Amongst the sea of weddings at the moment, it's sometimes nice to break things up a bit with an engagement shoot. So, last weekend, I did exactly that for Abbie, Danny, and their 2 children Rubie and Toby.
Despite having grown up in Coalville most of my life, I'd like to think, I know all the quiet little picturesque parks and places that just make for stunning photos. So, imagine my surprise when Abbie suggested Hough Windmill as a suitable candidate for her engagement shoot, not even 5 minutes drive from my old childhood home!
We arranged to meet at 11 am last Sunday, when the sun was out, the dog walkers had disappeared, and there were no prying eyes to worry about being nosey as we wandered around to get a few snaps.
As always, we had a good old chat about their upcoming wedding and what they'd got in the pipeline ahead of the big day itself. Abbie and Danny score bonus points, as they've booked my favourite venue, Donnington Park Farm House which I know always guarantees amazing photos.
Engagement shoots are always a perfect way for me to get familiar with the couple, and a chance to break through the awkwardness that is having your photo taken. With the best will in the world, standing and posing for a camera isn't the most comfortable of experiences, and believe it or not, in my 10 years of working in the industry, I've only ever met a handful of people who actually enjoy it!
I always like to be prepared as possible with any wedding I photograph, so we'd had a brief chat about some ideas for pictures, and places they could both look for some inspiration on any shots they'd particularly like to grab on the day of their wedding. Pinterest is always my go-to suggestion, and I ask every couple I work with to create a board of wedding day photos that we can look at recreating on the big day itself. There's all sorts to look through on Pinterest, and you only have to punch "wedding" in on the search bar, and you're immediately greeted by pages and pages of DIY favours, table plans and craft ideas that not only look fantastic but also can save you money by making yourself.
The windmill made the perfect backdrop for photos, and I'd pre-selected a few fun little poses to try out to really capture the family having fun without having to worry about concentrating on the camera too much. Letting the family relax and have fun was definitely on the agenda, as I didn't want them to concentrate too much on having their picture taken, as you get the best genuine smiles that way.
After a good walk around the grounds, and a healthy amount of photos, I noticed a grassy field packed with flowers just a short fence hop away. The opportunity was too perfect to pass up, so I suggested we jumped over the fence to get a few pictures with the windmill perched perfectly in the background of the surrounding fields.
Hough Windmill is definitely going to be a regular haunt now, I can't wait to go back to get even more photos of the grounds, especially with the onset of some proper summer weather!
Just a relatively short blog this week, as we've been at the wedding of Alan and Wendy today, which I've no doubt will be on next week's blog!
Peace, Love and Photos.
Jono x