I love a bride with short hair! I have known girls who have planned their weddings to allow plenty of time to grow their hair, just so they can have it up – this is what they think is the done thing. Lucy looked fresh and funky and just couldn’t stop smiling. This is how she feels about the day, now it is all over and the story of her girlie dress.
“The dress was a Cymbeline Paris design, I’d looked in loads of shops but the trend seemed to be for voluminous dresses with tons of beading which wore me rather than the other way round. The lady in the shop gave me 4 tags to identify 4 dresses to try on, she said I wouldn’t need more than 4 as I would just ‘know’. The one I choose first was the first one tried on and the other 3 just couldn’t match up as so there it was!
A make up artist is a must I reckon – despite my fears of looking drag – Sylvi du Sauzay left me with flawless skin and a great look for the photos
The Flowers were by Pollen, Donal did an amazing job for our budget and I just loved them.
Imagine the Beatles where a brilliant find, I heard a busker play I Feel Fine outside the Pavilion and didn’t even know it was a Beatles track, I found out who it was and then trawled the net for cover bands – got some samples to listen to and these guys were the best plus they had their own dj who was happy to play a Motown heavy set to keep my Beatles phobic mum happy! I took our parents to see them play and my Mum got tipsy and told the head of the band she thought the Beatles were crap which he found hilarious.
Big tips:
Enjoy the planning and accept you can’t have everything you want!
Nude seamless underwear is best, keep the lacy basque type stuff for the honeymoon!
Get a good photographer! There is nothing nicer than looking back over your photos to give you a lift and remind you of the important commitment you made. The day goes by in a bit of a blur so its good to remember. My family wanted lots of staged group shots which I found a bit stressful so make sure you delegate someone with a loud voice to call people to order!
Being the centre of attention isn’t for everyone and at times I wanted to put my fingers in my ears and pretend my name wasn’t Lucy, take time out when you can to enjoy a kiss from your Husband or quick breather with your mates. It’s natural people want to talk to you but it can be tough.”
Archive for the ‘Weddings’ Category
Brighton Wedding Photographer / Lucy & Paul
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010
Brighton Wedding Photographer / Marnie & Bevan
Wednesday, June 9th, 2010These are Marnie’s thoughts on her Brighton Beach Wedding and the story of that beautiful vintage wedding dress.
“I can honestly say that our wedding day was the best day in my life. We wanted a joyful, intimate, classy day for us and our 50 guests…and that’s exactly what we got. So many of the guests at our wedding have said to us that it was the loveliest wedding they’ve ever attended, which is wonderful to know. And I’m also really pleased that we decided to ask guests to donate to Oxfam, rather than buy gifts that we didn’t need….people were really generous.
For my wedding dress I definitely knew that I didn’t want anything new and meringue-like. That’s really not me at all. Having said that, I didn’t have a definite style in mind…I just wanted to find something that I fell in love with. I searched high and low for several months in specialist vintage clothing shops in London, but nothing had that “je ne sais quoi” and I was beginning to panic somewhat as we now had only had 8 weeks to go before the wedding. When I did eventually find the dress, it was virtually on my own doorstep, at Andrew Fionda’s vintage bride shop in Kemptown in Brighton. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was the one. It took my breath away…and because it was vintage, I knew it was a one-off and totally unique. Just like my husband in fact…a one-off, totally unique and with all the je ne sais quoi I could wish for!”
Other special aspects for me included:
The little white Morris Minor that we hired for our wedding car
Having our wedding photos taken on Brighton beach
Having our little dog Woody at our wedding ceremony – and a model of him with us on our wedding cake!
Showing the pop video my girlfriends & I shot as part of my hen party
Due South, the gorgeous little restaurant on Brighton beach that we hired for our reception
The wonderful registrars and the beautiful wedding room at Brighton town hall
Brighton Wedding / Sarah & Andrew
Sunday, May 30th, 2010Sarah readily admits that she ‘Has a thing for Gingers!’ Not only is the groom a redhead, but so were each of the four bridesmaids. Their colouring looked gorgeous against the soft blue fabric of their dresses. Since they first met just over a year ago, the couple has kept every cork from the bottles of champagne that they have drunk and this set the theme for the wedding day. They used the corks for place names and named the tables after brands of champagne, with the kids sitting on the Babycham table! The ceremony was in the very beautiful St Mary de Haura which is just around the corner from their flat. Despite a mix up with the wedding cars causing a delay to the proceedings, it was a very lovely service with an amazing rendition of Ave Maria by bridesmaid Kay. We had just enough time to make the most of the sunshine and go to the beach for some photos before the reception at the Royal York in Brighton.
devlinphotos
A Tale of Two Weddings, Part 2 …..
Thursday, May 27th, 2010Two best friends, two weddings. This time the roles were reversed with Clare as chief bridesmaid to Leanne for her gorgeous wedding to the lovely Simon. The ceremony was at St Marys in the grounds of Buxted Park but we traveled to the utterly incredible High Rocks near Tunbridge Wells for the reception. This is one crazy place but very inspiring for a shoot. It is a bit like a little piece of Australia in the middle of the English countryside with a steam train running past every now and then. As Clare had been up there a couple of months before for a wedding, she already knew that there was no way a bride could get up to the top in bridal shoes so Leanne had sourced some very cute pink wellies which became a feature of the photos but didn’t affect how elegant she looked in her wedding dress.
devlinphotos
A Tale of Two Weddings, Part One……
Thursday, May 13th, 2010Shooting a wedding photographer’s wedding is quite a challenge but luckily Clare, my second photographer was very laid back and of course I was thrilled to be part of her big day. I hadn’t realised that Clare was a secret glamour-puss and her fantastic dress from Blessings in Brighton was very sparkly and slinky. She seemed very calm but I think it all felt a bit surreal for her after helping so many other brides get ready. She looked truly beautiful and I was incredibly proud of her. She had three very sweet little flower girls and the morning seemed to whizz by. Suddenly Susanna, one of our other photographers was there to drive them to the Seattle in her very funky, very decorative soft top Beetle. The flowers by the talented Mr Casey from Pollen were gorgeous posies of old fashioned garden roses, wild orchids and fresh flowering herbs. They looked and smelled sensational. The Maid of Honour, Leanne’s dress was from Monsoon and looked fabulous. Clare had a theme of English Eccentric meets the Orient which was inspired by the ceremony venue, the Royal Pavilion and was great for the wedding photography. The reception was at Bartholomew’s Barn in the Sussex countryside and looked splendid. We had fish and chip canapes and fortune cookie favours. At dusk they released some fire lanterns which went off for miles. Such a very lovely day.
Sussex Wedding Photographer / Hazel & James at Ashdown Park Hotel
Wednesday, May 5th, 2010There might have been quite a few rain showers but there was still a great atmosphere at Hazel and James’s wedding in the beautiful Ashdown Park Hotel in Sussex and it had little impact on the wedding photography. The dress from Browns Bridal collection was incredibly elegant as was Hazel’s specially commissioned pearl jewellery. Apart from the veil, she may well have been preparing for the Oscars as the look was 1930s screen siren meets modern laid back beauty. Hazel choose a pair of gorgeous Christian Laboutin sky high heels for the daytime and had a killer sparkly pair for the evening. Gemma, the bridesmaid was extremely lucky as she got to wear a stunning couture gown from the amazing Brighton designer Joanne Flemming
As the rain simply would not leave us alone, we used the grand covered entrance to the hotel for all the group shots and had a well timed dry spell for portraits of the bride and groom. For some unknown reason, their meal was brought forward by an hour so we had to work quickly but managed to squeeze in some elegant shots in a window seat. Their gorgeous cake was by the very talented Zoe Clark and there was a Beatles theme to the table decor. This is one of my favourite vintage inspired weddings to date.
devlinphotos
Wedding Photographer / Polhawn Fort Cornwall
Wednesday, April 28th, 2010Amanda and Walé held their wedding at the amazing Polhawn Fort which overlooks a dramatic bay in Cornwall. Far from a traditional bride, Amanda wore a beautiful blue Roland Mouret dress with pewter Jimmy Choo wedges. The bouquet was a structural arrangement of Calla lilies and she clipped some pretty little butterflies in her hair which had been done by Daniel Lustig (from Brighton). Amanda has the stunning Stephen Webster ‘crystal haze’ rings’ and Wale’s ring is from Sarah Sheridan The atmosphere was relaxed but the ceremony was quite emotional. The weather had been very changeable but just as they said “I Do” I spotted a rainbow going into the sea. The evening entertainment was Brighton’s Stick It On which meant that all the guests got to be DJs and play 3 tracks. It certainly got the party going from super cool tracks to the mother of the bride playing Status Quo as it had come free in the Daily Mail!
devlinphotos
Sussex Wedding / Jo & David’s Tipi Wedding
Sunday, April 25th, 2010Jo and David first met while cycling on the Downs, so their venue was perfect for their humanist wedding. A field at the foot of Devil’s Dyke was a very dramatic setting for the Nordic Tipi or Giant Hat Kåtas that they had hired from beautifulworldtents for their reception. As the weather was perfect they opted for an outdoor ceremony which made very exciting wedding photography. A white 4×4 was on hand to ferry guests down to the tent and they sat on benches draped with animal hides. It was a very personal ceremony that Jo and David had helped to write and included a song from a group of their friends.
Inside the Tipi was decorated with lots of fairy lights and beautiful flower arrangements that were inspired by the country setting. The wedding cake was a dramatic croquembouche covered in fresh fruit and some amazing food was served by the friendly Sussex caterers, Food Glorious Food.
Despite her elegant wedding gown from the O Zone in Brighton, Jo was game for climbing over a gate into the Dyke for some relaxed portraits of them both. The tent really came to life after the sun went down. The sides of the Dyke were lit up and there was a large fire pit for guests to mingle around. As we left, the guests were in full party spirit and a mini camp site had been set up so they didn’t have far to stumble when it was all over.
Food Photography / The Ginger Dog, Brighton
Saturday, April 24th, 2010The Ginger group of restaurants in Sussex have just opened a new pub/ restaurant called The Ginger Dog in Brighton’s Kemptown. Pamela has designed the interior in their signature style of quirky laid-back elegance – The bowler hat lights above the bar will be quite a talking point! They manage to employ only the very lovliest people so the atmosphere is warm but of course the food is what makes them so popular. Ben produced some of the dishes on offer for the food photography and they all look sensational. After the shoot was over, we got to sample everything (its such a hard job!) and it was all very yummy but the star dish for me is probably the chocolate and raspberry trifle, although the parfait was also out of this world. It is always a pleasure to work with the McKellars as they are incredibly passionate about the business and it is very infectious. Its a great venue for a romantic meal, a family outing or party in the fabulous Private Dining Room on the first floor. All four of their venues can also host a wedding reception including their biggest, The Ginger Pig in Hove.
devlinphotos
Brighton Wedding / Rachel & James at The Royal Pavilion
Monday, April 19th, 2010Rachel and James first got in touch through the enquiry form on my site but it turned out that they were my neighbours. So I had the easiest ever journey to work, I just had to stroll over the road! When Rachel opened the door she was looking great in full make-up and rollers but confessed that she had barely slept all week. She then showed us the dress and veil which had been stashed in the spare room away from James and their two cats. Rachel’s dress from Pronovias was very classic and elegant but the veil was amazing. It was the longest one I have ever seen and was covered in tiny polka dots and edged in lace. I immediately thought that it would make a great silhouette shot against the windows in the Pavilion Music Room. I caught a great shot of James just as Rachel walked in, looking very overawed.
Their theme was mint and chocolate. When they suggested to The Talented Mr Casey from Pollen that they needed brown and green flowers they thought he might be stumped but he came up with chocolate cosmos and flowering mint. Their flowers looked great and smelled yummy, the man is a genius which is why I rave about him. After the ceremony and family groups, I thought it would be a grand idea to take the bridal party to the front of the pavilion for some wedding photography in what I think of as my “Vanity Fair” style. After a short time lots of officials appeared telling us that we were not supposed to be there as the scaffolding was being taken down above our heads and it was dangerous. However the shots we did get look great so although I was in a little bit of trouble, it was worth it.
As the reception was at Due South we also took some portraits of the Bride and Groom on the beach, making the most of the glorious sunshine. We took some very cute pictures in the deck chairs and of Rachel throwing her bouquet. We left as they began eating what looked like a very delicious meal while the sun set over the West Pier.
devlinphotos