Saturday was the start of the Tour Of Britain Cycle race and I was there near the finish in Blackpool to get a couple of quick shots. It is not until you get up close that you realise how fast and how physically fit theses cyclists are. The tour is all over the UK this week and more details can be found on the Tour of Britain website.
Well it's about time I caught up with my blog a little and show you some of the things I have been taking pictures of. I have been very busy with weddings across the Pennines with Yorkshire Wedding Photographer Mark Pearson Photography and in fact since the end of May I have been a co-photographer with Mark for 24 weddings and I can say I have not only enjoyed immensely but also learned a lot. I will post some of the work that has come from these weddings at a later date. This weekend, my better half Jan and I took a quick overnight break in Blackpool and being a photographer who likes taking photos of just about anything, I of course took my camera with me. Friday night was the Taiwan entry of the World Fireworks Championship in Blackpool. It was raining extremely hard, so not the best conditions to get out the camera and take photos but I did manage to get some. Those trekking towels certainly come in handy sometimes. So below are the images. If you have an interest in photography and want to have a go at taking photos of fireworks here is the technical side. Camera needs to be supported, preferably on a tripod. Aperture of about F9, ISO 100, manual focus and either manual mode or bulb mode on camera. The shutter durations in these images are generally about 4-6 seconds. It is not too long before bonfire night so you may get chance to have a go.
On Friday 6th August 2010, I had the pleasure of being the wedding photographer at the wedding of Nicola and Pete at Ridgmont House, Chorley Old Road, Horwich, Lancashire. Pete has recently been diagnosed with cancer, has a broken leg and Nicola, with support from friends and family organised the wedding in 3 weeks and did a truly remarkable job.
The day started for me with the Bridal preparations at Nicola's Mum and Dad's house. Ian and Eileen made me feel very welcome and already there were many nerves although bridesmaids Talia and Claudia (Nicola and Pete's Daughters) were very excited at the prospect of the day ahead. Nicola had already been to get her make up beautifully done with Maria at Spit and Polish in Blackburn. Pictures of some of the details of the day were taken, including the beautiful dress from Tie The Knot in Blackburn and Flowers from Ruth Marriner Flowers Blackburn. Nicola Parkinson was busy being the hair dresser and it was not long before it was time for everyone to get dressed up. It wasn't difficult to see the pride in Dad's eye as Nicola and the girls looked stunning in their dresses. A few shots were taken and then it was time to head over to Ridgmont to meet up with the boys. Nerves were apparent and once we had received the flowers that had been forgotten, we took a few shots with Pete, Best Man Duncan and Dad, Harold.
It was then time for the arrival of the bridesmaids followed by Nicola in the cars supplied by Darren Griffin. The personalized number plates were a great touch and just one of the many things during the day that was to show how much Nicola and Pete are loved. On to the ceremony, an emotional ceremony it was, but it wasn't long before we were in the company of the new Mr and Mrs Boardman.
The weather again, was good to us and the rain held off for the group photos and shots of Nicola and Pete and it was time for them to have their wedding breakfast before the speeches. The speeches were truly from the heart and delivered beautifully. It was then time to head into the evening celebrations.
I would personally like to make a few thank you's. First of all, Ian and Eileen for making me so welcome at the bridal prep. Darren, the wedding coordinator and his staff at Ridgmont House, not only for being a great help ensuring I was looked after and ready for a wet weather plan but also making their day special. Doreen and Harold for having a great son, Pete. Nicola and Pete, for being so wonderful on the day and finally Lee Carus of Simply Floors in Blackburn who asked me if I could photograph the wedding.
Below is a small selection of images from the day on a slideshow so sit down and hopefully you will enjoy watching as much as I enjoyed taking them as this wedding was an honour to be part of.
At the end of July I submitted some more images to the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers (SWPP) monthly competition and was glad I did. I ended up collecting Gold awards in the Categories of Travel, Fine Art and Monochrome and a Silver in Digital Art. That now makes a total of 13 Gold awards for the year with my target at the beginning of the year was to equal last years total of 4. These Gold awards go towards the Annual awards for photographer of the year held in London in January. So at least I can say I am in with a chance. Below are the images that received the awards, hope you enjoy them.
Monochrome - Gold
Fine Art - Gold
Travel - Gold
Digital Art - Silver
Now, to change the subject, if you are a photographer the next piece may be of interest to you. Yorkshire and Lancashire Wedding Photographer, Mark Pearson, who I am a principal wedding photographer for has organised a training day and mini trade show on 25th September 2010 at the Higher Trapp Hotel, Simonstone, near Burnley. Training consist of a Session with photography trainer Paul Haley FMPA on Classical Posing, A session with photographic trainer and lecturer John Denton on Art Nude and finishing off early evening with Staffordshire Wedding Photographer Dave Nunn who will be showing how he uses Lightroom and Photoshop to such great effect in his wedding workflow. A small trade show sponsored by DPM Wallbank. Full details and how to book can be found on Mark Pearson's blog. This day will be of huge benefit if you are wanting to take your photography to the next level, no matter what standard of photographer you currently are.
Paul
Paul Brown is a high quality wedding photographer in Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire and across the United Kingdom and is also a lead photographer with one of the Norths busiest wedding photographers based in Yorkshire, Mark Pearson Photography. So if you are having a wedding in the Yorkshire, Humberside, Lancashire and Cheshire regions, you want superb customer service, quality imagery, and photographers who are both passionate about their industry and customer service and photographers who will ensure your day is a wonderful experience. You will find yourself not needing to look further.
Well it's been a little over a week since I agreed to become a principal photographer with Yorkshire Wedding Photographer Mark Pearson and work as a team to provide high quality wedding photographyand service across both sides of the Pennines. The good news this week is that I officially signed the contract and we got to work on planning our commitments to each others business and find the ways we can ensure as many Brides and Grooms are able to get the quality service on their wedding day, not from just us as photographers, but with other vendors that share the same passion for weddings as we do. Well thanks to the commitment I make to business networking each week and trying to help others succeed, we were fortunate enough to get opportunity to meet with the Wedding Manager of The Higher Trapp Hotel, Simonstone, nr Burnley. The Higher Trapp Hotel is a wonderful location, beautiful terraced gardens, panoramic views of the Lancashire countryside, excellent customer service and truly a wonderful wedding venue. It was quite obvious that The Higher Trapp Hotel share the same passion as we do for ensuring a Bride, Groom and all their guests have the best day possible and it is with great pleasure we can announce the agreement to become one of their recommended service providers. We look forward to our association with The Higher Trapp and working with Brides and Grooms who will leave the venue saying 'that was an awesome day'.
To finish, I have had a few people ask me what effect will working as the Principal Lancashire Wedding Photographer for Mark Pearson Photography have on Paul Brown Photography. Well, it just means my service is just going to get better. As a photographer with Mark, who is arguably one of the busiest in the North and who's business succeeds so well because of the quality of service, my service can only get better because of it and it only takes an informal chat with me to find out what my passion is. Mark Pearson Photography based on all the skills I have with both customer service and image quality and it is a very privileged post to have. It does mean however, I am now becoming extremely well booked and if I am booked as a lead photographer for Mark Pearson Photography, I will not be taking bookings for Paul Brown Photography on that day. So as 2011/12 is already getting extremely busy and bookings for 2013 are now coming in, it is not hard to see that booking early is going to be of high importance, if high quality photography service, quality images and great fun are high on your priorities if you are getting married.
So, wedding photography in Lancashire has never looked better and I for one, am buzzing with the prospect of working to be part of something great, working alongside wonderful people and meeting many wonderful couples and also passing this passion for weddings on to my team of assistant photographers.
It is with great pleasure that I am able to announce that I have now become a Principal Photographer with Mark Pearson Photography based near Leeds in Yorkshire. Mark is arguably Yorkshire's busiest wedding photographer who gets booked up well in advance covering weddings in Yorkshire and Humberside and is the recommended supplier for several high quality wedding venues. Mark has nearly 20 years photographic experience and formed Mark Pearson Photography in 1991 and has photographed over 1000 weddings and is the photographer that many families trust to produce the results and service they desire. He is a qualified photographer with the Master Photographers Association and he also gives business training services to other photographers across the country.
So how and why have I been appointed? Over the last few month's we have spent a lot of time getting to know each other's personality. We have spent many hours discussing our industry and our ideas of what is classed as top quality customer service. We have talked about our aspirations for the future which eventually led to Mark asking for me to become a second shooter at some of his weddings. It was obvious from the first wedding we would get on as we both have similar styles with not just the Bride and Groom, but all the guests who are present and also all the other vendors who are there to make it a special day and of course, the final images were of the highest order. From this, because of in Mark's words 'my ability to second guess him all the time', I became more of a co-shooter on a wedding with Mark and he would be assured that when left to my own initiative I would produce the results and customer service he is renowned for across Yorkshire and this alone, is something that can not be taken lightly. It became blatantly obvious that we both have the same principles and after much talking and with Mark Pearson Photography having more couples wanting his services than there is availability, we have struck a deal to be able to ensure as many clients as possible can be assured of superb service, excellent quality and photographers who are passionate about making the day special. I have primarily been appointed to cover the Lancashire, Manchester and Cheshire areas, but will also be covering Yorkshire and Humberside when bookings dictate.
Paul Brown Photography will still be running as normal and this link up will in no way have a negative effect on the quality received. There will of course be some changes over the coming weeks but all these will be geared around making the service even better than it ever has been and I am really excited about these changes as it really will be the customer who gets the benefit from the changes.
On Saturday 19th June I headed down to Swaffham in Norfolk for the wedding reception of Emma and Adrian. Emma and Adrian were married in the Bahamas and had a reception for Family and friends back home. Emma and Adrian make a fantastic couple and it was a pleasure to be booked to take their pictures at the evening function. Emma's Dad, Mark was a colleague of mine in the early 1990's when I was working on Victor Tanker aircraft and in the Tornado component bays at RAF Marham in Norfolk. Below is a slideshow of a few of the images from the evening.
Paul Brown is a high quality wedding photographer in Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire and across the UK and is also a principal photographer with one of the countries busiest wedding photographers based in Yorkshire, Mark Pearson Photography. So if you are getting married in the Yorkshire, Humberside, Lancashire and Cheshire regions, you want superb customer service, quality imagery, and photographers who are both passionate about there business and photographers who will ensure your day is a wonderful experience. You will find yourself not needing to look further.
Well here is a little bit about me. I was born in 1969 in Suffolk and was brought up in Suffolk until I left School in 1986. From there I joined the Royal Air Force as an Airframe Engineer. I was based in Norfolk for 16 years where I travelled to many countries with my job. From January 2004 until December 2009, I was posted to Moray in the North of Scotland. This where my love of photography escalated. Starting with landscape and general photography, I was to discover I had a real love of taking pictures of people especially weddings. The interaction with people of all ages was a breath of fresh air to me. This helped me to make the decision to leave the RAF after 22 years, relocate to be with my partner in Blackburn and spend more time on my passion of photography. Now with the support of Janet and many people in the industry I am striving to continually improve and put a smile on all the faces I ever work with. This blog will hopefully become a little insight into my new life and I hope it will be of interest to many people in the future.
Happy Reading.
Paul
