I had the pleasure of shooting Andrea & Rob’s wedding last weekend at the Mount hotel in Wolverhampton.

It was quite a late wedding, the ceremony was at 4pm and with it being winter here in the UK it was beginning to get dark at 3! I have mentioned before that I like shooting in the winter because of the soft light but it brings its own problems, the Great Hall where Andrea and Rob got married is oak panelled and lit from only one side so the amount of light I had to shoot with was incredibly low. Tough conditions always seems to bring the best out of me though and some of the images captured during the ceremony have managed to capture the beautiful soft winter light as it cascaded through the tall side windows.

All of the guests were great fun, as is usually the case with my weddings and because of the late start, many people had lots of energy to spend during the dancing which went on well into the night.

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Posted in: Weddings by Martyn /
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You may or may not know know that as well as photography I also shoot and edit videos for corporate clients. I really enjoy these projects as its a big change from my usual work and I can try lots of different things that help my photography as well as bringing a photographers eye to my videography. I have been lucky enough to work with companies like Asda, where I edited down some of their Paul Whitehouse milk adverts as well as a few team building and corporate presentation reels.

At the end of last month I was asked to film and produce a corporate video for Arla, one of the UK’s largest dairys. They distribute products like Cravendale milk and Lurpack butter to stores and supermarkets including Asda, Tesco and Waitrose. This is the second year they have asked my good friends at Design Junkie to produce their convention video.

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While I was at the Chillington hall wedding open day yesterday I was told by two couples they were either having their photographs taken by a friend or by someone who was charging them a couple of hundred pounds for the day. I really can not stress enough how much a risk this is.

When things go bad they can have a great impact on your wedding day and for a long time after, an example of this can be found on the BBC’s website and a text version can also be found of the Daily Mails site. A couple have taken their wedding photographer to court, and won damages after the pictures they provided were of a very poor quality. Yes the couple have won their court battle but for the rest of their married life they will still be without their wedding pictures. (more…)

Posted in: News, Weddings by Martyn /
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Just a quick reminder I will be attending the Chillington Hall open day this Sunday.

As recommended photographer I will be on hand to answer any of your questions, I will also have on display some of my albums and a slideshow of my work. If your really lucky I may even be showing a few of you around the hall!

I look forward to seeing all our confirmed couples as well as anyone considering Chillington Hall as their wedding venue.

Posted in: Messages, Weddings by Martyn /
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This post is much later than I had planned so my apologies.

While I was working over in Italy this August I had my camera glued to my hand. This was my first trip to Italy and I had the pleasure of going to Malcesine on Lake Garda, just south of the Dolomites.

The town of Malcesine was very small but very beautiful with its tight winding cobbled streets, small boutique shops and all this was dominated by “Castello Scageri” The castle was incredibly picturesque and was where the wedding took place that brought me to Italy in the first place (pictures here).

I drove around the whole lake and each village looked as though it had come from a Disney film, the brightly colours buildings set against mountains in the background and a shimmering lake in the foreground.

I can highly recommend a stay in this part of the world if you haven’t already and if you have, maybe make another visit soon. Here are a few images from my travels.

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Posted in: Landscapes, Personal by Martyn /
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Its always nice to hear from past clients, what they are up to, how they are settling in to married life etc.

I recently spoke with Jemma, a client from earlier in the year. She told me she was starting her own business designing and selling wedding favours. She has now opened her website for business and she seems to have a pretty large stock to chose from.

If you looking for wedding favours and want them pre-assembled or maybe you want to help with the design, take a look at Favours with Flavours

Posted in: Messages, Weddings by Martyn /
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When I was fortunate enough to be asked to photograph Louise and Roger’s wedding in the picturesque setting of Lake Garda in Northern Italy there was little hesitation in my reply. The location was absolutely stunning and the weather on the day was near perfect. The ceremony itself took place in Castello Scaligeri, a medieval castle that boasts a 360° view overlooking the lake, mountains and the rooftops of Malcesine town.

Following the ceremony, guests followed the bridal party through the cobbled streets of the old town to a champagne reception overlooking the lake. Pizza was served along with slices of hand-carved prosciutto, fresh fruit and the largest wheel of parmesan cheese I have ever seen. While the guests were relaxing we took the opportunity to take some location portraits around the old town before moving to the lakefront restaurant for the evening reception.  In true Italian style the meal was long, relaxed and lovingly presented.

Guests attended the wedding from all around the world and after spending time with Louise and Roger I can really appreciate why their friends and family would be prepared to travel anywhere to join them, it was little surprise that they were welcomed so heartily by the locals and I’m sure it won’t be the last time they or I visit the area.

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Last weekend I was down in London shooting a wedding for Emma & Will. They had been granted access to a very unique venue for their ceremony and wedding breakfast, The Houses of Parliament in Westminster.

The morning preparations went without a hitch and the bridesmaids travelled in true London style in a Hackney Carriage to the Houses of Parliament. The chapel where the ceremony was conducted dates back to the original building and is very private. It is not an area which is normally included in the public tours so not particularly well known. Although the whole building is very grand the chapel itself really is a magnificent sight to behold, full of tradition and grandeur.

The formal service was followed by the wedding breakfast in the Speakers Chambers, after which the wedding party and guests were able to enjoy a drinks receptions on the terrace overlooking the Thames. The evening reception was held on a Thames river boat ‘The Pride of London’ and much fun was had by all admiring the fantastic London skyline.

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I am happy to announce I am now the recommended photographer for Alrewas Hayes near Fradley and Lichfield, Staffordshire.

This fabulous venue is set in the middle of the country side and only opened this year, it is a fusion of rustic settings with clean contemporary styling. They hold corporate, private parties as well as weddings at the venue and as its a family run business service is of the highest caliber.

I will be shooting some shots for their new brochure shortly but until then I will post this photo from a recent wedding I shot there.

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I had chance to take a few days off and help my good friend and second photographer Bryn to move house. The house move didn’t go so well but as ever we had chance to wander around Plymouth with our cameras.

We walked around the town centre, the Hoe and the Barbican and here are a few of the images I took.

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Posted in: Personal by Martyn /
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