The 10 Questions to Ask your Photographer

Choosing a wedding photographer is a pretty big decision; you have to trust them not only to successfully capture all the moments from your day but to deal well with your family and friends; to put you at ease oh and also take amazing photos that will last a lifetime.

It’s essential you meet with your photographer to see just how well they will fit that bill. And it’s wise to meet with more than one, perhaps three would be a good amount as you don’t want to be overwhelmed.

When you meet, trust your gut and listen to it. Does this person make you feel comfortable or ill at ease? Remember they’ll likely be with you from your preparation in the morning right through to the evening reception.

It’s good to ask them some questions too.

Here are what I think should be the top 10 questions to ask your photographer. They should give you an idea of how professional they are and how competently they will handle your wedding.

Oh and watch out for pushy sales tactics this should be an instant red flag.

ONE

How long have you been shooting weddings?

It’s important to see just how much experience your photographer has in shooting weddings. They may well have been a product or sports photographer before and have only just made the transition. They can legitimately say they’ve “been a photographer for years” so it’s vital to find out how long they’ve been a Wedding Photographer. Weddings are so different to other forms of photography, needing very quick reactions, excellent people skills, composure under pressure and lots more that most other disciplines don’t require. If they are new it doesn’t necessarily mean you should rule them out but make sure you have a very good look at their work and that they answer the following questions very well.

TWO

Do you carry back up equipment?

There are a lot of new startups out there. They get a camera and a lens or two and it all looks fine, but if a camera completely breaks down, or if they drop it for instance ( it’s happened to me ) are they ready with a full backup kit to cover all bases? And as a supplementary question.

Do their cameras write to two cards?

If they don’t and a card becomes corrupted all the photos from the day could be lost. I choose only cameras that have two memory card slots this means that as soon as the first photo is taken there’s already a backup safely waiting.

THREE

Is it you who will shoot my wedding?

It may seem like a daft question but I’ve personally been called in to cover another photographer when he’d double booked because he couldn’t face turning down the work and needed to get me to cover his day. So pin your photographer down on this else you might be looking through beautiful pictures taken by a person who won’t actually be at your wedding.

FOUR

What happens if you’re sick or can’t make it?

This is vital! What happens if the worst happens? Photographers are often booked years in advance and things change. They can get pregnant, they can fall ill so in those circumstances what’s the protocol? If there’s enough notice, say your photographer is now expecting and their due date is your wedding day chances are all parties will want to swap things around so they should be giving you the option of a full refund and for you to book with someone else. If it’s a last minute thing however, a car crash on the day for instance their priority should be to find you cover for that day. Ideally from someone they trust and who has a similar style of shooting. Sorting out compensation should come later. Photos first.

I have a go to photographer whom I trust if a situation like this ever occurred. It’s the last option though and fortunately in all the 15 years I’ve been shooting weddings I’ve never had to make the call.

FIVE

May we see some full weddings?

I can’t stress this enough, make sure you see full weddings from your photographer. Photographers will often have best of albums to show you, their Instagram and Facebook feed will likely be full of fantastic shots but is it consistent? The truth is, that if you give a camera to anyone with an interest in photography, and a day at a wedding then they’ll get a couple of good shots. But can they consistently get brilliant photo after photo?

So see a full wedding or three to make sure they’re a pro and not just getting lucky.

I have a full wedding to view here, Becky and Jason’s.

SIX

What coverage do you offer?

Many photographers give you an eight hour shoot time for your wedding. Personally I’ve never liked this and have never had time limits on full day packages as I’m there to capture the whole day.

My day is devoted to it and it shouldn’t be viewed as a 9-5. Also if you are booking a package with a time specified are you going to get a bill if you run over by 30 minutes or an hour? You might find that the bargain you’re considering isn’t that great after all. So find out the specifics so you can relax on the day.

SEVEN

How long does it take to get the photos?

I hear horror stories about couples waiting for months and on two occasions, years for their photos! There will likely be a wait if your photographer is editing your photos but you should be aware of how long you are expected to wait. I aim for six weeks with my edits, in peak season this can run on a bit to around eight weeks although I let my clients know and also send them the edits I’ve done so far which is usually the lion’s share so that they have something to show friends and family. It’s important to find out though and your photographer should have an answer ready.

EIGHT

What’s the price plan?

Wedding photographers tend to have a number of different packages for clients to choose from. Some have straight up packages, you pay this… you get that… whereas other have prices “starting from…” a certain amount. The sky’s the limit here so find out early what you will be expected to pay and don’t feel pressured into booking if it’s over your budget. Also photographers should have the specifics written into the contract as to when certain amounts are due. For instance I have two options for my couples. They can pay monthly and split the cost evenly or they can pay a 25% deposit, 50% six weeks before the wedding and the last 25% six weeks after.

NINE

Are there hidden costs?

This should be a straight up “No.” so if there’s any “umming” and “ahing” find out why. Please note hidden costs are different to extra costs. If you’re asking your photographer to travel 300 miles for your wedding they’ll likely be a travel fee added on although this should be discussed before any contracts are written up. But you should ensure that your photographer won’t add on another couple of hundred pounds because your wedding is two years away. Or if they go VAT registered that they’re not going to land you with a bill for another 20%

TEN

What’s the booking process?

Wedding Photographers aren’t cheap ( good ones aren’t anyway ) so when you book, it should be more official than a handshake and a wad of cash. For my clients I don’t take a deposit until contracts have been signed by all parties. The contracts are pretty straight forward with no small print but it does tie in both the photographer and the client. Which gives you peace of mind and something to refer back to.

There are of course lots of other questions you may wish to ask, How will you dress on the day? Are you insured? Do you have a second shooter? etc. But these top 10 should give you a very good starting point, and a feel for your photographer. You’re not being impertinent when you ask these you’re being prudent. Have fun it’s a wedding!

If you like to see answers to these questions and more see the FAQs section on my site.

Six in a Golf Cart

I met Terri and Andrew for the first time at Warwick castle. We toured round the grounds bouncing ideas off each other and generally goofing around. Both Terri and Andy work for large car dealerships, Terri as a Business Manager and Andy as a Sales Manager. I remember Terri smiling almost constantly and Andy coming out with some of the cheesyest ‘dad jokes’ I’ve ever heard, we got on great!

There are so many backdrops at Warwick Castle that we were more than spoiled for choice. Terri and Andy decided that a second shooter would be handy and so I got my friend and excellent photographer involved. We’d be pressed for time we realised as there wouldn’t be much light to play with so we hit on the use of a golf cart which was great on the day as we got to zip around the grounds at well not break neck speed, something more like six miles an hour but perhaps because there were actually six of us on it, myself and my second shooter Keagan, the videographer, Terri and Andy of course and the driver too. The day was packed full, with occasional surprises to keep the guests on their toes. I interviewed Terri about their day. Read on to hear all about it.

So, how did you guys meet, what’s the story?

“ We met at work seven years ago. The first time I saw Andy my comment was “He’s a bit of me he is!” We went for a couple of drinks but nothing ever happened and we then spent the next five years dancing the fine line between love and hate ... we argued like cat and dog! We worked closely together in the same office for years and despite all the falling out, we built a solid friendship. When I moved jobs, I’d call Andy for advice and we just eventually got even closer :-)”

A kind of Beatrice and Benedict situation then, that in mind what was the proposal like?

“Haha, we were in bed and I’ll leave it at that!”

Fair enough say no more, moving swiftly on to safe territory. How long were you engaged?

“About 14 months”

So you had a bit of time then, although planning a wedding can be a full time job, how did you find it?

“I found the planning quite rushed and stressful, we both work extremely long hours so it was hard trying to plan everything around work. I wish I could have taken a bit more time to explore things but then it all ended up so perfectly anyway, it didn’t really matter. ”

Yeah it was awesome, went without a hitch, well bar the jester having whiplash but not much you can do there. Did anything else ‘interesting’ happen along the way?

“Well, it’s true what they say, it’s the family that give you the biggest headaches! And finding out my best friend/bridesmaid would be eight and a half months pregnant on the day was a little nerve-racking haha! ”

True, I was secretly hoping for her water to break during the ceremony but no such luck. It would have been cool to have been born in Warwick Castle though! What made you choose it as a venue?

“We only actually looked at Warwick Castle. We were watching a program called ‘Great British Castles’ and I mentioned you could get married at Warwick... a visit was booked and that was it, all booked up very rapidly! It felt perfect for us.”

It sat very well with the whole theme, for those who weren’t there though; what did you wear and why?

“We went with a 20’s theme due to our love of Peaky Blinders. Andy and the Groomsman wore blue three piece suits with flat caps, champagne cravats and Andy also had his Grandfather’s pocket watch which was perfect. I had an ivory mermaid style fitted dress by Pronovias with a long train that I 20’d up with a Marabou wrap and an Art Deco headpiece and not forgetting my beautiful blue Manolo Blahnik shoes!”

Very cool. I loved it. Why 20’s though, a certain connection or does it just fit…?

“ We went with a 20’s theme mainly because I’d been struggling to find a style of wedding dress I liked. They were all too puffy or lacy or girly.
We were watching Peaky Blinders one night and it was an episode that contained a wedding. Out of nowhere, Andy piped up with ‘What about a 20’s style dress?’ I looked, quite liked them and so it went from there! We obviously then had to get a bit of Peaky Blinders into the wedding so we named the tables after the main characters. We decided to leave the decor as simple as possible - we were lucky that Warwick Castle is so beautiful and has so many lovely things to look at. We didn’t want to detract from that; so the only flowers we had were the bouquets and buttonholes. They were simple and pretty - white flowers and blue ribbon to match my shoes.
The invitations and table stationary we had in an Art Deco style and my friend who owns ‘The Little Cake Shop’ in Cannock made us a beautiful Art Deco four tier wedding cake. The Bridesmaids wore champagne coloured empire line dresses and also had fur wraps with gold Art Deco head pieces.”

Everyone got involved too. I walked into the ceremony room and it was all braces and peaked caps. Speaking of, tell me about the ceremony.

“It was beautiful, it goes by in a blur though! I remember feeling like I was queuing up for a roller coaster, then the music started and then we were walking back out! We had didn’t go for extra readings just the standard ones provided by the registrar, we didn’t feel we needed to add to it. My favorite bit was getting to Andy and then all the stress just melted away, I was so happy. Andy said there was no part he could say was his favorite, it was all good.”

Once the serious bit was out the way then what was the rest like, the party and reception?

“We had a DJ provided by the castle, a bar and hot pork baps. It was so hot, we kept disappearing outside for a cool down in between trying to get round to seeing everyone. It was brilliant though, I loved looking round and seeing people laughing and dancing and having a good time!
By the end of the night I’d pulled my hairpiece out and shoved my hair back in a bun, I’m pretty confident my makeup was halfway down my face and I’d given up with my heels so was in my trainers which meant I was standing all over my dress. I remember saying to my Mother-in-Law that I must look a right state and she replied with ‘Not at all, you look like a bride that’s had a bloody good day!’ and it was so true.”

You had some very unique entertainment, in face I’ve never seen anything like that done at a wedding. Can you tell me about it?

“We had a Knight on Horseback to lead our guests around and we had fighting Knights during the wedding breakfast.
One of the knights was the Master of Ceremonies and the other had been sat like a mannequin while the guests were being seated... He then sprang out and surprised everybody. Why did we choose these? We were in a castle, why not!”

Good point, I loved that actually, and for those reading at home, I laid in wait whilst a guest sat right next to the ‘suit of armour’ and settled herself in, it was about 10 minutes later that he roared to life and gave her a massive fright. Lovely. So they fought, then you ate and then it was first dance time. What did you choose and why?

“We had ‘Into the Mystic’ by Van Morrison. We are both fans of his music and we’d planned to get dance lessons to have our own special first dance. It was the right tempo to dance to and had the right meaning.”

Have you got any advice for couples getting married?

“Not to sweat the small stuff! There may be hiccups on the day - I promise you won’t even notice! And ultimately it’s committing to your partner and doing what makes you both happy is that’s important, not what everyone else thinks.”

Jolly good advice. Would you do anything differently?

“No, nothing.”

Good answer! A dicey question this one, did you stick to your budget?

“We didn’t really budget. Probably should have as we had a poor Christmas haha.”

So technically yes then! Perfect.

Feedback time for me; this question was done via email so as to get a more honest answer and more honest feedback; How would you describe my style of photography?

“Very natural and not obtrusive. We didn’t want a photographer who would take lots of ‘posey’ photos, and I don’t think I’m particularly photogenic when posing. We wanted a photographer who would capture not only the big moments but also the small moments that are easily missed and true expressions and that’s what we found!”

Well that’s a good start, but what was it like to work with me?

“Terrible! Kidding :-) Really easy, and you’re good company. You came up with some great ideas when you visited the Castle with us and kept everything calm and light hearted on the day - you definitely went above and beyond, a true professional! I think you ‘got’ mine and Andy’s sense of humour too which helped and that has come across in the pictures. You’ve also got a small fan base with my friends!”

Blimey! Good to know :) Thanks.

So Credit where Credit’s due, who did the following?

Hair - Lords & Ladies, Cheslyn Hay

Shoes. Manolo Blahnik

Flowers - Flowers by design Lichfield

Venue - Warwick Castle

Rings. - Diamond Dealers Direct - Jewellery Quarter Birmingham

Wedding clothing - Silk Brides of Lichfield, Warren James in Walsall, Davids Bridal in Birmingham (bridesmaids)

Cake - The Little Cake Shop, Bridgtown, Cannock

Make-up - Grace Lawless Make up Artist, Cannock

Be an Effective Street Photographer.

Street Photography

Street Photography makes up for some of the most iconic and moving photos of the last century. It essentially is photography for Art or Social Studies sake. Focusing on true random encounters in public spaces. There’s often no positioning of subjects here which is for me the true charm of it. Photos are often not quite right or involve an odd angle or strange perspective which make them so gloriously off kilter and not right that they are mesmerising and strikingly raw.

It can be daunting to start out. I tend to do it when I travel and find that at the very beginning putting a camera to my face can be embarrassing and at the very least conspicuous. So to get you going you could try shooting from the hip. This is an art-form in itself and is a real skill that few develop.

Shooting from the Hip

Essentially you take photos with your camera nowhere near your face and without the aid of a screen, shooting blind in a way. By doing this you end up with some truly interesting photos from angles that are usually the preserve of a child. There’s often movement in these photos as both you and your subject are frequently in motion, so considering camera speeds and apertures is important. Showing up the movement in the photo often gives it a real life so shooting below 1/100 of second is worth considering. But a word of caution. Surreptitiously taking photos although achieving great results can look suspicious so make sure not to take photos of things you shouldn’t be. Being caught taking photos of military police no matter how good the photo might not be looked on very favorably if done so secretly.

Picking the right camera

You may have a brand new Nikon 5 but as good as that is, for street photography it’s next to useless. It’s so conspicuous, so “Look at me I’m taking a photo” that people are bound to notice and subsequently alter their actions. Ideally you want to be using something capable, small, and with a reasonably wide angled prime lens. My preferred choice, having still to buy a Leica, is a Fuji. I use either an X100s or an XT2. Both very capable, both rather small. The X100s is probably my favorite though as it has a fixed 23mm F2 lens. The dials are all there on the camera body so I don’t have to play with the screen but can rather nonchalantly mess with the settings without drawing attention to myself.

Should you steal the shot?

This is up to you. When you steal a shot you catch a real moment without your involvement altering it at all. these photos are photojournalistic in a way as the subject is focused on whatever it is they’re doing and ideally you the photographer haven’t entered the periphery, but when you ask for permission you gain something else to counter that loss. You give the subject an opportunity to arrange themselves in the way they’d like to be seen. This could be a smile or puffing out a chest or maybe arranging themselves with the cards they’re dealing of the chickpeas they’re shucking. This is how they want to be seen and remembered and so you’ve caught that. You’ve caught not just the person or personality but without sounding too grandiose, some of their thoughts feelings and possibly insecurities too. That lends a whole new element to the photograph and creates a connection between subject and photographer. There’s often a brief conversation, I’ve chatted with old artisans and taken pictures of them working in dusty workshops through the entrance doors. I’ve met illegal loggers as they waited in line sometimes for days to be let over the border and shared thimble sized cups of tea with them. These for me were some of the most rewarding encounters because they forged memories that have stayed with me ever since.

So you have to make the call, about whether to steal a shot or ask for it.

The Interview

Perhaps the most interesting encounter I have had with street photography goes to show that the exception makes the rule. I was trying to surreptitiously take photos during the protests and riots in Thailand in 2013. Before I give the wrong impression, I arrived and had left before any outbreak of violence really took place and the atmosphere was reminiscent of a festival rather than the unease and electricity you feel around a violent outbreak. On this outing I had a big Nikon with me with large glass too as opposed to a little Olympus I’d left back at the hotel. So my stolen shots were noticed as was I. Again, there was no threat here but I was mistaken for a journalist and was offered an interview with the Sister-in-law of the leader of the coup. She was a political player in the party. I started to protest but then thought why not? and was sat down, fed, watered and soon enough She and her translator came over. She was well put together in large sunglasses and I had the surreal experience of plucking questions out of thin air to give to the translator whilst sat on a small red plastic stool in the mid-day heat surrounded by many interested Thais. It started as Street Photography and ended in one of the most unusual and interesting encounters of my life.

Katy & Duncan's Wedding Story

What's your love story? How did you meet?

It's really romantic... we met over a chat programme called ICQ (pre MSN we are that old!) I was at Loughborough Uni, Duncan was living at home and going to De Monfort, ICQ was kinda cool because you could search for nearby students.

We met in real life because Duncan wanted to meet another girl he fancied so me being the helpful person I was said he could practise by meeting me! We became friends first. I moved away and then we saw each other again after like a year and something clicked. Duncan got me through a tough patch and we've been through thick and thin since!

What was the proposal like?

I hit 30 and wanted a ring on my finger! I sorted the date (my 30th birthday) and then picked the ring out all that was left was the proposal... I really should have sorted that too! The romantic proposal of “d'ya wanna?" was it I’m afraid. I knew the ring was pretty and my size so I said yes! I've never let him live that down... and never will!

How long were you engaged?

Nine long years! It got to be a bit of a family joke that we would never get hitched. Something else always came up, moving house etc! We got there in the end!

How did you find planning your wedding? Anything funny/interesting happen along the way?

Which venues did you choose and why? We chose local. When we were first engaged I wanted a huge wedding with all the trimmings, stately home, horse carousel the lot. As we got older we just wanted to have our friends and family around us and have a fun relaxed day to remember and not the stress!

We picked a little local church and a marquee in a posh pub garden across the road from the church. It was a summer wedding and we both love the outdoors so it was a perfect fit. We were pretty practical, the venue was the right size, they did a good BBQ and it was a reasonable price: no huge leap in price if you are wanting a weekend or anytime between February and November!

We did win a competition at a stately home once, we thought we might get the venue cheaper but the first prize on the year we won was a bottle of fizz. We were told to collect it so they could take our photo for the newsletter... when we turned up they looked us up and down and thrust the bottle at us saying that “a photo wouldn’t be necessary!!!!!” We thought then maybe we weren't the stately home type.

What did you both wear? Why did you choose that?

Duncan really surprised me! We stumbled across a tiny little shop in Rugby called Albie and Lonnie’s that had some beautiful Marc Darcy suits. His was a dark blue with gold check, the Roman. So beautiful and normally so not Duncan but he really worked that suit! I wore a beautiful off the shoulder princess dress with sequins and other pretty bits by Amanda Wyatt! The dress was from a fabulous wedding dress shop in Kibworth called Wedding Belles Bridal Boutique. I went back to the boutique a few times to try on different styles. I had my heart set on a 1950's style Tea Dress with straps, and ended up in a huge princess strapless dress with all of the bling and skirts! It's so worth trying on different styles and stepping out of your comfort zone as you may hit upon a gem. I didn't visit any other bridal shops. I loved the ladies in Kibworth and I knew I would find my dress there.

What sort of theme did you go for with your decor and styling? Why did you go for that?

Well if our meeting wasn't nerdy enough we had a Harry Potter theme for our wedding.

I was trying to think of an idea for table names for ages (I have been engaged for a long time so I had plenty of thinking time) I saw some ideas of different Disney film props theming each table and hit upon the perfect idea as I am the world's biggest Harry Potter fan! It started off as something discreet, just a touch of Potter and then just seeped into the whole day including the wedding invites, cake, photo booth, props, table plan, guest’s Golden Snitch thumb print canvas, engravings on the rings etc etc. A lot of guests embraced it too and came wearing something Potter! We had to have seven tables for the seven books and themed them accordingly.

We chose Sunflowers as they are my favourite and I wanted something "pow" but not fussy... we had enough Potter bling already. I had a lovely bouquet and my bridesmaids all carried a single Sunflower. It was a great pop of colour and as we didn't have a colour theme, yellow was pretty neutral. I allowed Duncan to get involved so we had Lego Men place names. I found a company online, VM Bespoke, who die cut names Harry Potter styley so all of our Lego Men were holding one of those. Yes, the Harry Potter theme was out of control, once started it was like a runaway train!

What was your Ceremony like? What made you choose the readings that you had? What was your favourite bit of the ceremony?

We both loved our ceremony. Neither of us are religious but we got to meet our Vicar Pip lots before the wedding and he came to our house so we could go through everything. I wanted to marry in a church as registry offices didn't appeal. The venue could have married us but we didn't want to spend the whole day there so it was a good practical plan.

When it came to the service though it was so special being in a church. Pip made everything so personal, our friends and family were all part of the ceremony and we had a practice the night before with the whole of our close family there which was lovely as they come from all over the country. We felt that Pip really got to know us and it made the day very special.

Readings were done by my sister and also my best friend. We had one religious one and I wrote the other about us. A couple of close friends performed a few songs whilst we signed the register. Duncan's favourite part of the ceremony was seeing me walk down the aisle where he promptly fell to pieces! I loved the little details such as lighting family candles, having my mum walk me down the aisle and holding Duncan's hand throughout as he was in bits... bless!

What was your plan for the Reception/Party? What was it like? Did you have a favourite bit?

We wanted a chilled out reception and kicked off the afternoon with a Pimm’s reception for the guests whilst we went to a remote field to have photos taken. I had chosen an acoustic singer, Tara Simms, whom I LOVED and she was the perfect choice for a summer’s afternoon. I had been picking bits up for the wedding for a long long time including lawn games and decorations so our guests would be occupied and have fun. It was really important to me that everyone had a chilled out and fun time, which I’m hoping they did. I loved so many things about the reception. I wanted to make sure that Duncan was comfortable too as he is pretty shy and to see him relaxed and having a good time was great.

Because the venue was more intimate it was brilliant at allowing me to get round to all my guests and spend time with everyone. Everything came together and I loved that I could enjoy the day and not worry.

What was your First Dance? Why did you choose that song?

That's a funny story. Duncan isn't the most confident of movers so I wanted to make sure that he was comfortable during our first dance. We picked 'our' song ‘You're my Best Friend’ by Queen and I spoke to a choreographer I know from my musical theatre dablings for help. I thought she would just show us how to sway in time and give Duncan some confidence but she had devised a whole routine for us! Duncan was so far out of his comfort zone but I was so proud of how he embraced it and actually had fun practising and then performing it too. We kept it top secret which is a miracle for me and a great surprise for everyone else. Duncan did me proud and even managed to lift me in my huge dress!

Did you have any special entertainment? Why did you chose that?

We kept things pretty simple, games and bits on the lawn, Tara singing a couple of sets, the photo booth and then a disco in the evening. We had asked our guests what their favourite disco tunes were in the invite and the DJ had made a playlist from this, which he then gave us on CD which was a lovely touch from him. I wanted to surprise Duncan so I gathered a troop in secret to practise an arrangement of our song (You're my Best Friend.) We sprung it on Duncan after his speech and made him and a fair few others cry - from emotion not incompetence! It was great to have little surprises that popped up throughout the day and I loved seeing others reactions.

What is your advice to other couples getting married?

Definitely go with what you want to do. Be practical and organised, give your other half a list of duties and all will be well! Seriously though, decide what you want as a couple. We had so much 'advice' from other people we had to be strong keeping what we wanted for our day the focus. It was so easy to be swept away with so many things that apparently we just had to have at our wedding and what the correct thing was to do. We ended up with my mum giving me away, Duncan's sister being best woman, my Chief Bridesmaid being a Bridesman and a song instead of speeches! We loved our day because it was 'us', our guests loved the day because we did.

What would you do differently?

I'm not sure I would change anything. The only thing was that I felt that, when my evening guests arrived, I didn't get to see much of them as the disco started so everyone ended up spreading out from the garden and into the bar. Time seemed to speed up on the day and I suddenly found that I hadn't got round to see a lot of our guests during the evening.

What was your wedding budget? Did you stick to it? How did you manage it?

We didn't really have a budget, which was a bit dangerous I guess! As we booked the venue 18 months before the wedding we got a really good price on it, all in (food, drink, venue, DJ etc) came to £3500ish. We also picked up lots of bits along the way and I am a huge bargain hunter! My dress was a bit of a bargain as it was in a sample sale at half price £649, we ended up buying Duncan's suit which was around £250 including the shoes.

We had a spreadsheet and kept an eye on what we were spending. There were things we ditched if we felt we were spending too much or others that we added in. Towards the end of the planning as we got nearer to the wedding the spreadsheet went out of the window a little to be honest.

What was it like to work with me?

Ben at Shot Differently was a real find. We met him at a wedding fair at a different venue and whilst Duncan scoffed all of the free canapes I had a good look through the sample albums and chatted.

Both myself and Duncan are not great at posed shots and I loved the fact that Ben got some great impromptu photos which is what I really wanted for the wedding. Ben was approachable and shared the same sense of humour as me so I felt we would get along.

We actually 'interviewed' three photographers as we had no idea what we were doing and we wanted to be comfortable with this random person who would be part of our day. Ben put me at ease and was relaxed and easy to get along with so was our first choice. On the day he was brilliant. It was great to have him as part of the day and he just fitted in and got on with it. In the church there was no distraction of 'where is the photographer?' as he was really discreet and got some great shots. On the morning when I was getting ready he was a calming influence amongst the family flapping, which kept me calm and level headed. I felt that he really looked out for me in the day and made sure that we got the shots we wanted and that we were happy. I really hope he enjoyed spending the day with us as much as we enjoyed having him there as he was a very important part of our day.

How would you describe my style of photography?

I love Ben's style of the captured image. A fleeting look between me and Duncan, comical moments, families and friends playing around were all beautifully captured to make a great memory of our day. As the images were very spontaneous we got some amazing photos of every aspect of the day. I was worried that photos would look staged as I really cringe when I see photos of me trying to pose but I just love the photos as they have captured how happy and relaxed I was. They are probably the first photographs I truly like of myself and I can't stop looking at them.

Credit where Credit’s Due.

Accessories - Our gifts to one another, a necklace for me and a tie pin for Duncan, were both bought through Etsy which has some great bespoke and original items. Neither of us knew we were using Etsy, it was more of a statement of how much Duncan knows me and knows how I like something different and original.

https://www.etsy.com/uk/

Shoes - Joe Browns for me: really beautiful shoes that look very much like Irregular Choice but at half the price. They were whipped off pretty quickly to be replaced by bright yellow Converse! Duncan's chestnut brogues were bought with his suit from Albie and Lonnie’s.

https://www.joebrowns.co.uk/

http://www.albieandlonnies.co.uk/

Flowers - The Flower Pot in East Carlton

https://www.theflowerpotflorist.co.uk/

Venue - The Oat Hill, Market Harborough

http://www.theoathill.co.uk/

Rings - M&M Jewellers, Rugby - a brilliant family fun shop who embraced my requirements and went above and beyond to create what I wanted at a brilliant price.

http://mandmjewellery.co.uk/

Wedding clothing - Dress from Wedding Belles Boutique, Kibworth. Suit - Albie and Lonnie’s, Rugby. Bridesmaid dresses bought online at Little Wings Factory - very good quality dresses at a very reasonable price.

https://www.weddingbellesonline.co.uk/

http://www.albieandlonnies.co.uk/

https://www.littlewingsfactory.com/

Catering - done by venue

Cake - Hazel at Fabtastic Cakes, Fleckney. We had her cupcakes for dessert and they were amazing as was the Harry Potter cutting cake. She was brilliant as I am gluten and dairy free so she went all out to make sure I got a cake I loved and could eat!

https://www.facebook.com/FabtasticCakes/

Stationary - all homemade by us!

Entertainment - Tara Simms, guitar/vocalist

https://www.tarasimms.com/

Transport - a beautiful car supplied by my chief Bridesman's dad!

Anyone else that deserves a shout-out - VM Bespoke for name places, they do all sorts of quirky bits for weddings. 

https://vmbespoke.com/

Your occupations- Katy: Nursery Manager, Duncan: Service delivery manager

Which if any wedding fayres did you attend? All of the local ones! Kelmarsh Hall, Kilworth House, Tithe Barn, Shearsby Bath, The Three Swans and lots of others through Silver Linings.

How did you research and source suppliers for your wedding?

Some were word of mouth and recommendations. Photographer was through a wedding fayre. Others we picked up at wedding faryres, are local or found online.

Wedding at The Roman Baths.

Rosie and Dan asked me to shoot their wedding in one of the most beautiful cities in the world and at one of the most amazing venues I’ve ever been to. I’m talking of course about the Roman Baths in it’s namesake’s city.

This Iconic building although relatively modern in places has areas that date back almost 2000 years. It’s also the first Unesco World Heritage site I’ve had the privilege to shoot a wedding at. My best friend got married the day before at which I was Best Man, so I drove down that morning to start the Prep Shoot in an apartment that Rosie had rented for her and her bridesmaids to get ready in.

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It was frenetic. With bridesmaids, flower girls, parents and grandparents coming and going, all of it taking place in just three rooms. Amazing to shoot though with so much happening and such a buzz in the air. It turned out to be the hottest day of the year so far, a wonderful dry heat that meant that traveling in the breezy Ford Model T was, although feeling like a church pew being dragged at speed over a frozen ploughed field, a wonderful treat.

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The ceremony itself was conducted in the Old Pump Rooms, a glorious building of vaulted ceilings and curved walls. I got to see behind the scenes as I needed to get to the balcony for a shot of all the guests. This is one of the real perks of being a wedding photographer, we get more of an access all areas pass that has seen me on roofs, in catacombs and on one notable occasion, a very long secret tunnel that required a heavy rusty door to be heaved open and me wandering down alone ( it was purported to be haunted and the staff refused join me ) with only the occasion pulse of light from my camera flash to see what was beyond.

Whilst the guests went on to the Baths for the reception we, that is Dan, Rosie and myself went off in the Model T to the Royal Crescent to take advantage of the low sun and another stunning backdrop.

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The next stop of course were the Baths. Another hold on to your hats ride in a car older than my grandmother and we arrived. Due to getting married on a Sunday the streets were a lot emptier than usual, allowing me to take some shots outside with no one else cluttering the view.

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The day culminated the way all good weddings do, as a stonking party.

Warwick Castle Wedding

I got to shoot a wedding at Warwick Castle! Terri and Andrew got married in a beautifully high ceilinged room before being led by a knight in shining armor to the drinks reception. Keagan and myself then shot off with them both on a golf buggy to get photos around the grounds. Have a look at the photos here.