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The Wedding of Kelly & James - Matfen Hall - Northumberland

Kelly & James were married at Matfen Hall last Friday. I don't think I have met a bride quite so excited about her wedding, Kelly has been counting down the sleeps for months now. I was so pleased the weather guys got it wrong & it was glorious even though Kelly did say she didn't mind a little bit rain.

The bridesmaids wore olive green dresses which really complimented the ushers in their brown suits & accompanied by flower girl Lauren & Daniel their son who was page boy.

I worked alongside a videographer they booked 'Hillman Productions' who I found really professional & a very nice guy.

During the break in the evening reception I managed to get some time alone with Kelly & James & have the chance to be a bit more creative using flashguns, after I was almost done I just happened to turn around & notice the sky as the sun was sinking behind the horizon, the church & trees were silhouetted against the sky & so we quickly ran over to the spot I wanted & with a bit of backlight got my shot to end a perfect day.

Here are just some of the images taken from the wedding of Kelly & James.

Lucy & Michael's Pre wedding shoot

Lucy & Michael will be married at a gorgeous little church not far from Middleton Lodge where they plan to celebrate their wedding in October later this year.

I arrived half an hour early at the venue & decided to have a look around. This place is full of character & there are certainly plenty of places for great photo opportunities. I particularly liked the stable block & the track leading to the farm, there seemed to be gates hidden amongst overgrown shrubs leading to more interesting places.

Back at the the lodge itself there are beautiful gardens surrounding this magnificent country house.

Lucy & Michael arrived with their gorgeous little boy Hendrix (yes, rather cool name, perfect for a rather cool little boy)! We headed back off to the stable blocks & along the farm track (I don't know if we needed permission to venture over that side of the grounds but we did anyway).

I look forward to their wedding later in the year. Here are just some of my favourites from their pre wedding shoot.

The Wedding of Emma & Joe - Guyzance Hall

After 10 years together Emma & Joe finally tied the knot. They were married at Sacred Heart RC church in Gosforth & what a magnificent church it was, it oozed character & colour. I shot the entire wedding from the balcony at the entrance looking down the aisle using various lenses.

After the ceremony & a few group shots at the church we headed up to Guyzance Hall in Northumberland. Thankfully by the time we arrived the clouds were beginning to fade & the sun was out. Guyzance Hall offers so many great places for photo opportunities & so we took great advantage of every little area.

Emma looked stunning in her Ian Stewart dress & so far through the day changed from her veil to the choker that accompanied the dress.

I'd like to thank Jonjo who is a very close friend of Emma & Joe & who was also a great help to me throughout the day.

Here are just some of the images taken from Emma & Joe's wedding.

Rock Star & Candy Queen

Rock Star & Candy Queen! A new & exciting range of designer clothing from Mel Buchanan soon to be hitting boutiques across the nation & possibly even further! Website coming soon........www.rockstarandcandyqueen.com live from 19th July.

Mel & I go way back, in fact as far back as high school. She always had a great eye for detail & was very creative so it came as no surprise when Mel came up with this unique concept. Her range starts with t-shirts, these are no ordinary t-shirts.......far from it. Rock Star are the boys range & Candy Queen the girls, each are sold with 3 detachable gorgeous motifs & further packs of alternative motifs sold separately. The motifs are delicately made & vary from cupcakes to candy floss & all things sugary for the girls & skull & crossbones to electric guitars for the boys.

Mel asked if I'd be interested in taking some pics for her new brochure & so with "The Hoppings' being in town there was no better place than that as a backdrop. A huge thanks to Adam & Jess our models for the evening, they were both superstars & didn't seem to mind too much that it wasn't all about having fun on the rides!! ;-)

I'd just like to wish Mel all the luck & happiness in the world!!!! It's been a tuff past year for you hun but as Miley Cyrus says "life's a climb, but the view's great"! I couldn't put it better myself! Love you hun x

Emma & Joe's Pre Wedding shoot

Emma & Joe will be married in less than 3 weeks at Sacred Heart Rc Church in Gosforth then on to Guyzance Hall for the reception.

I met up with the couple at the weekend & after going through the wedding schedule we headed out for the pre wedding shoot. The sky was threatening rain so we thought we'd start with Jesmond dene as it's a great location & quite sheltered from any light showers. Thankfully the rain held off & we managed to get a few more pics in town.

Emma showed me a picture of her Ian Stewart dress & I'm rather looking forward to photographing her in this gorgeous dress on their big day!!

Here are some of my favourites from their pre wedding shoot.

San & Michael's Pre Wedding shoot

San & Michael travelled up from Derbyshire for the weekend to organise wedding plans, see family, friends & have their pre wed photo shoot. We arranged to meet on the Sunday & spent the entire day dodging the rain & boy did it rain!!! Thankfully the dene is quite sheltered so we started off there before heading over to Newcastle Quayside.

This is one wedding I'm really excited about as there will be quite a few of the Chinese wedding traditions along with English traditions. Currently they are trying to arrange the Chinese Lion/Dragon dance which is a form of celebration for weddings. There will also be lanterns at the evening reception weather permitting of course. The venue is the gorgeous Otterburn Tower in Northumberland.

Here are just some of my favourites from their pre wedding shoot. Be sure to come back in August to see some of their wedding images.

Kelly & James Pre Wedding shoot

I met up with Kelly, James & Daniel their son last weekend for their pre wedding shoot. After a chat about the wedding we headed down to St Mary's Island & then over to Tynemouth longsands. The weather was glorious however slightly cold but this didn't stop the fun.

It's been a stressful last few months for Kelly & James as their original wedding venue let them down in a big way & the search was on for another venue. Thankfully they managed to book the stunning Matfen Hall so all is well in their household now...........phew!

The Wedding of Sarah & Neil - Linden Hall

Sarah & Neil must be the luckiest couple as their day was by far the hottest this year. We don't get many dry days in the Northeast of England so it was an added bonus.

I arrived early to capture the bridal preparations & details. The bridesmaids (Louise, Sarah & Christine) were in ivory dresses which made a change & looked fantastic, a very nice contrast against the guys in the dark tartan kilts! The 2 flower girls Georgia & Jessica were also in ivory & 1 year old Jacob matched the guys with his tiny kilt. Sarah looked stunning in her dress with fine detailed bodice, her hair up & with a elegant tiara.

I met the guys outside for some shots at the main entrance & then followed them over to the pub for some more reportage shots. Now I had forgot all about this day being Grand National day but the guys hadn't & out came the racing page from the newspaper while they all made bets by phone.

The ceremony was in a room with vaulted ceilings with twinkling fairy lights wrapped around the beams. Sarah & her father followed the bridesmaids led by the piper up the aisle to where a very emotional Neil stood with his brother/bestman. The ceremony was beautiful & their vows to each other very special.

After shooting the groups & a few of Sarah & Neil the wedding party headed not over to the banqueting hall but to the pub to watch the Grand National!!! Priorities first!!! ;-)

After the meal I managed to get a few more shots of Sarah & Neil on their own before the evening reception began with the fantastic band "Laughing Jacks".

Here are some of my favourites from Sarah & Neil's day.

Meet Floyd

As you will know if you follow this blog we bought our little Sam (a working cocker spaniel) last year.......well Sam needed a buddy & so after some careful research on the internet we decided on either a St Bernard or a Newfoundland (yes I know, huge dogs but these dogs aren't any ordinary dog)!!!!

We met up with a breeder Shambrabern who had 19 St Bernards, haha yeah 19, Nick & Cath's love for these gentle giants is unbelievable. After spending a few hours at their farm up in Eastgate & seeing how the dogs were with our girls we fully understood how these guys are ohterwise known as gentle giants.

The following day we headed to Barachois down in Northallerton. Debra (another amazing person & huge lover of her animals) breeds Newfoundlands & Irish Wolf hounds. Again these beauties have wonderful temperaments with children & strangely enough our girls weren't put off by the general size of these guys! They had four little chunky pups playing quite happily amongst all the excitement while we met their gorgeous parents Boris & Stella along with plenty cuddles from them.

We left for lunch to a nearby village & talked about both St Bernards & Newfoundlands. After being introduced to both breeds the decision was impossible as we adore both. We left & headed straight back to Barachois to buy our new member of the family "Floyd" & once he is fully potty trained we will buy a St Bernard pup. Now you may think I'm mad but many people that do buy one of these gentle giants usually come back for another & speaking from the heart.........I can certainly see why!!! :-)

Here are a few pics of our Floyd, he sleeps most of the time as he is only 8 weeks old, but when he is awake he is so playful & very cute. Sam our other pup who will be 1 in June is worn out which makes a pleasant change!!!

I'll keep you updated on Floyd's progress from time to time as he wont stay this size for very long ;-)

Easter Egg Hunt

Easter Sunday & the girls couldn't wait to get out into the garden to hunt for eggs. Even Boo joined in & managed to find a few!!