Guernsey Choral and Orchestral Society

What better way to get into the festive spirit of Christmas than to go to the Guernsey Choral and Orchestral Society Christmas Concert.  Last Saturday evening there was a distinct winter chill outside, even some snow remained on the pavements of Town from earlier in the day.  I was at St. James to take a few pictures of the proceedings.  I have been too busy to put much on my blog recently, but couldn't resist a few images of this event.

Light conditions at such events are always an extreme challenge, but Guernsey is so lucky to have such a beautiful building for events like this.  The atmosphere was warm and welcoming, the music and singing were amazing.  All this set against the stunning interior as you can see in the images below.  I am more used to seeing St. James decorated for weddings, this time we had all the Christmas decorations.

The main picture we wanted was to get the orchestra and choir together prior to the commencement of the evening.

I am used to being discreet and unobtrusive and this is essential for jobs of this nature. It is of the utmost importance to me not to disturb anyone's enjoyment of the evening.  So where I was able to I took the opportunity to take a few other compositions, there is always a host of photographs to take at events like this.

After the interval the children came on stage, this is always delightful.

I am always on the look out for something different and visually exciting, I really enjoy the next image, though it was tricky to get the right moment with the conductor's actions.

We were treated to an expressive narration of a Christmas story before Father Christmas made an apperance!

I was able to take a few shots of some of the musicians.

The evening drew to a close with the audience participating in some carols, I certainly felt that this evening really meant that Christmas was almost here.  There will be further pictures for viewing very shortly from the Buy Prints, Events area of my website.

Katie & Ben

Katie & Ben had a wonderful winter wedding.  Beautifully themed and detailed throughout, this was a pleasure to cover.  Appropriately we will start with a selection of details of the jewellery and accessories.

 The morning was fairly hectic, an early service necessitated a bit of running around to fit everything in from both the bride and groom's perspective.

 Fortunately my wife and assistant Karen covered the groomsmen having a swift drink and walking to the church.

 The service was held at Notre Dame, a church I have memories of as a child.  I still admire the architecture and the stunning roof design.  Karen was able to cover a few nice moments before the bride arrived at the church.

  

 A brief stop for pictures on the way to The Venue for the reception meant we had to put up with a cold and brisk wind.  But no sign of the previously forecast heavy rain.

 The reception area was really delightful, the winter theme was perfect.  Here's a small selection of the details we found.

 The speeches took place before the meal, the participants were then free to enjoy their food with no further duties to worry about!

 No respite for myself though, rings, flowers and a cake to photograph.  I was especially pleased with this creative shot of the rings, it took me a while to execute with a bit of ingenuity, but the result was well worth it.

 

 The early darkness gave us even more opportunity to have some fun with whatever light was available.  I love low light challenges.

 As the evening progreesed it was time to take to the dance floor.   Some took the chance to get a bit of practice in before Katie & Ben took to the floor.

The young and not quite as young took to the floor.

 While some chose a more modern form of entertainment.

 Some frantic activity saw out the evening.

 Eventually the night came to an end and the party was over.  A truly memorable day.

Hope you enjoy this preview of Katie and Ben's wedding, my last wedding of the year, a great way to end this season.  Don't be shy, please leave a comment if you thought this blog was worthwhile.

Alicia & Michael

Another special wedding.  With the groom being from the United States, we were privileged to have a fair number of visitors from that country.  I enjoy events with a mix of different cultures as this always brings a different aspect to them.  There was a busy start to the day, juggling taking pictures at the hairdressers and covering the groom's and bride's preparations.

How many does it take...?

We just had time to take a few pictures of the stunning bride before the church service.

It looks like there's some last minute advice being given out here!

Michael appeared very relaxed as he waited for his bride.

A stop at the park before the reception at the Farmhouse.

A cleverly spotted composition at the reception by my wife and assistant Karen.

The speeches were hugely entertaining, Nick the bride's father seemed to enjoy himself immensely!

The remainder of the day was to the accompaniment of the appropriately named band The States, always something I look forward to.  After the first dance, the rest of the evening saw some pretty frenzied dancing.

A fantastic day for Alicia & Michael to start off their married life together.