At this time of year, as the British winter closes in, I’m sure quite a few couples are thinking “why don’t we skip the traditional UK wedding and jet off and get married somewhere warm?”

Not a bad idea, for sure, as long as you consider all the pros and cons.

A destination wedding can actually be a cheaper option – usually you won’t have anything like as many guests, simply because of the expense and distance to get there. So if you prefer a more intimate event (and are confident that the key people will be willing to travel) then getting married overseas can work very well. And you will be right on the spot and won’t have to stir from your deckchair to go on honeymoon!

When I lived in Turks & Caicos we were mostly shooting weddings for people from outside the country – and typically they had around 20-30 guests. We did occasionally shoot bigger weddings with upwards of a hundred guests, but sometimes it was literally just the couple, the minister, the wedding planner, and myself – I’ve signed the register to witness countless weddings!

Destination weddings are popular with older couples who want a quiet, low-key event, or those getting married second time around. The ability to get married on a secluded beach with nobody else around is often an attraction.

Of course you have to arrange the event at long distance, including the minister, official paperwork, and reception arrangements, but that’s not normally too difficult. And if you want to make sure everything will be to your linking you can always fly out for a “location recce” beforehand. Or get married somewhere that you have visited previously on holiday and liked.

Whatever you decide, read my guide to planning a destination wedding – it’s full of useful tips.

From the photographer’s point of view, shooting destination weddings can be a challenge – there are the inevitable hassles of travel to contend with, and often working in an unfamiliar location – but I do enjoy them as there is always a buzz of excitement about the event, and the guests too have made an effort to be there so really enter into the spirit of the occasion.

Whenever I shoot a wedding outside the UK I always arrive at least a day early just in case of travel delays. And I bring as much backup equipment as I can feasibly manage within the limits of airline baggage allowances – having a camera break down on a Caribbean beach and not having a spare is not an option…

Tropical locations present their own challenges in terms of heat, humidity, and light – but having lived and worked in the Caribbean for seven years I am used to dealing with those on a daily basis.

So if you feel like making your wedding especially unforgettable, give me a call on 01483 600412 and I’m happy to chat about the possibilities.

On Sunday I photographed an amazing Halloween party which was given by a local family – 130 guests enjoyed some great food and entertainment, including an array of scary but fun characters…

Peter Pan and Tinkerbell were on hand to look after the smaller kids, while the older ones (and adults) were pleasurably frightened by an assortment of ghouls and zombies, who guided guests around a haunted maze.

There was also face-painting and Dynamo the magician, not to mention the fire jugglers and “Brad and Janet” from “The Rocky Horror Show”. And for a grand finale, students from Guildford School of Acting put on a superb musical show featuring songs from “Rocky Horror” among others. The whole event was ably organised by Gilly Botte and her team from The Great Big Event Company.

Here are just a few of the images that I took on that special night…

Here’s a date for your diary – next Wednesday (November 9th), as part of Photography Week at the Apple Store in Regent St London W1, a photographers’ group of which I am a member will be giving a series of talks on a variety of topics, ranging from documentary wedding photography to portraits to personal projects.

The MV Photographers Collective is a group of some of the leading wedding, portrait and commercial photographers in the UK – so you’ll see some amazing images and get a fascinating insight on how we go about creating them…

There will be six talks lasting 15-20 minutes, repeated throughout the day from 12pm to 8.30pm – so there will be plenty of opportunities. Not only that, but we are offering free portfolio reviews and advice, if any aspiring photographers want to bring work along to show us. I’ll be there all day, so if you are in Central London on Wednesday, drop in and say hello!

And best of all – it’s all free!

You can find out more on the MV Photographers web page.

When?

Wednesday November 9th 2011 12pm-8.20pm

Where?

Apple Store, Regent Street, London W1

See you there!

Last Friday evening I headed up to the newly refurbished Four Seasons hotel in London’s Park Lane, to photograph the annual Chairman’s Ball & Aspiring Manager’s Awards for the Institute of Hospitality, London branch, ably assisted by my brother Simon.

Many of London’s top hoteliers were represented at the awards evening, which took the form of a masked ball…We started the evening with posed photos as guests arrived, then photographed each table during dinner, as well as candids throughout the evening, and pictures of the speeches and award-giving ceremonies. After the excitement of the awards was over the guests were able to let their hair down dancing to the live band, Versatility.

Here are just a few of my favourite images from the evening – guests can find the full set online in my client area.

Photographing weddings at Brympton is always a pleasure – the venue is just so perfect, with historic buildings and the lake and parkland to use as well.

Felicity and Mike were married there early in September – and the weather was just right, a few clouds around to provide shade but also plenty of warm sunshine – especially just when we needed it for the family photos and the private photo-session with the bride and groom.

Here is my first selection of favourite images from the wedding – as always, click any thumbnail to see a bigger version in a pop-up window. And please leave a comment for the bride and groom if you’d like to.

Family and friends who have the event code can log in to my photo gallery system to view the full selection of images, and order prints using this link or by clicking on “Client area” in the menu above.

Here are a few more photos from Suzanne and Duncan’s wedding at Brympton D’Evercy…

I will be posting the full password-protected image gallery here later today – family and friends who want to access it should contact Suzy and Duncan for the password. And please leave a comment for the bride and groom if you’d like to.

Last Monday I headed down the A303 to Somerset to photograph the wedding of Suzanne & Duncan at Brympton D’Evercy.

Family and friends were out in force to share the day with them, at this most elegant and historic of venues.

I’m working on the edit at the moment, and will post some more pictures when that’s done, but I thought you’d like to see just a few as a “sneak peek” from the day…

Please do post comments on the pictures and/or good wishes to Suzy and Duncan if you’d like to!

As always, click the thumbnails to enlarge…

Oops, I’m getting a bit behind with my blogging – it must be summer! Busy editing, both stills and video, at the moment…

Anyway it’s a pleasure to post some photos from Rob & Joanne’s wedding at Castle Combe – a fantastic West Country venue – I was shooting with Gareth Cooper of GMC Photographic – thanks for having me along, Gareth!

We haven’t had the warmest or driest of summers this year, but fortunately the weather was fine for Rob & Joanne’s special day. The Manor House Hotel in Castle Combe has some splendid grounds, which we took advantage of for the photographs, as you will see…

As always, click any thumbnail image to enlarge in a pop-up window:

This past weekend I’ve been in France, filming a destination wedding in the very pretty alpine town of Chamonix, Haute-Savoie, in the shadow of Mont Blanc.

The movie will be posted on my wedding films website, www.lumierefilms.co.uk, in a few weeks’ time when I’ve had a chance to edit it all together, but in the meantime I thought I’d post a few stills here as the weather was great and the scenery so beautiful…

Before heading up to the ceremony location at La Chapelle Des Praz, I wandered around the town and the farmers’ market.

Here are the photos – click any thumbnail to see full-size:

Living in a small Surrey village you get used to seeing wildlife, but it’s not that often that you see the bigger animals in broad daylight.

This afternoon I came across this character having a quiet afternoon nap on the garden path!

I took a couple of shots through the window, but needed to get closer, so I crept outside as quietly as I could – but of course once the fox heard my camera shutter click he (or she) was off…

Click any thumbnail to see the full-sized image: