Maria Murray Photography

The Maldives- Jen & Alan wedding day ctd...

Ok so I have been a bit slack for the last few days but busy trying to catch up with proofs , viewings and orders. 

However I know there are a few of you eager to see the story continued - so here goes!

I accompanied both Alan & Jen on the boat to Jehunuhura, the beautiful private island , where the actually ceremony was taking place. They travelled separately so here are are a few images from each side...

It was Alan's turn first but before he went off here he is striking a final deal for the dowry with Jen's dad 

Alan & Jen's little boy Max wondering what on earth all the commotion is about, thankfully Gary is on hand to explain it all

Miami Vice eat your heart out

ok so do I smoke it, get it to make a funny noise or pin it to my suit? who ever invented buttonholes has a lot to answer for...

 

uber cool

the lads having a last minute discussion about the merits of marriage

I love this one - Alan's brother and nephew ( who is also the ring bearer) looking very dapper

doesn't he scrub up well!

the lovely bride on her walk to the jetty accompanied by her bridesmaids & drummers

Jen greets her dad who has been eagerly waiting by the fountain

the bridesmaids obviously completely unaware of the camera

the discussion was centered mainly around " how do we get off this boat- are we swimming to the shore?"

sharing a moment...

the beautiful bride

 

the island of Jehunuhura where the story continues-but not tonight as it's waaay past my bedtime... 

 

Alan - preps

A few pictures from Alan getting ready...

Ok I will blog a little each day, and this is the next installment. Some images of Jen and her lovely bridesmaids getting ready. Jenny looked great and wore a fab Jenny Packham dress, and I will be posting some dress pictures soon!

Well, now that I am back , and have access to my normal internet connection I am finally able to post some pics! I will start with day 1 & 2, which was our arrival, followed by the fabulous sunset cruise that Alan & Jenny arranged for all the guests the night before their wedding day.

I will be blogging more over the next week so be sure to pop in and visit - and feel free to comment!

 DAY 1

The fantastic view from the seaplane....yes I did take some pics even though I was feeling rather beat after the 11 hour flight

and the Kanuhura resort - stunning

how could anyone possibly not like the look of that approach...

 

a welcoming smile from Jen, the lovely bride-to-be, with Alan lurking in the background!

was going to say something witty about the next one...but have brain freeze. So anyway, some palm trees - I'm easily impressed!

 

DAY 2 - the sunset cruise

After spending the morning chilling out on the beach I took my camera along to Alan & Jens who arranged this lovely surprise for all their guests. I thought it was a good opportunity to give my equipment a test run , which was a good idea really, since my lenses steamed up for the first half an hour because of the heat! 

At the villa for some drinks before the cruise

on the way to the boat, check out that beautiful warm light

getting comfy..

and away we go!

the highlight of the trip was dolphin spotting - and some got rather excited!

and here are the dolphins - unfortunately they were not in the mood for jumping...

the sunset

as part of the cruise we were able to enjoy some traditional entertainment, and boy , were they into it!

 

all lurrrved up!

and from the the top deck - the bride and groom's dads discussing the pre-nup (not!)

and another which is my favorite...I love the sense of peace and space

Overall it was a great evening and I was really happy to be part of it and meet everyone properly before the big day.

I will leave you with a a pic that I took at the beach that evening - using torchlight as the lighting. There were loads of these little blighters running around at night - I mean loads. We came out of our villa and swept the torch across the beach and I had a bit of an "arachnophobia" moment. But it didn't put me off enough not to take any pics...so here it is - a crab. Check out that little face , it looks quite strange, doesn't it...and the shadow is more scary than the real thing!

Will be blogging lots more in the next few days so please pop back for another visit!

I am now away from the studio until Tuesday as I am attending this years BPPA Awards in Newcastle. It is a chance to catch up with old friends, attend a great black tie do and generally get away for a few days! 

I am also up for a couple of Awards, so who knows...As I have already won the London Region Mario Acerboni Wedding Photographer for 2008, am shortlisted for the Bride's Choice wedding Award ( You and your Wedding magazine), got 2 Merits in Portaits  plus am a finalist in the Kodak Portrait Awards I can't really complain! I am chuffed even if i don't go any further. And one of my customers has something to celebrate too - as a result of me being a Kodak finalist she wins a fab Kodak digital camera.

And here are the images...please click to enlarge 

Mario Acerboni London Regional Winner 3-from-1 wedding ( before, during & after) 

10-from-1 Finalist bride's Choice - You and your Wedding

Kodak Portrait Award

Merit - Contemporary Portrait

Merit - Pets

one more from the oh so cool breaker's yard

girls leaving the fab LEE STAFFORD
hairdressers in Leigh-on-Sea

with this ring...

and the first dance

and then what is affectionately called the "toilet dance"....don't ask - the girls loved it!

c'mon James you know you want to...!

What a day it has been! Today I had a pleasure of shooting S & J's wedding, and it's been a fantastic day. Starting from the preparations (time seemed to fly??), then the church (yeah I had a tear in my eye - you could feel the love between those two) , the Yard (cool) and then the reception ( finally relaxing!), it was all fun fun fun - and we have been so lucky with the weather ( although at one point I was lying in a pile of mud, but it's a long story!). My favorite part of the day was the bit between the church and the reception aka the very cool car breakers Yard ( Stock Auto Breakers - thanks guys for letting us in & being models too!). We hung out , chucked a brollies around, rolled around on the floor (well I did...), roped unsuspecting bystanders into having pictures - just the usual stuff that goes on a wedding day (not!). Steph looked stunning and James couldn't take his eyes of her. Steph & James , as promised here is a quick preview for you before you get away for your honeymoon - have a fantastic time! Thank you for letting me share your day with you, it was fab. Hope these are grungy enough for you! Please click on images to enlarge...

and a slightly more conventional shot for the mums!

A couple of weeks ago I was second shooting for some fantastic wedding photographers, Dan & Ann Johnson at the Landmark Hotel in London. It was fab day - thanks Dan & Ann, it was great working with you!

Below you find find some of my favourite pictures but to get the full experience please take a moment to watch the SLIDESHOW

I have finally got round to editing the images I took in Paris. I went on a workshop organised by Jerry Ghionis, a fantastic wedding photographer from Australia. I had a great time, learnt loads, made some lovely friends and came back completely shattered! I have been playing catch up ever since...Jerry was an inspiration to say the least, and it was all pretty intensive. Here are some workshop images...some set up by Jerry and some taken during the 1 to 1 sessions with the models.

Last weekend I met the lovely Steph & James, who are getting married later this year.
I have this thing where I really don't like going in and shooting a wedding completely cold. I believe there needs to be some rapport and empathy, and that is why I like to meet first, and preferably to do a "warm up" session as well. Thankfully we had great weather and blue skies on the day & Steph & James were game for a few pictures ( as long as they were not conventional) :) So I quickly put my creative hat on and and tried to do something different!
It's been great meeting you guys, thanks for being relaxed with me, and I really look forward to shooting your wedding in September! Please wait a moment for the slideshow to load, and turn the speakers up!

Jen & Alan wedding day - girls preparations

Ok I will blog a little each day, and this is the next installment. Some images of Jen and her lovely bridesmaids getting ready. Jenny looked great and wore a fab Jenny Packham dress, and I will be posting some dress pictures soon!

Kanuhura part 1

Well, now that I am back , and have access to my normal internet connection I am finally able to post some pics! I will start with day 1 & 2, which was our arrival, followed by the fabulous sunset cruise that Alan & Jenny arranged for all the guests the night before their wedding day.

I will be blogging more over the next week so be sure to pop in and visit - and feel free to comment!

 DAY 1

The fantastic view from the seaplane....yes I did take some pics even though I was feeling rather beat after the 11 hour flight

and the Kanuhura resort - stunning

how could anyone possibly not like the look of that approach...

 

a welcoming smile from Jen, the lovely bride-to-be, with Alan lurking in the background!

was going to say something witty about the next one...but have brain freeze. So anyway, some palm trees - I'm easily impressed!

 

DAY 2 - the sunset cruise

After spending the morning chilling out on the beach I took my camera along to Alan & Jens who arranged this lovely surprise for all their guests. I thought it was a good opportunity to give my equipment a test run , which was a good idea really, since my lenses steamed up for the first half an hour because of the heat! 

At the villa for some drinks before the cruise

on the way to the boat, check out that beautiful warm light

getting comfy..

and away we go!

the highlight of the trip was dolphin spotting - and some got rather excited!

and here are the dolphins - unfortunately they were not in the mood for jumping...

the sunset

as part of the cruise we were able to enjoy some traditional entertainment, and boy , were they into it!

 

all lurrrved up!

and from the the top deck - the bride and groom's dads discussing the pre-nup (not!)

and another which is my favorite...I love the sense of peace and space

Overall it was a great evening and I was really happy to be part of it and meet everyone properly before the big day.

I will leave you with a a pic that I took at the beach that evening - using torchlight as the lighting. There were loads of these little blighters running around at night - I mean loads. We came out of our villa and swept the torch across the beach and I had a bit of an "arachnophobia" moment. But it didn't put me off enough not to take any pics...so here it is - a crab. Check out that little face , it looks quite strange, doesn't it...and the shadow is more scary than the real thing!

Will be blogging lots more in the next few days so please pop back for another visit!

British Photography Awards + Kodak Awards 2008

I am now away from the studio until Tuesday as I am attending this years BPPA Awards in Newcastle. It is a chance to catch up with old friends, attend a great black tie do and generally get away for a few days! 

I am also up for a couple of Awards, so who knows...As I have already won the London Region Mario Acerboni Wedding Photographer for 2008, am shortlisted for the Bride's Choice wedding Award ( You and your Wedding magazine), got 2 Merits in Portaits  plus am a finalist in the Kodak Portrait Awards I can't really complain! I am chuffed even if i don't go any further. And one of my customers has something to celebrate too - as a result of me being a Kodak finalist she wins a fab Kodak digital camera.

And here are the images...please click to enlarge 

Mario Acerboni London Regional Winner 3-from-1 wedding ( before, during & after) 

10-from-1 Finalist bride's Choice - You and your Wedding

Kodak Portrait Award

Merit - Contemporary Portrait

Merit - Pets

Steph & James Wedding ctd....

one more from the oh so cool breaker's yard

girls leaving the fab LEE STAFFORD
hairdressers in Leigh-on-Sea

with this ring...

and the first dance

and then what is affectionately called the "toilet dance"....don't ask - the girls loved it!

c'mon James you know you want to...!

Steph & James Wedding

What a day it has been! Today I had a pleasure of shooting S & J's wedding, and it's been a fantastic day. Starting from the preparations (time seemed to fly??), then the church (yeah I had a tear in my eye - you could feel the love between those two) , the Yard (cool) and then the reception ( finally relaxing!), it was all fun fun fun - and we have been so lucky with the weather ( although at one point I was lying in a pile of mud, but it's a long story!). My favorite part of the day was the bit between the church and the reception aka the very cool car breakers Yard ( Stock Auto Breakers - thanks guys for letting us in & being models too!). We hung out , chucked a brollies around, rolled around on the floor (well I did...), roped unsuspecting bystanders into having pictures - just the usual stuff that goes on a wedding day (not!). Steph looked stunning and James couldn't take his eyes of her. Steph & James , as promised here is a quick preview for you before you get away for your honeymoon - have a fantastic time! Thank you for letting me share your day with you, it was fab. Hope these are grungy enough for you! Please click on images to enlarge...

and a slightly more conventional shot for the mums!

Chinyin & Chris wedding

A couple of weeks ago I was second shooting for some fantastic wedding photographers, Dan & Ann Johnson at the Landmark Hotel in London. It was fab day - thanks Dan & Ann, it was great working with you!

Below you find find some of my favourite pictures but to get the full experience please take a moment to watch the SLIDESHOW

Finally...the Paris images!

I have finally got round to editing the images I took in Paris. I went on a workshop organised by Jerry Ghionis, a fantastic wedding photographer from Australia. I had a great time, learnt loads, made some lovely friends and came back completely shattered! I have been playing catch up ever since...Jerry was an inspiration to say the least, and it was all pretty intensive. Here are some workshop images...some set up by Jerry and some taken during the 1 to 1 sessions with the models.

Steph & James pre wedding shoot

Last weekend I met the lovely Steph & James, who are getting married later this year.
I have this thing where I really don't like going in and shooting a wedding completely cold. I believe there needs to be some rapport and empathy, and that is why I like to meet first, and preferably to do a "warm up" session as well. Thankfully we had great weather and blue skies on the day & Steph & James were game for a few pictures ( as long as they were not conventional) :) So I quickly put my creative hat on and and tried to do something different!
It's been great meeting you guys, thanks for being relaxed with me, and I really look forward to shooting your wedding in September! Please wait a moment for the slideshow to load, and turn the speakers up!