We always love shooting weddings that are a little different from the norm, and Bec & Tim’s was anything but traditional.

And the fact that their venue is the only wedding venue I can see from our studio window made it even better!

The Old Library at The Custard Factory is a fantastic venue if you’re after something a little quirky, and the backstreets of Digbeth make for some pretty cool photo locations.

When Becky married Tim she became Mrs Valentine. And we had the perfect backdrop for some photos….

Thanks to a man called Ed Brown for 2nd shooting this one with me.

So, I left my DSLR in my bag and wandered around with just my iPhone to see what caught my eye.

Here are a few I kinda like.

Edited using VSCOcam and Instagram.

A full day packed with info, shooting, processing, food, drink and lots of laughs.

Here’s the stuff you need to know…

When?

Tuesday 18th June – 10am til 6pm

Where?

Our studio at The Custard Factory, Birmingham

How much?

£250 + VAT  - Places are limited to 15 people

What will be covered?

As much as possible! I’ll go over the following….

- My photography style

- How I find the right clients without spending any money

- Finding the images and telling stories.

- How I use natural light, off camera flash and a little wizardry.

- A regular couple in cool wedding outfits on the urban backstreets of Birmingham. How to get a varied and creative set of images in a short space of time.

- Post-production using the images from the afternoon’s shoot. How I give images the look I’m after.

- Workflow – Don’t let work take over your life! - How to shave hours (make that DAYS!) off your post-production time.

On the evening, I will be booking a table at a local restaurant and you are invited to join us for dinner if you choose to.

Your payment is your booking confirmation. Please use the Paypal link below or contact us for other payment options.

Below are links to some of our previous attendees’ images and some great reviews of the workshop.

Gemma Williams

Clare West

Lisa Fellows

Saol Photography

Shepherd Photography

Helen Howard

I’ve known Alison a while. She used to come to the clubs I DJ’d at years ago and we became friends and we saw the Chili Peppers together.

So, when she contacted me about photographing her & Robin’s wedding at the magnificent Allerton Castle up in Yorkshire, I knew this would be a wedding I had to shoot.

It was a chilly but sunny February day with that winter crispness in the air. We didn’t get much time for portraits unfortunately but the whole day was totally fun to shoot and Alison looked amazing.

Big thanks to my good pal Paul Clapperton for joining me on this one.

Old photo. New edit.

Then I remembered that I hadn’t blogged my Pearl Jam photos from last year. I posted their song, Man Of The Hour, at the end of the post for my Dad and they’ve been my favourite band for over 20 years now, so it seemed right.

I first saw Pearl Jam in Southend-On-Sea in February 1992 and since then I’ve seen them another 14 times, and photographed them three times. Their music has soundtracked a big chunk of my life.

So, here are a few images from last June in Manchester.

Raymond William Gerrard 21st July 1943 – 20th May 2013

On Monday, at around 8pm, my Dad passed away peacefully in hospital in Chester.

He’d been ill for a while…. heart problems amongst others… and I’d been to visit him a few times over the past few weeks. I last saw him Monday afternoon. I think he was ready.

Anyone who ever met him will know what I mean when I say he was one of the good ones. Always joking. Never taking things too seriously. He lived the life he wanted and was always looking out for everybody else, even when he should have been looking out for himself. Everyone he met instantly felt like they’d known him forever.

During his life he worked many different jobs – cinema projectionist, removals, taxis, TV aerials, newsagent – but for 30 years he was a driving instructor. Hundreds of people from Chester can drive thanks to him.

More than that, he was the best Dad to my brothers and I. A true family man who worked so hard to give his family a better life. And when we moved away he and my Mom went on to foster kids. Almost FIFTY kids! That level of generosity and selflessness is something I can barely comprehend. I’m humbled by it.

And, over recent years, I’ve watched my Dad become a loving Grandad to our boys and my brothers’ kids. I’m so glad they got to know him, but would give anything for them to have had more time with him.

I want to publicly thank everyone for the emails, texts, Facebook & Twitter messages, support and kind words. It’s very much appreciated.

I also want to thank the nurses and doctors who cared for my Dad. I’m forever in their debt.

I don’t even know what I’m feeling right now but I do know I miss him terribly already. One thing I encourage you all to do is take more photos of your parents. Here are just a few of my favourite photos of my Dad….

1st August 1964

Dad meets Elliott

At our wedding

4 generations of Gerrards

The family man

A husband for almost 49 years

With the grandkids (all but one)

The last family photo

Love ya Dad. RIP xx

Goodbye for now…

Stacey & Paul were married a few weeks ago in Liverpool. It was Record Store Day. Their venue was next door to Probe Records. Of course I was gonna get a photo outside the record store!

Their ceremony took place at St Mary’s Church in West Derby with the reception at the spectacular Athenaeum in the heart of Liverpool.

This was such a classy yet relaxed wedding, and Stacey & Paul made our job a breeze. At the end of the day, I walked with the couple to the taxi rank in the middle of Liverpool’s club & bar district to catch a cab back to the hotel. Way to get attention!

Thanks to the lovely and talented Katy Mutch for 2nd shooting with me again. Check out her website HERE

*Note.. We’ve decided we’re going to blog less images per wedding. Meaning we actually blog more weddings. Watch out for a lot more weddings on the blog this summer*

Check out Stacey & Paul’s slideshow HERE