Debbie and Gavin are the kind of people that you feel immeditately comfortable with. They are friendly, open and not afraid to be silly; the perfect couple! It was no surprise that they were planning a big wedding, with lots of guests from all over the globe. They chose Solberge Hall as their reception venue, a lovely large country house hotel near Northallerton, with lambs in the fields and daffodils in the gardens. Solberge Hall has a brand new function room at the back, complete with theatrical lighting, that can seat 200 people, making it one of the wedding venues with the biggest capacities in Yorkshire.

There were two pairs of shoes Debbie liked, and she didn’t know which to get, so she got both. My kind of girl ;). In the end she went for these, a good choice!

Jayne and Natasha went shopping together and found their own bridesmaids dresses from Coast. They sheepishly approached Debbie with them and guess what, they were perfect!

Debbie looking beautiful just getting into her gorgeous dress by Sally Ann Morley from Carlton Couture in Ripon

Married!

Can’t you tell the bridesmaids were the nicest ever?!

What a handsome groom!

Debbie’s friend did the flowers and they were lovely. Peonies are some of my favourite flowers so the bouquet was definitely a winner with me.

Debbie’s Mum made this impressive cake, captured here by my fab photography assistant Kylie:

To view more of the wedding photography see the slideshow! Or, if you were at the wedding their Online Gallery is here. Email them for the access code.

Debbie and Gavin, I hope you are having an amazing honeymoon! Gavin planned a honeymoon full of surprises for Debbie, and no-one was allowed to know where they were going, lest they let it slip. I can guess from the little I know of Gavin that they are having an amazing adventure together, the first of many as Mr. and Mrs. (or, actually, Dr. and Dr.)!

Debbie and Gavin are both smart, funny, kind and a perfect match for each other. They are clearly very much in love and can’t wait to get married in just over a weeks time! I had great fun with them shooting their engagement session last week at Solberge Hall, and I’m really looking forward to their wedding, it’s going to be a brilliant day.

Gavin proving that Debbie is ticklish!

Landscapes were the thing that first drew me to photography, I’ve always been very into nature (my first word was flower!) and felt fiercely protective of it. Photography is a means of freezing a moment in time, and being able to successfully capture the beauty of a misty morning, a windswept beach, or a wonderful summer’s day is a real gift. Unfortunately, it’s one I don’t possess! I feel out of my comfort zone with landscape photography, I can’t move things about to get the best light or ask it to pose in a certain way, and I snap away frustratedly and then head home disappointed, so when I first heard about Mike McFarlane’s course in Northumberland I jumped at the chance to learn more from someone whose work I admired as soon as I saw it, especially as he has such wonderful work on the Western Isles of Scotland where I spent many of my childhood holidays.

10 budding landscape photographers gathered at Fi Fie Fo Fum Art Gallery on Saturday morning eager to learn what we could to improve over the weekend. We were sent out on assignments meant to make us stop and think about what we were doing and why (we were allowed just 36 frames per assignment, which is completely unheard of for me!), and it was surprisingly challenging. Mike talked about ‘making’ rather than taking a photograph, and urged us to take time to think carefully before we pushed the shutter. Very slight changes in light, cloud pattern, cropping and exposure can end in significantly different photographs.

I had a tiring but very inspiring weekend, and have come away with plenty to think about. You may well spot me at dawn or dusk (more likely dusk!) with a camera and tripod hovering around areas of beauty in the not too distant future. Mike is running further courses in September and October and I would recommend that anyone interested in landscape photography signs up quickly before the places are taken. Visit the Fi Fie Fo Fum website for more information.

Here are some of my efforts, I have included exposure information in case anyone is interested. A tripod was used for all these shots.

This is one of my fellow photographers on the dunes above the beach, even with a whole beach to photograph I still found myself focusing on the people! I love the backlighting in this photograph.

ISO 50, 1/12 sec, f/22

I find everything about jellyfish fascinating, and these had kindly arranged themselves in a nice S curve on the beach:

ISO 50, 1/6 sec, f/22

Striking patterns in the sand:

ISO 50, 1/30 sec, f/22

ISO 50, 1/15 sec, f/22

1SO 50, 1.0 sec, f/22

Lastly, this is one of the sculptures outside the Fi Fie Fo Fum gallery. I liked this one in particular as I think horses are beautiful, and I was also amazed and impressed to find out that it had been made from old horseshoes. It almost looks like the mare and foal have been sketched onto the sky:

ISO 160, 1/2000 sec, f/2.8

Today is a very sad day. I have to let my baby go.

The time has finally come for Beans to fly the nest and start his life with his new family. In just over an hour, I will have to give him a big cuddle and a sloppy kiss and say goodbye. He has his bag packed, with all the essentials included; puppy food, favourite toy, insurance, vaccination certificate, and blanket that smells familiar smells of mummy and daddy.

O my little Beans, you captured my heart from the beginning but I know that you will make one little boy very, very happy and you will be his friend for life. I’m glad you’re not going too far and I hope I can come and visit you soon. You will be able to keep your name, but it now has a funky twist: Beanz, as in Heinz.

Here he is all grown up and ready for his new adventure, doesn’t he look handsome with his brand new collar?

I am sure I should have been born on a beach, and never have left. Nothing makes me happier than hearing the sound of waves gently lapping at white sand, so hot that you have to hop across it to get to the sea. I love diving and snorkeling, and will never stop being amazed that there are such beautiful, colourful fish and coral just waiting there under the surface for anyone who cares to look. I have, therefore, been very happy for the past couple of weeks.

It was my first trip to the Caribbean and I can’t believe I have waited all this time to go! I will definitely be back, the pace of life suits me down to the ground, and the motto “maximum chill” rang true of the whole holiday. Whether I was sitting in the back of the pick up with a Piton beer watching the palm trees tip precariously away from me as we whizzed around the island on steep, potholed roads, on a beach with sand in between my toes, underwater with those amazing fish, or having a local BBQ and rum punch, I was in heaven. Watch out, Caribbean, I will be back!

The first drink of the holiday, a Belinni at 7.30am in the Virgin lounge:

And the second, on Jalouise beach. If you like Pina Colada’s, getting caught in the rain……

Huge conch shells are everywhere. I even saw them used as bricks!

Some of the houses are just amazing. Most are brightly coloured and cheerful, and others are naturally worn by the sea air. I was pretty glad we weren’t staying at no. 39 though:

The town of Canaries, with our favourite bar ‘The Viewpoint’ at the top left. A great place to enjoy a rum punch and watch the sunset as the name suggests.

The famous St. Lucia Pitons, two striking volcanic peaks. I’m afraid we wimped out of walking up them:

And the beer that shares their name. Most of the adverts are hand painted:

A typical rum shack, found all over the island

Definitely a couple of good philosophies!

My sister Laura enjoying a spot of sunbathing:

We weren’t the only ones enjoying the sea though. This horse had just enjoyed a swim to cool off:

The kids were fascinated by my camera and loved posing so they could see themselves on the back:

The taxis are definitely more fun than the ones in the UK:

Unfortunately we didn’t have time to learn kiteboarding, by the time we discovered the beach and asked about it, it was too late. It takes an average of 11 hours of training before you even get anywhere near the sea!

My one true love; a cocoa bean:

I wish I had an underwater housing for my camera, so I could have taken photographs whilst diving and snorkeling. I’d find it hard to trust through. I knew someone who took their camera down in it’s brand new housing (that costs more than the camera) and it leaked…eek!

Happy April 1st. I hope you fooled someone! And thanks to my wonderful father. I love you Dad!