Aisle Do!

This the blog of a professional wedding photographer based in Dublin, Ireland.

Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Venue: Airfield Trust

This is a relatively new venue, tucked away in Dundrum but close to the M50 and the Luas and amazingly close to the Dundrum Shopping Centre.... making it ideal for that Retail Therapy moment while you are trekking around looking at Reception Venues.

The location is stunning, with a lovely view to the Dublin Mountains it is hidden from the road, with plenty of parking.

Airfield House (www.airfield.ie) was built in the 1820's and is Dublins only urban farm. It has a lovely garden and an ornate walled garden which are being transformed from a Victorian garden in to a more modern style with lots of plants.

As you go up to the main door there is a Paddock with ponies, and fields of sheep, donkeys and dewy brown eyed Jersey cattle.

As a wedding venue it has very nicely proportioned reception rooms, a very pleasant staff with a flexible approach to the big day and it makes a perfect venue for a small and intimate wedding of about 80 guests or so. Posted by Picasa

Who am I?

After working for a couple of years in an office job, I was contracted by Independent Newspapers to photograph cars for their advertising section. I soon realized that there was more to this "photography" than I thought, so I went back to college and got a Diploma. When I graduated I was awarded the Lady Ross medal for my course work - I'm not boasting, it certainly didn't come naturally to me - I had to work very hard at it but this was reflected in being first in my class for each of the three years of the course.

I have added to my client base, widened my areas of photography and I've invested in a large, 2000sq ft digital studio premises in South Dublin (www.roslynstudio.com)

Hold it there!

While I was at Airfield recently I met Stacey Hannan again. She is a real artist in hair piece jewellery.

Inspired by history and nature, each of her designs are exclusive to the owner.

We have all seen the tiaras in the Bridal Shops - expensive and tacky often sums them up; but with Staceys work each tiara is a superb piece of art - setting off and complementing any Brides dress. These can be made to match a particular outfit, colour or theme.

Based in Castleknock (www.staceyhannandesigns.com), Stacey does lovely handmade hairbands, tiaras, clips and slides.

She will also make a range of pieces with a particular theme so all the bridal party - bride, bridesmaids and mother of the bride, mother of the groom can all coordinate and compliment each other. Posted by Picasa

Simply Scrumptious

I've noticed recently there has been a "Make Over" in the wedding cake area. The sight of three fruit cakes with spindly pillars is not as common as it once was.

These little Fairy cake buns are made by a company based in Waterford- Taras Handmade Quality Foods, (www.tarascookies.com) While they remind me of the cakes I had at a Birthday party when I was nine, no mother of a nine-year old has the time (or nine-year old child; the patience) to ice a bun in the exquisite detail that these buns have on top.

As a raisin hater - believe it or not this girl really has a passionate hatred for them. Oh! I hate the texture and flavour! So to all Brides out there - I'm not alone we are small and seething minority who love cakes and gag when we meet a raisin in a wedding cake - this is not a fabulous and glamourous sight!

While these cakes feature white icing I've seen yellow and red; tying the theme in to the brides dress and the Brides maids dresses. Posted by Picasa

DIY - Wedding Photography

A good wedding photographer will have spent thousands of euros on their equipment. This enables them to get the best shots in any environment they work in, the dark church, the sunny churchyard or even a gloomy castle on a wet day.

The best amateur camera will often equal the specifications of a professional’s equipment, but it can’t match the artistic flair a professional brings to their pictures. The next time you are at a wedding, you could try and stand beside a professional and take the same shot as they do. You should ask permission of course! When you later look at the print from the Chemist, you should compare it with the one in the couple’s album; the shot will be as different as a Rum and coke to just a coke!

The first big difference is composition of the shot, you can try but you will not see what the professional sees in a telephoto lens. The background will look totally different from what you see with a naked eye.

Another consideration is lighting; often on summer weddings there is a lovely bright sunlight and a photographer will take photos of people with their backs to the sun. An amateur’s camera will usually produce a nice shot of the bright red rose behind, while Aunty Mary is a dark splodge in front – the professional’s secret is to use flash and turn the people away from the sun to stop them squinting.

Other things to be aware of is to look for objects in the background which may appear to be growing out of the back of people’s heads in a photo. To avoid this; a professional will leave the background out of focus, or stand slightly to one side. That extra step to the left can make a huge difference in the final picture. While split focussing can be done on most amateur digital cameras – it is feature that few use, and so the amateur will get poorer results than the professional. At a wedding the Camera manual is not really an option!

The last big difference between a professional, other than sheer experience is; the photo printing techniques that a professional will use, along with the range of papers, the colour correction technology and the shot selection – these are not always available to an amateur.

On talking to "A Roslyn Wedding" (www.roslynstudio.com) we have sussed out that it takes many things to be a great wedding photographer and personality is definitely important. A set of superior images is obviously crucial, but so is finding someone whose character meshes well with yours.

Roslyn likes to meet her clients the month before the wedding for a coffee and a chat. “It is so important that we get to know each other as it makes the day just more fun and relaxed. Don’t forget your photographer will be spending most of your wedding day with you; he or she will be right there in front of you as you walk down the aisle, as you cut the cake, pretty much for every important moment there is.
- you may have read this article in the Kildare Nationalist 22nd June 2006

Tuesday, June 27, 2006

Aisle Do!

Yes, this is the main text of my quarterly newsletter. I thought it was about time I shared my views on Weddings, Wedding Fashions and bridal stuff in general. As people are getting older when they marry, there is less guidance available and parental input which places more stress and pressure on modern brides.

Being a wedding photographer I get to go to more weddings in a year than most people do in a Lifetime. So I have developed some "opinions", these may be strongly held opinions, but nonetheless as opinions from an experienced wedding goer I feel these should be shared - if only to help Brides avoid the traps that I've seen close on the innocent and unwary brides I've worked with.