Welcome to my blog! I am a full time professional photographer specialising in natural, creative wedding photography and a range of different types of portrait photography including maternity, new born babies, families and pets.

I love my work as, for me, a photograph is a split second in time, which is shaped by the emotions of a moment. Every photograph tells a story and particular images can conjour up strong and sometimes powerful memories. I count myself lucky to really love what I do as I have a passion for taking photographs and finding out what makes people tick.

I am based near Bristol and Bath in the Chew Valley. For weddings, I work mainly in the Bristol, Bath, Somerset and Gloucestershire areas and photograph weddings regularly at some of the best venues in the region including: Hunstrete House, Thornbury Castle, Ston Easton Park, Maunsel House, Kingscote Barn, The Park, The Matara Centre and Guyers House. I am happy to travel to other parts of the country and abroad. To find out more about my wedding photography please click here. For portraits I work either in clients' homes, on location or from my studio in the Chew Valley and aim to offer a relaxed, fun and personal experience, particularly as many of my clients have known me since photographing their wedding and come back to me for their family photographs. For more information about portraits, please click here.

I hope you enjoy looking through my most recent work on the blog. If you are interested in wedding or portrait photography specifically and would like to search for posts related to that, just use the categories button to refine your search.

Jonathan and Elizabeth’s wedding at Clearwell Castle

June 15, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

I had 3 weddings last week so it has been a busy few days getting them all processed this week, so please bear with me if you are waiting to see pictures from this weekend’s weddings!

Last Tuesday I drove over to Clearwell Castle in the Forest of  Dean for Jonathan and Elizabeth’s wedding.  Elizabeth was getting ready in the lovely top floor bridal suite, which has a goreous view over the castle grounds, when I arrived.  On hand were Elizabeth’s Maid of Honour Agniesca and her niece and nephew Ellie and Alex. Downstairs Jonathan and his best man Colin, were chatting to guests who were entertained by a pianist while they had welcome drinks.

Jonathan and Elizabeth both looked incredibly happy during the short ceremony and guests then headed outside to enjoy the lovely grounds for the drinks reception.

Here are a few of my favourite images:

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Bristol portrait photography – the Constable/Winser family

June 10, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

Last weekend I met up with Philippa, Andy, Holly, Sam, Laura, Kayleigh and Alex in Bristol to take some family portraits for them. We had a coffee first in the Arnolfini hoping that the showers would stop – luckily they did and we headed out to the harbourside.

Here are a few images from their shoot:

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Bath portrait photography

June 8, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

Last week I spent a lovely morning with Judith, Ian, Izzy and labrador Bramble  at their home in Bath. They have a lovely garden room which was light and airy, so we took some pictures in there and also in the garden.

Here are a few of my favourite images:

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Bath wedding photography – Erica and James’ wedding – Part 2

June 4, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

I seem to have been flying around the country over the last weeek so I am a bit behind with blogging.  I will try and get back on track over the next few days so bear with me!  For now, here is part 2 of Erica and James’ wedding last month in Bath.  Erica and James had their wedding reception at a favourite haunt of mine - the George in Norton St Philip.  It has a lovely setting on the edge of the village with views over the village green and the surrounding fields.  Guests enjoyed Champagne in the garden before sitting down to a medieval themed banquet.  Here are a few images from the reception:

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Bath wedding photography – Erica and James’ wedding Part 1

May 25, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

A week ago on Saturday, I had the pleasure of photographing Erica and James’ wedding in Bath.  They had had such a sunny day for their pre-wedding shoot I was really hoping the day would dawn sunny and dry and as luck would have it – it did!  I drove over to Norton St Philip to meet up with Erica and her mum Christine and bridesmaids Mairead, Jessica her Sister and friend Donna.  I have been in touch with Erica since last May when we first met up and it has been great to see all her plans coming together.  She decided on a medieval theme, to fit in with the setting of Bath Abbey and her venue – the George in Norton St Philip which was a 14th century coaching in – so very atmospheric! The girls’ bridesmaids dresses were a medieval style and in a deep red colour – which looked gorgeous with the reds and oranges of the flowers. Erica’s dress and veil had been made for her by her Mother and was a beautiful cream silk gown, also in a medieval style.

I then headed into Bath to the Abbey and met up with James and his best man Dave and ushers Phil and Nick. Although the Abbey is a spectacular building for a wedding it is also surprisingly intimate as they close it an hour before the wedding and it is so peaceful and tranquil inside despite crowds of tourists outside watching the street performers. Erica arriving created quite a stir as all sorts of visitors to Bath were keen to see her and I think she must have felt a bit like a celebrity!

Erica is a musican and had written her entrance music – which was quite amazing. She has quite a musical family as her cousin sang a beautiful aria during the service and at the end, a favourite piece of mine, John Rutter’s The Lord bless you and keep you – after which there wasn’t a dry eye in the whole Abbey!

After the ceremony, Erica and James greeted guests outside before we all headed off to the George.

Here are a few of my favourite shots from the first part of their day:

 

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Bristol Family Portraits – The Down Family’s Portrait Session

May 17, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

Last week I had the pleasure of spending a morning with the Down family. I first met them 2 years ago when I photographed their first daughter Olivia at almost exactly the same time of year. They came back with Olivia (now a bouncy young lady rather than a baby!) and baby Katy, who really reminded me of Olivia at the same age. We caught up over a cup of coffee and then had a lovely time in the buttercup field taking some gorgeous natural shots.  There was then time for a break and a change of clothes for the girls and we headed along the lake path to do some pictures there using all the lovely seasonal backgrounds. 

Here are a few of my favourite images:

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Bristol Wedding Photography – Greg and Lara’s Wedding pt 2

April 21, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

So after the ceremony, guests headed out to the front of the house to enjoy the sunshine and a glass of bubbly.  All the little flowergirls loved running around the huge lawn - which is such a great space particularly for weddings with lots of children as it keeps them really busy! 

I took Greg and Lara off for a few minutes to take some photographs of them and then it was time for the meal and speeches. I love taking photographs during the speeches as there are so many emotions to watch out for – what wedding photography is all about really.  At the end of the meal, coffee was served for guests to enjoy while watching the sun go down on what had been a perfect day.  Greg and Lara had their first dance and the whole dancefloor was soon jumping around to some old favourites.  There was then a surprise for guests in the form of a fireworks show, which was a real treat and a great end to the day.

Here are some of my favourite images:

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Erica and James’ Pre-wedding shoot near Bath

April 21, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

On Monday evening I met up with Erica and James who are getting married in Bath Abbey in a few week’s time. I had not seen them for nearlly a yeear so it was really nice to catch up with them over a drink in the early evening sunshine and plan out the photography for their wedding.

We also did their pre-wedding shoot in and around their venue – The George in Norton St Philip – which is a lovely venue with stunning views from its garden over the valley.  Here are some of my favourite images from their session:

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Bristol wedding photography – Lara & Greg’s wedding at Ston Easton Park (pt 1)

April 15, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

What a day for a wedding we had last Friday – I think it was the first time this year I have coated myself in factor 15 before leaving the house anyway!  When I arrived at Ston Easton Park, near Bristol I stopped to take some photographs of the daffodils and bluebells which were just stunning and a lovely springtime backdrop.  I then headed up to see Lara, who was getting ready with bridesmaids Katy-Jo, Lauren, Honey and also 4 year old identical twins Beatrice and Mathilde. It was all go with hairdressing and make up so I spent a while capturing the action before heading down to take some photogaphs of Greg, who was getting ready in the cottage with best man and Son Ben and ushers Luke, Cesar, Lee and his Father, Colin. 

As there are such a lot of images, here are a few of my favourites from the morning until the end of the ceremony.  Watch this space for part 2:

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A lovely message

March 11, 2011 By sarahc View Comments

I have neglected the blog a bit over the past couple of weeks while a new computer system has been installed in the office but that is coming to an end now (horray!). It’s a great time of year to get everything organised and up to date before the start of the main wedding season which I am really looking forward to.

Last week I was at a business lunch and conversation turned to the following topic  – What are you in business for? /Why do you do what you do?  An interesting question and one which might have a variety of answers depending on what work you do and what motivates you. For me, this message I was sent a couple of weeks ago from a couple who got married several years ago came to mind:

“Hi Sarah. I have just been looking at our Wedding album once again (Thornbury Castle 5/11/06) and wanted to send another thank you, four years on! Each time we look at it, it brings smiles and warm memories as each moment is captured perfectly (and we look so young..).I don’t think it will ever date. The photography is of a quality I never thought we would find. As my Mum passed away 18mths later, it is beautiful to look back at a day she absolutely adored and you were able to capture on paper, what was already in our hearts. It looks like you are still producing amazing work and I wish you all the luck you deserve. Many thanks again.”

So I feel very fortunate to be able to have the relationships with my couples that I do. It’s also nice to know that the images and albums they keep are a lasting reminder of that special and defining point in their lives. 

Coming up soon is the Major portrait session and Greg and Lara’s wedding so watch this space!

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