Not many left now!!!

There used to be a character in Carlisle who used to sell Newspapers on the street who's saying was "NOT MANY LEFT NOW" Everyone could see that he had a huge pile of papers by his feet and in fact there was "VERY MANY left now!"

Maybe we shouldnt have purchased our newspapers from him as it was obvious he was being far from honest. After years of seeing this familiar face shouting the same great big lie every day he was suddenly gone.

It was then that in the same newspapers he used to sell, we all read he had been put in Jail for reasons I wont go into. In 2002 he died.

I have no idea why I am telling you all this apart from the Not Many left now part relating to the fact that I really dont have many available dates left in 2009. I on the other hand am telling the truth, wont be going to prison and also hopefully wont be dying any time soon!

I seem to be getting a huge amount of booking enquiries at the moment.

Unfortunately I do only have certain dates left for 2009/2010. It gets to this point in the year that it is more likely I will be already booked if somebody asks for a date in 2009.

I find this frustrating when its a couple who have chosen me to do their wedding photography out of hundreds of other photographers in the Uk and they find I am already booked.

A couple of times clients have actually changed their wedding dates so I could be their photographer which is a real compliment.

I do have most dates left in November and December this year if anyone is having a winter wedding.

There are a couple of dates left in April, and May.

June, July and August are pretty much fully booked but there are odd dates dotted about that are still available.

September and October have a couple of dates left also.

The moral of the story is book your photographer at the same time as your venue or you may have to settle for a photographer you didnt really want.

Wedding Photographers in the Cumbria and the Lake District

I often get people calling me up asking for prices. Usually nothing ever comes of these calls as most times all they seem to be doing is looking around for the cheapest price rather than the best photographer.

My advice to anyone looking for a wedding photographer is to check out all the wedding photographers in the area and narrow it down to 3 or 4 that you like. At this point you can find out if they are booked and how much they cost. You can then pick the one you think is the photographer for you.

Here is a website for you to look at pretty much all the wedding photographers in Cumbria,the Lake District and the surrounding areas.

http://www.weddingsinlakeland.co.uk/category/cat/19.php

My advice is to go through every photographer on there and pick the photographer that you personally like best.

It has never bothered me being amongst so many other photographers as it gives the client more choice rather than having to pick the first photographer that comes along.

Its quite funny seeing how cagey other photographers are at wedding fairs and how they dont speak to me. What are they worried about?

I welcome other photographers to look at my work and maybe be inspired to do better themselves. In the same way I look at other photographers and from time to time find something fantastic and inspiring.

I have my own style and if someone wants to book me they will because it is my style they love and want! If they prefer another photographers work then so be it. What is sad is when a customer doesnt care enough to even look through all the different photographers before they make a decision. I would rather I was compared to all the other photographers in my area and a client chooses their favourite even if it isn't me rather than someone going through the phone book and picking the cheapest.I have no problem with any other wedding photographers in this area and if anyone wants a chat or any advice I am always happy to give it. After around 15 years now as a wedding photographer and hundreds of weddings down the line I do have a great deal of experience to draw from.

So my message to all other wedding photographers in Cumbria and the lake district is this.

Do not fear me, do not be threatened! We photographers should come together and share our experiences and styles. That way we will all keep moving on to be the best we can possibly be.

I'm feeling the love baby!!!!

Dale Lodge Hotel Grasmere A Photographers view

This is my first article on Wedding Venues in the Lake District and Cumbria. These articles I hope will show couples how important it is to have a venue that works well for the wedding photographer.

It will also be helpful for other photographers to know what they can expect and prepare themselves to take the best wedding photography they possibly can at the various wedding venues in this area.

As it is I have been to hundreds of weddings and should be a little bit of an expert on what makes a good wedding venue.

The first Wedding Venue I am going to show you is Dale Lodge Hotel. This is a great place for Wedding Photographers. In a lot of the rooms there is a good deal of natural light, which is fantastic for available light shooters like myself. See the picture below for examples:-

In my opinion as a Photographer the staff have quite a unique approach to their couples. From what I have seen they are always there to help, but give a lot more privacy to the happy couple than I have seen anywhere else.

The grounds are also superb for wedding photography!! No lake on the actual grounds, but a few minutes down the road and you get the views like this:-

A few minutes the other Direction and you have views like this:-

The grounds themselves give a lot of freedom for a photographer as there is very little you need to avoid in the background. There is also plenty of shelter here. Shelter usually comes in the shape of trees, walls, Doorways ect ect.

In my opinion, shelter is a good thing for weddings, as it protects the couple and their guests from the sun and the wind, which are the photographers worst enemies.

Not the Rain! The Rain can be handled!

There is nothing like wind to make someone look stupid! A strong gust can suddenly give a groom a comb over and a bride a mohawk just at the moment you press the shutter. Wind along with rain and to be honest you are better off stopping indoors for obvious reasons. A little bit of shelter in some part of a wedding venues grounds can go a long way though. It can guard against that wind and can stop a fine rain soaking you right through. The element people never think that you would need shelter from is the sun! With no shelter you can have the sun behind you and have your couple squinting like they are trying to read the writing on a midgets tattoo! Or you can shoot into the sun and get more flare than john travoltas pants! Dale lodge however has plenty of great trees and you shouldn't have any problems finding somewhere to soften the harsh sunlight.

The Hotel is great for those with children as they have their own little adventures in the grounds with no worries of them wandering off and falling into a lake.

If by chance bad weather completely prevents you from going outdoors to the lovely grounds and the surrounding areas, never fear!! Inside will be cozy and warm with tea, coffee or something a bit stronger. As I said the hotel gets plenty of natural light so available light photographers wont struggle indoors with a fairly fast lense.

Grasmere is a lovely place surrounded by some stunning views. My dear Photographer friend Marcus Doyle and I once had a mission on finding the finest cream tea in the Lake District. After we both gained a few stone of clotted cream,we found the ultimate cream tea in a small cafe in Grasmere. Scones the size of princess Leia's Hair Buns and clotted cream that could clog an artery with one mouthful! There were many Cream Teas after that one but none compared to it.This brings me on to the food at Dale Lodge Hotel. Let me tell you, the food is outstanding. I gladly got to sample a few dishes after I had photographed them for their website. Oh my word!!! They have an amazing cook is all I can say! Every dish was cooked to perfection and I envy anyone having their wedding reception there.

Something else I love about Dale Lodge Hotel is the bedrooms. Each room is different! I'm sure each guest has a favourite and always books that room. Its something that in theory shouldn't work but it just does! Most Hotels have all their rooms almost identical in decor but Dale Lodge I'm sure pride themselves on the individuality of each room and indeed their Hotel is completely unique. In my opinion Dale Lodge is a wedding photographers dream. Get to know the surrounding area and weather permitting you will get a variety of fantastic scenic shots.

Overall definately one of the best Wedding Venues in the Lake District and I highly recommend it.

Below is a link to a video of Dale Lodge Hotel.

http://paulreidphotography.blogspot.com/2009/03/wedding-photography-at-dale-lodge-hotel.html

Dale Lodge Hotel Website http://www.dalelodgehotel.co.uk/hotels_grasmere_weddings.htm

My Biggest Fan

As a Photographer its great to have fans and its lovely to have kind words. No matter how talented you are, there will always be times where you doubt yourself. Its only human nature to feel low sometimes no matter how much success you have.

There was a lovely lady who I was proud to call Nan. She never stopped telling me how much she loved my photography and she never stopped telling me how much she loved me.

She thought I was the best wedding photographer in the Lake District, the best wedding photographer in cumbria.

She thought I was the best wedding photographer in the world!!!

I gave her a copy of my book for Christmas and she was over the moon. "Nobody does it like you Paul" she would say. "Its the way you capture the expressions" She never stopped going on about how good it was.

Sadly she passed away recently and I cant help feeling a great loss now she has gone.

I never had Grandparents and she really became my only experience of having a grandmother.

She was always honest, and spoke her mind. For me to have such compliments from her was fantastic. She was under no obligation to love me either really. She just did, and told me every time I seen her.

I will miss her and her kind words very much.

Whats he building in there

I thought I would share this little Video with you. Its not supposed to be funny and its quite creepy, but for some reason it makes me chuckle! The movie goes very well with the words.
I wonder what he really is building in there.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JaLjwSpZ6Cs

Great Wedding Venues

Over the next few weeks I will be talking about various wedding venues that I like, and showing you some of my work from them.
Other Photographers out there may find some of the info useful and it will also give any couples an insight into their possible venues from a photographers point of view.
Here is a list my favourite venues that I know inside and out.

Apart from Dale Lodge Hotel, it actually surprises me the low quality of the photography on their websites as they are all excellent venues. No offense intended, so please don't give me hassle, as I have had in the past for speaking my mind.
By the way, it was me that did all the photography for Dale Lodge Hotel including the rooms, food and all the wedding photography.

Greenhills Hotel Wigton http://www.greenhillhotel.co.uk/weddings.htm

Crown Hotel Wetheral http://www.crownhotelwetheral.co.uk/weddings/index.htm

Dale Lodge Hotel http://www.dalelodgehotel.co.uk/hotels_grasmere_weddings.htm

Inn on the Lake http://www.lakedistricthotels.net/weddings/innonthelake_lake_district_wedding_venue.htm

Armathwaite Hall http://www.armathwaite-hall.com/lake_district_weddings.html

Langley Castle http://www.langleycastle.com/weddings.html

Dalston Hall http://www.dalston-hall-hotel.co.uk/celebrations.html

Family Portraits

I keep coming accross some of my early work. All taken on film and most of it really excellent.

I love the shot above! Its a family portrait I was commissioned to do about 10 years ago. I love their eyes in the shot. I love the warm feeling it gives. The print, which I slaved over in a smelly darkroom is stunning and its hard to show how beautiful a photograph is until you see a print rather than a digital copy.

I rarely ever do anything other than Weddings and personal projects these days. There was a time however when I used to do a lot of Family and children portraits.

Now these were never your usual cheesy rubbish that you seen back then even now. Nor were they following any so called modern photography trend such as Venture. What I did then is just as good now as it was a decade ago. The images have not aged.

This has always been my aim! I will never follow any current trend no matter how lucrative it is.

Honestly, if I was as much business man as I am photographer I would have followed every trend that has came along over the last 20 years. I would probably be very rich! I have never been a sales person either. If people like my work, they can have some photographs done and get whatever prints they want. I would never try and sell people things they don't really want. Photography will always be a want, not a need. And if I had followed any of those trends my photographs would now have been taken off those customers walls because they looked dated. Either that or they would stay there only because they would feel guilty to take a cheesy picture down of their loved one.

I have bumped into quite a few clients from 10 or 12 years ago and they still have my portraits in pride of place.

I will stay true to my art and if I ever do commissioned portraits in the future, I will be sure they will be just as beautiful in 20 years time as they were when they were first taken.

The Future of Photography????

I had to borrow this that I found on Marcus Doyles Blog. Its a pretty Grim view of the future for Photographers. I can't help but think its all a valid prediction though.


Simon Norfolk
For a second answer to the question of how photographers will market their work over the next five to ten years we turned to leading UK-based landscape, documentary and fine art photographer Simon Norfolk.
Said Simon: "In the few weeks between being asked to write this piece and me actually sitting down to do it, the international financial system has dissolved and the key banks nationalized.
All the money I had squirreled away to pay my future taxes and something for Mr and Mrs Norfolk’s old age has disappeared in a bizarre Icelandic banking collapse. So my prognosis about the economy over the next 5-10 years is not very optimistic, I’m afraid.
I gave up trying to make a living from editorial a few years ago, instead selling my work as limited edition fine art prints through galleries in London, New York and Los Angeles.
I still work for magazines - most of what goes on the gallery wall starts out as a magazine commission - but I see magazine fees as start-up capital.
If they ask me to work for three days, then I see that as three days to get what will make them happy and then I’ll stay on and do as much as it takes to satisfy myself and my print-buying clients.
I try not to accept work just for the sake of working and I try to always have a final masterplan in mind. If a story in anyway contributes to my long term project about ´The BattleField´, for instance, then I’ll say yes.
But this happy niche has only been made possible by my print sales. And the people buying my prints were the bonus-fuelled bankers we see on the evening news holding cardboard boxes outside closed-down banking headquarters. Who knows whether these people will now still be buying my prints?
So my predictions for the future? More "name" photographers will be cashing in their reputations to teach "masterclasses" to wealthy orthodontists.
So-called "principled" photographers will be cozying up to Russian oligarchs and third-world billionaires. None of us will be saying "no" to wedding photography or lucrative teaching posts which sell to young students the rarely-realized dream that they’ll one day have jobs as photographers.
My advice? Get re-skilled. Keep your photographic aspirations but try to get a trade like film editing, web-design or accounting.
Soon we’ll all be amateur photographers with real money-making jobs on the side that we don’t tell our colleagues about. We need to get over the snobbery attached to that.
And we have to be tougher in our demands. Magazines online will be built by re-skilled photography lovers around business plans that don’t include paying wages to the photographers they ask to write.
They pay salaries to each other, they pay the man who comes to fix the photocopier, but the "name" photographers they ask to contribute six hundred words get nothing. With business models like that, how can we survive?"

More Low Light Weddings

Just looking through some of my older weddings and I came accross this shot I took on Tri x film a few years ago.
I really love this shot and I can't quite put my finger on what it is I love so much about it.
One thing is for sure, it was taken in another one of those really dark venues I seem to always find myself in. In this case digital at the time didn't have good enough high iso's and I always would resort back to film for any low light shots.

Another shot from my Book

This is another of my Favourite shots from my Book. I don't often get to take pictures of my eldest these days. This photo is over a year old now and is probably the last time I took her off for a photo shoot.

I think its time I did another shoot of her! If she will let me that is!

Wedding Fayre's

I remember a few years ago things were simple. I would do 4 or 5 Wedding Fayre's a year and they would cost around £50.00 each. I would get 3 or 4 weddings from these events, so it was worth turning up and putting a display out.

I attended a wedding fayre last year as you may remember and it cost around £500.00 to do it.

I got zero weddings on the day and zero from it afterwards. The few I thought I may have had booked someone cheaper in the end.

I also had an advert in the paper as part of the wedding fayre package which I also got Zero from.

It was a big event with quite a few people through the door and I'm not sure what happened, but I have always done well in the past at the small wedding fayres I have attended in the past.

Now I dont know about you but £500.00 isnt an amount of money which I just like to throw away. £50.00 and my time is worth doing one just in case you do get some weddings, but its not much of a loss if you get nothing back.

So if your wondering if I will be doing the £500.00 event this year, the answer is NO!

I would be better going to a casino and putting it all on Black! Or just giving it to Comic Relief.

The sad thing is that the small wedding fayres don't seem to happen much these days. I think this is due to the big corporations taking over the wedding fayre market.

As I see it the £500.00 event was no better or worse than the £50.00 events. I think I could almost put my own event on for £500.00! It wouldnt be a wedding fayre though! It would be a circus event where I jump from a great height into a glass of water!

Kids

Well there it is! My first book is now available at the link below.

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/438510

Its got 78 pages but the preview only shows a few pages which doesnt really show much to be honest.

Like most of these projects, I don't actually make any money from the books but I have sold quite a few copies and have had really great feedback. To most it is an inspiration for other photographers to make sure they capture images of what is most important to them. I've said it before , but childhood only lasts a very short time and it is important for anyone who has children to capture those moments before they are gone forever.

Thanks to those who have already purchased it. Don't forget to change the currency to pounds before you have a heart attack at the price.