Alisa & Yoni's wedding at Temple Island

Alisa & Yoni had a Jewish ceremony on Temple Island near Henley-on-Thames.

Alisa was the director of The Apprentice , the fourth series of which was recently show on BBC one. Alisa & Yoni met during Cello lessons as children.


Temple Island is a fantastic venue for a wedding, the ceremony took place on the island and the reception in a marquee on the banks of the River Thames.

24 hours in Venice

On Tuesday I flew out to Venice for James & Sharron's wedding on Wednesday. The wedding party consisted of the couple and myself, I have photographed small weddings in the past, but never just the couple.

James & Sharron married at the Town Hall in Venice, as well as my photography duties I was the witness for the wedding ceremony. I met up with the couple the night before the wedding for dinner.

On the morning of the wedding I got the Vaporetto (water bus) to Sharron's hotel for the preparation photographs. We then took a water taxi to the Town Hall. In Venice a water taxi is a fantastic Riva sports boat.

The ceremony was conducted in Italian with an interpreter giving the English version. The ceremony was very different to civil ceremonies in the UK. Much was made of the responsibilities in marriage. After the ceremony it was my turn to sign the marriage certificate as the witness, something I have never done before.

Sharron & James then made an appearance on the balcony to the applause of tourists in Gondola's on the Grand Canal below.

The couple then took a tour of Venice in the water taxi before arriving in St Marks Square. By this point the rain had set in.

Later they went for dinner and it was time for me to fly back to the UK.

Helen & Daniel at Poundon House, Oxfordshire

Helen & Daniel married on the 31st May at Poundon House in Oxfordshire.

Poundon House have an unusual set up for the ceremony. The couple marry in a doorway (as civil ceremonies in the UK must be under a permanent roof) and the guests sit in a marquee attached to the back of the house. This allows a semi outside wedding.

The wedding breakfast was in a separate marquee.

Venice Wedding

I've just got back from photographing James & Sharron's wedding in Venice. I'll be posting some photographs from their wedding in the next couple of days.

Here are a few photographs taken on the way to Venice.

Venue recommended suppliers

How do venues choose the companies they list as "recommended suppliers", you might think they recommend them because they believe they are good at what they do. The reality comes down to money. The word recommended is misused in the majority of cases, in fact the venues charge the suppliers a fee (usually a percentage of whatever you pay the supplier).

In the past I have been approached by venues requesting between 10 to 20% of my fee for being a recommended supplier. The only venues and wedding planners who recommend me are those who do so because they like my work, I don't ever pay a fee to venues or wedding planners for recommendations. I strongly believe that referrals should be because you offer a great service or product and not because you are willing to pay a fee. This policy has lost me weddings in the past, but I'd rather have couples book me because they appreciate what I do.

I recently heard of one venue charging an extra fee if you choose to use a photographer who isn't on their recommended list. This is nothing short of a fine for not choosing a supplier who will pay a fee to the venue.

If a supplier is paying between 10 to 20% of their fee to a venue they are going to pass that cost onto the customer. It's you who ends up paying hundreds of pounds more for this arrangement.