it!
So what is the answer? Well let me tell you a story...

Have you heard the saying 'don’t believe everything you read'? Of course you have, and the reason I’m telling this story is that whilst bridal and wedding magazines, as well as supposedly authoritative websites, give excellent advice to couples planning their weddings not all of it should be taken as gospel. For example, most magazines make a big thing of 'meeting your photographer face to face' and 'making sure you get on great with him' and 'seeing if you have a rapport with your photographer', etc etc.
Now don’t get me wrong this is all very nice and personally it’s a part of the job which I love, even if couples don’t book me to photograph their wedding its great chatting with them and hearing about their plans and idea’s. I love photography and love weddings, so I am always happy to meet with anyone. However, it does not tell you what your wedding photographs will turn out like. Just because you think I am the nicest guy in the world and that we have an awesome rapport, does not necessarily mean my photographs will be awesome. Ironically, the very magazines that promote the importance of these things are the ones that run the above horror stories only a few pages later in the same issue where the couples did all that. The main way of determining how good a photographer is is from
the quality of his work. And a good photographer will take good photographs no matter what, even if he has never met you or knows anything about you. Let me illustrate...

The pressures and constraints on a magazine shoot are quite often far more intense than on a wedding day. Very often you have never met the people you will be photographing nor those you will be working with. Not only can some of them be unfriendly but many don’t even want to be photographed in the first place and work hard at being as uncooperative as possible. But there is never ever any excuse for not delivering the goods. A magazine editor is not the least bit interested in how hard things were, or how limited your time was or the attitude of anyone else. All they want is to see the goods - which have to be superb images that will make the magazine stand out from the others sharing the same shelf.

A few years ago I was commissioned by a well known magazine to go down and do a shoot at a prominent castle owned by a very famous Duke. The schedule had been arranged between the dukes PR people and the magazine Editor. I had the morning to photograph the castle grounds and rooms and then an hour photo shoot with the Duke himself on the afternoon. Now unknown to me the Duke doesn’t like being photographed and when informed of the arrangements on the day in question refused to do the photo shoot. His PR team
worked hard to get him to change his mind but he wouldn’t budge. The first inkling I got that anything might be amiss was when the Dukes PA came to see me as I was photographing inside the castle and told me the session with the Duke would have to be cut from an hour to ten minutes. I said sure that would be fine. Behind the scenes frantic negotiations then got underway with the Duke in attempt to get him to agree to do ten minutes of photographs. Eventually, and to cut a long story short, lol, the Duke agreed to allowing me to do ONE photograph and that it couldn’t be published until he had seen it first and granted approval.

So this is what’s going through my mind…I have a subject who not only doesn’t want to be photographed but is also showing outward hostility to the whole arrangement. The article for the magazine was dependant upon inclusion of a photo of the Duke himself, otherwise the article wouldn’t run. Not only does the Duke not even want to be there but if he personally doesn’t like the photo for any reason whatsoever he won’t approve it, hence no publication. And all of this was going to be staked on ONE shot! Now back then we were shooting film so there was no way of being able to sneak a quick look at the back of the camera immediately after taking the shot to double check it was good. Which meant I was in for a long wait before hearing the verdict! lol

So what did I do? Well I cheated! I took THREE shots! lol. They were all done within about ten seconds so the Duke didn’t really have chance to complain and as it turned out he liked all of them. So much so that a few months later he became a client and employed me to do some work for his personal estate.
So what’s the moral of the story? Yikes, I sound like an Aesop fable! Well this story was not an isolated or rare occurrence, I have loads of stories like this (don’t worry I’m not going to be telling them forever more, lol) I’m really just trying to illustrate that 'rapport' and how you 'feel' about a photographer is not as important as assessing the photographs themselves. Above everything else you must study the images. Do they have impact? Do the people in them look good? Do they portray all the emotions and feelings of the wedding? Have they been taken from pleasing angles and with flattering light? Has the photographers timing been spot on? Can you see the texture and shape in a white brides dress or have the details been blown out? Do the couple look natural and relaxed even in posed photographs? I could go on but I’m sure you get the idea, lol.

I reiterate again, I am not belittling the importance of meeting and how you feel about a certain photographer, but this is not the most important criteria. Neither is price. The two things that often lead to disappointment. The photographs are! All the images posted in this blog are from weddings where I have never met the couple until the wedding day itself. They booked me simply from seeing the images on my website. As a wedding photographer in Edinburgh I have many clients come up from England,
across from Ireland and over the sea from America where it has not been possible for them to meet me. As a professional photographer I have an obligation to give them high quality photography and make them look great in their photos no matter who they are or what they will look like.

The two upset and unhappy couples mentioned in the horror stories both spent considerable time meeting several different photographers at wedding fairs before deciding which one they liked enough to book. At the moment we are coming to the close of the spring wedding fair season and most of the wedding photographers in Edinburgh have been busy exhibiting, myself included. If you are attending a wedding fair and have not yet booked your photographer my advice is concentrate on the albums. A good wedding photographer will have plenty of real life wedding albums displaying photographs from the entire day. Any photographer who is proud of his work will love showing it to you. They may not be the slickest sales man or have an eloquent spiel but if their photographs speak for themselves then they won’t need to be.

Wedding Fairs and Portraits

2011-03-18T05:07:00.000-07:00

Well it’s really busy time for Edinburgh wedding photographers just now. Not only is it wedding fair season for brides and grooms but also for us photographers as well. I was down at Focus on Imaging last week where all the major manufacturers to the photography industry were exhibiting their products and services. This included the leading wedding album manufacturers which give us the chance to compare their products and pricing and decide which albums we will offer to our clients. For myself I choose to go for high quality albums rather than the cheaper versions. I feel a wedding is such an important day it not only deserves high quality photography but also the best presentation of your photographs.

When it comes to Digital Wedding Books I thought it was interesting that most manufacturers offer very similar products, the main difference being the cover choices and also their own template design systems. I do not use templates, where your photographs are dragged and dropped onto the pre-designed pages, as I prefer to do this myself and therefore starting with a blank canvas can offer exclusive, bespoke design tailored to each wedding and each couple. The other difference between the digital book manufacturers is the actual quality of their printing and pages. Again I prefer deep, rich pages rather than the thinner versions as these have much greater longevity. Similarly, I pay close attention to the build and construction, particularly the spine and binding as if this is done cheaply to reduce costs it can have a tendency to start coming apart a couple of years down the line.

So, as well as our own trade shows and events there’s also a host of local wedding fairs for brides and grooms going on just now too. I was exhibiting at Edinburgh’s largest wedding fair a couple of weeks ago at the Corn Exchange where we had a great weekend, and then this Sunday I’m at The King James Hotel in Edinburgh’s King James centre where I am one of two hand picked wedding photographers in Edinburgh (don’t know who the other one is yet lol) and the following Sunday I’m the only Edinburgh wedding photographer invited to exhibit at the Ravelston Hotel in Musselburgh.

I don’t have any weddings to photograph until April, when the wedding season really kicks off for me. Four weddings in April (one of which is Vow renewal) and then six in May, so really looking forward to those. It’s a busy month for portrait sessions where I’ve been doing mostly children, but also a few special occasions and family events. We use a mobile digital studio which is versatile enough to be set up in any room no matter how small. The two photos in this weeks blog were both taken in a small living room. Its also adaptable enough to expand for when we do special occasions and events like last week when we did a series of family portraits at the Royal Terrace Hotel for a 50th wedding anniversary. We set up in the hotel and did some photographs of the whole family and then some requested family groups and combinations for three quarters of an hour before the meal. We then put up an online proof gallery, similar to our private wedding galleries, for the family to view the photographs and order any prints. Our portrait photography is becoming more and more popular so I’ve also now got a dedicated Edinburgh Portrait Photography page on my website for it. If you know anyone who might be needing an Edinburgh portrait photographer point them to my page which lists services and pricing. If you are currently planning a wedding and looking for a wedding photographer in Edinburgh or anywhere throughout Scotland come along and have a chat at either of the above mentioned wedding fairs. I’ll look forward to seeing you!

Down the mine for Claire's Wedding

2011-02-23T04:42:00.000-08:00

Wedding photographers in Edinburgh are spoiled for choice with such a plethora of gorgeous Hotels, Castles and Stately Homes.
But we also have some wedding venues that offer something completely different (yes, I am a Monty Python fan lol) and my first wedding of 2011 was just such a venue. I was going down a mine!

Claire and Stuart were married on Saturday at the Scottish Mining Museum on the outskirts of Edinburgh.
Claire’s grandfather used to work in the mines but sadly passed away a couple of years ago. Due to her mining connections Claire was able to arrange it so her immediate family could go down to the coal face for a couple of photographs on her wedding day in memory of her father. However, the Mining Museum had advised her that it was so dark down at the coal face they weren’t sure her photographer would actually be able to take anything so they left the decision up to me. I went out to the museum with Claire three weeks ago and we went down the lift to the coal face to check things out. Sure enough it was pretty dark!
However, I knew how important this was to Claire and I thrive on photographic challenges so I had told “Sure, it’ll be no problem”.

The wedding day itself loomed rainy and overcast. "Well it won’t be raining down the mine" I told Diane as we left home, lol. We were due to start at The Sun Inn with some getting ready photos of Claire and bridesmaids and then up to the Museum to photograph
Stuart and the groomsmen arriving. By the time we’d finished at the Inn it had stopped raining but was still very cold. I had also noted three weeks ago that it gets even colder the further and deeper you go down the mine so I’d popped a fleece in the car in readiness.

The ceremony itself is held in the large function room adjacent to the museum. It looked very atmospheric adorned in the deep rich colours Claire had chosen. It was a civil ceremony and the registrar is someone I’ve worked with many times before so she was happy enough to
allow me complete freedom as she knows I’m very unobtrusive. You will find that most Edinburgh wedding photographers are known to the registrars as well as other celebrants and their previous reputation can have a considerable influence on what parameters they will be allowed.

I got some lovely images from the two front corners of the room during the ceremony and Diane grabbed a handful too from the back with the telephoto lens. When the register had been signed the bridal procession exited the room and out into the entrance courtyard for the dove release. I was asked to advise
on the best location for the release so I suggested the top of the museum’s outside stairs as then everyone would get a good view and also the photos would look good with an upwards angle as opposed to if we had been on the same level. I wanted to shoot with a fairly wide angle lens as I know that once released the doves fly off very quickly and if you’re inexperienced they can be out of frame as soon as you’ve fired off the first shot. With the wide lens I knew I’d get three good images of the dove inflight. I also had Diane use the telephoto to get a couple of close ups as well.

When the doves were up, up and away we were all back, back and inside as it was pretty chilly. I did Claire and Stuart’s group photographs first before we went down to the coal face, which only took about twenty minutes as is my custom. The plan was to go down to the deepest point with Claire and Stuart, her two bridesmaids and immediate family. And then on the way back up I was going to stop at a couple of locations to do some photographs with the newly weds.
When we got down to the coal face I found that it was even darker than when we had been here three weeks earlier. It was so dark in fact I couldn’t see a thing when looking through the camera viewfinder. I positioned the group at the shaft entrance that Claire had wanted and then stepped back in the confined space to take the shot. With the help of Diane I was using a two light set up but found it was so dark the camera couldn’t calculate the exposure or lock onto the subject so I had to quickly switch everything to manual and rely on my experience to guestimate the settings for myself. As you can see the photograph was spot on!
I did four different combinations with Claire’s family that she had requested and then we all hurried back upwards where it was a touch warmer. The last three images shown here are ones we stopped off for on the way up in different parts of the mine. I’m not sure if I’m the only Edinburgh wedding photographer who has taken a wedding party down to the coal face but I’m pretty sure there can’t be many, lol. Anyway I was absolutely delighted with how stunning and atmospheric the images look and can’t wait to receive Claire and Stuart’s selection list so I can start on their album design.

Wedding albums & wedding fairs

2011-02-18T06:37:00.000-08:00

Spring wedding fair season is now upon us keeping all of us professional Edinburgh wedding photographers busy. It’s a great opportunity to show off our albums and also chat with future brides and grooms about their wedding plan and idea’s. The first one for me is this Sunday at the Edinburgh Hilton Hotel and then I will be at Edinburgh’s largest wedding fair which is at the Corn Exchange beginning of March.
One thing I’ve learned as wedding photographer in Edinburgh is that you have to select which wedding fairs to exhibit at carefully. It’s impossible to do all of them even though it might be flattering to be invited. But so of them work and some don’t and some simply do not have the right atmosphere.

Its important when exhibiting at wedding fairs that as photographers we show real life weddings albums. It is quite common amongst part time wedding togs, or other photographers who don’t feel their full set of weddings photographs are too impressive, to use compilations albums. These are a mixture of photographs from several different weddings. If a photographer has photographed a number of weddings, even if he’s not too confident with his style and consistency, he can pick three or four of the best photographs from some of his weddings in order to fill an album. My personal opinion is that it is perhaps okay to have one compilationalbum if you want to say showcase your best award winning images, but the majority of albums you show to prospective clients really should be real life wedding albums to give an honest, genuine insight into the quality of your work and of course your photographic style. I am a great believer in letting the photographs speak for themselves.
Probably because I’m not much of a slick salesman, lol. But it’s really nice when couples tell me that as soon as they saw my work they knew I was the photographer for them!

I do a full range of weddings album from Traditional albums through to the latest Storybooks. One of my most popular albums is my Deluxe Image Book which sits in-between the two having a traditional wedding album look and feel but with Storybook style pages.
The vast majority of wedding photographers use popular template software to design their wedding albums. If you have visited some of the larger wedding fairs you may have noticed that many of the albums from different photographers do all look very much the same. If couples like the look and style of these then I am more than happy to do this for them, but I also like to do bespoke designed albums which are exclusive to each wedding. These are designed from a complete blank canvas and created with no templates at all, so it really is a case of creating something unique and special to each couple.

The albums come in all different shapes, sizes, looks and finishes so we are able to show quite a large product range at a wedding fair. It is also good to keep your sample albums up to date with recent weddings which is something I’ve been doing the last few weeks in preparation for the spring. I’m posting pictures of a few album pages from recent weddings I photographed last year and also a couple of my long time favourites.

I’m down the mine this Saturday as well for Claire and Stuart’s wedding. That’s the Scottish Mining Museum on the edge of Edinburgh. Claire’s father used to work in the mines here so she’s allowed to go down to the coal face for photographs. So we’ll really get something different! Hope I can clean all the coal off me in time for the Sunday wedding fair, lol.

As well as wedding fairs I’m doing quite a lot of portrait sessions at the moment, too. This is a nice off shoot from wedding photography, particularly at this time of year when the wedding season has yet to kick off fully. Many of these are clients who’s wedding I’ve photographed or perhaps family and friends so its nice to do some portrait work with them. I picked up a 'Silver' Award in the SWPP (Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers) a few months ago in the Children’s category so I didn’t think that was bad going for a wedding specialist, lol.

Anyway, if you currently planning a wedding, or want to book a portrait session, come along on Sunday to Hilton in Grosvenor Street and we’ll fix something up. Complimentary drinks and canapés throughout the afternoon too together with performances from the Rose Street Quartet.

Adverts, wedding recces and other stuff

2011-01-26T06:16:00.000-08:00

Well I can’t believe its coming up to the end of January! And, yes, I’m behind on my blogging already! Some things never change eh? lol Normally January is rather a quiet month for Edinburgh wedding photographers but this year it seems I’ve never stopped. Which of course I’m delighted about!
I’ve been running several portrait promotions and they’ve proved to be very popular. I’ve also been designing and updating my marketing and advertising as well as samples and albums.

January is usually the month for this as it’s a quiet month for weddings and gives the opportunity of getting everything spruced up for the spring wedding fair season which generally kicks off towards the end of February. There is of course a great many wedding photographers in Edinburgh so one of the things you are trying to do is make your adverts stand out and get your name out there as prominently as possible (like as in the New York picture, lol). I am in the fortunate position where most of my work comes from word of mouth and referrals, but of course advertising is important not just in attracting new clients but reminding the family and friends of previous and current clients that you are still around and available for them as well as giving folks the opportunity to see my range of albums and wedding books.

I will be at several wedding fairs in the spring starting with The Hilton Edinburgh on February 20th. I’ll tell you more about the others nearer the time. In the autumn I was the only the Edinburgh wedding photographer exhibiting at the Hilton but for this event I’ve also brought in an additional photographer just so we don’t disappoint visitors who’s wedding date is one that I’m already booked for.

I’ve also been doing a few wedding venue check’s too this month (there’s another excuse for my blogging tardiness) or as we togs prefer to call them “recce’s”. A couple of days ago I went down a mine for a wedding I have in February. Claire and Stuart’s wedding is on the 19th and they
have permission to go down the mine for photographs providing it’s okay with their photographer. Well, their photographer is me so of course it’s okay! lol Anyway I met up with Claire last Thursday and we went down to the coal face to check it out. Watch out for the photos next month.

I’ve also had two of my camera’s in for servicing this month as well. A very expensive business when you are a professional photographer. £280 is what I have to pay for one camera which includes a small repair. More than I paid for having my car serviced! Although pro camera’s are the price of cars these days so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Still don’t see why I shouldn’t be allowed to complain about it, lol. Anyway I’m all set and raring to go so if you know anyone looking for a wedding photographer in Edinburgh who is happy to travel anywhere (except Budapest after watching this weeks Silent Witness lol) tell them to give me a call.

Christine and Gary's snowy wedding

2010-12-16T07:25:00.000-08:00

Well when Christine and Gary booked me for their wedding back in January none of us imagined we were going to be doing a set of winter wonderland wedding photographs, but their wedding a fortnight ago was held amid the worst weather we have had in Scotland for a long, long time!
According to the news it was so bad that for the first time in history every single school in Edinburgh was closed at the same time. There certainly wasn’t going to be too many Edinburgh wedding photographers happy this week. I can imagine that the days running up to the wedding must have been rather worrying and stressful for both Christine and Gary and also their families. But as it happened we ended up with a glorious wedding and a fantastic set of photographs!

Because of the snow the church was rendered inaccessible so the ceremony was switched to Melville Castle.
Melville Castle itself had been virtually cut off for most of the week too but they brought a tractor come digger in on the Thursday to clear the driveway. It was also of great concern that I wouldn’t be able to get into Costa Coffee en route to the wedding, but the powers that be at Kinnaird Park arranged for the roads and car park to be cleared by tractor just in time enabling me to get in and pick up my cuppa as I drove over to Melville in the morning ;)

With the ceremony being moved to Melville Castle Christine was given a room there on the morning to get ready in which meant I could squeeze in a few pre-wedding shots of both Christine and her bridesmaids prior to going
through for the ceremony. I also did a quick session with Gary and the groomsmen too along the snow clad driveway and then a few different shots of Gary at the main entrance. The first picture posted here was one of my favourites with Gary and you can also see me (in the next pic) taking the shot too, courtesy of Christine’s sister, Jen, lol.

I got a series of images as Christine, father and bridesmaids came down the main staircase at Melville Castle on their way to the Ballroom for the ceremony. I always like to get a nice photograph of the bride with her father just before entering the ceremony room and coming down
the aisle, so as they descended I asked Christine and her father to pause briefly on the lower landing and I grabbed two nice shots before running ahead to take up position three quarters of the way down the aisle to photograph the procession.

For most of the ceremony I quietly worked in the corners of the room unobtrusively moving from one to the other to capture the facial expressions as we went through the declarations, vows and ring exchange. As the Ballroom is one of the grandest rooms at Melville Castle I always try to get a photograph right from the back at some point showing off the entire room with all the guests and families enjoying the ceremony. As I move around behind the couple
for this I take a second to silently straighten out the brides dress as it usually becomes bunched up from her walk down the aisle and the shot will look so much better if the dress is straightened and splayed out a touch over the red carpet. When I meet back up with couples after the wedding most of the brides say they didn’t notice me doing this and it’s not until seeing the photographs that they realise it. I always reply “Well you were kind of busy concentrating on something else at the time!” lol

Drinks and canapés were served in the hotel lobby following the ceremony, and after grabbing a quick shot of Gary and Christine chinking glasses I left them to mingle with their guests for a
few minutes while I cleared away the chairs and set up some lighting in the Ballroom for the group photographs. The Ballroom at Melville is perfect for group shots as it is so spacious and the light is fantastic! I use a couple of studio lights with shoot through umbrella’s which I have set to balance with the ambient light of the Ballroom. The large, ornate Ballroom windows all run along the south facing wall so if I didn’t balance out the lighting there would be a touch too much side light coming from the left handside, particularly at this time of year when the sun sets earlier in the afternoon.

When the group photographs were completed we went into the bride and groom session. Both Gary and Christine were keen to go outside for at least part of the time and get some photographs in the snow.
However, I started off with them inside the castle as I wanted to get the timing just right for outdoors. Despite being a very nice day it was still cold and I didn’t want them being outside for too long so I paced things to allow us to go outside just as the sun began to drop behind the tree line. The affect of the sun being so low in the sky was to cause a shimmering mist to ascend from the snow which gave me stunning backgrounds as it created an almost dry ice appearance rising dramatically behind them. There are two good examples shown here. In the photograph showing them walking along the snow clad track you can see how striking the angled sunlight is as it comes in from the right handside illuminating their faces and giving warmth and depth the image. The following shot is one of a sequence of head and shoulders where I asked them to look at me, then to look at each other and then to kiss. You can see the rising dry
ice affect I spoke of coming up from the snow and really giving them prominence and making them stand out from the background. Just as the sun was ready to touch the horizon I swung them around and moved in from the opposite side so the setting sun was directly behind their heads. This (the last photo) is my personal favourite image from their day. It is one from a set of four which also included them looking into camera as well.

Of course, the day didn’t end here. We also did the cake cutting, speeches, a few requests and then the first dance. So all in all, despite the concerns earlier in the week over the weather adversely affecting the wedding day it actually played a strong part in making the day more memorable and spectacular than any of us would have guessed back in January!

There are a lot of wedding photographers in Edinburgh, and indeed throughout the country, who decline to work the winter months because they say it gets dark too quickly and makes it too hard working in the difficult light conditions.
Well in my view they don’t know what they are missing out on. The shorter day light, winter months produce spectacular, atmospheric conditions that make for stunning photography and it is a delight to work at this time of year! There's certainly several photographs from this wedding that will make it into my portfolio! :)

Jenna and Michael, Melville Castle in the rain

2010-12-08T05:22:00.000-08:00

Well wedding photographers in Edinburgh are currently enjoying some beautiful winter wonderland weddings.
I had one last Saturday at Melville Castle, which I will tell you about very soon, and another one coming this Saturday, again at Melville Castle. But just before the snow descended upon the Scotland I enjoyed working at Jenna and Michael’s wedding at Melville Castle. I know, they really should give me a room there! lol

I first met Jenna and Michael at a wedding fair at Melville Castle earlier
in the year. We had a chat about their wedding, looked through some of my Melville Castle wedding albums and books and they were happy to book me there and then. The time seems to have flown by since!

On the wedding day, although the snow hadn’t yet arrived in Edinburgh, we were in the middle of non stop dreaky rain.
My spell checker is trying it’s hardest to tell me there is no such word as 'dreaky' but I cant think of a more perfect word to describe the weather. Not only was it raining but the skies were a dull, dreakieeeee, yucky grey. When I arrived at Melville the rain actually took a mini break so I managed to grab a couple of minutes with Michael and the groomsmen outside at the main entrance. But we wouldn’t get back outside for any more photos.
I know rain on your wedding day is always one of the brides biggest fears but it is something I never really worry about as far as the photographs are concerned as I always have contingency plans for bad weather days.

All Edinburgh wedding photographers like working here but as Melville Castle’s most frequented photographer I’ve come to know all the little nooks and crannies that allow for great
images as well of course becoming familiar with the varying lighting conditions of all the grand rooms. Because I’m here so regularly as well as having done a lot of the photography for Melville Castle’s brochures, website and other marketing literature I know the managers and staff very well and I’m granted a lot of leeway other photographers probably aren’t.

As usual I had arrived early which gave me time to request the Hotel to allow me to do all the formal group shots in the Ballroom, which is where the ceremony was being held. The lighting in the Ballroom is superb, which you may remember from Natalie and Billy’s wedding a few months ago when it rained and I used the Ballroom for their group shots.
Once the ceremony was concluded the staff brought everyone out into the main lobby for drinks and canapes and started clearing the chairs from the Ballroom to allow me back in for the photographs.

For Jenna and Michael’s bride and groom session I did a few photographs of them around the main lobby after we’d finished the group photographs in the Ballroom. Melville Castle’s lobby is full of character and really does epitomize the history of this medieval stronghold with its huge ornate ceilings, hanging chandeliers and marble pillars. It’s no wonder Mary Queen of Scot’s enjoyed visiting so much! I worked with Michael and Jenna around the lobby using the fireplace, the luxurious leather chairs and the marble pillars as props, décor and backdrops to several different photographs before we headed right up to the top of staircase to finish off.

Jenna and Michael had also requested a Big Group photograph of all the guests. Normally a photographer will do this outside as he not only needs enough space to fit everyone in, but also a high vantage point in order to see everyone’s faces in the shot. At Melville Castle I usually do the Big Group in front of the fountain situated on the castle front lawn where I can shoot from the first floor Dining Room window. At Natalie and Billy’s wedding the rain actually cleared up later in the afternoon and permitted me to do this, but today it was quite apparent the rain wasn’t going to play ball so I did the shot in the Castle lobby and I hung over the staircase. I usually like to position the bride and groom centrally with their family close around them at the front. Its then easy enough to move the other friends into position around and behind them. I know a lot of wedding photographers try and steer away from doing a Big Group as they feel there is too much organised chaos with it. But to be honest I really like it as it isn’t particularly too hard getting everyone into place as long as you are nice and relaxed and friendly, and it really does make a great keepsake for the couple having a photograph with all their family and friends and guests together.

Jenna and Michael had booked me up until their wedding breakfast so we made this the last shot of the day which allowed everyone to then head straight up the stairs to the Dining Room to enjoy their meal.

Paula and Gordon Corstorphine Church

2010-11-23T03:29:00.000-08:00

Busy time of the year just now for portrait sessions with the run up to crimbo as well as a frenzy of print orders which require delivery before xmas. I’ve had two more weddings
since I last blogged, a couple of days down in Newcastle meeting with couples getting married there next year and then the Masonic Ladies Festival at Melville Castle on Saturday. Also delivered Paula and Gordon’s wedding album a few days ago, too, so here’s a bit about how their day went...

Paula and Gordon got married in a Tardis like church in Corstorphine and then back to Houston House for the reception. I had never been inside the Old Corstorphine Parish church until the morning of the wedding day. A few weeks earlier I had been out to have a look at it and noted how small it was, however, on entering the church itself I was amazed at how elegant and grand it is on the inside, and how it is ten times bigger inside than out! I think the minister must go time travelling in it! lol
Anyway, not only did it have plenty of grandeur and character but also a tiny balcony that the minister allowed us access to which meant Diane could take photos from above whilst I remained down at floor level. As it happened when I received Paula and Gordon’s album photograph selection list Diane was delighted to see that from the ceremony they’d chosen nearly as many of her photographs as mine. Fortunately, she hasn’t yet asked for a raise. Phew! The minister was Moira McDonald who I have worked with on previous weddings at other venues and is easily the nicest Church of Scotland minister in Edinburgh. I hadn’t realised she was the minister here so it was a pleasant surprise to discover this was her church. As usual she took a really nice ceremony and I was able to capture some lovely relaxed, natural shots of Gordon and Paula as they went through their declarations, vows, ring exchange, etc.
I took a few wide shots too to show the impressive church interior.

A few years ago when I was more involved with editorial and commercial work I picked up regular commissions from Heritage magazine, Best of British, Scottish Memories and Choice magazine where I was sent around the country photographing some of our most famous historical Castles, Palaces and Stately Homes. From those assignments I learnt the importance of working with mixed and low light levels without destroying the striking atmosphere and ambience of these ancients buildings. Nowadays, whilst I am happy to photograph a wedding at any venue whatsoever, I think the reputation I established through my magazine work is one of the reasons such a lot of my wedding bookings are for Castles.
When their ceremony was concluded we headed off to Houston House where we’d arranged to do the formals. I grabbed a quick shot of the newly weds as they left the church, pausing them briefly at the church gates alongside their piper and then once more
besides their wedding car and then we were all off along the A8 to Houston House. As an Edinburgh wedding photographer I always enjoy Houston House as there’s so many great locations throughout the gardens for beautiful photographs.

Upon arrival at Houston House the family and guests enjoyed a
glass or two of champagne and then we ran through the family group shots. When these were finished we took Gordon and Paula for a stroll around the beautiful gardens. I set up a couple of shots under the magnificent oak tree initially then as we moved from their across to the old courtyard I ran ahead and photographed some completely natural images as they walked through the gardens just enjoying their first quiet time alone together after the ceremony.
Whilst my wedding photography style is predominantly photojournalistic with the bride and groom session being natural and relaxed I also took a few classic style portraits as I knew these would look elegant and beautiful in the traditional wedding album that Gordon and Paula had ordered. One of my favourites is the black and white photograph posted here, I just love the top and side lighting on this image. All three wedding speakers did a great job following the meal and we got a nice set of photographs, including Gordon’s Heart’s joke’ lol. Then we finished up with some informal pictures as the guests laughed and joked and finished off their drinks.

One of the many things I enjoy about my work is delivering the wedding album. I get an enormous amount of job satisfaction when the seeing the delight on my couples faces as they look through their album.
That’s why whenever possible I like to deliver the album personally. For couples who have come from afar and from oversea’s this is obviously not possible, but for everyone else it’s an absolute delight! I also received this week a beautiful Thank You card from Paula and Gordon so I have to say a 'thank you' back for the lovely comments. It has actually reminded me that I haven’t up dated my Testimonials for a while so over the holiday period I’m going to pull out my box of 2010 Thank You cards and update my webpage.

Gillian and Gary at Craighouse

2010-11-11T05:38:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago I was talking about the forthcoming changes at one of Edinburgh’s finest wedding venues, Craighouse. It’s owners, Napier University, have put it up for sale and it’s highly unlikely it will be used for weddings once sold. Edinburgh wedding photographers who have worked here will lose a very fine venue indeed as there are literally
scores of beautiful locations in and around the grounds for great wedding photographs. Now funnily enough at the Corn Exchange wedding fair last Saturday and Sunday our stand was right opposite Napier’s Craighouse stand and on the Sunday their marketing and sales manager came across to see me and asked me to come in for a meeting with a view to putting together a showcase wedding album for them.

Does this mean a reprieve for Craighouse? Sadly, no. But despite being up for sale it will continue to function as a wedding venue until 2013. Hence, the reason they are interested in updating their marketing materials and promotional images. Of course, I’m delighted they asked me to do this for them and looking forward to getting to work on it. On our way home from the wedding fair I was musing to Diane
why, out of all the wedding photographers in Edinburgh who have worked at Craighouse they picked me? I surmised that it must be due to meeting and seeing me in person throughout the wedding fair on the Sunday that they were impressed by my handsome good looks and charming personality. However, Diane informed me that no, it was because on the
Saturday she had shown them some photos from the last wedding we had photographed at Craighouse and they absolutely loved them! Hmm, I’m not sure whether to feel elated or disappointed, lol.

Anyway, the last wedding we photographed at Craighouse was Gillian and Gary’s just a few weeks ago. We had an absolutely amazing day and Gillian and Gary were superb to
work with! I started off doing some shots with Gary and groomsmen around the courtyard for a few minutes just before everyone was taken through to be seated for the ceremony followed by a couple of quick photographs of Gillian’s mother and two bridesmaids prior to Gillian and her father arriving. The wedding car was a beautiful vintage Jaguar and so as well as getting a picture of Gillian and her
father in the back of the car as it came to a stop I also posed them by the car for a couple of photos and then brought in the two bridesmaids and flower girl for a shot of them all by the car. I also paused father and bride at the main Craighouse entrance for a nice portrait too before running ahead and photographing the bridal party making their way up the staircase, along the corridors and then finally down
the aisle.

The rooms at Craighouse are so large there’s plenty of space for me to move around and get photographs from either side of the bride and groom throughout the ceremony. This is nice as it allows me to photograph both their faces as they say their vows and declarations to each other. There’s also a huge bay window right behind the celebrant which I can back into for wide angle shots. When it comes to signing the
register the bride and groom are often seated at a table in front of this window which makes for a nice variety of photographs, too.

Following the ceremony everyone took their drinks out onto the balcony that overlooks the south side of the city. Not only are there superb panoramic views across the city but also plenty of space for a Big Group shot, which I think I’ve done at every wedding I’ve photographed here. It’s also an ideal place for the
formal group photographs as well as you can place the groups in the shade of the building where the light is nice and soft. The wedding car had been booked to stay on for a little while after the ceremony so when we finished the formals I took Gary and Gillian down to the car for some photos before the driver finished up for the day.

For the bride and groom session we made the most of Craighouse’s beautiful marble
staircase. We did a few classic poses at the foot of the stairs, which will look gorgeous in the elegant traditional wedding album Gillian and Gary have ordered, and then some more relaxed informal and fun shots around the courtyard before taking a short walk down to the small row of trees further down the drive. I really love it here as I can move around and change my backgrounds and angles creating a great
variety of images literally within a few seconds. We did a mix of fun, romantic and contemporary photographs and also made the most of the blustery wind, lol.

Following the meal we had the speeches. Lots of great photographs here. Especially with five speakers. Yes that’s right. Father of the bride, Gary, two bestmen and then a few words from Gillian herself who also had a special presentation for Gary
of a Gold, Olympic style medal, with the words “For having the Patience of a Saint. With Love, your wife” engraved on the back.

Everyone ambled back through to the balcony and the Queens Room afterwards for a few drinks and laughter before we were all back into the Turmeau Hall for the cutting of the cake which then lead into the first dance. All in all another fantastic Craighouse wedding! Hopefully I’ll get a few more here before it gets sold.

Melville Castle weddings, fairs and weddings

2010-11-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

Well as usual I’m dropping behind on my blogging lol. We’re right in the middle of wedding fair season so together with photographing weddings and working on album designs things are pretty busy, which I like :) So that’s my excuse regarding the blog anyway!

The day after Zena and Scott’s wedding I was at Melville Castle’s wedding fair, followed by Ravelston House Hotel and Debenhams the week after. And then it’s the big one for Edinburgh at the Corn Exchange this Saturday and Sunday. As Debenhams and Ravelston House were on the same afternoon Diane and myself split up and she did Debenhams while I went to Ravelston House. Both of these were slightly smaller than Melville Castle’s and therefore not quite as busy.

I have to say a big thank you to everyone who came to see me at Melville Castle. Both old friends and new. I’m the only Edinburgh wedding photographer who is allowed to have display albums permanently out at Melville Castle so many couples who have visited Melville Castle looking for a wedding venue have had a good look through them and then seek me out for a chat about their own wedding photography. I was thrilled that so many had come through to the wedding fair especially to see me! I was right in the back corner of the pavilion this time, next to Robert McLaughlin. Along with myself Robert is also Melville Castle’s recommended photographer as based through in Glasgow he does a lot of work for their sister hotels, Airth Castle and Glenbervie. Despite being in the far corner I had plenty of new visitors coming over and chatting too and it really was a great afternoon!

It was nice to meet again with a number of couples who have already booked me for their wedding at Melville Castle and had come along to the wedding fair for another look around of their venue and make bookings with some of the other suppliers. One of these was Jenna who’s wedding is tomorrow at Melville Castle, so I’m looking forward to that very much! Many visitors were also wanting to hear all about how well Zena’s wedding had gone the day before, too and I will be sure to pass on to her all your kind comments and interest. I must also say thank you to Gillian and Paul, Karen and Norman and Lisa and Richard for booking me on the day too.

The two photographs posted here I used as display prints at the wedding fair. One is actually used by Melville Castle for the front cover of their brochure and you may also have noticed on the large banner advertising the wedding fair. I’ve done an infrared black and white conversion to the original colour version which I think gives it a bit extra impact. The other image is one that has now become my most requested Melville Castle wedding photograph after I first did this shot at Liz and Bruce’s wedding three years ago. Because it is so timeless it’s the kind of photograph that will never become dated. And yes, Jenna and Michael want this shot tomorrow too, lol.

If you are planning on coming along to the Corn Exchange at the weekend Diane will be on our stand Saturday and then we’ll both there on the Sunday. I’m not the only Edinburgh wedding photographer exhibiting so you’ll get chance to compare albums and wedding books against other wedding photographers and decide which of us you’d like to entrust with the photography of your un-repeatable day.

Zena and Scott's wedding, Barony Castle

2010-10-27T02:33:00.000-07:00

So here’s the plan. Get to Barony Castle for 12 noon for photographs with Scott and the groomsmen, who will all be adorned in their finest kilts, around the castle entrance. That allows plenty of time to drive into Eddlestone and get to the Horseshoe Inn where Zena and her bridesmaids will be ready for 12.30 for some nice pre-wedding portraits.
Then I’m to go up the road to the church for 1pm and photograph Scott and the guys arriving with a few informal shots too before Zena and the bridesmaids arrive for the 1.30pm ceremony.

So I leave in plenty of time, picking up my coffee from costa to sip on the drive down, and arrive at Barony Castle for 11.30am. I came down last week for a good look around but I still like to do a quick double check that nothings changed. Which I did, and it hadn‘t! lol. So I’m in the lobby awaiting Scott and his bestman and two groomsmen at the appointed time of 12 noon. When no one shows up I talk a walk along to Scott’s room. Scott was stood out in the corridor talking to his bestman so we see each other as soon as I turn the corner into the corridor. He’s still in his jeans and t-shirt! So is the bestman! We both burst out laughing!

We have a chat for a few minutes and decide that as it’s pouring down with rain anyway we’ll skip the 'guys outside the castle' photos and I’ll meet him up at the church just before 1pm. This is fine as it will give me a little extra time with Zena and the bridesmaids at the Inn, which has plenty of rooms for inside photographs so we don’t need worry about the rain. However, when I arrive there I find she too is nowhere near ready, lol.

This is fairly typical of a wedding day where the best laid plans seldom work out 100% accurately. Zena was full apologies but I assured her I was used to it and she had nothing to worry about. I got some shots of the wedding dress while I was there which we wouldn’t have got if everything had gone strictly to plan anyway. I very much like to photograph the day naturally, as it unfolds so I’m never fazed by anything that does, or does not happen, or deviates from the scheduled order.Zena and Scott’s wedding was the first wedding for quite some time where I was actually there as a guest as well as their photographer. Those of you who read my blog regularly will know that Zena runs Ivory White Events, who specialise in chair covers and other wedding decoration throughout Edinburgh and the Borders. I first met Zena a few years ago now when we both were asked by Melville Castle to become recommended suppliers for them. Since then we’ve worked together many times and become good friends. We both have very similar business ideals too, in that together with supplying a high quality product and service we believe in good old fashioned customer care.

Barony Castle is a well known wedding venue amongst wedding photographers in Edinburgh being only half an hour drive away from the capital, so I certainly wasn’t the first Edinburgh wedding photographer to work there. But not many folks get married in Eddleston Parish Church. I think I heard the minister say they only have two or three weddings a year. So that was something a bit different. When I went up the road it had stopped raining so the shots we’d planned to do with Scott and the guys earlier at Barony we did in the church grounds instead. I also got a few informal photographs has different guests arrived and of Scott and the bestman awaited news of the imminent arrival of the bride.

It was still dry when Zena arrived too. She had planned to walk up the hill from the Inn to the church, but had a car on stand by just in case it was too wet, so I was pleased for her that that worked out as she had hoped. As I usually like to do I paused her with her father in the church doorway for a quick full length and close up photograph, and then added in the two bridesmaids either side for a group shot. After that I ran ahead and took up my favoured position about three quarters up the aisle to photograph father and bride as they walk up the aisle.The ceremony went over beautifully! I was located in a row of empty pews at the front, to the right of the proceedings so was able to get some lovely shots of the two of them throughout the service. I also snuck around during one of the hymns for a shot from the back of the church, tidying up the back of Zena’s dress I did so. I do this all the time actually, but its one of those things that in the hustle and bustle of the day often isn’t thought about until afterwards when you look back through the photos. Every brides dress once they’ve arrived at the front of the church besides their groom is bunched up at the back after there walk up the aisle and a few twists and turns as the minister moves them into position. The photo from the back of the church is often very dramatic, particularly when there is an ornate, stained glass window rising up behind them. And the shot bugs me if the brides dress is all bunched! lolWhen the service was over the minister took the whole bridal party into the church closet for the signing of the register. Naturally I followed them in…or at least tried too. The closet was so small we could hardly fit the family in never mind me. But fortunately I was able to move a mop out from the corner and steal its place. After Scott and Zena and their witnesses had signed the minister allowed me to wriggle my way in front of the table to take the official ‘signing of the register’ photos. One of my camera’s has a wide angle lens on it for situations like this where you are tight for room (as quite a lot of ministers seem to favour signing the register in a closet) so I was not only able to get photographs of Scott and Zena, but also we squeezed the two witnesses and both sets of parents into a couple of shots too.The main group photographs and the confetti shot were done outside the church and then we were all heading back to Barony Castle. The weather was still dry and we had hoped to be able to go for some photographs alongside the river and out to the gazebo, so we decided to leave other group photos until later and go off with Zena and Scott right away. I did a quick change of clothes because there was a couple of shots I’d earmarked on my recce last week that meant clambering over a fence and across a muddy field and out into the river to get the right angle and vantage point. Don’t worry I’m meaning ME not Zena!

The autumn colours were superb and we got a great set of different photographs as we walked along and then inside and outside the gazebo. I positioned Zena by a fence that ran over a tiny waterfall, and also placed Scott in the gazebo entrance off in the background behind her. I then ran down stream a little ways, clambered over the afore mentioned fence, tramped across the sodden grass and arrived at the river bank. There is this stone wall thing that protrudes out into the river and by walking out onto it I was able to get to a unique vantage point where I could see Zena standing above the falls with the gazebo in behind her and Scott casually leaning in its entrance. I then took the shot which you can see posted with a telephoto lens, which I think has worked out really well and was worth all the effort.

The photograph you see with one of the castle turrets rising behind the bride and groom was one of the last I took before getting back into my suit for the wedding breakfast. I had to lay on the ground with the camera angled sharply up to create the exaggerated effect. This was another image I’d earmarked from last weeks visit and an another reason for the old clothes. Although Diane will tell you I do this type of shot quite regularly even without old clothes! lol

Speeches were before dinner and between Diane and myself we came away with a good variety of pictures. I would have
got more but the bestman cut his speech down a lot as a bat entered the room and flitted around the tables for several minutes before finally exiting after the hotel staff opened up a door. That was certainly one unique trick to save extensive embarrassment, Scott ;)

During the evening I did a few more groups requested by the family amongst my usual informal, reportage photographs. Also the cutting of the cake and of course the first dance. I finished up around quarter to nine as I had Melville Castle’s wedding fair to get ready for the following morning, which I’ll tell you more about next time. Scott and Zena’s private wedding gallery went online Monday evening and they’ll get their disc full of all the photographs as soon as they get back from honeymoon. I have to say a big Thank You to Scott and Zena and their families for inviting me and enjoying such a wonderful day and meeting so many of their other friends. I can’t wait to get to work on your album design!

The Edinburgh Wedding Fair

2010-10-15T04:01:00.000-07:00

Well what a great afternoon we all had on Sunday with the first Edinburgh Wedding Fair at the Edinburgh Hilton Hotel! I exhibit at many wedding fairs in Scotland and the North of England but this was the first time I’ve been involved in organising the event itself. As you know from a couple of previous blogs my aim was to put on a fresh and different kind of wedding fair that focused on quality and genuine interest in couples planning their big day. I was delighted how well everything turned out and especially the reaction and comments from all of our visitors. I don’t think I’ve ever been at a wedding fair where so many couples made a point of going over to the hotel staff and saying a big thank you for such an enjoyable and pleasurable afternoon.

"Thank you for the afternoon. This is was the nicest atmosphere of any wedding fair I’ve ever been to". "This was the friendliest wedding fair we’ve been to". "This was so different to the wedding fairs we visited last week and yesterday. They were manic. We are so glad we came". "The quality just jumped right out at you". These were just some of the comments that were made by visitors. Needless to say the Hilton were thrilled! And of course me too, lol.

Although the wedding fair started at noon, for me the day began at 7am as I had to be there first to check everything was set up and laid out and that all the exhibitor requirements were ready too. Rhona and Zena, from Flowers by Rhona and Ivory White Events, were in shortly after me as they were doing the decorations, chair covers and floral arrangements. I also had to be ready for a Fashion Show briefing and rehearsal with the bridal company, DJ and the models at 10.15.

Do you remember me telling you about Natalie’s wedding last month? Yes, she was the one with the twenty six bridesmaids ;) Well she and the bridesmaids had been so great throughout the wedding photography I asked them if they’d like to model for the catwalk show. They were absolutely thrilled! As was Julie-ann who’s wedding I photographed back in May. We opened the Fashion Show at 2.30pm with a performance from Pandy Arthur, who in my opinion is the finest wedding solo-ist around, accompanied by the Rose Street Quartet and then the girls came out and did their stuff with the bridal couture of Maida Veil. Everyone was fantastic! And if any of the girls are reading this, which I know they are lol, let me tell you that amongst the comments given to the hotel were several compliments about how enjoyable the fashion show had been and how well you had all done! So a big thank you once again! And by the way…the flowers were from me, even though some one else snuck in and gave you them! lol

The Hilton are now wanting me back in for a meeting next Wednesday to discuss making this a regular, twice yearly event. So look out for the next one probably towards the end of February. I’ve also been contacted by an event company down in the north east of England who put on some of the most popular wedding fairs in the region and are looking for a wedding photographer to run a Wedding Photography Master Class along the lines of “How to look great in your wedding photographs” for the brides and grooms who visit. This would involve giving me a dedicated area where we set up a small digital studio and then doing a twenty minute class covering posing and camera confidence tips with practical demonstrations and a Q&A session. It also means couple’s who wish can have a professional portrait done on the day. As my family live in the Newcastle area I photograph quite a few weddings in the North of England already so not only will this be beneficial to the north east couples but will also give additional promotion to the Newcastle Wedding Photography side of my business. And of course it’s an idea I’ll discuss with the Hilton about incorporating into our next wedding fair here. I would love to hear any comments or opinions on what you think about this idea.

A few other wedding events are coming up soon too. Melville Castle’s autumn wedding fair is on the 24th (the day after Zena’s wedding, yikes! lol) and then I’ve been asked to be the exclusive Edinburgh wedding photographer at the Ravelston Hotel wedding fair on the 31st. So please come along if you haven’t already booked me. You are also welcome to come along if you have already booked me too of course, lol. And if anyone wants to bring me along a coffee from costa I’ll do you a real good discount off your wedding photography package, providing its still hot ;)

Hope to see you soon.
Philip Hawkins
Wedding Photographer Edinburgh
Wedding Photographer Newcastle

Wedding Fairs and the end of Craighouse

2010-10-06T08:57:00.000-07:00

Well October is a busy month for wedding events in the capital of Scotland such as wedding fairs and shows, wedding weekends and wedding open days. I get invited to many of these events but as a photographer I cannot do all of them so I have to be selective about which ones I’ll attend and exhibit at. I’ve always endeavoured to go for quality events where I feel there is genuine value for couples planning their wedding.

Many of the wedding fairs, especially the large ones, are organised by companies looking to make a profit from the event itself rather than actually having the interests of the wedding couples at heart. They do this by charging an exhibitor fee from the suppliers and also an entrance fee from the visitors with a portion of this income used to advertise the event. It is for this reason they try to cram as many exhibitors into the floor space as possible as the bulk of their revenue is from the suppliers who may be paying anything from £500 to £2000 and upwards for their stand and exhibitor space. There often seems to be no actual vetting of the companies other than their willingness to pay, so the priority ends up being quantity over quality.

I note with interest that many of the shows that operate on this basis have seen quite a drop in visitor interest this month. Others planned and advertised for the near future have actually ended up being cancelled altogether! I also know some wedding suppliers who were recently contacted just days before a recent event and offered huge discounted rates as the organisers were desperately trying to fill all their stands. To be honest this does not surprise me as I’ve felt for a long time events like this do not serve the interests of the wedding sector at all. They have diminished value for the suppliers and are not a great source of help to couples planning their weddings either.

Anyway as many of you know from past blog posts this Sunday see’s the new, fresh Edinburgh Wedding Fair which I have been involved in organising in partnership with The Hilton Edinburgh. Based heavily on quality over quantity you will not find fourteen Edinburgh wedding photographers and eight cake makers and six florists, etc but instead we have a total of twenty of the very best wedding experts and suppliers across twenty wedding categories. So it will be possible for visitors to book or obtain sound advice on every major wedding category. As well of course as having a lot of fun and picking up loads of idea’s for their own big day. Check back next week to see how it all went.

The other major wedding news in the Scottish capital this week concerned Craighouse. You may recall in one of my posts last year I said I had heard Napier University were going to sell off Craighouse. At the time this wasn’t confirmed, it was just inside information I had picked up ;) but it was announced on the Scottish News a few days ago that Napier has now put Craighouse up for sale. As a wedding photographer in Edinburgh this is one venue I will definitely miss working at, and I know many other Edinburgh wedding photographers feel the same. It stands on an elevated hill overlooking the city with a host of beautiful nooks and crannies making for superb photographs as well as its commanding outlook over Edinburgh. The feeling is it will be bought up by property developers so it really does look likely we’ve seen the last weddings here.

I’ve photographed several weddings at Craighouse and I still have one more to blog about very soon. All the photographs I’m posting today are from Craighouse weddings and if you check back in a couple of weeks there will be some new ones from Gillian and Gary’s wedding, too.

If you are currently in the throes of planning a wedding then please do not miss Sunday’s wedding fair at the Hilton. There will be some amazing offers and promotions including the chance to win an Engagement photo shoot at the Hilton followed by a romantic meal for two and a voucher for £200 off your wedding video in the free prize draw! Alongside the exclusive Catwalk Show we have performances from the sublime Pandy Arthur and the unbelievable Magic Woody, one of Scotland’s most finest wedding entertainers. Plus you can enjoy complimentary drinks and canapés with our special guest. Hope to see you then.

Natalie and Billy's wedding, Melville Castle

2010-09-21T05:23:00.000-07:00

Any Edinburgh wedding photographer will tell you that one of the most invigorating sights is winding your way along the secluded, sweeping driveway of Melville Castle and then coming around a delicate bend and catching your first glimpse of the beautiful Castle. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been here and the amount of weddings I’ve photographed at Melville in recent years, but I always love that inimitable first glimpse which never fails to heighten my enthusiasm for the wedding I’m here to photograph!

Natalie and Billy’s wedding was to be in the new pavilion at Melville Castle which accommodates wedding parties too large for the main castle. However, my photography would start in the castle itself as Natalie and her twenty six bridesmaids were all getting ready there. I was booked for six hours wedding coverage, which is one of most popular choices, that would commence half an hour before the ceremony through until the cake cutting at 8pm. As I drew up at the castle entrance I could hear the fun and laughter emanating from Natalie’s room where all the girls were getting ready. No surprise really, I thought, having twenty six bridesmaids, six flower girls and six page boys!

I did a few shots with Billy and his bestman in front of the castle and also we did a walk through with him and all the groomsmen along the driveway, too. I finished up with a quick set of photos of Billy himself once again at the castle entrance. It has such great character the entrance of Melville Castle that enables you to frame the subject in the doorway at a couple of different angles and get some really classic and fashionable images. One of the tips I’ve learnt from photographing weddings at Melville Castle so often is to turn off the automatic glass lobby doors. This stops them from constantly opening and shutting as people pass the sensor and ensures a good, clear, consistent background. I always switch them off in the open position too as otherwise you will see the reflection of the photographer in the glass if you look carefully.

After doing the shots with Billy I went along to Natalie’s room. She was in the latter stages of having her dress laced up, which always makes for some nice, informal photographs. So I took a few photos from the corners of the room as the bridesmaids applied the finishing touches. We also got a couple of nice pictures of the young flower girls as well, one of whom was Natalie and Billy’s beautiful daughter. Of course, I was pulling your leg earlier when saying there was twenty six bridesmaids. There was only six. But I’m sure you get the point, eh? ;)

When everyone was ready I ran ahead for photographs of the girls coming down the Melville Castle staircase. Bridesmaids came first, as you can see in one of the photos here, followed by Natalie and her father. At the foot of the stair I quickly positioned Natalie and her dad in the main lobby between the two ornate pillars for a nice father and daughter portrait. As usual I did a full length and close up. We then all ran across to the pavilion trying not to get too wet in pouring rain.

If you read my blogging of Yvonne and Craig’s wedding you’ll know the two shots I’m after now. However, first off is photographing the bridesmaids coming up the aisle with the flower girls and page boys. In my pre-wedding discussions I already knew they were going to do it in three stages. Two bridesmaids with one flower girl and page boy, followed by two bridesmaids, and then the last two bridesmaids with two more page boys and flower girl. I positioned myself three quarters of the way up the aisle which was ideal for getting a nice set of photographs as they all came down. And then of course I took the picture that’s posted here of Natalie and her father as they came down after all the bridesmaids.

With the aisle in the Melville Castle pavilion being so long I did a bit of cheating on getting the shot of the groom looking back up the aisle and catching his first glimpse of his new bride by getting Diane to shoot from the wings with a telephoto lens. We’d arranged that she would concentrate primarily on getting the shot of Billy whilst I would concentrate on Natalie. We do this quite regularly but professional pride still makes me grab my own shot of groom too, lol. Anyway, I’m showing you one from the set Diane took as Billy and Natalie chose one of her images for their album. (Please don’t tell her as she’ll ask for a rise!)

Because it was still pouring with rain we went into the castle’s Ballroom to do the group photographs. The light in the Melville Castle Ballroom is always superb. It’s one of my favourite rooms of all the Scottish castle’s and I know several other wedding photographers in Edinburgh who agree. It took about twenty minutes to do all the different family grouping and combinations and low and behold just as we finished the rain stopped and out came some glorious sun! So after a quick session on the staircase with the newly weds I took them out for ten minutes around the castle grounds getting them back in plenty time for their wedding breakfast piped entrance.

We photographed the speeches, which occurred before the meal, and then when the wedding breakfast was over combined the photojournalistic photography with some group requests, then concluding with Natalie and Billy cutting the wedding cake. If you think Natalie’s wedding photography is now over well you might be in for a surprise. Make sure you keep checking back here regularly and you never know, perhaps you’ll see her in a new set of wedding pics complete with new dress! Now that’s got you intrigued hasn’t it? lol

Back at Auchen Castle for the smallest wedding ever!

2010-09-13T07:42:00.000-07:00

A couple of years ago I had my smallest ever wedding at Airth Castle. This was Jo and Julian who had come up from England with their two witnesses and this was the sum total of their wedding party. At the time I thought it was the smallest wedding party I would ever photograph as every bride and groom by law require two witnesses, hence a minimum requirement of four people. But, not so! I was back at Auchen Castle, for the second time in two months, for Alisha and Michael’s wedding. Total number in wedding party - two! Bride and groom only!

Now you are probably wondering then what about their two witnesses? Well, they abducted a member of staff from Auchen Castle and the second one was me! As it was just the two of them they only required about two hours of photography so at least that meant I wouldn’t have to do a speech! lol

Alisha and Michael were over from Texas and not only was it my smallest ever wedding but also the shortest notice ever I’d had. They arrived in Scotland on Monday and not having any local knowledge simply asked Auchen Castle to recommend a photographer, who after seeing the photographs from the wedding I shot here a few weeks ago, passed on my number to them. I got a call fairly soon afterwards asking me if I would photograph their wedding on Wednesday! Being mid-week I was able to re-arrange a couple of things and was delighted to be travelling down on Wednesday morning.

I’ve mentioned many times before that every wedding is different, and that is one of the reasons why I enjoy my work so much. And it was an absolute pleasure to share the day with this lovely couple. On arrival at Auchen Castle we initially spent some time chatting and doing the paperwork and then we started with some very relaxed and informal photographs, which of course fitted the type of wedding perfectly. When they were just about ready Michael went down to meet the local minister and I took the opportunity to do a few bridal portraits with Alisha. I then accompanied her down into the ceremony room photographing as we went along.

Throughout the ceremony I photographed in my usual reportage style from the corners of the room. The last wedding I photographed here was Kate and Dave’s wedding and the room had been quite full so it was a rare luxury on this occasion to have the entire room at my disposal. Of course, I was unable to get a photograph of myself signing the register though! lol

As an Edinburgh wedding photographer I’ve worked at some of the finest Scottish Castle’s and venue’s throughout Scotland and it was excellent being back at Auchen Castle. And having the entire place to ourselves was just amazing! We basically took a nice relaxing walk around the grounds, enjoying our idyllic surroundings, and I shot a mix of posed and informal photographs as we did so.

Alisha and Michael were going to have their wedding reception with family and friends upon their return to the States. They are planning to show all their wedding photographs at the reception by way of a slideshow on a large screen. All my wedding photography packages include the photographs on DVD copyright free. I know many wedding photographers in Edinburgh don’t like to do this but it is something I’ve always done as I believe it offers great value for money. As Alisha and Michael would be travelling around on their last few days in Scotland I’ll be sending their photographs directly to Texas so they should coincide with their arrival home.

My next wedding is going to be something completely different! From my smallest wedding ever I’m going to one of the largest! This is Natalie and Billy’s wedding at Melville Castle. Six bridesmaids, six flower girls, six page boys and six hundred guests. If you think I’m exaggerating be sure to check back next week ;)

Yvonne and Craig's wedding, Minto Hotel

2010-09-06T06:45:00.000-07:00

Well I was back at the Minto Hotel in Edinburgh for the second time this year for the wedding of Yvonne and Craig. You’ll recall I was here back in March for Fiona and Keith’s wedding. Please note this was a different Fiona and Keith to the Fiona and Keith I blogged about at the beginning of August who were married at Melville Castle. Yes, I know, having two Fiona and Keith’s could easily get confusing, lol. However, both Fiona and Keith’s weddings were such great fun I would love to have a third so I tell you what I’ll do - if you are a Fiona and Keith shortly to be requiring an awesome Edinburgh wedding photographer specializing in Fiona and Keith’s I’ll give you a £150 discount off your wedding photography package if you book me to photograph your wedding! Now that’s a pretty cool offer isn’t it? lol Anyway, getting back to Yvonne and Craig.

The Minto Hotel sits in the heart of Edinburgh in Minto Street (wow, another amazing coincidence!) not too far from my home (Yay!). When Fiona and Keith came here in March they came for their reception having been married in a nearby church, but for Yvonne and Craig the whole event was to be held at the Minto itself, and if the weather held up we’d have an outdoor ceremony. I was booked for 6 hours photography, which is one of my most popular wedding photography attendances, which would cover the ceremony and into the evening reception up until the first dance. Yvonne was getting ready at the Hotel but we’d arranged to do a little cheating and sneak her out to Craig’s wedding car for a couple of photos with her father before going through for the ceremony.

The weather did indeed hold good and everything was set up in the private Minto Hotel rear garden. I took Craig and his bestman out to the main entrance and front garden for their pre-wedding pictures and shortly thereafter they were taken through with all the wedding guests and seated. This allowed Yvonne and her father to come out for the photographs with the wedding car. I also did a couple with all the bridesmaids and flower girl too. And then…well regular blog readers know the routine by now, lol…everything’s photojournalism photography from here on until the formal group photographs.

At any wedding the bride walking down the aisle with her father is an important and lovely image to capture. However, as this happens there is also an another shot that can be equally as nice, and also complement the bridal photograph perfectly, but is seldom captured by many wedding photographers. The image I’m talking about is the groom looking back up the aisle and seeing his bride for the first time. You can see how this is an extremely difficult shot to get as both incidents are happening simultaneously. But photojournalism photography is all about telling the story of the day and these two pictures are not only a complementary set but also capture an unrepeatable split second moment of time that is of equivalent importance to both the bride and groom. The way I do this is to position myself about three quarters way down the aisle in a spot where I can watch the bride through the zoom lens of the camera with my right eye and at the same time observe the groom with my left. With experience I’ve managed to hone the timing so I can swivel between the two of them, zooming in and out, and shoot both pictures. I am often asked when photographing weddings why I work with two camera’s. Well the answer is that both camera’s have a different lens. One is a wide angle lens and the other is a mid range zoom lens (or I will switch this for a long range zoom depending on the size of the venue) which also allows me to work swiftly and smoothly yet at the same time unobtrusively.

The benefits of a two camera set up can be seen here by way of example. The longer zoom lens was used to shoot Yvonne coming down the aisle with her father and also Craig getting his first look at his bride as she does so. I then very quickly stepped back, switching camera’s for the wide angle lens which enabled me to photograph the traditional hand over of the bride from father to groom. Then as we go through the ceremony I continually switch between the two camera’s depending on what is happening at any given time. You can see in the second image posted how the wide angle lens has allowed me to include some of the faces of the guests behind Craig as a funny moment is enjoyed during the ceremony and also in the third photograph I zoom in on Yvonne but also include the faces of her father and bridesmaid which also reflect the happiness of another enjoyable moment.

You can also see that the weather did indeed hold good for the entire day and a lovely, fun filled wedding was enjoyed by all. I don’t think Yvonne stopped smiling all day! And as you can see from one of the group shots neither did anyone else! In fact, it was such a fantastic wedding day and Yvonne and Craig such an enjoyable couple to photograph I wouldn’t mind having a second Yvonne and Craig. So, I tell you what, here’s what I’ll do…If you are a couple called Yvonne and Craig looking for a wedding photographer in Edinburgh I’ll give you a £150 discount off your wedding photography package if you book me to photograph your wedding! Now that’s a pretty cool offer isn’t it? Yikes! I’ll probably now find I get about twenty Fiona and Keith’s and Yvonne and Craig’s all phoning me! lol

Emma and Donald's wedding at Craighouse

2010-08-30T07:47:00.000-07:00

Craighouse, on the Napier University campus, is has long been one of Edinburgh’s most popular wedding venue’s amongst Edinburgh wedding photographers. It is beautiful both inside and outside with its palatial Victorian Turmeau Hall and its idyllic gardens. As you would expect it is also extremely popular with bride and grooms and so I photograph weddings here regularly. Last year I had eight weddings at Craighouse and this year I’ll photograph about half a dozen. There were rumours last wedding season that 2010 was to be the last year for weddings at Craighouse as they were then going to be looking to sell the venue on. I don’t know if this is true or not, but I sincerely hope it doesn’t happen as it will be shame to lose a gorgeous venue like this. I’m not the only wedding photographer in Edinburgh who feels like this I’m sure.

My first Craighouse wedding in 2010 was Emma and Donald. The day dawned with mixed skies and we unsure of how the weather would pan out. You can see this in the first photo which was taken about half an hour before the ceremony was due to get underway. I’d done some pre-wedding shots with Donald as his groomsmen and then quickly took them over to the far corner of the circular driveway. Being familiar with the venue I know that the drive has a slight incline at this point which enabled me to position the three gents in front of the main buildings with the dramatic skies looming behind them. Laying on the ground to take the shot helped exaggerate the angle and give it a bit more impact.

Emma and Donald were having a Humanist ceremony, which is nice and relaxed and always fun.The seating was laid out with all the chairs facing into the large bay window which I really love as it bathes the bride and groom in wonderful light. It also means that the table for signing the register will be placed in the bay window too which again makes for a great set of photographs. As they were signing I took some wide shots showing off the great bay window as at rises from floor to ceiling. I then cropped in a little tighter, as in the picture shown here, to show the bride and groom together with their witnesses as they carry out the signing. And then I finish off by setting up a few quick posed shots of the happy couple before bringing in the two witnesses around the newly weds for a more formal photograph.

Celebratory drinks were served on the terrace outside overlooking the city which is where I did all the group shots a short while later. I’ve shown here one of the most popular requested group shots at Scottish weddings, and that is all the guys in kilts. I take two versions of this, one with simply all the guys in kilts as requested, but I also then add in the bride, too as I feel the couple may as well have both versions. It’s also a nice contrast seeing the brides dress set off against all the Scottish kited tartans.

One of the favourite features of Craighouse is the elegant marble staircase. I always do a few images at every Craighouse wedding on the staircase as it is just so beautiful. It lends itself to both individuals, couples and groups. If it rains at Craighouse this the favoured spot for Edinburgh wedding photographers do shoot the formals. I did a five minute set on the staircase which included some bridal portraits, back of the dress with the staircase sweeping up behind, and then some combinations with Emma and Donald both standing and sitting.

We took a short walk out into the grounds and down amongst the trees to finish off the bride and groom photographs. It was by now nice and sunny, although the ground was a little damp underfoot so we didn’t wander off too far, but we were able to get a nice mix of fun and romantic photographs under the trees with several different back drops. We were back in plenty of time for their line-up to be arranged and whilst that was being organised I shot a some photos of the set up of the Turmeau Hall together with some detail photos of the wedding cake. We were booked up until the wedding breakfast so these images were the last ones I photographed. I’m back at Craighouse in a couple of weeks through into the evening so check back soon for some first dance photographs.

Auchen Castle wedding - Kate and Dave

2010-08-17T06:14:00.000-07:00

Auchen Castle is a romantic Scottish castle wedding venue located on the edge of Beattock not too far from Gretna. One of the advantages with being a wedding photographer in Edinburgh is I’m ideally placed for anywhere in Scotland and the North of England, and I love travelling!

Kate and Dave’s wedding was my first one at Auchen Castle so I was really looking forward it. We were booked to do 3 hours coverage commencing an hour before the ceremony, but we set off early as I wanted to spend a half hour or so having a good look around in preparation which allows me to work smoothly and quickly once the proceedings get underway, particularly with the formal photography and the main bride and groom session.

Most of my wedding packages are based upon how long the couple wish me to attend the wedding and then whichever album they choose to have, together with any other optional additions. This allows a good amount of flexibility for me to tailor specific packages perfectly for each couple, and also accommodate all budgets. For Kate and Dave we’d arranged to start an hour before the ceremony just as Kate was getting ready to get into her dress. This would allow us to get a few informal pre-wedding photographs and then some bridal portraits once she was ready. We also did some pre-ceremony photographs with Dave and bestman also his parents in-between.

I’d never met Kate and Dave before the wedding day. They both came up from Manchester and after deciding on Auchen Castle as their wedding venue they didn’t get opportunity to come back up to Scotland for a visit. They had found me on the internet and as I have several real life wedding galleries on my website which they had looked through they were more than happy to book me with just a phone call. A lot of couples coming up from England and else where to marry in Scotland don’t always get chance to meet up so it is always important for me to have plenty of recent weddings online for them to view so they can see the quality of my work.

Kate and Dave’s ceremony had been planned for outdoors on the elegant lawn right in front of the castle. Unfortunately, the weather didn’t play ball and it was moved inside at the last minute. No matter, everything went off wonderfully and by the time the ceremony was over it had stopped raining allowing us to do the group shots outside. However, it’s a good job I’m quick with them because within twenty minutes the rain started up again. We all ran indoors and we did the bride and groom session inside using one of the beautifully spacious bay windows and the fantastic staircase. We also got another ten minute break with the showers and nipped outside again to finish off.
Just for a change, instead of showing you some of there photographs I’ve posted some album page spreads. Two more weddings this week and three portrait sessions will keep me busy, together with the promotion of the Edinburgh Wedding Fair. If you want V.I.P. Catwalk show tickets ahead of the Forth One radio campaign just click the link then pre-register.

More Melville Castle weddings, Fiona and Keith

2010-08-06T05:26:00.000-07:00

Well you can tell how busy I am by the fact that I’m falling further and further behind with my blogging, lol. I set a goal of doing a blog post every week and for most months this year I’ve done okay, but for the month of July I only managed two. June, July and August are always the busiest months for weddings and having two or three weddings a week during July is my excuse for only blogging twice. Anyway let me tell you about Fiona and Keith’s wedding which was right at the very end of July.

Keith and Fiona live just around the corner from me in Edinburgh so our pre-wedding meetings were nice and easy to arrange and it will also save me a lot in postage when delivering their DVD and album as well ;) We were at Melville Castle, but this time in doors with the ceremony being held in the Ballroom. I was booked for 6 hours coverage, 2pm to 8pm, with the ceremony being held at 2.30pm. However, I was there a little after 1pm and started the photography at about quarter past one. This happens at pretty much every wedding I work at as I inevitably start before the time I’ve been booked. It has something to do with loving my job so much, lol.

I went round and took a few detail shots initially which included the rooms being set up, the wedding cake and some of the flower arrangements. I then met up with Keith and his groomsmen and we went outside for a mix of photos. I did what we call a 'walk through' where I get all the guys to start off about 50 yards up the driveway and walk back towards me talking and joking amongst themselves. This is a great way to get a set of natural, informal shots as I simply shoot a succession of images from differing angles as they pass around me. I then did a couple of quick, posed combinations of Keith and the bestman, then with all the groomsmen (the first shot shown here) and then finally some photographs of Keith by himself.

Because I’d started early it meant Fiona was in the latter stages of having her hair finished, so we were able to get a few getting ready photos of her, too, which was a nice bonus. Being one of the most regular Edinburgh wedding photographers at Melville Castle means I know the place very well indeed. So when Fiona was ready I quickly took her out into a nearby corridor where there is a large overhead skylight which creates a gorgeous pool of natural light. Positioning her carefully under the ambient light we were able to produce a set of beautiful bridal portraits at full length, three quarter and close up. I then arranged the two bridesmaids alongside her for a full length and close up, followed by a similar father of the bride shot. I then headed off to the Ballroom to photograph their entrance and the coming down the aisle.

During the ceremony I always work quietly and unobtrusively usually in one of the corners of the room. As well as photographing all the key moments, like the vows and declarations and ring exchange, I’m always looking for the natural expressions of enjoyment on the faces of the couple. I’ve included two examples here both of which occurred during the singing of the opening hymn shortly after Fiona has been handed over from father to fiance. The happiness shown on both their faces really captures the joy of the moment and their love for another. This is also apparent as they hold hands whilst listening to one of the readings during the ceremony, too.

There was a minor mishap during the signing of the register when the minister some how spilt ink on Fiona dress, however, as far as the photographs go it’s no big problem as I cleaned them up during the editing. I know most wedding photographers in Edinburgh charge a premium for additional retouching work like this, but as I’m such a nice guy I’m happy to make it part of the service. Plus it can’t be a bad thing having a man of the cloth forever in your debt, lol!

I did the formal group shots out on the lawn in front of the fountain, which is where I normally do them at Melville Castle as it is the perfect place with the best angle of lighting. We then took Keith and Fiona away for half an hour for a bride and groom session starting outside and then moving around to the rear entrance before finishing off on the staircase inside. We got a great range of photographs from natural, relaxed images to fun and romantic with a few fashion shots thrown in.

The wedding breakfast commenced with the speeches. I worked around the top table with Diane shooting from the back of the room. As usual the speeches were full of fun and laughter which we managed to capture in a wonderful set of images. When the wedding meal was over everyone made it back down to the Ballroom for the cutting of the cake which was done in the centre of the dance floor right before going into the first dance.

Upon getting home the first thing I start doing is downloading all the photographs and backing them up. Also, as we had another wedding the following day, a lot of the equipment was to be re-charged overnight. In the morning I will give everything a clean and a re-check. Being a professional photographer requires having two, and with the more important, three items of each piece of equipment. To be honest, equipment malfunction is very rare as we only use top of the range professional kit, but nothing gets left to chance with something as important and un-repeatable as a wedding day. Hopefully, I’ll catch up with my blogging and tell you about the next days wedding in my next post.