Reasons to choose Angie B Photography for your 'Big Day' - Testimonials from clients

As most of you will be aware, I have been gifted the honour of being a named as the "Wedding Photographer of the Year 2015" in  The Scottish Wedding Awards 2015. This being a HUGE compliment as  there were so many other talented professionals as finalists and all suppliers are nominated by their clients, the fact that so many of my clients took the time out to compose a nomination and reasons, is the best thank you I could have received.

Below here is a compilation of testimonials (I will add to these in the future) from some previous brides and grooms who contacted me with their review to submit to SWA 2015. I wanted to share these as I find 'personal' reviews give a different insight into what I can give you....and to be honest, I just wanted to share some of the lovely words that were said, and managed to make me smile with happy tears.

KATIE AND FRASER COMB TESTIMONIAL

St. Morroes Church and Balbirnie House Hotel

I had spent a long time looking for a wedding photographer, in preparing for my wedding one of the big things I heard from friends was "find a good photographer" I'd heard horror stories of people whose grannies could've taken better pictures on the day as well as those who were basically told "this is how it will be done" and then the odd ones that found a good photographer in budget that seemed nice, only to find afterwards that to actually get their pictures was going to cost so much more than the original budget.

I have to be one of those really lucky brides that has managed to find Angie Barnard.

From our first phone call Angie instantly felt like part of our family, I was instantly at ease with her, she just got what I was looking for in my wedding photographs, basically she listened, which so many others i had talked to didn't, and in finding that I knew from that moment on I didn't have to worry.
Angie came to see us and we did a little family beach session, spent time getting to know her and allowing my little girl time to become friends with her, which if you saw the wonderful pictures she has captured of our family since that first meeting was so incredibly worth it!

After a fantastic sunny summer, come the day of my wedding the heavens opened and pretty much stayed that way for the entire day with fog to boot. I wasn't bothered to be honest, my venue had an indoor & outdoor plan in place for the reception and after all, I couldn't change the weather.
Angie had her own plan, you see what we wanted was to not know that she was really there for the service, it was a very small church that, for me, had an incredible amount of sentiment attached to it. I don't even remember seeing Angie until after the service.
Our big thing after the service was wanting to go to a wee spot and have some pictures taken by the river Tay using Dundee and the bridges as a backdrop, we live in Canada and this was just going to be the perfect place for some photos that reminded us of home. Did I mention it was monsoon season in Dundee on August 2nd? You couldn't even see the bridges so unfortunately we had to admit defeat and just head straight to our reception.

Getting my family in one place for any length of time can only be compared to herding cats and Angie managed all of this without me or my husband noticing, we spent our whole day surrounded by laughs and giggles. The whole thing about my wedding photos is I wanted to look back and see my family in the moment, no false or forced smiles, no one feeling under pressure to "get that perfect shot". Again I didn't want to know that we were having our photos taken for hours on end.
The amazing thing is, I look back now and I see myself and my dad sharing a joke on our way into the church, my husband and my brothers cracking up about something, one giant family just being themselves in the moment and that takes a special photographer, to make nearly 200 people feel like they've known her all their lives to capture those happy and extremely relaxed emotions.

The best is yet to come, so they say... After our wedding Angie emailed and offered to meet us at that extra special spot and capture those photos of us, no extra charge whenever suited us so we would get those images to have in our home here. I was blown away by her offer to do this for us, Angie is not only phenomenal photographer she is one of the most personable and kind people you could ever hope to meet. She will be taking photos for us for many years to come, she is truly deserving of the recognition in reaching 
the final nominations.

CLAIRE AND CHRIS WISEMAN

Cairngorms Wedding 2014

Just wanted to write to thank you so much for all the help you gave us and the beautiful pictures you took. You were so helpful all the way through the process and made everything so easy and bent over backwards to help us out which was much appreciated with us having a Newborn baby around and you just worked around us and our hectic schedule which was so kind of you. The time and effort you put into our day along with listening carefully and planning of the couples images with what we were hoping to capture was so thorough that the pictures that you took were just perfect and everything if not more than we hoped for. The natural pictures from the wedding and preps just caught the day perfectly and brought back so many happy memories. We found it so hard to pick a favourite for our wall that we decided to have 2 large canvas collages made of the day with all out favourite pics both formal and natural. They have pride of place in our house and every time we walk past them we smile at the memories you so perfectly captured. And finally the package you sent to is was so thoughtful and you'd spent so much time making it up for us we were very touched. I cannot recommend you highly enough to anyone that wants a photographer for their wedding and we are so happy and glad we chose you to capture our day.

CAROLYN AND STEVE GREER

DoubleTree Hilton by Dundee 2014

“We were looking for a photographer who was able to catch natural, romantic and uncontrived photos for our big day in July 2014 and our search led us to Angie B

Photography, who did not fail to deliver. My husband is the shy, quiet type and so the

thought of posing for photos for extended periods of time did not appeal to him,

however, he should not have worried. Angie made us feel relaxed as soon as we met

her and by the end of our wedding day, she felt like part of the wedding party. We

(along with the rest of our family) loved every photo that was taken; they were exactly

what we were looking for. Angie listened to what we were hoping from our wedding

pictures and completely delivered. We were never really aware that Angie was at the

wedding and never felt as if we missed any of our big day by getting photos taken as

many brides do. Our photos were packaged and delivered beautifully and the whole

experience was fantastic, we couldn’t rate Angie B Photography highly enough”.

JIM AND MARION WATT

Brisbane House Hotel 2014

After attending several wedding fairs we came to the conclusion that many of the wedding photographers were overpriced, lacked imagination and were generally going through the motions. We discussed our disillusionment with friends and family from which we were recommended Angie Barnard who had recently photographed a colleague’s wedding.

We were looking for a contemporary photographer who was equally at home with formal and informal photos and didn’t mind staying well into the wedding reception.

After an initial meeting with Angie to discuss our thoughts and preferences, my wife and I were totally bowled over by Angie’s enthusiasm and passion for her craft. This filled us with confidence and left us in no doubt that Angie was the perfect person to photograph our wedding.

On the day of our wedding Angie arrived early and conducted a reconnaissance of the venue and the surrounding external areas. Angie and her assistant were charming, funny and friendly to all our guests, none of the formal group photographs were a chore but great fun. With our informal photos Angie captured the atmosphere by being unobtrusive, extremely flexible and very generous with her time.

The end result was beautiful formal photographs and magical informal photos which perfectly caught the atmosphere and all the key moments. My wife and I would not hesitate to recommend Angie to any of our friends or family, she really was a major factor in our big day being so special.

Many Thanks Angie from Jim & Marion Watt

 

NATALIE AND CHARLIE BEATTIE

Dunblane Cathedral and DoubleTree Hilton, Dunblane 

I was first introduced to Angie and her work through a very special family occasion - our

great gran's 90th birthday.

I fell completely in love with every single moment captured. I was even more impressed

that all these beautiful photos were taken without any of us knowing. Natural, funny,

personal moments caught without a pose! Magical!

When I became engaged a year later I didn't even question which photographer I

wanted to cover our day. The only issue I had was to make sure Angie B photography

was available. To say I was completely over the moon when Angie said she was is an

understatement!

Both my husband and I are not very keen to be photographed.

From that special day, Angie captured the most beautiful moments that my husband

and I (and the rest of our family) look through frequently. We treasure these moments

caught as they will be our memories for a lifetime.

Angie is truly a very gifted and professional photographer. I wouldn't use any other

photographer to capture our 'moments' and always highly recommend her services to everyone!

CHRISTINE AND BRIAN BUNCH

Seaton House Hotel

I initially asked Angie to capture my evening wedding reception a week after my Maltese

wedding. The intention was to get photos of those who couldn't make it abroad &

complete the wedding album however it turned out to be more than that. We had

picked up our photos from our Maltese photographer on the last day of our holiday & I

was so bitterly disappointed - most photos looked stage, very few natural moments captured

& the kids all seemed to missing from them. So Angie to the rescue! And what a

rescue mission it had become. I loved her friendly approach to photography, everyone

felt at ease and it shone through in photos. Smiles from all angles, everyone looking so

natural & more importantly, fantastic photos of all the kids. Angie's photos now take

pride of place hanging in my hallway and I look at them with much fondness. Angie promotes

herself as family photographer - and she certainly is! We were so impressed with

her style and professionalism that she was hired by both my sister & mum to cover their

upcoming weddings. She also covered my daughters newborn photo shoot too. I never

hesitate to recommend Angie to friends or colleagues & I believe she has been booked

to cover another 3 of my friends weddings based on my positive experience & sharing

Angie's handiwork with them. If only I was to get married again, I'd hire Angie! She's

worked hard to build up her company & I'm glad Angie was there to capture the most

precious memories in my life so far.

EMMA AND BRIAN DALZIEL

House for an Art Lover, Glasgow

Angie was fantastic to have at my wedding throughout the whole process she was on

hand for anything I might need.

I got married on 03/05/14 and haven't regretted my decision in going with angie b

photography, amazing value for money and a friendly photographer who put both me

and my husband and our family at ease throughout the day. She managed this all while

still getting the photos done in a timely fashion so we still had time to enjoy with our

guests.

The day started with Angie doing some photos at my mums house while I was getting

ready, I never at any point for her to be intrusive, she then took photos at the church

during our ceremony and then some at the venue she finished up at our first dance. The

week after our honeymoon our photos arrived In a beautifully wrapped parcel, this

contained lots of lovely sweeties and a lovely print Angie had selected for us.

The photos themselves are beautiful, lots of natural shots that I hadn't even realised

were being taken, we ordered some prints with Angie to have for some frames in our

house and we are looking forward to ordering a wedding album soon. Any inquiries with

Angie b are given a quick response and so far the qualities of the prints haven't

disappointed us. Many of our guests since the wedding have commented on how nice

our photographer was and we are only too happy to recommend Angie b photography

as it really was like having your best friend taking photos at your wedding! If I had to

make the decision again I would go with Angie every time.

EMILY AND JONNY HART

Guthrie Castle, Forfar

Angie is a true professional and ever so friendly, you instantly feel you've known her

forever! She photographed our special day perfectly, in such beautiful detail. So relaxed

and hassle free, every moment from delicate to comedic was captured for us to

treasure. We were so pleased with Angie and our images that we promptly booked our

newborn session with her! Definitely an award worthy candidate! Love from Emily,

Jonny & Little Holly Hart xx

ANGELA AND MICHAEL PAGAN

Queens Hotel, Dundee

"We booked Angie without hesitation once we decided on a date for our wedding. Angie

took the photos for my sister’s wedding the previous year and the photos were amazing

and we wanted the same professional result. Angie is so friendly and made us feel relaxed

on the day and made the formal part of the wedding shoot quite fun! She was

also very patient with the children and snapped some beautiful natural photos of them.

She really managed to capture the spirit of our special day. Professional and efficient

service from start to finish and it shows in our beautiful wedding album that we will

treasure forever. Would highly recommend!"

JADE AND AARON LOVE

Airth Castle

You made my wedding so very special and without you it wouldn’t of been the day it

was! You captured moments that I didn’t even know happened on the day and love

looking at all my pictures everyday it reminds me how special my day was and a big

part was because of you! You were great with my kids and caught some lovely images

of them! I cant thank you enough Mr and Mrs Love xxx

MR & MRS FOTHERINGHAM

Doubletree Hilton by Dundee

We can't thank Angie enough for the amazing way she helped make our wedding day

truly special. Angie is amazingly gifted & we loved how creative she was with the

surroundings of our wedding venue, our entire wedding party & the truly beautiful

photographs that she captured of our day. Angie's unique way of capturing the most

natural shots that told our true love story, spirit & energy of our day is something I will

be forever thankful for. Thank you very much Angie xxx

Nadine and Craig - Mar Lodge, Braemar

Jen and Ryan Wedding - Huntingtower Hotel, Perthshire.

As most of you know to ensure a personal, quality service from myself, I tend to only take on one wedding each weekend due to the effort, energy I put into these often 12-14 hour days. Although from time to time, I am offered jobs from couples that I really want to be a part of, so I bend the rule occasionally ;-)

This was most certainly so for Jen and Ryan -as often is the case I was referred to them by a previous client and upon our first consultation (to see if we were all a good 'fit') I knew it would be a day full of laughter and fun (for them and me!) After a much longer meeting than necessary (we had lots of banter) I knew I wanted to be their photographer...:-)

I arrived to find Jen with a full stomach (another good sign - no nerves...yet!), having fun with her 'girls' in her suite. This is a favourite part of the day for me, I get to sneak peeks at all the dresses, listen to all the jokes and giggles and just generally get excited with everyone before the day marches on. And a wedding always goes by soooo quickly....Hopefully these images allow my couple to savour all those moments that flew by so fast...

Katie and Fraser Wedding : Angie B Photography - St.Morroes Church and Balbirnie House Hotel

This year has been crazy busy with Weddings, Portraits and everything in between, so I am only now getting around to doing the Summers Wedding Blog posts....:-O (Better late than never!)

Starting off with the wonderful wedding of Katie and Fraser at St. Murroes Church - a quaint, gorgeous little chapel nestled in the Scottish countryside. This Church holds many memories and sentiment for Katie and her family, so it was her dream to be married there also :-)

I drove to the Church in rain, it stopped for a brief moment then the heavens really opened up! But it didnt put a dampener on things as all the guests arrived, smiling as if it was the best Summers day!

Due to restrictions at St.Murroes (as with some other Churches), photography coverage was not permitted during the Ceremony, this is something for Brides to be to think about when considering and booking venues etc. Coverage can sometimes be limited only, if not permitted.

 Obviously for Katie, the familiarity of this Church and personal memories for her outweighed this 'drawback' and for me I loved being able to sit down and really enjoy their ceremony with them!

After the Ceremony, it was on to Balbirnie House Hotel, a 5 star venue and multiple time winners of Best Scottish Wedding Venue and they didnt disappoint! A superb venue, with stunning grounds (although unfortunately the torrential rain prevented us from using them at all) and super friendly, helpful staff - I had a great time working with them.
Instead we used the gorgeous interior of the hotel, a StairCase to 'die for' - just wow! along with the long Gallery and Ballroom.
The night continued with laughter, dancing and general merriment, its always a joy to see these moments for me as I stand back and observe....the preparation, hard work etc has all culminated in these moments of pure joy for the happy couple (and their guests).
Again Katie and Fraser, thank you so much for inviting me into your big day.

Trust me a little................When I say im stopping Studio Family Sessions....in favour of Lifestyle and On Location.

Each year, I check equipment, sort out Training workshops I'll be attending and try and co-ordinate them in between an already busy wedding diary.

After such a lot of use it has come time to renew my Larger Studio Items and I came to the realisation, that I have to prioritise and I enjoy sessions with young children best in their own home/environment or at Outside Locations in comparison to Studio environment. As well as the images I produce that my clients and I treasure the most, are always captured in a more natural environment than a high key studio set up.

The images that make me smile the broadest when capturing and then editing later are natural images, moments caught between families, everyday images (that you remember in your mind now) but become a little hazy in 10 years time. That image of your daughter on a stool helping blow bubbles and do washing up - fast forward to now head and shoulders above the worktops (and refusing to have anything to do with the dishes!) lol.

This being the case I am intending to stop offering Family Studio Sessions currently (this may not be a forever situation, but for the moment at least and while there is decent weather out there!). My photography is not only my passion, but it is also my full time job and sole income allowing me to provide for my children and family - happily! So I have weighed up the pros and cons, and although I may miss out on a few of you who have your heart set out on Studio Sessions - Im hoping you'll still return another time and those of you who are drawn to the type of images I produce, will have faith when I advise you on how or where is best to achieve this and with young children its very often not a studio environment.

What works for me - wont work for all, but I am at a stage in my career, where I feel happy to turn some work down in favour of  doing work I love even more, capturing some SUPER natural images...while getting to play with your family or children :-)

If Studio style images are the only ones you would like to have framed on your wall, then I accept I am not the photographer for you at this moment - but would happy to direct you to some other fabulous local photographers who could assist you. There are many of us, this being a great positive - that each and every one of us have our own style and vision for you to try and match to yours. Although please everyone, ensure you are dealing with a professional who can provide consistently good work, to a certain extent - you do get what you pay for.

All in all, for just now, I am going to concentrate on providing the type of images for clients that I LOVE to capture of my own children. So if you do like my work and want similar images of your children, trust me when I give my advice ;-) (However 'out the box' it may be....lol) And I hope to hear from some of you soon.....

Carolyn and Steve - Doubletree Hilton, Dundee by Angie B Photography - wedding photography scotland

Saturday 26th July, 2014 belonged to Mr and Mrs Greer - who had the most amazing day at DoubleTree Hilton in Dundee. As you may have read from previous posts, I enjoy ALL my weddings and end up feeling quite friendly with all my couples - Carolyn and Steve were no exception.

 I knew even during our pre-wedding consultation, when I discovered how Steve proposed we would all have fun on the day. Steve was still a little tender from his stag do (Carolyn let him go to Ibiza! - lucky man) :-) but we still had a giggle and a good natter (probably me and Carolyn most though) ;-). These meetings are just as much about me creating a schedule and timeline as they are about us all getting to know each other and allowing couples to know more about my style and feel comfortable around me! (Before I point that big camera at you!) ;-)

I met Carolyn and her 'maids' in their suite, as they were preparing for the day. (I like this part, its like the getting ready with your friends on a Sat night when you were younger). Now some brides barely manage toast for nerves and things to do on their day, when C told me that she had eaten a full fry up - I knew it was game on. No nerves = even more fun!

I met Steve and his 'boys' outside, who were just as excited as the girls inside! :-) yay! I had remembered Steve had mentioned he didnt exactly enjoy having his photo taken, although no one else would have guessed - natural, like his beautiful wife! 

During their ceremony there were such personal readings conducted by friends and family, along with their mutual friend playing the guitar as Carolyn walked down the aisle, to be greeted by a groom in awe. (Honestly these guys were really cute together!)

They even had a 30 or 40 year old bottle of whiskey to drink from the quaich together, which unfortunately the best man had a little problems opening ;-) I'll say NO more....

All day I saw how many smiles (and tears) their friends and family had for them and their big day, again another 'big day' I left smiling broadly and feeling more like I was a guest than doing a 12 hour work day.

 I'll let the following sample of images tell the story of the rest of their day.