In case you hadn’t noticed, Donna is Chinese! A couple of days after their lovely wedding at Newburgh Priory and The Crab and Lobster, Donna and Michael celebrated their wedding in the traditional Chinese way at the aptly named Glamorous Restaurant.

The tables were set for a 12 course Chinese banquet for nearly 200 people:

Donna arrived in her white wedding dress and then changed into this stunning outfit:

An essential part of a Chinese wedding is firecrackers (gunpowder was invented in China after all!). It was Michael’s job to light them and then RUN!

I can tell you they were deafening, everyone else covered their ears but I was too busy taking photographs.

I love this completely candid shot of them:

Next up, the lion dance, signaled by the beating of drums and the rhythmic clashing of cymbols, which keeps away evil spirits.

The lion is very cheeky and flirts with everyone!

Donna’s gorgeous hair decoration:

The tea ceremony begins, and Donna and Michael serve tea to their elders as a sign of respect. First, the elders give advice to the young newlyweds. Michael’s mum dispenses some wise words:

The couple receive red pockets full of money from their elders:

Donna 和 Michael, 祝新婚快樂！

OK, OK I’m showing off, but I may as well put my Mandarin degree to some use ;-)

Matthew spotted a gorgeous brunette in a Leeds nightclub, and his chat up line was smooooooooth. Anne spotted a handsome bloke, whose chat up line broke the ice.

After a couple of dates Matt left Leeds on a big ship bound East, but could not forget Anne. Valentines day arrived and with it a huge bunch of flowers and a card from Matt. Anne waited, Matt came home, and they picked up right where they left off. Matt is still in the Merchant Navy (sorry girls, I did try, but he refuses to wear his uniform for the wedding ;-) ) and so Anne gets the best of both worlds: independance when she needs it and a gorgeous fiance to wine and dine her when he’s home.

We found a great allotment for these photos, full of wonderful colours and textures:

Matt liked the kissing photos, but I nearly got run over getting this shot!

Anne has the most amazing sparkly blue eyes:

Anne and Matt, I’m really looking forward to your wedding!

Donna and Michael are also known to each other as Man and Boy. No, it’s not kinky, it’s an in joke they share between themselves that sums up their personalities and their relationship – they are bursting with fun and silliness. Their engagement photos show what a great laugh they are, and their wedding was no exception. Donna looked absolutely stunning in her gorgeous dress from Angel Brides, and Newburgh Priory was a beautiful setting for their wedding ceremony.

I use actions from Kevin Kubota (KK) and Totally Rad (TRA) on a lot of my photos. I have included the recipes above each image in case anyone is interested! All of my photos are treated to a dose of Kevin Kubota’s Magic Sharp before appearing on the blog.

Donna’s gorgeous flowers were by Fiona Hogg:

TRA Boutwell Magic Glasses 54%

KK Mocha Black and White
TRA Boutwell Magic Glasses 50%
TRA Claire-ify 49%

TRA Flare Up (Golden) 51%
KK Daily Multi Vitamin
KK Edge Burner

TRA Claire-ify 100%

TRA Grandma’s Tap Shoes 37%

Their car was from Classic and Vintage Travel:

KK Midbright
KK Mocha Black and White

Donna and Michael’s reception was held at the Crab and Lobster, which blew me away – it looked so amazing!

TRA Claire-ify 26%
TRA Crush 100%

TRA Claire-ify 100%
TRA Crush 100%

TRA Crush 38%
KK Edge Burner

Donna’s favourite food is burgers, so guess what she was holding in her mini me cake topper………!

KK Daily Multi Vitamin

TRA Crush

TRA Claire-ify 20%

This is Michael’s ‘magnum’ face – you have to have seen Zoolander!

KK Lighten via Screen 50%
KK Edge Burner

KK Edge Burner
TRA Pro Retouch

TRA P.O.S. Lens – all turned off except extreme edge burner

KK Mocha Black and White
TRA Pro Retouch

TRA Claire-ify 100%
KK Edge Burner

A massive thank you again to Hayley Ruth who second shot for me.

Want to see more? There is a slideshow, and an Online Gallery. The password is their married surname, all in lowercase letters, and there is a 10% discount off all items ordered within 2 weeks.

Stay tuned for the second installment of Donna and Mikes wedding – a traditional Chinese ceremony coming to the blog soon!

Tom gave Anna a choice: she could pick an adventurous date (rock climbing), a classic date (dinner and a movie), or a classic date with a twist. Anna chose the twist. Tens of courses of Japanese food later, Anna and Tom were still talking and laughing, as the waitresses reset tables around them and loudly cleared their throats. Tom’s date had been a success. A BIG success!

You may remember Anna and Tom from their engagement photographs. Well if you think they looked good then, prepare to be wowed. Anna looked AMAZING in her wedding dress, and Tom, well, Tom was pretty hot too.

Anna and Tom married in Upper Poppleton Church, and their reception was held at the beautiful Hopsitium in York.

A massive thank you to Hayley Ruth who second shot at their wedding for me, thanks Hayley!

Tom had Anna’s engagement ring made from an heirloom from his Grandmother. At the same time, he had these gorgeous earrings made so that he could present them to her on their wedding day. These are Anna’s something old and something blue:

Their stunning car was from Classic and Vintage Travel:

Tom thought he might look better in the veil than Anna. The jury’s still out, but I think Anna might have a slight edge….

Anna’s ‘war face’!

Hayley caught this lovely shot of the cake cutting:

To see more of their wedding photography, view their slideshow. If you were a guest at the wedding, you can see all of the photographs in their gallery. The password is their married surname. There is a 10% discount on all orders made by August 6th.

Anna and Tom, I had so much fun photographing you, thanks for being such good sports! I can’t take the blame for Anna being late though, war faces or not! x

Rebecca and Matt go together like peas and carrots. Both from farming families, they are down to earth, friendly and fun, and was I so pleased when they asked me to photograph their wedding (even though Matt hates having his photo taken!).

They had their reception at Rebecca’s family home, a beautiful farmhouse near Wetherby:

All ready and waiting for the bride, the car was by Classic and Vintage Travel:

A pitchfork walkway!

Angie Walker did a fabulous job with the flowers, as usual! Rebecca’s gorgeous dress was from Taffeta and Lace.

Horses are stating to feature quite heavily in my weddings, which I love as I’m a very horsey person! Meet Africa, Rebecca’s yearling she bred last year. Isn’t she beautiful, and quite a poser!

Vicky and Olly married last year, you may recognise them from my website:

The marquee was by Classic Marquees and the catering (which was yummy, I had some canapes!) was Kings Catering.

To see more of Rebecca and Matt’s wedding, there is a wedding photography slideshow. If you were a guest at their wedding, go to their Online Gallery and see if you can spot yourself! Their password is their new married surname, all lowercase letters. There is a 10% discount off all orders from the gallery until 1st August.

Rebecca and Matt, I hope you had a wonderful hog roast and honeymoon. Thanks for asking me to photograph your day x

My first pet was a chicken. Or a pair of Pekin bantams (small chickens!) to be exact. I was nine years old and must have been an unusual child. While my friends were getting my little ponies and smurfs, hamsters and guinea pigs, I had chickens.

I love all things small and fluffy and so was very excited when I got a hen house for Christmas last year, as I could have my own little brood in the back garden, and get fresh eggs as an added bonus. I borrowed a broody hen, did some hen research, and found some fertilised white Silkie bantam eggs on ebay. Three weeks later, and hey presto, out popped 5 lovely little lemon yellow chicks (the other 5 didn’t hatch, so were not fertilised). They are now 3 weeks old now and their first feathers are just showing, it will be nearly Christmas before we have any eggs (provided they are not all cockerels!) but we are well on our way to the good life! Just need a vegetable patch now…..

10 creamy white eggs before they went under the hen:

The first little hatchling three weeks later (chicks are born on time!):

A few hours later and they are the cutest little fluffy things ever:

You are not supposed to help chicks out of their egg. If they can’t make it alone, chances are nature is telling us something. But, being the softie that I am, I helped one little chick who had been dutifully pecking away for hours and hours and hadn’t managed to make much headway at all. He (or she, he is named Harry but this may change to Harriet) was very weak just after being born. The next morning, Colin bought a little weak, cold chick inside. I didn’t have much hope but made him a cotton wool bed in an old plastic container and put him on the boiler to keep warm. Colin was dispatched to get a jar of baby food (Mum mum was told years ago by a vet to feed an ill bird baby food so I though it would be the right thing to feed him), and I dug out an old syringe we had to worm the puppies (there was no needle, just the syringe!). The next morning, hey presto, Harry seemed to have gained strength and was cheeping enthusiastically. He went back out with Mum and siblings and is now doing fine.

Big brothers and sisters while Harry was inside getting 5* treatment:

One chick is hiding behind Mum:

Happy families, Harry included:

A happy ending!

Just because I am so kind and generous (!) I have decided to offer all this years wedding clients 30 thank you cards completely free of charge. Additional cards cost £2 each, a bargain if I do say so myself!

All you have to do is pick a photo and a design and the rest will be done for you. If the colours don’t compliment your photograph perfectly, they will be adjusted.

Design one:

Design two:

Design three:

P.S. by clicking on the little icons on the left you can share posts on facebook, twitter etc.

I often get asked for wedding photography tips, and so thought I would share these with you. The best possible tip I can give is to relax and enjoy every moment of your day as much as you possibly can, this will shine through on your photographs and you can be sure that you will look great!

1. Have a trial run with your photographer
Do an engagement session if possible, so that you all can practice working together. This will help to produce the best photos possible for your most wedding day.
2. Be silly!
Pictures always look better when you are having fun! Don’t be afraid to be playful with each other -tickle, hug, kiss, talk… do whatever you would do without a photographer holding a camera in front of you. Being natural always looks better in the photographs.
3. Take your time
No pictures are as important as the couple shots on your wedding day, so allow enough time. Half an hour is the minimum you should allow for the couple session. Make sure this is your time alone with the photographer, as it’s not helpful if you have to entertain your bridesmaids or family while being photographed.
4. Spice it up
Throw out the traditions you don’t like and have a celebration that is all about YOU!!!! This will ensure that both your wedding day and your photographs are unique.
5. Enjoy every second
Most weddings don’t go exactly as planned, and there will always be something that is not as you imagined it. Don’t let anything get in the way of genuinely enjoying your day. You only have one wedding! So don’t worry out if the cake is vanilla instead of chocolate, or if the flower girl starts to cry instead of throwing the flowers.
6. Try to stop worrying about your dress!
They ALL are going to get dirty no matter what you do. Rest assured that nobody will notice if the hem has a little dirt on it because you walked over a little grass for a picture that you love.
7. Group Shots
If you have formal group pictures taken at your wedding, assign your best man or a bridesmaid who knows everybody to help gather guests for desired shots. This way you are making sure that your photographer can spend time on what she is doing best – taking great pictures.
8. Make it up
Don’t wear too much makeup or do something with your hair that is not you. Don’t let anyone tell you that you need tons of make up for photographs! You should still be able to recognize yourself on your wedding pictures. On the same note, don’t go without any make up at all, even if you’re a supermodel. A little make up doesn’t hurt anyone.

And, because this is a photoblog, there should always be a photo! Here is a sneaky peak at Rebecca and Matt’s wedding from the weekend:

You may remember this post from a couple of months ago about Essential England. Well, their website is now live and kicking so go right now and have a look!

Essential England offers a unique service, 100% British grown flowers delivered anywhere in the UK, either as a gift, or as a monthy service for yourself, and they also offer wedding flowers. As all of the flowers are locally grown, they are very fresh, and you know that you are supporting British Growers and that your flowers have a low carbon footprint.

I went down to the Plant Finders Fair at the gorgeous Cottesbrooke Hall last week to photograph their official launch. The flowers look amazing and smell even better!

Rachael, the brains (and the beauty!) behind Essential England:

This is the amateur florists kit, which contains everything you need to begin flower arranging. The gorgeous leather apron is from Bradley’s The Tannery. Bradley’s offers amazingly soft leather goods in a mouthwatering selection of colours which make a great gift. All of their leather is British so again, you know that you are doing your bit for global warming as it has virtually no carbon footprint! The kit was photographed in one of Country Summerhouses wonderful, well, summerhouses! They are really well made and I’m planning on having one for my office one day.

Peter Dibble was also at the fair. Peter grows his own willow, dries it and then makes it into the most amazing natural fences and baskets. If you ever need anything willow related, email Peter!

Tom was pursuaded by a friend to post a profile on hot or not, Anna thought it might be a laugh. As it turned out, they were both hot and it was a laugh. Anna and Tom met up and got on famously, and the rest, as they say is history. Three years later they are weeks away from their wedding day at the Hospitium in York, and Tom still makes Anna (and everyone else!) giggle.