The biggest day in your life is definitely a memory that you would like to cherish forever. As a documentary wedding photographer in Edinburgh, my aim is to help you do just that, by capturing stunning photographs.

As much as I enjoy photographing couples in love on their big day, something that I am perhaps even fonder of doing is getting a chance to photograph them after the wedding. Weddings are massively busy events with everyone rushing here and there. It does not matter how many hands you have on board to help you out with pulling the event smoothly, there is always something that could use more attention.

At DH Photography, we are all about making things as convenient and stress-free for our clients, but weddings and jitters go hand in hand. During the wedding, the bride and the groom themselves are on what seems like an emotional rollercoaster. This is a majorly significant day for both of them and nerves are bound to cause a little more annoyance than usual.

Since I have been covering wedding events for quite some time now, I am all too familiar with how nervousness and pre-wedding anxiety can make it so difficult for the couple to relax and smile for the camera. And I don’t blame them!

Everyone everywhere is in a rush to put last-minute touches on things. And while there may be things that are better executed under pressure, photography is not one of them…especially when the subject of your interest is the one feeling rushed. Just imagine yourself smiling for the camera on your big day, and the next second being drifted off to a corner, by a distant cousin who must have a word with you before you exchange vows.

And no, they cannot wait.

However, things take a turn (and for the better!) after wedding ceremonies have been taken care of. In fact, I am not making this up when I say that the entire atmosphere of the event experiences a shift, once the main events are done and dusted with.

Everybody seems more relaxed especially the bride and the groom.

This is why this should come as no surprise to anybody when I say that photographs taken during a post-wedding shoot turn out 10 times better than ones taken while the wedding is in full swing. Now that a big load is off everybody’s shoulders, people at the wedding have a much easier, not to mention, a more entertaining time getting photographed.

There are no deadlines to catch, there are no 4 different places to be at in one given moment -- all of this gives the wedding photographer an opportunity to click beautiful pictures of the now relaxed clients. So if you are wondering if a post-wedding shoot is worth looking into for your big event, my answer is that it definitely is worth it; you will not be disappointed. 

Furthermore, the verdant scenery which Scotland provides is another factor which works in its favour. In fact, in my personal opinion it is the breathtaking scenery of Scotland which primarily accounts for why so many people choose a wedding venue here.

And if you have ever had the opportunity to look at some of that scenery, you would know just why that happens! So when my lovely clients Laura and Andy told me that they have selected Enterkine House in Ayrshire as their wedding venue, I could easily tell why. Located in the heart of Ayrshire, it is one of the most famous wedding locations there. It is a gorgeous country house hotel that is surrounded by even more gorgeous views.

Now a little about my clients; Laura and Andy wanted a photographer who would cover their wedding as it happens. That is, they were not looking for a photographer who would capture excessively posed pictures of their big day.

In other words, they were looking for a documentary style photographer to capture plenty of beautiful candid wedding moments.

So on the day of the actual event, I arrived at the Enterkine House. Ask any wedding photographer about what is that one thing they pray extra hard for, on the day of any event which they are supposed to cover. 9/10 times you will get to hear something related to wishing the weather that day is good. Now if you know anything about Scotland’s weather you probably know that we hardly ever have excessively hot weather! However, on Laura and Andy’s big day the temperature was soaring!

Still, the wedding ceremony took place smoothly and despite the sweltering heat Laura, Andy, I and everybody else who attended the wedding, managed to maintain our cool. The Enterkine House’s staff was so hospitable, making all sorts of accommodations to keep the guests at ease. So in the end, despite the extreme heat everyone had a good time.

The beautiful views surrounding the Enterkine made for absolutely gorgeous backdrops! The fact that there was just so much sunlight that day made it easy for me to capture vivid, bright shots of Laura and Andy who were perhaps one of the most cooperative clients I have ever had.

Dressed to the nines, the couple looked as gorgeous live as they did on the camera! I managed to click some beautiful wedding portraits of the couple. My focus, as requested by Laura and Andy, was to make sure that the pictures came out as natural-looking as possible.

Have a look at some of the shots and decide for yourself if you think I did a good job! Let me know in the comments section of what you make of the wedding portraits.

When it comes to beauty, there is hardly a place that could compete with what Sweden has to offer, especially Stockholm. Its beauty is exquisite. After Jenny and Tomas had confirmed their dates and venue, I got busy packing my things, my photography gear, my favorite lenses…I double-checked everything just to make sure I wouldn’t forget anything!

This was my first time visiting Sweden, so as it is, it was becoming a little difficult for me to control my excitement. I had seen so many beautiful locations in pictures and videos captured by other amazing photographers that I had always wanted to go there myself, too.

One day...I would tell myself. And now that the day was here, I still had to pinch myself a little to make sure I was not dreaming. I had looked up the wedding venue in advance, just to have an idea of what the place is going to be like. And as no surprise at all, the venue looked beautiful in pictures. I could hardly wait to see what it would look like in person.

To say that Stockholm’s beauty blew my mind would be an understatement. It looked even better (as if that were even possible!) now that I was standing on Sweden ground.

Finally, the day of the big event arrived. Now let me tell you something a little interesting about the couple that I was to photograph for this event. Their wedding was going to be a mixed wedding since the bride is Syrian whereas the groom is Swedish. I cannot even begin to tell you the incredible amalgamation of the wedding traditions I saw at this wedding! It was like experiencing the best of two worlds.

Despite the families of both the bride and the groom having such different backgrounds, they all got along so well together. Their comfort even made several appearances on the portraits I clicked of them.

The main event took place in a beautiful church. I managed to get a good amount of spectacular shots of the couple and once the wedding ceremony was over, the party made its way to the second half of the wedding which was supposed to happen at the venue I told you about earlier.

That venue was what I was waiting for! I had already singled out my favorite spots where I was going to take some gorgeous candid shots of the couple. As a documentary wedding photographer I can never get enough of candid shots. And this charming couple in particular was already so in love and comfortable around each other that capturing their candid moments was a breeze.

Have a look at some of the photographs posted below to see just how true that is!

The best part about doing wedding photography is that you get to witness real life love stories.  The second best part about doing wedding photography in Edinburgh is the stunning wedding venues. As you all know, Scotland is pretty big on providing some of the most picturesque views, ever. Keavil House Hotel in Dunfermline, Scotland is a testament to this fact. This was the location which Nicola and Craig had picked for their big day.

To say the least, I was very excited just thinking about the beautiful pictures I would be taking on the main event.

The day of the wedding finally arrived. Most couples tend to obsess about the weather which they wedding day is predicted to have. And with good reason! The perfect weather could not just mean having a smooth wedding ceremony, but good weather is also essential for beautiful wedding pictures.

Nicola and Craig were in luck. The weather was marvelous. There was just the right amount of sunshine which was more than enough for me to capture crisp and vivid documentary style wedding photos. While the wedding reception area at the Keavil House Hotel is no less than gorgeous, it is the cherry blossom tree they have outside which is the main attraction.

As a huge fan of cherry blossom trees myself, I knew that that place was going to be my main focus for clicking as many candid photos as I possibly could. Nicola and Craig had given me full liberty of capturing their wedding, the way I saw it fit.

Dressed in a gorgeous ivory wedding gown Nicola looked like something out of a dream. The groom, Craig, on the other hand went ahead with the traditional kilt and was totally working the look. The two looked so comfortable around each other and the comfort translated so beautifully in the pictures too. Perhaps, the fact that they had been together for the past 17 years and still going strong, was the reason for this!

It was not just the couple who was laid back; the guests at the wedding were equally relaxed. I can easily say that Nicola and Craig’s wedding photography was definitely one of the most effortless photography sessions I have ever covered in my career.

As predicted, the cherry blossom tree made for a beautiful photo spot. The pictures I took there of the bride and the groom, as well as their family and friends, turned out to be the best.

So when the ever charming, Jenni and Martin, told me that they are getting hitched at the Eskmills Venue, I already knew all the reasons why they had picked that place as their wedding venue. As a documentary wedding photographer in Edinburgh, I have travelled to several beautiful locations that are near Edinburgh and Musselburgh just happens to be one of them.

Before I start telling you all the amazing things that happened at the wedding, let me first tell you a little about the couple in question. Jenni and Martin are couple goals. Not only has the pair been head over heels in love with each other since forever, they have also spent a lot of time following their passions together. Jenni and Martin both are immensely enthusiastic about travelling and have travelled to a great many exciting places before they finally decided to make things official.

They picked April 2017 as the month where they tie the knot and picked me to cover their big day, because they were looking for a photographer who would capture moments as they happened.

Since Musselburgh is just 15 minutes away from Edinburgh, arriving at the venue was pretty convenient. From the gardens to the courtyards, everything at the Eskmills has its own unique style which I could hardly wait to capture through my camera. I was already eyeing the places which in my opinion would make awesome backdrops. If you have ever been to Eskmills Venue yourself you would know just how much beauty that place has. It’s like every time you look at its scenery, a different picture composition comes to your mind.

Jenni and Martin’s weddings itself was very traditional. Martin himself was dressed in a kilt and needless to say, he was really pulling the look off! Jenni on the other hand opted for a more modern bridal gown and looked like a vision. Their dear and near ones were also dressed to the nines.

As a documentary wedding photographer in Edinburgh, you know how my photography motto is to take pictures of couples that look anything but posed. Jenni and Martin were very easy to work with in this regard. The love they had for each other was so easy to spot in each glance they shared that it automatically classified as the perfect moment to capture.

The couple’s family was an equal delight to work with. Everybody looked so relaxed and happy that clicking beautiful photographs of them was a piece of cake. The documentary wedding photographer in me was over the moon!

I spent my time capturing one spectacular candid shot after another. It goes without saying that the super happy atmosphere at Jenni and Martin’s wedding was absolutely contagious.

Another amazing perk you get to enjoy as a wedding photographer is getting to travel. And while Falkirk is not that far from Edinburgh, it still was a different place!

The wedding was scheduled for the 29th of April. When the day finally arrived, I set out for Macdonald Ichyra Hotel, the wedding venue. 

Luckily, when I reached Falkirk it was not particularly sunny, but the clouds were not too much to deal with either so it was all good. A good photographer always has a backup plan especially in regards to the weather.

Now a little more about my clients; Nicole and Ryan who are now, by the way, Mr. and Mrs. Brown are the definition of ideal clients. Not only did this couple know what they wanted but they were also super willing to have me help them paint, or in our case click, an even better picture. We had met once prior to the wedding and had gone over everything in terms of what they were looking for in their wedding photo shoot. This is an extremely important process that I insist on going through with all my clients so that everything on the actual day of the event can be executed smoothly.

While the Macdonald Ichyra Hotel is beautiful, I think I speak for everyone present at the wedding that nothing was more beautiful than seeing the couple I was to photograph, so head over heels in love with each other. As I mentioned in my earlier blog post that my style of capturing pictures is freezing the moment as it happens and not trying to make it look too forced/posed.

I identify myself as a documentary wedding photographer. What this means is that I tell all that happened at the event as it happens using my camera. Being a documentary wedding photographer is a little more challenging than other photography styles because you do not have the room for any instructions. Since it is about capturing beautiful candid shots you have to be super, super fast. It is kind of like disappearing in the background and silently doing your work as your clients move happily about.

While the documentary style of photography is difficult the best part about this is that you get to capture some of the most beautiful moments which even the clients themselves are not aware of! The wedding venue, the weather of that day, the scenic backdrop that the outdoors offered and charming guests made covering Nicole and Ryan’s wedding an absolute treat for me.

A day as important as your wedding, only deserves the absolute best in all sense of the word. Hiring a professional Edinburgh wedding photographer should definitely be an important factor in your wedding planning process. Having been in this industry for some time now, I see so many excellent photographers missing out on clients just because they are convinced they know what’s better for them, rather than giving the clients what they want.

This is why that never works: While you are definitely an expert on the subject of photography, it’s not your wedding. If DH Photography were to have a philosophy of sorts, it would be that only! Working with DH Photography means having client satisfaction automatically marked as a priority from start to finish.

Weddings are usually crazy because there is just so much that’s happening everywhere. Other than prioritizing my clients, I also make an extra effort to be super quick on my feet. The fear of missing out on a perfect shot just because I was looking elsewhere, is one of my worst nightmares. Is it tiring? Not really, since I love what I do... all the running around does not bother me much.

Capturing stunning photographs of the bride and the groom is just one major part of a wedding photographer’s duties, the rest of the family needs to be photographed too! And you get only a handful of opportunities to get the family portraits perfect. I’m a people’s person through and through. Wedding photography is done best when you connect with your clients and their families. DH Photography is all game for communicating with you, the client, through the entire process. This is again, just our way of ensuring that you are happy with the end results.

Whether I’m photographing the couple, the family or the guests at the event, my wedding photography style can be best described as: not forced. I’m a huge advocate of the fact that photographs come out best when you capture your subjects in their element. This does not mean that I slack off on giving instructions where the need may be, it’s just that for me posed pictures run the risk of looking as if the subjects are trying too hard. My opinion is that every client has their own distinct personality and as a professional photographer capturing that personality in pictures is one of my major goals.

Weddings in Edinburgh and Scotland in general, are a lot of fun, not to mention immensely aesthetically pleasing too! The backdrops the gorgeous city provides are unparalleled. If you are looking for an Edinburgh wedding photographer, have a look at the portfolio and see for yourself why DH Photography may just be what you’re looking for.