As you may know Melville Castle is now owned by the Aurora group who also own the renowned Airth Castle and Glenbervie so we had a few exhibitors from Airth and Glenbervie as well as the local recommended wedding suppliers from Edinburgh. As you can imagine the three venue’s get bombarded from wedding suppliers wanting to jump on board and exhibit at these three
illustrious establishments but Stephen McLeod, the chief executive of Aurora, has been whittling down the recommended suppliers list to a select few so that only the very best appear at the wedding shows and on their recommendation list. Personally, I wholeheartedly agree with this approach as it is good for all our reputations to be associated with the best in the business and it means we can all refer between us thus keeping the standards high and providing bride and grooms the highest possible level of service. Throughout the show I met with several couples looking for a wedding photographer but for dates where I was already booked so it was advantageous to simply show them along to one of the other photographers at 
the fair knowing they’d get looked after well. All in all I had a busy and exciting day chatting with couples, answering questions and giving advice. And, yes, I did get asked plenty of times which venue’s in and around Edinburgh I’d recommend! I had four couples book me for dates in November and December 2010, and then June and July 2011. I also have several meetings to arrange for next week, too. 
I’ve mentioned before how every album and book I design is unique and exclusive to each wedding. And with not having to resort to template software I can employ lots of little personal touches to each design that otherwise would not be possible. Well the last two or three wedding books I’ve designed have incorporated a number of beautiful, personalised elements that have really given the album its own individual intimacy. So I managed to get a couple of samples produced in time for the show and I was really pleased at the enthusiastic reaction to them.
Do you remember me telling you about the guy I met at a Melville Castle wedding fair last spring who was looking for a wife? He loved my photography and albums but then when I asked about his wedding he told me he hadn’t yet found a wife. Well, he was back again! And he still hasn’t found a wife! To be honest, although I didn’t have the heart to say this to him, but I wouldn’t have thought a wedding fair would be the best place to find one as surely all the girls there are already taken, lol.
I was also at Photovision, along with many other Edinburgh wedding photographers and portrait photographers this week too. Photovision is a bit like the Scottish version of Focus on Imaging, only about one tenth the size lol. But it was good to have a look at many of the local wedding and photographic manufacturers and all the latest products. I’m going to be introducing a really cool new portrait service within the next few weeks so I’m excited about that. I let you know more about it later.
There’s a few pictures of Melville Castle weddings posted for you just to fit the theme of the blog and if you are planning a wedding at Melville Castle or anywhere else in Scotland and you haven’t yet got a wedding photographer in Scotland I’m always available for a chat or a consultation.
Hi Philip,
ReplyDeleteThat's a new one on me, looking for a bride at a bridal show... Although there are bridesmaids there with their brides and often they are unattached. Love the pictures of Melville Castle. My family is originally from Scotland and I would love to come photograph a wedding there sometime. We just don't have castles like this here in Denver or Colorado for that matter.