Louise & Neil, Boreham House, Chelmsford, Essex.

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The wedding photography of Neil and Louise at Boreham House, Chelmsford, Essex

My first wedding yesterday at Chelmsfords newest wedding venue Boreham House.

What can I say, it was absolutely fantastic!!! The building is sublime, the setting perfect, I don’t have a single bad thing to say about it. The great thing is, I think it’s probably going to get a lot better too!

Louise was really relaxed, which I always find a little un-nerving, it’s so rare! I expect to walk into a room full of nervous people, not peace and calm!

Anyway, I got some lovely shots of the exterior and interiors, along with some photography of the lovely flowers in the brand spanking new (bloody expensive) pavilion.

Neil arrived on time, fetched by Steve at Boreham House, in his Bentley. I asked Steve if he’d mind if I borrowed his car, he gave me a funny look and politely refused.

Please note the ‘Starsky and Hutch’ pose…

The service went without a hitch, the lovely Sonia of Chelmsford Registry office, who I haven’t seen in ages, took the ceremony. Lovely to see you again Sonia!

The ceremony room is gorgeous, the carved fire surrounds work well with the colour of the room and the chandelier is lovely too. The Bride and Groom stood opposite the French doors, which meant we had some lovely natural light.

After the wedding service, I managed to get some great photographs of the Bride and Groom in the interiors of the house. I love the Henry VIII staircase, the colour of the wood is just beautiful and there are a lot of opportunities for some great photos.

Obviously we had to get some photographs of the Bride and Groom in the front of the house, the pillars are magnificent.

After these we moved to the rear of Boreham House, and got some great formal photographs of the family and some fun candid photography of the guests.

Everyone seemed to be in good spirits, the bridesmaids were well behaved, Neil’s Dad was lovely. A really pleasant afternoon, all in all.

Boreham House is going to be the most sought after venue in the Chelmsford area, I have absolutely no doubt about it, I feel privileged to be their recommended photographer! I know that sounds cheesy, but there are some places that you actually feel honoured to be, and this one of them.

Alright, I’ll stop gushing now, before I make you sick! I’ll keep you up to date with more weddings in the future…

Princess of the Month, April

Princess of the month.

Every month our son Alex (6) chooses his favourite ‘princess’.

Alex has been around weddings all of his life and loves to look at “The pretty princesses” Anyway, we thought it would be kind of fun if he chose his favourite every month.

The winner will receive a
10″ x 8″ print from their wedding day and
will be eligible to win
‘Princess of the year’

The winner this month is:

Tracey

We don’t know what it is, but Alex thinks you’ve got it!

Janice and Marcos, Fennes Estate, Bocking, Essex.

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The wedding photography of Janice and Marcos, The Fennes Estate, Bocking, Essex.

Ok, I am now officially tired. 5 weddings, in 1 week, is really going some. My feet are sore!

Anyway, that’s enough whining, Janice and Marcos had a lovely, intimate wedding at the Fennes Estate, which everyone enjoyed.

Once again, the weather was on my side (I can’t believe how lucky I have been this month!) It rained during the service, but by the time we came out it had stopped. Although it threatened to start again, thankfully it held off.

I have to say the guests were incredibly well behaved, and we got the formal photography covered really quickly, record time in fact.

Janice loved the gardens, and the cherry blossom has really come on now, so we stopped by and got a few photographs.

For the evening reception, we went through to the second marquee, and the first dance was held really early. The combination of natural light and the starlight canopy meant that we could get shots like this:

All in all, a lovely, relaxed wedding. Thankyou very much for having me!

Marjorie and Abdullai, Stationers Hall, London.

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The wedding photography of Marjorie and Abdullai, Stationers Hall, London.

Continuing our international theme, I travelled up town to cover a wedding for my friend Abdullai, for an African wedding.

For anyone who has ever attended an African wedding, you will know that they are lively, full of colour and noise, people enjoying themselves and also, totally, totally disorganised!!!

It was all good fun though, a massive, massive thanks to Luq, the Usher who actually kept it all rolling. The poor guy was so stressed, I really felt sorry for him! Luq, if you read this, Abdullai owes you one. A BIG one!

Anyway, I had a fantastic time. I loved going in to London. It was great. I have always had a fear of travelling into London; lugging equipment, traffic etc. I have to say all of my fears were totally misplaced; it was a brilliant day.

Getting around was no problem, The wedding venue, Stationers Hall, was lovely and had a small courtyard garden, the registrars were almost beyond belief… No, it’s no problem for you to take flash photography, do what you want, just no photography of them signing the register… A really refreshing change.

Check out the ornamentation on these rooms, they were all absolutely lovely. The light supplied by large side windows and even ceiling windows was just fabulous. I spent most of the day taking natural light photographs inside, which is just brilliant.

It wasn’t until after the meal that we were able to slip outside for a few photographs of Abs & M. One of the most fabulous things about London, is the fact that there is NO MUD! Country House weddings are great, but some days you need a pair of Waders just to get to the door.

Just outside the venue was a fabulous piece of modern art that looked wonderful and was a great spot to grab a few photos. Not a traditionally beautiful photograph, but I love that.

Congratulations Abs & M, I know you had a great day, and I’m sure you’ll have a wonderful life together too.

Especially if Marjorie is in control of it!!!

Tracey & Vince, St. Peters in the Field, Bocking End.

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The wedding photography of Tracey & Vince at St. Peters in the Field, Reception at the Fennes.

Today was the first church wedding I have done in ages and ages. If I’m really honest St. Peters is not the nicest looking church from the outside, but it is absolutely lovely inside. The looks were kind of irrelevant for Tracey though, she’s been attending since she was a little girl.

The light was on our side today, and I got some beautiful establishing photographs of the interior of the church prior to the wedding commencing.

Many thanks to Nick, for the loan of his sunglasses, I really appreciate that mate! I still love this photograph of the ushers reflected in the sunglasses.

The service went without a hitch, and was partially conducted by the Father who ran the church when Tracey was little, which was a lovely touch. I noticed this little scene during the signing of the register. Photographs like this just can’t be set up!

When we left the church, a huge Routemaster bus had arrived to ferry the guests from the church to the reception venue. I have to say, I love these old buses, they are fabulous, and of course, I couldn’t resist getting a picture!

We then headed on to the Fennes (again) and got some fabulous photographs in the lovely grounds. Don’t worry, I won’t bore you all again with how lovely the Fennes is, OK?

I have to say hello to Ian at www.nixons.uk.com He is the most charming chauffeur I know and has some amazing cars. I would thoroughly recommend him for his top quality service. His cars are just so beautiful. I have been meaning to spend a day photographing them, but just haven’t got around to it!

Then of course, there were the formals in the grounds of the Fennes. Just look at the lovely blossom on the trees, the sun came out, although it threatened to rain, it didn’t. I guess if you invite a man of the cloth, you can guarantee good weather!!!

Thanks very much guys, I really enjoyed the day with you.

Sibel & John, Fennes Estate, Essex

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Wedding photography & video, Sibel & John at the Fennes Estate, Bocking, Braintree.

This is obviously not only my month for funny weather, but also international weddings! To go with the Swedish wedding at the beginning of the month, we had a Turkish wedding at the end…
Not so easy this time, we had a bit of an issue with the language barrier, but once we’d established a universal symbol for look this way and smile, we were all ok!

Finally, we’re getting some real colour back after quite a long winter, the Tulips were out and the blossom was coming out on the trees, really nice. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, The Fennes is probably the most pro-active venue I have ever come across. The gardens are really coming on now and they are a photographers dream.

Although we had quite a few formals Sibel was really after some quirkier than normal photography, and lots of Black and White. We’ve got a lot of really great images from the day, but 2 that particularly stand out for me, are these two:

That’s it for now, but I promise I’ll get the video up next week, so you can see that too!

Pauline & Richard, Hylands House, Essex

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Wedding video of Pauline and Richard, Hylands House, Essex.

A really lovely day, great weather and some lovely people! Many thanks to Richard Palmer of www.thedisco.co.uk for the loan of his jumper so I could get the day to evening transition. Thanks mate, I really, really appreciated it!

This video is set to copyright free music available from www.chrisworthproductions.com

Gary & Michelle, The Fennes Estate, Bocking, Essex

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Wedding photography of Gary & Michelle, at The Fennes Estate, Bocking, Essex.

Another day at the Fennes, we seem to have a huge run of weddings there at the moment, which is absolutely fantastic, because I love the place!

There are just so many lovely spots to get great photos, it is a photographers dream!

The reason I am banging on about how easy it is to get lovely photos, is because I am officially fed up of April!! We have had, Snow, Rain, Sunshine and Hailstones the size of golf balls.

So, I was pretty happy last week, that I was at the Fennes for Michelle and Garys wedding.
When I arrived, it was pretty sunny, and I got my normal establishing shot.

Behind was a dark looming cloud, which the groundsmen assured me contained hailstones, as they’d heard on the radio a few moments before that it was hailing in the next town.

No problem, because we’re at the Fennes!

Most shots that morning were taken inside, both in that fabulous bridal suite and in the red reception room downstairs, what can I say? You wouldn’t think that outside it sounded like it was raining brass bedsteads!

After the ceremony, we walked out of the house into… no, not hailstones brilliant sunshine!

However, although the sun was out, poor Michelle doesn’t have any body fat whatsoever, and it was a wee bit nippy, so although she struggled through the formals, we soon headed back inside.

Anyway, all in all, although we had some really bizarre weather, it just wasn’t an issue at all. Michelle and Gary had a great time, and we got some fantastic photos.

Thanks Fennes!

Princess of the month, March 2008.

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Princess of the month.

Every month our son Alex (6) chooses his favourite ‘princess’.

Alex has been around weddings all of his life and loves to look at “The pretty princesses” Anyway, we thought it would be kind of fun if he chose his favourite every month.

The winner will receive a 10″ x 8″ print from their wedding day and will be eligible to win ‘Princess of the year’

The winner this month is:

Sarah

We don’t know what it is, but Alex thinks you’ve got it!

Lola & Paul, Quendon Hall, Parklands, Essex.

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Wedding photography of Lola & Paul, Quendon Hall, Parklands, Essex.

Right, I’ve covered British, Jewish, Sikh, Hindu, Nigerian and now a Swedish wedding. Well, it was kind of fun. No jokes about saunas now, to be honest it was more about alcohol and singing. They’ve got the right idea, let me tell you!

Lola was absolutely chuffed to bits because it snowed! Apparently it is really lucky in Sweden to have snow on your wedding day, and being as it is so irregular in UK, they were absolutely over the moon.

The ceremony went without a hitch and most photographs were taken inside, but a massive thanks to everyone, for braving the weather to get a group shot. Nobody grumbled about it either… I put it down to the fact that for the Swedish it was like Summer and the Brits had been plied with so much Peach Schnapps that they just didn’t care.

Thankfully after the meal the sun popped out and we were able to step outside and grab a few photographs. Absolutely stunning!

Some days you just have to persevere and make the most of the weather. Today we had snow, rain, and brilliant sunshine.

Thanks to everyone for making me feel welcome, I hope you all had a great day.