What a pleasure it was to capture the wedding of the gorgeous Shannon and her husband Jack.
​

Shannon and Jack were joined together in an intimate ceremony surrounded by close friends and family members.

​

The celebration continued on to the Hilton Hotel when the couple enjoyed some time alone in the gardens before dancing the night away.
​

For more images please check out the gallery below.

Why not book a FREE consultation to discuss how we can create YOUR perfect wedding photography package? 
​

​So a few weeks ago I captured my 1st of many weddings of 2017!

Savanna and Patrick were wed at Loughborough Registry office which has  gorgeous grounds in which to take photographs after the service.

Savanna and Patrick were surrounded by friends and family as they said I do at their intimate and loving ceremony.

​

After the service the bridal party travelled to the Yew Lodge Hotel a short distance away. This venue also boast wonderful grounds which are perfect for capturing your post wedding images.
​

Inside the Yew Lodge Hotel the room was decorated with a pink vintage theme. Roses are scattered around the venue and the party was ready to begin! 
​

The wonderful tiered cupcake tower and wedding cake were provided by Sweets.
​

 Love Photography 13 Weddings wishes Savanna & Patrick lots of love and luck for their future together!

​For more images please check out the gallery below.

​For more information on our wedding photography packages please get in touch via the website or our Facebook page.

East Meets West with these Japanese Inspired Wedding Ideas

A wedding is a celebration of a couple's union, and ideally that's enough to make the event memorable, but that's not always the case. It's the other details that really count for guests, and something that often sets the mood of your big day is an inventive theme.

Venue Lust lists the five most popular themes, including country chic wear, a casual beach approach, and a grandeur fairytale wedding. While these themes will make your wedding day as beautiful as you could ever have imagined, originality will make the wedding truly unforgettable. Having that unique concept will definitely take things up a notch, with every detail being nothing short of spectacular, and what's more unique than marrying concepts of the East with ideas of the West?

Asia has influenced the Western world in an endless number of ways, from fusion restaurants to luxury real estate inspired by Asian architecture, as seen on Forbes. Even designers at tech companies have infused elements of Japanese pop culture into their products, with slots portal Pocket Fruity implementing anime-like graphics into their title Super Graphics Upside Down. And as for the wedding industry, traditional Asian clothing continues to be an inspiration for wedding gown designers, as Buzzfeed showcases the fashion creatives putting a romantic and modern spin to the Japanese kimono.

As anyone can see, the West is persistently seeking innovation from Eastern cultures. While cultural ideals differ between the East and the West, the result you get from combining Asian design in Western concepts is absolutely stunning and quite distinctive, which is what every bride wants to achieve on her wedding day.

Without further ado, here are some ideas that will give your wedding a charming Japanese twist.

1) A kimono-style wedding dress
The fashion industry can’t stop obsessing over kimonos, as they modernise them with contemporary styles to make them more wearable. If the Japanese wedding dresses aren’t really suited for your taste, you can always buy kimono robes for your lovely bridesmaids. ​

2) Cherry blossom centerpieces
Roses, peonies and hydrangeas may be the most popular choices of flowers for nuptials, but cherry blossoms do add something special and magical to your centerpiece. They transport you into a whole new world, almost making guests feel like they’ve travelled all the way to Japan for your celebration.
​

3) Origami decorations
If you’re looking to add a personal touch to your decor, consider making some DIY origami decorations. Whether it’s hanging paper cranes or little paper flower bouquets, there are lots of projects that you can choose from. Although this will probably be too much to handle on your own, so make sure your recruit family or your bridesmaids to help out with this paper-folding project
​

4) Tea candle decorations
Nothing spells romance as well as candles. There are lots of ways to decorate with tea candles, placing them in floral candle holders for the zen-like atmosphere, or having them float in the pool if you’re having a poolside reception. 
​

5) Lanterns for lighting
Hanging paper lanterns are perfect for outdoor weddings. They’re a simple way to add soft mood lighting and come in all shapes and sizes. They also come in a variety of colours, although white is best if you want to keep it classic.
​

As a wedding photographer and blogger myself Im always on the look out for inspiration and ideas for upcoming styled shoots aswell as inspiration for my more creative wedding shots. 

Brides to be are always asking me the best places to find inspiration and ideas for their own weddings and wedding blogs are the perfect place. 

Most blogs will have both a styled shoot section aswell as a real life sections and inspiration boards.

Its a perfect way to check out what style you really want for your wedding and the best ways to create it adding your own personal touches.

Below are my top 5 Wedding blogs for the most amazing, creative and funky wedding ideas and inspiration!

Please feel free to drop your favourite blogs in the comments below for other brides to be to check out!

​Whimsical Wonderland Weddings blog is filled to the brim with gorgeous real life weddings as well as a super cute section called The Bride Dairies in which brides to be share details of engagement shoots, dress searches and days in the life of....

Not only do they have amazing content but even have amazing wedding planning free downloads just for YOU!

​

Another firm favourite of mine is Marry Me Ink wedding blog, for all of you decorated ladies and gents out there! A unique and beautiful look into the world of weddings with a whole load of ink included!

​A wedding blog dedicated to tattooed and alternative brides!

​

Want That Wedding is a stunning collection of real life weddings and inspiration as well as boasting a directory! The perfect way for you to find local recommended suppliers in your area!

Why not check out thier shop...for all things wedding!

​

Now if your looking for your regular white wedding sort of inspiration then Rock n Roll Bride is not for you! Filled with awesome alternative wedding ideas and images Rock n Roll Bride is celebrating everything that is unique about alternative brides.

Check out their kooky shop...I absolutely LOVE their Forever veil...super cute!

Way out Wedding is a wedding blog with everything included...looking for inspiration? Check! Real life weddings? Check! Shop? Check! These guys even have a page dedicated to wedding fairs events!

So there we have it...My top 5 wedding blogs.

​Something for everyone!

​So, I though we would have a little look back at my 1st ever publication! Such an exciting time to have had some of my images published in bridal magazine Bellissima Brides!

Here I let you in to what happens behind the scenes!

​So much planning goes into a staged shoot as it does a real wedding. We start with a theme which in this instance was a boho idea.

Fortunately as I have the opportunity to work with lots of talented models I already had a bride and groom in mind for this shoot. Daniel James had worked with me last year on an editorial for Valerie Magazine and Alice Winters had worked with me also on a number of magazine shoots. I knew straight away they would be perfect for what I had envisioned!


Next I create a mood board on Pinterest which I know is a favourite for a lot of brides to be when planning their big day. Pinterest is an app that allows you to make ‘pin boards’ which you can then add images to. I start with pinning ideas for dress, location and hair and make-up ideas. This not only gives me a visual for what I want to create but it is also helpful for anyone else who is going to be involved. So it may be useful for brides to be to make a board of dresses they like to take with them when deciding on a dress. The dress boutique will then get a feel straight away for the style you prefer. 

​
​For this shoot Lace and Pearl Bridal Boutique provided a gorgeous flowing floor length gown perfect for the theme. Our groom wears a tan coloured suit waistcoat with hints of yellow. 

​​So once the moodboard is created I then decide on location for the shoot. Location is important as it represents the feel for the day and also for the images. The images for Bellissima Brides magazine were shot at the stunning Scalford Hall & Hotel which is based in the beautiful Leicestershire countryside! Its boasts a beautiful pavilion as well as landscaped gardens. The interior has a stunning oak staircase in front of an awesome windowed wall and fireplaces which are lit throughout the winter months. 


Make up artist Natalie Boland created a natural and classy make up look keeping base to a minimum and emphasis on the eyes using bronze and gold colours on the eyes to enhance the models natural beauty and kept the lips nude.




Hair stylist Maxine Taylor created a messy up do to keep with the boho theme and incorporated some gypsophillia to give a country outdoor feel. Loose plaits were also added to add a boho twist.

As you can see from the images, the ideas came together perfectly!


I hope this gives you some idea of what goes on behind the scenes at a staged wedding shoot for a magazine…and maybe you can even take some inspiration for your own boho themed wedding!


To book your own Wedding photography consultation please get in touch via our facebook page or website.

Apart from the obvious wedding gowns and bridesmaid dresses, we market ourselves as a 'One Stop Bridal Shop' as we offer everything a bride would need for her special day - shoes, underwear, tiaras, veils, jewellery, mother of the brides, the list is endless.
​

For more information or to book a fitting please get in touch via the website or drop an email to  info@donanicole.com

​A special bridal room with a view of the stunning gardens is available on the first floor, to make those final touches before walking down the sweeping staircase and up the aisle.
​

​A lot of people are quite shocked when given a quote for their wedding photography. On the face of it, many people will think an average wedding priced at £2000 will leave the photographer with the tidy sum of £250 per hour which is an awesome figure for anyone to be earning.
 
But what are you really getting??

​Well lets switch the question around…why is cheap wedding photography cheap??
 
Does the photographer have insurance for a start? Many amateur or hobbyist photographers will not have insurance. Insurance will cover many things such as accidental damage to property during the wedding, accidents (should they unfortunately occur) and other unfortunate events. By taking the risk of having no insurance, the amateur photographer will not have this cost to factor in to his or her wedding photography package.
 
A professional wedding photographer will have back up equipment, a choice of lenses to use and possibly lighting (should you require it) Professional lenses and other essential equipment do not come cheap. As a professional wedding photographer these are tools of your trade and so over time the quality and product knowledge will increase ( as does the cost ) Having an expensive camera does not necessarily make for a professional wedding photographer.
 
As trends and technology change its important for a wedding photographer to stay up to date with new techniques and trainings. Many wedding photographers will have attended seminars and courses to learn the latest techniques and to learn about the most up to date equipment. These courses cost hundreds of pounds. This again will be factored into the overall package price.

​These are just a few of the things that many clients do not even give a second thought to.

​And then there is the obvious things like meetings with the couple before the wedding, travel time and costs, possible pre wedding shoot, research of the venue and visit to check lighting and best places to shoot, photography on the day (during which we very rarely get a break) post processing and editing which takes days, design of products such as wedding albums…the list is endless.
 
So I hope that after reading this blog post you will now really understand what you are paying for in a top quality and experienced wedding photographer.
 
I shall let you be the ones to decide whether or not we are worth our expense when you see your results!
 
And remember…wedding photography is an investment in YOUR future. For many years to come it will be these images that you look back on…after creating your perfect day, its only right that its captured in a way you will treasure forever!
 
To book a free consultation with our internationally published female wedding photographer please check out our website.

As a wedding photographer I get asked alot
​ " What is an engagement shoot and why do we need one?"

​In short, an engagement shoot is a time where my clients can get to know me and how I work. It gives them an opportunity to see how we would work together on their big day and it also gives them a chance to get a feel for being in front of the camera. Not only this but with all the excitement of the big day approaching it great to be able to capture the excitement to look back on!

A lot of couples feel nervous about having an engagement shoot but this is the perfect opportunity to capture the love and excitement of the impending wedding. Its also a great way to get over your fear of being in front of the camera especially when its a stranger taking the pictures!

My clients always remark on how fun and relaxed their engagement shoot was and I think this is clear in the images. As you can see from the following behind the scenes our amazing couple Leah and Chris, our shoots are always informal, relaxed and enjoyable...not only that but you are creating beautiful images that can them be used as save the dates or announcement cards! Bonus!

Below are a few of our behind the scenes pictures accompanied by the final image!

To book your own FREE engagement shoot why not get in touch!
​Love Photography 13 offers a complimentary engagement shoot and consultation so what do you have to lose?

Or why not check out our Facebook group The Smart Brides Support Network where you can chat and share ideas with other brides to be!

​Im so happy to welcome our newest guest blogger Megan from The Little White Book. For those of you that haven't heard of The Little White Book you are in for a treat!

​Here, Megan explains why in her own words!!
​

​
about the little white book: There’s so much to organise, and the little white book is designed to make that much easier – incorporating wedding planning as a seamless and simple part of day-to-day life.   A compendium of everything you need to plan your wedding, a 12 month count-down diary with checklists at regular intervals, journal prompts, space to record appointments, and most importantly, room for your thoughts to record everything memorable about the process.


why I created little white book: When my now-husband, Blair, asked me to marry him on 15 February 2015, I couldn’t wait to begin planning our wedding. Neither of us have parents, nor married siblings who could help, and I was the first of all my friends to get engaged.
I had to get organised immediately, breaking down the process of wedding planning into small, manageable tasks.  I also wanted to record the memories of what is such a special time, but I found that keeping a diary as well as writing in my wedding planner was such a hassle –there should be one place to both make plans and be a keepsake of memories of my engagement.

I searched worldwide (and my Maid of Honour kindly scoured New York) for the perfect wedding planning organiser – to take with me to vendor appointments, dress fittings, and write down everything to remember.  We couldn’t find anything so I continued writing in my everyday diary and my wedding planning book, and I started a blog - She Said Yes. 
I discovered that my writing was serving many different, but equally important, purposes. The first (and last) thing that a wedding journal does is act as a keepsake of memories. From the day I got engaged up to the big day itself, many things happened that I wanted to remember.  Keeping a journal provided a great place for me to track everything that happened, recording memories that otherwise would have got lost in the midst of planning the actual wedding.


​I promise it will be an indispensible companion from “Yes” to “I do”
- it is as functional as it is beautiful.
megan xx

To purchase your very own Little White book please click here!