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The Strawberry Advent Blog: 19th December – Autumnal Wedding

Katy — Sun, 19 Dec 2010 09:00:38 +0000

On the 19th day of Christmas the Strawberry Photographer brings to you….An Autumnal Wedding

There’s something about autumnal photo shoots and weddings that I absolutely love. I’m not sure if it’s the crisp sunshiny days or the wonderful colours that come with autumn but whatever it is it’s beautiful.

In October this year I photographed the wonderful wedding of Mike & Simone in Sheffield’s stunning Botanical Gardens. They had a beautiful day for their wedding and the colours in the gardens were so beautiful. Simone had chosen orange colours for her bridesmaids so bouquet so everything fitted so well together.

I met Simone in the morning as she was getting ready at the Copthorne Hotel in Sheffield. Simone and Mike are keen Sheffield United Football Fans so it was very appropriate that Simone was getting ready at the hotel which is attached to the football ground. Simone then got a wonderful surprise when she found out that one of her family friends had arranged for her to go and have some photos taken in the grounds before going to the Botanical Gardens for the wedding…Mike was really jealous!

Arriving at Bramall Lane

In the home team's dug out.

Loving being at Bramall Lane

The Blades...and Simone

Once Simone had been congratulated by the guys at SUFC and kicked the match ball it was off to the Botanical Gardens to get married.

The Bouquet

The Botanical Gardens...ready to celebrate Simone & Mike's Wedding

Walking up the "aisle".

The beautiful bride & her mum

A very happy couple

Congratulations Mike & Simone

After the stunning ceremony and whilst the guests enjoyed a few drinks I took Mike & Simone around the gardens to get some photos. We went to the bear pit, Japanese gardens and got some wonderful photos of them together.

The Bear Pit

The gardens

Beautiful Autumnal Colours

Happy Couple

Once we’d taken the photos around the garden we headed back to the entrance of the gardens where the infamous Ice Cream van was parked. It was only right to get some shots of Mike & Simone with an ice cream but not before I got a great shot of Simone with her 4 brothers.

Brotherly Love

Ice Cream for the happy couple

The Bridal Party

Strawberry Sauce

Fun

Mike & Simone’s wedding was so much fun to photograph. I wish them all the best as they start on married life together.

The Strawberry Advent Blog: 14th December – Sunshine & Lantern Wedding

Katy — Tue, 14 Dec 2010 09:00:05 +0000

On the 14th day of Christmas the Strawberry Photographer brings to you….A Sunshine & Lantern Wedding. This summer was full of beautiful weddings and it was great to be able to be part of such wonderful days. We didn’t get much of a summer this year so the weather was a challenge although I have yet to use the wedding brollies! In August I photographed Zara & John’s wedding at Tankersley Manor in Sheffield. They had a beautiful day including blue skies and sunshine. I am thrilled to be sharing their day with you for the Strawberry Advent Blog.

I met up with Zara & John before their wedding to check out the venue we were going to use for their wedding photos. It gave us the chance to get to know each other and for me to get an idea of the sort of photos they were thinking of for their wedding.

Zara & John

The lovely couple.

As the wedding day dawned I went over to Tankersley Manor to see Zara as she was getting ready. I don’t think I have met a more calm bride. Everything was in order and she was quietly having her makeup done and getting excited about the day ahead.

The dress

Bridesmaids & the mother of the bride.

Getting into the dress.

Whilst the girls put the finishing touches to their outfits I went over to meet with John and the boys and get some photos of them as they waited for the guests to arrive.

John & his best man arrive.

Relaxed and ready

Time to get married.

A very proud & emotional bride & father of the bride.

A happy groom

A happy bride

Man and Wife

Bouquets

Let the celebrations begin

As the guests enjoyed a few drinks I took the bridal party off to get some photos of them all together before taking John & Zara off to a secret location for their couple shots.

The girls

Jumping!

Beautiful

Summer Love

Reflections

Once back at Tankersley Manor the guests enjoyed the sunshine before inside for the wedding breakfast.

Blue Sky

Relaxed

Drinks in the sunshine.

A little hockey star in the making

Excitement!

Last minute touches

Little Details

Speeches

To finish off the evening Zara & John took to the floor for their first dance before heading outside to set off some Chinese Lanterns into the summer evening sunset.

First Dance

Chinese Lanterns

Setting off

Make a Wish

Zara & John had a beautiful day for their wedding and I wish them all the happiness as they start married life together.

The Strawberry Advent Blog: 11th December – Perfect Pink Wedding

Katy — Sat, 11 Dec 2010 09:00:20 +0000

On the 11th day of Christmas the Strawberry Photographer brings to you…..A Perfect Pink Wedding. This summer was full of wonderful weddings and today’s blog post is definitely one of them. Ali & Paul had a wonderful family wedding in August and although the weather might have been grey and gloomy it didn’t dampen the celebrations of the day.

I used to teach with Ali so it was wonderful to be able to photograph her wedding to Paul. I spent last year photographing Ali’s niece Erin in one of our Shutterbugs “Bump to 1st Year” packages so I knew the family really well and love that I have photographed some really special occasions for them.

The day started off at Ali’s parents where she was getting ready with her sister, niece and her 2 god children. The 3 little ones made very cute flower girls & a page boy.

Getting ready

My competition

Final Touches

Flower Girls checking the rain

Whilst the girls finished up at home I popped up to the church to get some photos of Paul and the boys whilst they waited for the ceremony to start.

Paul & his best men

Here come the boys

The boys

Super Hero Socks

Arrival of the bride

Cute pink flower girls

An emotional arrival

The vows

Ali & Paul had a beautiful service in a stunning little church. It was quite an emotional ceremony but wonderful to see them become Mr & Mrs Cantle. After the ceremony there was time to greet guests and then as all the guests made their way to the reception I took Ali & Paul & their immediate family to Ali’s parents home to take photos in their garden. Ali’s dad had spent months on his garden in preparation for the wedding so it was great to take photos of them all there. We did have to dodge the rain showers but we got some lovely photos.

The new Mr & Mrs Cantle

The beautiful gardens

Happiness

Love Seat

Beautiful

After some photos with the family we made our way to the reception venue to meet with the other guests and enjoy the celebrations. As we arrived at the reception we were greeted by a steel band. Ali and her family have spent most of their summers holidaying in Barbados so it seemed only right to have a steel band at the wedding. I lived in Barbados as a child & then my parents were there again when I was in my late teens so Barbados is a second home to me and I absolutely loved going around taking photos of Ali & Paul’s wedding whilst being accompanied by the steel band…they made up for the lack on sunshine on the day.

Steel Pans

Laughter

Girls

All enjoying the day

The bridal party

Ali & Paul had 3 very cute little ones as their 2 flower girls and page boy. I couldn’t resist taking photos of them as they were adorable and loved the day.

Playing in the fountain

Playing

Flowergirl .. one of my first little Shutterbugs

Fun

Flowergirl & Page Boy dolls

As the celebrations continued the friends & family enjoyed a wonderful meal and then were treated to some emotional & amusing speeches before partying the night away with dancing, limbo and a casino table.

Father of the bride

Here's to the happy couple.

Emotional speeches

Laughter & Tears

The First Dance

Congratulations to Ali & Paul, it was a beautiful day and I wish you both lots of love and happiness as you start your married life together.

The Strawberry Advent Blog: 8th December – A Bride, A Groom & a Fire Engine

Katy — Wed, 08 Dec 2010 20:42:19 +0000

On the 8th day of Christmas the Strawberry Photographer brings to you….a Bride, a Groom & a Fire Engine.

I love photographing weddings and often get asked “don’t you get bored of photographing weddings week in week out?” The answer is always “no…because every single wedding is different. You never know what is going to happen.” The wedding of Steve and Sarah was no different and this is what I am going to show you for today’s Advent delight.

Steve and Sarah got married in August at Whirlowbrook Hall in Sheffield. I used to teach with Sarah and Steve so I was really looking forward to taking the photos of their special day. They had a beautifully sunny day so we got to make the most of the wonderful gardens and grounds at Whirlowbrook Hall for their photos. They were both very relaxed and excited about their wedding so they were great fun to photograph.

The boys getting ready.

The stunning bridesmaids

Loved the colours!

Once all the guests had been ushered into the Hall it was time for the beautiful bride to arrive with her dad and be greeted by her bridesmaids (who were wearing gorgeous dresses!)

Celebrations

The ceremony

Mr & Mrs Fox

After the ceremony the guests were all treated to drinks & canapes on the terrace whilst Steve & Sarah went for a drive in the car before coming back to join in the celebrations.

Canapes on the lawn!

Relaxed

Confetti

Congratulations

Here come the girls

Aunty Sarah & Uncle Steve

Whirlow Brook Hall Gardens

One of my favourite shots

Happiness

As we headed back to the Hall for the wedding breakfast we saw a fire engine. Once we’d found out there wasn’t an emergency I took the opportunity to get a photo of Steve & Sarah in the engine. This is what makes every wedding different….you never know what is going to happen next.

A bride, a groom & a fire engine

To finish off the Strawberry advent blog of Steve & Sarah’s wedding here are a few photos of the speeches.

Bouquet

Guests

Father & Daughter

Speeches

Laughter

Bride's Speech

Together

cake topper

A beautiful fun wedding with a fantastic couple. I wish Steve & Sarah all the happiness in their married life together.

The Strawberry Advent Blog: 5th December – A Beautiful Barn Wedding

Katy — Sun, 05 Dec 2010 09:00:01 +0000

On the 5th day of Christmas the Strawberry Photographer brings to you…a beautiful barn wedding.

One of my September weddings was down in Suffolk with a couple who I knew from Sheffield. They are both from a lovely little village in Suffolk so went back home to get married with their friends & family.

I met up with James & Kat in Sheffield’s Botanical Gardens to take some photos of them before their big day so that they could get to know me and feel relaxed with the camera.

Relaxed

Fun

They were great to photograph so I knew their wedding was going to be a fantastic day. I travelled down to Suffolk & got to have a look around the Barn where they were getting married. It was a beautiful location & I managed to find some great spots to take photos on the day. Here’s a taster of their amazing wedding.

Getting ready

Bridesmaid makeup

Beautiful Bride

Ready to get married.

Once Kat was ready there was time for a few photos at her parents’ home before heading off to the barn.

Ready to get married.

The arrival of the bride.

Excited

The boys waiting for the arrival of the bride

Once Kat had arrived it was time for the ceremony. It was quite an emotional service with most of the family in tears by the end. Kat & James had included the song “Moonriver” into the ceremony which was obviously very special for them both.

The ceremony

The vows

Smiles

Moonriver

Once they were man & wife it was then time to celebrate with all their family & friends.

The flower girls

Enjoying the champagne

Confetti

Some time with the happy couple

Cheers

After spending some time with James & Kat we got some wonderful photos of the family & friends.

The girls

The boys

The wedding breakfast took place in the barn which had been beautifully decorated by family & friends.

The Beautiful Barn

True Love

The beautiful hand made cake

The cake topper

The top table

After the meal, which was provided by a local caterer, the speeches began. They were all brilliant but it was safe to say that the best men fulfilled their duty in embarrassing the groom.

The teddy

Embarrassed.

Have they said too much?

Then it was time to play some last minute croquet before starting off the evening celebrations with the first dance.

Croquet

First Dance

Congratulations to Kat & James, it was a privilege to be part of your special day.

The Strawberry Advent Blog: 3rd December – A Garden Games Wedding

Katy — Fri, 03 Dec 2010 09:00:33 +0000

It’s the 3rd day of advent and it’s time to share with you one of our summer weddings. The summer was really busy with wonderful weddings so I have included a few of them in the advent blog. This first wedding was at the end of July with Cath & Martin. They had a very family focused wedding & had treasure hunts and garden games at the reception to keep the children occupied. They had put a lot of thought into the details at the wedding to make sure that all their family & friends were catered for. It was a very personal and happy day.

A few days before the wedding I got chance to meet up with Cath & Martin at the venue to have a look around and take a few photos of them before their big day. I usually like to do this at least a month before the wedding but due to Martin working away from Sheffield this was the only time I could get them both together.

Relaxed before the wedding

The Happy Couple

On the day of their wedding the sun shone and family & friends enjoyed celebrating Cath & Martin’s special day.

The bride arrives.

Mr & Mrs

Enjoying the ceremony

Confetti

The girls

The best men

The Boys

Garden Games for all ages

Family fun

Wedding Bubbles

After fun & games in the garden I spent a bit of time with Cath & Martin taking a few photos of them together & giving them some time to themselves.

A look of love.

Happiness

Fun & games

Fun & Games

To finish off their perfect day they had a ceilidh and got all their guests up and dancing. I don’t think one person was left sat in their seat! The perfect end to a wonderful day.

Dancing

Everyone was dancing!

And finally..the cake.

Congratulations to Cath & Martin, I hope they have a wonderful & long married life together.

Shaun & Julia’s blue sky wedding

Katy — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 10:36:27 +0000

Of the 5 weddings I had in May we didn’t have to use our wedding umbrellas once for the photography. On May 22nd we had the most glorious day when we went to the Norfolk Arms in Sheffield to photograph the wedding of Julia and Shaun. I don’t think I’ve seen the sky quite so blue this year, it really was a gorgeous day and a privilege to be able to take the photos for Julia and Shaun.

Here’s a taster of their special day.

The beautiful bride

The girls and the blue shoes

Finishing touches

The boys

Bring on the boys

Calming those nerves

The ceremony

Exchanging rings

Signing the register

Confetti

The bridal party

Bridal bouquets

The newly weds

Mr & Mrs

Blue Sky

A quiet moment

The coolest guy at the wedding

A few extra guests

It was a gorgeous day. I wish Shaun & Julia all the best as they start their married life together.

Rock the Dress – Jennie

Katy — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 12:21:49 +0000

I had the pleasure of doing another “Rock the Dress” shoot with Jennie. I actually photographed Jennie and Adam’s wedding nearly 2 years ago so it was lovely to be able to take more photos of Jennie in her gorgeous dress.

We chose a beautiful day for the shoot and started off in Chesterfield. I really wanted to get a venue with a piano for the shoot with Jennie as she is an amazing musician and Head of Music at Aston Comprehensive where I used to teach. Having done a wedding fair at The Pacific Lounge Bar in Chesterfield I saw that they had a white baby grand so thought that the modern, chic bar would work really well with Jennie. We only had about 45 minutes to do the shoot here as they are a very popular bar and on a gorgeously sunny day it was soon getting really busy.

The Musical Bride

Beautiful Bride

Beautiful Jennie

Rocking the dress

Elegance

After taking photos in Chesterfield we didn’t want to waste the gorgeous blue skies and sunshine so we ran back to our cars (Jennie in her wedding dress & me with all the camera equipment) and decided to head out into the Peak District. We drove out to Surprise View near Hathersage as it is one of my favourite places. It was gorgeous out in the countryside and because of the wonderful weather the views were amazing. Jennie looked stunning and was brilliant at clambering up onto rocks for the photos that I wanted to take.

Rocking the dress on the rocks!

Just stunning

Surprise View

A beautiful bride in the beautiful countryside.

I had a brilliant time doing the “Rock The Dress” shoot with Jennie. It was so much fun to get the chance to let Jennie get back into her wedding dress again and have a chance to take some stunning photos.

Rock The Dress – Jen

Katy — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:39:49 +0000

I had the pleasure doing another Rock The Dress shoot with Jen. Jen works for Gemini Directories which produces the Made in Sheffield Magazine and Hillsborough Directory. I met Jen at the Perfect Pink Tea Party which was put on to bring businesses together and raise money for the Weston Park Cancer Care charity. When Jen heard about my Rock the Dress shoots she was really keen to get the chance to wear her wedding dress again.

Jen got married on the beautiful island of St Lucia so it was great to be able to do a shoot with her in the English countryside. At this time of year I love the bright yellow colour of the rape seed oil fields so we decided to do the shoot in one of those. It really complimented her colouring and added to the romantic feel of wearing the wedding dress again.

As before when I did the Rock the Dress shoot with Liz I took Jen to Vicky from Passion Beauty Studios to have her make up done for the shoot. Jen looked gorgeous and it was a real pleasure to photograph her in her beautiful wedding dress. She rocked her dress as well as the Strawberry Hat!

Beautiful Bride

Hidden

Beautiful Bride

Makeup by Vicky from Passion Beauty Studios

The Stunning Dress

A Country Bride

Rocking our "Strawberry" Hat

Rock the Dress Shoot – Liz

Katy — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:40:07 +0000

I am really excited to announce a new portrait shoot that we are now offering here at Serendipity Photography. We love photographing weddings but also having the chance to get creative and do more artistic photoshoots so our “Rock the Dress” shoots are a perfect combination of both of these.

Rock the Dress shoots are an idea which are becoming more popular here in the UK. They started in the USA but more brides are jumping at the chance of wearing their dresses again. The Rock the Dress style shoots can range from “Rock” to “Trash” or “Paint” the dress. We featured a Paint the Dress shoot on the blog from March. A “Rock” shoot is more about a fashion style shoot where the dress isn’t ruined in any way…it might need a trip to the dry cleaners but if you do the shoot shortly after your wedding you’d be doing that anyway! A “Trash” or “Paint” the dress shoot is more for those girls who don’t mind “ruining” their dress by getting it wet or throwing paint all over it.

Rock the Dress shoots are a wonderful chance for brides to wear their wedding dresses again have their hair and makeup done and then have a wonderful photo shoot. What girl wouldn’t want to do that? It’s a chance to relive those wonderful moments and indulge in some real “girly” time. The photo shoots that we have done have been with individual brides but we’re looking at the idea of “Rock the Dress” parties where a few girlfriends can and do a shoot together. A perfect girlie afternoon.

We team up with Passion Beauty Studios who do the make up for the girls and then we head off to a location which is chosen after talking to each bride individually to see what they are looking for and what they enjoy doing. This makes the shoot individual and personal.

Last week we did a wonderful Rock the Dress shoot with Liz who had a beautiful lace wedding dress. Liz was super excited about wearing her dress again and being pampered. We took the photos down in a wonderful old cemetary. Liz loves amateur dramatics so we had looked for a theatre for the shoot but then we found this location which had a real dramatic feel to it. For a couple of hours we had fun taking beautiful photos of Liz. Here are a few for you to look at.

Entrance of the bride

Bridal Avenue

Framed

Elegance

Contrast

The Strawberry Hat

The end