Chris Legg Photography Blog

City of London Engagement Shoot | Sergei and Jenn

Chris — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 14:54:46 +0000

What a fantastic way to spend a Bank Holiday morning this was. Sergei and Jenn are getting married at the wonderful Warren House on Sunday. Now, normally, I tend to do engagement sessions a little more than 6 days before the ceremony, but this was a relatively late booking (just last week in fact) and this was the first day I have had free since I got back from France.

Watching the weather all week I wasn’t sure what to expect, but as it turned out, the sun was shining and the weather was beautiful. We took advantage of the fact it was a Bank Holiday and headed into the City of London as we knew it would be nice and quiet. Other than the fact it took me 20 minutes to find somewhere to get a coffee (it really does shut down around there), it was a brilliant. As with all couples it took a little while for Sergei and Jenn to relax, but this is a large part of the aim of the session, and once warmed up they were great fun.

I am really looking forward to this wedding. Besides being a really wonderful couple, this will be my first Russian Orthodox ceremony which looks absolutely fantastic. Can’t wait for Sunday! In the meantime, enjoy a couple of my favourites from the morning:

Burrows Lea Wedding | Matt & Michelle | Sneak Peak

Chris — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 07:30:09 +0000

Last weekend saw me fly back from my holiday in France to shoot the wedding of Matt and Michelle at the stunning country house location of Burrows Lea in Shere, nr Guildford. Will take me a while to process these as I am away on holiday at the moment, but just a couple of sneak peaks…

South Bank Engagement Shoot | Will & Nicol

Chris — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 13:06:07 +0000

I met up with Will and Nicol last Saturday for their engagement shoot on the South Bank. This is one of my all time favourite parts of London so I was really looking forward to this session and I was not disappointed! Will and Nicol were absolutely fantastic. A wonderful couple who were incredibly photogenic and natural in front of the camera. I am really looking forward to seeing WIll and Nicol at their wedding at Warren House in October, it should be an amazing day!

Burrows Lea Wedding – Matt and Michelle eShoot

Chris — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 14:14:58 +0000

Burrows Lea Country House is a stunning wedding venue set in the hills of the Surrey Downs just outside the picturesque village of Shere. I met up with Matt and Michelle to have a wander through the grounds to get some location ideas for some beautiful wedding photos next month. As with all engagement shoots, it also helps on the day by allowing them to get comfortable in front of the camera whilst having some fun at the same time.

Matt and Michelle epitomise the perfect couple for a wedding photographer, a great looking couple and loads of fun (even when I get them to sit in a potting shed!). Their wedding should be spectacular, so here is hoping for some great weather and a brilliant day!

Lou and Coenraad – Wedding

Chris — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 11:15:23 +0000

As you may have guessed from the sneak peek post, this wedding was a little further away from home than usual for me! In the heart of the Lake District this was always going to be a special wedding, add in some stunning summer sunshine, an awesome group of people and it was a huge amount of fun.

Early morning saw me meeting up with Lou and the girls at her Mums house in Penrith whilst they got ready. I don’t think I have ever seen anyone as cool, calm and collected on their wedding day morning as Lou! Was a fantastic chilled atmosphere. From there it was a short stroll down the road to the beautiful Christ Church for the ceremony with one of the nicest priests I think I have met.

Everyone then jumped on a coach as we headed to the gorgeous Inn on the Lake on the shores of Lake Ullswater. You’d have one heck of a job trying to find a more idyllic setting for a wedding reception and it served as the perfect venue for the end of a wonderful day with a wonderful couple.

Matt and Sandra – Wedding

Chris — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 23:13:40 +0000

What an utterly fantastic day with one of the nicest couples you could hope to meet. I met up with Sandra for the bridal preps at the Mary Ann Weeks salon in Walton. A really lovely salon and Sandra and the girls had the upstairs to themselves. From there it was on to Sandras house for the bridal prep and a quick coffee before heading off to meet up with Matt and the ushers at the beautiful St Pauls Church in East Molsey.

The reception took place at Warren House in Kingston. A gorgeous venue tucked away on the Coombe Estate, the gardens are stunning with the most incredible Wisteria I have ever seen in my life (as you will see in the photos). With the late afternoon/evening sun it was simply breathtaking.

It was a privilege to have been part of such a wonderful day and I wish Matt and Sandra all the best in their future life together (and a speedy recovery for the ankle Sandra broke on the Honeymoon….)

Lou and Coenraad – Wedding Sneak Peak

Chris — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 22:18:46 +0000

Had a fantastic time up in the Lake District shooting Lou and Coenraads wedding. Stunning location, gorgeous weather and a fantastic couple. Here is a ‘sneak peak’ of the shots whilst I process them all:

Wedding Venues – Inn on the Lake, Ullswater

Chris — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 15:58:57 +0000

Last weekend saw a 300 mile drive up the M6 to cover the wedding of Lou and Coenraad in the stunning surroundings of the Lake District. First port of call was the Inn on the Lake on the shore of Lake Ullswater to check out the reception venue. It was a beautiful venue with gorgeous views and certainly boded well for the forthcoming weekend!

Matt and Sandra – Wedding Sneak Peak

Chris — Mon, 31 May 2010 14:37:07 +0000

Matt and Sandras wedding at Warren House last week was a really amazing day, loads of fun and I can’t wait to go through the images with them when they get back from their honeymoon next week.

In the meantime here is a sneak peak of some of the detail shots:

Katherine and Richard – Wedding

Chris — Tue, 25 May 2010 08:13:07 +0000

This past weekend saw another journey up North to second shoot for Sam from Purelight at the wedding of Katherine and Richard at the amazing Holdenby House. The weather was stunning, clear blue skies and rocketing temperatures, just beautiful. The house and grounds really took your breath away and it was beautifully decorated for the day.

I had a wonderful day and Katherine and Richard were absolutely fantastic, even if Richard refused to try his hand at bull riding! Hopefully they are now having a fantastic time on their honeymoon.

Matt and Sandra – Wedding Rehearsal

Chris — Thu, 20 May 2010 20:21:00 +0000

Met up with Matt and Sandra tonight for their wedding rehearsal at St Pauls Church in East Molesey, ahead of their big day this coming Saturday! It’s come round really quickly, it only seems like last week we were trying to schedule their engagement shoot around storm warnings, house moving and Christmas! Was great to catch up and see them so relaxed and excited, the weather is looking great for the weekend and it should be an awesome day! Couple of shots from this evening first:

Esther & Robert – Wedding

Chris — Wed, 12 May 2010 10:32:30 +0000

This past Saturday saw me travelling 150 miles up the A1 to second shoot for the lovely Sam of PureLight at the wedding of Esther and Robert in Allington, Leicestershire.

Whilst Sam went to cover the bridal preparations I got to hang back with the guys in the pub whilst they readied themselves for the forthcoming celebrations with a quiet pint or two! (So quiet, in fact, they had to get the pub to open early!) Afterward we strolled, through the rain, up to the stunning Grade II listed Allington Manor House where the ceremony and reception were to be held.

The day was a lot of fun and we even managed to get a break in the weather to get some outdoor shots with the lovely spring blossom in the gardens.

Thanks Esther and Robert for letting me be part of your special day. I hope you are having a fantastic time in Tuscany!

Jane and Family, Location Portraits in Bushy Park

Chris — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 20:54:39 +0000

After what seems like an endless winter and generally awful weather, today was an absolutely stunning day for a portrait session in Bushy Park. A double family portrait to get a large print for Janes parent’s 50th wedding anniversary. Days like this are great fun, spending a couple of hours in the park with a really wonderful group of people who were incredibly natural in front of the camera. A challenging shoot with the lack of foliage from the late spring and a really strong midday sun, but fields of daffodils and blossoming trees more than made up for it!

Wedding Venues – Warren House, Kingston

Chris — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 12:59:53 +0000

I’ve been really busy recently, but one of the things I try to do where ever possible is get myself to venues for a quick scouting session before shooting there on a wedding day. It means I can get some ideas for shots beforehand and helps everything go even smoother on the day. I recently visited Warren House with Matt and Sandra to have a quick look around, but it was in the evening which meant that I didn’t get a chance to check out the grounds so Michael, the Assistant Manager, invited me back to have a look around during the day. It is a real gem of a venue, hidden away on the Coombe Estate in Kingston, it is a gorgeous building with stunning grounds. With the late spring this year the gardens are yet to blossom, but when they do they should be absolutely amazing. I am really looking forward to being back there in May. A couple of shots from the recce:

Sandra and Matt Pre-Wedding Shoot

Chris — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 14:16:53 +0000

I finally managed to meet up with Sandra and Matt at Bushy Park yesterday morning. We’ve been trying to sort out their pre-wedding shoot since mid November, but between severe storm warnings, house moving, Christmas and New Year it has taken a while! As it was, we managed to pick a bitterly cold, grey but thankfully quite dry February morning. Fortunately Sandra and Matt are great fun and the poor excuse for weather didn’t dampen their spirits, and despite protestations of camera shyness they were fantastic to work with. Their wedding in May at the stunning Warren House should be a really special day! Can’t wait!

A quick peek from the session:

Hannah’s Birthday

Chris — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:49:23 +0000

The second part of our weekend was a trip to South Wales for Hannah’s birthday. I’ve known Hannah’s parents for years and it is always great to see them. We had a lovely time and I am sure Hannah really enjoyed her birthday disco!

Here are a couple of favourites of the birthday girl:

Down by the Sea

Chris — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 22:52:11 +0000

Had a long but fantastic, travel filled weekend. First stop was visiting some great friends of ours that we haven’t seen for, what certainly seems, ages. The weather was looking awful but we got a break in the rain and took a (very hilly!) stroll down to the beach. It makes me realise how little we get to see Andy and Susan when I see how much Dylan and Caitlin have grown each time, was great to get some shots of them playing on the beach!!

Christmas Break

Chris — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 17:19:31 +0000

It has been a lovely break for Christmas and New Year, lots of time with the family which, for me, is the best bit. We’ve also had some very mixed weather, including plenty of snow and bitingly cold days. Through it all we have manged to get see some good friends and get plenty of outdoor time! We met up with friends for walks in the park, spent time outdoors on the bikes, and of course played out in the snow (well, Alex watched from the window…). On a technical front I have moved over to Full Frame with the aquisition of a shiney new D700 and upgraded some glass in preparation for what is looking like a very busy wedding season this year! Can’t wait to get started!

With that, some pictures from the last couple of weeks:

James’ Christening

Chris — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 17:25:02 +0000

Thankfully the heavy snow forecast for the weekend didn’t materialise and I had the pleasure of spending the day photographing the Christening of James Michael Grundy, with the ceremony at Our Lady of Lourdes in Uxbridge followed by a beautiful reception at the Buckinghamshire Golf Club. John and Maria were wonderful hosts and everyone had a lovely time.

After a quick scan through the images from the day here are a few of my favourites:

Three Generations

Chris — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 16:17:41 +0000

I took some pictures of Jackie’s two daughters a couple of months back, after that originally I was rebooked to take some shots of the daughters, their cousins and their grandparents. This kind of grew a bit until it included the adults in the middle meaning a shoot with the grandparents, 3 daughters and associated other halves and the 4 kids. Was always going to be a bit of a challenge with space and lighting but was a good fun afternoon and I’m pretty happy with the results. Still got a fair few to process but wanted to get a quick set together in the meantime!

Studio Open Evening

Chris — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:36:40 +0000

Last Thursday I spent the evening at Energy Studios for a kind of open evening. There were a couple of photographers and a couple of models and it was a great opportunity to test out an alternative studio location that is closer to central London. Had lots of fun shooting in a style a bit different from my normal stuff and got some stuff I am pretty happy with. Bit of a sneak peak of the shots I took of Charlotte, still have a few I need to process this week.

New Canvases Are in the House

Chris — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 22:12:12 +0000

Today saw the arrival of some canvasses for this weekends deliveries. Trying out a new supplier, there is always that anticipation, especially when they come well recommended. I am pleased to say that they exceeded all expectations, the quality really is superb, the attention to detail spot on and I can’t wait to deliver them this weekend!

A Sunday Afternoon in the Park

Chris — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 20:24:38 +0000

Had a weekend off this weekend. Saturdays engagement shoot was postponed until next weekend due to the gale force winds and torrential rain (not overly romantic weather really) so the day was spent at home with the kids. After a lazy Sunday morning, the weather cleared up and we needed to get out of the house! We grabbed Isabelle’s bike and obviously I grabbed my camera and we headed out to Cranford Park.

It’s a strange little place literally off junction 3 of the M4 that you would probably never notice until someone points it out. It turned out to be a really pretty little park with a lovely old church, some walled gardens, loads of open fields and a play park for the kids. Isabelle had a ride on her bike, then one of the stabilisers broke so we had to take them off and she rode on her own without them (although very insistent I ran along with her!) Followed this by a play in the park in some gorgeous late afternoon autumn sunlight – when the weather is good I really love this time of year!

Elsie, Bonnie and Tommy

Chris — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 22:58:36 +0000

Really lovely kids, lots of fun and very easy to photograph! Very natural in front of the camera and certainly made my job easy!

Disneyland Paris

Chris — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 14:55:50 +0000

Been a while since we went away on a break so for half term we managed to get a good deal for a few days away at Disneyland. Without letting Isabelle know we arranged to be there at the same time as Nickys best friend Clair and her two lovely kids Georgia and Sam. Sam is only a few months younger than Isabelle and they are best friends (apparently they are getting married when they are older), so was fantastic when we got there and said ‘Isabelle…who’s that over there?’ and she saw the three of them.

We had a fantastic time and it really recharged the batteries.

Anita, Doug, Holly and Grace

Chris — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:14:31 +0000

I’ve known Doug and Anita for a few years now, they live just down the road and are good friends of ours. Grace is the same age as my daughter Isabelle and they went to the same pre-school and now go to the same school and are close friends. Anita really wanted some fun shots of the four of them, nothing too formal or stifled so we got them all in the studio and had some fun.

Charlotte and Lucy

Chris — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 17:34:33 +0000

Gorgeous pair of girls, a real delight to photograph. As is often the case with little ones, Lucy was pretty shy and quiet at first until she grabbed her bag of Pepper Pig toys, once those came out she was chatty as anything! Charlotte was just a natural from the off!

Alfie and Robbie

Chris — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 13:30:43 +0000

Alfie and Robbie were a great couple of boys, lively, full of energy and really good fun to photograph, especially with their ‘Show me your muscles’ poses!

Ella and Ruby

Chris — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 13:30:28 +0000

Had the pleasure of photographing Ella and Ruby. The brief was to get some natural shots of the girls, and denim and their mums high heels was about spot on natural for them! Really great sense of humours and it’s always fantastic when you get siblings that pose together so nicely for the camera.

Studio Test Shoot

Chris — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:23:46 +0000

Found a place locally that I can use for studio shoots that’s convenient for me, has great facilities (a kitchen, toilets and a lot of space!). Grabbed the kids and booked it for an afternoon to test it out.