George, Maneet, the Propeller and the Peacock

Howling winds, torrential rain, umbrellas galore...or so the people on the telly predicted. BUT none of this happened because I had a word, and the weather was luuuverly. Moments of moody gloom short-lived and out-shadowed by a gentle sun and a warm air. Moods were high, smiles were abundant and even the ice cream lady was doing great business.

This was the wedding day of George and Maneet. George, archetypal English gentleman (or ‘English Rose’ as lovingly termed by his new wife) and Maneet, intelligent, forthright and beautiful; two cultures beautifully merged in a tasteful nod to each and sprinkled with a good dose of fun from both.

Held at The Larmer Tree, a truly magical place apparently created for the 'enlightenment and entertainment’ of the public by General Pitt Rivers in 1880. Well this venue boasts it all and even throws in some determined peacocks for good measure who wander around aimlessly looking for admirers and no doubt food.

My favorite part of the day is usually the bridal preparations and Maneet’s didn’t disappoint. Whilst she is a beautiful woman who takes pride in her appearance, she clearly has the ability to laugh at herself and thinks nothing of letting you take a picture of her eating chips in her knick-knocks. Good girl! Her mother, sister and bridesmaids were all so lovely and made me feel very welcome. It’s a very private time so for me to feel so at ease is a real tribute to the people I was photographing. Another favourite, first, and possibly only time I will witness it was the use of a propeller to cut the cake. As family traditions go, that's a pretty nifty one! 

I must thank The Larmer Tree’s wedding coordinator Carol, who is a gem of a lady and made sure everything happened as it was meant to and never without a huge smile on her face. Likewise, it was great to meet the band 'Rich Austin and The Maestros' and find out we share mutual friends, always a bonus! 

Lastly, to Maneet and George, a beautiful couple who were such fun to work with, a pleasure to deal with in the run up to the day and who should be safe in the knowledge that they pulled off a fabulous day. Your friends were hilarious and I especially loved the 'alternative' best man's speech...bet you didn't see that one coming George?!  Also, 'Lighting Boy' (so named by George's Dad) was amazing, I couldn't thank him enough! Your families were lovely and eccentric (the best combo!) and your love for each other, evident. I hope that your life together will be full of the love and happiness you both deserve and I thank you again for allowing me to play a small part in your journey together.

Go forth, eat chips and be happy ;-) 

With much love,

Loukie xx 

P.S. One final thank you...this one is to my boyfriend for forgiving me for taking off the wing mirror on his pride and joy. Next time I will take heed when warned about the dangers of country lanes, wind and branches. It did give everyone a good laugh though so every cloud n'all ;-) 

Who ate the Holy Rolos?!

Oh my Lordy, what a day! What a location! What the bleezes was that with the amazing summertime weather?! What a family! What a cracking bunch of friends. What a lovely packet of Rolos ;-) And most importantly what a beautiful couple, both in the yummy looks way and the amazing ‘good hearts and good giggles’ way. I can say this because I have known this special couple for many years, since the days of prep and smoking cigarettes in the vents to be precise, and I know they are very, very 'forgiving' people.  They forgive people who eat the Holy Rolo's non?!

There is something wonderful about shooting a friend’s wedding, daunting yes, but a real tribute to their belief you will do a great job. I haven’t shot a friend’s wedding for about 18months as I swore I wouldn’t do one again, but when friends hire you, because they want you to shoot their most important day, how can you say no?!

The wedding was in Looe, Cornwall and I stayed at the The Old Bridge House in West Looe. I would recommend this B&B a thousand times, amazing breakfasts, I had a super comfy room and received an enormous welcome from Colin & Liz, who were so friendly and run an excellent establishment.

The weather was incredible. The teepees were amazing and pitched on Emma's Grandma's field which gave it that extra personal touch. The food was delicious. The band 'Last of the Mojitos' were brilliant and got everyone dancing and even did a cigarette run for the guests - legends! The bubbles flowed and the atmosphere was just so personal and so very special.

I photographed Emma and Jona's personal shots at the Tallandbay Hotel (www.tallandbayhotel.co.uk) which by the way is all kinds of fabulous with incredible views and I must thank Mick (Jona's Dad) for carrying my flash and umbrella, it was very much appreciated!

All in all, I don’t think they could have planned for a more perfect day. 

The service by Father Phil was charming and I especially loved him using a packet of Rolo's to symbolise the love between the couple, 'Do you love them enough to give them your last Rolo' etc...I'm sure we all remember the advert. Sadly 'someone' ate the holy Rolo's...so shameful, tut tut tut (wiping chocolate from my mouth ;-) 

N.B. to future clients, I promise I will not eat anything you put in my possession! 

Jona & Emma, I would like to say that I think you are a wonderful couple, you truly are. You both have remarkable families and I can see how much you all love each other and I know you will have a very happy life together and if Emma's Mum is anything to go by Jona, you're on to a winner my friend ;-) 

I would love to go on and on about this wedding, but I can't because I may cry it was so good. 

Thank you to you both for letting me part of it and for making my job such a joy. Big love to you both xx

Togs and tots.

Babies, babies, babies, these days I am surrounded by them and lucky for me (and them) I happen to love the little bundles. I especially love to photograph them…their skin is translucent, their eyes sparkle untouched by pollution, nicotine, booze and a general kicked-by-life yellow tinge. They look at you like you’re CrAzY mad and then smile when you do a ‘peek-a-boo’. Yup, I love them.

Brainchild of Sian Gray (past bride) & my good self, the Baby & Toddler Photo Sessions are taking off in a big way and I love doing them and I think everyone who gets involved also loves doing them. I have been receiving some ace feedback so it spurs me on enormously.   

In short, someone plays Host. They invite their friends (with babies/toddlers) to their home. I pop along with all my caboodle and each parent/child has a ½ hour shoot for £55. The Host puts on a little spread (nothing fancy mind, just something to keep the tummies and throats at bay) and then there’s lots of laughter and chat and everyone has a great time. They then receive their images (I say 10, but I always give more because I’m a softie) within a week of the shoot. Ooh, I forgot to add the person playing Host gets their shoot absolutely free. Free, free, free, costing nada, nothing to pay here, uh no, no, FREE. Like a free thing that is totally free (barring the nibs and bevs of course).

I have a few booked up now and I have to say, I love them, but mainly because you get to hang out with some super cute kids.
These are my personal favourites from the shoot last Saturday... KEEEEOOOOOT!