Eleanor Jane

Em & Marc: Wedding Ideas magazine

Thank you Wedding Ideas magazine for featuring Em & Marc's wedding in the latest issue - I love it! It's been fabulously put together and the reproduction of the photographs is perfect, the colours just *pop* off the page! Wedding Ideas is a cute, compact little mag and the focus is on real brides & their weddings rather than lots of editorial models, which is great if you're insatiably curious about real people (or as some might say, just plain nosey!). If you're stuck on theme ideas or sourcing the perfect details & accessories the pages are also crammed with mood boards and supplier information. I'm not even planning a wedding and I've been obsessing over it all morning!

PS. Em is so gorgeous she's going to be in the new Simple skincare advert when they launch in America next year - exciting!

Links 25.11.11

♥ Three photo projects to try on your next road trip. Sigh, If only I could cartwheel!

♥ Wedding photography in the midst of a natural disaster.

♥ The Dumpster Project. I can’t believe I haven’t shared this video before. Makes me feel a little less guilty about all the "treasures" I’m hoarding in my gas cupboard.

♥ In case you were ever in any doubt, this clearly illustrates that the difference between professional models and non-models is incomparable. I debated with myself for ages about whether posting this was inappropriate incase it came across as a cheap dig at the girl's appearance, which I don't mean to do. I'm sure she is attractive. But a model is so much more than a pretty face. I'll remove if it offends though.

♥ Portraits of gay couples just married in New York City.

♥ Two cheeky photographers bluffed their way into the Governer’s Ball after the 61st Academy Awards and snapped some amazing candids of the Hollywood elite. I'm impressed by their nerve!

♥ When you're feeling blue, Hyperbole and a Half is instant happy. Even the bleak posts.

♥ I want my face on the side of an airplane!

♥ Poetry bombing. Augustina Woodgate sews lines from her favourite poems into clothes at the thrift store. It's kind of the sartorial equivalent of finding a love note scribbled inside the musty pages of a second hand book.

♥ Here's a stylish photography cheat sheet for beginners.

♥ & finally, Dear Photograph is a bittersweet reminder that time passes far too quickly and there is never long enough to say goodbye.

More Bébés!

Reading my Facebook, Twitter feed and chatting to my friends it would seem I'm the only person who is NOT pregnant at the moment! Despite this constant pressing need for baby gifts galore, my knitting is coming along very slowly (I can stil only knit rectangles*) and as such, I have no sweet & colourful elf hat props yet. I'm determined to make them myself, but until then, here's another newborn shoot with soft natural colours (thankfully this little man was more than happy with that!).

Baby Alfie is the newest addition to my school friend Katie's family. He's super handsome, well behaved and remarkably clever for someone who only popped into the world a week ago. Are newborns supposed to be able to lift their heads yet?!

*Peabrain's Christmas rectangle is over a metre long so far!

Hannah & Kieran

Hannah & Kieran were married at the Brecon Castle Hotel, overlooking the mountains just above the beautiful Brecon Beacons national park, the perfect location for a Welsh wedding. Cymru am byth! Apparently it’s one of the oldest hotels in Wales. The hotel was built in the early 1800s but I was fascinated to find out there has been a castle on the site since the eleventh century.

This was a small, sweet, family wedding and Hannah was such a cute bride – always smiling, even after getting delayed behind a tractor on her journey to the venue that morning. I've never seen a bride get dressed so quickly in my life! Also, I have to say how much I LOVED her giant crystal pendant. One for me too please, Santa? Strangely enough I didn’t find out until I delivered her wedding pictures that we went to the same school together. Hannah was a few years above me so I never knew her back then, but small world, hey?

Richard Hawley - Guitarist

What a lovely bloke Richard Hawley is! A couple of months back I travelled up to Sheffield to photograph him with Jamie from Guitarist magazine and he couldn’t have been more welcoming and down to earth.

We met at Yellow Arch studios, a quirky little red brick building that has a kind of bleak Victorian workhouse vibe from the street (!) but once inside I was amazed; wall to wall guitars (at least a hundred, if not more), stacks of vintage gear and an enormous mountain of empty guitar cases. Hawley had relocated his entire collection to the studios while recording the new album and every instrument had a wonderful story behind it. I shot endless guitars and Jamie recorded so many fascinating stories that the feature seems to have spiralled into an eight page monster! I’ve included some of my favourite pictures that didn’t make the spread below but there are lots more on the iPad version of the magazine here (if you're that way inclined).

I have to say, this is one of the most interesting and rewarding commissions I think I’ve ever worked on. Weeks later, when I was photographing Meena & James’ wedding in Nottingham, they chose Coles Corner as their first dance and I had a little happy moment in my head remembering the shoot.

Kate & John

July & August were crazy busy for me this year. If I had the ability to magic myself to multiple places at once I could have shot five different weddings on August 13th! I felt terrible having to turn people down but Kate & John had already booked many months in advance and I’m very happy they did too – the wedding was so pretty and the party in the evening was wild!

The entire day was held at the Coed-Y-Mwstwr in Bridgend, an elegant but welcoming Victorian manor house which required some serious country driving skills to get to. I don’t think I’ve ever gripped the steering wheel as tightly as I did in those narrow, winding lanes! There were some lovely backdrops to photograph against there too such as the red brick wall and the teal painted wooden club house in the gardens. It rained a little bit off and on throughout the day but luckily we managed to nip out between showers with Kate even braving the mud to get the balloon shot among the trees.

Kate looked so sweet and nervous coming down the aisle – the shot of of her & John holding hands after her father gave her away is just charming! I love love love all the beautiful colours Kate chose for details & décor too, especially the baby blue vintage inspired bridesmaids dresses and bright coral shoes - gorgeous. Congratulations Mr & Mrs Aubrey and thank you so much for inviting me to photograph your big day!

Check out the ffotobooth from the wedding reception. Don't click if you're easily offended by the sight of scantily clad gentlemen - I told you the night got a little wild!

SNEAK PEEK - Mitchell Harper

Hey photographers! If you're shooting in the South Wales/West of England area and you're looking for a male model, check out Mitchell Harper. I shot him recently as part of a local stylist's wider collection and he stood out a mile. He isn't currently signed to an agency but drop me a line if you're interested in using him and I can pass on his contact details.