My 2016 Dorset Wedding photographer review continues with this wedding of Chris and Cara which took place at the Mirramar hotel in Bournemouth back in the Spring. A lovely charming couple who I was very pleased to be have them commission Affinity wedding photography. The first image I have chosen as one of my favorites from this wedding is the final bride prep Shot through the veil, which is a shot I do not do very often. This shot does not have the bride engaging the camera, but she is looking down and this communicates she is in thought, thinking about the days events to come and also composing herself for the day ahead. She looks stunning and all the light is natural lighting from the main bedroom window facing in a more North direction. This is such a simple shot to take and to look at which makes it very effective and strong and this is why it has made it to my top 5 from this wedding.

TOP TEN TIPS FOR A PERFECT WEDDING DAYThe next shot is Cara making her grand appearance for all waiting down stairs in the house. After this shot I had also captured the bridesmaids and parents reactions to her but first I wanted to capture Cara at the top of the stairs with that big beaming smile on her face that was naturally there. I had set up an off camera light at the top of the stairs for her to look into and which would only light her face while the rest of the image would be under exposed to concentrate the viewers eye on the bride’s face of joy. The staircase was a good size and the large window at the top of the stairs all called out to me to get this shot as once again it is not often I get the opportunity for this sort of shot at every wedding.  Even though this is a wide angle shot the viewers eye will always return to the bride thanks to the lighting set up. The main help for this is the over exposed window light grabbing the eye.  We all love those candid off the cuff moments and this shot is a great example of something very fun and of the moment. This guest just suddenly produced the now very familiar selfie stick to grab a shot of herself and the bride and groom, but what really makes this shot is the expression on the faces of all the guests and the bride and groom. The guest with the selfie stick just had great timing to make an appearance and at speed grab the shot she wanted. I love that cheeky guest who know how to make a brief appearance and add something special.

TOP TEN TIPS FOR A PERFECT WEDDING DAYI could not leave out a romantic bride and groom photo from this wedding. When photographing a wedding at the cliff top hotels we often have to make a special walk or car journey down to the beach for some creative romance photos. On this particular day I didn’t think we were going to get anything remarkable but took my off camera lights with me any way as the sky looked very bland and overcast. But to my surprise the sun made a brief appearance through some heavy cloud and made this shot something a bit more special. To most my off camera two lights are not obvious what they are lighting, but look more carefully and you can see a light behind them creating the shadow which makes it look like the sun is just shining on them and the other light is lighting up the couple from their left and lighting up the dress and Chris’s face. As well as the lighting the other aspect I like about this shot is the contrast between the hard concrete look of the left of the image and then the beautiful softness and romance of the love. But the very best thing about this image besides the love is the angel slides in the sky in direct  position of the bride and groom.  Lastly this image is not about any kind of specialised photographic techniques or vision, it is merely about the cake. This cake was one of the best cakes I had seen in 2016 and was worthy on it’s own to be included.

TOP TEN TIPS FOR A PERFECT WEDDING DAY