Margaret and Stuart (who are no strangers to the blog) are both doctors, so it was pretty clear from the outset that this was going to be a very well-planned event and indeed it was. One concern I did have however was whether the wedding day schedule would be typed up or handwritten – have you ever seen a doctor’s handwriting? LOL

The day started at Margaret’s parents’ beautiful home in Kippen. With four bridesmaids, the bride’s parents and the bride to get ready, you would perhaps be expecting things to get a little frantic.  Add to this the rather major issue of hosting the Wedding Breakfast and Reception later that day in a Marquee at the bottom of the garden. Can you imagine the logistics of effectively turning your home into a wedding venue for a hundred guests? Amazingly everyone was very calm and relaxed with Margaret’s Mum and Dad, Anne and Robert taking care of all the logistics.

After all the ladies (and Robert) were in their finery it was off to the small village of Doune for the Wedding Ceremony at St Fillans Catholic Church.

After the wedding ceremony it was back to Kippen and the Marquee overlooking the Forth Valley. Robert, (Margaret’s Dad for those that haven’t been paying attention) had apparently spent ages getting the garden in stunning condition so that guests could meander round the gardens with champers in hand. However the weather men had different plans. It rained. And rained. And rained.

Fortunately the rain finally relented at the end of the evening and we were able to get some stunning wedding photographs of Margaret and Stuart in the gardens – so Robert hopefully all your work wasn’t all in vain.

Margaret and Stuart provided a “Donations Bar” where all proceeds went to their two favourite charities, Strathcarron Hospice, which cares for terminally ill patients in the Forth Valley area, and ‘Mary’s Meals‘, an international charity aiming to provide school meals for some of the world’s poorest children. Well done guys.

Credit must also go of course to Wedding Planner Rebecca Barnett who ensured everything ran smoothly on the day.

So here are a few of my favourite shots from the day.

Friends and Family can view the entire gallery in our clients area – the password is the couple’s surname (all in lower case). You can also order any prints in various sizes directly from the gallery.

Thanks Margaret and Stuart for allowing us to be part of your special day – it was a truly wonderful wedding.

Don’t be shy – We love to hear from visitors to our website, so please feel free to leave your comments and feedback below.

Like what you see? Want to see more? – you can view our Wedding and Portrait Photography portfolio here

Looking for a Wedding Photographer? Or perhaps planning a special family portrait? We’d love to discuss your plans with you. You can contact us on 01259 210299 or 07887 835431 or use the Contact menu at the top of this web page.  We look forward to hearing from you.

PS. Did you know that Doune Castle is where many of the scenes in Monty Python and the Holy Grail were filmed? You didn’t?  Well you do now. They even have an annual Monty Python Day there each year.

PPS. Kippen also has a claim to fame. In 1891, Duncan Buchanan planted a vineyard in the village (yes in Scotland!) and one of its vines grew to be the largest in the world. The Kippen Vine covered an area of 5,000 square feet, spreading across four greenhouses. It became a famous tourist attraction, until the Vinery had to close in 1964.

There you are – see it’s not just Whisky we make here in Scotland.

Morag and Simon live down South, but Morag wanted to return home for a proper Scottish Wedding and chose the gorgeous wedding venue of Airth Castle. The stunning castle overlooks the village of Airth and the nearby River Forth.

Airth Castle Hotel was recently named the “Best Wedding Venue in Scotland” at the prestigious Vows awards and is a well-deserved accolade as the staff cannot be more helpful.

Of course weddings don’t organise themselves, even with the perfect wedding venue.  It takes planning.  Lots of it.  However, if Carlsberg planned weddings they would hire our lovely bride Morag – if ever there was a lesson in “best practice” on how to organise a wedding with was it.  (You can see Morag’s wedding project folder in the images below). Morag was so organised and the wedding ran like clockwork allowing the happy couple to relax and enjoy their well-planned day.

We first met Morag and Simon last year for their pre-wedding photography shoot at the Wallace Monument in Stirling.  So on the day we were all very relaxed.

Occasional cases of mass confusion did however occur every time I asked Morag for something – as readers of the blog will know, my wife and wonderful assistant is also called Morag. Eventually we agreed Morag 1 (aka the bride) would be called Morag, and Morag 2 (aka the photographer’s assistant) would be called Mo. That lasted all of two minutes when I already had the names reversed. No problems with the groom fortunately. Well done Simon.

We had great fun with the happy couple and their guests all day – it was a fabulous wedding. In the evening we brought along our popular photobooth to allow guest to get some “couples” shots in our portable photography studio, as well as some fun filled “creative” shots.

Here are some of my own personal favourite shots from the day:-

Friends and Family can view the full wedding gallery here. The password to access the gallery is the Groom’s surname.  The photo booth images can also be viewed there as well.

Like what you see? Want to see more? You can view our portfolio here.

Interested in speaking to us to discuss you own wedding photography or portrait requirements? Please click on the Contact menu at the top of the page or give us a call on 01259 210299 or 07887 835431. We can cover wedding and portrait commissions throughout Scotland as well as overseas.

We’d love to hear from you.

P.S. The Best Man’s speech reference to the Volcanic Ash Cloud disruption was classic, bringing out a carrier bag from Iceland to collect the ash.

Tracy and Greg, who are no strangers to the blog got married a few weeks back at the majestic Barcelo Stirling Highland Hotel.  The Stirling Highland Hotel sits on the road up to Stirling Castle and the building was the original home of The High School of Stirling (which has since moved twice), so it is steeped in local history.

It was very fitting then that Tracy and Greg chose some very classic and historical cars to transport them to the venue.  The Highland Hotel also has an agreement with Stirling Castle to allow couples to have their photographs taken in the grounds of nearby Stirling Castle.

Of course any great wedding cannot go without a little bit of drama and our poor bride and groom got stranded back at the hotel with a broken down car when all the rest of their bridal party were waiting for them up at the castle.

Once they were able to be rescued and the official group shots were taken we then had another problem as a wayward tourist decided to walk right in front of one the bridal cars ejecting the mother of the bride out of her wheelchair – fortunately she wasn’t hurt.  Apparently neither was the tourist although I believe the driver of the car did leave him with a loud ringing noise in his ear with the roasting he gave him LOL

After all that drama it was back to the wedding venue for a good Scottish knees up with a traditional Ceilidh which was thoroughly enjoyed by all.

Here are a few of my favourite images from the day.

Like what you see? Want to see more?

Please view our portfolio section to see some more of our work?

Friends and Family will be able to view the wedding photographs and order prints from our clients gallery once Tracy and Greg have had a chance to review all their images.

Glasgow Science Centre was the couple’s choice of venue for the photography shoot, and what a great choice it was.  Great architecture, great weather and a great couple – an excellent combination!

Here are a few of my favourite images from the session:-

Interested in a Pre-Wedding Shoot?

We currently offer complimentary pre-wedding shoots with all of our Album packages and they offer an excellent opportunity to get some really cool images of you and your partner prior to your wedding day.

At the end of the session we present you with your favourite image as a mounted 20 x 16″ print – and if you wish we can create a signature area where you can get your weddings guests to sign the image on your big day – it makes for a wonderful keepsake.

Like what you see? Want to see more?

Please view our portfolio section to see some more of our work?

Want a Pre-wedding shoot but you’re already married?

Don’t worry, we also offer our “Aftershoot Sessions” – a chance to get some really contemporary photographs taken, perhaps to celebrate a first anniversary or even a special birthday.  Or why not get the wedding dress back on and do a “Cherish the Dress” shoot or even go a little wilder and do a “Trash the Dress” shoot?  Drop us an email using the Contact menu at the top of the page or call us on 01259 210299 or 07887 835431.

We’d love to hear from you.

P.S. My assistant photographer ( and lovely wife ) Morag can’t stop herself checking in on Living TV’s Four Weddings series – Four brides pitch their weddings against each other for the chance to win a “dream” honeymoon – whatever possesses these people?  Sheer madness.  It’s dreadfully trash TV but somehow Morag can’t seem to stop herself from watching it.  We should however add that anyone that wants to book us for their “Robin Hood” themed wedding – Erm, the answer will be a polite “No thank you”.  LOL

P.P.S. If you are looking for a slightly more sensible source of TV-based wedding inspiration, check out Wedding TV on Sky 266 or Freesat 400, or better still go grab yourself a copy of Real Life Weddings magazine.

Orocco Pier is a gorgeous wedding venue which sits on the banks of the River Forth on the East of Scotland, close to Edinburgh.   The venue has a stunning outlook,  overlooking the world famous Forth Bridge and “the Golden Gate wannabe” the Forth Road Bridge.

We had a great day with Nicola and Paul and their extremely warm and welcoming families.   Stars of the day were of course the happy couple, but we must also mention little Matthew, shown in the second and fifth photograph (taken by Morag). You know that expression “he’s been here before”? – that definitely applied to Matthew, here was a young man with what seemed like a lifetime of wisdom in his young head – he kept us entertained with his little quips all day.

Honorable mention also goes to Nicola’s gorgeous Christian Louboutin shoes.  Morag hasn’t stopped gushing about them since the wedding.

Nicola and Paul are now on the other side of the world enjoying their honeymoon in New Zealand.   So in celebration of their first week anniversary here are a few of our favourite images from the day.

The full gallery of images will be up on the website once Nicola and Paul get back from New Zealand.   In the meantime friends and family can register to be notified as soon as the images become available by visiting our client gallery.

Enjoy the rest of your Honeymoon Nicola and Paul and Happy First Week’s Anniversary.

Like what you see? Want to see more? You can view our Wedding Photography portfolio here.

Want to discuss your own wedding or portrait photography requirements? Then we’d love to hear from you, please contact using the Contact menu at the top of the web page.

In Morag and Simon’s case their choice of location was to be the spot where they they originally got engaged, Wallace Monument, one of Scotland’s most popular tourist attractions.

As a Scottish Wedding Photographer who was born in the shadow of “The Wallace”, this is a particularly favourite location of mine and is right bang in the middle of my home patch of Central Scotland.

Wallace Monument stands proud on Abbey Craig rock high above the town of Stirling, and was opened to the public in 1861 to recognise one of Scotland’s greatest heroes, Sir William Wallace (or as Hollywood now affectionately knows him, “Braveheart“).

Nowadays, you can actually get married at the top of Wallace Monument – just keep your fingers crossed that it’s not too windy a day!.

In Morag and Simon’s case they are getting married next year at the stunning wedding venue of Airth Castle Hotel, once owned by the family of another Scottish hero, King Robert the Bruce.  Airth Castle Hotel and Spa is one of Scotland’s premier wedding venues and will make a stunning backdrop for Morag and Simon’s wedding photography.

So, on to the photographs from their pre-wedding photoshot at what was NOT a “semi-private” location by any measure.  Cue the magic trick of making 300 tourists, also visiting Wallace Monument that day, disappear……

However it is an area of photography that I do enjoy, and is very similar in approach to a pre-wedding photoshoot in terms of camera technique and general style of shooting. So when approached by Kevin and Leanne (who were married last year) to do a maternity shot for them I was more than happy to oblige.

We shot the maternity session in and around Stirling in Scotland – firstly in the Clackmannanshire countryside at the foot of the Ochil Hills and then into Stirling itself just beside the Old Stirling Bridge.

Fast forward a few weeks and say hello to Baby Grace, Kevin and Leanne’s delightful daughter. Grace is a natural poser and her first formal baby pictures turned out rather well.

A couple of weeks ago on a delightfully sunny weekend I found myself up at the great wedding venue of Dalmunzie Castle in Glenshee, Perthshire to do a pre-wedding photoshoot with Ian and Jill.

Although I am based in Stirling, as a Wedding Photographer I market my services throughout the whole of Scotland, so it was not unusual to find myself in the Central Highlands of Scotland.

I will be photographing Ian and Jill’s wedding day at Dalmunzie Castle in July 2010 and this was an opportunity for all of us to get to know each other better and most importantly for them to assess my skills as their wedding photographer.

On a pre-wedding photoshoot such as this we’ll typically aim to capture around 10-15 great images that the couple can then use however they wish (many couples use them for save the date cards or frame their favourite image as a family keepsake) .

Ian and Jill were great fun to work with and in the end we presented them with around 25 images which we will use to create a fully customised Wedding Guest book (more about that in an upcoming post).  Family and friends can view the full collection of images in the clients area.