Old friends Rob and Karen, whose wedding we photographed a couple of Summers ago, now have a very cute baby called Millie. We had a fab session in their home... Millie performed like a star!

It's early days on the processing for this session, but here's a pair of interesting images to start with.



And the last shot of the session:



OK R&K, lots more to come... I'll give you a bell when ready for viewing!

My last piece of wedding photography for 2009, and what a fantastic event for a lovely couple! This was a more dramatic event than many weddings... as you're about to see...

I promised Jayne and Andy some quick preview photographs, so here goes... let's start with the rings and flowers for a glimpse of one part of the day's colour theme.



The Langdale Chase on Windermere was turned into a fab wintery wonderland... inside...



... and outside too, thanks to the recent snow and icy temperatures... wonderful views across Windermere to the snow-covered tops opposite.



So about that colour theme? OK, here's another big clue! :-)



With the lake, fading light, a fab bride and groom and that amazing dress, we set off for the lake.



It was fairly windy down there... I almost lost a brand new light overboard at one point! Jayne was freezing but bravely stuck with it for this set of images showing off her dress.



And the sunset that was happening in the background was a great bonus of course. Jayne and Andy look so well together, don't they?



Now let's return to the warmth of the Langdale Chase, where the casino was getting going. Roulette... a game of highs and lows... and mostly highs for the youngest ladies at this table as it turned out... how did they do that?!



Meanwhile, in the main hall there was dancing. Jayne and Andy had hired an old-style jukebox, which proved very popular.



Everyone had a great time, enjoying the entertainment within the cosy hotel, while outside freezing temperatures just made the views all the better.

Anyway, enough for this preview: I need to get on with sorting out the rest of the photographs before Jayne and Andy get back from honeymoon!

J&A: hope you have a great holiday! See you when you're back!

What a fab 2009 it's been! Can't wait to see what happens in 2010.

So here's a huge thank you to all my clients for making work so fun!

And to end the year with a festive picture, here's my boy, nearly three, very cheeky, decorating our tree a couple of weekends ago...



Enjoy, and have a great holiday!

One of my occasional treats is the opportunity to work with other photographers, and recently I had the pleasure of photographing a wonderful wedding with Helen Whitaker of Carlisle.

Matilda and Simon were married near Castle Douglas with a gorgeous marquee from Bakerwood in the grounds of the family home.

But we're jumping ahead! Here are some of the favourite photographs that I shot as a (one-sided!) preview of the event.

Matilda prepared at the house and looked stunning.



Winter weddings are excellent to photograph: the low sun gives a chance to make lovely photographs:



Meanwhile, Simon and the boys had some lunch at a pub nearby...



... before moving on to the church. Tartan was the order of the day of course.



Being so close to Christmas, the theme was festive through and through: I shot the ring together with a buttonhole to show off the colours.



The bridesmaids were a joy to behold in their winter wear:



Then after the ceremony, we all went back to the house to photograph the newly-weds with their families. It was well past sunset, so I turned the wonderful drawing room into a studio for a series of formal photographs.



But a painting on the staircase simply had to be used as a backdrop for some relaxed portraits of the couple.



And then back to the party! Matilda and Simon cut the beautiful cake with a sword.



And with speeches and dancing long into the night, this was truly a wedding to remember.

The whole point of this session was to shoot a Christmas card of Matthew in a very cute Santa Claus outfit. But I'm obviously not going to show any photographs of that in public here: I'm all for keeping secrets!

Anyway, promised a quick preview of just a handful of the many many photographs from this session, so here goes...

Matthew, the star of the show, was taking it easy at the start...



Then we made this portrait with with Mum and Dad in their funky kitchen.



We used a cool chair for a portrait of Katie,



and we went outside to dodge the showers for a while...



David and Thomas looked great in matching shirts!



So the big unknown is the Santa photos. Oh well, if you're on little Matthew's Christmas Card List then maybe you'll get to see how that turned out in the next few weeks. :-)

Met up with Rachel and Neil at Hodge Close Quarry, an abandoned site near Ambleside in the Lake District. A photo club was parked up when we arrived: they loved what Rachel and Neil were doing there after their wedding!

I've just got back and downloaded the images: one in particular works straight out of camera so here it is... there's lots more to come but I need time to process them... hang onto your hats R&N!

What a fantastic day: sunshine, a fantastic couple, happy guests and a fab location!

Of course a wedding day always needs a beautiful bride. Luckily Rachel turned up:



And then Georgia turned up, a little shy but very cute...



Funky wedding shoes (with some history, apparently).



So, meanwhile Neil was getting ready with best man Tom in a hotel nearby. Very smart!



The ceremony itself was an emotional one, and when the ceremony was over, the couple were SO happy!



I don't show many group photographs here on the blog, but the views over Windermere from Linthwaite House were amazing: had to slip this one in!



Then we went for a walk in the woods: lovely Autumn day!













R&N: OK, so enjoy these as a sneak preview and I'll see you tomorrow for your "After Shoot" down in the quarry. Can't wait! :-)