Breathe Pictures

Look back at summer, part 1

nealejames — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 22:44:12 +0000

When I was say ten or eleven, my parents would buy me a diary every Christmas in which, come new year’s day, I would faithfully begin to keep every detail of my daily life as a pre-teen. 7.32 Awoke. Listened to Radio 1 until Simon Bates came on. That’s when Mum switches over to Jimmy Young. 9.07 Played outside with Robin from number 14, until he fell off his bike and broke his glasses again. 10.32 Had cup of tea. And so on. I’d religiously scribe in this thing until at least January 7th, when normal service would be resumed and comics overtook my literary needs once more. And so here I am in 2008, skibbly oodles of years later, still finding it hard to maintain the time to complete a daily journal entry, this time in the form of a blog. At least I have an excuse now, I like to feel. It’s been my busiest year yet in the wedding photography business. So, here’s the start of an entry which will grow undoubtedly. Some of my favourite images from the ’season’ just gone. More to follow…

I love an air of expectation at a wedding. Waiting in the morning.

People watching during the speeches should become an Olympic discipline, especially during long speeches. It does make for some great imagery though.

I like the unusual context with this one.

Cakes glorious cakes!

nealejames — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 08:53:14 +0000

You know that phrase; ‘Water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink?’ Last year just prior to Christmas I was photographing a wedding near Windsor whilst suffering a mild to exceptionally head lifting, toothache. Without investing in too much grisly detail, a chipped tooth had exposed a nerve and and and. (You know what us fellas are like ladies, when it comes to pain!) To be fair though, isn’t modern pain relief wonderful? I doubt our bride even knew of my discomfort. So about my work I went, and through the day we went. Evening arrived and I took a few moments out to photograph the wedding breakfast room, all laid, prepped and ready for a hundred guests. As I entered the Tithe Barn where the breakfast was to be, there it was. It pretty much sang to me with a tuneful hypnotic mantra; “Eat me, eat me, eat me!” A tree of cup cakes. Probably one of the finest examples I have ever seen! If Carlsberg made cup cakes… etc. Later on that evening, when all had been captured photographically and I was about to take my leave, I was presented with an interesting dilemma. The catering staff had been dutifully replenishing ‘that’ tree with cakes and someone offered me a couple or three to devour on the way home. My heart sang, I was salivating with all the desire of a dog given free reign of a butcher’s window. But then, as if by karma powered by a gym personal trainer, the tooth fought back, the pain relief subsided and the brain said; “No way thank you.” See? Water water everywhere, and not a drop to drink. It’s been a while since I have written a recommended supplier post, but having just been asked by a forthcoming bride for a good cake company, I can recommend Crumbs and Doilies. You’ll find a direct link on the ‘Breathe Recommends’ list. As for whether my heart listened to my brain that night? I’m a photographer, and coming from the arty trade, since when did brains rule over hearts? Of course I munched a cake or three. Boy was the pain worth it.

Raging skies

nealejames — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:30:16 +0000

It’s a work in progress and I’m releasing an early draft here of our work with Phil Vickery. When I mentioned that I was shooting Phil for a series of shots connected with the Raging Bull clothing line to my wife, she couldn’t initially grasp my artistic connection with sinister skies and a range of clothing that is supposed to scream words like ‘rugged’ and ‘power.’ In fairness she was thinking of the Phil that gastronomically whips a thick mango mint yoghurt sauce together in the time it takes me to change channels to something far more intellectually stimulating, like… The Simpsons. I’m not a celeb chef fan to be fair. The Phil Vickery I’m referring to is ‘Raging Bull;’ an England rugby team captain, Wasps prop, a 19st 8lb Lions hero! I may be wrong, but I shouldn’t think Phil has even tasted a thick mango mint yoghurt sauce. And if he has, he probably wouldn’t admit it.

Low light wedding photography

nealejames — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 18:41:17 +0000

What I sometimes struggle to understand when talking to fellow pros in the wedding photography industry, is why photogs run inside and strap a speedlight (flash) to their camera body the moment the sun makes an exit from the skies above. I’m a relative newbie to the habit of chasing any light that makes itself available to shoot in and I’ll admit to being inspired by some of the Aussie and World market leading wedding shooters like Ghionis and Schembri in that particular field. But I have definately found that the age old cliche of ‘looking for the light,’ has, if you’ll forgive a hideously contrived company pun, ‘breathed’ life into my passion for capturing wedding images. Alongside those more candid moments that fashionably have become labelled as wedding photojournalism, there’s always time to go look for a shot that hopefully won’t appear in nine out of ten albums. The weekend just passed I photographed at a brand new venue called Wasing Park. A fabulous couple, a fabulous venue… and possibly the biggest bridal suite bed I have ever seen. Anyway, by the by, above - a couple of pics from when the sun went down. I know I know, you’re expecting scenes from the venue, perhaps the obligatory stuff, but nestled in hundreds of acres of prime farming countryside, I couldn’t resist an old Fordson tractor that resided down an overgrown lane, and as Wasing has invested in some of the most incredible lighting features - a shot that reflects the attention to detail that’s gone into downlighting parts of the venue. And then finally, below, I kid you not, a completely unarranged moment, when passing by the best man at the end of the wedding banquet, I spied the chap altering his notes.

Jack is four months old!

nealejames — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 20:28:00 +0000

Our boy is four months old. How time flies. I suppose next I’ll be waving him off to his first day of work at whichever premier league football outfit stumps up enough cash to keep his old man in shiny iMacs and Canon super zooms for the rest of his given days. I’ve been prompted by a couple of mates for some new Jack stuff, so here’s an ‘ahhh’ moment. Oh, and one with his dad. That was the wife’s idea, not mine.

Masks on!

nealejames — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 21:58:20 +0000

Sunday night, we found ourselves at one of Oxfordshire’s premier venues, Notley Abbey for a masked black tie event. We’ve photographed weddings at this former residence of Sir Laurence Olivier and Vivien Leigh, but this was somewhat of a special party thrown in honour of two of the owners’ children as they celebrated respective milestone birthdays. It’s inspiring to see the lengths some people go to sport a mask fit for a joint 18th/21st, but I do remain slightly in awe of the chap who felt a welding mask would be an award winner.

Those black and white moments

nealejames — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 20:38:05 +0000

Without sounding adversely sickly about why at Breathe we choose to shoot weddings, it’s the candid moments that make our industry so exciting. It’s hard to tell on a two inch screen how you’ve captured a scenario until the day’s work is downloaded later on the same evening. Purists may argue that a download doesn’t carry quite the same excitement as seeing an image chemically appear before your eyes under red lights in a darkroom, but for me, that download lays bear as many truths about the day’s photography as a good few hours swathed in toxic fumes. (For those that ask why I [Neale James] use so many smaller memory cards, I’ll repeat a blog entry from much earlier. Smaller cards mean more changes during the day for sure and if you shoot raw, you need to keep a far closer eye on the shot counter as it runs ‘dry’ that much quicker. But smaller cards also mean if one corrupts, you’ve not lost a whole wedding. Part maybe, but not a whole. Good wholesome tip.) This image is taken from the weekend’s wedding just gone. Congrats to Katy Locke and Andrew Williams, wed at St. Mary’s in Aldermaston - a venue that holds dear for the simple reason it was my own wedding venue. It’s a dark church, smallish windows, lots of tree shade and the normal rules apply; no flash during the ceremony, low key and unfussed. But the rewards are high when bride and groom exchange time with no attention paid to the 200mm lens poking out from a pew three or four metres away.

A stranger wedding image

nealejames — Sat, 24 May 2008 20:43:04 +0000

First of congratulations to Nigel and Sarah Shepherd upon their wedding celebrations at Ufton Court in Berkshire. I don’t know, maybe it’s a touch of self indulgence when photographing at Ufton that I [Neale James] find myself in a tiny priest’s vestry within this 15th Century house. Maybe it’s the fact that this incredible house is linked by many secret chambers and passages that persecuted Romish priests would have frequented to escape meeting their maker all too early. I’m not one to feel unusually sensitive in otherwise ’spooky’ surroundings, but this is one of the few rooms that persuades the last remaining hairs on my air conditioned head to point north. The walls seem hollow and I comedically sense that it wouldn’t take too much to lean unwisely and find yourself spinning through a concealed trap entrance to dank untrodden anti-rooms, Scooby Doo style. Don’t let me put any prospective bride and grooms off of choosing this as a venue for their special day; it can be a truly fabulous setting, but spend some time on your own navigating the rooms of this historical house and even the most ardent para-sceptics will admit to feeling just a tug of self doubt. Still, with the luxury of safety in numbers I gathered with bride, groom, assistant photographer and a bride’s brother to capture these wedding images. Unusual yes, but who said wedding photography should be a formulaic list? By the way, following our shots I was last down the stairs from this first floor chapel, but it sure did feel that someone else was behind me!

Alex and Emmie at Silchester House

nealejames — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 08:35:09 +0000

When we’re asked what our favourite photographic venue for weddings is, I’ll [Neale James] personally respond with; “They’re all elegant and absorbing photographically for their own respective reasons and features.” Now I realise that must sound like I’ve perched myself atop a very comfortable fence and is one strong step towards a career in estate agency, but I really do mean it. That’s what makes my job of photographic wedding coverage so incredibly compelling. Last year in ‘07, I photographed weddings at a varied collection of venues, from stately homes that are the playgrounds of the rich and famous, to good honest ‘no frills but plenty of character’ public houses. However… (you could sense a ‘but’ about to be popped into the column) Silchester House remains an exceptionally precious wedding venue, due to the simple fact that I enjoyed my own wedding reception there. I often comment to couples in football terms, that it feels like we’re ‘playing at home’ the moment we pull into the driveway. It’s a light and welcoming house, with sizeable grounds for photography. Here are some shots from Alex and Emmie’s recent Silchester wedding.

Our Jack’s first photoshoot

nealejames — Tue, 08 Apr 2008 08:35:12 +0000

You would have rightly expected us to be champing at the bit to pop our boy Jack (Baby Breathe) into the studio for his first official shoot. Arguably one of the best times to photograph a baby is in his or her first few weeks of life, when they’re floppy and retaining their foetal position. They’re also quite relaxed about the whole thing at this age, especially if they are post feed. I’m not expecting a very young baby to photograph wide eyed and smiling, their real emotions influence a shoot at this age; sleep, some tears even. Features also play a strong part in a baby shoot; little feet, little hands, little ears. I usually prefer to keep shoots fairly short at this age. We are using studio flash, so I keep a watchful eye on how baby reacts to short bursts of visually stimulating light. Here are a few shots from Jack’s shoot.