I had seen a photo of a poppy field in Chale on the Isle of Wight, on a facebook photography group and knew that I had to make a trip to this mystery field. I then realised that in a few days time Rachel and Ryan were going to have their pre-wedding photo shoot with me, so I messaged them on the off chance they we're up for the challenge of finding it's location and having their shoot there, and thankfully they accepted! 

We worked it out, although I have to say Ryan should get most of the credit for that, and we we're off across the island in a little car on a photographic mission. Not only did we find it but I think we found it at the perfect time of day and we even had enough time to make a trip to Compton Bay as well before the evening light had disappeared. 

Rachel and Ryan booked me as their wedding photographer many moons ago now and it seems so strange that the day is finally almost here and all the plans that we talked about will soon be unfolding. Thank you both for asking me to photograph your wedding day, I'll see you both very soon!

It all started with a random conversation between Jordan and I when we were setting up another wedding themed photo shoot. As we unpacked the gorgeous floral creations Jordan had made out of the boot of her car, we were talking about how much we both love dogs and how we wished people would take them along to their weddings more. Then she said "Do you fancy doing a photo shoot with dogs sometime?" to which I nearly shouted back "OH MY GOD YES! YES LET'S DEFINITELY DO THAT PLEASE!"

The result was this shoot. Featuring Ruby the Golden Retriever, Winston the Jack Russell, Alli the Fox Terrier, and my dog Scampi who is a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. ​

I am a huge dog lover and obviously I enjoyed taking photos of all four of my gorgeous models (and chatting to the humans that were there as well), but it was so lovely to give them cuddles and praise in between shots. Most of the time when I sat on the floor taking photos of the other dogs, Scampi (who is in the first few photos) came to sit on my lap, I think maybe to remind me of who my dog was and to maybe send a message to the other dogs, silly pup!

A huge thank you to all the canine models and their owners for taking part.

So recently I stepped out from behind the camera again for Amanda Herbert, I took off my specs and put on some make up. If you don’t know who Amanda is please go check out her work because it’s so good and she’s so lovely. 

Every time I do a shoot like this I honestly do learn so much about what it might feel like for my clients and it definitely helps me keep developing as a photographer and change my approach. It's great to also model for a friend like I did with Amanda because you really can relax a lot more, bounce ideas off each other and not feel scared to try new things.
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Two years ago I would NEVER have had the confidence to do something like this, yet alone post the results on the internet, and if I'm honest I don't think I will be doing it again for a long time, I'm happiest and feel more myself being the photo taker.

​Am I perfect? No. Do I think I am in any way perfect? Oh hell no! But I think every single person on the planet should have as much fun as possible while they're still on it, try different things and not let those pesky personal hang ups or other issues hold you back too much. Photos really aren’t fatal, so what if you get a bad photo of yourself? And if you get a great one taken by someone as talented as Amanda you’ll definitely walk on with a bit more spring in your step. 

Thank you so much Amanda, you rock! 📷

Will it rain? Or not? Or will it?!... Luckily it didn't and Cara and Dan had a gorgeous sunny weather on the day of their pre-wedding shoot! 

A few times during this shoot I looked through my viewfinder and looked at the photos I'd taken on the screen, and couldn't quite believe we were a few minutes drive away from Ryde on the Isle of Wight. I know the island is gorgeous particularly in the summer months, but I kept thinking of when I went to Las Vegas for some reason and I kept getting the theme from A Fistful Of Dollars, or songs by Johnny Cash although I think that might have been because Dan was pretty much was 'the man in black'.  

Cara is the clever clogs behind Gladys May Cakery, and of course she will be making her wedding cake which I really can't wait to see! Having a stroll around The Duver at St. Helens we talked about how we were all getting on with the summer wedding season, their dogs Rosie and Baby, growing up on the Isle of Wight, getting addicted to computer games and of course their upcoming wedding. 

Thank you both, it really was a pleasure, and I'll see you again on your big day!

Justin & Erika (also known as "The Jerika") are two of the kindest and most outgoing people I've had the pleasure of working with, and I am so grateful that we crossed paths and that they asked me to be a part of their day. 

​After Lana and I were welcomed by the girls in the morning and made to feel very welcome, and had floated around getting candid photos for a while, we got Erika's wedding dress out of the bag to take photos we practically started hyperventilating - it was very beautiful and unique and Erika really did look stunning in it. 

The day was sunny but not hot, which for me is my favourite kind of weather to be out in and perfect for a wedding day. It can be a pain at times from a photographers perspective if I'm honest because of harsh shadows, but everyone hopes for sunshine on their wedding day and so I'm always happy when that happens for my couples. We were also treated to four hilarious speeches at the reception, full of stories that most of them I dare not put on the internet! Their family and friends were also not afraid to get on the dance floor and dance, which I absolutely love to see at weddings and is a joy to photograph.

​Justin & Erika's wedding could not have gone more smoothly, and it was an absolutely  brilliant day with beautiful weather and great people, and the team at Ventnor Botanic Gardens as always did a great job. All the flowers where done by the very talented Flowers by Nic at The Floral Boutique, who has always done an amazing job on every wedding we've ever worked on together, and Erika's make up was actually done by Justin's sister - Alice Theobald.