Wedding Photographer Castleford | Amanda and Paul

As Castleford wedding photographers, it's fair to say that actually, we very rarely photograph weddings in Castleford, probably because our home town has very few wedding venues, but it was really nice to work locally on this scorcher of a day for Amanda and Paul.

Pontefract Register Office was where we started our coverage of this fabulous wedding, accompanied by Michael and Christine for Super Video Services who were such a pleasure to work with. Another friendly face was Rosalyn's, who conducted the civil ceremony and who welcomed us with a huge smile and a big hug.  As Pontefract wedding photographers, we often work with the area's registrars who are always great and very accommodating.  

All wedding photographers and all couples wish for a dry day but this was especially important because rain would definitely have had a huge impact, as the celebrations were held in the garden of Amanda and Paul's home, with around 160 guests joining them for a religious blessing and an outdoor party, following their low key civil ceremony to which Amanda, Paul, their children, close family and witnesses arrived in casual summer clothes to match the heatwave we were having.  

We caught up with everyone again at the house and set to work photographing Amanda's gorgeous dress and a pair of very eye catching shoes before we made the very short trip downstairs to take photographs of the boys.  

The attention to detail and the amount of work which had gone into decorating not only their garden but into turning their kitchen into a vintage style tearoom was amazing and credit must go to Dulcie Butterfly for doing such a spectacular job.  At every turn there was something else to photograph, including a pork pie cake which we understand was very quickly demolished!  

With the emphasis very much on family and with the couple's children, Samuel and Ruby, playing a huge part, this wedding was a joy and a privilege to be part of.  We know that we were recommended to Amanda and Paul by friends of theirs who we have also worked for and it was lovely to see several familiar faces among the guests who were greeted on arrival with a Limoncello toast.  

After the blessing, everyone gathered for a big group photo and it's not often you can fit 160 people in a front garden!  A happy, relaxed and laid back atmosphere was evident throughout the whole day and once we'd got all the group photographs in the bag, we left everyone to enjoy the sunshine whilst we went to Queen's Park in Castleford for a photo session with the family, Paul driving his bride and children to the park in a Mini convertible that Amanda had hired for the weekend as a surprise for him.  A big thank you to both mums for patiently looking after Samuel and Ruby whilst we photographed Amanda and Paul together.  The park looked beautiful with lots of lavender in bloom and we had a brilliant time with the new Mr and Mrs Darley, taking some romantic photos and fun shots.

We returned to the party where a magician amazed the guests, a caricaturist drew them and Farmer Copley's staff fed them with a delicious hog roast.  Matty, Paul's very talented close friend and best man, made everyone laugh and also brought tears to many an eye with his guitar playing and speech, which he sang and dedicated to the family.  We know that his wife Nicola worked with him for hours on the lyrics and what a lovely and very personal speech it was!

This wasn't the first time we've photographed a wedding in a garden but it was the first time we've photographed a first dance in one.  It was the perfect end to a perfect summer wedding and we are very grateful to Amanda and Paul for deciding that we should be the photographers to capture their big day.

If you are looking for a West Yorkshire wedding photographer, we'd love to hear from you.  If you were a guest at this lovely wedding, please feel free to leave a comment and please Like us on Facebook.

All images remain the copyright of Alex & Janet Durasow.

   

Portrait Photographer Castleford | Sophie's Prom

Last week our stunning niece, Sophie, stepped out in all her finery, along with her friends, for Airedale Academy's prom.  She's absolutely gorgeous, this was a very special occasion and as professional portrait photographers in Castleford, we just couldn't miss the opportunity to take some lovely images of her in the beautiful dress her mother, my sister, Sam, had put so much time and effort into helping Sophie shop for, along with sorting out all the other important details like shoes, hair, make-up, earrings, etc.  Sam you did her proud. We love you both so much and we hope you love the images.

Wedding Photographer Priory Cottages | Danielle and Ryan

We are delighted when we were recommended to Danielle and Ryan by our friend Alison who runs Precious Bridal in Garforth.  Her confidence in us is very much appreciated and she is always the one we recommend to brides looking for that perfect dress, bridesmaids' dresses or both.  Alison's attitude is very much the same as ours - to offer the best possible service, great value for money and to go the extra mile to make her clients happy.

Danielle and Ryan chose St Mary's church in Whitkirk to tie the knot but well before that, we caught up with the girls as they got ready.  As Priory Cottages wedding photographers, we began the day's coverage there before driving to Whitkirk for the ceremony and then returning to Priory Cottages for the wedding reception.  

What immediately struck us was the upbeat and happy atmosphere as make-up was applied and hair styled and we were made to feel a very welcome part of the preparations.  Danielle's sisters, Samantha and Victoria and their mum, Shelley, were so obliging, offering help whenever it was needed.  It's not often you get a whole cottage to yourself to photograph bridal accessories in and Danielle had chosen a pair of shoes with very high heals which would prove a challenge later on but which were great to photograph.  It's a girl thing!  She presented her bridesmaids with a thank you gift before we left for church and it made a nice sequence of images to capture.

Ryan and his three best men, including his brother Damon, met us at St Mary's exactly on time and this is always appreciated as we can get some photographs of the boys before guests start to arrive and the vicar steels the groom for a pre-ceremony chat.  This particular vicar was one of the best we've had the pleasure of working with.  He imposed no restrictions whatsoever during the ceremony and he even allowed Alex to capture the actual signing of the register which was a very welcome bonus.

Danielle was given away by her brother, Ben, and after the ceremony and a very impressive confetti throwing effort from the guests, we set off to Priory Cottages to arrive ahead of everyone.  The weather behaved itself reasonably well apart from a strong breeze and after photographing the new Mr and Mrs Barrow with the car, we started the group photo session, leaving a few minutes spare to have some fun with the bridal party and make them work for their dinner!  It was a pleasure to work with such great people and to see them enjoying themselves, making for fabulous images in the process.

The Priory Cottage marquee was beautifully dressed in elegant ivory and the presence of Mickey and Minnie Mouse and a Disney theme hinted at the location for Danielle and Ryan's honeymoon in Florida.  Hilarious speeches followed the wedding breakfast and there was laughter and tears, especially during Shelley's moving tribute to her daughter and Ryan's battering from his three best men!

We were really looking forward to spending some relaxed time with Danielle and Ryan after dinner and we had a few ideas for some images of them around a stone wall and a lovely archway which, as wedding photographers for Priory Cottages, is a one of our favourite spots.  We also had some ideas to show off a beautiful bride in a beautiful dress.

Mr and Mrs Barrow's first dance started off in the usual romantic style before the whole bridal party took to the floor to perform the best routine we have ever seen at a wedding. It was so fast that it was incredibly difficult to capture but we hope we've done you proud. Everyone from Danielle's mum, Shelley, Ryan's parents, Debbie and Paul, to page boy, Harrison, took part and guys, you certainly brought Sexy Back!!

We really can't thank you enough for going on Alison's recommendation, coming to meet us and booking us to be part of your big day.  It was a privilege to spend time with you and your lovely families and friends and we hope you love the images as much as we do. Your Italian storybook is going to be spectacular!

If you were a guest at Mr and Mrs Barrow's wedding, you are welcome to leave a comment and if you are looking for a Priory Cottages wedding photographer, you get two of us and we'd love to hear from you on 01977 730159.   You can also follow us on Facebook.

All images are copyright Alex & Janet Durasow.