2012…what a year it has been. I have had an absolutely amazing year, I have grown as an artist, as a business person and I feel like I myself have done a lot of growing this year too (and not just from all the fine wedding food!)

I have had the great pleasure of working with some amazingly talented wedding suppliers this year. From Florists, to videographers, a crazy Corvette driving lady (you know who you are) and even a couple of TV crews. I have even worked with other photographers this year too, as a way to try and broaden my creativity and feed off of others vision and work. I’m a firm believer in networking, I think as a business it is one of the most important things you can do and this year I have made a wealth of new friends within the industry. People I truly love and respect and Ill try and name some of them as I go through this post.

The photographers Ive worked with this year deserve a mention in their own right. From the already established Pros to the up and coming talent within the industry, I have met and become friends with some amazingly talented photographers this year. My regular 2nd shooter Rob, is about ready to fly the nest and start shooting his own weddings, and he has been an absolute gem to work with, and has been there through thick and thin and sprained ankles with me…but more on these guys later.

This year could not have  been possible without the astonishingly beautiful couples I have worked with this year. From the bottom of my heart I want to thank you all for choosing me to be your wedding photographer. You have helped make my vision a reality, and willfully put your trust in me and my crazy ideas, walked into torrential rain for me, climbed rickety staircases, jumped on trampolines for me and been all round amazing. I love you all, and have made some life long friends in you.

I truly wish I could mention everyone I have had the pleasure of working with, but alas this post would go on forever if I did, so if I have missed anyone out I apologise and promise that I will send Rob round to do the dance from the Inbetweeners to make up for it!

So, 2012…where to begin…I’m actually going to start with 2011. A fellow wedding photographer John Wilson asked me to work with him on a new TV series for Sky Living called Battle of the Brides. It was being made my DragonFly Productions and involved 2 couples sharing their wedding day with complete strangers. It was an absolutely amazing experience and I got to shoot at some stunning venues across the country

There were some amazing themes at these weddings, from Tudors, to space even a Christmas themed wedding (which we shot on Halloween) I got to meet real reindeer and even, quite possibly, the greatest Captain Jack Sparrow impersonator ever!

John had to bow out half way through the series due to other work commitments, and I chose another photographer to come on board and finish the series with me. Her name was Diana Field. It was a great experience shooting with these 2 photographers. This can be a lonely job at times, but getting to watch how other photographers work was inspiring and we all shared knowledge and techniques on how we work. Unfortunately, I forgot to get a photo of Johns face (apparently he doesn’t have a face…instead there’s just another camera where his face should be) but his way of geeing up a crowd for the group shots has stuck with me and I conduct my group shots the same way…But here’s John and Diana

Although we filmed the show in 2011, it was 2012 that the show finally aired. It was quite weird seeing my face on the TV, but it was an amazing experience and even ran into a few old school friends too.

It always astounds me how much effort brides put in to organising their wedding to be what they have always dreamt of. From the perfect venue, the dress and even how they want the reception decor to look. I have seen some truly beautiful weddings and venues this year.

I’ve seen Fairy Tale Princess themed weddings, Space themed weddings, Alice in Wonderland weddings this year and each and ever one of them has had the brides personality stamped right across it. I love how much effort they put into the finest of details on their big day

Flowers, flowers, flowers. There have been big bunches, small bunches, bouquets made out of foam flowers, bouquets made out of buttons and so much more. I have to take my hat off to florists these days, it truly is an art form putting those things together. Even the flowers growing naturally at venues such as The Barnyard in Upchurch have been stunning. One of the florists I have become quite good friends with over the course of this year is Helen of Floral Dreamz. An amazing lady and great fun to work with.

I’ve seen my fair share of modes of transport this year. Horse and Carriage seemed to be quite a popular choice this year as well as the ever popular Vintage Cars…and even a Corvette driven by a mad Scottish Lady. Amandas Vintage Car Hire have been a company I have run into quite a lot this year and have become good friends of mine. Her drivers are easy to get along with and have made taking photos in and around the car and absolute pleasure. What bride doesn’t dream of being a Princes…and what better way to realise that dream than to arrive at your wedding in a horse and carriage…or even being pulled by reindeer and Santa!

Whilst getting the material together for this post a thought occurred to me…I have taken photos of quite a lot of dresses and shoes this year…probably more than any man should. From comfortable flat shoes, to neck breaking heels. Simple stylish dress to the extravagance befitting a Princess, there have been such a variety of trends and styles this year and each one has suited the brides beautifully. One of the nicest people I have met this year has to be Jen of Country Brides of Faversham. I don’t think I have met a woman who knows more about wedding dresses and styles than her. She is even a really nice person and not at all scary! We are getting together next  year for an amazing 20s style bridal shoot, so watch this space!

One of my favourite parts of any wedding day has to be the portraits of the Bride and Groom. I’ve asked a lot from my couples this year and we have had some challenging weather, be it snow, or rain, storms and even sweltering heat. They have trusted me and put their faith in my vision of creating amazing wedding portraits. I could happily fill this entire blog post with all of the portraits I did this year, but rather than have people die of boredom Ive cut it down to a few. You can see some of my other bridal portraits on the blog.

I want to close this post with a Thank You to some of the people who have assisted me this year on shoots. Ill start off with Hannah May. I met Hannah through her Mum on a wedding group on Facebook. She mentioned that her daughter was wanting to gain more experience with weddings and was looking to assist someone. I contacted Hannah to see if she wanted to tag along to some weddings with me. That was less than a year ago, since then Hannahs career has exploded to new heights. She has become an amazing photographer over such a short space of time. Her conceptual portraits are amazing and she is quite the digital artist. I had been wanting to do a Kissing in the Rain shot for years, but it had never rained at one of my weddings. The first wedding Hannah came to with me, the heavens opened up and we took the opportunity to try and nail the shot (the kissing under the umbrella shot further up) She happily went out into the pouring rain and hid down behind the couple without a word of complaint and helped me get a shot that made my day. You can expect to see great things from Hannah in the very near future.

Heres Hannah being a light tester, and a voice activated strobe waiting for the couple to come in.

Rosie Servante was a bride I met at a wedding fair a couple of years back. We made friends on facebook and I have grown quite close to her and her new hubby. She mentioned to me that her friend Cate was looking to push more into the wedding side of photographer and wondered I may be able to let her come to some weddings with me. Needless to say, its always nice to have some company at a wedding and even better to have someone to help organise guests and do lighting for me. Cate Coggins is an extremely passionate and talented young woman. With a natural eye and a real talent for spotting not so obvious photo opportunities she was an absolute delight to work with and extremely hard working. A keen fan of the iPhones camera and instagram, I wouldn’t be surprised to see her shoot a whole wedding on the iphone sometime soon! Here’s Cate being a Ninja in a church, and helping me test my lighting.

I also need to mention a certain mad cap Videographer. Ive worked with Timmy on a couple of weddings now and the day has just flown past with him working the day. Not only does he provide entertainment and a winning smile, but he will happily mash buttons on my camera whilst I light up groups for composite shots. Anyway, here’s Tim Griffiths of TG Weddings, balancing a pint of guinness on his camera, making people do Marryoke and other such shenanigans

I also had the pleasure of 2nd shooting for the awesome Kari Bellamy and Rub Dunlop this year. Both absolutely amazing people and a real pleasure to work with at my first Sikh Wedding. Here’s Kari blending in and Rob hard at work

Almost there…I have also made a great friend in a local photographer called Phil of StoryBook Photography this year. Many late night facebook chat have been had about the industry, and I’ve assisted him on a few weddings now. He is an all round nice guy and doesn’t mind lending me lenses when im in need 😉 He’s also quite keen on commando crawling across the floor to get a photo of a bouquet and throwing shapes in a photobooth with the Bride and I.

The last person I wanna thank in this post is my regular 2nd shooter Rob. Rob has been my best friend for neigh on 13 years now, and has worked with me on my weddings since the start of my journey. Without making this sound like a love story we have been through a lot together as friends, from me being Godfather to his children, us working as window cleaners many years ago, drunken nights out in Doncaster and even trying to get his death trap of a motorcycle on the road, Rob has been a true friend and an amazing 2nd shooter. Whether its risking life and limb by climbing up places I refuse too, posing like a girl, lighting up the rain, rocking out on the dance floor, bouncing on a trampoline or just being my lighting rig for the day Rob pretty much does everything hes asked too without much whinging. The time has now come for Rob to go off and shoot his own weddings in 2013 and I have no doubt he is going to be an amazingly successful wedding photographer and I shall miss having him at weddings. You’ll have to excuse the quality of some of these photos as some of them are from my phone…but ladies and gentlemen here is the man himself…Robert Kirby

So that was my 2012. An epic year for me and 2013 looks to be just as exciting. Be it the host of weddings I have, the international shoots im going on and even the prospect of meeting new people within the industry and making some amazing new contacts, I am sure that 2013 will be just as rewarding as this year has been. I will be adding more links on this page to some of the amazing people I’ve worked with over the year so worry not if I have forgotten you. I hope you have all had a great year, and if I’m shooting your wedding next year, ill see you there!

Take care!

 

James

PS – I have just finished my last wedding of 2012 on New Years Eve…and what better way to finish the year than with a sparkler exit during a heavy downpour. Happy New Year peeps!

 

 

 

 

 

by James Heffernan