First Destination Wedding

Firstly, I apologise for not posting for a while. I have only just returned from a holiday in Cyprus and also covered a wedding the day before we flew out so things have been very hectic recently!

It was during this holiday however that I covered my first full day wedding outside the UK, which was a great experience.

The wedding itself was at a hotel called Adams Beach in Ayia Napa, a busy but laid back resort in the south of the island. Adams Beach is located on Nessi Beach, renowned for being one of the best beaches in Cyprus.

It was a lovely day and everything ran very smoothly, although from a wedding photographer's point of view there were a few differences to the day when compared to covering a wedding in the UK, some of which I have listed below:

1. The most obvious difference was the weather! Even though we are still a few weeks away from the height of the summer in Cyprus the weather was very hot, around 30 degrees during the day. Luckily for me the ceremony itself did not take place until 5pm, by which time the weather had cooled slightly, otherwise the heat would have made running around taking photographs quite uncomfortable. As it was I spent the majority of the day taking photographs of the bride and groom getting ready (separately) in lovely air-conditioned rooms!

It was very nice however to wake up not having to worry about the weather (not always the case in the sunny North West!). Having said that when I met the wedding coordinator earlier in the week she told me that during the previous week 3 weddings at the same hotel had to take place indoors due to rain so unfortunately even if you book a wedding abroad there are no guarantees of good weather.

2. Due to the fact the registrar didn't arrive until just before the ceremony, and I was with the bride at the time, I didn't get chance to introduce myself to her beforehand (although I had already checked with the coordinator that she wouldn't have problems with me taking photos etc.) This wasn't a problem in itself but it did mean that I wasn't aware of when the ceremony would actually end. As it turned out, once the couple signed the register the registrar didn't take any more part so the couple would have been allowed to walk back up the aisle at this point. Instead of this however I asked the bride and groom's parents, bridesmaids and best man, to join the bride and groom at the front for some traditional shots. In the UK I would normally be invited to do this by the registrar/minister but this was not the case so worth noting as otherwise these shots would have been missed!

3. More of a general point; being abroad in a different climate gave me the opportunity to try our some shots that would not be possible in England. For example after the ceremony the bride and groom and I went to a place called Cape Greco, around 15 minutes from Ayia Napa, for some amazing sunset shots. The location itself, which was on a cliff edge overlooking the sea, was recommended to us by the wedding coordinator and is used often by local wedding photographers.

The type of shot we managed to take here would not have been possible for me usually because a) I rarely cover weddings near the coast in the UK and b) it is relatively rare in the North West to get such dramatic, clear sunsets!

Having said that during the wedding I covered the day before Cyprus, I took the bride and groom to some lovely private gardens for their shots together and I was very pleased with the results. The point is wherever the wedding you are covereing is taking place it is important to research the local area and if you can find photogrenic locations, suggest to the bride and groom that you take some time to go there as it will usually be worthwhile. Even if they choose not I'm sure they will appreciate the offer.

However, just as there were differences the essence of the day was the same. As with all weddings the key to successful pictures is down to careful planning, and it was no different in Cyprus. I made sure I met the couple's wedding coordinator earlier in the week and was aware of exactly what time everything would be taking place. I also visited the hotel a couple of times throughout the week to scout out locations for photographs so I had a plan before the day for the shots I wanted and knew where I would be standing, where we'd take group shots, when the sun would set etc.

Overall it was a lovely day and very enjoyable so I would certainly be open to offers of covering destination weddings again in the future!

Assuming the bride and groom are happy for me to do so I will post some photographs from the day shortly.

Knowsley Safari Park

We visited Knowsley Safari Park today, located just outside Liverpool.

Unfortunately the weather wasn't great but we still managed to get close up to lots of different animals including monkeys, elephants and lions.

It's a great place to go (I'd imagine much more so in the summer months!) and it was nice to be able to get some photographs of animals so close up.

The safari park itself is huge and the animals have lots of room to roam so it's a much nicer environment for them than a zoo.

For more information on the Knowsley Safari Park please visit their website: www.knowsley.com

Lovely feedback from clients

I received a very nice comment today from a couple whose wedding I photographed in February this year. It is always lovely to receive such complimentary feedback and very much appreciated.

Katie and Pete are a lovely couple and were great to work with. I wish them both all the very best for their future together.

"Thank you so much for our wedding photographs, we are really pleased with them! On the day you were relaxed and efficient and we hardly noticed you were there! The photographs look great and seemed to take no time at all which left us plenty of time to catch up with our guests. The internet access and extras were also really appreciated by family and friends spread across the country"

Truly Amazing Kodak Advert - "Keep Me, Protect Me, Share Me"

I came across this advert on You Tube and thought it was amazing, certainly the best advert I have ever seen.

It's over six minutes long but well worth watching all the way through.

It's very inspiring and certainly makes me proud to be a photographer. I hope you like it too.

(To view the video best I would advise turning off the music in the top right hand corner of my blog page by clicking on the white 'turn music off' button below the slideshow).

Nikkor 17-55mm 2.8 DX - new workhorse lens!

I have now bought a new 17-55mm 2.8 lens. This is a pro quality lens and will replace my 18-70mm lens.

Apart from the fact that this lens is considerably shaper, the main advantage of it has over the 18-70 it that it is much faster, especially at the longer focal lengths, meaning that it will be much more effective in low light conditions.

When shooting weddings I always use two camera bodies at the same time and I envisage that this lens will stay on one of my cameras virtually all the time whilst I interchange lenses on the other. The 17-55mm is a very popular lens with professional wedding photographers as it can go wide enough for group shots but is also capable of zooming in nicely for details or candids. It is also built like a tank so I expect it to last a very long time!

I will post up some photos shortly once I have had chance to play around with the lens.

I purchased the lens from Park Cameras (http://www.parkcameras.com/) and their service was excellent. They were very helpful on the phone and the lens arrived by courier less than 24 hours after I ordered it so I would be happy to recommend them!

New full day wedding slideshow added to www.neilredfern.com

Following on from my earlier post I have now added a new page to my website entitled 'all day wedding slideshow' which, suprisingly enough, is a slideshow featuring photographs from a recent wedding I covered for which I was booked for the entire day.

The slideshow contains over 120 photographs and will hopefully give interested couples a good idea of the range and variety of photographs I would typically take on full day wedding shoot. I hope you all find the slideshow not only enjoyable, but also useful, as to view so many photographs from a single wedding will hopefully give you a better idea of my photographic style.

To view the slideshow please click on the 'full day wedding slideshow' tab at www.neilredfern.com

I would also recommend listening to the music which accompanies the slideshow, I think it's a lovely song.

Enjoy the show!

New Wedding Photographs

I have now uploaded to www.neilredfern.com a selection of new photographs from a recent wedding I covered at Egerton House Hotel in Bolton.

The bride and groom, KT and Peter, are a lovely couple and were great to work with, and luckily for me they didn't let the chilly cold weather get in the way of having some nice photographs taken outside!

I have added a few of my favourite photographs from the day below.

Congratulations again to KT and Peter, I wish them all the very best for their future together.