If you're reading this because you're planning a wedding in Cork and want a photographer who captures real, relaxed moments rather than forcing poses, you're in the right place.
Visit My HomepageClanard Court Hotel Wedding | Caitlin & Jason
Being recommended to photograph somebody’s wedding because of a previous couple is always a brilliant feeling. And that’s exactly how I found myself heading to Athy for Caitlin and Jason’s Clanard Court Hotel wedding at the end of August.
I’d photographed the wedding of one of Caitlin’s colleagues about two years earlier.
She recommended me to Caitlin.
And I don’t take that lightly.
Somebody has already trusted you with one of the biggest days of their life, and afterwards they’re happy enough to put your name forward to somebody they know.
That’s probably one of the nicest compliments a wedding photographer can get.
So I arrived at Clanard Court that morning already looking forward to this one.
I wasn’t disappointed.
The Craic Started Early
Caitlin was getting ready in the hotel with the girls and, by the time I arrived, things were well underway.
And the craic was brilliant.
Not polite little wedding-morning giggles either.
We laughed.
That’s exactly how I like a wedding morning to go.
There’s enough going through somebody’s head on the morning they’re getting married without me arriving and turning the room into a photoshoot.
I’d much rather become part of what’s already happening.
Talk rubbish.
Have a laugh.
Take the photographs while everybody gets on with things.
And if I can keep the energy high enough that Caitlin forgets she’s supposed to be nervous, even better.
The champagne certainly wasn’t being allowed to sit around gathering dust either.
At one stage Caitlin was outside with the bottle, the cork went and champagne went absolutely everywhere.
Wedding morning officially underway.
A Little White Chapel at Clanard Court
One of the lovely things about getting married at Clanard Court Hotel is just how easy the day can flow.
The ceremony was taking place in the little chapel on the grounds.
And it’s gorgeous.
From outside, it’s this simple little white building surrounded by greenery. Inside, everything is bright and clean, with white timber walls and beautiful windows pouring light into the room.
It’s intimate too.
You’re close to everybody.
For me, that’s gold.
Because during a wedding ceremony I’m constantly watching.
Not just Caitlin and Jason.
I’m watching their parents.
The bridal party.
Brothers and sisters.
Friends.
Sometimes the photograph isn’t where everybody else is looking.
That Look From Jason
Then came one of my favourite moments from the entire day.
Caitlin had made her way up the aisle and sat down beside Jason.
I was only a few feet away from them.
They whispered something to one another.
I couldn’t hear a bloody word of it.
But I could see Jason.
And his face was priceless.
In my head, the conversation went something like:
“Well… how do I look?”
Jason didn’t need to answer.
His face had already betrayed him completely.
He looked absolutely gobsmacked.
Whatever Caitlin actually whispered to him will remain between the two of them, but I know what I saw through my camera.
A man completely blown away by the woman sitting beside him.
And that’s why I love photographing the bits between the obvious moments.
You can’t manufacture that expression.
You can’t ask somebody to do it again.
It arrives.
You catch it.
And it’s gone.
Sometimes I Watch the Parents
There’s another thing I’ve found myself doing more and more over the years.
Watching the parents.
During the ceremony I caught Jason’s mum looking across towards her son.
I have no idea what she was thinking.
And I wouldn’t pretend to.
But there’s a look parents get at weddings that always catches me.
Pride. Love. Memories. Probably a million things running around inside their heads at once.
They’re looking at the adult sitting in front of them, but perhaps somewhere in there they’re still seeing the child they raised.
Maybe I’m completely wrong.
That’s just where my own mind goes when I see it.
And I photograph it.
Because one day that photograph might mean far more than anybody realises when I press the shutter.
Short, Sweet… Now Let’s Get This Party Going
The ceremony itself was short and sweet.
Beautiful.
No hanging around.
Caitlin and Jason were married, everyone was delighted, and we were back outside ready to get the party moving.
They greeted their closest family and friends as everyone came out, and thankfully the weather was playing ball.
We’d been given a good one.
And we were going to use it.
Family Photographs Don’t Have to Be Boring
I know.
Family photographs.
The bit where everyone assumes they’re going to spend half an hour standing rigidly in a line wondering where Uncle Michael has disappeared to.
Not with me.
One of the advantages of Clanard Court is that everything is so close together.
The guests were only a few feet away enjoying the drinks reception.
So we’d call the next gang over.
And naturally, everyone else would start getting involved.
We’d hype up their walk towards us.
They’d start laughing.
The people watching would start laughing.
I’d take the photograph.
Next crowd.
Before long, the family photographs had their own little energy going.
That’s what I want.
Of course I’ll get the photograph your mam wants for the wall.
But nobody said we have to look miserable while we’re doing it.
“Yeah, Let’s Do It”
Caitlin and Jason made my job ridiculously easy.
Anything I suggested was met with pretty much the same answer.
“Yeah, let’s do it.”
That’s a lovely bit of trust to be given.
We used the gardens around Clanard Court for most of their photographs, but I never want to drag a couple away from their own wedding for an eternity.
They’re not there for me.
They’re there to get married and have a party with the people they love.
So we’ll disappear for a few minutes.
Make something beautiful.
And get them back.
Later in the evening, though, I had my eye on something else.
That Field…
There’s a field right beside the hotel.
During the day it’s a lovely location.
Later that evening it became something else entirely.
The sun began dropping behind the trees and suddenly we had that warm late-August light spilling across the cut field.
Right.
We’re going.
And, true to form, Caitlin and Jason were straight in.
No fuss.
No twenty-minute production.
Out into the field, make the photographs and let the evening light do its thing.
Those are the photographs that end up on walls.
The big ones.
The photographs where years from now you might forget exactly what somebody said that day, but one look brings the feeling of it all flooding back.
And then it’s back to the party.
Two People Who Just Fit
There’s something very grounded about Caitlin and Jason.
Caitlin has a job that can be stressful and she had a whole gang of her work colleagues there celebrating with her.
But there was no fuss about either of them.
They were just easy company.
Warm.
Up for the laugh.
Completely comfortable with one another.
And watching them throughout the day, I kept coming back to the same thought.
These two would have found each other no matter where or how.
There’s an ease between them that’s difficult to describe but very easy to see.
Especially when they dance.
One Hell of a First Dance
Their first dance was brilliant.
No awkward shuffling around waiting for the photographer to get his photograph.
These two were having it.
Smiles.
Laughing.
Hugging.
Completely wrapped up in each other.
By that stage my job was simple.
Stay out of the way and photograph it.
Because when people are this comfortable together, you don’t need to create anything.
It’s already happening.
And a Word About Brophy…
This was actually my first time working alongside Brophy Videography.
You’d never have known it.
We just clicked into place and got on with it.
He’s been doing this long enough that very little is going to phase him, and that makes a massive difference on a wedding day.
No egos.
No battling for positions.
Just two people doing their jobs and making sure Caitlin and Jason get the best possible memories from their day.
An absolute gem of a supplier and somebody I’d happily work alongside again.
Thank You, Caitlin & Jason
Caitlin and Jason, thank you.
Thank you for trusting me, particularly when that trust began with somebody else putting my name forward.
Thank you for saying yes whenever I had an idea.
Thank you for walking into fields, laughing through photographs and never taking the whole thing too seriously.
But mostly, thank you for letting me into your day.
From the madness and laughter of the morning to that little look between you in the chapel, the family craic, the sunset and that first dance, it was an absolute pleasure to photograph.
A huge thank you as well to everyone at Clanard Court Hotel for looking after us and making the day run so smoothly.
To Brophy Videography, a pleasure working alongside you for the first time.
And to Smart Brides, Leah Mas Makeup, Gary Patrick Hair, Richie Whelan’s Menswear, Cakes Galore by Polly, Rachel Reid Singer & Harpist and Blue Moose Band for each playing a part in Caitlin and Jason’s day.
Finally, thank you to every member of Caitlin and Jason’s family and all their friends.
You brought the craic.
You brought the laughter.
And you made my job very, very easy.
What a day.
Planning your own wedding in Cork? If you're looking for relaxed, natural wedding photography that tells the real story of your day, I'd love to hear about your plans.
Visit My Homepage