Wedding
The Latest
Not everyone likes wedding cake, all that fruit and heavy icing, but there are always alternatives to this.
One of my recent Bride and Grooms decided to have a cheese cake, not a cheesecake, but a cake made up of cheeses! Fanstastic idea!
We’ve got Queen Victoria to thank for white weddings! She had some gorgeous white lace that she did not want to dye, so she chose an all white outfit, and many people copied her style and it has become the main choice ever since.
Before that women used all the colours of the rainbow for their dresses, so if you are feeling the need to express yourself in full technicolour - go for it!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wedding_dress
TIP 18 – Hair’asters
If there’s one thing that can ruin a lovely photo, it is finger fringe!
That’s the inventive name one of my brides came up with for that finger sized lump of hair that falls off the fringe and comes down over your face (thanks Laura). If it covers the eye in a photo, it can be very difficult to fix in Photoshop - and sometimes impossible, meaning the shot could be lost. It’s not so important for family group shots, as I will spot it and get it sorted, but if you are walking back down the aisle with your new husband, then it’s a bit more difficult to rewind that part of the ceremony!
Best way to avoid this is to work closely with your hair stylist and ask them their solutions to fix this. And have a best girl with some hairspray in her purse! 
TIP 16 – Fuel Up
You may feel a bit nervous on your big day, or you may just not feel hungry, but it’s still important to eat a good breakfast and have an emergency cereal bar stashed away, possibly with one of your bridesmaids. It’s a long day and your body needs fuel to sustain you all the way through, and the fainting up the aisle look is soooo last year!
The Photographer
It’s hard choosing a photographer, but make sure that you meet the photographer in person first, that is vital as they will actually be a big part of your very special day. If you do not gel at an early meeting, then move on!
Style of Photography
Do you like the photographs? Are they what you would like taken on your wedding day? I take primarily reportage style informal photos, I believe it is important that you are relaxed on your big day!
Questions to Ask…
Do we get a DVD? What are the terms of use?
Yes, with all my packages you receive a hi-res copy of the images for you and your parents to print from and also a lo-res copy, perfectly sized for Facebook and emailing. There is no logo on any of them.
How many photos do we get?
You get all the good ones from me, edited to perfection - around 160-200 for a full day’s wedding coverage, see my Tip 12 for numbers to be wary of.
How do you back-up your images?
On 2 separate hard drives, and a DVD in a separate location, plus online.
What happens if you are sick?
I have 3 other photographers who I trust very much who I would ask to cover my event. I have never missed one wedding yet.
EASY as 123
Remembering which stand I am on at the huge Corn Exchange Wedding Fair on Saturday 3rd & Sunday 4th November is as easy as 123 - which just happens to be my stand number.
Visit my wife Heather and I there from 11-4pm on either day and I can chat to you about my wedding packages, show you more of my wedding work and discuss how PSD Photography can tailor wedding packages to your requirements.
I think it’s my 7th wedding fair in a row and I’m ready for 2 full-on days of speaking to hundreds of you brides and grooms-to-be!
See you there!
TIPS FOR BRIDES - 13: Posing for Photos
It’s no surprise that many couples feel slightly awkward in front of the camera, most of us are not used to having professional photos taken (me included, I’m possibly the world’s worst model). But my approach is to keep you brides and grooms as relaxed and natural as possible. During the couple shoot, all my best shots come when the bride and groom forget I am there, or at least, ignore me and concentrate on each other. After all, it is a very special moment, you are just married and away from the crowds. Many couples tell me that this was one of their favourite parts of the day.
So, when I tell you to ignore me and focus on each other, then that’s the best thing to do, whether walking through the woods, or up the Royal Mile, we will get some amazing shots.
TIPS FOR BRIDES - 12: How Many Photos?
There are three main approaches:
1 - Offer a crazy number of images to you - 400, 600, I’ve even seen 800 offered. Why is this crazy? If you looked at each of those 800 images for 10 seconds, then it would take 2hrs and 13 minutes to view them once! The photographers who offer this approach show a distinct lack of appreciation for the work involved, not to mention the time it takes to edit photos to a high standard and a complete inability to narrow the photos down to the very best, meaning that their quality control is probably not what it should be. I guarantee that many of the photos would be completely repetitious. You will not enjoy browsing through 800 photos to find your favourites.
2 - An approach that a lot of photographers use is to offer you a small amount of photos, such as 60. After the wedding, they will show you around 300 photos and ask you to choose your 60. Almost everyone ends up buying more (i.e. spending more money), of course. This makes business sense, but may mean that you miss out on some good shots, or have to break the bank to pay for more - would you feel a bit cheated?
3 - I choose the sensible middle ground - offering you every great photo taken on the day, very carefully edited down by me from all those taken. For a full day’s wedding this comes to 160-200 images, in my experience. You can not only build a great album from this amount, but it also is far easier to navigate through and to view. Most importantly, my packages already include this, you do not get charged any extra. You also get a DVD of high res images with all my packages.
NEW WEBSITE LAUNCHED
Head on over to my brand-spanking-new wedding website right here:
You will see loads of great, large wedding photos, a bit more about me and some great wedding inspiration.
The shot above is from Catherine and Colin’s wedding, and this is the gorgeous Catherine getting well and truly confetti’d on the roof of the National Museum of Scotland.
It’s off to the Dalmahoy again this weekend for Rachel and Stuart’s wedding reception. I love the venue and with the sun shining (it’s looking good guys!) it has so many options for photos that I will be spoiled for choice.
TIPS FOR BRIDES - 9 PERSONAL TOUCHES
I know that your wedding is already going to be filled with personal touches, but make sure to add a few at the reception too. These can be great ice-breakers for your guests as they take their places for the wedding breakfast.
A few I’ve seen recently (and BTW, I love shooting these small details which also make great additions to the album!) are pictured above, such as a London Underground inspired table plan, photos of the couple on holiday in various locations on each table, gifts and party packs for the children and even chatterboxes, which I remember from my childhood. Then there was the old fashioned sweet stall - Hmm, I’m definitely not admitting to how many of those I had!
Not forgetting the mounted print, which I offer to all couples who have an engagement shoot with me and once it is filled up with all your friends and family’s messages becomes a very special and personal memento.
Check out my wedding packages and photos here:
TIPS FOR BRIDES - 8: BRIDAL PREPARATION PHOTOS
I love photographing this time in the wedding day! It’s a special family and friends time with equal amounts of relaxation, emotion and nerves. ‘Who would want a photographer there for that?’ you may ask.
When you consider the amount of time and effort you have put in deciding on all the details and how special some of those items are then it makes more sense. Which details and items? Well, there’s the dress, shoes, jewellery, flowers, button holes, hats, bridesmaid’s outfits, hair, make up, heirlooms (see Tip 7), dad’s outfit, flower girls outfits, gifts and more! All in one place at one time, perfect for your photographer to work away and capture them for posterity.
Then there’s the special moments, like when you first unveil your wedding dress to your dad, the bridesmaids, button holes get put on, flowers arrive, first shots with your family.
In short (I could go on, can you tell?) it’s a very special time and those shots look lovely in your album and you will cherish them, I promise!
To see more of my work and package prices, click right HERE.
Ruth and David’s wedding was a lovely one to shoot at The George Hotel and I was delighted to receive a very warm, kind testimonial from them:
“Thanks to Phil for giving us some wonderful memories of our wedding. Phil was excellent throughout the day, making sure neither of us were bothered by minor details regarding our photographs and helping to coordinate the larger groups and making sure we got all the shots we wanted. He really captured some great moments throughout the day as well as some fab ‘posed’ photos. Phil is so down to earth and calming and couldn’t recommend him highly enough. Thanks again Phil, for everything! David & Ruth :)”
To see more of my work and to see my wedding prices, please visit my website here:
