I’ve been asked many questions regarding what I do, below is a selection of the most frequently asked. Please feel free to fire away with new ones!

Once we know you’re free on our wedding date, what do we do next?

It’s nice to meet up for a coffee, have a chat, and talk about weddings and photography, plus you can tell me all your plans and ideas. We can do a Teams call or WhatsApp video if you live outside the area.

Do we need to pay a deposit?

I ask for a £200 retainer to confirm your date, with the remainder due 4 weeks before the wedding.

Will you travel?

I’m happy to shoot anywhere. Most of the time I’m shooting weddings in either County Durham, North Yorkshire or Northumberland. If your wedding is further afield, we can have a chat about this over a cuppa – don’t let distance put you off. And yes, I have a passport!

How many photos will we receive?

It’s hard to give a number as it depends on the agenda and number of hours, however, for a full day it’s normally 600+.

How do we see the images for the first time?

All the photos will be available in your private online gallery. The gallery will be password-protected.

How long does it take before we can see the pictures?

Your photographs will be available for viewing 4-6 weeks after the wedding.

Do we get a copy of the images?

You will get all the final edited images on a USB drive, in different formats:

- One set of full-size hi-res 300dpi colour jpegs

- One set of full-size hi-res 300dpi B&W jpegs (the same images as above, individually re-edited to suit B&W)

- One set of low-res 72dpi colour jpegs (same as above but smaller)

- One set of low-res 72dpi B&W jpegs (same as above but smaller)

Are the images watermarked?

No, I hate watermarks!

Are we free to print the images ourselves?

The images are supplied with a print license.  Although I still own the copyright, you are free to use them in any way you like.

Do you have insurance?

Yes, I’m fully insured - Public Liability and Professional Indemnity, - if your venue needs any information I can provide details.

What’s in your bag?

Ha, good question, I’m a camera geek so it changes all the time. However, here’s the usual kit:

Canon EOS R6, Canon EOS R, Canon 5D MKIII, Canon 17-40mm f4L, Canon 40mm f2.8, Tamron SP 35mm F1.8, Tamron SP 85mm f1.8, Canon 135mm f2L, Canon 70-200mm f2.8L, Godox Flashes (although I tend not to use flash that often).

How do you edit your photographs?

Mainly, I use Adobe Lightroom. When I was growing up, photography editing and processing involved darkrooms and weird smelling chemicals, although things have changed, I still aim to retain as much of a natural and ‘filmy’ look to my images. I’m not into heavy editing; however, some images do find themselves in Photoshop from time-to-time.

I hate posing for pictures. Do I have to pose?

I know what you mean, I hate posing for pictures too (there’s more than one reason why I’m behind the camera). Posed shots look like posed shots – I aim to always avoid this. Occasionally, I may ask you to stand in a particular spot or face a certain way. Still, my style is all about capturing things as they really are.

Do you do group shots, family, friends etc.?

Groups of family and friends make great photographs. If possible, I try and keep this part of the day to about 30 minutes. Having a pre-written list of the groups that you would like really speeds things up, I have a generic list of shots that I can provide you with if that helps.

How much time should we put aside for photographs of us?

Ideally, about 30-40 mins 

We’d like an e-shoot/pre-wedding shoot, is this possible?

Absolutely, no problem. I charge separately for these - £200 – they last about an hour or so and can be anywhere you like, the beach, a park, a forest…

You will get the images supplied in the same way as listed above.

Will there be just you or do you have a second photographer?

I always work alone unless you specifically want a second photographer. I charge separately for this. Please ask for further details. 

Shall we feed you? 

If I’m covering a wedding all day then I ask that some food be made available (sandwiches and coffee is fine).

What is the difference between full and half-day coverage?

If you’re looking for bridal preparation through to half an hour or so after the first dance it usually means 10-12 hours of photographic coverage – that’s all day, and I will be there aaaaaaall day. If you are getting married a little later in the afternoon, or perhaps you don’t want getting ready shots, then this can bring it down to 6 hours. Things vary a lot, I’m flexible, we can discuss it further when we meet up.

What if we’d like an Album?

Not a problem, I use a company called Folio Albums, they are beautiful. I don’t include albums in any of my packages simply because I find it hard to sell something that you haven’t seen yet. It’s far easier think about albums and prints after the wedding when you’ve seen the photographs, we can chat about this in the weeks following the event.

My Uncle Bob is a keen amateur photographer; can he take some photographs too?

Weddings are wonderful social events, they create many memorable photographic moments, plenty of your guests will have cameras with them, it’s only natural that they would want to take some of their own images.

Things only get problematic when guests get in my way especially during important key moments such as walking down the aisle, throwing the confetti etc. All I ask is that guests are respectful of the fact that you are paying someone to photograph your big day in the style that you want. 

When did you get into Photography?

It’s hard to answer this question without resorting to some clichés – the real answer is ever since I was a child. I remember gathering on the lawn of my Nan’s house for family photos in the late ’70s or early '80s and being mesmerized by this ‘thing’ that brought everyone together and demanded that we all stare into it, this ‘thing’ turned out to be a 110-format camera. I was hooked. I’ve been quietly yet obsessively addicted ever since.

What or who inspires you?

Wow, big question! You might expect me to reel off loads of classics like Cartier-Bresson, Bailey, Leibovitz, Avedon or Doisneau – and you’d be right. However, I’ve always felt a strong link between other styles of photography, like music and journalism. I find people like Anton Corbjin, Kevin Cummins, Steve Double, Don McCullin, Salgado and Tim Walker fascinating. But it’s not only photography that ‘gets me going’, Renaissance painters, surrealism, Graphic Design (the work of Storm Thorgerson and Hipgnosis totally amazes me), Eastern Bloc 80’s furniture, Typography, the films of Tarkovsky and Almodovar… the list goes on.