It's been a while since my last wedding photography post so I have decided to choose a favourite wedding from this Summer to share with you all. 

In July I was shooting with Richie Laurie Photography at a more unusual location for a wedding - Our Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh, where Julie & Chris were tying the knot. With the spectacular backdrop of Salisbury Crags and the impressive canopy structure, Our Dynamic Earth is a unique venue with a subtle heritage twist. 

We were shooting for a full day here, with the ceremony and reception being entirely at the venue. It was a lovely sunny day, a stroke of luck with the weather, which Richie and I seem to have when we shoot weddings together! 

For the best coverage of a wedding day. Richie and I like to shoot using a technique called near and far. A two photographer package that captures every aspect of your day. This is the technique we adopted for Julie & Chris' wedding. While Richie photographed at close range and with interaction with guests, I photographed from a far, capturing the candid moments. Sometimes capturing the best moments of the day. In this case, I was happy with what what was achieved and I don't think anything happened that we missed out on!

I have included a selection of my favourite images from the day in this post. For Richie's gallery of Julie & Chris' big day, please visit this link.

An interesting aspect of weddings at Dynamic Earth is the wedding party and it's guests receive full access to the attractions for their reception. After a lovely humanist ceremony, we had some time to walk around everything on offer, we managed some interesting photographs in some interesting locations, from the cinema to the jungle area!

I enjoyed photographing the wedding at Dynamic Earth, lots going on over a large area, makes it brilliant for photographers to go wild with their creative ideas. A nice change from the usual church grounds and gardens. Also being in the city center, there are lots of options for photos in the surrounding areas. With the picturesque backdrops of Arthur's Seat and the Salisbury Crags not 10 minutes walk away you really are spoilt for choice.

Weddings these days are all about variety, and Dynamic Earth was a venue I could easy get used to photographing at regularly. I hope future weddings prove as interesting as this venue was!

It's been a while since I last updated my blog, so I thought I would share some pictures from my first wedding of the new year. Elaine and Duncan's lovely wedding day at The Caves in Edinburgh.

The Caves is a truly unique venue that makes up the sub-structure of the 18th Century South Bridge. There is no venue more Edinburgh than the Caves, or more Scottish, if you consider there was once so much Whisky stored here that it became known as "Whisky Row".

The venue is arguably the most tricky to shoot in for photographers, it being so dimly lit. It is very atmospheric, full of candle lit corridors and coloured lights. My previous trips to the venue helped me prepare for the challenge of lighting in the main room. The image below shows the venues cozy atmosphere with the dinner table display! 

Elaine and Duncan's ceremony and reception both took place at The Caves, a favourite venue of Elaine and Duncan's. What made the day extra special was Duncan's dad was marrying them, as he is a Minister with the Church of Scotland. A nice personal touch to the day that for both Duncan and George must have been very nerve wracking for the pair of them.

A lot of Elaine's relatives were over from Hong Kong for the wedding, so I knew I had to capture the best moments of the day the best I could. There will be a lot of orders coming from China I hope! 

Below are some of my favourite intimate shots of Elaine and Duncan, most came from the speeches and first dance. with Duncan being a keen DJ, he got a good say in the music later on in the night. Much to the dislike of some older relatives, and maybe even his wife!

Although one of the more difficult wedding venues to photograph in, The Caves really is a good choice for those wanting something a little different from their wedding day. Us photographers will always have to cope the best we can with the tricky lighting conditions there, but this is definitely not a complaint from me. It's a great location for weddings and photographs alike.

In mid November I was working with Richie Laurie Photography again for the wedding of Tanya & Matt. The ceremony took place at Cramond Kirk were I had worked previously with Richie, followed by a picturesque wedding bus journey to the Hub in Edinburgh's city centre.

This unique and spectacular venue is a stunning combination of award winning contemporary design and classic Victorian architecture, making it a popular choice for weddings in Edinburgh. The spectacular Gallery (pictured below) looks over the Main Hall and can welcome 100 guests for a wedding ceremony.

Matt is a RAF pilot, so there was plenty of uniforms on show for the ceremony and reception. The two wedding buses took us from Cramond to The Hub very quickly, with some photos in mind while on the bus, I struggled against the bumpy roads to get these shots! One favourite being one of the buses passing Edinburgh Castle along Johnston Terrace while hanging on at the back on the leading bus (pictured below).

The reception and Ceilidh dancing took place in The Hub's main hall, where Richie and I also set up our portable studio and additional package "The Photobooth Experience". This went down very well on the day and was great fun for all the guests and us! It was definitely the most busy and eventful booth we have done so far, as the images below show! Richie and I offer the Photo Booth as an extra on top of our wedding packages, please click on the link above to visit our Facebook page for more information on how to book...

I really liked shooting in The Hub, very spacious and good lighting with plenty of areas for interesting photography. It being in the city centre makes it very accessible as well. I'm sure I will be back very soon!

At the end of October I was shooting the wedding day of Natalie & Jamie at the popular - Ghillie Dhu in Edinburgh. I had photographed at least one previous wedding at this location so knew the lighting of the venue quite well. 

The Ghillie Dhu is a traditional Scottish Bar/Restaurant located in the city centre with a upstairs function suite that is very popular for Edinburgh weddings.  Beautifully restored in 2010, it's lavish decor and high ceilings make it a lovely choice for a traditional Scottish wedding.

Natalie & Jamie's was an evening wedding so almost all my shots were taken indoors at the venue. The main entrance and staircase leading to the function room proving to be the most popular spots with wedding photographers.

Natalie & Jamie had a very laid back approach to what they wanted from their big day, which made my job a lot easier.  I could be less intrusive and focus on capturing moments rather than interrupting the guests, which is exactly what I like to show in my photography. Low light venues can make candid photography difficult but with a bit of forward planning and knowledge of the venue things turned out very well on the night.

After the lovely ceremony, all the guests enjoyed a relaxed atmosphere before the ceilidh and dance performances began, which certainly was not relaxed! Natalie herself dances in Barocco Tribal.  A Tribal Fusion Belly Dance performance troupe based in Edinburgh.  After the lively ceilidh there was a surprise performance from the troupe (pictured above and below) which proved a massive success and definitely not something seen at a wedding reception that often! 

I'm looking forward to shooting another similarly laid back wedding like Natalie & Jamie's, a very different experience and approach to the traditional wedding and very enjoyable.