Emma and Toby’s Big Day A.K.A Happy Birthday to me!
My regular reader may remember that back in May (I think) I took some photos for Emma and Toby at the Electric in Birmingham, for a kind of engagement session which was going to be made into a guestbook at their wedding on July 21st. Well, after what seems like no time at all, July 21st was soon upon us, so I gathered my 25lbs camera bag (yep, I packed way too much again) and a bit of lighting kit and made my way to Birmingham with Polly, who thankfully said yes to assisting/ 2nd shooting with me.
We found our hotel then went on our way to meet Emma and Toby who were having a Chinese buffet not far from where we were staying. It’s a shame we didn’t get to stay an extra day because I wouldn’t have minded going there at some point, maybe next time!
After being woken up by a text an hour after my alarms didn’t go off – I’m still not used to setting alarms for specific days on my phone- the day started with a bit of a panic, so after an emergency cheese and onion pasty breakfast for two we headed over to the lovely Malmaison hotel to get to work on some photo taking while the happy couple were getting ready for the main event.
After moving between Emma and Toby’s rooms across the hall from each other for a couple of hours, we jumped in the car (belonging to Simon Clarke, the brilliant videographer) and headed over to the Old Library in Digbeth. I went there with Emma and Toby a few months ago as they were cleaning up after the night before and it looked like a lovely place with loads of potential, but I didn’t expect to see what greeted us when we arrived. The room looked beautiful; naturally lit from the skylights and laid out with crockery and books, with cut out hearts scattered across the floor and tables, and the sound of cameras going off all around as the guests and even the registrar looked around in wonder. The amount of love that Emma and Toby poured into this wedding was easy to see.
The day went pretty much without a hitch (apart from the alarm not going off and the forgotten but not essential tripod) and as more guests arrived for the evening it’s clear to see from the photos that everyone had a great time.
Taken by Polly Thomas
Taken by Polly Thomas
Taken by Polly Thomas
Special thanks must go out to the registrars/ officiants who were easily the friendliest and most accomodating I’ve encountered, the venue staff for also being friendly with us, and Simon Clarke who didn’t mind us stealing a couple of his shot set ups (if he did, it didn’t show) and was a most splendid chap all day long.
Extra special thanks to Polly who did an amazing job having only ever been to one wedding before in her life, then had to get up at 5am to get back to do another job in Cardiff, after getting back to the hotel at 2am. I think we made a great team.
Last but not least, massive thanks to Mr and Mrs Marshall for choosing us to capture their beautiful day. Definitely one to remember for all involved. Have a long and fantastic life together. x
links…
simonayre.com 
Can’t stop looking at these Simon they’re amazing!
so gorgeous! wish i could have been there.