A bunch of stuff from Winkworth Arboretum nr Godalming. All shot on the Canon 5DIII with the 300L f/4 IS. Spring has finally sprung!

I am told by those in the know that this brown bird is a female blackbird. Highly counter-intuitive.

My ongoing photographic saga with the foxes in my garden reached a new height yesterday when I came across a family of Foxes living behind one of the bushes in the garden. A remote camera later and a few hours later and some promise is there!

I haven't played a game of Snooker since I left uni. Tonight I had four games with my mate Steve. Realised how much I missed it.

Not strictly a Supermoon as these were taken a day late. Nonetheless, the big cheese looking good. These are also pretty close to what I got direct out of the camera in terms of colour. They've had a little work, but this is pretty close to what it actually looked like. Shot from the top of High Curley Hill in Lightwater Country Park.

It's been a while since I've run a roll of film through my Canonet. This camera is old and really forces me to slow down when using it which is something I love. I've started using a metering app for my iPhone to give me a ballpark exposure and that is helping get decent things out of this early 1960's era camera. That said, I seem to lose a lot of frames to blur - I'm a little suspect of the shutter mechanism as even with a high shutterspeed (1/250th or 1/500th) it produces some wonky images. Still, here are a few of my favourites from a walk this weekend:

Back in sunny September I visited Marwell Wildlife park with Charlotte. I was pretty busy at the time so only got a few images of the snow leopards (some of my favourites) edited. It's the quiet season now so I spent some time digging out the unedited pictures and giving them a work over. Enjoy, and if you have a moment pop over to the original post and check out the rather magnificent Snow Leopards.

The iPhone 4 is a tremendous walkaround camera. I'm going to buy a Fuji X100 next year as a dedicated take with me everywhere camera, but until that arrives, the iPhone 4 is a lean mean alternative. It's HDR mode is very good - although I haven't used it much yet - and it's small size and the fact that it's a phone means it's always with you whenever a shot might appear. As a previous owner of the original iPhone and the 3G, I can tell you with confidence and experience that with the latest model the iPhone camera has really come of age.

These are some of my favourite images from the summer.

I had the recent fortune of busting this fox sunning himself in the garden. The images are from a few weeks back but they're some of my favourites yet so wanted to share them with you. I caught a glimpse of him (or her!) through the window sunbathing and looking exceptionally comfortable in his surroundings. I've been in this position previously, and I know from hard experience that the chances of getting in close are slim, but I've been persevering for a while and wasn't ready to give up.

I snuck to my camera bag only to find that neither my primary bodies had anything telephoto mounted. Quick as I could I swapped the lens on my 50D for the 300L and headed to the front door. The fox was sat in the back garden, but there wasn't a hope of getting through the back door unnoticed. The ground was dry so I decided to forgo shoes and left the front door swinging. I crept round the house trying to make as little noise as possible. I've followed this plan countless times before and fully expected to arrive to find a dissapointingly empty garden. The fox is question is, I believe, a cub and I think this contributed to my good luck. Fox-Cub the Younger wasn't rocking the uber-alertness of older, wiser Mum and Dad and I'm sure his naivety played in my favour.

I rounded the corner to find him sprawled out in the corner of the lawn. For a fraction of a second he looked utterly serene. He might as well have had a good book and a bottle of suntan cream. Almost instantly however that serenity was broken and the fox equivalent of a giant gulp had replaced the previously relaxed expression. Amazingly he didn't bolt immediately. The fox sat there thinking that Mum was right for almost a full 10 seconds before springing to his feet, assessing his options and making his escape. During that time I managed to capture the shots below, my favourites from a series of 11 frames.

As you've probably figured out by now, I've spent the last week or so shooting the Farnborough International Airshow. Yesterday I took my friend Jimmy along as he'd been saying for a while that he had an interest in pictures and would be keen to have a go. We rocked up yesterday 5 minutes shy of the Red Arrows/Vulcan Flypast that opened the show and I handed him a camera and started explaining the basics of how to work it and what to do.

Right on time the formation turned up. Cutting an incredible sight, the Vulcan & Red Arrows streamed down the Rwy 24 centreline. Jimmy, taking on board my 5 mins of tuition raised the camera to his face and fired off the below frame. Impressive start huh?! I on the other hand, lifted my camera to my eye, wondered why the viewfinder was dark, realised I had the lens cap still on, fumbled with the lens cap and then snapped a mediocre image of the flypast disappearing behind a tree. School boy error. Epic fail. Here's Jimmy's picture below, and another showing his reaction to the days shooting. Admittedly it's been cropped and edited, but I think you'll agree, it's an awesome picture!

CREDIT: JAMES ROBINSON

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner arrived at Farnborough this morning to a mass of enthusiasts and press. The new aircraft is making it's debut at the show and it's arrival heralded the successful completion of it's first trans-atlantic flight. The Dreamliner looked brilliant and the excitement as it came in to land was palpable. Standing short of the RWY 24 threshold, the 787 flew right over our heads and was a great opportunity to grab some images of Boeing's new aircraft.

Another awesome days flying in preparation for the 2010 Farnborough International Airshow which opens next week. Today was the best day yet with all manner of stunning airframes on display. The Airbus A400M was a real treat as I haven't seen it fly before and it's size yet manoeuvrability were a sight to behold. Hopefully you're not getting bored of F16 images yet, the Viper pilot quite clearly enjoys throwing this pocket rocket around the sky as much as I love watching it. It may be quite an old aircraft these days but it simply doesn't get old. It's display is a spine-tingling assault of raw thrust, acceleration and astonishing high-g maneuverers. It really is a highlight.

The Eurofighter was another awesome display, and after what seemed to me at least to be a conservative first outing, took to the skies later in the day to prove that it's not just the US who can bring staggering jet fighters to the party. If you're not fully revved up for show week, I personally think you're either mad, or dead. Hope you enjoy this collection from today.

More from the build up to Farnborough. Had to shoot off to a Wedding Consultation so gutted I missed the Raptor and The Arrows, but lots more days to come so I'm sure I'll get my chance. The blue sky was much appreciated, and the Falcon display raised the neck hairs as usual. Bloody awesome display in really quite strong winds. More to come folks, as for now, enjoy these; some of my favourites from today.

Farnborough International Airshow gets underway next week and the build-up to the show is well underway. These were taken on Wednesday of the Hornet and Viper validation displays and the C17 departing for RAF Fairford. There'll be more to come in the following days - lets keep our fingers crossed for some semi decent weather - blue skies make for much better backdrops!

Every year two brothers I went to school with hold a bro v bro cricket match. Each brother takes the role of captain and then chooses a motley band to form a team. They play at their old school on a Saturday afternoon in July and although the quality of play ranges a great deal and the spirit is undeniably friendly, there's no lack of will to win. Brotherly love at its very best.

The event is now in it's third year and this is the second time I've had the pleasure of covering it. The sun was shining and I've got a red forehead to prove it! It's been ages since I shot a cricket match so this was a real treat. Here are some of my favourites.

Hands can tell as much about a person as a face. I've been wanting to do a series on hands for some time and finally found the 'starting gun' in the shape of my friend Jimmy. Jimmy's recently been working in conservation and has some seriously gnarly blisters to show for it. There will be more to come in time, but this is a start.

Anyone who knows me will be aware of my passion for Apple products. I'm a big fan of their industrial design and the general quality of software and usability. I recently bought an iPhone 4 which is an absolute blessing, not because it's new and shiny, but because it replaces my half broken iPhone 3G which I've had for the last few years. My old phones screen was broken in the lower half, both visually and in it's response to touch which meant that I spent a lot of time rotating it between portrait and landscape to make it possible to use all the necessary keys.

One thing I'm hugely looking forward to from the new phone is using the camera and this inspired me to go back through my old iPhone pics hunting for any gems. In a world where higher megapixel counts and faster lenses often make us forget about the actual photography, it's fun to snap pictures with a tiny fixed lens and very little faff. Here are a few favourite images from the original iPhone and the newly replaced iPhone 3G.

I'm a big fan of TMAX 3200. It has a dense quality that I really like. I am however something of a dunce with film and I often make errors processing or changing rolls. This roll was double exposed (went through the camera twice) but I rather like the resultant effect, a happy accident, and the fun side of my personal work.

I recently did a shoot for a group of guys and girls going to their college prom. It was so much fun. I'd completely forgotten how much fun can be had as a teenager! That sounds glib and a little trite, but genuinely, these kids know how to have a good time. No absence of laughs with this lot! I was under the impression that they wanted me to shoot their pre-prom gathering in the same way I might shoot the morning of a wedding, but they had more directed portraits in mind, so it was a real opportunity to work outside of my usual sphere.

I entered the Epson Pano Awards earlier in the year and the results were announced recently. I wasn't lucky enough to land a winning spot - which would have been nice as a very high-end Epson 4880 printer was up for grabs - but I did achieve a bronze award in the Open Competition with this image of Durdle Door.

In the last few days, a fairly sizeable fire has swept across the Surrey heathland covered by the Chobham and Greyspot military Ranges. It's a fairly common occurance, but in the age of social networking, it was pretty easy to stay up to date with where it was and when. As such, I popped down the road earlier this afternoon when I heard it was bad enough and extensive enough to cause the closure of The Maultway.

As much of the fire is currently on military ranges the fire service can't enter to fight the fire directly due to the hazards of unexploded ordanance. As such they are forced to fight the fire from beyond the fences in many places. The fire seems relatively under control at this point, but as you'll see, it's created some dramatic landscapes.

Sometimes photos really don't get posted soon enough. I was doing some Lightroom filing today and came across these from the tail end of 2009. Many thanks to the most obliging model.

WIth the exception of her black hat, which looks like an afro, my Mum was a cool cat back in the day. She recently showed me these awesome images from 1969 of a road trip to Wales and Spain. A random combination if ever there was one.

A friend of mine is just bonkers about Birdworld nr Farnham in Surrey. He used to rave on and on about it and I spent a good while telling my girlfriend about him. A few weekends ago, Charlotte and I decided to go check it out. My expectations weren't huge but we both ended up amazed. It was genuinely awesome! The most hilarious bit was that we bumped into the guy I mentioned who loves Birdworld! Anyway, there are a lot of images here, but hope you enjoy them!

Just over a week before our English country wedding in April 2010, a volcano erupted in Iceland, spewing volcanic ash in to the stratosphere. As a result, UK airspace and subsequently most of the European airspace, was closed to all air traffic. As days passed, it looked increasingly likely that my fiancé Nikos’ family would not make it to England from Greece, including his sister Kaliniki, a professional photographer in Athens, who was due to take all our pictures.

So, slightly desperately, I googled “Photographers, Guildford” expecting to have to call a huge list of people in order to find anyone that would be available, let alone someone I was happy to take our photographs.

I spied a name on the google-list that somehow appealed - Tony Hart. I called him without even looking at the pictures and, purely by chance, he was free. We chatted, we shared a few common views on how wedding shots should be taken and we agreed for him to come out and meet us. What serendipity! I then looked at the pictures and found that he was exactly what we were looking for - lots of simple, unposed shots, often in Black and White, which caught the moments of the day perfectly. They were taken candidly, and often without the subject knowing the photographer was there. I think it was fate!

And, happily ever after, the family did make it to the wedding, but I’m so glad we had Tony there, he was a consummate professional and his shots capture all the special moments of a happy day.

Shoes - from Pinet in Bond Street, London. A lucky find in the sales! Dress - Design by Jenny Packham, found in Clifton Brides in Bath. It was the first I picked out and the last I tried on. It was perfectly simple and so elegant. The silk chiffon moved so beautifully. Bridesmaids dresses - I suggested they stayed with my colour scheme of pale and bright pink and pale green but they chose their own dresses. I didn’t see them until the day. They both chose Coast, Daisy in dashing bright pink and Eleanor elegant in long pale pink.

Groom’s suit, shoes, shirt and tie - From Reiss, their cuts really suit Nikos’ build. I was there to give advice but in the end it was Nikos’ choice as to what he wanted to have. Good choice I think! He insisted on wearing stripy socks of blue, yellow, pink and white. Flowers - masterminded by my mother, I only stipulated the colours. She, along with two family friends did all the church displays which were in a soft, English country style. Bouquets, button holes and marquee flowers were done by florist Angela Weaver.

The wedding was held in St Michael and All Angels, Thursley, Surrey. My godfather Reverend Peter Muir conducted the ceremony. We then moved on to an English pub lunch in the Three Horsehoes, also in Thursley. The food was amazing, especially the spit roast beef! - Lydia Mina

A recent wedding shot at the gorgeous Great Fosters in Egham, Surrey. If you'd like to see my wedding photography, please visit my website: www.tony-hart.com

It's been a while since I went to Covent Garden. It's one of my favourite places to go and shoot as it's so vibrant. These are from back in early March, but I'm only getting round to sticking them up now. Enjoy.

Had an absolutely mega weekend away in Wales recently. Stayed in a gorgeous cottage in the Usk Valley and managed to sneak a visit to Tintern Abbey in between all the rain. Twas fun times.

I've been meaning to do this for some time and today I finally setup a business blog as a section of my website. My new Tony Hart Photo Blog will not replace Cogitations and indeed I envisage everything posted there also being posted here. However creating the new blog will allow me to do two things: a) Use Cogitations as a genuinely personal blog, writing and posting what I wish, without any conflict of interest! b) Add a relevant dynamic section to my business website that is both search engine friendly and easy to update on a day to day basis.

Basically, not a lot will change, but I'm writing this so that I've clarified what is happening and why. Hope you'll all keep reading both blogs!

All the best,

Tony

My favourite and most obliging model :)! The polaranoid idea (a word play on instant film and human-like) is borrowed from the comedian Dave Gorman. It is an awesome idea (cheers to him) and this is merely my first attempt at mimicking the effect in Photoshop. Click for larger versions of both images.

A while back, via Twitter, I came across an extremely contentious blog posting from a bride to be. It was contentious because the bride had asked the very relevant question "why does wedding photography cost so much?". She was asking a perfectly valid question but some, both those within the wedding industry along with some brides and grooms took exception to the tone in which she questioned, what she perceived to be, extravagant pricing. Her blog posting drew hundreds of responses and sadly in the end got quite ugly. I chose not to get involved, and in hindsight I'm glad I didn't.

Nonetheless the posting raised some legitimate questions and in the wake of that article I've been wanting to write a piece detailing what goes into shooting a wedding day to a professional standard. It's not my intention to further stir what became extremely volatile waters, and with that in mind I thought it was worth letting things calm down a touch before posting an article from the photographers point of view. I'd also like to make clear that this article should not be viewed as a 'response' to that article, but rather 'inspired' by. The original article made some extremely valid points and it clarified to me the understandable view of someone outside the industry looking in. To that end, I hope this article will go some way to explaining what goes into the job. My aim is to make it interesting and enlightening - a behind the scenes if you will.

Initial Consultation

The absolute first stage of booking a wedding is obviously the initial enquiry. Nine times out of ten this comes by way of email via the wedding enquiry form on my website. The form asks the prospective client for some basic contact details and includes a message box that gives them the opportunity to send through any other relevant information such as proposed date and venue. I generally respond to enquiries within the hour. I include a copy of my wedding brochure in PDF format which includes a breakdown of my pricing and options, and of course let the couple know my availabilty for the date in question.


At this point, if the client likes my work, options and of course pricing (!) we arrange an initial consultation. It's an entirely obligation and pressure free event. An opportunity for me to get to know prospective clients and their forthcoming wedding and more importantly an opportunity for them to get to know me. It tends to last between 30 minutes and an hour and generally I conduct them in my clients homes. We're all busy people and all the more so with a wedding on the horizon, and I've found that it definately eases the pressure on the bride and groom if I can make the effort by going to them. From time to time an initial consultation doesn't translate into a booked wedding, but this is rare and the risk of a wasted journey is worth it in my eyes. I consider customer service to be a vital tenet of my business approach and I consider making the effort to visit clients for free, no-pressure consultations a big part of that.

The consultation consists of a number of things. First off we go through the shape of the wedding, the details that help flesh it out in my mind. What, where, who, when - that sort of thing. Next up I get the bride and groom to talk to me about which elements of my photographic style drew them to me and their vision for the wedding pictures. Likes/dislikes, particular images that grabbed their eye, all of these questions are important.

By the time we reach the initial consultation the couple have invariably seen my portfolio and generally have a good understanding of my style. Nonetheless this discussion helps me understand what they love and why. It's an important part of how I'll approach the day from a thinking perspective. From time to time I've come across clients who had something quite different in mind from the photojournalism I offer. It's rare, but occassionally there are times when I have to suggest other photographers to a prospective client because their vision and the way I shoot simply don't match. I consider it absolutely crucial that client and photographer see eye-to-eye, both on a personal level, and stylistically and it's important to me that I'm the right fit for my clients.


I always bring a range of albums to my consultations and generally get the couple to flick through them while we chat things over. Its a great way of letting the client see real weddings from beginning to end as well as the actual albums themselves. We wrap up the session with a discussion of the different levels of coverage, presentation options and cover any questions the couple may not have had answered. At the end of consultations, I always ask if the couple would like to go ahead and book but there is never any pressure to decide there and then. It's hugely important that people get a chance to digest what they've heard, consider and have a private chat together.

Booking

If the client then decides to go ahead and book, the contract is signed and a booking fee taken. The date is now deemed to be secure. At the time of booking I only require a commitment to the level of coverage the clients want, and not a decision on albums, photobooks and prints. All my packages include image discs and so it's my firm belief that forcing people into taking albums that at this stage they may not be sure they want or need is simply unfair and pushy. Both PhotoBooks and Jorgensen albums have been popular when booked after a wedding, so I see no need to make these an obligation. At the end of the day, many people choose not to have a traditional wedding album these days so it seems strange to me to make it de riguer by including it as part of a package.

Scouting & Research

Prior to the wedding day I make it my business to see a number of things and talk to a variety of people. First and foremost it's essential that I have a good understanding of the venue and know it well. I always scout out both the wedding venue and the church well ahead of the date and make sure to do so at a time of day similar to the time I expect to be shooting there. As available light is a central part of my photographic style, the direction and quality of light is a big part of my research. Understanding it on location is everything. I always make at least one pre-wedding visit, often returning more than once to view the setting in a variety of ambient light conditions.


I also speak to venue staff and like to get acquainted with whoever will be in charge of events on the day. Wedding co-ordinators and venue managers have a lot to think about and I find it makes life easier for all involved if I can touch base with them and run through any relevant specifics with them. One of the most important conversations I have is with whoever is running the ceremony be they a priest, vicar or registrar. It's my experience that these people are usually hugely helpful, but I like to make sure they're happy with my role and intention as a photographer so there is no chance of misunderstanding.

Finally I always plan transport in considerable detail. This is particularly important for weddings where the ceremony and reception are taking place in seperate locations. If I am covering a brides preparations on one side of town, have to get to church on the other side of town and then onto a venue at a third location, timing can be critical. It's essential that I know the way and know where I can get quickly parked. It may sound obvious, but in the modern era of GPS and turn by turn directions, it's all to easy to forget to do these basic bits of preparation. I always make sure I know the way from A to B from memory, so if the sat nav decides not to play ball then it's not the end of the world. If the route involves places that can be severely affected by traffic congestion, I work out a route B. Come the wedding day, I carry plenty of cash so in a worst case scenario of a breakdown or a flat tyre I can always take a cab. This level of preparation helps to make sure that on the day I can focus on picture taking and not be distracted by trying to figure out how to be in the right place at the right time.

Pre-Wedding Meeting

About two to three weeks prior to the wedding date I arrange a pre-wedding meeting with the bride and groom. Like the initial consultation, this is usually conducted at the clients home. It is an opportunity to remember each other - it can be a long time between booking and the actual wedding - and to go over the forthcoming day. By this stage, schedules tend to be set, the wedding party is generally confirmed and the details much firmer in everyones mind. We go through all the specifics and nuances of the wedding day and confirm when the formals will take place and who will feature in each group. I take away a confirmed schedule and a confirmed list of formals, the bride and groom take away peace of mind.

The Day Before

In the week leading up to the wedding I keep a close eye on the weather outlook. Generally this only translates into minor adjustments in my mental approach to the day, but it does allow for forethought and contingency planning if torrential rain or other extreme weather conditions are on the cards. I also check to see what time sunset will be on the day of the wedding and where West is in relation to the venue. The day before, I check a variety of weather forecasts and make final decisions regarding where I intend to shoot the formal groups in the event of Plan A (where the weather does what I expect) and Plan B (when it doesn't).


The day before the wedding I double check my clothes (suit trousers, belt, shirt) make sure they're ironed and crease-free and polish my shoes. I print backup Google map directions to and from all of the relevant locations, label them, and pop them in the car glove box. I check my iPhone has all the key contact details and then charge the battery overnight. I transfer all the formal shot details, including names and roles within the wedding party, along with any other useful details onto pocket sized index cards, hole-punch the corner and then fasten them together with a piece of twine. I've found this low-tech solution to be the most effective method of quickly prompting my memory during the process of shooting the formals. The hole punch/twine solution works better than a staple as it allows me to permanently 'turn the page' without the stack of cards wanting to snap back to where it was. If neccessary I pop out and make sure I have a full tank of fuel.

Next up, I take my three camera bodies (two primary, one backup) and clean all of the sensors using Visible Dust sensor brushes. I then shoot some test shots to confirm that there are no dust spots present on the sensor. I then clean my lenses so they are dust and smudge free using a blower, lens brush and microfibre cloth. Once this is done, I run all my memory cards through the cameras, formatting them and putting them into a flash card wallet. On all cameras I double check a number of options including RAW format, autofocus custom functions and the user definable presets. I load two clean cards into my primary cameras, confirm they're empty and then move the menu screen so it's not, due to last use, resting on the 'format card' option. I then check my speedlite batteries to confirm they've plenty of juice. Finally I remove all batteries from the cameras, put them on to charge and make sure I have the right straps on the right bodies.


At this point I tend to go and eat dinner and switch off for a few hours. I find there's a lot of tension prior to a wedding day and it's worth taking the time to try and relax. I tend to watch some rugby or play a little XBox, but above all, I try not to think about the wedding for a bit. At about 9 I come back to the office, take the batteries off the charger, load them into the cameras, stick the spares into my Think Tank roller bag and the load the case up with all my bodies and lenses. I open up my lighting case and make sure everything is present and correct. I rarely use studio lights, but they do get used for some formal shots and they always get taken along. Everything is then zipped and locked and placed in the lobby ready for the morning along with other essentials like tripods and shoes. I like to get an early night prior to a wedding so at this point it's off to bed for a good sleep.

The Wedding Day!

On the day itself I wake up early, long before I have to be anywhere. I have as big a breakfast as I can manage. I'm not a big morning eater, but weddings are long events so experience has taught me that it's best to fuel up. After dressing, I head to the lobby, unzip my Think Tank bag and check two things in particular - that I have charged batteries and empty memory cards in my cameras and plenty of spares of each sitting ready in the bag. As mentioned, this was all checked the night before, but I like to check again - it gives me peace of mind.

The camera bag, the lighting roller case, tripods, power reels, a waterproof jacket and plenty of water is loaded into the boot of the car. Personal stuff like wallet and phone are collected and the formal index cards parked in my right pocket. At this point I do a final mental check, the sat nav is loaded and it's off to the first port of call.

If I'm running my automated PhotoBooth then I tend to head to the venue first and set this up if at all possible. It takes a while to prepare and if there is the opportunity to get this done in the morning before I am due elsewhere it's a half hour saved that pays dividends. On the way to the first location, generally either the church or wherever the bride is getting prepared I tend to listen to something energising on the iPod. I'm a big fan of film scores so that's often a favourite. At this point it's about getting your game face on and being in the right frame of mind. The preparation is done and it's a matter of being switched on and mentally sharp.

The wedding itself doesn't require half as much explanation as you might imagine. It's a matter of keeping the observational side of the brain working, 'seeing as the camera sees' and keeping an eye on the schedule so you're in the right place at the right time. I arrive to the ceremony location early and, prior to the arrival of anyone else, I'll walk around the church for a bit. I've already done my research for good shooting spots, but based on the prevailing light and expected position of bride and groom I now make some final loose plans about where I hope to be during which element of the marriage ceremony. I describe these plans as loose because you have to be prepared to go with the flow. Things change and not everything can be preplanned. When the unexpected occurs you have to react quickly and being too set on a certain course of events can cause the mind to freeze.

During the service itself I pay as much attention to the person conducting the wedding as anything else. The unintentional cues this person gives are integral to how I move around a wedding. Being unobtrusive is a major part of the way I shoot and so economising movement in a quiet church or ceremony room is very important.


The formals typically take place at some point between the end of the ceremony and the wedding breakfast and, from my point of view, are the most structured part of the day. I limit formals to eight distinct groups. This is so that the formals don't become unwieldy and overtake the day. It's my view that if a bride and groom desire more formals, they should be considering a more traditional photographic approach entirely. By limiting the formals to eight groups, it gives time to do each one properly rather than having to rush through at a pace that doesn't do the images justice. Pageboys and flowergirls, not to mention adults, can be flighty things at weddings so I allocate five minutes to each shot to ensure that sufficient time is available. Typically each group takes no more than 3 minutes, but by doing things this way we acheive a great result without compromising a genuinely photojournalistic approach. During this period of the wedding I ask the best man and ushers to assist me in rounding up the relevant people and aim to work firmly and speedily. Guests rarely want to stand around being directed and so efficiency is crucial. Done well, the formal groups should be completed accurately and quickly.

If a PhotoBooth is in use at the reception I return to this every half hour or so to make sure it's still running smoothly and doesn't need a new memory card. I obviously stop for lunch, but try and eat reasonably quickly. As a photojournalist it's my job to shoot things as they happen and moments don't wait. During receptions I sometimes spend 5 or 10 minutes in one great, well appointed position, waiting for the right moment to occur to make the shot. Observation is everything.


None of my wedding packages include a time limit so I tend to work through until the close of the wedding celebrations, typically at midnight or sometimes even later. By this stage I'm invariably knackered, but it's also one of the most enjoyable periods of the wedding from a photographic point of view. The light is always challenging by this point, but the timetable is loose and the opportunity to 'find' or 'make' shots is considerable. It's a very creative period and less pressurised than earlier parts of the day. It's a real chance to relax and enjoy the job.

Once everything winds down, I pack my gear, making a point of putting everything back in it's proper place and taking special care to file my memory cards. I load the car, say my goodbyes to the bride and groom and drive home.

No matter how tired I am, when I arrive, I download the memory cards to my computer and duplicate the files to an external disc. At this point I copy the files into Lightroom and set it to render previews. Once this operation - which takes some time, is underway - I'm happy to hit the hay safe in the knowledge that the precious files are safely in three places - the external disc, my Mac's internal disc and my Drobo which houses my Lightroom library. They are of course also still on the original memory cards. These are not wiped until the wedding has been fully edited and backed up. By this stage it's commonly 3 am.

Editing

The next morning, if I haven't already, I'm pretty keen to review the images from the wedding day. The first stage of editing is to simply bin the chaff. Most photographers refer to this as culling. Some images are immediately binned due to inaccurate focus, close eyed 'blinks', or the odd inadvertent shot of the ground. This first run through is about selecting the rejects. I shoot upwards of 2000 images at a standard wedding and culling the junk is the first stage. This usually brings the image count down by 15-20% or so.


Next, I use Lightroom's 'Pick' functionality to flag a loose initial selection. This tends to be larger than the final selection, generally as with two very similar good frames I will select both initially and make a final call on which is the better at a later stage. At this stage I've normally reduced the selection down to somewhere between 300-500 images. I then take an enforced break. 2000+ photos is a lot to look through and after a while you end up going a little photo numb. After a certain point I lose track of what's a great image and what's merely a good image and by taking a break it gives the eyes time to recover and resets my judgement.

Post-Processing

Once this initial selection is done, I start working on the job of post-processing the images within Lightroom. At the most basic level every image is individually adjusted for colour and white balance, black and white conversions are done, excessive noise is managed, sharpening is applied, the image is selectively dodged and burned, minor imperfections removed and the image is cropped if neccessary. 90% of this work is done within Lightroom, but every now and again an image needs further work and this is then exported to Photoshop for additional processing.

Formal shots are left to the end as these require a slightly different approach and often require more work due to the presence of 'blinks' in larger groups. With a formal of more than ten people, no matter how many frames you take, it's often the case that someone somewhere is looking the wrong way or blinking. The solution is generally not difficult and involves cloning the offending set of eyes out and replacing them with the same set from another frame where the owner has their eyes open. With milliseconds between frames it is very easy to make it entirely imperceptible and always appeals to my slightly childish side because I can make the person open and close their eyes by simply toggling the visibilty of the eye layer in Photoshop!


Once all the images are processed a final set of editing is done. I run through all the edited images and where neccessary reject images that don't make the grade or are near-duplicates of others. I then look through all the unselected pictures to check there are no gems that have been missed, if there are, they are added and processed.

At this point I have the final selection ready, edited and processed. The photographs are generally pretty much fine in chronological order, but in seeking to tell the story of the wedding day it's normally worth rearranging a few images - often detail shots - to heighten the narrative sense. Once this is done, a final run through is done to confirm that the images flow well and they are then named and numbered. The editing and post-processing of a wedding typically takes me about three days. At this point, the final edit (in both RAW and JPEG format) is backed up to archive DVD, the rejected frames deleted and the entire wedding, including unflagged photos is archived on the Drobo. The unflagged frames are kept for two years and then deleted.

Web Previews, Albums & Prints

The final wedding edit is then exported from Lightroom and uploaded into Slideshow Pro Director, the software which runs the slideshow galleries on my website. The flash slideshow is prepared and embeded into a new webpage constructed in Adobe Dreamweaver and this too is then uploaded to my site.


Via a Lightroom plugin, I build a second gallery, with identical content, setup to allow clients to purchase prints directly from me. The folder containing the two galleries is then password protected and a link added to my client area page. Everything is double checked and I then send the bride and groom an email telling them their photos are ready and available online.


The next stage is to prepare the Slideshow DVD and Digital Negative Discs that I include with all of my packages. These two discs contain all the edited pictures and if the couple have selected the PhotoBooth option, all the PhotoBooth images as well. The Slideshow DVD is set to the music of the clients choice and is playable on a regular home DVD player. It's a great way for people to look through their pictures with family and friends. The Digital Negative Disc is akin to being handed the negatives in the days of film photography and consists of all the finished pictures, in full resolution, ready for printing or reproduction. These are prepared, the DVD discs printed with the wedding details and then packaged in a bespoke case.


Finally, if the bride and groom have chosen album or print options these are designed/prepared and sent to the printers. I do all album design and firmly believe that it's part of my job as the creator of the images to present them in the best way possible. Once the albums have been designed, they are sent to the relevant printing/finishing companies for final assembly. I always have albums delivered to me rather than direct to the client so that I can quality check the final product before passing it on to the couple.

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At this point I would consider a wedding pretty much complete. It's been a long journey from initial consultation to album delivery but the time spent in preparation and planning, not to mention the attention to detail throughout, all has a part to play in ensuring a first class end result.

This article has spilled to a much greater length than I intended. I originally envisaged a simple look at the mechanics of being a professional wedding photographer, however, in discussing the process of shooting a wedding from beginning to end it's become rather detailed. Hopefully it still achieves it's original aim of looking at what goes into a wedding and challenging the oft held, rarely voiced, assumption that a wedding photographer only works on the wedding day. Above all, I hope it's been an interesting read. Well done for making it this far!

They might be the England Rugby Team, but they spent all of this mornings session playing football. Well, during the 15 minutes of press access at least. Fingers crossed it was just a warmup because otherwise it could explain a LOT! Seemed to be a skeleton group at training this morning as well. Based on James Haskell's twitter posts, it seems they had a rather hard day yesterday so maybe they were given some time off or maybe the rest were just in the gym/pool/recovery etc.

Either way those present looked in good spirits and it was good to see Jonny Wilkinson cracking a smile for once. Ben Foden also looked rather sprightly, dressed more appropriately for a summer kick around than a near freezing training run at Pennyhill Park!

I source my wedding albums from Jorgensen of Australia and they really do produce a quite phenomenal product. I love the classic, unfussy style of these albums - they really let the pictures speak for themselves. The silver page corners, deep bevel of the core mattboard and the book bound spine all add up to a product that shows its quality through a meticulous attention to detail. I've recently received a new album through and, as the bride is away until the end of the week, I thought I'd take the opportunity to photograph the album itself.

I took this image a long time ago, but I've only recently worked it into a state I'm happy with. It's a panoramic stitch of about 6 vertical frames. Click the image for a link to a larger version.

The 2011 wedding competition is beginning to take off with plenty of entries now being submitted. If you're getting married in 2011 and have yet to book a wedding photographer, then do please consider entering the competition. Entry is free and fine art prints await three runners up! Full details can be found here.

Some personal images from Christmas and the last few months. Colour images shot on a very ancient but much loved Canon Canonet rangefinder with Fuji Superia 400 film (out of date!) while the black and white was shot on a Canon A1 SLR with Kodak TMAX 3200.

Prizes:
One Grand Prize Winner will receive:

This autumn and winter I've been shooting regularly at Royal Holloway University covering their sports matches. This is a mega-mix selection of some of my favourite images from the last three months.

I visited this brilliant Anish Kapoor exhibition back in October. It was fun, engaging art. I'd recommend you all go, but unfortunately it's now finished. Go easy on the 'cannon' pic. It was shot and composed entirely from the hip. Every 20 mins, a little man would walk over, load the 'cannon' with a blob of red wax, pressurize the chamber with compressed air and then, without warning and acompanied by an silence-shattering explosion, fire the blob across the room, through the archway and onto the opposing wall. Who knows what it means but it was certainly entertaining!

Little by little I'm growing my stock photography portfolio with iStockphoto. Things are still rather humble at the moment as I'm not really shooting with stock in mind. However, every shoot tends to throw up an image or two that's appropriate for stock and I'm trying to add more of those as I go along.

Lots of photographers claim that microstock agencies devalue the inherent value in a photographers image and that photogs are selling out by getting into bed with agencies like iStockphoto. I see their point, but the images I submit tend to be pictures that are of no worth to me beyond their aesthetic value. Additionally I do not have an exclusivity deal with iStockphoto, I do not allow extended licensing on my images and I do not allow prints. Effectively I'm saying, "use my images, but not to sell as posters and don't put my 2$ photograph on the cover of time magazine".

Manifesto aside, take a look if you're on the hunt for something. The collection is wee so far but it'll be added to a little at a time. Grow my pretties, grow!!!

View My Portfolio

Hi chaps. Been thinking of putting a book together with some of my work for sometime. Got stuck into it yesterday and in doing so dug up a few images from varied shoots that I'd missed the first time around. Enjoy.

Saw a photographers portfolio tonight that reminded me of another guy I also really like. I thought I'd share them both with you. Brilliant minimalism and excellent use of black and white throughout the work. The first is Michael Kenna, who in my view is simply one of the most awesome monotone landscape specialists in the world. The second, Brian Kosoff, in my eyes doesn't reach quite the heady heights of Kenna, but is otherwise exceptional in his own right. If you like minimalism, black and white and landscape photography, please check these guys out:

Michael Kenna
Brian Kosoff

For those of you interested in photography and cameras, I can't help but recommend David Farkas' blog. I only came across it this afternoon while looking for information concerning the Leica M9 and S2, but it's really good and very informative. I seriously recommend checking it out, both to read his full review of the new M9, but also to check out his jawdropping full res previews of the S2. Let's be clear, most of us will never be so lucky as to even touch this camera, but we can dream right?! It's chuffing amazing. If you like your camera porn, then rock on over:

David Farkas Photography Blog

I have Deja vu about posting this picture. I hope it's not the seventh time it's been posted. If it is, you'll let me know. Right?

My friend Dan Scott is a top notch photographer despite always being very self-deprecating when he really shouldn't be. He's the definitive master of 'alternative' cameras, with an incredible collection of interesting film gear. Polaroid Land Cameras, Holga, Pano, the works. With his permission, here's some of his very impressive stuff. Dan lives with the wonderful Nicole and together they run Hooper & Shaw in Port Issac, a veritable 'emporium of wonderful things!'

So we went to Stafford to see Miles and Ruth. Twas brill. Apologies for the 'heavy' processing - sometimes it's just fun to step away from your vanilla styles.

Cupboard of Doom

My friend's dog Patch is not well. She doesn't even technically own him, but she's the one who loves him and looks after him. I've only got a few pictures of him, and I've only met him once, but he is absolutely gorgeous and very awesome and I can see why he's so loved. I've never had a dog of my own, but I was pretty upset to hear that he was sick. Things are a bit touch and go at the moment, so this is me sending them both all the luck, good wishes and positivity in the world.

Last Tuesday I had an email from a guy called Tom Packer at Royksöpp's management label. Apparently they'd liked my gig photography portfolio and I'd won a competition I'd entered for a front of stage photopass for their London show. Well it was great fun and here are the results. I've not shot gigs in a while so it was a real treat to have the opportunity. In order we have, Fever Ray's set, Royksöpp's set and the Rex The Dog after-party.

The opening set was basically pitch black - lit only by pulsing table lamps with 40 watt bulbs and thick shades. Some of the most challenging conditions I've ever tried to take pictures in. To the photographers out there, let's just say f/1.4, 1/15th sec, ISO25,600. No joke.... noise ninja is my friend! If you'd like to see the full gallery, I'll be posting it on my website soon.

I went to Virginia Water with my good chum Bec. Despite my best effort's and much pleading she's not one for being in front of the camera, but she does look a bit like that little butterfly.

Just back from an awesome couple of days down in the West Country. I've been photographing and editing so much, I've barely had a chance to stick stuff up here. This is the first draft of some images from Dartmoor. They've got their own gallery as landscapes need a bit of room! I also spent an excellent but overly short time with my friends Dan & Nicole. More of that to come.

Linky - Dartmoor Landscapes

The weather forecast was accurate and the promised dumping of snow materialised. When it became clear yesterday night that we were in for the motherlode, I packed my bags, drove to Windsor at 20mph along very slippery roads and camped in the car until an hour before dawn. I prefer landscapes in a larger format and as such can be found at the gallery link below. First up, a picture of the car circa 1.48am.

Gallery of Images

Yesterday also included muchos amounts of sledging. For those pics, stay tuned!

An old shoot that I'm finally getting round to finishing editing.

Christmas is well and truly over now, but despite everyone being a bit under the weather, I had an awesome one with visits from Aussie relatives.

The photos of the Robin below were shot on the same day as these pictures. They're all landscapes, and as such deserve to be viewed relatively large. Please hit the link below to see the images in a separate gallery.

Gallery - Virginia Water

I've been vaguely thinking about arranging some sort of exhibition this year. I don't know where or what or when or really even if, but it's something I'd like to try and am thinking about looking into over the coming weeks. I'll keep you posted.