Stunning Fine Art Wedding and Portrait photography by Award Winning Photographer Paul Saxby.
Paul creates sophisticated yet informal and highly imaginative portrait and wedding photography in Nottinghamshire, Lincolnshire, Leicstershire, Warwickshire and Derbyshire. Paul has worked all over the UK and has accepted commissions in Europe and the US.
Despite being constantly in demand, Paul limits himself to 14 wedding commissions each season and 16 portrait commissions each month.
Paul is also the official baby photographer for the Emma`s Diary baby program for the Newark, Mansfield and Grantham areas. Paul has a comfortable , family friendly studio within easy reach of Newark town centre. The studio offers extensive facilities including free refreshments and baby changing facilities as well as ample parking and ground floor access.
Paul is proud to offer a wide range of superb quality, high value, photographic products at an affordable price.
East Midlands MPA Portrait Photographer of the Year 2010
East Midlands MPA Pet Photographer of the Year 2009
East Midlands MPA Licentiate Wedding Photographer of the Year 2008
When Lydia approached me about photographing her wedding to Nathan, she just happened to mention that the important part of the process was going to happen in the woods, and when she went on to explain that the whole event was going to have a retro 70`s theme i was hooked and agreed to be her photographer.
Over the past few months, Lydia has been sending me clippings and photographs that have inspired her, to help me get a good idea of what she wanted from me as her photographer. This process has meant we have developed a really good understanding about what we both want from the event. I needed to understand her and her thought process, which gave me the opportunity to explain what I needed to get exactly the effect she required.
Lydia and Nathan love the outdoors, they are both extremely keen on maintaining and encouraging a beneficial ecosystem as well as enjoying time with their friends and family. They both love the 1970`s, rock and folk music and real ale, I was under instruction just to enjoy myself and so long as I did, I was able to shoot exactly what I wanted.....
Monica, more woodland nymph than Bridesmaid....
Lydia and Nathan, a more relaxed couple I have yet to meet...
Shooting digitally allows me recreate almost any retro film look I want to. In this case, the soft desaturation and golden tones of a cheap kodak film left in the camera for way too long before being processed...
Danny, who shot some moving images with an amazing old Canon Super 8 cine camera. I can`t wait to see the film, it will look great, and there is nothing like the sound of the cine camera shutter clicking away in the background...
Stunningly beautiful guests, dressed to kill in perfect 70`s style...
Shafts of light burn through the branches to light the Groom..... well actually I lit Nathan with my Lumedyne rig, but balanced the exposure with the shafts of light in the background.
Lydia just glowed. The perfect Bride..
The light was perfect. By placing Lydia between myself and the low sun I was able to make her hair glow.I used my 300mm f2.8 to photograph Lydia through a gap in the branches.
Most couples dream of their wedding night in a glamorous hotel, Lydai and Nathan were happy with a tent.... a beautiful teepee decorated with flowers and candles.....what could be more romantic?
Michael Jackson, Videographers and amazing lighting - Deansgate Hilton, Manchester
The best weddings are the ones were the clients really throw themselves into it and put something of themselves into the event.
Most weddings are run to a formula which is often dictated by the venue using recommended, or even in-house, suppliers. Some clients refuse to use the in-house suppliers and go and find their own. This means that the client gets exactly what they need, even if it costs a little bit more.
This weekend, I was working at Rimmi and Manav`s the final reception party at Deansgate Hilton Hotel in Manchester. At all the previous celebrations, the couple had definitely put loads of effort into getting the right suppliers for the job, and this event was no exception. The lighting guys at Sterling Event Group did an amazing job making the dancefloor look like a real stage show.
Manav starts to strut his stuff dressed as his hero Micael jackson, white socks and slip on shoes to boot..
Luckily Manav and Rimmi had warned me before the event that they had planned to perform a pretty mean dance so I had made the effort to meter for the lighting. I spoke to the lighting guys and asked them to run through the lighting set up before the dance so that I could get a pretty good exposure for the dancefloor.
Rimmi joins Manav center stage in a gorgeous flowing dress. How did she manage to dance in those shoes I have no idea...
Just as Manav performs the big lift, I get a shot between the pulses of flashing light. I was shooting on manual so the camera didn`t automatically adjust itself for the lights. This shot shows the ambient exposure without the main spotlights.
For the past few days we had been working alongside Videographer Jeff Wood and his assistant Howard. Jeff and Howard are amazing Videographers who specialise in the use of HD DSLR cameras like the Canon 5DMKII to shoot video. Using these small lightweight, but extremely high quality, cameras, Jeff and Howard can get some amazing video effects which are reminiscent of traditional motion film effects. The above photo, Jeff is seen using a lightweight `Steadicam` type rig that allows him to follow the movement without the camera jumping around. This means smooth, professional looking, pans with very consistant results. I managed to get a glimpse of the footage on the back of the camera and the dance sequence looked exactly like a scene from Celebrity Come Dancing...
Without the spotlights the roomed glowed a wonderful blue/purple colour that was difficult to reproduce in camera. In the end I decided to shoot using a Tungsten White Balance on my camera which prevented the colour from washing out too much and becoming too cold....
AS you can see, working at a high end location with experienced professional suppliers really makes a wedding into something extremely special.
Manav and Rimmi - Guru Nanak Gurdwara, Wolverhampton
The last couple of weeks has been incredibly busy, with both wedding photography and commercial photography. One particular job that stands out above the others is the wonderful wedding of Manav and Rimmi which was held at the Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Wednesfield near Wolverhampton.
I photographed the wedding alongside my friend Sam Hook from Purelight Wedding Photography. Before the main ceremony, I concentrated on Manav and his family while Sam concentrated on Rimmi and her family, we then both worked together to photograph the main celebrations.
I spent most of the wedding using my favourite 50mm f1.4, but most of these images were all taken using my Sigma 120-300 f2.8. I really enjoy using this lens, its incredibly sharp and very flexible. Its great for capturing details from a distance. I tend to work wide open which allows me to capture selective elements of the image and throw unnecessary information out of focus.
Before the main ceremony, Manav rode a white horse to the Gurdwara.
Manav, wearing traditional robes and headdress, was greeted at the Gurdwara by a waiting crowd..
Prayers were said before Manav and his family were allowed into the Temple.
Incredibly ornate dress. Just beautiful...
Rimmi becomes emotional during the ceremony...
A serious moment for Manav...
Gifts are exchanged and the ceremony continues at the Ramada Park Hall Hotel... I used my 12mm wide angle which allowed me to get right amongst the crowd yet still get all the important elements of the ceremony.
Speeches are made in an almost Las Vegas style ballroom. The lighting was amazing.
The wedding was an incredible experience, several days of ceremony and celebration, studded with colour and emotion. I loved it, the families were so kind and helpful which made my job so much easier.
I don`t often get to photograph many local weddings, most of my clients seem to come from either London or Manchester, but I am happy to work anywhere, especially if I am close enough to sleep in my own bed after the wedding celebrations are over.
Stubton Hall is a wonderful venue, recently restored and featured on television it has become one of the sought after wedding venues in the East Midlands, in fact couples come from all over the UK to celebrate their wedding in the wonderful grounds and contemporary setting.
Carol and Christopher exchanged their vows at Bottesford Church, just a few minutes from their home. The church is a wonderful old building but is far from dark and gloomy. The huge stained glass windows allowed me to work at 200 iso on my 50mm which is quite rare for a church wedding.
How proud is Christopher? Why did it take him so long to pop the question?
If you look at the shadows on the floor, you can see just how much light was pouring into the church. At this moment, most of the light was coming from behind the couple, so I used a small amount of flash to help fill in the shadows. I deliberately bounced the flash of the wall to my left which helped to soften the flash and make it much less obvious.
What an amazing figure! Training five times a week really paid off...
Despite the grey skies, the rain held off which allowed for some moody portraits with some soft flattering light. I think Carol coped really well considering there was about 50 people all trying make her laugh, just out of shot.
Everyone`s an expert!! How jealous was I? I have been saving up for a Panasonic GF1 myself!!
If you look closely you can see the rim light catching the subject hair, face and arm. I had set up one of my old Vivitar 285 HV`s on the far side of the room to counteract the strong side lighting coming from the huge windows in the function room. I triggered the light with one of my Pocket Wizard Plus II`s, later on in the evening I added a second 285 which was triggered by a optical slave, Simple yet extremely effective.
Using fast lenses allows me to isolate detail and throw distracting elements out of focus. This is the type of shot that the typical amatuer will struggle to do with a compact camera or DSLR with a cheap kit lens. Investment in high quality glass can be one of the main factors that separate a cheap `weekend warrior` from a more expensive full time pro like myself.
Good quality glass also helps with difficult lighting situations. Strong back lighting can often cause highlights to blow out and loose detail. Often referred to as Blooming, this effect can ruin a photograph if not handled carefully. On this occasion, my 50mm f1.4 retains all the required detail even when used wide open.
Yet another job for the old 50mm. Again shot wide open, the dreads really stand out. On my 1DMKIIN the lens effectually becomes a 65mm which is quite nice for portraits, especially for men.
This wedding really allowed me to flex my creative muscles, the couple were really relaxed and the guests were friendly and happy to work with me. This always makes my job so much easier, and I got to sleep in my own bed for a change...
Not all my weddings are big glamorous affairs. Jonathan and Julie, quite simply wanted to express their love for each other in the presence of a few friends and family members, in St Denis`s Church in Morton, near Newark.
The simple location was reflected in the simple dress code and light hearted, yet extremely meaningful service. It was a pleasure to be allowed to photograph such a tender moment...
Although I normally photograph weddings in the East Midlands and other areas of the UK, I do occasionally wander further afield and photograph weddings overseas.
I recently traveled to Finland to photograph the wedding of a dear friend, Janina, and her partner Man-Tong. I had a wonderful time (including enjoying returns flights in the company of a gang of cheerleaders!). I enjoyed stunning countryside, a hotel with Lakeside views and the kind hosting of the Brides family, who looked after me like I was one of their own.
The weather was incredibly warm, it was the hottest weather in Finland on record which made working terribly difficult, but everyone was so helpful that I was never without water and shade when I needed it...
I first met Janina a couple of years while at a networking event. We have become good friends and I was honoured when Janina asked me to travel to her family home in Finland so I could photograph her wonderful wedding.
Below are just a few of my favourite images from the wedding day.
The smiling Bridesmaid adjusts the dress...
Janina adjusts her jewelry
Janina`s Mom smiles with delight as her daughter glides down the aisle...
A proud Father guides Janina down the isles..
Janinas stare catches my eye...
The sunny meadow..
The log cabin...
The farmyard..
The Haystacks...
The girls...
The lakeside views...
The happiest Grandmother alive..
Janinas cousins...
The sweetest moistest wedding cake I had ever tasted... it was amazing...
Guests from Nottingham...
Something tickled Janina....
The first dance...
Probably one of the the most exciting and rewarding weddings I have ever photographed. It went like a dream, despite the incredible heat, and I met some of the kindest and sweetest people I have ever had the pleasure to meet....
After loads of deliberation, umming, arrhhing, and sitting on my thumbs trying to put off selecting the winner of the wedding photo competition, I finally decided to just do it.
There were so many fantastic entries, over 60 in all, from all over the UK. I actually decided to offer a further three runner up prizes of £250 wedding photography vouchers.
How we did it.
I had actually received loads of entries by email, from lovely couples pleading with me to pick them, but the choice was just too difficult. In the end I left it totally to chance. I first winkled the weddings
that were for dates I couldn`t do for one reason or another, printed off the names of all the remaining entries. I put a squecky dog toy at the bottom of a big bucket and dropped the pieces of paper on top. Then called Lucy.
Lucy did a grand job, in a matter of seconds all the pieces of paper were flying all over the place and in no time at all their was only one piece of paper left. That was the winner. We repeated the process until we had chosen all the winners.
We haven`t managed to contact everyone yet, but we did manage to get hold of our winners Jennie and Ian who live near High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire.
Jennie sent me a recent photo of the two of them together on holiday so I knew who I was talking too. We had a lovely chat and she was over the moon to have won the prize. They get married in October, so keep your eyes open, we will be seeing more of them later on this year. Jennie and Ian win £1450 worth of wedding photography which they can use in anyway they please from our regular price list...
Thanks to everyone who entered, those of you who are getting married next season will be automatically entered into next years competition, so don`t worry, you might yet still win something....
NATIONAL WEDDING COMPETITION
WIN £1450 WORTH OF PHOTOGRAPHY FOR YOUR 2010 WEDDING
Paul Saxby, one of the UK`s most sought after Wedding Photographers is announcing a
fantastic new competition.
If you are getting married in the UK before Valentines Day 2011, you
could qualify for a wedding photography package worth up to £1450.
The collection includes almost everything a couple could ask for from their wedding
photographer including:-
Pre-Wedding Photo Shoot
Up to 8 hours of photography on the wedding day
An amazing 20 page digital wedding album containing up to 60 images.
Paul has a style all of his own and creates images that will tell the
real story of your wedding. Paul never uses a template to work to, so
every single wedding is treated differently and you know your wedding
album will be totally unique.
Passionate about his photography,
Paul never tires of pushing the boundaries of new ideas, using
techniques from photojournalism, commercial, fashion and boudoir
photography to create a a collection of exciting,yet intimate and
personal images you will treasure for a lifetime.
Not all wedding albums are the same.
Paul uses only the best suppliers to source his products and is always
on the look out for new and exciting products. Paul even creates his
own hand made products for some of his more exclusive clients.
This
opportunity should not be missed. Paul gets more than 60 wedding
enquiries a year, yet only shoots 14 weddings each season which means
Paul can concentrate on giving his clients the experience they deserve.
Paul has decided not to shoot every wedding that comes his way so that
he only gets to work with clients that he knows will appreciate what he
does. Every client has at least two free consultations before Paul
agrees to work with them so that both parties fully understand what
each one wants from the other.
This year, Paul has decided to add one more wedding to his already busy
schedule. One happy couple will win nearly £1500 worth of wedding photography.
That couple could be you and your partner. This means that you could
use the money you save on your photography and put it towards something
else, like a honeymoon in Mexico, a bigger party at the reception or
you could even use it towards even more photography by upgrading the
package and just paying the difference.
Paul has also decided to give away two further prizes. One lucky couple will win a
voucher worth £500 which they can use if they decide to book Paul as their wedding
photographer. The final couple will win a £250 voucher which they can use towards their
wedding photography.
The competition is easy to enter -
to qualify to win this great once in a life time prize, all you have to
do is book a simple studio photo shoot for you and your partner and
answer a few basic questions about your wedding. The photo shoot
requires a £25 creation fee(RRP £165), and includes a mounted 5x7
print. If you are one of the three lucky winning couples, you will get
the £25 refunded back to you in addition to your prize.
By entering
the competition you will know that you are also helping to care for
premature and sick babies who without extra care my suffer permanent
injury or may even die. Part of your Creation fee will be donated to
Bliss, a charity that cares for sick babies, which we have adopted as
one of the three charities we support.
link to the application form and you could win the wedding album of your dreams.
Remember the draw closes at 4pm on February 14th 2010, thats St
Valentines day to all you romantic types. What better gift could you
give your partner?
Jonathan and Karen at the Angel and Royal in Grantham
The last Wedding of 2009 and the first post of 2010
Jonathan and Karen at the Angel and Royal
This was a small and intimate occasion at the beautiful Angel and Royal
Hotel in the heart of Grantham. Its a lovely compact location with
loads of character, perfect for the smaller wedding and with enough
character to make wedding photography a pleasure.
Although small, this wedding was made difficult because I had severely
injured my back immediately prior to the wedding, leaving me no time to
find a replacement photographer I had to struggle through it. Pumped up
with a cocktail of painkillers, a back support, and with the help of my
wife Alison I managed to make it through the entire day without too
much bother, it was the day after when I really felt it.
Needless to say, between the pair of us, Alison and I managed to get
some great wedding photographs that I am really pleased with. Alison
got a great image of Alex, Jonathan and Karen`s little boy, crawling
under the Registrars table during the exact moment they exchanged
rings. His face is a picture.
I was working from behind the Registrar, the Kings Room in the Angel
and Royal, is extremely dark and the couple were back lit with a pair
of large windows which caused a bit of a headache, but even working at
f1.4 the 50mm prime lens managed to contain the flair to an acceptable
level, showing why I much prefer to work with prime lenses which handle
flair much better than zoom lenses.
Even though I was in some pain, I really enjoyed myself at this
wedding. The couple were relaxed and left me too it while they enjoyed
their wedding, which is how every wedding should be.
These past few months have been the busiest yet for my photography
business. Moving into the new studio and taking on the Emma`s Diary
baby photography has meant I have had less time to work on my website
and post on the Blog. This year I hope to be able show you more of my
work online as my business grows even further.
I don`t know what it is about weddings this year, but just about all the weddings I have photographed have been incredibly laid back and relaxed. No more than Nigel and Fiona`s wedding at Prestwold Hall.
Whenever I photograph a wedding at Prestwold, I always find something new to use there as a feature or a prop to include in the photographs. On this occasion I noticed the beautiful soft light that was falling over a sofa in the main gallery, so I used the sofa as an ideal place to photograph Fiona, who I must say looked stunning.....
Prestwold also provides a rich variation of light. From soft panels of light that come in through the huge windows in the conservatory, to the shafts of light that stream in between the pillars of the gallery.
Here, Fiona and her Father are caught in a beam of light as they stroll toward the ceremony together.
Here Nigel is bathed in light from a large window in the main entrance to the hall. Using my 50mm f1.4 lens I was able to isolate him in the crowd by throwing everything else out of focus, yet I maintained a fairly natural perspective on the scene and not cropping too tightly on his face.
Despite a short burst of tears from the Groom, the wedding was full of joy and most of the photographs showed huge beaming smiles and laughter. Here Nigel and Fiona smile as they are announced as man and wife.
I try to take as few traditional group photographs as possible during a typical wedding, preferring to concentrate on watching the guests create their own....
Lastly the speech`s, what wedding would be complete without a few chosen words from the Best Man.....or Men as in this case.... Speech`s are always an ideal opportunity to gain some great photographs, in this case I again used my 50mm 1.4 almost wide open to get as much light into the lens as possible. I also popped a small amount of flash of the wall behind me to supplement what little I had to work with.....
Prestwold Hall is definitely one of my favourite wedding venues and long may I continue to work there....
A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of photographing Gareth and his beautiful Canadian Bride Laura when they married at Holme Pierrepont near Nottingham.
Over the years I have photographed some stunningly beautiful brides, but just recently I have been especially lucky. Laura was just one of these Brides, her skin radiated, her smile lit up a room and she reveled in the whole wedding experience. She was a dream to photograph.
Most of the wedding I simply used available light, but for the car shot I used my old Vivatar 285HV pumped through a white umbrella. I underexposed the ambient by about a stop which made the burgandy red paint work of the classic Jag pop nicely. Post processing was simple, I just ran the image through Doug Boutwells TRA Prettyizer action.
This wedding I mixed a little traditional wedding photography with a some contemporary lighting and followed it up with some documentary style image making and ended up with a nice selection of photographs that hopefully the Bride and Groom will be pleased with....
Brides and Bridesmaids - probably the best reason to be a wedding photographer...
Sometimes girls just ooze attitude and confidence. Ask the right questions at the right moment and a half decent photographer can make a nice photo something a little more special.
This is probably why most prospective Brides choose a fully qualified professional photographer over a friend with a compact every time. If you just want `some fotos` at your wedding, save your money and get a friend to take some snaps and give you a disc.
If you want some high quality contemporary fashion based wedding photographs presented in a high quality album , choose a professional wedding photographer every time.
The photograph of Sally and the girls was taken at Woodborough Hall near Nottingham. It was mid afternoon and in brilliant sunshine. I handheld a Lumedyne Signature Series light mounted onto a monopod over the girls shooting almost directly down on them. The light was soften with a white shoot through umbrella held about 18 inches from the girls faces.
Lisa and Matthew - Glamour and Style at Stoke Rochford Hall
Some weddings really stand out for me. These tend to be the weddings that the clients really let me photograph the wedding day without any preconceptions about what they are going to get. Clients like Lisa and Matthew for example, who simply said, "..do exactly what you want, so long as we get something different we don`t care what you do."
The weather was a nightmare, brilliant sunshine at high noon, not a cload in the sky. Perfect for the guests, but horrible for me. Luckily, later in the afternoon, a few clouds wandered overhead allowing me to create some dramatic moody skys.
Later we used the beautiful oak panelled walls at Stoke Rochford to great effect, creating the `Gentlemans Club" feel to the main hall.
Hayley, the Bridesmaid, joined Lisa for a photo.
Matthew initially was quite nervous and was not too keen on being photographed, but before long started to enjoy himself
This year I have noticed that more Brides are wearing veils again. Lisa veil made a real statement so I used that to my advantage, photographing Lisa against a dark `stormy` sky added to the drama of the image.
Not all wedding albums are the same.
Paul uses only the best suppliers to source his products and is always
on the look out for new and exciting products. Paul even creates his
own hand made products for some of his more exclusive clients.
link to the application form and you could win the wedding album of your dreams.
I was at the wedding and Paul is an amazing photographer, he made everyone feel relaxed and all of the lucky people photographed commented on the ease of the situation, the scenery was amazing and it has clearly been captured. Thanks
Posted by Sam - 01/09/2010 16:08:39