Angie & Simon – A Sneak Peek

A couple of weekends ago I photographed Angie & Simon to celebrate their big day.

Angie & Simon got married in Zante, Greece & decided to throw a party to celebrate on their return. A great idea so family & friends who couldn’t travel to your wedding can celebrate with you.

Angie & Simon held their party at The Jam Factory in Oxford. A great party venue The Jam Factory is a restaurant, bar & arts venue in the heart of the city. The building has a fabulous, industrial history & was the Frank Cooper jam factory between 1903 & the end of WWII. Frank Cooper’s marmalade was especially popular with dons and students in Oxford University. It was taken to Antarctica on Scott’s expedition to the South Pole & a jar was found buried in the ice many years later.

I was really pleased with the images we captured of the party in full people chatting & laughing. I also was able to get some great shots of the couple around & outside the venue. I love the contrast of the bride in her finery against the backdrop of the Victorian brickwork.

Their daughters performed Ho Hey by the Lumineers for Angie & Simon’s first dance. I think the images I took of the girls nervous beforehand to the exhilaration of the performance really captured the moment.

It was a great evening to be part of & I hope Angie & Simon enjoy their sneak peek. Wishing you every happiness for the future.

Another happy customer…..

Lovely Sunday morning despite the rain, just had a visit from one of my bride & grooms from earlier in the summer when they came to collect their wedding album. They gave me a lovely card which I’m sure they won’t mind sharing with my Facebook friends ‘Dear Mark, Just a little note to say a BIG Thank You to you for helping to make our wedding day such a special day. You have managed to capture the most wonderful moments & memories that we will cherish forever. We hope to keep in touch & hopefully use you for many more shoots to come. With lots of love Steph, Tim & Hugo’
Here’s a few of shots with the gorgeous Hugo, the cutest Parson Terrier ever & a lovely photo of Steph & Tim on Henley bridge.

Sara & Colin – A Sneak Peek

Sarah & Colin’s wedding took place in Didcot & Wittenham Clumps & involved a surprise. I love a wedding when I am in on the secret!

Now, this was a surprise for the bride from her groom & was weather dependant so it was very disappointing when we set off for the wedding in heavy rain. One thing you can count on is the British weather being changeable so we still held out hope…..

It was really raining by the time Sarah arrived at the church but on their happiest of days a bit of the wet stuff didn’t dampen their smiles.

That being said we were all thrilled when we came out of the church to blue skies & sunshine.

After the service in Didcot, we travelled the short distance to Fison Barn at Wittenham Clumps a great barn venue that I hadn’t photographed a wedding at before.

Now for that surprise, by the time the speeches were over the weather had really cleared up so we all made our way outside. Colin, the groom, had arranged a special fly past for Sarah of a 1940’s Spitfire. I concentrated on the shots of the plane whilst Kiti kept her lense trained on the Bride, Groom & wedding guests for the all important reactions shots. I love the expression on Colin’s face of pure relief & exhilaration – a man who has organised a surprise that worked out & his lady loved it!!

After the flight we walked up to Wittenham Clumps, a place very special to Sarah & Colin. I am really pleased with the shots of them with Oxfordshire countryside stretching off to the distance.

Congratulations Sarah & Colin. Hope you enjoy your sneak peek, wishing you every happiness.

Laura & Andy – A Sneak Peek

I was at The Compleat Angler in Marlow again recently for the wedding of Laura & Andy. It was a great day & I was pleased the forecasted downpours passed us by.

I started the day at Laura’s parents home to get some coverage of the bride & bridal party getting ready. I always love being part of the day from the very start & this wedding was no exception. There is an almost ceremonial feeling to the process of preparing a bride to meet her groom.

Laura had a lovely lady Carol, who came to help her into her dress. A great idea as Carol was experienced in all the buttons & laces & completed the task calmly in double quick time. I always have a crochet hook in my camera bag which often comes in useful for the uninitiated but no need for it at this wedding!

Laura & Andy were married at St Margaret’s Church in Tylers Green. It’s a great church with fantastic natural light & a lovely vicar Derek. We did the group shots outside the church, which provided a lovely backdrop. We also got some great shots of the couple under a shower of confetti!

We then set off by car to The Compleat Angler & I was really pleased to catch up with the bride & groom in their wedding car. Kiti got a quick shot or two as we overtook them. Great one Kiti!

Unbeknown to their guests Laura & Andy took a slight detour on their way & rocked up at the venue by…..boat. I love the shot of Laura disembarking with the crowd of quests all taking their own shots. She looks like a film star arriving at a premiere!

It really was a great day. As Kiti & I left them on the dance floor I thought how lucky I was to be part of their special day, to capture the laughs, the tears & the love. Hope you like your sneak peek Laura & Andy. Wishing you every happiness in your lives together.

The best bouquet toss….ever

Sometimes, as a photographer, something amazing happens before your eyes in a blink & you’ll miss it kind of way. I stand there, heart in mouth, snapping away hoping the technology can keep up with my trigger finger. One of these moments happened at the recent wedding of Alex & Charlotte. Now, I’ve photographed a fair few bouquet tosses but this one was simply the best! Charlotte had a fab group of bridesmaids including her sisters Georgia & Natalie, her friend Ruth & her husband-to-be’s sisters Annie & Hollie. They all lined up along with quite a number of single ladies ready for Charlotte to throw the bouquet.

You may notice that Georgia & Ruth had a certain glint in their eyes not quite matched by the others.

What happened next was a display of fine acrobatics, determination & perhaps a hint of a rugby tackle. A flailing of arms & Georgia threw her arm up in triumph.

The following celebrations with her boyfriend & mum & the sympathetic handshake for her dad (& Father-of-the-Bride) were just fantastic.

Will the family soon be celebrating another wedding? Well, if you need a photographer…..

#BVCC Benson Veteran Cycling Club 2014 Photographs Available Soon!

Today I went to see a friend who was taking part in the Benson Veteran Cycle Club annual ride in South Oxfordshire. Naturally I took my camera to do a few pictures but as I was there thought I would photograph the events and try and get a nice picture of each participant whilst they were riding their trusted stead. Well it was great fun, there are some great pictures and they will soon be ready on my client area of my website.

Please go to the client area of my website where you will see the gallery

http://www.marklordphotography-clientarea.com

The access code is bvcc2014

Please sign up to the gallery and the images will be ready to view or purchase by the 8th July.

Thank you.

Mark

Deborah & Stephen, The Tythe Barn – Sneak Peek!

Another sunny Saturday & I was off to one of my favourite venues The Tythe Barn, Launton near Bicester.

Deborah & Stephen hail from up north so they & their friends travelled down for a wedding in the Oxfordshire countryside. The Tythe Barn is a great venue with lots of options for all weathers; I shoot weddings there all year come rain & shine. When the sun is shining you can have the ceremony outside as Deborah & Stephen did. What a lovely aisle to walk up, a verdant arbour with your family & friends seated either side.

The flowers were beautiful, the ever-popular gypsophila in generous bouquets worked wonderfully against the bridesmaids dresses from Two Birds. Inside, Charlie from The Flower Fairies had decorated the barn with beautiful greenery highlighting the historical architecture.

Deborah & Stephen had some fantastic styling & details on the day & an important part of a wedding photographers job is to capture these for posterity. I particularly loved their table plan; pots of lavender & the place names were labels on granny smith apples!

The lovely day rolled into a beautiful summers evening & I shot some great photos of the guests mingling & playing croquet. As with most weddings though my evening ended on the dance floor – not dancing you’ll be pleased to know!

I hope you enjoy your sneak peek Deborah & Stephen. Wishing you every happiness for your future life together….

Stéphanie & Tim – Henley On Thames – Sneak Peek!

There are some days as a wedding photographer that you particularly hope for great weather due to something on the day that depends on sunshine or at least no rain. My own wedding included a boat trip & walk up from the quayside, which wouldn’t have been possible in gale force 9!

Tim & Stéphanie’s wedding included a planned walk across the bridge in Henley from ceremony to reception venue so it was disappointing to wake to heavy rain on the morning of their wedding. But one thing for the British weather is that it is pretty changeable! By the time Stéphanie left the house to travel to Henley the sun had come out & the weather just got better & better as the day went by. And yes, we even made the walk across the bridge!

Stéphanie & Tim’s wedding was at St Mary’s the Virgin in Henley on Thames followed by a marquee reception in a friends garden on the banks of the river Thames. It really was a beautiful day & the gardens, house & bridge provided a great variety of backdrops for some fantastic shots. Guest of honour was Stéphanie & Tim’s dog, Hugo, who even made an appearance at the church!

Hope you love your sneak peek Stéphanie & Tim. Wishing you every happiness in your future lives together.

L & D – Notley Tythe Barn Wedding – Sneak Peek!

Well, we were a happy photographer & assistant recently when we set off for an afternoon wedding in beautiful sunshine.

L & D were married at Notley Tythe Barn near Long Crendon in Buckinghamshire surrounded by their friends & family. The barn is a fantastic backdrop & it looked beautiful adorned with vintage bunting made by The Vintage Bunting Company who are based near Henley-on-Thames.

The barn & surrounding farm lend a photographer a variety of backdrops for cool, personal bride & groom shots & the lawns outside are perfect for an alfresco drinks reception.

I would like to wish L & D every happiness for their future lives together. I hope you enjoy your sneak peek!

Sarah & Ben #sneekypeek #Bisham #Danesfield

Before any wedding I always ‘recce’ the venues to run through the journey for the day & check for any ‘issues’ that may arise; such a parking at the church etc. I went to Bisham Church, near Marlow for my usual look around a week prior to Sarah & Ben’s wedding & my wife Becky was baffled to see a No Fishing sign on the lychgate on entering the churchyard. All became clear to her a few moments later as we walked round the church to be welcomed by the sight of the River Thames in all its glory meandering its way past the churchyard.

The River Thames played a part throughout Sarah & Ben’s day. Sarah prepared for the wedding at the famous Marlow hotel The Compleat Angler where I have photographed many a wedding before she travelled the short distance to Bisham Church to meet her groom. After the service the bride, groom & guests (plus photographer & his assistant Kiti!) travelled to the renowned hotel Danesfield House for a drinks reception & dinner.

This wedding was truly to the adage ‘small but perfectly formed’ with only 14 guests but with all the lovely trimmings of a larger wedding.

Sarah looked absolutely beautiful in her lace dress & her ‘look’ inspired me with some new image styles. Inspired by everything vintage it gives the images an almost ‘milky’ quality rather than the standard black & white. These are applied post-production & whilst they will never be applied to every image add another variety to the styles that I offer. I am really pleased with the range of images in their sneaky peek, I hope Sarah & Ben love them as much I do!