And so it was that the last of my Christmas weddings saw me travelling up a snowy road in Doagh for some old friends in what was a very special day behind the camera for me.

Lynda, Mike and myself all went to the same grammar school years ago. Lynda was the quiet one and Mike was the life and soul of the class (I was the quiet one in the back…;) Lynda and I in fact, used to sit beside each other in primary school.

My parents moved away from Carrickfergus to be closer to my Grandmother in Belfast when I was 10 years old and it would be another six years before I’d see Lynda again.

During the speeches Mike recounted a beautiful story of how they first met. Lynda had transferred to our school for sixth form and on hearing my name on the class register she had looked around to see if she could see (and recognise) me. And it was at that point when she first saw Mike and the spark was set!

All of these years later they tied the knot in the beautiful Saint Brides Parish church just outside Doagh in County Antrim before heading up to the Galgorm Resort for the wedding reception. Personally and professionally, this wedding was just wonderful (even if it is always a little more challenging when you personally know the clients).

Out the front of the church after the ceremony someone said to me in passing, “Dylan – doesn’t it seem like a dream?” And I have to say, it absolutely did – the light was just fantastic and with the sun shining and snow on the ground, the scene was set for some lovely moments.

These are my personal favourite photographs from the day: – my thanks to Rev Paul Redfern for graciously allowing me access at the front of the church. As a documentary wedding photographer, without access, many of these lovely ceremony moments would have been lost to memory.

And as Bob Dylan once wrote, “Take care of all of your memories – for you cannot relive them”.

Ceremony: St Mary’s, Knockbridge, County Louth

Reception: Castle Leslie, Co Monaghan

To me, venues like Castle Leslie act like fabulous film backdrops, which, when filled with the characters of the wedding day, allow me lots of opportunities to document the story of the day by freezing little moments in time with my camera. And this wedding certainly felt like a film to me.

Many of Angela and Darren’s friends and family had flown in from Bermuda and Newfoundland for the day and even though it was cold and damp outside I have to say I enjoyed every minute of covering this wedding.

Ang and Darren sent me these lovely words after seeing their pictures:
“Hi Dylan, Love the pics! Thanks a million for sharing in our special day. I really felt like you were a guest and love what you captured on film…truly amazing and we will cherish them for years to come. We’ll raise a glass to you and your talent in Barcelona!
Angela and Darren”

Here’s a few of my personal favourite photographs from their day:

The first of my Christmas weddings was in County Down with Paula and Gerard’s wedding in Ballykinler and reception at the Slieve Donard Hotel in Newcastle.

The week before the wedding it had snowed a fair bit down in the Mournes and the whole of Northern Ireland was covered in a blanket of ice. Thankfully on the wedding day the sun shone and the church and Mournes provided a fabulous wintry backdrop to the occasion.

Paula sent me a lovely email after seeing their pictures online:
“Hi Dylan; the wedding pictures are gorgeous; I can’t remember you taking half of them! They are so beautiful and everyone looks really happy happy!! I loved my wedding day, wanted to do it all over again; it goes by so quickly!”

I have to say that Paula, Gerard and the whole of their family and friends were a delight to photograph. There’s a real warmth to the people and weddings here in Northern Ireland and especially at this time of year. Here are just some of my favourite moments from the day.

“Time is a jetplane – it moves too fast.” Bob Dylan sang that and it always makes me think of how the year goes by so quickly. This will be my last post of the year as I concentrate on my December weddings and on tying up a few loose ends before the year end. I’d like to wish everyone a Happy Christmas and a fantastic New Year!!

In the meantime, please enjoy a little slideshow of my favourite moments from my 2010 weddings. Some of these will stay with me for the rest of my days – particularly Johanne and Davy’s wedding in Cyprus and Colleen and Karl’s wedding in Barcelona back in April. Enjoy!

What a fantastic wedding I had last week! Caroline and myself usually head off for a little break (in search of some street photography) in November but we delayed that after receiving Heather’s phonecall earlier this year.

Heather and Richard really wanted me to shoot their wedding at the Seapatrick Parish Church in Banbridge and reception at the Old Inn in Crawfordsburn and I’m glad I agreed because their wedding on Thursday was just lovely.

I’m happy to say that Heather and Richard’s wedding was very relaxed with lots of wonderful moments the whole day long. As ever, here are just a few of my personal favourites.

Ceremony: St Malachy’s Church Belfast

Reception: The Merchant Hotel Belfast

Beautiful weather on Saturday made for some gorgeous autumnal sunshine – quite a difference from Friday when it decided to rain all day long.

The light spilling into the Merchant Hotel and at Saint Malachy’s church at the start of the day was fantastic and the day was just full of beautiful fleeting moments.

Helen and Dan were two of the most lovely people to shoot pictures for. They’d travelled over with many of their friends and family from London for the wedding – so it was good to see Belfast looking lovely in the sunshine for them.

With that in mind, the day had a great ‘destination wedding’ feel even though the surroundings were very familiar for me. I grew up catching the bus home from Bridge Street and High Street and for a period about eight years ago I lived right across the square from the Merchant Hotel.

Dan and Helen didn’t stop smiling all day and the love shown to them by friends and family was just lovely to witness. I always think that the sign of a great wedding is that when I go to leave I always wish I had attended the wedding as a guest and got to know everyone a little more. The best weddings always leave me with that feeling. I’ve said this before but it’s the people who make for a great wedding.

As for what makes a great picture… I look for light, composition and storytelling. If I can get those three elements within the frame when I press the shutter then I’m a happy man.

As ever, here are some of my personal favourites.

Jo and Andy are both pilots and have been in Belfast (and up in the sky) for a few days before they head off on honeymoon next week. In between flying their aeroplanes across the water they’ve sent some lovely words of appreciation. I just loved what Andy said about Jo arriving:

“Dylan the photos are all amazing. We sat down to dinner last night & pressed play on the slideshow. Dinner had to be reheated! We were blown away and both very teary (OK OK Andy teary and me sobbing my heart out! If I could gather up all the compliments you have had since you’d be bowled over.” – Jo

“Hey Dylan, Have been looking at our pictures on the blog and they are fantastic! Really reminds us of the great day we had and how special we were made to feel by everybody who came along.They also really reminded me of standing at the front of the church waiting for Jo to walk in, that nervous/excited feeling. And then seeing the white dress appear behind the guests in the corner and move towards me and become the vision that took my breath away. Thanks again for all your help in the build up, and on the day, you were great.” – Andy

Arriving at the church I stepped out of the car and walked up the drive – a walk Jo and her parents must have been making ever since she was a little girl. The bells rang out as Jo arrived and I stepped back inside the hushed church with my camera and watched the drama unfold.