Freddy & Ella

Two of my favourite images from last week.
Happy Friday!

3 weddings to a new pair of Uggs

My 2.5 years old Uggs have seen better days, and really they should retire to the Land of House Slippers; but before then, I need an heir to the Winter throne.

Now, despite having a wish-list of equipment as long as my arm, I am putting my feet first, and as a treat for booking our 20th Wedding this year, I will buy them a new pair of Uggs.  We currently have 17 confirmed bookings, with 3 on the precipice of signing the dotted line... Oooh, I'm getting excited!

[As I do all the post-processing work, Cam's treat has to wait a little further down the line :)
Booking #30 will get him rewarded with a banjitar]

Just because

Since photography moved from being a hobby, to being a business, in some ways it also moved from spontaneous fun into considered art.  Although sometimes I wonder whether these two things should really be separated;  after all, doesn't a true artist speak from a heart which can't be contrived?  Does considered necessarily mean contrived?  Is contrived a bad thing?  I thought about this in a post I wrote recently...

This weekend  however, I put all that reflection aside and just returned to some spontaneous fun.  It's our last weekend before months of exciting (and exhausting) shoots begin.   Probably the last weekend for the next 8 months where we will just hang out and take pictures of each other just because.

Favourite Noise

Okay, I am sad, sad, sad!
But I just adore this.
So cute. 
Particularly the double snort at 16/17secs :)

Freddy's Christening - St Mary's Church, Banbury

Ever since I heard this amazing story by the incomparable Jen Lee, the words Story Catcher have stuck with me.  In fact they have inspired me, and Cam and I have been working on a little something we hope to launch in the future; but that's for the future.

What I will say though, is you know you are on the right path when synchronicity comes into play, and we were invited to shoot Freddy's Christening as a gift from his godparents to him.  Unfortunately we were not allowed to shoot during the service itself, but I hope we capture the story of the day nonetheless. Freddy is just adorable, and clearly not unhappy to be the center of attention. Quite the charmer already!

The service was held at St Mary's Church, where I have openly declared I want to shoot a wedding (please), followed by a drinks and nibbles at Ye Olde Reindeer (I believe we ate in the very room Cromwell planned a few battles) Like weddings, I just love the joy that is palpable in the air on celebrations like this, and after the taste of our first Christening, I can happily say we would love to photograph more!

 

We put together a little slideshow of the day which you can see here:

Sunny Afternoon and Muddy Paws

I had to go to the dentist AND do the weekly shop today, so by the time I got home, my head was throbbing and I was looking for any excuse not to take the boys out.  But then, after days of gloomy grey and wet rain, the sun was out; it just seemed to pretty to waste.

So I grabbed my camera and my trusty models and off we went.

Cujo is looking a little ratty at the moment I'm afraid, as we missed his grooming appointment just before Christmas (bad parents!) and now has to wait for the next opening which isn't till the second week in February.  Oops.

I don't mind though.  I quite like the bohemian charm - except, when I have to take him home and deal with this:

To pose or not to pose, that is the question...

As a wedding photographer this has been one of the areas I've struggled with a lot. My love for images lie in their ability to capture a real moment, and I used to worry that this authenticity was lost when an image is posed. I was torn between capturing the story of the day organically, whilst at the same time wanting the pretty portraits you see on all these amazing wedding blogs (not to mention parents always seem to want a wedding portrait too!)

As time went on however, I began to realise that every moment at a wedding carries it's own mark of authenticity. Even if I might be asking you to stand here and look at each other, I can't manufacture what you are feeling. That is still very real and that is what ultimately makes it a pretty picture.

It was then I realised to be or not to be was indeed the question. You see, I'm a little shy, a little introspective, and not a big talker (that's why I blog and take photographs!) So the thought of having to find my actual voice, and speak up, was a little daunting. 

But I love those pretty pictures.  I hate being in front of the camera myself, but I would love those pretty pictures.  And you know what, if I was getting married again, I would definitely expect my photographer to have his/her voice ready to get me some of those pretty pictures!

I want to be that photographer, and so, although for most of the day I am just quietly and unobtrusively documenting the real moments as they happen;  for 20-30 minutes I find courage, and with it, my voice.   Because every Big Day (and album) should have these pretty pictures.  And trust me, even if you hate "posing" in front of the camera, you will be more annoyed later that you didn't do it; so if you have to, be brave with me!

Calling all Oxfordshire Brides...

St Mary's, Banbury

I love the Internet; and as a result of this wonderful creation, we have weddings this year in London, Suffolk, Kent, Sheffield, Bristol, Surrey, Warwick and Mallorca amongst other places!  Truly it's quite amazing how far the Inter-net can be cast, and I cannot even begin to tell you how excited we are about each and every one of these upcoming weddings.

We also currently have one in our home Shire too, but is it wrong to want more?
I love my county, and as excited as I am about shooting weddings in other parts of my country (and don't get me wrong, I wouldn't be saying no to more of those either!) I would love to create a name for myself locally. Home is where the heart is after all.

This became a pronounced yearning yesterday, as we were photographing at the most awesome looking St Mary's Church in Banbury.  It really is quite a spectacular looking structure, both externally and internally, and I found myself fantasising about photographing a wedding there.  I mean seriously, can you not just see a bride and groom standing between those pillars...(there will be more images of this amazing Church when I blog about Freddy's baptism later this week)

So I am casting my wish out into the Universe - bring me a St Mary's wedding to photograph please?