Chris and Laura got married at the end of May at Lane End Conference centre, near Stokenchurch. I’d met them about 6 months previously at the venue to discuss their requirements and see the site. Their intention was to get married outside (well in a gazebo, since the law in the UK requires weddings to take place in a structure) with the indoor venue being available as a backup plan in the event of poor weather.

Meeting the photographer before a wedding is important to ensure that you like your photographer, and for the photographer to be sure he likes you. Chris and Laura are friends of my sister-in-law, and as she observed in a mildly drunk state at the wedding, “nobody can not like Laura, she’s lovely”. Chris and Laura are both exceptionally friendly and easy going, so it was a pleasure to do their photography.

They had hired an awesome vehicle for Laura’s wedding transport to the wedding – one of the oldest, if not the oldest, VW camper van in the UK. It made my MGB that I was travelling look quite modern. The chauffer and I shared one concern – the heavy rain. For me, it meant limited visibility while driving as my windscreen wipers are rubbish. For him, it meant polishing the white exterior every time he stopped.

Did I mention the outdoor wedding plan? With about an hour to go to the wedding, the sun started breaking through and Chris and Laura (by phone) made the brave decision to go ahead with the outdoor plan, knowing that once the wedding started their was no relocating for them (although their guests would have been free to run away to shelter.) The decision paid off, and it was glorious weather. Perhaps a bit too nice really. Every photographer would prefer an overcast day – it makes for better portraits as their are less strong shadows.

Talking of portaits, Chris and Laura had a very relaxed time table to their wedding day. This meant that there was space, on their request, for us to wander a bit away from the guests to do some more interesting portraits of them as a couple. I’m not one to impose in this way, so make it clear to the couple that if that is what they want then they need to request it. Consequently, it doesn’t normally find its way into the day. As a photographer, it was fantastic to have this opportunity to spend some time getting the couple some lovely portraits, and I hope for them it was a chance to have a break from the hubub of the day. I have seen at wedding the photographer drag the couple away for such shots. As this was after the ceremony, Laura was also more relaxed about her dress, which opened up the opportunity for some fun shots.

Chris and Laura’s wedding was my first wedding working with a second photographer. I always offer a second photographer services, as it has a number of benefits; Their is someone to cover the groom getting ready while I photograph the bride’s preparations, I don’t need to rush to the venue much ahead of the bride to get shot of the groom waiting, someone can focus on mother’s reactions during the wedding without the main action being missed etc. I’ve not had anyone decide that these benefits are worth the extra I would have to charge for the service, but it’s there as a possibility.

On this occasion, Chris and Laura had a friend, Marisa, who was a keen photographer and had asked to be involved. After a few initial emails to estabilish the ground rules to the working relationship, I was happy that we could work together. If I was being paid for the second photographer, I would use an assistant who I had worked with previously, but on this occasion Marisa was unpaid and doing the photography as their friend. This meant I wasn’t in a position to fully trust her with the important shots, but at the same time it was nice to have someone to work with to improve the level of photographic coverage.

On of Marisa's

What I learnt from the experience is that it is very useful having a second photographer. Marisa got some great shots that I would have been able to do while I focused on my main photographic duties. Its very hard to credit her individually for her shots, but many have been included in the final selection. Most importantly, I’ve learnt that synchronising camera clocks prior to the event would make editing after the event a lot less painful!

Recently (by that I mean several months ago) I did a family photo shoot for a family we know through our church. Their kids are about the same age as mine, and rather than leave my wife at home with the kids, it was decided (by our friends) that we’d make an afternoon of it.  I’d set up the studio at their house while the kids played together, then they could have their photoshoot, and finally we could all have tea together.

It was chaos. Six children in a studio. My kids wanting to be in the photos when they shouldn’t. One or other of their kids not wanting to be in the photos when they should. Toys and brightly coloured balls everywhere. My kids wanting to operate the camera. Their kids wanting to operate the camera. Definitely not the path to a smooth family photo session. But it was a great deal of fun!

At the end of the day we got some cute photos of our kids, and most importantly Chrissy and Stephen got the photos of their family that they wanted.

Life seems a little bit hecktic sometimes, and when I have lots on I try to prioritise. Blogging isn’t ever one of the high priorities. I did an engagement photoshoot for Lizzie and Yang back in March (hence the daffodils in the pic). Only now (June) have I found time to blog about the photo shoot.

I met Lizzie and Yang through doing Merton Ball in November. From there experience at the ball, they decided they would like an engagement photo shoot. Merton means a lot to them as a couple, and I was pleased to be able to go back there once again.

The gardens in Merton are always lovely and look particularly nice when the flowers are out in the spring. So we started the session in the garden, before taking a short tour of the college to capture photos with them in locations that mean something to them; the old library where they got engaged and the chapel where they are to get married. Despite being at Merton for 8 years, the occasion provided only my second ever visit to the old library.

Alas, with the time that has pasted since the photo shoot, I’ve mostly forgotten about it, so I’ll stop here.

I’m investigating new print suppliers for my ball photography now. Any suggestions in the comments are welcome. For a long time I have used the same lab for printing such photos, but this year their customer service has let them down.

First let me tell you about my process; a customer (you hopefully) places an order for prints on my website. For ball photos, which I upload to the website unedited, I then have to edit the photos before ordering prints. That may take a couple of days, depending on how busy I am. I then order the prints online with my favourite photo lab. Normally printing and dispatch happen within 24hrs, but lets call it 48hrs to be on the safe side. They send them first class to me (+24hrs), and check the prints and send them first class to you (+ 24 to 36hrs depending on my diary).

So at the worst I hope to have prints with the customer within 7 or 8 days.

At this point I have to mention Royal Mail, and I’ll try not to go off on one. Why does “Special Delivery” exist? Is it for really urgent post? Isn’t that what should distinguish first and second class? OK, so there might be really really urgent post, but first class should be 24hr turn around. Perhaps it is for that added peace of mind that it will be delivered? Surely all post should be delivered! Enough said. I look forward to Royal Mail being sold off to a private company and the postal service being properly opened up to competition. Hopefully then, post should work as it should.

So back to my print supply problems. Winter balls are tricky because they are near Christmas. Customers want their photos for their Gran for Christmas, and want quick turnarounds. Royal Mail don’t seem to care. First order gets “lost in the post”. Subsequent print orders arrive, so I contact the lab who say words to the effect of “You’ll have to re-order them then”. I really expect better service, and even their website suggests I will get better service than that. Because I am a business, the distance selling regulations do not apply in this case. But this lab also deals with consumers for which they would. They have now lost a long term customer, once I find another decent lab.

A few weeks back, another photo lab phoned me up one a new marketing campaign, with enticing offers asking me to give them a try. Given that I was now looking, I thought why not, and reordered with them. I paid extra for “Special Delivery”, since I’m now behind on my own turn around schedule. Half the prints didn’t show, a few days late. Not sent special delivery. I phone them up. The sent two packages. Neither special delivery. How can RM lose the post twice. Perhaps it was the snow hiding the post van from the postie?  Top customer service this time, they will reprint and send immediately. A few days later the prints show up. Still not special delivery!

I can now finally dispatch my order to my customer 17 days after they first placed the order. I guess with the snow and Royal Mail’s efficiency, there is no chance the customer will get their prints before Christmas

So I am now looking for a new print lab. One that sends prints by the postage method I specify. One that prints reliably. One that fixes issues if they arrive in a gracious and efficient manner. Suggestions are welcome in the comments.

I’m not going to name the two labs who have let me down. I figured you’d guess the postal service so no point hiding that one. But I will give a big shout out to a couple of other companies. Loxley Colour have always given me top prints and excellent customer service. They are a bit too pricey to be economic for ball photography, but are a really top lab. Photobox are a top consumer print lab. They too have given me top customer service, but unfortunately I found their quality too variable to use for professional work – hence my checking of all prints I send out.

This experience has also made me think about my own customer service. I hope I live up to your expectations. If I don’t, please tell me politely and we can work something out.

Wolfson ball is probably my favourite of the Oxford college balls at the moment. That may be because it has been a regular event in my diary for the past 4 years or so (except for last year when Tony Culshaw Photography covered for me), but it is probably largely because Wolfson is such a small friendly college. Being a small relatively low-cost ball, I never make much money from shooting there, but I always feel very welcome and enjoy being there much more than some other balls.

I was very pleased with the photo montage above at this years ball. A group of seven came to us wanting to create a photo spelling Wolfson. I think their idea was to try to make the letters with their hands and get all seven of them in the one shot. I wasn’t convinced by that idea, so suggested the above. The idea for the above is photo was partly stolen from the few nursery/pre-school photos that my daughter has been in. Rather than attempting get 30 toddlers all looking at the camera, the company that does their photos does so in batches of 5 or so, and then creates a montage with all the groups. Since I only had the seven people involved everyone appears a few more times in this. I was particularly impressed by the effort put in by the chaps to make the letter S. The only problem with doing such a photo is that it can’t really be printed at standard photo sizes. But doing it was a lot of fun – typical of what I love about Wolfson ball.

It was my birthday at this years’ Wolfson ball. I would post a photo of me on my birthday (taken by ball president wanting to swap roles with the camera), but it was decided that I needed to buy myself a new dress shirt for my birthday!

I was thrilled to be able to provide photography to my old Oxford college, Merton, this year. I felt right at home being back there, even if there have been several changes to the college. The lodge has been completely revamped since I last visited, and the new (well not that new, but compared to when I was a student) admin offices meant that the room the photography studio was in used to be one of the admin offices. I remember that the room that was being used as the cloakroom used to be the Estate’s office. Clearly the student have changed too, this years’ freshers were 4 when I matriculated!

For this ball I was very ably assisted by Tony from Tony Culshaw Photography. Tony has done a few jobs for me, and others referred by me, but I’d never had the chance to work with him. He was an absolute star all night. Although, looking at the photos I think his head is wonky – but don’t worry I’ll straighten any photos ordered. You may also wish to read Tony’s blog post about the night. I’m sure I’ll be asking him to help me in the future, whenever my normal assistant is unavailable. However, Julian will be back from Nepal soon enough.

The photos from the event can be found in the client gallery. The survivors photo didn’t work out so well, since the silent disco meant that nobody could hear me trying to arrange them. Ironic really. Several attempts can be downloaded free of charge from my Flickr page.

Emma and Dave got married at the beginning of June at St Micheal’s and All Angels, Hughenden valley. Their wedding was pretty special to me as their wedding also took place at the church where I got married, and the reception venue was the same too. Emma and Dave are also lovely people and it was great to be a part of their day regardless of venue.

Hughenden church is on the more restrictive end of the scale when it comes to photos, but they do allow the photographer a little time with the bride and groom while the congregation wait outside., and means the bride and groom can leave the church to a warm welcome. We did a few formal photos outside of the church, but Emma and Dave rather wisely limited the number their guests would have to endure.

After the service it was a short drive to Notley Tythe Barn, near Long Crendon. The old barn is a lovely venue. After the formal photos are over, I try to be reasonably discrete for the rest of the day. Emma and Dave milled around with their guests while canapés were served, and I tried my best not to play with the croquet set that had been brought along to amuse the guests.

At the line up I endeavour to get shots of everyone, but that leaves me editing a whole bunch of fairly uninspiring shots that all look the same (with a variation is people). Not the most beautiful photography, but I hope that the bride and groom like it. Then to dinner. And speeches. Notley Tythe Barn left me with little flexibility for positioning myself for the speeches, but I managed to get some nice shots. Particularly, my sister-in-law with her head in her hands as the father-of-the-bride recalled her and the bride running away from school when they were 7.

I don’t drag the bride and groom away from their guests after for a more private photo shoot, unless they have  specifically requested I do so. I don’t want to make their wedding day about my photography, it’s about their wedding and them spending time with their guests. However, at Emma and Dave’s wedding one of their friends was keen do so for some of his photos, so I took the opportunity to join him. Shortly after that was the cake cutting and first dance, and then home time for me.

Did I mention the horses? No, I thought not. Well, Notley is also a bit of a farm, and and outdoor activity centre. They have horses. In my experience women generally like horses. Regularly guests would wander off and find some of the horses to talk to. Even the bride and groom went to say hello.

While I was privileged enough to do Paul and Serena’s engagement photos, they weren’t really up for flying me out to Thailand to do their wedding photos. However, after returning from honeymoon they had a wedding party for all of their friends and relations. So I was doing the photography for that. The event took place at Bignell Park Hotel near Bicester.

The lack of a wedding made for a slightly unusual start to the day. Normally I would do preparation shots with the Bride, followed by a few shots with the Groom and ushers at the church as guests arrive. Then, once the service is over, there are normally a few formal photos followed by a drive to the reception venue. Everyone arrives at the reception at about the same time and all are talking about the lovely service. In this case, everyone arrived at the reception venue in dribs and drabs, and nobody seemed particularly sure of what to talk about or what to do.

Once most people arrived there were some formal group photos, and then it was into the meal. Paul is an old college friend of mine (and Serena went to the same college, but I didn’t really know her), so I was seated with other college friends for the meal, endeavouring to balance being a guest with being a paid professional. Then came the speeches. I think I’ll have to do a separate post on wedding speeches, as I’ve heard quite few now. At the start of the event I did remind the bestman of a classic phrase of Paul’s at college, but he had the discretion not to mention it in his speech.

Before the end of the meal the event had transitioned into feeling like a regular wedding reception. Strangers now had something wedding related in common to talk about. Generally guests were feeling well fed and ‘watered’, and it all became a little more relaxed for the dancing. So just like a wedding, but without the wedding bit!

Looking at the photo above, you can probably figure out from the snow that I did Clare and Paul’s engagement shoot back in February. We went to Wroxton Abbey, near Banbury, Oxfordshire, which is now an overseas campus for some US university/college, but the grounds are open to the public. That is where Clare and Paul got engaged originally, so it seemed an appropriate place to do the photo shoot. The purpose of the engagement photo shoot, other than creating beautiful pictures, is so that couples can assess whether they get on with me as a photographer prior to booking their wedding photography. Worth doing if you are thinking of booking your wedding photography in the near future. I offer this service at very low cost, and you get a refund on the shoot cost if you subsequently book your wedding with me.

Although Clare and Paul loved the photos and booked me for their wedding photography, they have no postponed/cancelled their wedding due to costs/recession etc But looking on the bright side, it now means I get to spend my wedding anniversary with my wife, so that will keep her happy.

The Oxford Brookes Nurses‘ Graduation Ball 2010 was at the Oxford Thames Four Pillars hotel, in Sandford-on-Thames, near Oxford. The hotel itself is very attractive, and is in a beautiful location on the river.

The ball was much like the Oxilp ball at the Randolph, in that unlike college balls, its more of a sit down meal followed by a disco. At the Oxilp ball there was a large bar area which had space for us to set up in, and after talking to the ball organiser, Sarah, it seemed that this ball would be the same. Foolishly I didn’t visit the venue. The bar area off the main event room had space for us, but there was the bar, a door to the kitchen, a door outside which was a fire exit, and a passage way through to another event room. Unfortunately that meant there was nowhere for the studio to be set up.

After a quick chat to Sarah, and to the hotel staff, it was decided that a few of the tables for the sit down meal would be rearranged, and the studio could be set up in the main room. We didn’t leave it all to the hotel staff, but pitched in to help. Although that pushed us for time a little, we were all set up with time to spare.

Prior to the meal it had been arranged that we would do a group photo for all of the nurses who would be graduating (hopefully – they weren’t getting there results till the Monday after the ball). A little more negotiation with the hotel, and we decided to do this photo in the hotel reception, which was a lovely large room. After a little more furniture rearrangement, all was set up.

We had a bit of a break after that, as there was the sit down meal for all the attendees of the ball. Once that finished, we got down to studio photography for the rest of the evening. Most of the nurses had been reasonably well “watered” during the meal, so the photos were quite entertaining.