Orocco Pier Hotel wedding - June and Paul

I showed you some photos from June and Paul’s Engagement Shoot on Calton Hill a couple of weeks ago and now they are a married couple! It was a wonderful wedding at Orocco Pier Hotel in South Queensferry and here’s a look at some of my favourite images from their big day. The photographs can be seen better if you click on any one of them which opens up a larger gallery style viewer.

Orocco Pier is a well known wedding venue to Edinburgh wedding photographers being just a short drive along the coast. It has been a couple of years since I last photographed a wedding here so it was nice to be back and capitalise on the famous Forth Bridges back drops.

The photography began at the brides home and after getting all the detail shots I did some bridal portraits with June and then a few group photographs with her bridesmaids and mother. There was a couple of showers threatening so we were unsure if the planned outdoor ceremony would have to be moved inside but as it turned out things stayed dry all day and the sun even came out for a little look, too!

On arrival at Orocco Pier the car park was full, which was something I had anticipated, so I jumped out with the main camera bag and left Diane to drive further into the village to find a parking space. Paul was inside getting his instructions from the registrar and when they’d finished I did some photos with him and his bestman and usher before heading back out onto the street for the arrival of the wedding car.

It’s a small narrow street that runs through South Queensferry so when the wedding car pulls up outside the hotel entrance it takes up most of the road. Fortunately the other motorists are very accommodating and actually seem to be glad of the opportunity to pull up and watch the arrival of the bridal party. The wedding car was a beautiful, gleaming white Daimler with plenty of room in the back for June, her two bridesmaids and mother. The driver also kindly agreed to stay around for a few minutes after the ceremony so June and Paul could get a few photos with the car as well.

The outdoor ceremony took place on Orocco’s Terrace overlooking the Firth of Forth. As usual I worked around the periphery using a combination of wide angle and telephoto lenses to get a good variety of photos. For the signing of the register the couple were seated in the little gazebo-type-thingy (not too sure if that’s its trade name!) at the front and I’d already decided to do the family group photographs here as well as the shade would ensure no one squinting into the sun.

Once the ceremony was over everyone enjoyed a drink in the sunshine that now bathed the Terrace. June and Paul took a quick ten minute break to get the photos with the wedding car and I also did a few traditional style wedding pictures in the formal gardens that sits opposite the hotel. When we went back inside the newly weds requested all the guests pop down onto Orocco Pier’s private beach for a Big Group shot with the Forth Rail Bridge behind them all while the tide was out. Two hours later and the tide was in and the area we had all been standing in had all gone.

When all the family photos were done June, Paul, bridesmaids, bestman and usher all went for a photo session along the harbour. I wanted to make good use of both bridges for back grounds and also get a nice mix of natural relaxed looking shots together with some stylish images. It will be interesting to see how the back ground scenery changes here in the not too distance future once the new Forth Road Bridge arrives. When I had got all I needed the videographer asked for a few minutes with the bridal party to set up an "everyone kicking legs in the air" and everyone running towards camera brandishing their arms wildly about and screaming a war cry at the top of their voices. I cannot imagine what that will look like on the final video but no doubt it will be awesome! ;)

Speeches were before the meal and as usual were great fun. I was back in the room a little later too as June had asked if I’d do some table shots of all the guests during coffee. Following the wedding breakfast June and the bridesmaids headed up to their hotel room as June was changing dress for the evening reception. I followed them up and once ready did a few photos with the girls both in the room and also out under the skylight in the main corridor. We were joined again by the videographer who wanted some footage of all the girls jumping up and down on the bed. I have to confess I’m not a lover of this as I was photographing a wedding a few years ago where the video guy got the girls to do this and the bed ended up collapsing and one of the bridesmaids broke her leg. Fortunately nothing untoward occurred this time and we were soon back down in the function room for the cake cutting and dancing.

We ended up with around 450 photographs from the wedding. All my couples get all the photographs on DVD at high resolution with whatever package they have opted for so it really is excellent value for money. If you are looking for more details on wedding photography in Edinburgh my pricing and package info is all on my website, just click this link - wedding photographer Edinburgh. Remember everything is flexible and I’m always happy to meet up for a chat and make sure you get everything you want from your special day.

MacDonald Marine Hotel wedding - Gillian and David

On the morning of Gillian and David’s wedding day it was steadily pouring with rain. As a full time wedding photographer in Edinburgh rain is part and parcel of the fickle Scottish weather and I’m taking photographs in it day in day out, so whatever happens on your big day we’re fully equipped and prepared for it and your photographs will be stunning no matter what. However, I was feeling a little sorry for David and Gillian as they were getting married at MacDonald Marine Hotel in North Berwick and would have loved to have gone alongside the beach for some shots with the famous Bass Rock in the background. As it turned out, and as you can see from the photo spreads the weather took a turn for the better and we did indeed get some great photographs along the beach!

I set off from Edinburgh in the cold and wet but by the time I arrived in North Berwick it had stopped raining, warmed up and the sun was making an appearance. I was booked to start at 1pm but arrived early at the hotel around noon as I wanted to check out whether or not the ground would be too damp for walking Gillian and David over to the beach after the ceremony. Indeed it was rather damp but I was able to pick out an alternative where we could get some photographs in front of Bass Rock without having to take the usual trail all the way down to the beach front.

This was my first wedding at MacDonald Marine Hotel, and what a gorgeous venue it is! Nice and spacious and elegant throughout and with lovely private gardens having access to the North Berwick coastline.

I met David and the groomsmen in the hotel lobby looking for their button holes. Once they’d got them in place we went out onto the main Hotel entrance for a few photos on the steps. On my previous recce of the hotel I had been encouraged to use the steps for the formal group photographs being told that they are a popular spot with wedding photographers. At the time I noted that this would only be a possibility if it was an overcast day because the steps face southward and would therefore be looking straight into the sun. As it so happened the sun was now out and beeming away brightly which would make all the guests squint if positioned on the steps so there was no way I could do the family group photos here. Instead we’d go out into the rear gardens where there were plenty of ideal spots. For the pre-wedding photos with David and his bestman and two ushers the steps were no problem as I could angle them to ensure the sun didn’t cause this problem for any of them.

There were three officiants present for the ceremony as the main registrar was training two others. I located myself quietly at the front of the suite and used the corners to get shots of the faces of bride and groom as they went through their declarations, vows and ring exchange. The first kiss is always one of my favourite shots but from experience I know never to lower the camera as soon as I’ve got the shot as often couples will come in for a quick embrace or other intimate sign of affection right afterwards. These spontaneous moments, although occurring for only a split second, are very often priceless as you really can capture the feelings and emotions within that tiny moment of time. If you read my blog regularly you will already know that a previous shot like this that I captured at a wedding two years ago was selected by BBC Magazines for their feature "Best Ever Wedding Shots" which was published back in April of this year.

As you can see in the fourth spread here Gillian and David came in for a quick embrace right after their first kiss and the shot in my opinion is actually better and carries more emotion and mood than the first kiss photo. But having shot both of them they can be married up together in the wedding album storybook style where they will then carry even greater impact!

During the drinks reception most photographers will do the family group photographs. I don’t post many of these on my blog as most readers will not know any of the people in them but I do upload all of them into the couples online gallery so all the family can see everything we took. I don’t place any limits on how many I’ll take, but even so I usually have them all finished in around twenty minutes, so I don’t use up a huge portion of the couples day. Many couples request a Big Group photograph of all their guests on their wedding day which I think is perfect as it’s nice to have an official visual record of everyone who was at your wedding.

Following the group photos I took David and Gillian off for a walk around the gardens and also out onto the periphery of the golf course which as I mentioned earlier would allow me to get some shots with Bass Rock as a back ground. When we’d finished up I went along and took photos of the room set up before any of the guests entered as this is something the bride and groom never get to see on their wedding day and thereafter I work around the fringe of the wedding party looking for informal and candid moments.

Speeches and cake cutting ceremony were where we finished our coverage of Gillian and David’s wedding ending up with over 250 photographs altogether which of course they get on their DVD copyright free. If you are planning a wedding at the MacDonald Marine Hotel, or indeed anywhere at all in Scotland, and want a good Edinburgh wedding photographer just give me a call or drop me an email.

Please remember you can click on the photos here to open up the gallery viewer to see them at a larger size and scroll through them in sequence. It also saves you reading all my text! ;)

Engagement Shoots on Calton Hill

Calton Hill in Edinburgh has always been popular with photographers since the days of Queen Victoria. It has an iconic view of the Edinburgh skyline dominated by the indomitable sight of Edinburgh Castle sitting atop Castle Rock. On a warm summer Sunday afternoon in 1842 Queen Victoria took her photographer up Calton Hill for a photo with the impressive Edinburgh vista as a backdrop. Sadly, things didn’t go too well. The camera’s in those days were great enormous bulky things and the photographer took so long setting the shot up that by the time he was ready the queen was so fatigued with wearing her fixed smile that she blinked as the photographer tripped the camera and in the resultant photograph she thus appeared to have her eyes closed in a very unflattering way. Needless to say she was not amused!

The vista from Calton Hill is still just as impressive and as mentioned in my last blog it is one of my favourite locations for Engagement Shoots. I am sure I can’t be the only wedding photographer in Edinburgh who uses Calton Hill for e-shoots but I have to say I don’t come across too many images from here on the internet and other photography blogs, so perhaps I am fortunate in living so close by.

Due to regular visits I am very familiar with this famous Edinburgh landmark and isn’t simply the view I like but also the fact that there are numerous little nooks and crannies that afford a great variety of photographs and back grounds. So although I had done three separate couples within just a few days of each other we can still mix up the assortment of pictures for each shoot.

June and Paul booked me for their wedding about three years ago. Sadly, due to serious family illness the wedding had to be put on hold for some time, but the date was re-arranged early this year and I’m looking forward to going to Orocco Pier Hotel in 10 days time to photograph their big day.

The shots shown here are a small selection of my personal favourites from the shoot we did two weeks ago. It was raining on the day we’d scheduled but the forecast was for showers and by the time we met up at 2pm things had blown over so we took the trail from Royal Terrace and spent about half an hour or so enjoying ourselves on the hill top. Once we had finished up and were making the walk back down the showers returned, but by then we had all the shots in the bag.

As you can see in the images Paul and June are a lovely couple and look great in the photographs and I have no worries at all that they will look equally as good in their wedding photographs. I must say that I LOVE June’s shoes! Although I’m guessing they are not her wedding shoes.

With every Engagement Shoot I do the couple pick their favourite photograph from the session and I have it placed into a beautiful wide, wedding signature mount which goes on display on the day and guests can sign around the edge and leave comments and messages. The full length photograph in the fourth spread (left image) is the one Paul and June have picked to go into their signature mount, which just happens to be sat across from me in my office as I write all ready and waiting to be taken along on the big day. I no doubt will be blogging their wedding in due course so check back to see their wedding shots in a few weeks time.