Aydin Rocks!
Just before Christmas I received an email from Los Angeles. It was from a band manager looking for a photographer to shoot some portraits of a guitarist called Aydin who is hoping to take the leap into the big time and a potential sponsorship with Fender Guitars.
Aydin came to the studio and, after a quick simple portrait against the white studio wall, we headed out into the streets of Digbeth. In just over an hour we got a great collection of varied images and Aydin was super-cool in front of the camera. Here’s just a few of the finished photos…
FAVOURITE!!!
A little bit of Oasis attitude 
Good luck with everything Aydin. Don’t forget me when you’re famous! 
Portrait Shoot in a Blizzard (almost)
Anneliese was on her way over for a family shoot in the park when the skies blackened. By the time she arrived with her husband Richard, their three kids, her brother and his family, the weather was looking somewhat grim! I put the kettle on…
Luckily it wasn’t too long before the skies began to look a little brighter and the rain eased off. We decided to head to the park. I grabbed a few shots of the kids and some group shots and then the weather turned again. It was even worse this time and we ran for cover.
We must have only had about 20 minutes to get some images but I reckon we got some good ones. Here are my faves…
OK… cute alert!!
Tony Iommi
As a Birmingham photographer and life-long music fan I was honoured to be invited to shoot a portrait of Black Sabbath guitarist, Tony Iommi. This man has played alongside Ozzy Osbourne for 40 years and is responsible for some of heavy metal’s all-time classics. “Paranoid” anyone?
No big productions, just a simple picture of a music legend…
Wedding Photographers in Birmingham & The West Midlands
There are so many Birmingham wedding photographers (go on, Google it!) that it must be daunting for couples who are planning their wedding and have no idea where to start when it comes to finding their photographer. I often mention to couples that they spend thousands of pounds on the day itself but it’s only the photographs (and occasionally a video) that will stay with them until they’re old and grey.
Obviously, given my choice of career, I place enormous value on photography and the clients we tend to meet generally feel the same way and invest their money accordingly. Some couples spend more on their cake than they do on their wedding photography. As amazing as some wedding cakes are (see Ben the Cakeman for example), in twenty or thirty years time, having a beautiful wedding album which brings back all the memories of your wedding is priceless.
With so many wedding photographers in the West Midlands many people imagine us to be in fierce competition with each other but, in reality, many of us are friends who are more than willing to help each other out. Photographers like Emily Quinton and Claire Evans are good friends of ours and we often recommend each other to clients when they enquire about a date where we’re already booked.
A lot of people also seem to think that they have to choose a wedding photographer from their local area. I was recently asked if I would travel as far as Lichfield for a wedding. Lichfield is less than 30 minutes from our studio! After doing weddings in Devon, Cornwall, Brighton, Newark, London (see image above) and more recently New York, Lichfield seems almost walking distance! But maybe not with all that equipment! This weekend I’m shooting Kate & Dan’s wedding in Somerset
So, how do you choose a wedding photographer?
For me, the first thing to decide is if you like their style. Every wedding photographer is different and each has their own unique view of the world. Some are very formal and traditional, others specialize in reportage photography where they document the wedding without interacting with the couple or their guests. Some photographers are influenced by fashion magazines, others by movies. For me, our style incorporates many different influences to produce a style which is unique to us.
Once you’ve found a photographer whose style you like, the next thing is to get to know them. It’s important to gel with the person who will be so involved in your wedding day and to understand how they like to work on the day itself. We hear so many stories of nightmare wedding photographers who throw strops, boss people around, take hours to do the formal photographs or don’t even turn up to the wedding! None of the photographers we know would act like that, but there are still plenty of wedding photographers around who give the rest a bad name.
Obviously meeting photographers in person is a great way to get to know them but these days you can also get a sense of a person’s style and personality through their blog. Not all photographers have blogs but, for those that do, it’s a great way to see their recent work as well as getting a sense of who they are as a person. It’s the reason I post about days out with my wife, Evelyne and my son, Elliott, as well as weddings, portraits and my band photography. You could even keep up with what I’m up to on Twitter.
There are plenty of other questions to ask when choosing your wedding photographer but, for us, most clients book us because they appreciate good photography and we get on well when we first meet. They may also love our Queensberry albums or the fact that we stay for the whole day but if they don’t like the images we capture they obviously won’t book us.
Many couples remain friends with Evelyne and I long after the wedding day has passed. Some book us to photograph their newborn babies. Some arrange to meet us when they go to a concert. And it’s great that many will recommend us to friends when they decide to get married.
Whoever you choose for your wedding photography, we hope you have an amazing day that you’ll remember for the rest of your lives…. with a wedding album worthy of the occasion
Cancer Bats
Last week I got to shoot one of my favourite live bands - Canada’s Cancer Bats. This is a band who put 110% into their live shows, the whole thing becoming a huge party involving both the band and their audience. Singer, Liam Cormier, has trouble staying on the stage, preferring instead to interact with the crowd by climbing all over them!
Cancer Bats’ latest album, Hail Destroyer, has just been voted the No.3 album of 2008 by Kerrang! magazine. Here’s some pictures from last week’s gig which you can see reviewed on the Birmingham Live website.
After the gig the band were good enough to let me take a portrait of them in the car park around the back of the venue. If you like bands with energy, big riffs and plenty of punk rock attitude, make sure you check Cancer Bats out next time they visit your town.
Sir Cliff!
Ok, so this blog post is dedicated to my mom
When I was a kid I remember saving my pocket money and going into town to buy the Cliff Richard album “Wired For Sound” for my mom’s birthday. Another time I was in Manchester with some friends and we camped out for Slayer tickets (on the Reign In Blood tour). About an hour before the box office opened we were joined by lots and lots of excited housewives. Not your typical Slayer fans! Turns out Cliff Richard tickets went on sale the same day. As we were already at the font of the queue I got my mom the best Cliff tickets in the house! My dad went with her. Sorry Dad!
Fast forward two decades and I find myself photographing Cliff’s 50th Anniversary Tour at Birmingham NIA for Birmingham Live! This time my mom was in Spain so I couldn’t sneak her in. Sorry Mom!
So here are just a few photos of Cliff for my mom…
Arriana & Kiri
Winter time tends to see less portrait shoots due to the cold weather but I recently met up with Funbir and Resh to photograph them with their 2 girls, Arriana & Kiri. The girls were fantastic and instantly relaxed in front of the camera. I think I may be Arriana’s new best friend!
We took some more posed shots but my favourites, as usual, were the ones where the kids forgot they were being photographed and just enjoyed being kids.
After a break for pizza we headed outside into the autumn afternoon and added some variety to the shoot.
We’re hoping to do a lot more family portrait shoots in 2009 as part of a major new project (more details here soon).
For the photographers reading this, I normally shoot most of my outdoor kids portraits with my 70-200 IS lens but the focusing broke on the day of the shoot! It’s fine now thanks to ACS who fixed and returned it in 24 hours, but most of the images above were taken with a simple little 50mm 2.5 lens.
Many thanks to Funbir, Resh and the girls for making me so welcome. I’m off to New York tomorrow for my first US wedding shoot. It’s gonna be cold but I can’t wait!
Sir Elton John
Certain artists need no introduction.
Last night I was honoured to photograph the legend that is Elton John at the Birmingham NIA. It’s the 2nd time I’ve seen him live but the first time I’ve photographed him and I knew I had to do a great job! Who knows when I’ll get to shoot him again..
Elton brought his massive Vegas show with him and it was spectacular! And quite decadent too. I only had one song to shoot from the front of the stage and then one song to shoot from slightly further back and to the side. I wanted to get as much variety as I could considering it was all about one man sat at a piano.
After I finished shooting I stayed for the entire show and I have to say Elton was on form. He played one of my favourite songs of all time, Tiny Dancer, and it seemed like the show was made up entirely of classic tunes, with Bennie & The Jets and Rocket Man being two more personal highlights.
Here are just a few of my favourite images from the show..
Jo & Jim - Married at New Hall, Sutton Coldfield
New Hall in Walmley near Sutton Coldfield is without a doubt one of the best venues in the Midlands to have a wedding. It’s a stunning venue, part of which is around a thousand years old, and the grounds are perfect to escape into for photos. On top of that, the staff are super-friendly and extremely professional. And they serve the best chips you’ve ever tasted! As if that weren’t enough, they can even boast being the set for part of the Bon Jovi video for Sleep When I’m Dead.
Jo & Jim’s wedding wasn’t the first wedding we had shot at New Hall but it was definitely one of the most fun. The couple are so easy-going and their guests made us feel like a part of the day rather than hired staff! They had perfect weather too.
Here’s just a few of my favourite images from the day, beginning with a quick round of golf…
But obviously Jo was the real star..
The main hall at New Hall makes for quite a dramatic setting for the ceremony… Or in Bon Jovi’s case, the party!
And the garden is perfect to relax with friends and family after the knot has been tied.
But it’s always nice to take some time to escape the crowd..
The rings.
Jim had two best men and they did a grand job, even going as far as getting matching football “tattoos” in honour of the groom..
Later in the day I stole the couple away for some cool portraits. LOVE these!!
Some couples make our job the best job in the world and Jo & Jim definitely fall into that category. We just ordered their album and I can’t wait to see the finished result. It’s gonna be gorgeous!
Thanks again J&J for inviting us to be a part of your wedding. We had a great day and wish you both a fantastic future together. Don’t forget to book us to photograph the kids when they arrive And I hope you enjoyed the mix CD!
Happy Birthday Mrs Gerrard
Whenever we have a day off we try to make the most of it and take a trip out with the family, so Evelyne’s birthday was no exception. The weather wasn’t great so we opted for the National Sea Life Centre in Birmingham where we introduced Elliott to a few creatures he hadn’t met before.
One of Elliott’s favourite parts was the Hall Of Mirrors..
But he loved the weird and wonderful new creatures he met just as much..
The Sea Life Centre is somewhere I’ve wanted to visit for years and I wasn’t disappointed. It was fun to watch Elliott as he witnessed so many creatures for the first time. He may appreciate it more when he’s a bit older but we still had a great day out…
Happy Birthday Evelyne. I love you…
