New Wedding Photography Blog

Check out Sarah's new wedding photography blog.

Kristina & Gareth's Wedding - Thornton Hall Hotel

Thornton Hall is one of the most popular wedding locations on the Wirral. The gardens are fantastic, set in a lovely rural location, and the staff always seem to to in total control of what is happening.

On my most recent visit this January, I was filming the wedding for Kristina & Gareth, whilst Sarah McDonnell was photographing the event. I've included some of Sarah's photographs from the day (check out www.sarahmcdonnell.co.uk for more examples of Sarah's wedding photography).

This was the first wedding film that I've made exclusively in HD. I have to say that the improvement in image quality is amazing, not just in the detail, but also in the colour of the image and its ability to be manipulated during editing.

You can see the highlights from the wedding film below:

Kristina & Gareth - Wedding Highlights from Stuart Mottershead on Vimeo.

New Lens

We've made an addition to our photography kit. Not normally something people would be excited about, but we think this one is ideal for portrait shots. It's a prime lens with a very wide aperture, this enables us to blur out the background and foreground so that the subject really stands out.

Here's an example:

Web Galleries & Online Ordering of Prints

Happy New Year,

Looks like 2009 is going to be very interesting with the credit crunch and recession etc. Because of this, we've been thinking about the best way in which we can help our clients by making wedding photography as affordable as possible, without affecting quality.

We've recently started using a company in the US called SmugMug to host our client's wedding photographs online. This has several advantages. Firstly, it's a secure place to store the photographs external to our own system, so if there is a catastrophe, the photographs will still be there intact. Secondly, it allows guests as well as the bride and groom to view the photographs (the gallery can be password protected on request), wherever they live. Best of all, it is possible to order prints directly from SmugMug as and when you like. We have tried this out already and we were very impressed with the results.

We have kept the prices as low as possible, starting at about $0.38, and there are a huge range of print options available to you. Many photographers charge several pounds for a single print so this is really very different to what you'll see anywhere else.

The web gallery is built in to all of our wedding photography packages which start at just £599.

Regards,

Stuart & Sarah

Quick update

It's a while since my last blog as we've been very busy with weddings, editing and upgrading our video cameras. We are now using HD cameras which give a far superior image to the standard definition cameras we had previously. 

Our new workhorse is the Panasonic HMC-151E which films in full HD 1080p and can record for 3 hours continuously onto SD cards. This is a true Professional grade HD camera and has only recently been released by Panasonic. It is very similar to the famous HVX-200 camera which has been used to make many full scale Hollywood movies due to its 'film look'. The camera has a great ability to capture images in low light conditions, making it ideal for use in churches or for filming the first dance (without needing the lights turned up)!

We have got a lot of great ideas about how we intend to use our new HD cameras and provide exciting new products and services to our clients in 2009. Possibilities include having your wedding video on high definition Blu Ray disk, or online in HD for friends and family to view. We are also considering offering an option for a same day edit where we present a highlights video of the wedding ceremony at the evening reception using a projector.

We will be trailing some of these options over the next couple of months before rolling them out on the main website. In the mean time, feel free to ask if you are interested in any of these.

This is our latest wedding video highlights from Brian & Joanne's wedding in June at St. Mary's Church in West Derby, Liverpool. The music is by Desiree and is called Kissing You.


Joanne & Brian - Wedding Highlights from Stuart Mottershead on Vimeo.

Wedding Photography Options - 3 - The Professional Photographer

A professional bridal preparations shot (courtesy of easyweddingphoto.com, a wirral based wedding photography company covering Liverpool, Manchester, Cheshire & North Wales)

A professional shot of the couple leaving the church

This is the final post on this subject, and predictably, it is covering the last (and most popular) option, which is to pay a professional to take your wedding photographs. Wedding photographers come in a wide variety of styles, types and prices, but for this post I will concentrate on the factors which all professional wedding photographers should have in common.

The first and most important thing that a professional wedding photographer has is experience. It is this experience which enables them to consistently get great photographs time after time.

For example, a professional photographer will know where to stand for the best shot, when to take a photo (and more importantly when not to), how to set up group shots etc. and where best to do them and how to do all this in a friendly and efficient manner.

Most importantly, a professional will know which shots you are most likely to want, and which ones you would be really upset about if they didn't get taken (or if they turned out wrong).

A professional photographer will also carry all the kit that they need to do the job. This should include a good quality professional DSLR, flash and lens (possibly several lenses) plus a spare camera & lens just incase there is a problem. Professional lenses start at around £700 and can cost up to £1300 each. These lenses are much better than the 'kit' lenses that you get bundled with cheap consumer DSLRs and they enable the photographer to get a clearer picture and often to avoid the need for flash (in a church for example). 

A professional flash is much more powerful than a built in flash, producing a smoother, more consistent light, and avoiding red eye. There are very few amateurs who could justify the type of kit which a professional would consider the bare minimum.

Another thing to consider is that a professional photographer will usually be able to offer you a range of albums and print products which are not available to the amateur.

Of course, there are some limitations. It doesn't matter how good the photographer is, are limited to photographing what is there on the day. A 3* hotel in Bognor is never going to look like the Ritz, for example, whichever direction it is photographed from. 

Pros:

1. You will get the photographs you asked for
2. The quality of the photographs should be good (well exposed and with good composition)
3. They should be able to enhance the photographs in post production before they are printed for you
4. Range of albums and prints available

Cons:

1. Cost more than the other options (of course)!
2. Prints are likely to cost more than if you were able to print the photographs yourself
3. Copyright issues (make sure you know what you are agreeing to before booking your photographer)

In summary, this is without doubt the best way to ensure you get the photographs you want and that they are of high quality. Communicating exactly what you want and choosing the right pro for the job are essential, but that's another topic in its own right.