Dan Johnson Photography

Goodbye blog. Hello blog.

2007-08-05T19:50:00.000Z

Thanks to our lovely webdev person Ali who understands all sorts of stuff that's all geek to me, we're now up and running on our new on-site blog which is to be found at http://blog.danjohnsonphoto.co.uk/

OK then.

I guess that makes this The Last Post ...

Samah's DJ

2007-07-29T17:25:00.000Z

Samah and Sam's wedding yesterday was notable for several things, among them Samah joining in with the belly-dancers after the first dance, our pal Leo "Big Hair" Ferenc doing the vid and - believe it or not - a DJ that we're actually happy to recommend!

For once we had a DJ who didn't take forever and a day to set up, whose rig was neat and tidy, who had enough lights to put on a decent show, and who didn't have his name and contact details emblazoned across the front of his setup. Not only did he have a very good sound system with really tight bass playing CD's (not mp3's), but he also had the ability to flawlessly co-ordinate the first two dances, then a live guitar and vocal duet, then a 20 minute belly-dance set with Egyptian music followed by a father-daughter dance and then get everybody back on the dancefloor - all without being in your face or in any way irritating.

Mark's your man at Raindance UK

Yes, we are still here ...

2007-07-26T15:01:00.000Z

... and yes I do realise that it's gone a bit quiet of late, but right now we're in Santa's workshop on Crimble Eve mode here as try to keep up to speed with the editing and processing of 5 weddings in 9 days. Add in meetings with potential clients as well as all the usual admin, and there's definitely not enough hours in the day right now.

We've tried sleeping faster but it simply doesn't work. Normal service should, however, be resumed in a week or so, by which time we hope to have a plan worked out for moving the blog from Blogger and hosting it on our own site. For now though, excuse me as I get back into processing Friday's wedding ...

Rather Unusual Weddings - cont'd again

2007-07-17T12:18:00.000Z

It wouldn't have been unusual in the 1960's, but in 2007 Anna and Michael's wedding on Sunday was certainly a bit different from the timings point of view ...

1130 - 120 people start arriving at a very nice restaurant in Islington

1200 - Bride arrives with bridesmaid and father, having walked from the hotel nearby at which she got ready

1230 - Ceremony over, everybody onto the terrace for a glass of champagne, canapés and socialising after the informal speeches

1400 - Meal is served

1630 - Cake cutting and coffee

1700 - A few photos of the couple together and a few quick group shots

1730 - Guests start leaving

1800 - Couple and last guests leave

Everybody seemed to enjoy themselves immensely, and we overheard bits of several conversations along the lines of wasn't it marvellous that instead of having to stay for the evening, those who wanted to could go out to dinner afterwards or simply go home and put their feet up after a super day ...

Hats #13

2007-07-11T13:26:00.001Z

Gerbera Heads

2007-07-11T12:34:00.001Z

Gerbera heads in plates of water, on a terrace wall in Norfolk in the pouring rain ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #18

2007-07-11T12:23:00.001Z

Victoria and David's strawberry brulée, strawberry jelly and strawberry shortbread on its way out to them at the Victoria Hotel at Holkham in Norfolk last month.

Make Up Artist

2007-07-10T07:56:00.000Z

One of our brides recently used a make up artist with whom we've not worked before, and we were impressed - so much so that Louise Young is now on our (very short) list of recommended MUA's!

Louise is both a consummate professional and a lovely lady, and her website is here

One very professional band

2007-07-05T19:30:00.000Z

What a pleasure it was to listen to these guys at Victoria and David's wedding last month! This is After 8 Jazz in their usual incarnation of keys, bass, drums, guitar, sax and horns, and it's been a long time since we've come across such a thoroughly professional band at a wedding.

Great musicians, smart turnout, good presence, cool sound ... we were impressed, and where wedding bands are concerned that really does not happen very often at all. David Kaplan's the contact, he's on 07956 818 035, and the band website's here

A couple of funky weddings and ... wedding porn?

2007-06-30T13:56:00.000Z

Maybe they deserved a better band, but just how cool is Kyla 'n' Dylan's wedding in Colorado a fortnight ago?

There's 71 shots from Lucid 'n' Eenor's to check out here on Flickr ...

And the Wedding Porn site is here

We particularly like that idea of the bride's overdress that's featured in the "Wedding porn: cream and black wedding dress" post (if you click on that picture of the Scottish couple, it links to their Flickr album of 30 more wedding photos)

Fancy signing a petition?

2007-06-26T12:48:00.000Z

As most of our clients are well aware, the question of whether if, on the day, we will actually be allowed to take photos during the ceremony is something of a lottery. As far as civil ceremonies are concerned, that's because it's entirely at the discretion of the celebrant, from which it follows that you never really know until just before the bride walks down the aisle whether she'll get the pictures she wants.

Our colleague Duncan Kerridge has finally got so fed up of this situation that he's got approval for an official petition to the Prime Minister calling for the government to issue guidelines instructing all registrars to allow professional photography during civil ceremonies.

If you'd like to lend your support, you can sign the petition here

Ann's Pudding Picture #17

2007-06-17T14:17:00.001Z

I have no idea why he's looking at Ann like that, but this is five summer puddings with clotted cream on their way to table at Marilyn and James' wedding breakfast last week.

Hats #12

2007-06-17T14:07:00.000Z

Just realised that we're overdue for another hat picture ...

What happens if it rains?

2007-06-13T19:00:00.000Z

Ann and I get wet! Seriously though, what difference rain might make to your wedding day depends on three things: what your contingency planning is like, how you react to it, and how your guests react to it.

We had rain at last Saturday's garden-party type reception, but fortunately Matilda had had the foresight to hire in a load of brollies. Equally fortunately, she is not the sort of girl to make a big deal of a bit of mud on a wedding dress or a pair of shoes, and her guests weren't either.

Net result: down came the rain, up went the brollies, out came more champagne and canapes on the lawn, and the whole thing carried on as normal ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #16

2007-06-13T17:57:00.001Z

Two for the price of one this week! Top picture is the lovely Carolyn Barnett's assembly line for her 'Slice of lemon glazed tart with strawberries and raspberries and a shot of chocolate mousse', and bottom picture is the start of the serving of it at Matilda and Danny's reception.

Carolyn's one of our favourite outside caterers, and not only because she kindly gave us a delicious pud each last week. She's based in East Sussex, caters for up to 100, has no website because she's busy enough without one, and you can get her phone number from us!

The next big thing?

2007-06-10T15:47:00.000Z

Well OK maybe not, but to me it's surprising that the picture idea known in the biz as Trash The Dress has made it to today's New York Times. By way of a demo, here's a little video of a high-energy photoshoot by Kelly Moore of Los Angeles that ends in a dress trashing ...

Anybody up for this kind of thing? :)

The bells! The bells ...

2007-06-01T10:06:00.000Z

at St Mary Magdalene at Cowden in Kent a couple of weeks ago, showing the whiteboard with the changes on that they rang and also what happens to the ropes when they've finished ...

That was May that was

2007-05-28T10:12:00.000Z

OK, I know it's not actually over yet but gosh what a month it's been! We covered four great weddings, one of which was Alyson and Mark's bid for the title "Longest Christian Wedding Ceremony Ever With Most Choral Music", the order of service for which ran to 16 closely-typeset A5 pages. That's now featured as one of the complete weddings on the pictures page of our main site.

We presented another seminar on wedding photography, this time in Dorset, and the two-day workshop we've organised in August with two seriously good wedding photographers from the States has now sold out. The current edition of the Master Photographers Association magazine has a three page article about us in it, and we're rather bemused by the fact that the editor's caption to two of our pictures says that they "clearly involve some arrangement" of the subjects when in fact they're our usual as-it-happens documentary shots ...

We've managed to get up to speed with some new software and further improve our workflow, and we've met with some interesting people in interesting places - including the 32nd floor of one of the glass towers in Canary Wharf.

Unfortunately I can't show you a picture of the amazing view of the Thames from the top because we ... erm ... didn't have a camera with us :(

Ann's Pudding Picture #16

2007-05-27T14:30:00.000Z

Once again we're not sure now what it was, but this was the pud at Becky and John's wedding breakfast at The Commissioner's House, Chatham Dockyard

Wedding Videos

2007-05-20T20:21:00.001Z

Fortunately, not many of our clients book a professional videographer. Maybe two or three a year, and then usually just to keep mum happy.

For the last seven years we've always tried to work in harmony with pro videographers, but more often than not we've come back from the gig intent upon making a Plasticine model of the videographer and getting out the pins. The only exception that springs to mind is Leo Ferenc of Perfect Day Studios with whom it's always a pleasure to work.

However, after the last wedding at which we had a pro video crew we've reluctantly decided that enough is enough. Unless they get carried away on the day, we usually have no problem with a guest videoing the ceremony and speeches, but we're no longer prepared to work with a professional videographer unless we know for sure that he or she won't compromise our coverage of the day. In practice that means one with whom we've worked before or who comes highly recommended by fellow wedding photographers.

Rather Unusual Weddings - cont'd

2007-05-20T17:02:00.000Z

Denny and Brian got married yesterday. After a very nice service in a lovely old village church, the reception was held in the grounds of a country house with a string quartet playing while 120 guests enjoyed their drinks and posh nibbles. The stars of the show had bags of time for socialising before the wedding breakfast, which was a very laid back but otherwise perfectly normal three-course meal in a marquee .

What was not perfectly normal about Denny and Brian's wedding was that they had ...

No bridesmaids

No best man

No ushers

No formal photos

No receiving line

No favours

No wedding cake

No bar

No DJ or band and

No evening guests

I was going to say that they also didn't have any speeches, but Brian did in fact make a short one with Denny standing by his side before the meal kicked off.

The absence of many of the usual trappings wasn't down to budget in this case but to the couple's wish for nothing more than a really relaxed and enjoyable wedding day surrounded by friends and family, which is precisely what they got. And for what it's worth, we're now convinced that for some couples at least, this is definitely the way to go ...

PS This was the wedding at which the catering manager greeted the bride as she entered the marquee with a gushing "Oh Denny you look absolutely ravishing". Or rather he thought he did. What he actually said was "Oh Denny you look absolutely ravenous" :)

Another cool invitation

2007-05-18T12:48:00.001Z

Here's the invitation to Verity and Bo's wedding this summer, complete with a handy removable listing of local accomodation and taxi firms, plus map, wedding list details and the all-important RSVP card ...

A Rather Unusual Wedding

2007-05-07T17:23:00.000Z

Earlier this month we photographed a wedding which involved among other things 2 wedding co-ordinators, 2 sound engineers, 7 video cameras, a jazz quartet, an 8-piece brass section, tympani and 2 percussionists, a world-class viola player and a 40-piece professional choir, all conducted by John Rutter - a man widely acclaimed as the greatest living composer and conductor of choral music.

The total time from Alyson setting off up the aisle on her father's arm to exiting the church on Mark's was exactly 2 hours 50 minutes, and the pictures are now on the pictures page of our main site. It's the bottom one of the complete weddings.

Coach and horses

2007-05-07T09:39:00.000Z

No picture I'm afraid because we haven't done the editing yet from Saturday's wedding, but I wanted to point out that Westways Carriage Horses are now added to our supplier links on here.

And why might that be? It's not just because the coach and pair that took Alyson to the church was turned out absolutely immaculately in every respect, as were both coachman and groom, and driven so expertly.

What sold me on David West and his company was the way in which he doffed his hat and held it properly whilst the bride got into and out of the carriage, exactly as he would have done in Victorian times.

Never seen a coachman do that before, and it's such a nice touch. Their website's interesting too!

Ann's Pudding Picture #15

2007-05-04T20:27:00.000Z

Just realised that we haven't had a Pudding Picture for ages, so for connoiseurs of the art here's one from Vanessa and Nils' wedding last month at Nutfield Priory. We can't remember what it was but it looked very nice!

What happens if ... ?

2007-05-03T20:08:00.000Z

From time to time, we get asked the perhaps inevitable "What happens if one of you breaks a leg or gets struck by lightning?". We always explain that we have A Plan for any eventuality, but point out that in well over 300 weddings we've never had to use it. Well sure enough ...

Guess who woke up last Thursday feeling wretched and by Friday was sporting a really horrible rash. "Have you had chickenpox?" said the doctor. "Yes thanks" said I. "Well congratulations. You've got it again" said she. "I'm glad we don't have a wedding this weekend" said Ann.

To cut a long story short, by Sunday morning we had in place a contingency plan to cover this Saturday's wedding in the event that one or both of us can't, and a bride not only fully aware of the situation here but totally cool about it. In fact her exact words were

"Since you have been by far the most organised, thorough and communicative of all my suppliers, I am not in the least concerned and look forward to seeing the outcome on Saturday!"

So as of now I still don't know if I'll be presentable enough to turn out for the gig, but if I'm not, the wedding coverage will still be just fine with Ann ably supported by our pals Richard and Sarah, who are totally up to speed with all the details and ready to go.

It's nice to know that The Plan actually worked, and worked so well too: within 24 hours of putting out a call for help, we had a total of 9 experienced professional wedding photographers ready and willing to help out on a really demanding big London wedding.

Thanks guys. You know we'll do the same for you.

Another cool invitation idea!

2007-04-26T18:00:00.000Z

Here's the "playing card" invitation for Victoria and David's wedding, complete with their initials as queen and as king of hearts. It's a beautifully printed double-sided concertina-folded card with all the details their guests could ever need to know, presented in a neat hinged tin box complete with ribbon to lift it out by!

The Ball

2007-04-20T17:47:00.000Z

Well, we've had a vicar use a toilet roll as a prop during his address before now, but at Emily and Darryl's wedding we had the vicar lobbing a rugby ball to Darryl, who did indeed catch it.

And no, that ball was not Photoshopped into the top picture after it was taken!

The Bit You Don't Normally See #7

2007-04-17T13:02:00.000Z

The Bit You Don't Normally See #6

2007-04-17T12:58:00.000Z

On the day Georgina's dad was, as ever, always attentive to his daughter's every need ...

Hats #12

2007-04-11T19:27:00.000Z

And unfortunately we have no idea at all how it stayed put ...

South Africa Style

2007-04-06T17:46:00.000Z

Just heard from Mariska that while she and Andrew are signing the registers next month, their guests are going to be ushered out of the church ready to greet them at the door when they exit together as husband and wife!

So often when things are done as usual the couple emerge to congratulations from just Ann and me, and then wait ages while their guests try to set a new record for how long it takes to empty a church. This South African way of doing things sounds good to us, and if I forget to report how well it works in practice, can somebody please remind me?

Why?

2007-04-06T17:12:00.000Z

Why do they do this?

Is it not obvious to any keen amateur photographer that if they look through their long lens and there in the background of their picture they see the professional photographer aiming a whacking big lens straight back at them, they and their camera are going to feature prominently in pictures for which the happy couple have parted with a considerable amount of money?

OK, everybody can make a mistake, but when this goes on for quite a while during the ceremony, both with and without flash? And every time the bride moves slightly, the pro has to shift his position to try and keep a tall guest and his camera behind her head?

Even lowering my camera and giving him the evil eye bigtime had no effect, so I really do hope that in the end he got the shots he wanted. And that for once the couple actually get to see them.

Here endeth this short rant, and we return you now to our normal programming ...

Things To Think About #4

2007-04-01T10:39:00.000Z

Thinking of sending your bridesmaids up the aisle first, US-style? In our experience it's a great builder-upper to the entrance of the star of the show, and it can also avoid a bit of a scrum at the end of the aisle as attendants try to get to their seats without treading on the bride's train.

However, beware of one potential pitfall if you have young attendants going up first! What can very easily happen is that everybody processes serenely up the aisle with the kids leading, but everything grinds to a halt when the kids reach the end because they've forgotten where to go.

This does two things: it adds a bit more tension when the bride least needs it, and it tends to screw up what would have been some really cool photos as the couple see each other for the first time on the day.

The way to avoid the problem is to brief the first adult behind the kids to sort them out PDQ if they don't go straight to the right seats, and above all else don't set off up the aisle too close to those in front of you. Leave a reasonable gap between yourself and your supporting cast - and don't close it up in your haste to get the ball rolling!

Things To Think About #3

2007-03-26T06:59:00.000Z

Planning on moving your guests from church to reception in a coach? In the light of our experience at two weddings in the last two years, the way to avoid the risk of a lot of people getting cold and fed up outside a church whilst waiting for a coach to turn up is to:-

Assume that if the coach is also taking people to the church, it will drop them off then disappear to park somewhere else. Before it does, get somebody to find out where the driver's going and that he knows what time he has to be back.

Get written confirmation from the coach company of the time when the coach will be outside the church ready to load for the journey to the reception.

Get a mobile number for the driver and a backup number for the duty manager at the company's base,

Assume that mobile phones won't work at the church and find out where the nearest landline phone is.

Remember that the service you're paying the coach firm to provide is not what they spend most of their time doing, so you need to spell out exactly what they have to do for you on the day.

Hats #11

2007-03-25T17:44:00.000Z

Just realised that we haven't had a hat picture for ages ...

The Land Of Big Breakfasts

2007-03-24T08:03:00.000Z

On Wednesday we flew oop North to do a talk for the good folk of the North East region of the Master Photographers Association in Durham, which is indeed a fine place for a wander round on a sunny afternoon.

Having met some really nice people and done our thing, we retired to our hotel room intent upon a relaxing bath. The guy who came up to try and make the bath taps work couldn't have been more helpful, and having admitted defeat was quick to give us the key to the empty room next door so we could use that bath instead. And when Ann found that it was full of tins of paint and maintenance gear, he immediately found us another one down the corridor which was just fine.

The fault with the fire alarm in the adjacent block didn't really disturb us that much because by 3am we'd just about got used to the drone of a remarkably noisy fan somewhere and were pretty much fast asleep.

However, just before 7am we were rudely awakened by the incessant chattering of that insufferable woman on Radio Two, coming to us loud and clear through the floor of our room. Which was above the restaurant. In the ceiling of which are the speakers for the background music. And the restaurant started serving breakfast at 7am sharp ...

Breakfast was fascinating. There we are being Southern wimps with our breakfast of faux croissants and coffee, and we're surrounded by sturdy folks carrying huge plates from the breakfast bar thingy piled high with bacon, eggs, sausages, beans, fried bread, black pudding and for all I know a deep fried battered Mars bar or two, topped off in many cases by a quivering mass of scrambled egg, all of which they consumed with great gusto.

Feeling totally outclassed, we slunk out and in due course were kindly driven back to Newcastle airport, there to spend a few hours looking out of the departure lounge windows watching two blokes mend an aeroplane so that we could fly home in it.

Photographer At Work #7

2007-03-18T14:53:00.000Z

Here's a picture of me at yesterday's wedding in sunny Suffolk checking what the big group shot's going to look like if everybody ever gets into place for it. In the absence of a first floor window to hang out of, an obliging guest with a trick Landrover is indeed a handy thing to have at a wedding ...

Things To Think About #2

2007-03-18T14:04:00.000Z

If you're thinking of booking a particular DJ, it's always a good idea to ensure that they don't in fact advertise their business on the front of their rig. Few things look tackier across a dancefloor at a wedding than "Aren't I Cool Discotheques For The Grooviest Sounds Around" in purple reflective vinyl lettering on a banner strung from a lighting truss.

Notices #9

2007-03-18T14:02:00.000Z

That's "Inn" as in "Inn of Court", by the way ...

Things to think about #1

2007-03-18T13:37:00.000Z

Despite what Mum or your florist might tell you, tall centrepieces are not actually a good idea for top tables. If they're much more than maybe 12 inches (30cm) tall, they're likely to obstruct your view of some of your guests or their view of you.

Will she or won't she?

2007-03-15T16:34:00.000Z

And if she does, will we get to see the pictures?

Heard today from the lovely Anika, whose wedding we photographed last year and who is pictured swanning past a Soho sex shop (as you do) with husband Tim on the home page of our main site.

Apparently they'll be spending their first anniversary at this year's Isle Of Wight Festival, at which Ani is considering wearing her now-shortened wedding dress together with a pair of white wellies in order to celebrate the occasion.

We think that's an excellent idea, and if it happens, we're going to be seriously miffed if we don't get to see the pictures!

No pressure Ani. Just do it :)

Doo-dah ... Doo-dah ...

2007-03-11T13:43:00.000Z

Yes, I do know it's Camptown ladies in the song but I couldn't resist that.

I spotted these two whilst legging it round Lincolns Inn Fields in the City yesterday, and it's actually the sign on the gents that intrigues me.

If you go to school in Camden, is that a plural or is it the plural of a plural?

Cakeless Weddings

2007-03-11T12:20:00.001Z

The first time we photographed a wedding without a wedding cake, we were fascinated to see how little difference its absence seemed to make. The guests didn't seem to notice. Nobody went hungry. It didn't seem "wrong" at all.

We've now done four cakeless weddings, and at the last one I was interested to hear the banquetting manager's take on wedding cakes. What it boiled down to was that:-

1. They can be outrageously expensive for what is after all just a cake that's supposed to be eaten on the day

2. At most weddings, half of what's been sliced up and served at table actually gets left on the plate and ends up in the bin

3. That's because most people nowadays are not used to eating a three course meal, therefore they have no room left at the end of one for a piece of cake

4. Wedding cakes and the cutting of them are traditions that seem to be on the way out

All of which seems about right to me. I won't relate what he then had to say about bands at wedding receptions, but I did agree with every word of it ...

Neat Idea For A Table Plan

2007-03-08T09:17:00.000Z

Sam and Gregor came over from Tokyo to get married in Knightsbridge, and this is one idea they brought with them - labelled pairs of chopsticks arranged in ornate bowls containing rice.

When guests were called to the wedding breakfast, they found the chopsticks with their name on, read the back of the label to see which table they were on, and then kept the chopsticks as a memento of the wedding.

Seemed to work OK in practice and was certainly well received by the guests!

Every Lisper's Nightmare

2007-02-23T11:14:00.000Z

Woo hoo! Last night we got permission from the band's management to use a favourite track by The 6ths on our main site, so it's now there as the soundtrack to the Gallery 2 slideshow on the pictures page. It's off a Stephin Merritt CD called "Pieces of April" on Nonesuch Records, and yes that is Stephin with an "i". His website is here

We're still working on replacing the elevator music on the Gallery 3 show. It was going to be an obscure track off a Buddha Bar CD that we really like which has lyrics in Tibetan, but the best offer from the label in Paris was that we could use it for one year for 2000 Euros instead of the 6000 they'd normally want for the privilege ...

The Bit You Don't See #5

2007-02-23T11:10:00.000Z

Just found this picture of two-thirds of a jazz trio, a photographer and a bloke in a bridal gown taking five during the meal at a wedding last year ...

The Land Of Big Tractors

2007-02-23T08:04:00.000Z

We went up to Norfolk on Monday and gosh do they have big tractors up there nowadays! Presenting a seminar for 40 or so wedding photographers who had nothing better to do that evening was fun, but the best was yet to come ...

It's comforting to know that some things never change, and that the classic 1970's English Hotel Experience can still be had. We'd asked for a quiet room, and were relieved to find that the bar underneath it wasn't actually as noisy as it could have been. Our room boasted two radiators powered by the noisiest central heating system imaginable, which ran flat out all night. We couldn't turn them off because the valves were corroded, but luckily the windows opened so we didn't overheat.

By about 3am we'd got used to the noise and had mananged to get to sleep - until at 5.25am the road sweeper lorry went very slowly past right underneath our open windows. Road sweeping lorries are very noisy in Norfolk and the drivers of them are very thorough, this one making no less than three passes up and down the same bit of road outside our room to make sure that it was left pristine. At least that made sure that we were still awake to hear the bin men turn up 20 minutes later, and to marvel at how loud the reversing bleepers are on bin lorries in Norfolk.

We were just so glad that we'd asked for a quiet room, and felt that it would have been churlish to complain about having to fill a waste bin with water to flush the loo. We're still not sure what the evil slimy fungus was that was climbing up the wall behind it, but it was really interesting.

Breakfast was OK though, in a very 1970's English hotel way ...

Venues and the checking out of

2007-02-13T08:58:00.000Z

That's a picture of a venue, in this case Buxted Park in East Sussex which is just down the road from us. But for the purposes of what follows, it could be pretty much any venue anywhere.

When we first started shooting weddings, one of the first things we did after getting the booking was check out the venue. We did this for three reasons: it was apparently expected of us, other photographers seemed to make a big deal of doing it, and frankly we didn't know any better.

After a while, three things became apparent. One was that because we rarely work at local venues, checking one out could easily wipe out half or more of a working day. Another was that as we got more experience, we found that from an operational and logistics point of view, a lot of places are actually pretty similar. And the third was that we'd often find that having checked the place out, things were very different indeed on the day!

So for the last few years we've worked on the principle that if we don't know a venue, we'll check it out if we're in the area on other business and we can make the time to do so. Otherwise, we won't unless it's obvious to us that we need to.

One final thought on this is that at some venues, the people you're dealing with will assure you that it's absolutely vital that your photographer checks it out because otherwise they won't have a clue where to go or what to do and your pictures will be a disaster.

No they won't.

Data Security And The Compost Heap

2007-02-04T11:30:00.000Z

I've just been asked if the bit about the compost heap in the "Privacy Policy" at the bottom of the contact page of our site is true.

Yes it is :)

2006 was the year that we ...

2007-01-21T20:33:00.000Z

Had a registrar who was not conducting the ceremony have a really good moan at us about the officious attitude of the registrar who was.

Had a wedding breakfast without a wedding cake and nobody noticed.

Had the banquetting manager at a gay wedding announce as usual at the end of the meal "Pray silence for the father of the bride" and both fathers stood up to speak.

Photographed a wedding in the French Alps.

Photographed a wedding at which the wedding breakfast was before the ceremony.

Watched a DJ at an upmarket venue produce a pro camera complete with long lens and flashgun then wander round doing table shots during the meal dressed in tee shirt, baggy shorts and trainers.

Watched a DJ take pictures after the meal and during the dancing despite being specifically told by the groom not to do so while we were still working.

Saw a registrar present the happy couple with a bottle of champagne along with their marriage certificate.

Had several clients who decided to make best use of the time and the light on the day by doing the pictures of themselves alone together before the ceremony.

Photographed a drinks reception on the London Eye.

Had the manager of a wedding venue which prefers couples to use its recommended suppliers give us glasses of lukewarm tap water to drink on a scorching hot summer's day instead of the chilled sparkling water which had kindly been organised for us and paid for by our clients.

Had the manager of a very nice venue indeed practically force us to eat a delicious three course veggie meal despite our protests that we'd already eaten!

Had Elvis make a surprise appearance at a reception. And you know what? He was actually very good indeed ...

Why has it gone so quiet?

2007-01-19T10:15:00.000Z

Because it's been like Santa's workshop on Christmas Eve here, that's why! As of yesterday we've finally caught up after our six weddings in December and one on the first Saturday of the year. After tomorrow's in downtown Tunbridge Wells, though, that's it for four whole weeks. Well, sort of ...

We've got a lot of work to do on the website. The gear to get serviced. Our literature to re-write. The puter network to expand and update. Ann's admin system to improve still further. More ideas to try out with Art Prints. And loads more similar stuff.

We're trying to organise an intensive two-day workshop this summer with a seriously talented photojournalist we want to bring over from the States. We've been asked to give talks ourselves to fellow professionals in Norfolk and in Durham, and it looks like the Dan Johnson Photography Experience will also be Wessex bound before long. So we have to get our act together for those while we're not out shooting weddings and doing all the subsequent processing.

Then there's the meetings with potential clients. And all the usual routine admin. And Ann's new greenhouse to put together from an enormous carton full of interesting bits of aluminium and a bizarre collection of bad drawings and weird symbols that passes for The Instructions.

Hmmm. I'd better get on with it then ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #14

2007-01-04T09:25:00.000Z

Our last but one wedding of 2006 found Ann in seriously arty mood for this shot of the Mulled Wine Poached Figs With Christmas Pudding Icecream going out to table at Alix and Malcolm's wedding!

The Bit You Don't See #4

2007-01-04T09:16:00.000Z

Here's one of Leith's merry men in the servery finishing off the starters for Alix and Malcolm's wedding breakfast last month. If you're wondering why there are so many books in the servery, that's because after the wedding, this room reverts to being the library at the Law Society's Hall ...

London Buses

2006-12-26T19:16:00.000Z

For weddings, that is, as opposed to for getting about town. Here's a picture of one of the two Routemasters transporting Alix and Malcolm's guests from the London Eye to the Law Society on Saturday, taken from the other one.

These buses were hired from Blue Triangle, and just for the record I have to say that every time we've worked for a couple who've used them, they've been delighted with the service provided by Blue Triangle and we've been relieved that they didn't go for one of the other firms ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #13

2006-12-20T16:30:00.000Z

Buxted Park's lemon tart with lime sorbet going out to table at Karen and Niels' wedding ...

Cheese Tower

2006-12-20T11:20:00.000Z

Here's the Italian-style cheese tower that formed the centrepiece of the evening buffet at Giovanna and Gary's wedding earlier this month at Buxted Park, and of which there was very little left an hour later ...

Photographer at work #6

2006-12-05T19:41:00.000Z

That's Ann on the right taking a picture of Karen the bride on the left taking a picture of Jane doing a little bridesmaid's hair at Buxted Park last month.

Ann's Pudding Picture #12

2006-11-26T08:34:00.000Z

Iced butterscotch torte with sticky toffee pudding icecream on its way to Lisa and Matthew at South Lodge Hotel in West Sussex earlier this month ...

Notices #9

2006-11-24T19:47:00.000Z

Long before their wedding, our couple were told that their vicar was happy to have photos throughout the ceremony from the gallery, which runs along both sides and across the back of this particular church. The couple thought this was great, but this being a Church of England wedding, we interpreted that as "no photos at any time during the ceremony except what you can get from the gallery". What we didn't reckon on though was this notice at each end of it!

The forbidden territory starts about level with the first pews, which means that once the couple are at the top of the aisle, their photographer is lucky to get much more during the ceremony than a limited selection of shots of their backs and the top of their heads.

And as usual, I couldn't get a sensible answer to the question "why?". I did though learn that apparently this novel restriction isn't a consequence of the rector having had unfortunate experiences with wedding photographers, nor is there any spiritual basis for it ...

Alternative stationery

2006-11-19T16:45:00.000Z

Whilst looking for a source of "alternative" greetings cards recently, we chanced upon Gothic Greetings

We're seriously impressed! User-friendly site, cool designs, very reasonable prices, fast delivery and above all really excellent quality cards - and what's more Sarah also does custom wedding stationery!

Got to be worth checking out - particularly if you might still have an old bottle of black nail polish somewhere. Or your DM's and the fishnet tights ...

Receiving lines

2006-11-17T19:59:00.000Z

look completely different when you're not very tall ...

So there we were ...

2006-11-08T17:08:00.000Z

outside Chelsea Register Office when half a junior school simply has to come past in front of the camera just as we were about to do the big group shot on the stairs

Having got that one safely in the bag, we then noticed that the Japanese couple who'd got married in another room a bit earlier were watching the proceedings, and as they had neither guests nor professional photographers, Mary and Rob did the decent thing and invited them to share theirs ...

Notices #8

2006-11-05T20:00:00.000Z

Wedding Cake Production

2006-11-05T19:39:00.000Z

When we turned up early for Anna and Alan's wedding at Chandos House last month, we had no idea at all that we'd find the groom's mum and sisters being a wedding cake factory in the drawing room ...

Shoes #8

2006-10-23T14:56:00.000Z

Claire's shoes on the mantlepiece in the coastguard cottage at Lulworth Cove in Dorset on her wedding day last month ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #11

2006-10-23T14:47:00.000Z

Belgian chocolate wedding cake served with strawberries at Rowena and James' wedding breakfast in Lewes last month

Hats #10

2006-10-23T14:42:00.000Z

The veil and the gale

2006-10-23T06:28:00.000Z

Well maybe not a gale really, but it was certainly a bit breezy on the front of Lulworth Castle when we were doing the groups at Claire and Mark's wedding ...

Ceilidh Bands

2006-10-19T06:34:00.001Z

Two of the weddings we covered this year have had a ceilidh band and caller at them, and on both occasions we were decidedly unimpressed.

Until I spoke to one of the brides about this last night, I thought it was just us. But it certainly isn't, so if any of our clients are reading this and thinking of booking a ceilidh band, you might like to have a word with us before you do ...

Sam and Gregor's invitation

2006-10-15T14:33:00.000Z

Following on from the entry in June showing Sam and Gregor's "save the date" card, here's the hand-made invitation, together with tick-the-box RSVP card and self-addressed envelope to send it back in. Also included in Sam's mail-out are comprehensive details of accomodation, car parking facilites, dress code, gift options, travel info and location map.

It's difficult to think of anything they've missed out, and we're duly impressed - particularly as the couple are organising this whole winter wedding in central London from central Tokyo!

Ann's pudding picture #10

2006-10-14T07:26:00.000Z

"Warm Sticky Toffee Pudding, Sticky Toffee Sauce and Vanilla Pod Ice Cream" on its way out at Katherine and Keith's wedding breakfast at The Spa Hotel in downtown Tunbridge Wells last month.

Notices #7

2006-10-13T19:38:00.000Z

And nearly 39 years later, it's still there on the back of the vestry door ...

Photographer at work #5

2006-10-13T19:33:00.000Z

Here's a picture of Ann demonstrating the "stretch, close your eyes and hold your breath" technique for getting a cool shot of a very tall table centrepiece.

Hats #9

2006-10-08T18:48:00.000Z

Notices #6

2006-10-08T18:01:00.000Z

OK, I don't get the connection either, but as these things go it's actually not too far out.

A couple of years ago we had a vicar who explained to the congregation that he didn't want any confetti being thrown in the churchyard thank you "because we have a busy graveyard here and we don't particularly want mourners being reminded of happier times".

No, seriously.

That's what he said ...

Notices #5

2006-10-06T19:00:00.000Z

And trippeth not over the graves when thou comest from it ...

Photographer at work #4

2006-10-03T19:34:00.000Z

Well here's a rare sight: me grabbing a very quick posed headshot of Judith and David last month, under the watchful eyes of best man Andy and bridesmaid Froniga.

Incidentally, the camera bag weighs around 12Kg/28lb and it's over my shoulder because that's where the gear stays when we're working in the streets ...

Ann's Pudding Picture #9

2006-10-03T19:17:00.000Z

Not sure what it was but it looked yummy! This was the pud at Judith and David's wedding at Trinity House - the first one this year at which they've had sparklers ...

Hats #6 to 8

2006-09-26T20:18:00.000Z

Hats #5

2006-09-15T19:24:00.000Z

Bridesmaids in pink

2006-09-15T19:06:00.000Z

Here's Caroline with her bridesmaids, whose dresses were a really pale baby pink with slightly darker detailing on the bodices. Simple, understated and in our opinion they couldn't have complemented Caroline's dress and the flowers any better than they did.

Notices #4

2006-09-15T18:23:00.000Z

So, while they're signing the register ...

2006-09-15T18:15:00.000Z

which Father Kit wouldn't let me photograph, I take a look round the sacristy and marvel at the sink, at the antique water filter ... and at Father Kit's Magic Balls

Hats #4

2006-09-15T18:06:00.000Z

Les cloches

2006-09-05T12:41:00.000Z

So this is church bells, French style - at least as practiced in the village of Les Allues in the French Alps last Saturday. On the left we have bridesmaid Charlotte, best man Darren, then Mary and Bobby. On the right we have two Brits wearing Savoie hats and carrying between them six ancient cowbells on leather collars slung from a pole, which they swung with gusto as the entire wedding party walked through the village to the drinks reception.

There's now a lot more from this wedding on the pictures page of our main site if you scroll down to the complete weddings ...

Photographer at work #2

2006-09-05T12:24:00.000Z

Here's a picture of Ann checking out the decoration of the bridal World War II jeep on the morning of Mary and Bobby's wedding (see above)

Hats #3

2006-09-05T07:47:00.000Z

Just realised that we haven't done the hats thing for ages so maybe I ought to get it going again ...

Notices #3

2006-09-04T20:34:00.000Z

That was on the door of the French village hall used for Mary and Bobby's wedding breakfast last Saturday ...

Ann's pudding picture #8

2006-08-27T20:15:00.000Z

Not quite sure what the yummy-looking pudding was, but this is from Michelle and James's wedding at quirky Ham Polo Club

Quite a coincidence!

2006-08-19T10:05:00.000Z

On 21st July, the Evening Standard ran a feature on the effects of the drought on London landmarks, and it featured a big aerial shot of Coq d'Argent, one of our favourite venues.

On 22nd July, I was with Steve and the guys in his room at the Great Eastern, covering their preparations for his marriage to Becky. On the bed was a copy of the previous day's Standard, so perhaps inevitably here's a picture of their wedding rings on a picture of the roof garden upon which they would be holding their drinks reception in about four hours' time ...

Shoes #7

2006-08-19T10:00:00.000Z

Dolce and Gabbana bridal shoes (in the middle) makes a nice change!

Gin and tonic sorbet anyone?

2006-07-30T13:01:00.000Z

Or lemongrass icecream? Black Forest gateau sundae? Eaton Mess icecream? A nice Affogato al caffé? Or maybe just the yummiest proper vanilla icecream you've ever eaten in your life?

Lola's amazing genuine 1970's icecream van seems to serve just about everything but genuine 1970's hash brownies icecream, and it was a big hit at Amalia and Julian's wedding yesterday.

Morfudd Richards is the lady who runs it, the website is www.lolasonice.com the contact number is 07871 797260 and she makes the best icecreams we've ever tasted!

Excuses, excuses ...

2006-07-29T09:14:00.000Z

OK, I just realised that the link to here from our main site home page has been broken for a few days due to ... ermmm ... me screwing up in Dreamweaver, basically. Sorry 'bout that :)

Actually you haven't missed anything, because at the moment it's like Santa's workshop on Christmas Eve here and I just haven't had time to post anything new :(

Today's wedding is the last of our 8 in July, and we're definitely not as up to speed with the editing as we'd like to be right now. That's partly due to Ann's editing puter developing a really weird fault, the odds on which are apparently much the same as walking out your front door on your birthday and getting struck down by an asteroid with Elvis riding on it. So poor Ann's having to use the backup puter in my office until hers comes back from the menders.

And this of course is at our busiest time of year. During what is apparently the hottest July since whenever. When we're not exactly making things easier for ourselves by getting more pictures than ever from each wedding we photograph. And at the same time getting more people telling their friends about us, so we're getting more enquiries for 2007, which of course means more time out of the office to meet with people ...

But hey, this is what we love doing, and we're slowly climbing our way out of the hole. Normal service will be resumed real soon now, but meanwhile check out the title track from Cat Power's album called "The Greatest", which we're currently playing at least six times a (very long) day.

The Top Table Cake

2006-07-21T18:45:00.000Z

That's Angela, this is Terry ...
... and this is their top table
with the starter ready to eat
and later on, here it is in the kitchen, almost ready for slicing up ...

This wonderful cake was made by a lady called Sharon Forbes. Sharon's in Hemel Hempstead, and her phone number is 01442 262767 ...

The Bit You Don't See #3

2006-07-16T18:44:00.000Z

That's a few pictures of Friday's transformation of the Conservatory at Syon Park for Dee and Raj's Hindu ceremony and wedding breakfast. And to give you an idea of how fast those guys work, the total time from unloading the chairs to being ready for the ceremony to kick off was a little over 2 hours ...

Notices #2

2006-07-04T06:47:00.000Z

Notices #1

2006-07-02T18:57:00.000Z

Nice idea with orders of service

2006-07-02T17:51:00.000Z

Here's something we've not seen done before, which we think's a great idea. At the German Christchurch in Knightsbridge yesterday, they did what they always do with the orders of service: stand them up like this along with a couple of leaflets about the church.

As Pastor Baum said, it just makes the church look so much more welcoming!

Another cool card

2006-06-28T20:06:00.000Z

That's what was inside the small envelope with the Thai stamp on that came in this morning's mail: one of Sam's hand-crafted limited edition (note the 16/70!) save the date cards.

It's really nice textured card maybe 1.5mm thick and about 10 x 8 cm, with two stamp impressions, two textured paper hearts and a piece of textured foil. And in case you can't read the two lines of text at the bottom, it says "Hand-made by Sam with love and lovely things from Japan, Hong Kong, Thailand, England and Scotland"

We have no idea how long it took her to make these, but after this we're now wondering what the actual invitation's going to be like ...