Fran & Lewis: Married!! :D

When Fran got in touch with me about shooting her wedding in Peterborough, I was SO excited. Not only because she is a wonderful photographer herself (and we all know that shooting other photographers' weddings is a wonderful excuse for camera talk, and they understand what we go through!) and not only because she is just a downright jaw-dropping beauty, but because she is such a lovely lovely wonderful wonderful person.

Fran made me feel like family as soon as I stepped through the door (accompanied by my trusty second shooter Alex Cameron!). She didn't wipe the smile off her face for one moment when she was getting ready - and rightly so, she and Lewis had been planning their wedding for two years!

My song for Fran and Lewis' wedding is an easy one.
Enjoy! :D



Fran looked absolutely phenomenal!


Fran and Lewis are Jehovah's Witness' - which meant their ceremony took place in a "Kingdom Hall". Fran's dad explained to me that this is because their faith believes Jesus wouldn't have condoned big fancy churches and efforts of grandeur.
I found it really interesting, and while I was photographing their ceremony you could see that the love on everyone's faces was making everything vibrant - it was simple, but so, so beautiful.



Fran looked SO happy when they walked out! Lewis looked so proud of her!



After many hugs and congratulations, it was off to the reception...



Stop being so beautiful, Fran!



Guests milled around chatting and having fun whilst the formals were being taken...



The big entrance, followed by the speeches!





Before I knew it, it was time to run and catch the last train home to Buxton! I managed to grab a few more snaps before I left...



and who knows, maybe one day I'll be shooting these guys' wedding ;)
UPDATE: these two are cousins! :P So maybe not!! :P

Fran and Lewis, thank you so much for having me at your wedding. You are an absolutely beautiful couple, inside and out. You're the kind of people who need to be bottled and sold.
Lewis - I'm glad we managed to kick your camera-shyness once and for all. Kind of.
Fran - You know I love you ;) Can't wait for our lunch, I'm getting hungry just thinking about it!

"It's something unpredictable, but in the end it's right. I hope you had the time of your life."

Ingrid & Andy - Married!

I was drafted in to shoot Ingrid and Andy's wedding around 3 weeks before the big day - I'd met the best man, Harry, through a client shoot months before and he thought that having wedding photos would be a wonderful gift for the couple as their wedding present.

The adventure began as Danny (my second shooter for the day, recruited via the wonders of twitter!) and I drove down to Shrewsbury. Having never met or spoken to Ingrid or Andy due to the short notice of the wedding photography, I was very intrigued to see how the day would unfold! But as soon as I opened Ingrid's hotel room door, I was literally engulfed with love, warmth and kindness from these guys.

Y'all know I love my soundtracks for wedding blog posts, and for me this wedding was made especially for this song. This song is so beautiful, and it truly truly reflects the beauty, kindness and spirit in these people.



The day began at 10.30am, getting ready in the beautiful Prince Rupert Hotel...

Everybody seemed to be in a wonderful mood that day - even the passers by down below, this lady gave us a smile and a nod!



Ingrid's dress was absolutely stunning - she's a very simple kind of gal, but she fell in love with this sparkly gown. Needless to say, she looked out of this world!

One final check in the mirror before the toasts, and we're ready to leave for the Church...



The guests were in high spirits as they arrived, some real gigglers here!! :D Andy, the groom, was taking deep breaths as the time kept tickin'!



Before we left for the Church, I was chatting with Ingrid about how she met Andy and all their stories. Then she told me something so personal and sad, and it broke my heart to hear it.

Ingrid's mum had passed away while she was dating Andy, very very sadly. And strangely, within two weeks of her mum - Andy's dad passed away, too.
Whilst I was too busy tearing up at the thought of getting married without having a mum or dad there to watch and hug and laugh with, Ingrid explained just how much it had brought them together - and with Andy's mum and Ingrid's dad with them, they were there own little family.



They kept looking at each other without the other one realizing, it was adorable!





Everyone was so so proud and happy for them!





It was getting late and the darkness was coming in, so out came the confetti...




Throwing the bouquet! And then some sneaky photography teamwork from Danny and I! (the most photo journalistic approach you can get, ambush!)



It was a beauuuutifully misty night, and everyone hurried inside to the warm open fires for the rest of the evening...





Now for the speeches! Andy started off, and there wasn't a dry eye in the room as he spoke about his new beautiful wife and how lucky he was, and how proud their mum and dad would have been...



A hilarious best man's speech followed, needless to say I'm pretty sure Andy's heart sank at some of the things we learned!



A fun story about Andy -
Whilst walking in the town one day with Ingrid, a man stopped and asked him for the time. Obliging, Andy gave it to him - and 5minutes later realized his phone had been stolen! Pretty miserable as you would be, they boarded the bus home - only to spot the man who had asked him for the time (and stolen his phone) get on their bus!
He made a run for it, and Andy perused - chasing him down an alleyway and cornering him. Andy opened up the man's bag on to discover FIFTEEN mobile phones - all stolen! He spent the rest of the night dialing each and every owner, and personally delivering the mobile phones home to them. Ingrid, you married a hero!!

Let the party begin...!







And finally, pulling some shapes on the dance floor!! The DJ was from Ibiza and played some TUNES!









^^ This picture just about sums up the rest of the night! :D

Congratulations Ingrid and Andy, you truly truly and a wonderful couple and deserve all the happiness in the world!! You made me feel like family and long lost friends, enjoy your honeymoon in Cuba, and have a wonderful, long and love-filled life together!!

Larga vida a la pareja!! :D

Behind the Scenes: The Adventures of Emily in October

One of the stupidest and coldest things I have ever done in my life! But great fun, none-the-less!

Kane and I set off today for a photo day! Getting there proved to be the biggest obstacle, however. After about 30mins of prodding, shoving and dismantling of wheels, I had just about given up trying to fit my prop plane into my Beetle. Then I remembered I have a soft top roof which comes down, we strapped it in and away we flew.



Kane wanted to shoot some footage for his media coursework (a music video) and I lended myself + props + plane for the job. Here are some fun screenshots I took:







After Kane had done shooting, and I was FREEZING, I decided to proceed with the shot I had in mind. I'd come the day before and seen this bath which was covered in ice in the middle of the field. The thing that I liked most of all was the grass growing out of it, so I did a quick mock up when I got home based on this shot I took:




About to get in:



Then came the COLD!!!!



I got in 3 times. I always like to check my shots to see if they're coming out how I want them to, the shots with me to the back of the bath just looked odd, as there was icey soil at the bottom of the tub so I wasn't as submerged as I wanted to be.

Instead I switched it around and lay on my front. Here's the whole concept coming to life from mock up to final shot:



The worst thing was that afterwards, we had to drive home in the freezing cold with the ROOF DOWN on the car. I drove back in my dressing gown, much to the amusement of other drivers!

One thing I've learned since taking up photography, is that if you aren't willing to really put yourself out there to get a shot, then the shot is most likely not going to be very interesting. Sometimes you just have to man up and get in the tub.

Have a great evening everyone!

Rosie x

Claire and Steve - Married!

Something I think very carefully about when putting together these wedding blog posts is the music.
This song (To Build A Home by the Cinematic Orchestra) is one of the most special songs to me in all the world. And it reflects Steve and Claire to a T.


"There is a house built out of stone
Wooden floors, walls and window sills
Tables and chairs worn by all of the dust

This is a place where I don't feel alone
This is a place where i feel at home

I built a home
For you,
For me"


As I was being driven to the train station by Steve's mum after the wedding, we were talking about love and failed relationships, and she said to me;

"You know, Steve thought he would never find The One - he'd been looking so hard for so long, and I remember after the last wedding we went to, he got so down. He thought it would never happen to him. A few weeks later Claire came along - isn't it funny how life works like that?"

The atmosphere was buzzing before the ceremony...

Claire looked gorgeous. Phenomenal. You couldn't have wiped the smile off her face if you tried! Her dad was absolutely glowing with pride. Steve looked like he was about to fall over.

Things started to get a little teary, my lens started to mist up...

Of course, bridesmaids are always around to lighten the mood! ;)

The speeches begun - and so did the waterworks! :) The amount of love contained within these families is unbelievable. So much love it was leaking everywhere!! :)

An unexpected twist to the best man's speech!

Cutting - wait, killing the cake :P ...

"This is a place that I call my home."