So…. way way way back last summer we went out into York one afternoon, Faye grabbed a couple of different outfits and we played around in the city centre with a few ideas. Barry managed to “hold the coats” for about five minutes before throwing himself into it as well.

Taking pictures of these two is about as easy as it gets. They’re ridiculously in love, super cute and couldn’t care less about having their photograph taken. Faye is a fantastic and successful model who is just starting out in her own new Makeup Artist venture too, go have a little peek here!

I love York so much and I miss it loads. Hannah and I lived there for five years and made it our home so it’s right at the top of my favourite cities in the world. I appreciate that this is rubbish and doesn’t show you a great deal of the city. But I’m returning later this year to photograph the equally fantastic Catherine & Daniel who are really keen on getting out into the heart of the city to have their portraits taken and I cannot wait.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

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Anna & Seb are good friends of ours and loads of our other friends were invited and played a part of the day as well making it that more special to photograph.

Wedding Photography In Kent isn’t all Caribbean sunshine unfortunately and that morning the heavens opened. But in spite of buckets and buckets of rain they couldn’t have made more of it, surrounded by tons of friends and family and their little boy Oliver running around it was a brilliant wedding day and they had a blast.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photography In Kent

The pictures tell the story of that morning, champagne corks popping, Anna and her bridesmaids tearing around getting ready, losing necklaces, finding necklaces, Mumford & Sons clattering out of the speakers, it was absolutely fantastic.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photography In Kent

As the day went on if anything the weather got worse and the rain was lashing down. Fortunately Anna & Seb were really cool and very game for getting out in the rain to make some portraits under Annas wedding brolly! It was wet, it was cold and it was late but they were brilliant and didn’t moan at all they just laughed their heads off all the way through it.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photography In Kent

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Now this is a bit of an unusual post in that it’s for my Mum! Ahhhhhh. It’s my lovely Mums birthday today so I thought that it was pretty good timing to do a little blog post on her and my Dad too.

My folks have been together since they were pretty much kids and raised me and my sister Rebecca pretty well I reckon, Rebecca would argue they did a better job with her. They’ve been incredibly supportive of me becoming a Kent Wedding Photographer and last year I got the chance to repay them with a little shoot down in Herne Bay in Kent around the corner from my Granddads house.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

I’ve plenty to thank them both for, they’ve pushed me along and encouraged me to be brave and to take risks my whole life and now I’m in a fantastic industry where that is paying off. Dad made me my first camera when I was about three years old and I carried around everywhere with me.. It’s even been passed on now to my little niece Sophie (she’ll make an appearance here herself soon Im sure).

Mum’s posed reluctantly for pictures time and time again over the years and I’m sure I’ve taken their picture hundreds of times over the years. But this time we thought we’d do it properly, grab a blanket, a flask of tea and hop in the car and head down to coast and do a proper shoot. Typically, they could barely keep a straight face and giggled their way through pretty much all of the session.Which is why we love them. Happy birthday Mum, have a brilliant day. Xxx

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Afternoon all! A few weeks ago I hopped on the motorway and headed up to a little village to meet Lizzie and Sam for their Pre Wedding Shoot. These sessions are great fun. I get to know the couple a lot better, talk through the plans for the day and listen to the hours upon hours of effort that people have put into making there dream day come true.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

Lizzie and Sam are no exception and their wedding at home on the farm sounds gorgeous. It sounds like there will be a few very cool touches throughout the day. As a Kent Wedding Photographer every Wedding Collection I offer comes with a Pre Wedding shoot included. Whether we’re hanging out on city streets or lounging around in an old hay barn as the sun shines down the whole point is to work out any nerves before hand so you feel completely at ease on your wedding day.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

Thank you so much to Lizzie and Sam for showing me around – we even got to see a herd of deer along the way which made my day!

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

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Jackson & Co Photography | Nether Winchendon House

Winding down the lanes towards Nether Winchendon House I started to see trails of bunting in the trees before spotting the classic english church where the ceremony was to take place. As the guests packed into the pews I was getting pretty excited because I’d already seen a little clue as to what was to come. During a break in the ceremony the brides brother and his colleagues from the West End burst into song from up in the rafters filling the church with a very soulful rendition of a Jackson 5 classic.

Jackson & Co Photography | Nether Winchendon House

Nether Winchendon House is a really beautiful venue to get married in. These two were a really sweet couple and the whole venue was just bursting with laughs and giggles and the atmosphere was absolutely fantastic all day long and late into the evening as the party rocked on with plenty more singing from the stage!

Jackson & Co Photography | Nether Winchendon House

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I’ve known Phil & Caroline for years and years now and over that time my career as a Kent Wedding Photographer has progressed bit by bit. Usually what happens is that I will go out and buy some new gear. My wife frowns. Then I ring Phil and say “wanna go out and play, I’ve got new toys!?”. Phil’s not exactly shy of the camera and that’s playing it down a little so he’s always up for a trip out to do some posing. Fortunately, him and Caroline are an awesome couple and fantastic to photograph.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

Every Wedding Collection that I offer comes with a Pre Wedding shoot included. As a Kent Wedding Photographer I’m pretty much spoiled for choice for cool locations to go to. These shoots are completely designed for you to feel at ease with the camera, to get to know me and for me to get to know you. If you’re anxious at all about being photographed – and most people are, trust me – then this is a great time to work out those nerves.

Jackson & Co Photography | Kent Wedding Photographer

I have very few rules full stop but one thing I try my best to encourage you to do is to go somewhere completely different to your wedding venue. If you’re having a beautiful, romantic, very pretty and floral country wedding then take the chance to get in amongst the hustle and bustle of the city for the afternoon. Make the most of the colours and textures that an urban environment can offer. If you’re already having a city wedding then take a few hours out to get to the coast and stroll along the shore and under the piers. That way you end up having two completely different sets of photographs that you love that are completely different.

Brighton is maybe the best of both worlds. There are cracked, textured and crumbling graffitied streets in abundance. You also have cute little winding lanes right alongside the glorious sea front and the dilapidated old West Pier. It’s completely bohemian and you can while away more than a few hours here. Phil and Caroline were terrific and the sun shone all morning to the point that we had to finish off with an ice cream on the seafront!

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I’ve seen it plenty of times, you’ve designed Pinterest Board upon Pinterest board with hundreds of ideas. You’re doing your best to cram all of these dreams into one huge epic celebration and you’re writing lists as long as your arms and legs together of things you need to do. Your wedding day is intended to be the most memorable of your life, but when you sit down and begin to sketch out the timings for the big day you can easily become overwhelmed and wonder how on earth you are going to organise everything to run smoothly on the day.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photographer In Kent

In every Wedding Collection that we offer there is a Pre Wedding shoot included. Normally over a bit of cake before hand the conversation often turns to what still needs to be done. It’s normally lots. So if you’re reading this a little  frayed and on the edge, don’t worry its perfectly normal!

For some people the perfect solution is to hire a wedding planner. So for the second post on what it’s like to be a Wedding Photographer In Kent and my series on Choosing A Supplier I thought today would be a pretty good day to throw some light on The Wedding Dolls in Kent. If you’re struggling a little to make it all come together then it’s not too late to ask for some help.

I’ve got to know Emma and Jo pretty well by now and I know that for some of my couples hiring a wedding planner can make life a heck of a lot easier. While some people will always scowl at the idea of a Wedding Planner, whether it be cost or wanting to keep complete control, wedding planners are a god send to lot’s of people. You just need to know what they can and can’t help you with and whether they’re right for you.

Emma and Jo, the Wedding Dolls have created a successful wedding planning business that suits all budgets, and I recently spent an afternoon sat in the sunshine over coffees (I know, I’m an addict) with them discussing why you might benefit from hiring a wedding planner.

The one common factor in nearly all weddings is that they involve multiple venues, lots and lots of guests and more than a handful of different suppliers. It might be that you’re having a Big Red Bus or a an old Vintage VW Campervan to pick you up or deliver your guests to the venue. You might be having hair and makeup somewhere different to where you’re putting your dress on. There are so many variables. It would be fair to say that in the past I’ve been a little skeptical about what a wedding planner can offer but Jo summed it up perfectly when she said….

“So many times the organisation of the day falls to the bridesmaid, the mother of the bride, the ushers, the best man etc. Having us there simply means that we can do all of that for you on the day and leave every single one of your guests to have a great time”. 

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photographer In Kent

Although it’s not something that I do hundreds and hundreds of like a traditional wedding photographer, Group Shots or Formal Photos can play a large part in the day as well. We both know that there is always an “Uncle John” at the bar or rounding up the nieces and nephews, your best mate has nipped to the loo or to pop your wedding card on the table. Having a wedding planner around can pay for themselves alone during this chunk of the day. Where in some cases in can take forever, they can organise everyone into groups and make the process really quick and really smooth meaning you get to go back to your celebrations much quicker. And that’s the bottom line. The organisation of your dream day shouldn’t get in the way of you enjoying it.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photographer In Kent

Emma and Jo have written a really good article themselves on the 5 reasons that you might consider hiring a wedding planner. Essentially they offer two types of services. Either an on the day coordination service or a fully bespoke wedding planning service. But the core of what they aim to do is to save you time, save you money and make sure your day runs as smoothly as possible with minimal fuss. On a personal note these two are absolutely lovely. They have years of experience and are very discreet yet assertive and I’ve loved working with them in the past.

Pop over to their website and read in detail the five reasons to hire a wedding planner, have a read and see what you think.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photographer In Kent

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Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photo Booth

First things first, a gratuitous shot of me looking about as cool as I can muster….it ain’t much but Im trying! The Wedding Photo Booth can be styled any which way you want it but we tend to go with Stag Antlers, big red telephones, plenty of moustaches on sticks, dark glasses, the odd Fez along with a few good old fashioned superhero Kapow! signs and chalkboards.

Why should you have a Photo Booth? Well, as beautiful and timeless as Documentary Wedding Photography is sometimes it’s just nice to be a little bit daft. 90% of your day is going to be very natural, unposed and relaxed, nothing particularly set up or staged. Therefore, nothing makes me chuckle more than the unlikely suspects in the Photo Booth, your Granny with a Pirate Hat on, that Uncle that you’ve always thought was a little quiet sticking his head through a big gold frame peering at you through a magnifying glass whilst holding a smoking pipe.

A Photo Booth isn’t for everyone or every wedding but it’s a great laugh and if you’ve got a family and a group of friends who you think will really throw themselves into it and don’t mind poking a bit of fun at themselves then it can be a hilarious addition to your Wedding day. Within 2 days of your wedding I will get all of the images processed and uploaded to Facebook for you to tag as many people as you like to laugh your heads off at one another and give you something to immediately enjoy whilst I am editing the rest of your photographs.

If you want to inject a little humour to your evening entertainment then go with the Wedding Photo Booth. We will provide the props, the frames, the signs and if you’d like anything in particular then let us know and we can do our best to source it for you. Normally the Wedding Photo Booth runs for around a couple of hours in the evening and is open to anyone up for a little fun, kids, adults young and old and absolutely your favourite Grandparent!

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photo Booth

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London Weddings like Emily and Ryans are for some (not Matt – two in one year!) a once in a lifetime experiences not to be missed. Emily got ready really early in the morning and the atmosphere was fantastic. Surrounded by friends and relatives with make-up artists, hair stylists and florists ducking in and out of the room not to mention us it was a pretty hectic start to the day.

Emily wore a stunning dress by Maggie Sottero along with some very pretty and sparkly Jimmy Choo shoes (one day Hannah, one day…). Piling into a cab with Matt and Adrien from The Dreamcatchers videos I started to feel a little nervous. That’s not especially unusual, I always get a little nervous before any London wedding, it’s more excitement than anything, but this was huge. As i said before a St Pauls Cathedral and One Great George Street Wedding combines two of the most amazing venues in the country so I think Im allowed to be a bit nervous!

Emily & Ryan | One Great George Street Wedding

Ryan is a top guy and had flown pretty much all of his family from the USA over for the wedding and when we arrived and headed down into the crypt and OBE Chapel at St Pauls Cathedral the atmosphere was amazing. Now one of the only disadvantages of photographing a wedding at St Pauls cathedral is that you’re not really allowed to take any photographs during the ceremony itself. Which for me means that I actually get to sit back and watch the wedding along with everyone else rather than through my viewfinder.

Being a London Wedding Photographer you quickly get used to being right in amongst it all, especially after the ceremony where you often find yourself darting ahead of the bride and groom to get to the next venue and in and amongst crowds of shoppers and tourists. Making our way through the crowds to the Millennium Bridge was just awesome, everyone was in really good spirits, clapping and cheering along the route.

Stopping traffic in Parliament square for a very quick handful of portraits was an experience I’m unlikely to forget in a hurry as is the sheer majesty of photographing a London Wedding at One Great George Street. Ceilings and decor as grand as I’ve ever seen, the ballroom is like something from Beauty & The Beast!

What will stay with me from this wedding, aside from the huge 15 piece soul band rocking it all night, is the sheer happiness and love of these guys families being able to fill venues as large as these. Sometimes being a London Wedding Photographer can be really tricky working in such central and busy locations but on this day I barely noticed it, it was an absolute blast all day long. Congratulations guys!

Jackson & Co Photography | One Great George Street Wedding

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Today’s all about the flowers! It’s something that I know next to nothing about at all other than “oooo they’re pretty” or “oooo they smell nice”. The only other thing I know about them is that if you can only be bothered to get your wife flowers from the garage, she’s probably not going to be too impressed. I’ve known Katherine at Florist In The Forest just outside Tunbridge Wells for a little while now and she’s bursting with enthusiasm about her job and what she offers and it’s easy to see why.

Pulling up at her cute little studio in the middle of the forest the smell of the flowers hits you almost before you’ve climbed out of the car. Surrounded by tall trees is this tiny little unassuming wooden studio. But inside its bold and colourful and smells amazing, it’s here that Katherine works her magic. It’s quite possible that you will have seen her flowers featured on blogs or on other photographers websites. She’s been lucky enough to work at some of the very best wedding venues in Kent and Sussex such as the Hotel Du Vin Tunbridge Wells, The George At Rye and The Bell at Ticehurst to name but a few.

A few weeks back I spent a little time watching Katherine work and photographing all of the different elements that need to come together to make something really special for your wedding day. It’s safe to say that in the same time it would take me to tie a small hand posey she could probably put together your entire arrangement. Her knowledge of flowers and plants is amazing and it’s really inspiring that she grows a large number of flowers in a plot behind the studio – when the weather permits.

Over tea she talked to me at length about what clients ask and what they perhaps don’t ask but should, where her flowers come from and the different ways to present them, not to mention what’s in season and when. It’s safe to say that Katherine will be able to help you with everything! In the end I couldn’t take much more in so I asked her to write a little about what she does which is below along with photographs telling the story of a Day In The Life of the Florist In The Forest.

Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photography In Kent

We will discuss all the various areas that can be dressed with flowers, narrow it down if need be and focus on key areas and think of ways to move arrangements around, in order to get the most from every vase, urn arrangement and pew end. Once we have chatted through all the ideas and finished our tea, I will work on a personalised quote and create a mood board in order for couples to help visualise everything we have discussed.”

Katherine is incredibly proud and passionate about her business and rightly so. If you’re having a celebration in the near future then give her a ring I think you’ll like her! A little click here will take you to her site. Enjoy!

 Jackson & Co Photography | Wedding Photography In Kent

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