Describe Your Approach

I simply believe in capturing genuine emotion, and powerful candid moments, in such a way that the people in my photographs don’t even know I’m there. It’s your Wedding Day, not mine. I want you to celebrate it with all the love and creativity that brings you to that point, without regard of how you might feel a Photographer expects you to be. You and your Wedding are perfect already.

In the case of Creative Portraiture all I ask is for you to stand before the camera momentarily presenting yourselves as you are. The standing part is normally pretty easy, but if not, feel free to sit. I write that with a smile on my face, but dare not suggest you lie down. Seriously though, I believe in capturing portraits of my clients, with complete honesty, open heartedness, and disregard to preconceived notions of posing or staging. These images are more often than not the ones that make the mantle piece and will be some of your favourite photographs. I do believe though, that they can be captured in a short period of time and without taking away from your Wedding Day in anyway.

As a Documentary Wedding Photographer my art and craft is to capture our beautiful truth. To do this I have no other way of being, than completely connected to my environment and to my photographic subject, in heart and in spirit.

How Long Do you Typically Photograph a Wedding For?

Every Wedding is different, but there’s also a couple of things that seem to remain the same. There’s almost always a Wedding Ceremony that goes for about half an hour or slightly more. 99% of the time all my clients adoring friends and family want to wrap their arms around them and say how beautiful the Ceremony was (because it was!). That typically takes about twenty minutes give or take. And otherwise most my clients like get a couple of quick portraits - that’s fifteen to forty five minutes, depending on personal choice and whether there’s a bridal party and any driving involved. Last but not least most my clients like to capture the time of their Wedding Day where guests are cutting up the dance floor or at least letting their hair down a little (so to speak). I’ll usually try and allocate twenty to thirty minutes to this time of the night before 95% of the dance floor runs out of steam and retreats for another beverage to go with a slice of Wedding Cake.

Long story short, for a big Wedding all at one venue or with Ceremony and Reception within close proximity of each other I typically get full coverage from Getting Ready to above described dance floor shots, within seven hours. I’m always happy to stay later if need be too.

For small intimate Weddings where the Ceremony is the main part my clients want covered alongside some family portraits etc, I’ll often spend four hours or so covering these client’s Wedding Day.

Do you Photograph Family and Bridal Party Portraits?

As much as I’m first and foremost a Documentary Wedding Photographer, I really value highly family and creating historical captures for the generations to come. I typically spend between ten and fifteen minutes capturing a variety of family combinations, but almost always just Immediate Family. I’m also always open to photograph anyone and everyone that my clients desire. When I’m signed up as your Wedding Photographer, that’s exactly what I am, and I’ll jump through hoops if need be to capture things as you like.

How Many Photographs to you Give to your Clients?

For every hour I’m photographing a Wedding I end up with approximately one hundred images or so (or just under). So for example, for seven hours of coverage, my clients can expect about 600 or so images in colour. And the same again in Black and White. Every one of these images will be individually retouched in post production to provide the; colour palette, tonal distribution, framing and contrast that I expect the best of for every frame.

Retouching/Post Production. How do you go about it?

As I’ve mentioned above, I retouch every image. I keep my treatment simple to the extent that I don’t do digital cosmetic surgery, but I do ensure that every image that goes to my clients is both artful, and professional in every photographic sense. That means it’s correctly focused, exposed, and colour treated with my own personal stamp that I’ve been working on for over a decade. Every image is finely tuned wiht between a half dozen to a dozen adjustments.

My approach is to provide not only professional photographs but images that without being ‘retro’ still hold a filmic soulful feel about them.

How Long Do You Take To Deliver the Photographs?

I pride myself in delivering my clients’ photographs to then within one to two weeks (that’s 7 to 14 days). I deliver my clients’ photographs digitally in an Downloadable Online Album that can also be shared between family and friends. Furthermore there’s the option to purchase prints directly from the Online Gallery.

Photo Albums/Books and Prints - Do you do them?

Damn straight I do. There’s nothing better for us Photographers than seeing our work in print. Actually yes there is - that’s seeing how stoked our clients are when they’re seeing their favourite images in print whether it be in a hard bound book or on the wall. I work with some of the most quality Service Providers in the business to deliver stunning pieces of art that will serve as a historical loving reference for lifetimes.

Do you have a Second Shooter?

Nope :-). No I don’t. There’s pro’s and cons of this scenario folding out. The obvious pro is that more angles potentially get covered with more images. The con when it comes to how I work is that it’s an extra person I’m conscious of framing out of the images I’m capturing. Especially considering how much I move, albeit discreetly, it’s more work for me avoiding second shooters whilst I’m covering all angles in my own style. When it comes to photographing brides and grooms prior to their Wedding Ceremony, I often cover both preps, but if not I’ll almost always capture my Brides and their girlfriends and family etc, before arriving at the Ceremony with enough time to capture The Groom anxiously (or otherwise) awaiting his Bride To Be.

Videographers? Yay or Nay?

I’m completely cool to work alongside anyone my clients choose to have along. Whether it’s Uncle Bob with his latest DSLR capturing some video footage of the ceremony or a professional team. It’s all good. The dynamic is different and there’s more work for me as The Photographer to move around the Videographer(s), but I really appreciate that my clients gain another beautiful capture of their Wedding Day in a visually creative form that’s different to Stills Photography, yet still obviously very valid.