A long time ago...

The first time I met Beckie and Anthony was when I invited them to my home way back in March 2009. They both impressed me with their very positive attitude to life. That was why I accepted their invitation to photograph their wedding. Between then and Spring 2010 not much happened then, so fast forward to Jan 2010; we got back in touch and another meet up was arranged at the venue, the De Vere Hunton Park just outside Watford.

The rehearsal was in mid February around the late afternoon early evening, it was still dark around that month so I couldn’t conduct any external lighting tests but it was still worthy to see the rehearsal. I can’t always get to the the rehearsals but whenever I do it’s always worth while.

Fast forward to March and the day of the wedding. It was really great to come back to the De Vere again. I would always prefer to photograph somewhere new but there is always something to be said for familiar corridors. The last time I was there was back in October just after my birthday to shoot a wedding.

Beckie’s wedding was to be held entirely in the De Vere Hotel which made my logistics much easier to manage. I spent the morning with Beckie, her mum and bridesmaids. There was alot of activity in there but because everyone was still in that ‘not quite ready’ stage I couldn’t take an photos of anyone yet so I went around to find Anthony to see what he was doing. I found him in the lobby area with his father and friends.

Very soon, it was back to the hotel room to see what Beckie was doing. By now she was actually having her hair almost complete and was just about to do the make up. I could tell she still needed some time before she was ready for me, so I took that opporutnity to photograph the dress. Beckie’s mother led me to a room opposite. The dress was brilliant! It was a light peach that really captured the light by the window. The room was quite small which mean initially I couldn’t get back far enough to fit the entire dress inot the shot, however that’s where my trusty Nikon 14-24mm Lens cames into play. That lens has literally got me out some very tight shots in the past and it has come to save the day once again! Don’t misunderstand, my 24-70mm is THE Wedding lens of choice and so it is my workhorse but it’s just awesome to work with that 14-24mm once in a while (my photography g33k moment over…)

Very soon it was time for Beckie to put on her dress, and without further ado the Bride and mother disappeared to the other room. In the meantime I captured some detailed shots within the room I was waiting in. Now, bare in mind that while all this was going on, Anthony and the lads were literally just two rooms down the corridor so all that time Beckie made sure she was not seen by Anthony or any of the boys at all! With all the people coming in and out of the room, Beckie mades sure she could not be seen when the door was opened; so when Beckie had her wedding dress on, the girls shouted down the corridor telling the lads not to come out or even open their door.

Next was the moment where the guests file into the breakfast room. My only duty for that moment is to get the shot of them walking in. I decided to put on my big fat 14-24mm lens because I knew it was going to be cramped as I photographer in there.

Tempus Fugit

The men made their way to the ceremony. I was waiting while Beckie was doing some final adjustments, after all a bride has to look perfect. As the Bridal party left I was back tracking them while shooting at the same time. You would think I would have mastered this by now but it’s still very hard to do!!

I went ahead so I could be at the front of the ceremony to get the essential ‘bride walking down the isle’ shot. The light in the room was amazing; it’s like a giant green house with windows making up most of the walls. As Beckie walked in, the room fell silent, the music played and all eyes were on the Bride.

With the ceremony done I allowed the couple to greet their guests as a new husband and wife. Very soon though they were keen to get the photos underway as they knew there were quite a few to get through. I requested an hour for all the group photos to be done. We went through the first 10 groups very quickly; Anthony even commented that we wouldn’t need the full hour. Just then though, the guests became harder to find as they wondered off to the bar, the bathrooms, in their car, around the hotel… everywhere so it was very hard to get them back to our location. There was a bit of waiting around, but I assured Beckie and Anthony that this is normal. They felt comforted knowing that.

I had my assistant and the best man rounding them up but people kept wondering off, such is the life of a wedding photographer. Nothing like a bit of pressure to get the heart pumping:-)

Fifty five minutes after we had started we got all the assigned group shots completed, just within the hour:-)

All the guests were then ushered into the breakfast room, Beckie and Anthony were announced in once everyone had settled. It was time for the speeches. I situated myself near the front and to the side so I could get close up shots. I wanted to croutch down nearer but it was a tight space near the head table so I couldn’t do it without getting in the way of the other guests.

Later that evening, the other guests started to arrive. Although it wasn’t requested I took photos of the guests as they were greeted by the couple. It was a nice shared moment while they enjoyed each other’s company while friends and family were coming in. It must have been very nice and comforting to see these people as man and wife!

After the first dance, I left them enjoy their day. It was a fantastic day. I enjoyed every minute of it even though I was on my feet all day. Many congratulations to Mr and Mrs Nicholls!

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