Managed to get to use the tiny ‘Nifty Fifty’ (Canon 50mm f1.8) on the morning of this shoot, it’s been sitting in my bag for about 3 years with little or no use at all, and I really wanted to try a bit of prime lens shooting on this wedding. It gave me some great DOF and the light coming in was amazing.

I’d been scanning the web to find some inspiration over the winter months, and I have to say, there are some amazing things going on in the world of wedding photography. This has inspired me to change the business model, hence this totally focused wedding photography website. The DMFoto site will still remain the ‘Warehouse’ for the wedding images, but this site will take the lead from a ‘Front of House’ stand point. Anyway… Getting back to my B&G.

The service was held at St. Joseph’s Chapel in Galliagh, County Londonderry. I’ve not done a wedding in there before, though I have to say, the layout is fantastic for photography. Wide open spaces between the pews means you can move around without causing any distraction. The priest was great, no restrictions at all other than the usual “don’t become the focus of attention” ~ goes without saying really.

No balcony, which is a shame, I’m a sucker for the balcony angle, but plenty of light. The grounds however are a little bland, and not somewhere I would use for any external family style gatherings. This wasn’t going to be a problem, as we were all heading straight to Ballybofey to the Kees Hotel, with a quick stop off at a local forest walk for the location part of the shoot.

A February wedding is always going to pose some problems, the soft ground, the lack of foliage on the trees, puddles and mud to dodge, but we had a great time despite all this. There’s a little bridge which goes over a dry ditch, which I used for some angled bridal party shots, then a couple on the river bank before heading back to the waiting Chrysler C300 Limos.

Off to The Kees Hotel, where Paul the Duty Manager took charge and made sure that everything ran like clock work. The staff at the hotel we’re very helpful, and there is a dedicated space for the guests to remain in the same area during the whole of the evening. The Videographer and I headed to the restaurant to get a bite to eat, giving me a chance to get to work on the evenings ‘Picture Show’ which is part of the Evening Coverage package. If the food the guests were served was anything like what we were served in the restaurant, then everyone should have been impressed, as we couldn’t find fault with it.

All in all, for the first wedding of 2012, I think I have to say it was without drama, apart from me forgetting to sync the times on the Canon 40D and 5D. That won’t happen again, as it’s causing me no end of fiddling now I’m editing!

Bring on the next wedding I say…