Documentary wedding photography by Andrew Billington

West Yorkshire Wedding Photography: Cheryl & Peter’s Sneak Peek

andybill — Wed, 16 May 2012 13:24:04 +0000

Here’s a quick look at the documentary wedding photography I did for Peter & Cheryl this the weekend at Hey Green in the beautiful Peak District. After a rainy, rainy week it turned into a bright, sunny blazing hot day which brought a smile to everyone’s face – as a wedding photographer the design of the day, the venue and the setting were a gift and I’m sure I captured the flavour of the day from the bridal preparations to the evening hog roast (which captured the imagination of one flowergirl in particular who was fascinated by the whole process of roasting and eating!).

Wedding Photography Brochure

andybill — Thu, 10 May 2012 10:57:04 +0000

Here is my current documentary wedding photography brochure. Click on the link to view and download:

Click to DOWNLOAD BROCHURE

Liverpool Wedding Photography at Crosby Hall for Sarah & Alex: Sneak Peek

andybill — Thu, 10 May 2012 09:09:17 +0000

Here’s a quick sneak peek at Sarah and Alex’s wedding photography from Crosby Hall, Liverpool on Sunday. I shall be editing the full wedding next week so that they can see their photography as soon as they come back from Honeymoon but I couldn’t resist just pulling a few photographs out to share with them. The documentary wedding photography approach really suited the day they had planned – a ‘wedstival’ theme with the entirety of Crosby Hall being booked out for wedding guests the whole weekend so that celebrations could continue the next day – as it was about informality and the day unfolding naturally without strict timetables. I could be there and capture the day as it happened as a documentary photographer, just the way I like it.

Documentary Wedding Photography for Laura and Kieran, Billericay, Essex

andybill — Thu, 03 May 2012 09:55:55 +0000

I love producing documentary wedding photography for couples. Kieran and Laura’s wedding at Stockport Manor in Billericay, Essex was a a lovely day – despite the April showers that dotted the day. Being a documentary wedding photographer across the UK I work in many different places with many different people and this is really enjoyable for me as I feel it keeps my photography fresh, responsive and very focused on the people I’m working with. It just goes to show that weddings aren’t necessarily about the weather or the venue (although Stockport Manor has some great things to recommend it) but about the people involved. Family and friends gathered around the couple on this Friday and made the day really special – as I hope my photography reflects.

Helen & Toby’s Wedding at The Maynard Arms, Sheffield, Derbyshire

andybill — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 12:50:27 +0000

This is Helen and Toby’s wedding day photography from the boutique Peak District hotel ‘The Maynard Arms’ in Derbyshire. Between dodging the expected April showers family and guests gathered for a relaxed celebration in this lovely hotel and restaurant. My documentary approach to photographing their wedding day really suited the sort of day Helen and Toby were after – which meant that they could enjoy and celebrate the day without having to stick to a strict timetable of photography but knew I’d be there to capture things as they happened (much the best way for me to work too).

Izzy and Rupert’s West Midlands Wedding Photography in Staffordshire

andybill — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:58:23 +0000

This is a selection of my wedding photography from Izzy and Rupert’s marriage in Newcastle, Staffordshire at the beginning of April. It was an intimate wedding of family and friends celebrated on a Monday and centred very much around people coming together to contribute to the day. Izzy is a musician and friends and colleagues came together to help celebrate in the church and reception and the wedding breafast was held on her sister’s farm in Beech, Staffordshire.

Wedding Photography Isn’t About Taking Photographs

andybill — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 14:43:30 +0000

It seems a bold statement but I really believe that wedding photography isn’t about taking photographs. It’s about observing, anticipating and reacting. Certainly the way I work it is.

I’m going to put aside the fact that to make a photograph work I am looking for the light to be right, the composition to be strong and the background enhancing or focusing on the main subject. These are things that I’m constantly thinking about before pressing the shutter but that’s more about the ‘craft’ of photography once a photograph is to be taken rather than the reason to take the photograph in the first place.

All the photographs in this post are from one wedding I have just finished editing and all show moments from the day that I think say what it was like to be there.

I don’t spend a wedding day with a camera glued to my face, photographing like mad in the hope of catching the perfect moment. Most of the day I spend observing what is happening. Looking for moments that tell us about the day itself, the people involved and what the feelings are that are being experienced at a given time. Emotions change throughout the day (indeed sometimes with just a word in a father’s speech) and I try to be aware of how the mood and emotional state of people can change very quickly – calm, nervous, relieved, ecstatic, joyous, tearful: we are not just looking at one emotional state of ‘happy’ throughout the day.

Wedding days to me are not ‘fast paced’ as some people believe. There is time to be aware of everything that is happening around you and choose the best way to photograph it to tell the story of that moment. By looking around you constantly you can start to anticipate when those beautiful moments are about to happen. You can see Gran approaching outside the church after the ceremony to hug her favourite grand-daughter as a married woman for the first time – and move to the best position to capture all the emotion of that.

What I try to achieve with the photographs that I give to couples is not a simple pictorial record of the day but it’s a conscious series of decisions I have made about how best to represent their day and tell their story through my photography. It’s not just about taking photographs – everyone else at the wedding is already doing that.

Wedding Photography in Newcastle, Staffordshire – Isabel & Rupert

andybill — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 17:32:18 +0000

A quick preview of the wedding I photographed on Monday in Newcastle-under-lyme, Staffordshire. The beautiful late March weather that had been the run up to the day gave way to April showers but it was not a problem for Isabel who was just looking forward to marrying Rupert, everything else was incidental…

Wedding Photography sneak peek: Nicola & Karl’s Staffordshire Wedding

andybill — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 08:40:25 +0000

Here’s a quick look at the wedding photography from this Saturday for Nicola & Karl at St.Giles in Cheadle, Staffordshire and The Mill in Stone. When I’m backing up the cards from the day I can never resist a quick scroll through the photographs so I pulled a few out to share…

(Documentary wedding photography by Staffordshire photographer Andrew Billington. Contemporary reportage wedding photographer Midlands, UK.)

Leeds City Centre Wedding, Contemporary Documentary Wedding Photographer Sneak-Peek

andybill — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:42:06 +0000

My contemporary documentary wedding photographer skills were put to the test on Saturday at The Leeds Club in the heart of the Yorkshire city’s centre. Karl and Claire’s wedding day went without a hitch (if you’ll excuse the pun) on this very bright, warm Spring day. Here’s a quick sneak-peek at the day- – with full wedding to follow in a couple of weeks.

(Documentary wedding photography by Staffordshire photographer Andrew Billington. Contemporary reportage wedding photographer Midlands, UK.)