Gone Live!

My new website is now live! It includes my new blog, as well as an online store I've created specially for wedding guests to purchase images from weddings.

For the time being, this blog will remain live, but it will no longer be updated.

Please update your bookmarks,

http://struvephotography.co.uk/

Kristin

Summer, summer.....

It's been a fairly busy summer for me this year. Aside from weddings, photo shoots and wedding shows, I've also been busy working on my new website.

I've decided to launch it in time for my second business birthday (25th September).

I think there's always a risk with work, that some projects occasionally get put onto the back burner and not "picked up". Website revamping often falls into this category. So, I've set myself a very real deadline which while adding a bit of pressure, also means it will happen! And now I've obviously made the commitment here....

I've also been busy participating in various wedding shows this summer. The traditional wedding show season tends to be from September into November, and again in February and March. Well, it looks like that's all changing a bit! So far this summer I've exhibited in three wedding shows. The benefit I imagine for brides and grooms, is the opportunity to see venues in the same light they might be in a years time, at a wedding. Spreading out the wedding shows also means that brides and grooms get a chance to go to more of them, and hopefully there are fewer clashes.

I thought I'd share some photos of my stall from this weekend's Loch Lomond Wedding Exhibition.

In addition, I also exhibited at the Dream Wedding Scotland show at the end of June, in Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall.

I really enjoyed doing these shows, actually. It's such a good opportunity to meet people, and chat to them about their wedding and about my work in a way that is much harder to achieve online or through the usual advertising methods. It makes the whole thing feel as it ought to be - a two-way street between couples and photographers.

I'm exhibiting this weekend, at the Very Vintage Wedding Fair at the Ghillie Dhu in Edinburgh. I'm looking forward to it, as it's my first time exhibiting at such a quirky little venue and for a more niche audience.

After that, back to working on the new website, which should incorporate a brand new blog! 

Dream Scotland Wedding Show at Sheraton Grand Hotel, Edinburgh

A few months ago, I was due to exhibit at the Thee Wedding Show at Murrayfield. Unfortunately, that was cancelled a few days prior.

As an exhibitor, it was frustrating as wedding shows are important to me as a means of getting a chance to meet and greet brides and grooms, showing them my work in print, and chatting to them about their plans. Wedding shows generally tend to be organised usually a minimum of six months in advance, so with the wedding show cancelled, I was left without a wedding show to exhibit at.

Fortunately, the cavalry came via Twitter. I tweet when I have the chance, and one day, noticed a brand new wedding show being tweeted. I responded, and I'm so glad I did, as I managed to secure a stall at the Sheraton Grand Hotel wedding show this weekend, as well as at their forthcoming Glasgow wedding show in June.

The team have been great at being pro-active in their PR. They've been actively promoting the show, via social media as well as radio and in print, and they've been fantastic to work with as a supplier.

For me, it was an opportunity to showcase my latest album samples, as well as a new signature board. I've had a great time building and constructing my stall as well, any excuse to do a little shopping and find new and exciting things to decorate it.

The show itself was great - I really enjoyed meeting lots of brides and grooms, mothers-in-law-to-be, sisters, and future bridesmaids. It was also a real pleasure to meet some very lovely fellow wedding suppliers - putting some faces to names, and getting the chance to chat to new people. I felt I came away having made some new friends as a result of the event.

I think though, one of the most important aspects of a wedding show, is the atmosphere. I felt this one had a really positive atmosphere - people seemed relaxed and happy going round all the stands, while the exhibitors were enthusiastic. I really hope that if you were one of the people who came, you enjoyed it as much as I did.

I'm really looking forward to exhibiting with them again, in Glasgow at the end of June.

Work in progress....

The last few months, I've been weighing up whether to stick with my existing website host, or whether to start afresh elsewhere. As much as I like my existing site and host, there are elements of it which are somewhat limiting to my business.

I've eventually settled for a host, and I'm working on the template designs, tweaking it to make it a bit more me.

It's a little while off final completion, and very much a work in progress, but I thought I'd share this little screen grab. I've incorporated a new photo of myself, taken by Rosie Woodhouse recently at a meet-up we had in Glasgow.

Really looking forward to being able to share it when it's finished!

Behind the scenes: scouting locations

Sometimes, when I'm at wedding fairs, I get asked by brides (and grooms) to be whether I've shot at a particular location before. I understand that for many couples their ideal situation is to hire someone who knows a venue well. However the reality is that I have yet to photograph the same venue twice.

I think this is partly due to modern changes in attitude towards where you can get married. For one thing, the possible options of venues now are endless; where it used to be common to have a church wedding followed by a hotel for the reception, people are now getting married in lots of different locations, whether it's a hotels, castles, or breweries. It's a lovely aspect of the diverse nature of weddings, but obviously, it does mean that photographing a venue more than once is a little less likely. However, I do make sure I know what to expect at a new venue, by having a recce where possible beforehand.

One of my upcoming weddings this year, is taking place on the Cafe Barge in Tarbert. I've never shot a wedding there before, so as I try to do with all my locations, I went to visit with my camera in hand.

The purpose of the recce is so that I can start to see the details of a place, I can get a feel for the lighting conditions, and the space around me. For this particular trip, I ought to say thanks to my brother for accompanying me and doing the driving - sometimes I quite enjoy having some company on these day trips.


It was an absolutely gorgeous day - while West Lothian and the central belt were freezing cold, once we were over the Erskine Bridge, the weather began to improve.

 

 

 

 

The top of the barge was gorgeous - the benches were decorated with little plant pots, and there were plant pots and a coffee cup tucked into a lobster net. There were also flowers in the lifebelt. There were multicoloured lights as well, draped from the masthead. You may also notice I was slightly obsessed with photographing the pretty pink bicycle which had its basket filled with blossoms and lilies!

The Cafe Barge has been listed in the Independent's Top 50 best Wedding Venues. The barge is originally Dutch, and it's still got lots of little details hinting at it's Dutch background. Inside the barge was equally lovely - warm and snug, it serves as a cafe during the daytime with a rich menu of good Scottish food, with vegetarian and fish options.

 

With many thanks to the Cafe Barge for their hospitality during my recce - really looking forward to revisiting the barge soon!

Cafe Barge:
http://www.cafebarge.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cafebarge/190027291011578
https://twitter.com/CafebargeArgyll

Photos I love: Merchant City, Glasgow, April 2012

It was forecast to be sunshine but on the day I took this, it was overcast.

The day in question, was Chris and Jon's wedding at the Old Fruitmarket at Candleriggs in Glasgow.

The photograph shows the blossoms on the tree, partly obscuring the view of the Ramshorn Theatre. It's not the ideal angle, looking up at the sky. I imagine a lot of people might have pointed the camera down a bit more, and squared off the angles and perspectives. But it's a photo that I liked in my collection.

There's no detail in the sky, but then, when it's overcast with white cloud, there never is.

I think I love this photograph because of all the gentle tones in it. The soft tint of pink in the blossoms, and the soft fawn colour of the Ramshorn Theatre sandstone, coupled with the white cloud. It's a quintessentially natural scene of a Scottish spring time, it is as it is - simple, uncomplicated, clean.

All this in the middle of a city, a bustling, thriving city shaking off the shackles of a mean reputation. I think this shows Glasgow as it really is - not as it's perceived to be through stereotypes and fear.

New Moo!

One of the things about running a small business, is sometimes it involves buying new things. Not all the new things though are things I can show off, they're just necessary outgoings, such as external hard drives and memory cards and batteries.

However, every so often, I'm able to indulge in things that are exciting. This morning, I received a little package from Moo with all sorts of goodies in it!

I do like Moo products... it's the stationery nerd in me. I love their presentation, the options, and the promising possibilities for what I can do with them...

So I thought while I unwrapped my package, I'd photograph it as I did so.

This was a particularly hard part of the process - I love ripping things open and tucking in straight away!

It contains:

• a Moo business card holder;
• a Mini Moo card holder;
• 2 boxes of log in and password cards for guests at my upcoming weddings; and of course...
• new business cards (I opted for curvy edged ones).

I love the Moo branded parcel paper! The "yay" sticker on the back of the tissue paper was also a lovely little addition - I just love how everything is wrapped up and packaged... it makes the whole business expense experience a lot more fun!

Product Feature: Struve Photography Small Landscape album

I thought I'd write a post today, about my wedding albums.

I really do like my albums, if I'm honest. I buy them from a fantastic local album printer, and the photographs from the albums are printed directly onto the page. From a photographic perspective, this enables me to make the most of the photographs I take at weddings, as I can often incorporate detail shots into the background, which help to tie different photographs together as part of the story. I'm also able to print photographs over a double page spread quite easily, without vital parts of the image disappearing into the centre crease, as the album can be spread out so that the image lies perfectly flat. The overall look is very stylish and makes an absolutely fantastic way of showcasing wedding photographs to their best vantage.

I have four album sizes, and I plan to blog about each size of album.

The sizes I offer my couples are:

• 5x7 inch - small stylish landscape album;
• 6x6 inch - a super cute square little album; 
• 10 x 14 inch - Big and beautiful, classic large landscape album;
• 12x12 inch  - Stylish hip-to-be-square format album.

There are also a variety of album cover options for each album size, so that my couples can get a truly bespoke wedding album that reflects their wedding style, and complements their personality.

Today's focus, is on this neat little landscape, 5x7 inch album.
 

As with all the albums, it comes in its own lined presentation box, to keep it looking gorgeous and fantastic for a very long time. This particular album features photographs from Kerry and Stewart's wedding, in 2010. It has a gorgeous brushed aluminum cover, with the names of the couple and their wedding date engraved on the outside - giving it a stylish and classic feel.

The pages inside are really nice and thick - the album printer uses a high quality paper and ink to make sure that the images will last, which is exactly what you want as something you can pass down to future generations.

I adore this little album - the size is perfect for me to take to show to couples, so it would be the perfect size for you to carry and show to friends and family!

Engagement Shoot: Jon and Chris in Scone

Today I'm thrilled to showcase some photographs from an engagement shoot I did with Jon and Chris, in Scone, earlier this year.

Now, if when you think of the idea of pre-wedding or engagement shoots, you think of heavy posing, or formal attire, then think again. The photographs below embody exactly what I like to achieve during my engagement shoots.

As with all my engagement shoots, I like the couple to take me somewhere that's special to them. In this case, it was into their home. Jon and Chris met a few years ago, and relocated from Glasgow to Scone in Perthshire.

For this particular engagement shoot, we went for a walk round the woodlands, near their home. It was a gorgeous crisp early spring day, and going for a walk was the perfect setting for our shoot. Afterwards, we headed back to their home, where Chris and Jon did some baking together, before settling down on the sofa with a glass of wine and a guitar to sing along to, while they waited for the food to cook.

A big thank you to Chris and Jon for letting me share these engagement shoot photographs on my blog.