Monday 8 November 2010

A fun filled Gretna Green Wedding!

Traditionally, in Scotland, a man & woman over the age of 16 could be married by declaring themselves husband & wife in front of witnesses. In England, you needed to be 18….consequently eloping young couples fled to Scotland for their marriages. The ceremonies were often carried out over the anvil with the ''Blacksmiths Priest'' officiating. Gretna Green was the first changing post across the Scottish Border for the stagecoaches on the main London so Edinburgh route & so began its long association with the romance of the runaways. So with all that romance buzzing around in my head I was very excited to shoot my first wedding there!

Nicola and Leighton chose Anvil Hall for their ceremony and Smiths Hotel for their reception. Both venues are some of the nicest places to get married in Gretna Green and as it was October it felt a lot quieter than it would have been in the summer. We were all biting our nails over the weather but it turned out to be a lovely day and we were able to take plenty of photos outside….even one of the M74 motorway sign (not my idea…ask the Bride!!!).

The day started with Nicola all the girls getting ready in a large beautiful suite and you could literally feel the excitement in the room! Meanwhile, Leighton was with his Best Man and Ushers elsewhere in the hotel and was feeling nervous but really looking forward to the day. And before we knew it Nicola was boarding her Camper Van and was off to get married over the anvil!

After the obligatory photos with the piper, in the Kissing Gate and Gretna Green sign we returned to Smith Hotel for an amazing reception. The room looked absolutely gorgeous with the gold butterfly theme beautiful fishbowl centrepieces. It was unfortunate that a couple of guests couldn’t attend the wedding as they were called to deal with the Nuclear Submarine that run aground….but all was not lost, as my husband and I were able to have their meals! So I can personally vouch for the food, it was incredible! Best beef I’ve EVER had.

After the reception, the sun had faded so it was time to bring out the video light and play around with the contemporary setting of the hotel. Nicola and Leighton were happy to pose for more photos then they showed me their Bridal Suite….it was AMAZING! With double balcony, massive living room area, with X Box, mood lighting, huge bathroom with the biggest Jacuzzi bath I’ve ever seen and to top it all off, a rotating circular bed. I kid you not! The Bride and Groom performed regular guided tours of the suite throughout the night!

Along with their baby Niall, Nicola and Leighton had a fantastic day and to top it all off Nicola’s Dad has booked her a Cherish the Dress shoot which we are going to do in the spring. I can’t wait!

Nicola and Leighton are honeymooning as a family at home. Leighton is in the Navy so time together is precious so I hope you are having a wonderful romantic time together.




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www.karenmcgowranphotography.co.uk

Tuesday 2 November 2010

My albums..eventually some images!

I have designed and delivered so many beautiful albums this year and almost always forget to take some photo to share with you. So when Natalie and Ashley's album arrived a little while ago I was determined to put that right!

I have chosen to use Bellissimo Albums for a number of reasons, firstly they are superb quality and very impressive. They are weighty and arrive in a beautiful presentation box. When you take your album out to show family and friends they wont fail to be impressed! The albums are 'digital story book albums' which just means that the images are printed directly onto high quality photographic card and the images are designed to tell the story of your day. I personally design the content and look of each album using multi-image layouts and striking double page presentations creating a truly story for you.

The main albums come in three sizes, 12x8, 14x10 and 16x12 inches and the number of pages in your album really depends on your budget. My most popular size is 14x10inches with 25 double page spreads as it really showcases a wedding perfectly.

I also offer various parents albums. The parents album pictured below is a 7x5inch coffee table book.

There is a definate 'trend' towards photographers attending your wedding and providing edited images on a disc. For the budget minded it's a real alternative to consider (and something I still offer) but my worry is in 10-15 years are you even going to be able to find something that can read CDs/DVDs...remember the fate of the old VHS system? eeek!

I wish my parents had a wedding album I just know it would be one of the family's most treasured possesions.



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