Wedding

Meet Melody

I like to meet you first and not be a stranger at your wedding. It is one of the biggest days of your life and I like to be able to capture it in the most natural way possible. If you don't know me, you are less likely to be relaxed and be yourself. I also enjoy working the room at your wedding, charming the guests and family in order to get the best out of them.

So whether it is face to face or over Skype its good to meet for a chat. In this way you can decide whether you like me or not. It's important that you do as I will be taking part in and recording one of the most important days of your life! 

Contract & Booking Confirmation

Once we have met and you have decide you like me (hopefully), I will send you a contract. You will then need to send it back to me to confirm the booking and make 50% deposit upfront. The remaining 50% is payable one week before the wedding date.

Complete Wedding Questionnaire

I will also send you a questionnaire with all sorts of questions such as how many guests, timings, surprises to be aware of etc. This will also include a list of suggested family and group photos which you should complete and send back to me and an usher or chosen person responsible for rounding up people for photographs so that it is as quick, efficient and fun as possible.

Send Image Ideas or Pinterest Board

I think it's a good idea if you share images that you like with me. I have my own style, but of course I can adapt if you have a particular photography or editing style you like. I often suggest sharing a Pinterest board for this.

The Big Day

It is entirely up to you how you plan your big day. I am yours for the day! Generally I start shooting with the preparations which is a pretty intimate moment. I will by this time have a good feel for how best to photograph you in a way that you feel comfortable. 

I will also photograhy the groom and his groomsmen in preparation, however the bride always tends to get more attention in the preparation phase. But it doesn't always have to be this way...

My style tends to be more candid and natural. I like to remain as unobtrusive as possible. However I do like to interact regularly as I find I get really nice reactions and photos if I charm the crowd! 

I am non traditional in shooting, however I do think that the traditional group and family shots can be quite good to do as they are one of the only times you will get all your family and friends together. I tend to go for the big group photo first so that everyone can then start partying and enjoying themselves and not have to hang around waiting for photos. A wedding should flow! Then we can do the close family, bridesmaids and groomsmen etc. We will have discussed this list before the wedding.

For the couples shots, I like to try and do these as quickly as possible, but not so quick that we can't get a little arty. So please set aside some time and have a good idea of the location that suits you best.

It has become quite normal for bride and groom to book me on an additional day to shoot the couples shots in their wedding attire. Without the time pressure of the wedding works tremendously well. We have been able to choose the right time of day for the light, some fantastic locations and shoot in a very relaxed and artistic fashion. If you are interested to hear more or see some galleries, please get in touch. 

Post Production

People often wonder why wedding photography costs more than a regular photo shoot. One reason is the additional hours. A wedding can be 16 hours start to finish, thats equivalent to 2 working days! On top of that is the post production/editing. I can easily work a full week or more on a wedding.

I like to do very natural post production that starts with the basics of dust removal, putting more blue in bleached out sky, cropping, sharpening etc. With the bride and groom I re-touch skin texture, brighten eyes, remove dark shadows etc. However I don't like to go over the top so that you look like you've been re-touched. I like the images to look natural and you to look perfect naturally.

Unlike many wedding photographers I also re-touch your guests 'imperfections'. I think it's nice for the mother of the bride to feel like she looks her best too. If any guest has an unfortunate spot or blemish pop up on the big day or have bloodshot eyes or discoloured teeth, I give them a little makeover too. That's why I have RSI! But I always imagine how happy the guests will feel when they see a nice shot of themselves. It makes me happy to do this!

Normally there is a 1-2 month turnaround for images depending on my shooting schedule. At certain times of the year I have been known to turn them around in two weeks. However I never guarantee this as I would never like to disappoint.

Once they are complete, you will receive a password protected private online gallery with options to share, print etc.