I’m always pleased when a couple decides to book me to photograph their wedding. However, it’s not always under good circumstances. When Rachael and Andy got married back in 2018, I remember them telling me their original wedding photographer had let them down.

Fast forward to their wedding day, and it was seriously good fun! There was the usual bridal prep shots, followed by some quite posed pictures of the boys, (as was the request).

I take hundreds of photos during a wedding, sometimes thousands if it’s a really long day. I don’t limit the number of pictures I take or the number of photos the couple receive afterwards. They get all the good ones.

Over the ten years I’ve been photographing weddings, I’ve never had a bouncy castle, so it was great to see one at Rachael and Andy’s wedding! It provided lots of great photo opportunities, which really helped to add variety to the shots. I think Rachael spent most of the afternoon bouncing up and down on it.

It can be really fun to have a play around with lighting, some shots lend themselves well to being deliberately over exposed, such as this one below. Others work much better when darkened up.

I recall Rachael and Andy were particularly keen to get a photo of them entering the wedding breakfast room, followed by photos of the cake cutting. During the cutting of the cake, I always like to get pictures of the guest’s reaction too, as it often resembles something like the paparazzi! I think it’s nice for the bride and groom to have that memory to look back on.

The couple shots were particularly enjoyable. I don’t like to direct as the pictures can feel quite contrived, but Rachael and Andy were clearly comfortable in front of the lens. They posed naturally without much encouragement from me. The odd gust of wind helped too!