Seaton Carew Engagement Shoot with Sharon and Steven

I had a great engagement shoot with Sharon and Steven the other day. We managed to get a brief gap between showers and headed down to Golden Bay near Seaton Carew.

Seaton Carew's golden sands

Engagement Shoot by DJP Wedding Photography

A beaming bride-to-be

Sand dunes at Golden Bay

Just behind Hartlepool Power station

The happy couple

It looks warm but is was'nt!

This is a quiet little spot near Seaton Carew and beyond Seaton Carew GolfLinks.  Look one way and you get lovely sand dunes and the North sea. Look the other and its all the cranes and chemicals on Teesside and Hartlepool's finest power station. Such is the juxtaposition of the North East.

Steven and Sharon were great and fantastic to work with and I'm really looking forward to their wedding at the Wainstones.

If your looking for a Wedding Photographer in the North East. Please have a stroll over to DJP Wedding Photography and check out the samples and packages.

Crathorne Hall Wedding - Wedding Photographer

I recently had the pleasure of shooting a spring wedding at Crathorne Hall in North Yorkshire on a fantastic spring day. The bride and groom had travelled back home from where they work in Hong Kong to tie the knot at St Mary Magdalene Church in Yarm and followed by an extremely elegant wedding reception at Crathorne Hall.

 

Who would have thought that the overcast evening before at the wedding rehearsal the next day would be so bright and cloudless? It was nice to see the rector, Simon Gurd at the church having a giggle with Alex and Jo as he went through the wedding service rehearsal. I know in my job as a wedding photographer how important it is to put your clients at ease. It not only makes the whole process easier but more enjoyable for everyone.

This pretty little Yarm church is a picturesque mid-size wedding venue that doesn’t feel to empty when half full of guests. The first church to stand on this site was Saxon and would have been built of wood. So in the last 1000-odd years it must have seen many changes. It’s believed that the fist stone church on this site was built under the rule of William the Conqueror around 1150AD. The building must have gone through many changes over the years and inevitably grew in size. The addition of the tower was believed to have happened in the 1500’s and this remains unaltered from that date. The present building is the result of a Georgian re-vamps in 1730 following a huge fire that gutted the church. The interior now has a feel of modest splendour and features stained glass windows of breath-taking beauty and detail. The large Moses window is the oldest and best of the glass in the church. It was executed by famous glass artist William Peckitt (1731 – 14 October 1795).

The present pews, pulpit, clerk’s desk and choir stalls date from 1878 and are in the Renaissance style. The High Altar was made out of pews removed from the South aisle in 1940. The Sanctuary Altar rails are the work of the noted Yorkshire craftsman Robert Thompson – the Mouseman of Kilburn – and were given in 1948 in memory of Mary Clapham and her son John Geoffrey who was killed in the Second World War. The dedication and the identifying mouse, is carved on the Sanctuary side of the rails. The Font is an octagonal bowl of Tees marble with incurved sides on each of which is a blank shield. It is thought to have been fashioned in the 15th century.

The weather was warm and still as the guests arrived on the vintage bus which is always good news for a wedding photographer. The service went without a hitch and it was clear to see how much Alex and Jo were enjoying it. If they were at all nervous you couldn’t tell in a while they were leaving the church and stepping out into the sunshine with big smiles on their faces.

So from Yarm we took a 10minutes trip to Crathorne Hall. Crathorne Hall is one of those stately homes that look far older than it actually is. It does have a Brideshead Revisited feel to it despite only being built in 1906. The first owner James Lionel Dugdale (1862 - 1941) laid the foundation stone of Crathorne Hall in December 1903 building work being completed three years later. It was the largest Country house built during the reign of Edward VII and was constructed from stone quarried from near Whitby. The Hall remained the central focus of a large estate until it was sold to become a hotel in 1977 remaining one of the most picturesque and luxuriant establishments in the North of England.

The reception was also blessed by the weather so guests could enjoy the sunshine outside in the Palladian splendour while I stole the bride and groom for a quick 20m minutes photo session. Most newlyweds enjoy this bit of the day as it’s often first time they get to spend some time together on the busy wedding day. After moving inside for the wedding breakfast I left the party in peace for an hour and took a breather myself. (Who wants pictures of themselves eating?

)

This gave me chance to nip home and run off a quick print for the bride and groom so at least they have a photograph of their wedding by the end of this. This is not always possible (particularly when shooting a wedding in New Zealand, as I’m doing later in the year!) but thought it would be a nice gesture…they loved it!

For further samples see http://www.djpweddingphotography.com/

I took further candid pictures at the speeches capturing all those funny and sweet little moments. My final duty for the evening was photographing the first dance. When I finally know I had all the shots I needed in the bag I said my goodbyes to the bride and groom who had been so easy to work with and most entertaining. As with all my weddings the bride and groom start of as clients and end up as friends. Congratulations and Good Luck Alex and Jo.

Comments from the couple themselves;
'We just wanted to drop you a quick email to say thanks for last Friday, we had such an amazing time and we have received may compliments from guests about what a nice bloke the photographer was!!'

'Just to let you know that the CD's have arrived safe and well in Hong Kong and the photos are absolutely brilliant. Thank you for doing such a great job. '

Thanks for visiting.

Check Out: http://www.djpweddingphotography.com/

Lee and Chrissie's Nottingham Wedding

I had the pleasure of photographing Lee and Chrissies wedding in Beeston Parish Church and then Clumber Park Spa. It was a lovely winters day in December and thankfully the rain held off. This is an eight minute slideshow that tells the story of their day with just a few of the hundreds of pictures that they recieved.

Lee and Chrissie were delighted with the results simply saying..... "These photos are Amazing, we LOVE the photos! can't wait to see the album."

Clumber Park Hotel & Spa is one of Nottinghamshire’s premier venue for your wedding celebrations. Clumber Park is over 3,800 acres (15 km²) in extent, including woods, open heath and rolling farmland. It contains a superb, serpentine lake covering 87 acres (352,000 m²), and the longest double avenue of lime trees in Europe (pictured). The avenue extends over three miles (5 km), and was created by the 5th Duke of Newcastle in the 19th Century. The Park was originally left to the people of Worksop by the late Duke of Newcastle but the National Trust bought it in 1946.[3] Some of the park's estate was subsequently closed to the public. There is vehicle access for the areas that are open to the public, and the parking in the central area has a charge (free for members of National Trust).[4] On the way to the main park ing area there is also has a cricket pitch with a thatched roof pavilion in the style of a cottage clad in rustic split logs. Along the road side are large open areas to park and picnic.
The Gothic revival chapel at Clumber is an excellent place for long walks and has several miles of paths and cycle tracks surrounding the lake. The park has a range of bicycles available for hire including tandems and adult tricycles from an estate building located by the main car park adjacent to the chapel and the Visitors center in the old stable block, were a range of facilities are located. Part of the block house a visitor display on the history of the park, the usual National Trust Shop and Restrauant, and toilets. Off the main lime tree avenue are camping facilities.

Route 6 of the National Cycle Network passes through the park linking it to Sherwood Forest and Sherwood Pines with only a few road crossings necessary.