I was back in Parkanaur Manor again last Saturday – this time for Leanne and Jonathan’s wedding ceremony in the Long Gallery. Parkanaur Manor is quite a tricky place to photograph in as the space is very tight but the place just looks fabulous and I love being challenged on a wedding day. Afterwards we travelled up to the Radisson Resort in Limavady for speeches and the evening celebrations. The parents (and especially the Mums) at this wedding were in great form all day and that was lovely to see.

Here’s a few of my personal favourites from the day:

I loved everything about this wedding – it had all the best ingredients for great photographs – romance, anticipation, excitement, great characters, love, friendship, beautiful backdrops, quirky details and loads of real life split-second moments – all just waiting to be trapped by the eye and the camera.

Claire and Russell’s ceremony took place in the grand setting of Belfast’s City Hall. Afterwards they toured Belfast on a double decker bus before heading up to the Malone Road for their reception at the fabulous Barking Dog restaurant. I really enjoyed shooting in The Barking Dog – warm light, beautiful colours and lots of little nooks and corners to get photographs in. The table plan was fun too with all of the tables named after their friends and families dogs!

Claire’s sister Jenny sent me these lovely words after the wedding:
The photos are amazing!! Thank you so much for being such a great support and so lovely to us on Claire and Russell’s big day. You really were the perfect wedding guest!

Claire and Russ sent me this lovely email after seeing their pictures online on return from their honeymoon:
Hi Dylan,
Thank you so much for photographing our wedding day – the pics are just fabulous, and everyone has said how lovely you were!
We just got back yesterday and still a bit jetlagged! but we’re very excited to see the album put together.
You managed to capture some really fab moments of the day, so thank you again for your wonderful work!!
Claire and Russ xx

As ever, these are my personal favourites from their day:

Heather and Simon had their wedding at the Old Inn in Crawfordsburn. Their day was blessed with beautiful weather and they managed to get round to Crawfordsburn Country park for a little stroll and drive in their old Windsor car.

Heather sent me these lovely words after seeing her pictures online:
Hi Dylan
Everyone has said how lovely the pictures are! It’s funny as everytime I looked at them I found something new – the little one peeking round the corner or our neighbours little girl standing with her wee camera amongst the rest of the group of girls all camera ready for our first dance! And to see who was sitting where and their facial expessions and what was happening in the background of something else in the forefront – it builds the day for us and reminds us of little things too.
Thanks so much,
Heather

I have to admit I love photographing at this time of year – the light is usually beautiful, even if it’s overcast or sunny and I also enjoy working at the Old Inn in Crawfordsburn. All of the weddings I’ve photographed here have been very relaxed, intimate affairs (which suits the way I work) and the light inside is simply beautiful (if a little challenging – a real mixture of strong directional window light, dark corners, candlelight and overhead tungsten).

For me it’s more satisfying to make a picture when everything comes together visually for a brief moment than to step in and start arranging things. I think as soon as a photographer does that then the moment has gone forever and the fleeting movement in the picture will have disappeared. I think that’s why a lot of posed photographs or ‘camera-aware’ pictures have little appeal for me – there’s no movement or mystery within the frame.

Anyway, in addition to the light, the other reason I love autumn weddings is that 20th September is our own wedding anniversary! Caroline and I have now been married seven years! :)

Here are some of my personal favourites from Heather and Simon’s day:

Emma and Eugene had their wedding ceremony in St Mary’s just outside Emma’s home village of Bellaghy before heading across to the Tullyglass Hotel in Ballymena for the reception. There was a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere at this wedding and a few heavy rain showers didn’t dampen the spirit of the day.

Here’s a few of my personal favourites from the day:

Hannah and Iain had their wedding ceremony and reception in the beautiful barn at Larchfield Estate and had a wonderful day relaxing out in the gardens before heading back into the main barn for speeches, dinner and the nightime celebrations.

I’d been looking forward to this wedding ever since Hannah and her sister came to see me last year – I knew it would be full of moments and Larchfield is one of my favourite venues to work in.

Photographing a ceremony in the barn in Larchfield throws up it’s own challenges in terms of lighting and space and I know that’s something that can worry some ministers in terms of what the photographer is going to do, but for me, the same principles apply as for the rest of the day.

It’s just as Henri Cartier-Bresson said – you have to “avoid making a commotion, just as you wouldn’t stir up the water before fishing. Don’t use a flash out of respect for the natural lighting, even when there isn’t any. If these rules aren’t followed, the photographer becomes unbearably obtrusive.”

Hannah and Iain were lovely to work with and it was nice to see a few familiar faces amongst the guests.

As ever, these are my favourite real life moments:

Hannah sent me these lovely words after seeing her pictures on honeymoon:
“Hi Dylan
Just saw the pictures on hotel’s laptop.. We are delighted with them- they are amazing, thank you so so much!! We are having a fantastic honeymoon and the days are flying in! Hope all’s well with you! Thanks again for everything, you were great to have there on the day and everything felt so relaxed;-)
Best wishes,
Hannah”

Cian and Diane tied the knot at the friendly Redrock Presbyterian Church just outside Armagh. Afterwards they received a blessing at Armagh Cathedral before heading up to Parkanaur Manor House for the wedding reception.

Needless to say, both the church in Redrock and the cathedral in Armagh are beautiful buildings to work in. Parkanaur Manor was superb also – well suited to my style of documentary capture. There’s a real warmth to this wedding venue and I can’t wait to be back there in the future.

The wedding day was very relaxed with a real international flavour to the guests. During the day I spoke with guests from Chicago, British Columbia and New Jersey. Always wonderful when people travel such distances to share a special day with family and friends.

I had a great day and I’d like to thank Diane and Cian for the opportunity to capture these moments.

Here’s a few of my favourite photographs as I continue the editing.

Diane and Cian sent me a lovely message after seeing these pictures on honeymoon:
“Dylan, we have just looked at the photos, absolutely fantastic. So excited already about seeing the rest when we are back from Morocco. Thank you so much.”

“To take photographs means to recognise – simultaneously and within a fraction of a second – both the fact itself and the rigorous organisation of visually perceived forms that give it meaning. It is putting one’s head, one’s eye and one’s heart on the same axis.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson

I just love that – I’d say it’s the guiding principle I take in to all of my weddings. September has been a very busy month for me so I’m hoping I can keep pace on this blog with all of the weddings I’ve been shooting lately.

On the 4th of September I was back in Coleraine for Aoibheann and Neil’s wedding ceremony in the wonderful Saint Malachys before heading back up to Aoibheann’s home for a lovely marquee wedding reception where the guests could relax and enjoy the day.

Here’s just a few of the fleeting moments I saw that day.

Aoibheann sent Caroline these lovely words after seeing her pictures online:
“Very many thanks for this – they are so wonderful and everyone has been commenting on how unique and beautiful all the shots are. Dylan has really captured the happiness and love of the day.”