Josh's Christening

Just a quick post with a couple of shots from Josh's christening on Sunday.
With Clare & Howard's wedding pics uploaded and backed up it was time to clear down the cards, recharge batteries and head off to Eastnor Church for a big family christening for little Josh.

Here's Georgia, Graham & Josh arriving.


A lovely bright December day made for some nice lighting inside the church.


Then it was off to the Feathers Hotel in Ledbury for the party. Here's the family by the Quills room at the Feathers.


Just getting the rest of the pictures ready for the web gallery then I'll be editing Bridget & Tony's wedding from Wednesday 9th.

Time to Chill

It's that time again already!
I've been quiet on the blog front because we've been off to Italy on hols. Had a great time, drove far too much (3200 miles in a fortnight), ate too much ice cream and generally got very hot. It was nice to be out of the English rain but 35 degrees all day long was a bit exhausting!
Will probably put some holiday pics on my Flickr stream but for now it's back to work!

So today I've been down to Eastnor Deer Park to get my pass for the Big Chill and have a look round the site. It's a bit muddy but sun is forecast so I'm sure we'll be fine. Hoping to get back there later this evening as they are filming a massive Zombie film tonight with loads of the crowd made up as zombies. I narrowly avoided being zombified myself but was able to politely decline on the grounds that I want to be the other side of the lens!


The campsite is great with Eastnor castle as a backdrop but I think we made the right decision not to camp this year. Watching everyone struggle up the hill to pitch their tents brought back last year's painful memories!! As I live so close I'm taking advantage of being able to come home to a bed and a shower :-)

The boys start the weekend as they mean to go on.

If I get back down there later I'll try and get some zombie pictures. If not, watch this space to see the festival unfold over the next few days. I should be putting some reviews on Brum Live too if all goes to plan.

Our Day Out

Friday saw another great performance from the John Masefield team. The Lower School performed Willy Russell's Our Day Out and there was some amazing acting on display. They're a very talented group.
Here's a few shots from the performance. The rest are up in the usual place on my main website.

More Workshops

This weekend was the inaugural Steve Bulley photography outdoor training workshop. I took a group of 6 delegates to a local woods to get some hands-on advanced camera skills in changing and tricky light situations. After two years of highly successful evening classes at John Masefield High School, I have responded to demand and started to offer these one-day workshops. As this was the first, we did the morning on general SLR skills and the afternoon with a model, learning location portraiture.
During the summer I will be running 3 variations on this. I will be running camera skills at both beginner's and intermediate/improver's level, and a full-day portrait workshop. These are aimed at photography enthusiasts who want to get the best out of their SLR or advanced digital compact camera. Call me on 01531 637330 for more details or keep an eye on the main website. They will be run around the Ledbury area and also in Matlock on the edge of the Derbyshire Peak District.
We had a great time on Saturday and were able to enjoy a wonderful range of lighting, thanks to the variable weather and forest canopies and trails. Our model for the afternoon was Chloe who did a brilliant job. Here's a couple of my favourites and I'm sure the workshop delegates got some lovely ones too.

Congratulations Vanessa & Ian

Ness & Squeak (to his friends) tied the knot on Saturday 6th June at Eastnor Church. Despite the rain it was a great day and loads of fun. Here's Vanessa arriving at the church probably laughing at me getting a soaking :-)



This shot of the rings was at the Wellington Inn up at Chances Pitch. Ian sneaked in there for a quiet pint before the proceedings.



A bit later on at Hellens in Much Marcle, Ian found the cake-cutting knife could be put to other uses.



We did most of the groups inside in the wonderful rooms at Hellens but I managed to get Ian & Ness back outside after dinner for some shots of the two of them. I love this one in the doorway of the main house.



One of the sculptures on the lawn. I think this was the moment I tripped over my camera bag. The things I do to get the picture! :-)



I managed to recruit a couple of young assistants later in the party. This one had a few crazy ideas about how to use the flashgun!



The rain eased off enough for everyone to enjoy the grounds and it left some lovely evening skies behind.



Congratulations again Ness & Ian and thanks for a fun day. Have a great honeymoon!

Hungry Work

I was asked to take some publicity pictures for the Sitara Restaurant in Ledbury.
They will go on their website and marketing leaflets but here are a few previews.

This is the lovely, bright interior of the restaurant.



A tasty chick pea dish!



Satisfied customers enjoying their meal.

Congratulations Angie & James

My first wedding of 2009 was last Thursday at St James the Great church in Colwall then at the Feathers Hotel in Ledbury. Angie & James picked the best day of the week, maybe even the year so far! As you can see below, the sun came out and although it was a bit cold and windy, there was no rain, fog, snow or ice like there has been for the rest of the week.



They had a lovely car to bring Angie and then take them back to the Feathers.



Some classic shots of the couple back in Ledbury.

JMHS Evening of Drama

Last Wednesday at the Market Theatre, Ledbury saw another great performance from the John Masefield Theatre Group. I went down to cover the second half after teaching my SLR class and caught a piece from the Crucible and a devised piece by year 13 students Sam and Nicole named Happily Ever After.

Claire & Andrew's Wedding, Ledbury Church & Hellens

Doesn't time fly!
Claire & Andrew had a fantastic day a couple of weeks ago. The ceremony was at Ledbury Church (St. Michael & All Angels) and the reception at Hellens, Much Marcle.

The Big Chill 2008

As Sunday was a punk day I've decided to be alternative and not post pictures of the frontman (or men) for the Buzzcocks.
So here's the bass player and the drummer! Too often over-looked I reckon and it's not always easy to get a decent shot of the drummer so I'm pleased with this one.
You can just about see a bit of Steve Diggle on the big screen behind the bass player and there's one of Pete Shelley on my main website so they're not totally missed out!