Anthony Moran Photography

Happy New Year (belated!)

2012-01-29T20:26:00.002Z

Happy new year folks! I'm more than aware it's been a long long time since I've posted on this blog so just a quickie to touch base! The new year has already brought a magazine cover shoot (see photo, and more on that on a later post), a wedding and now the wedding fayres. It's my last one for a while next Sunday so after that I'll flood the blog with stories of weddings galore!

Julie and Lee’s wedding at The Village Hotel in Bury

2011-09-19T19:43:00.002+01:00

Keeping rolling through these August weddings, my next stop was this great day. Julie and Lee are long time family friends of my wife, so I was honoured to be asked to cover this special day.

My day started at Julie’s parent’s house (next door to my Mother-in-law’s!) with Julie and her sister/bridesmaid having their make-up done (by my wife!). Julie had a bit of a nightmare week in the run-up to the big day, feeling poorly and not getting much sleep. Thankfully on the day wedding preparations took over and the bridal party were kept busy with Page Boy Harvey’s shirt refusing to stay tucked in.

I left Julie and her bridesmaids to make their final preparations and headed over to The Village to meet Lee and his Groomsmen, as they greeted arriving guests. As Julie arrived, so did the notorious Manchester weather but this didn’t dampen the celebrations.

Julie couldn’t hide her emotions as she headed down the aisle but managed to get through her vows in what was a lovely ceremony. This couple know how to have a good time and by the time I left, the party was in full swing (which was disappointing for me as I had to depart to prepare for my following day’s work).

Congratulations to Julie and Lee and thanks for letting me be part of your special day.

Natasha and David get Married at the Parish Church, Bury and the Bolholt, Bury

2011-09-12T18:49:00.008+01:00

When I first met up with Natasha and David and they told me that they were getting married at Bury’s Parish church, I was buzzing! The church is a landmark in my home town and I’ve always wanted to shoot a wedding in there. The week before the wedding, I arranged to meet the Rector of the church to find out the do’s and don’ts during the ceremony. I was shocked and gutted to find out that the don’ts were taking photographs and the do’s were… well basically nothing. No amount of gentle persuasion (or pleading) helped sway him otherwise, the Rector has never allowed photos during a wedding service and that was that. Which, I think, is a massive shame as the church is truly a beautiful building and anyone getting married in there would be guaranteed beautiful photographs.

But this was not going to ruin this day, no sirree bob! I arrived at the bride's mother's to find what is probably the most excited bride I’ve ever seen. Natasha was bouncing and skipping between her mum's and best friend's (next door to each other) which had been converted into big beauty salons for the morning. I love covering preparations like this as there were so many people present and so much going on to capture. On from there I headed over to the church and found the groom and some of the guest getting pre-service ‘refreshments’ in the Sir Robert Peel pub across the road from the church. I nipped into the church and had a quick word with the Rector's assistant who reiterated the no photos rule but agreed I could take some shots of them signing the register and walking out together. Better than nothing at all I suppose!

Anyway, Natasha turned up a wee bit late (as is custom) and I stood quietly at the back. The service was great to watch in this awesome church and afterwards I headed back in with the bridesmaids and groomsmen to get some of the groupshots done in there (before being told off and cut short by said assistant, grrr haha!) Then off to the Bolholt for drinks, food and dancing! I’ve documented the Bolholt a few times and praised them well on this blog and they got it spot on again here. The reception was fantastic and finished for me at the first dance, where it all seemed to get a bit emotional, with the dancefloor filling with guests and seemingly everyone bursting into tears of joy! Great stuff, highlights below!

Congratulations to you both on your fantastic wedding. Thanks for letting me capture and be a part of your amazing day.

Lucy and Michael at St Thomas's, Halliwell and Haigh Hall

2011-09-06T20:14:00.007+01:00

RIGHT! I haven’t reported on any wedding stuff for a while, simply because I’ve not had time. The last 7 weeks have been my busiest ever since I picked up a camera. Time to get you all up to speed with what I’ve been up to…

Heading back to mid-July, I was present to capture the big day of Lucy and Michael. Michael and his brother grew up in the same area as me so it was good to catch up with some familiar faces on the day. But I wasn’t there to socialise so I set about capturing the preparations of Michael’s lovely fiancée Lucy at their home. The bridal party were very chilled out as they got ready whilst quaffing some champers. Lucy looked amazing in her dress, and as she made her final preparations I nipped to the church to meet a very nervous Michael and the lads. Michael kept his eyes facing front until Lucy made it to the front of the aisle, and I think the photo I caught of them first getting a glimpse of each other is priceless!
The service was great with some nice personal touches, after which we all headed to Haigh Hall for the reception. The sun had come out making the picturesque grounds sparkle for what was a fantastic day. Highlights below.

Congratulations to you both. Thanks for letting me capture your special day and I hope you love your photos.

Babies, Toddlers and Families!

2011-06-20T15:44:00.004+01:00

Here are some more portrait photo's from shoots that I’ve done this year. I’ve had a great time meeting new people whilst photographing their families. Plus I've have had the chance to catch up with some former wedding clients after they’ve had some new arrivals!

Bride To Be, Bridal Wear, Prestwich, Manchester

2011-06-17T11:30:00.012+01:00

I'm delighted to announce a new bridal wear shop is set to open in Prestwich, Manchester called Bride to Be. The Boutique, owned by the lovely Hannah Lois, is on Bury New Road in Prestwich village. It offers a large variety of wedding dresses and bridesmaids dresses to brides to be, who are looking for the perfect dress to wow the one they love on their big day. All the staff have a friendly and down to earth approach to allow a good browse whilst enjoying yourself; sipping on some fizz, or coffee & cupcakes in order to find the wedding dress of your dreams and to make sure you look amazing on your special day.

The Bride's collections include wedding gowns from Alfred Sung's Always and Signature Collections, Jasmine Couture and Jasmine Colllection, Jade Daniels, Mikaella by Paloma Blanca and a Plus Size range from Callista for beautiful brides with curves. There is also a fantastic range of bridesmaids dresses from Jasmine's B2 and Alfred Sung's Lela Rose Collection. There are a great range of sizes and styles to suit all tastes, and with a large price range for wedding dresses, the boutique caters for every budget too.

Bride to Be has flexible opening hours to suit everyone, opening 6 days a week. Appointments can be made from Tuesday - Sunday or you can call in anytime for a browse. The boutique opens on the 25th June and Hannah is holding an official launch event there on Saturday 2nd July 10am - 6pm. Prospective brides can visit the boutique and enjoy champagne, canapés, coffee & cupcakes, mini manicures, pedicures, acoustic music and much more!

Some of my own wedding photographs will be up on the walls in the boutique and you can look through one of my wedding albums too, which will be on display to be browsed through.

Visit www.bridetobebyhannahlois.co.uk for more information.

Claire and Chris’s Wedding at Walton Hall, Warrington, Cheshire

2011-06-14T15:01:00.006+01:00

The final wedding that I covered in my mad month of May was at Walton Hall in Warrington, Cheshire. It’s the first time I’ve photographed a wedding here and not the last, I sincerely hope. The venue is a big stately home in the middle of a beautifully kept park. As nice as the Hall is, the wedding was due to be held in the grounds, north-west weather dependent of course!

The skies were dark and threatening rain around half an hour before the service. The venue dressers had set out the indoor room for the service as it looked to be rained off. A mild tussle was going on as the registrar wanted it indoors but the venue coordinators were insistent that is was going to be outside as planned. The anticipation of what was to happen was nearing fever pitch (am I building this up dramatically enough for you here?)….

Anyway, about 10 minutes before the service, the clouds parted and the Cheshire sun started shining down on the park, starting a mad dash to set up the bandstand for what was to be an amazing ceremony. Claire and her bridesmaids looked amazing as they walked down the aisle in the sun. The park proved to be a splendid backdrop for the group and portrait shots, as did the staircase of the venue itself. The evening reception was held up by the Champions League final with the bride and groom's first dance happening at half time, again outside on the bandstand: Awesome stuff! The match result wasn’t quite what a lot of the lads would have hoped for, but it didn’t spoil what was a fantastic day. Highlights below!

Congratulations to Claire and Chris. Hope you love looking at your photos as much as I loved taking them (and looking at them again actually!).

May Portraits!

2011-06-03T10:51:00.004+01:00

May has so far been my busiest month this year. On top of the weekly weddings, I’ve squeezed in a few studio and location portrait shoots. I’ve been playing around with different lighting and post production stuff and have worked with a make-up artist to get variety to my portfolio. Here’s a few of my favourite shots taken.

Thanks to my willing models Micah, Claire, Natalie and Emma for letting me order them about on the days. Thanks to Jodie Dean for the excellent make up work on Claire and Natalie. Thanks to Len at Elegance Photography Studio in Bury (www.elegancephotography-studio.com) for allowing me to mess up his studio and thanks to The White Room in Whitefield (www.whiteroom.uk.com) for allowing me in before they opened up to do the shoot with Micah.

New Exciting Promo Stuff!

2011-05-27T12:36:00.003+01:00

I attended a marketing workshop yesterday to try and get some new ideas for promoting my business. Right at the start of session, the lady running the workshop asked who had business cards. I was the only person to put my hand up. She asked me to show her my card and as I was getting my wallet out, I felt a shiver of embarrassment run through me. This was because I knew full well that I’d given my last business card to a close up magician I'd met in a Parcel Force collection office the previous day. Anyone who is friends with me on Facebook may have noticed that I've had a bit of a running battle with Parcel Force this week over their 'Express 1 day service' that I eventually received 3 days late after 3 phone calls, 2 visits to the depot and a strongly worded letter! Anyway this magician did a trick for me whilst we were waiting to be served and was quite good so I said I'd recommend him to my clients where necessary. He didnt have a business card on him so said he'd email me his details through, which he is yet to do.

Anyway, I’ve digressed into a babbling and ranting idiot now. Back to the marketing workshop. So I didn’t have a business card and felt quite ridiculous admitting this after just saying that I had one. The workshop leader gave me a mild dressing down and instructed me to never leave the house without them! I wanted to tell her that I was leaving to pick up a batch of business cards (at a 3rd attempt) immediately following the workshop. But I didn’t as this would have made me look like the a schoolboy (that I used to be) making excuses for not doing his homework.

Here they are anyway, I love them! I got 13 different photographs printed onto the front of the cards. It's like carrying a mini portfolio around in my pocket. I've simplified the contact details on the back going for a 'less is more' look. The print quality is superb and I couldn’t be happier with them. (Which is more than I can say for these poor quality iPhone photos of them.)

Pics!

Lots of pics!

Back of the cards

The postcard front

Postcard rear

The only problem I have now is that I really don't want to give them away!

Kelly and Luke’s wedding at St Annes, Crumpsall, reception at the Marriott, Worsley

2011-05-25T15:49:00.004+01:00

With wedding season in full flow now, it’s busy busy busy right now! I’m doing quite well at keeping on top of this blog for a change. Well, for now at least….

Kelly and Luke tied the knot the other week and I had the pleasure of covering their special day. This wedding capped off a fantastic weekend for me as the previous day I was down at Wembley for the FA cup final. I sped back up the M1 after the match and got an early night to prepare myself for the early start I had the following day. I arrived at the bride’s mother’s house at 9.30am to catch all the bride and bridesmaids’ preparations. There was a great buzz around the dining room of the house with all the girls chatting and joking whilst having their hair and make up done in splendid fashion. My heart went out to the bride’s younger brother looking bemused at being stuck in the house with 8 women.

I left the bride’s house to get to St Anne’s Church in Crumpsall, Manchester to meet the groom and his groomsmen. This was quite a big wedding party, even before the guests arrived. 14 groomsmen in total, including the groom and the dads. That’s a lot of suits! The lads were doing a sterling job of greeting all the guests as they arrived at the venue and handing out carnations to everyone.

Anyway, the bridesmaids showed up and everyone was quickly ushered inside to await the bride’s arrival. Kelly arrived with her dad and looked absolutely stunning in her dress. The wedding was a traditional catholic ceremony with full mass, giving me plenty of time to get lots of photos. The service was broken up with an amazing performance by a classical singer called Bethany who left everyone gobsmacked with a fantastic rendition of Ave Maria. Over an hours worth of church time practically flew by.

From the church we left for the Marriott in Worsley. A venue I’ve photographed before, perfect for a wedding party. Unfortunately the Manchester weather was true to form and in rained from after the church until about 6pm. But it didn’t dampen any spirits, which was proven during the speeches. The best man double act was a relentless, two pronged verbal assault on the groom, which had a grand finale of a rap to the ‘The Fresh Prince Of Bel Air’ theme tune. Ingenious and hilarious! After the meal the rain had stopped for a short while, allowing me to take the bride and groom out for a quick lap of the grounds for some portrait shots. A former member of One True Voice from the TV show ‘Pop Stars, The Rivals’, provided the evening’s entertainment Djing and singing. A fantastic day for the perfect couple, highlights below!

Congratulations to Kelly and Luke! All the best for the future from me.

Oh, and I’ll give Luke’s shop a quick plug. Luke runs Styxx Menswear in Cheetham Hill, check out his shop on Bury Old Road if you’re in the area or look online http://www.styxonline.co.uk/

Lucie and David's Wedding At The Cloisters Suite, Holiday Inn, Bolton!

2011-05-16T12:47:00.009+01:00

Back to the Holiday Inn! This is fast becoming my most photographed wedding venue, and there is a good reason why. The venue is amazing, I’ve said it time and time again on this blog and I’m unsure whether my photo’s can really do it the justice it deserves. If you are reading this and looking for a place to tie the knot then head over there asap and see it for yourself.

Anyway, I arrived at the venue early and headed to the Cloisters Suite to snap some shots of the room whilst it was unattended. The couple had arranged for the room to be dressed to match the theme colours, and it looked spectacular. The venue dressers had done a fantastic job tying up the green colours of the bridesmaids dresses (if you’re reading this, I lost your card – drop me a line and I’ll give you a shout out on here). Once I was done I headed over to the front of the hotel to catch the lads arriving early doors to catch some liquid refreshment before the ceremony. David and his groomsmen are a top bunch of lads and were in good spirits. I jumped in the lift upstairs to catch the bride and bridesmaids' final preparations. Lucie lost an amazing 4 stone in her preparations for her big day and was featured in both Slimming World and Wedding Ideas magazine. Lucie looked stunning in a dress which really complimented her new slimline figure. The bridesmaids were in a very tasteful lime(?)ish green colour outfit, with the flower girls in dresses that matched up perfectly.

The service was held in the Cloisters Suite and featured both Lucie and David being quite emotional, as well as very eager to say ‘I will’! David’s best man and ushers did a stirling job assisting me in rounding up the necessary participants for the group shots. His best man also did a fantastic job in stitching his brother up during the speeches, as well as on the stag do by all accounts. Lucie’s Dad brought his folk band along for the evening do and the couple rounded off the day with their first dance performed by the band.

Congratulations to the pair of you on your fantastic wedding. Good luck for the future and in all that you do!

PS: I was lucky enough to score another wedding during this day so will be returning back here in October!

Terri and Rik Get Married at The Bolholt, Bury

2011-04-14T16:08:00.006+01:00

Last month I covered the wedding of Terri and Rik over at the Bolholt Hotel in Bury. I’ve worked this venue a few times now and have enjoyed every single event covered here. The venue seems tailor made for weddings and the highly professional coordinators work tirelessly to make sure everything on the day runs smoothly.

I started off at the madhouse that was the bride’s mothers to capture the preparations. Loads of people crammed into a terraced house, loads of noise, kids fighting, champagne flowing – ACE! Terri seemed cool as the proverbial cucumber as I followed her and the bridesmaids about whilst they sorted themselves out. I had to capture the bride making the final adjustments to her dress in the smallest space imaginable. All good fun.

I headed off to the venue around the same time as the bridesmaids and met up with Rik and the lads, struggling to find an open bar at the venue to sneak a cheeky pint in before the ceremony (unsuccessfully I might add). The venue was dressed up in spectacular fashion by Organza Occasions. The room truly was breathtaking. If you want to see anymore of their work check out www.organzaoccasions.co.uk

Anyway, I’ve known Rik for years from working together in the past, and he is generally a cool customer. But seemed to be bricking it a bit before the service (haha, sorry lad). Rik and the groomsmen pre-warned me about a trick that they were to play on Terri during the exchanging of the rings (switching his wedding ring for the one you’ll see below).

The trick was played and taken in great humour, setting up what was to be a great day. Weather was a bit windy, but the rain held off. We had a free reign of the entire venue as no other weddings were due to arrive until later on so took full advantage. Highlights below…

The photos probably tell the story of the day better than I can, great venue, great people and a great laugh. Thanks to the pair of you for allowing me to be a part of your special day. As Rik said in his speech, PARTY ON DUDES!

Mark and Lindsay at the West Tower, Aughton

2011-03-11T20:30:00.006Z

My first wedding of 2011 was Mark and Lindsay’s fantastic day at the West Tower in Aughton, near Ormskirk, my first time covering this venue. I had a kind of nervous energy to me whilst driving down to the venue. I think this was because I’d been out of the game (wedding wise at least) for a few months and also because I’d drunk one of the massive cans of some disgusting energy drink on the way. I arrived at the venue early to meet the bride and bridesmaids making their preparations for the big day ahead. The bridal suite was a picture of calmness and serenity, at least compared with what I am used to arriving to! The girls hadn’t even thought of any alcohol consumption (at least, not until I had arrived anyway) and were just relaxing whilst getting ready. I nipped downstairs to photograph the room details before the guests arrived and bumped into Mark and the groomsmen at the bar ordering soft drinks. Again, very calm and relaxed, Mark showed no signs of nerves whatsoever.

The civil service held within the venue was very nice with just one reading from some friends of the bride. Lindsay looked stunning in her dress as did the bridesmaids and the cute flower girls. The BBC 5-day forecast (or as I call it, complete guesswork!) had been threatening me with rain in Ormskirk all week, yet luckily we didn’t get a single drop all afternoon or evening, giving us plenty of opportunity to get some nice shots around the grounds of this fantastic venue. I loved the 80's album cover theme for the table names. Highlights below...

Congratulations to Lindsay and Mark and thanks for letting me capture, and be a part of your special day. I hope this wee glimpse of your photos brings back some great memories!

So it begins....

2011-02-20T19:59:00.008Z

OK, it's finally come around! This coming friday I'll be dusting off my equipment, unzipping the suit bag and polishing up my shoes in preparation for my first wedding of the year. It's been two whole months since I have covered an event so i'm really excited to be getting back to work on capturing those special moments. I went down to visit the venue yesterday, which is one I haven't covered as yet, and met the wedding co-ordinator who showed me around. The venue was gearing up for a wedding fayre that was being held the following day which got me stirred up for pushing me on this year and to start showing off my work this way.

I'm also looking forward to the Focus On Imaging event at the Birmingham NEC at the beginning of March. I'm hoping to attend a couple of seminars by some of the other professionals I respect, to get some inspiration, plus some hints and tips for moving forward both in my photography and my business. Exciting stuff.

So keep your eyes on the blog over the next few weeks to check out the preview pics from my latest wedding plus details of my new website and upcoming offers!

Ant

PS, this is a photo taken of me at a christening recently by Hipstamatic Fanatic Inga! I'm quite impressed at how handsome and charismatic I look haha (joke). Goes to show that the camera sometimes does lie!

Sharon, Pete and Leila Home Portrait Shoot

2011-01-05T20:02:00.005Z

Continuing on with updating this blog (erm... with stuff I did ages ago), time to showcase some of the portrait work I’ve done recently. Regular readers of this blog (yeah right, ha!) will remember the portrait shots I took documenting my friend Sharon’s last month of pregnancy. Well a couple of months later, she made her husband Pete the proud father of their daughter, Leila, and I paid them a visit to do some family shots.

Claire and Adam at Ribby Hall Village, Blackpool

2011-01-03T20:14:00.006Z

HAPPY NEW YEAR FOLKS!

So I’m going to start 2011 off by.... adding blog posts I should’ve done in 2010 (ok, first new year’s resolution, keep this blog more up to date).

My final wedding of the year was held at Ribby Hall Holiday Village over in Blackpool (or is it Preston?), and what a way to end what has been a great year for me! Claire and Adam had chosen what turned out to be an absolutely belting venue for their big day.

My day started off with me arriving quite early at a very nervous bride’s cabin to capture the proceedings. Claire had pre warned me about how nervous she gets at big occasions and I really felt for her as she made her preparations. Her gorgeous bridesmaids were doing their best to help keep her nerves at bay whilst getting themselves and the little ‘uns ready. I quickly zipped over to the groom’s cabin to find Adam almost as nervous as his bride to be. As has become typical groomsmen preparation, the lads were enjoying a cheeky early pint as they shot their cuffs and attached button holes and all had a jolly good laugh. As they made their way to the venue, I nipped back to the girls to find Claire just unveiling her dress, and the tears just started rolling (not mine mind, I’m dead tough and that).

From there everything went just swimmingly well. Claire chose her son to walk her down the aisle and he looked proud as punch to be doing so. After the service we went for a little drive around the holiday village in the Rolls Royce laid on by the venue to get some shots at different parts of the park. Once the group shots were done, everyone made their way to the beautiful dining room where the tables were organised with James Bond movie themes. The couple were kind enough to provide me with a meal and I must say, this was THE tastiest main course I have ever had at a wedding! I stayed right through the evening reception and have to say I had an absolutely fantastic time. Highlights of the day below:

I think I took more photos at this wedding than any other I’ve covered as just so much fun stuff was going on all day. As I said before, what a fantastic way to end my year wedding wise! Congratulations to the pair of you!

Beccy and Ste at Clough Manor, Denshaw

2010-11-17T21:13:00.007Z

So rolling on through these October weddings, my next job was to cover the marriage of Beccy and Ste. I’ve known Beccy for a while now so was very pleased when she asked me to photograph her wedding and knowing what she is like, I knew it would be something special.

As ever, I started my day off with the bride and bridesmaids preparing themselves for the day ahead. I instantly knew how good this day was going to be as soon as I got there as there was a great atmosphere right from the off. All the girls were on top form laughing and joking whilst preening themselves. From there I headed off to the church in Rochdale to meet a nervous looking Ste with his groomsmen. After a lovely church service, we went outside to get some group shots done at the church doors. What had started as a beautifully sunny day was soon becoming a bit windy, which by the time we hit the reception venue had eventually escalated to what felt like a hurricane!

Not that anyone let this spoil what was turning out to be an amazing event anyway. The venue was dressed very impressively, tying up the purple colour scheme beautifully. The 2-piece jazz band that Beccy and Ste chose to play during the meal were some smooooth mothers, who later became a 5-piece for the evening do to set the dance floor alight. The speeches were some of the best I’ve heard all year. The couple had some friends out in Australia who sent a video message to the couple which featured them on the set of Neighbours and had messages from the stars (Harold Bishop – Legend!).

All in all, everyone there seemed to have a fantastic day, including myself! Congratulations to you both and once again, thanks for letting me be a part of your special day!

Sarah and Tony at Heaton Park Orangery, Prestwich.

2010-11-09T22:11:00.004Z

Starting off a busy October for me were Sarah and Tony. The couple had chosen The Orangery at Heaton Park to tie the knot which was my second time shooting there (my third happened to be just 3 weeks later, but more on that to come on another post). I love doing photo shoots at Heaton Park for two reasons:
1) It’s a wedding photographers dream (as long as the weather behaves). The park is beautiful, as are the flowerbeds at The Orangery. The temple on the hill is a great spot for portrait shots and the staff are extremely helpful.
2) I just live around the corner so I don’t have far to drive after my work is done :-D

The wedding itself was held in Heaton Park Hall. The room where the service was held is breathtaking. Loads of light flooding in through the big windows at the front meaning I get to turn my flash off for more natural lighted shots. The wedding had the couple reading their own personal vows with neither of them being able to suppress their emotions. From there we moved outside for the group shots before I took the bride and groom for a walk to get some nice portraits. The whole day ran very smoothly thanks to the ushers who were great at organising everyone and helped me a great deal on the day. Many thanks lads! Highlights below.

All the best for the future to Sarah and Tony! I really enjoyed being a part of your day and I hope you love your photographs.

Leanne and Dave at The Worsley Marriott, Worsley, Salford

2010-10-29T21:10:00.004+01:00

So after leaving Hilary and Carl's fantastic bash (see previous post), I had to head home, download the images taken to my computer and back them up, clear the memory cards, charge the camera batteries and get to bed so I was bright and fresh for Leanne and Dave’s wedding the very next day. So up I got and headed over to the Marriott Hotel in Worsley. It was a beautiful day, sun shining all day long. Leanne and her bridesmaids looked amazing and were amazingly calm and serene as they made their preparations for the event. Dave is a top lad and his best man and ushers were all round good blokes on the day. The couple wrote and read their own vows on the day, which made the service itself really personal to them. The Marriott at Worley is a great venue for a wedding with lovely rooms and grounds, which were great for getting some special shots.

I must give a special thanks to the Toastmaster, Stephen, who was simply a legend on the day. He organised everyone throughout the whole event, which aided me no end in being able to just concentrate on getting some great photos for the couple. I cannot recommend this man highly enough. He comes as part of the wedding package at the Marriott but if you want him at your wedding then get in touch and I’ll pass his details to you.

Congratulations to Leanne and Dave!

Hilary and Carl at The Mercure Dunkenhalgh Hotel and Spa, Clayton Le Moors

2010-10-25T22:22:00.006+01:00

The Dunkenhalgh Hotel and Spa in Blackburn was the setting for Hilary and Carl's big day. A beautiful stately home which is a perfect set up for a full day's service and reception. Hilary and her bridemaids looked great even before they were completely dressed… and by that I mean they all looked fab in their matching pyjamas! Carl, seemingly not one to do things by half, arrived at the venue by helicopter before making his way to the room for the service. The tough looking groom completely melted when he saw his gorgeous bride walking down the aisle. This set the tone for a great day filled with laughs, tears and a whole lot of fun! Highlights below.

All the very best to the both of you! I really hope you love looking at your pics as much as I loved taking them!

Tracy and Glenn at Buile Hill Park Hall, Salford

2010-10-25T21:19:00.003+01:00

Ok, time for more catchy uppy!

Tracy and Glenn tied the knot at Buile Hill Park Hall in Salford. I arrived at the bride's house to the scene of Tracy’s army of bridesmaids helping her prepare for this great day. The park hall was a belting venue for the service and the reception with the staff working effortlessly to make the day run smoothly. The couple chose an outdoor barbeque for their wedding breakfast, which was served just in time to miss the typical Manchester shower. For evening reception the DJ made countless costume changes and had a team of dancers to help get the party started! Highlights below:

Congratulations the pair of you. What a great day I had at your wedding, thanks for letting me be a part of it!

Helena and Gary at Brookfield Masonic Hall, Westhoughton

2010-09-27T19:33:00.003+01:00

I haven’t updated this for some time so you lot have been missing out on all the fun I’ve been having at other people weddings. Time for a catch up!

Helena and Gary tied the knot all the way back in July and invited me along to capture the day. I started by joining the brides preparations at the hairdressers, followed by a bit of time with the lads whilst they got ready, then back to the brides mother's for Helena's final unveiling. The service was held at a quaint little church in West Leigh followed by the reception at Brookfield Masonic Hall in Westhoughton. The whole day was a great laugh as you can see from the pictures. The groomsmen’s graffiti treatment to the grooms shoes just one of the highlights!

Congratulations to you both! I’m so glad you are happy with your album and hope to see you both again soon.

Hayley and Pete

2010-07-21T23:09:00.002+01:00

After a couple of weeks involving some travelling time and lots of driving, it was nice to get a local wedding this week.

Hayley and Pete held their service and reception at the Novotel in Worsley, Salford. This was quite different from some of the weddings I’ve covered of late, this being a very intimate and personal civil ceremony with only very close friends and relatives in attendance. The very real threat of rain was looming all day but it held off thankfully until the wedding breakfast and stopped conveniently after the speeches, with the sun making a welcome appearance once everyone was fed! This gave us plenty of time to make good use of the beautiful gardens to the rear of the venue.

Hayley and Pete are a great couple with a cute but completely fearless handful of a son who did his mum proud walking her down the aisle. The best man wimped, sorry I mean missed out, on the chance to give his brother a verbal bashing after the meal, leaving it instead in the very capable hands of the bridesmaids who both gave emotional speeches to leave the bride in tears (of joy of course).

All the best for the future you two. I really enjoyed covering your special day and was made to feel very welcome by your family and friends all day. I hope you both had a wicked time in Cuba on your honeymoon (JEALOUS!) and I can’t wait for you to see your finished album.

Vicki and Rick at Sefton Park Palm House, Liverpool

2010-07-19T22:02:00.003+01:00

This is the day I almost met Al Pacino….. but more on that later.

I drove the short journey to the end of the M62 to shoot this amazing wedding at the end of last month. The day started off at the beautiful new Hilton hotel in Liverpool city centre with the fabulously giddy bridesmaids laughing and joking to help keep Vicki’s nerves at bay. We then moved onto the splendid cathedral-like church of St Matthew and St James in Mossley Hill for their service. A very impressive building both inside and out with an interesting wartime story behind it (I’m rubbish at remembering details, feel free to google it). The reception venue topped the lot though, the fabulous Palm House in beautiful Sefton Park, easily one of the most impressive places I’ve had the pleasure of shooting a wedding reception in so far.

I can’t wait for you two to see your photos, I really hope that my pictures have done this day justice; everything about this wedding was great – the weather, the venues, the atmosphere and the people.

Oh and as for Al Pacino: Apparently during the evening reception he appeared at the gates with his wife asking if he could come in and have a look around, only to be turned away by the guards manning the gates. Did this really happen or was it a just a wedding rumour??? The only people who really know are the two bored security guards, manning the gates on a Saturday night at the venue…. I’ll let you be the judge of that!

Sharon Maternity Shots

2010-07-14T20:02:00.001+01:00

As she was coming to the final month of pregnancy, my friend Sharon wanted some shots taking to document how she looked before giving birth. We went out over a few different days and locations and took some nice pictures of her looking all lovely and… well pregnant! We finished the shoot at her home with her husband Pete getting his hands in on the action on the final picture below.

And about a month after I took these shots, I went round and took this one!

Congratulations on the birth of the lovely Leila Mae Owen! We’ll get a proper family shoot sorted for you as soon as possible.

Sarah and Ste

2010-07-13T20:28:00.001+01:00

Phew! This last 4 weeks has been hectic, busy busy busy! Time to catch up with some bloggage and share some of the work I’ve been doing.

What a great day this was! Starting off with the service in Bury followed by the reception in Haslingden (or Rawtenstall, I never quite got to the bottom of that one?), my good friends Sarah and Ste tied the knot and gave me the honour of capturing their amazing day. These are two of the nicest and most fun people I know and was really looking forward to the day, especially when I found out the theme of the party – mad hats! Guests were invited to bring along some funky headwear for the reception, the madder the better! And they didn’t disappoint. The best man had the duty of making the groom's hat and unveiled it on the day - his idea was quite literally PANTS! See below for details!

I had a fantastic time here, definitely a wedding day to remember! Congratulations guys! x

Zoe and Matt

2010-06-24T20:54:00.001+01:00

I believe this to be the youngest couple I have covered getting married with their combined age totalling no more than 45 years!

The new Mr and Mrs Janicki tied the knot last month in a very traditional affair in Bolton. The wedding was held in the small but very impressive church in Ainsworth named Christ Church. The service itself was made very personal by the lady vicar who is a close family friend to the couple. The day then moved on to the Holiday Inn in Bolton, the second time this year I’ve had the pleasure of photographing this fantastic venue which is very close to my heart. The evening kicked off later on with a cracking band, which played a selection of hits from the past, and who had the girls up singing backing vocals for them at one point.

Once again, the day was filled with hundreds great moments to capture, but alas, I can only fit a few on here!

To Zoe, Matt, Sue and Paul; all the best from me for the future. I had a fantastic day with you guys and can’t wait to get the rest of these pictures to you.

Mary and Paul

2010-06-14T22:20:00.001+01:00

I just cannot wait any longer to get the photos from this wedding up here.

I had the absolute pleasure of being a guest at, and photographing the big day of my good friends Mary and Paul. And what a day it was! I’ve added my usual selection of highlights on here but I have really have struggled to whittle them down to a few pics as this wedding had so much going on all day. The couple had some wicked ‘Dubs’ for wedding cars to get them to Manchester Town Hall, and then to the Great John Street Hotel for the reception. (2 convertible Beetles and a camper van no less!), a gospel choir, opera-singing waiters, X Factor style introductions, a hot tub scandal and 6000 orange-headed gatecrashers (seriously!).

Congratulations you two and thanks so much for allowing me to capture this day,I had an absolute ball. Sorry to tease you even more with these photos Mary but I hope it has wetted your appetite for the rest of them! x

Andrea and Andy

2010-06-01T11:56:00.001+01:00

The Old Mill Hotel set up int’ thills of Ramsbottom, Lancashire was the setting for Andrea and Andy to tie the knot. There were plenty of legs on show, mainly from the gentlemen in attendance on the day. Being from north of the border, Andy and the male half of the wedding party had gone for the traditional Scottish outfits with kilts, sporrans and everything else that comes with it. Actually, this was my first wedding of its kind. Highlights below:

ALERT! This set of photos contains pictures of mens bottoms: YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

Congratulations to you both! Had a great day and am looking forward to seeing you two again.

Not a good traveller!

2010-05-19T16:40:00.002+01:00

Not a morning person.

MEH! I feel rotten! I yesterday returned from a week long holiday in beautiful LAS VEGAS BABY! About a stone heavier and with possible liver damage, but man, what a great place that is! Photos will appear on here at some point.

But long haul trips are my complete downfall. Yesterday was a mammoth journey: 5 hour flight from Las Vegas to New York, then a 6 hour wait in Newark airport, before another 8 and half hour flight back home to Manchester. I can't sleep on planes and had no kip whatsoever on that journey so slept like a baby last night but still feeling rough today! This picture, although not taken today, depicts exactly how I look / feel today!

But enough of this moaning! I've returned to the UK with a renewed vigour for my photography and have a raft of new ideas i'm excited about trying out real soon. First I have to clear this backlog of work I left behind before I went away, so less of this jibber-jabber, time to fire up the Photoshop!

Back real soon!

URBAN BEEYATCHES!

2010-04-23T15:07:00.001+01:00

I went out a couple of weeks ago with Cecelia and Becky for a fashion style photoshoot on the streets of Manchester. I found a few decent locations and we headed off out for about an hour with the theme of Urban Bitches! Some results below.

Nicola and Simon

2010-04-23T14:16:00.001+01:00

My first wedding of 2010 was the marriage of Nicola and Simon in March. The whole ceremony was held at the Holiday Inn, Bolton Centre. I’d been looking forward to doing this wedding for 3 reasons: 1) I’d not done a wedding in a while and been itching to get back into it; 2) the venue is very special to me as it is where my own wedding reception was held; 3) Simon did a great job of teaching me how to drive and I wanted to return the favour!

The main function room at the Holiday Inn has to be seen to be believed. The hotel was built next to the site of a disused church, and rather than knock down the church, they chose to build onto it and use it as a function room. The weather in the week leading up to the day was a bit dodgy but couldn’t have been better on the day (ok, it could have been a touch warmer but we’ll not mention that). Some highlights below…

Congratulations to the pair of you. I really enjoyed shooting your big day and I hope you love the pictures!

Calender Girls for Christies

2010-04-23T13:53:00.001+01:00

Ok, its been a while since I posted on here so time for an update.

In February I was asked to photograph lots of semi naked women in a pub after closing time. Being a married man I naturally declined the offer until I was told the cause. After finding out one of their close friends had been having treatment for cancer, a bunch of ladies decided to help raise money Christies Hospital by doing a calendar girls style shoot. So on March 16th I made my way to the Help Me Thro’ pub in Bury, to do the shoot. What a laugh! The girls were on top form and I must say very brave to be getting undressed in front of me (although I think the fact it was held in a pub gave them something to assist with the poses, including a topless group shot done outside the pub as below).

They are currently trying to raise funds to get the calendars printed up. Details of how you can donate can be found on the site below.

http://calendargirlsforchristies.blogspot.com/

And you can also join their Facebook group using the link below.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Calendar-Girls-for-Christies/350510659411

(sorry, can’t do HTML)

Bryanna

2009-12-20T19:40:00.001Z

I've been desperate to get out and take some photographs since the snow fell in Manchester this week but have been unable to until today. So before it went dark this afternoon, I grabbed one of my neighbours to come for a walk and have some photos taken. The light wasn't the best and I hadn't brought any flash gear, but got some good shots anyway.

Thanks to Bryanna for being a willing and freezing model for half hour or so. Hope you like the pics.

Dee and Paul

2009-12-18T12:46:00.001Z

This was my final wedding of the year, and what a way to finish it off. Dee and Paul got married in the Castlefield Rooms in Central Manchester last week. The whole event was held at the venue with the wedding happening at 4pm. By the time it came round to doing the formal shots, the sun had set leaving us to do the portraits around Castlefield in the dark. The couple were absolute stars, with Dee proving the perfectly fearless bride, marching high heeled across the cobbled streets in the freezing cold and dark, not afraid to get her dress on the ground in order to get the shots they wanted. And it paid off, we got some amazing portrait shots which I am really proud of. A few can be seen below. These two had to have been the most chilled out people I’ve ever photographed. They were so relaxed throughout the entire day and were up for almost anything photography wise. Top stuff. The 3 tiered wedding pork pie was a fantastic idea. Congratulations guys!

My special thanks goes out to Audrey who was my assistant for the day. Audrey was invaluable in everything to do with photographing this occasion; coming visiting the venue twice prior to the wedding to help find locations, suss out how to light areas and pose the couple. The portrait shoot wouldnt have gone even half as smoothly without your help Audrey so a big BIG THANKS for everything.

Lisa and Martin

2009-11-27T13:19:00.002Z

This was where my illusions of being a good weather charm were rained on from a great height (ho ho!). Lisa and Martin tied the knot at the Royal Toby Hotel in Castleton, Rochdale. Fantastic venue this is, the wedding moved from the function room, to the beautiful Italian restaurant downstairs, and back to the function room seamlessly. The couple had the genius idea of having the DJ bring karaoke gear along which really made the night special. Some highlights below.

Congratulations to the pair of you, you make a fantastic couple. Thanks for letting me capture this day for you and I wish you all the best for the future.

Gemma and Ian

2009-11-17T16:10:00.002Z

My second wedding in a row at the Bolholt in Bury, this time in a different suite. For some reason I always talk about the weather on this blog (typical Brit), but we again had some great luck. It had lashed it down all week, long causing much worry all round. But come the morning of the big day it was nothing but glorious sunshine, most surprising for October time! I had a great day here with Gemma and Ian and had some fun capturing their special day. Some highlights below.

Congratulations to you both! Will be taking you up on that night out when your album arrives!

Emma and Simon

2009-10-12T20:14:00.001+01:00

Emma and Simon got married at the Bolholt Hotel in Bury last month. Fantastic venue this, perfect set-up for weddings with top class co-ordinators making sure everything is perfect on the day. It was lashing it down for almost the full week leading up to this day and had me worried we weren't going to get good use of the fantastic exterior of the venue. But as luck would have it, it stayed dry for long enough to get some good shots of the happy couple. Highlights below...

FACES OF ECCLES

2009-09-18T20:22:00.002+01:00

Last week I held an open photoshoot at Eccles Community Gallery. The idea was to photograph as many people as possible in one day, then display the photographs in the gallery for everyone to see.

I realise I didn't post any information about this on this blog and there were 3 very good reasons:

1) I have been busy wedding wise recently and have lots of work to do (photos to appear soon)

2) I don't even know if anyone actually reads this blog - 2 followers? LAME!

3) I forgot

Now I'm under no illusions about this... Rankin Live it definately wasn't! To prove it, take a look at my state of the art studio set-up below...

A sheet of black fabric from Dunelm nailed to a wall. I forgot an attachment to my light stand so the flash and brolly were strapped on using masking tape! The brolley was actually broke. In the room, I had the choice of either bright flourescent strip lighting or pitch black darkness, no natural light at all so I chose pitch black darkness and a 60 watt lightbulb in a desk lamp for a model light.

Despite all this I had a really good day and met & photographed many wonderful and weird people. Some photos below.

Took photos of over a hundred people on the day, all of which will be displayed from tomorrow (Satuday 19th Sep) for 4 weeks. If you can get yourself down there please come down and have a gander. The art gallery itself is a great little place, made from an empty shop front in Eccles precinct. It is the personal passion of a lovely lady named Karen Illingworth who runs it on her own with no funding, relying on donations and the help of volunteers. I've made her a little website to help with promoting the place, check it out if you get time at www.ecclesgallery.moonfruit.com

Thanks to Salford Online for running numerous articles promoting the events, the most recent one can be seen by clicking here.

Oh and special thanks goes out to Roxanne, Sharon and Charlotte! My glamourous assistants on the day worked wonders - fluttering eyelids, flashing pretty smiles, handing out flyers and frog-marching people to the gallery. The event wouldn't have been what it was without yous!

All Saints Church

2009-08-16T18:24:00.001+01:00

I had the pleasure of being invited over to All Saints church in Whitefield, Manchester this morning to take some photos. I've been past this church countless times and have been in awe of the architecture every time. Have wanted to photograph it for ages but have never gotten around to sorting it out until now.

As I was snapping the outside, I was approached by an elderly gent who informed me that the church is a 'Waterloo church', meaning that it is one of a hundred and odd churches that were built to celebrate the battle of Waterloo. He also told me that the architect who designed this church also designed the houses of parliament! I was given a leaflet with some more history once I got inside, but I cant be bothered typing it all up on here for you.

Weather today was of a typical summer day in Manchester, so decided to greyscale the outdoor shots. The inside was every bit as nice as I imagined it to be, hope I get to shoot a wedding in there sometime. I didn't really go very well prepared so I intend to go back to re-shoot the inside of the church with some proper lighting gear.

Up in't 'thills!

2009-08-11T21:11:00.001+01:00

Took this up in near Burnley somewhere last week.. Doesn't quite have the same effect when it is small on this page but I can't be uploading massive files on here unfortunately.

Manchester

2009-07-15T19:54:00.002+01:00

Man, I love this city... so here are some photos that I have taken of it!

TWISTED

2009-07-11T14:33:00.001+01:00

OK so not really photography related but I've always fancied myself as a bit of a graphic designer too. My friends have started up a club night called Twisted, held on the last Saturday of every month at a club in Bury. They asked me to do them a poster advertising each night so I thought I'd share the first 3 with you!

Rebecca and Mike

2009-07-11T14:15:00.001+01:00

If there is one thing I've realised recently is that I am rubbish at keeping this blog up to date.

OK so here are a selection of photos taken at the end of May at the new Mr. and Mrs. Bates wedding. Venue was Scaitcliffe Hall in Todmorden, a beautiful place which seems to have its own microclimate! Weather was threatening to be against us all day but luckily it stopped raining for just about long enough to get some cracking shots!

Congratulations to the pair of you, it's been great making friends with you both and hope to have a few beers at another gig soon!

Jo and Mike

2009-05-31T18:28:00.001+01:00

So my second wedding in May was with Jo and Mike. The service was held in Salford Cathedral, an absolutely breathtaking church. I've wanted to photograph a wedding here since I first visited it a few years back. The reception was at Lancashire Health and Racquet Club in Middleton. After a shaky start to the day, the weather came good just at the right time and we got some quality snaps.

Congratulations the pair of you, I had a really good day and had some fun shooting you two.

Dom and Jamie 02/05/08

2009-05-25T20:04:00.002+01:00

I covered the marriage of the new Mr and Mrs Comiskey in Prestwich earlier this month. The wedding was at Our Lady of Grace with the reception at The Orangery in Heaton Park. What a top day this was - beautiful weather, fantastic venues and all round jolly nice people! A select few highlights from the day below.

Congratulations and many thanks to Dom and Jamie for letting me capture this great day. Can't wait to get your album to you!

Wainhouse Tower

2009-05-18T11:19:00.001+01:00

I'm quite conscious of the fact that I haven't posted anything on here for a while. Been mad busy these last 3 weeks with weddings and sorting through the photos. Will post some of the highlights on here real soon. In the meantime, here are 2 pictures I took last month of Wainhouse Tower in Halifax!

Snowdon 11/04/09

2009-04-25T10:31:00.001+01:00

Finally gotten round to processing the photos I took on my little trip up Snowdon a couple of weeks ago. Had some fun processing the shots in photoshop. Comments and critique welcomed!

The Almonds and the Robinsons

2009-03-29T20:21:00.005+01:00

I had a great day today photographing 2 families in their homes. I couldn't wait to get the photos on my computer and check them out. I'm well happy with the results and think they will be too!

The Almonds

The Robinsons

Syd Bozko 07/03/09

2009-03-22T10:34:00.004Z

Got a bit (lot) drunk at a gig the other week and took some live shots for local up and comers Syd Bozko. Genuinely don't remember taking any photos of them but ended up with some alright results.

There is an interview with them in this weeks Urban Life magazine so look out for it. Also check out their Myspace page www.myspace.com/sydbozko

Blog Cherry Popped!

2009-03-21T17:25:00.002Z

Oooh it hurt so it did, but I bet it's a lot more pleasant the next time!

I thought it was time I got off my lazy rear end and start up some bloggage. It promised to be a gentle experience but proved quite rough and has left me a tad sore!

I'm not sure I approve of the green theme I have chosen so it will probably alter a number of times before I am comfortable with its appearance.

I think I will kick it off with posting my latest business card. I've been meaning to update it from my crappy previous attempt at moo-cards which I ordered rashly and have been embarrassed and ashamed to hand out ever since. I reckon these ones look a bit better. I've done an order of 50 through Moo to start off with and will order more if they please me.

Back of card

Card 1

Card 2

The two pictures are ones that I am quite proud of. One is from a wedding I did last August and the other is my wifes cousin who provided a willing model whilst attempting some off-camera strobist tomfoolery!