Time for a coffee ..

I had a great meeting this morning with the owner of the Hollin Hall Country House Hotel, and we've arranged that I'll be shooting an advertising video for them later this Spring. They had some nice things to say about my work, and it's very flattering that I'm the only photographer they recommend to new brides ..

Coffee and a chat by their roaring log fire was more than welcome after I'd spent the first part of the day in a chilly, wet depot, shooting PR portraits of a Transport Manager for an industrial magazine ..

More coffee now. I've earned it ..

On show ..

The whole point of being a photographer is to have your work seen by other people, so it's particularly pleasing that there are two of my shots currently being used on Facebook by Wedding venues that I work at. Willington Hall and Hollin Hall are both featuring my photography to promote events - a Wedding Open Day at Willington and a Sunday Lunch. I've been invited to take part in the Wedding event as one of Willington Hall's recommended photographers, and I'm being featured by Hollin Hall because I'm the only Wedding photographer they recommend. How's that for a showing?..

I'm not one to complain but ..

You know I don't use this blog to complain .. (!) .. but I read recently that the Home Office is now accepting passport photographs taken on a phone. Not that I make a fortune from shooting passports, but now I've heard that I think I can expect the numbers to dry up completely. Which is what's happened to the work I used to get from a legal company in Manchester. Their PR bod told me yesterday that one of their managers has bought a ... yes, a good camera .. and so, from now on, he'll be doing the firm's PR Photography. I was out at Tesco this morning and spotted this. I don't know who needs it more. Him or me ..

Note from the editor: This blog is very one-sided, as the moaning old fart booked in two PR jobs yesterday and a Wedding and got a further Wedding enquiry for this April, so ignore his rants and tell him to shut up ..

A date for the diary ..

It's a year since I took this photograph. A year to the day. Happy First Wedding Anniversary to Jim and Karen. I was reminded of the fact when I bumped into Jim in Asda last week - we both lead such exotic lives - and it got me thinking about all the people whose Weddings I've photographed. One of 'my couples' will be celebrating their fortieth Anniversary very soon! Forty years! They actually asked if I'd photograph their daughter's Wedding, which would have been an absolute first though, as yet, that's on hold as the youngsters are a bit skint. Still, I'm here when you need me, guys. Just give me a date for the diary ..

Trump ..

I knew exactly which of my Archive pictures I was going to show you today. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you .. my take on the forthcoming Trump presidency. We're a mere four hours away from the Human Carrot become the President of the USA and my American friends still don't believe me when I tell them his name in the UK means fart! President Fart! Is he gonna cause a stink? Watch this space ..

Grub up ..

Today? Today I'm a food photographer again. I'm off to shoot the entire menu of a catering company in the North West. The hot smoked duck and the cream of mushroom and rosemary soup are sounding especially delicious .. er, I mean photogenic! Must keep my mind on the job in hand.
Just hope I get fed ..

Manchester by the sea ..

I'm quite keen to see the new 'Manchester by the sea' film, which opens today in the UK. It was already out when we were in the US for a Wedding last year and, as we were only a couple of train stops from the actual place, and as I'm born and bred 'Manchester definitely not by the sea', we couldn't resist a quick peek around. What a quaint little place it is. Typical New England. Unfortunately, I can't show you much of that as I spent most of my time photographing anything that bore the words 'Manchester by the sea'. What a train-spotter ..

A few years back, having just sorted out an archive of shots from my hometown of Eccles, I discovered that there were at least three other places in the UK called Eccles, and one of those was intriguingly called 'Eccles on sea'. I had to go there. I needn't have bothered. It's basically just a collection of holiday homes on the coast in Norfolk. Blink and you miss it. Missing it is a better option, but the mention of holiday homes does bring me nicely round to the subject of our French gîte, for which we took our first booking yesterday. We are so delighted. If we carry on like this we'll be able to afford another trip back to MBTS. I'll take more pictures of the town next time ..  

A quick word ..

Stand back! My head is about to explode! I've had a couple of fantastic messages in as many days from two pairs of my newly-weds ..

Debs and Nigel wrote "Just had a look through the album again - can't believe just how good it is and love the way you juggled the pictures around. Thanks for everything. You are a true genius!" ..

Hmm, don't know about that but ..

Andrew and Andrew, last week's couple, sent me this "Martin, we could not have wished for a more fun, talented or professional photographer for our big day. Thank you so much, the photos look every bit as amazing as it was for us on the day. Thank you" ..

There is no nicer feeling than knowing you've done a good job for a couple.
Thank YOU, guys!..
  

Andrew & Andrew ..

I've never before shot a Wedding where both the newly-weds had the same name, but it happened yesterday when I shot the "Big Gay Wedding" of Andrew and Andrew! They were at the fantastic Belle Epoque restaurant in Knutsford with a truly fun bunch of friends and family and were treated to much hilarity and - for her, great embarrassment - when the poor old registrar really, really did pronounce them "husband and wife"! ..

The Wedding got 2017 off to a great start for me and it's appropriate that yesterday was in a restaurant, as my next big job is to shoot every item on the menu of a new Cheshire restaurant ..

Today though? Feet up ..

Our little French dream ..

 Ok, here's the thing. This is my first day back in the UK after spending New Year over in France. I mentioned a couple of months ago that we'd bought a gîte over there, so the 'holiday' was spent getting it ready to let out for the forthcoming season. It was more 'paint-pot' than party on New Year's Day but the work's all done and I can now crack on with building a social media presence for our little French dream. I'll feature it on the blog soon .. once I've edited all the advertising shots I took but, in the meantime, if you or anyone you know is thinking of spending some time in the warmth of Loubillé in central France ..
I can help!

Now .. off to my first Wedding of 2017. This one's going to be a belter.
Tell you all about it tomorrow  ..

17 at last ..

 

 So, there we go. 2017 at last and Christmas already a memory. I'm absolutely itching to get cracking on the New Year and just want to thank all my readers and wish you all the best for the coming 365. Happy New Year!..

Back to business ..

That's Christmas done, and I hope you had a good one. I'd like to imagine lots of happy folk, delighted to have been given one of my portraits as a gift. I've had some lovely pre-Christmas shoots at my little 'pop-up' studio but this one of these twins is one of my personal favourites. The sweet expressions belie the fact that they were little devils during the session ..

Anyway, it's onwards and upwards now to 2017. I still have a few quiet days to enjoy, then it's back into the Wedding season in the first week of January. I've devised a new offer too, with £200 off the price of a full day's Wedding photography. If you've got engaged over the Christmas season, then many congratulations and I hope you'll have a look at my tempting discount.
Blimey, doesn't take long 'til it's back to business, does it?.. 

We wish you a merry montage ..

I've gone montage-mad! You can tell I've finally finished work for Christmas 'cos I'm actually getting chance to look through my recent personal work and get it out there for all to see. Gloves, selfies and my trip to The States have all had a work-over and been put up on Instagram and Flickr and, I have to say, I'm really pleased with what I've been shooting lately. That brings up the all usual New Year intention to 'commit' to projects; to find time to photograph 'for myself' and to get more exhibitions but, to be quite honest, as long as I'm shooting then I'm happy. Weddings, portraits, food, properties .. I don't care. I love it all. Perhaps I should put up a montage of solicitors head-shots .. 

Party animal ..

I've got the third Christmas party under my belt now, with the next one looming tomorrow night. It's a tough life, eh? Last night I was at a friend's house and needed to go to the loo. When I got there the toilet seat was up and .. horror .. there was a small puddle of wee on the floor! Well, what to do? I didn't want anyone thinking I'd piddled on the floor, so I had to wipe it up with toilet paper before I could go myself. Modern life dilemmas, or what?..

  

Downhill to summer ..

Time to wheel out Jethro Tull's 'Solstice Bells' for its one and only play in 2016.
It's the shortest day of the year and we're rolling downhill to summer. Bring it on ..

It's also time to cash in those hard-earned Nectar points. I've just bought 18 cans of 'free' beer with my Sainsbury's Nectar card. God knows how much I've actually had to spend over the year to get 'em ..

I think I've officially finished work for Christmas. A pr shoot at a birthday party yesterday was the last thing in my diary so, unless something urgent comes in, it looks like a long, leisurely rest for me until 2017. Perhaps I'll dig out some other records now I've got time ..

How about The Undertones and 'Here comes the summer'? ..

You lookin' at me? ..

One of my favourite Christmas shots .. the bizarre sight of Father Christmas eye to eye with a fully-grown lioness at Chester Zoo. It was taken at the launch of some new Christmas stamps, back in the days when I used to shoot PR Photography for the Royal Mail, and was a hastily grabbed shot with my Olympus XA ..

A chap sent me a text last night, enquiring about the possibility of a voucher for a portrait session as a Christmas present. Trouble was, his predictive text changed 'photo' to 'potato'. Was it possible, he asked, to get a voucher for a potato shoot? It sure is, my friend. Just £50. Cheap as chips ..

One for the album ..

The idea of having a Wedding 'album' seems to be fading into history. I think I've only made three this year. One of my faves is this one, from a Wedding back in July, that involved a boat trip on the Manchester Ship Canal and a walk through Salford Quays to the Imperial War Museum North. It was so laid back, so 'different', and so unconventional .. it was just made for good photography.
Click on the pix to see what I mean ..

Off for drinks with pals today, and time to count our blessings. Of the six of us meeting up, all are still working photographers apart from old fart Jim, who has taken early retirement. You can be sure that - as always at our get-togethers - the changing face of photography will be a dominant theme of our conversation and then - as always, especially after the third pint - it'll deteriorate into a 'fings ain't wot they used to be' blub-fest. Photography sure has changed a lot in 'my time' but, whatever its challenges today, I'm still bloody lucky to be a professional working photographer.
Cheers!..

Light work ..

Santa came early to the O'Neill household, plonking a great big camera 'Roller' bag under the tree for me. You know you're getting old when you keep getting backache from carrying your rucksack-style camera bag, so I've treated myself to a gorgeous pull-along bag to spare myself a few aches and pains. It cost a small fortune but it'll save me as much in Deep Heat and Voltarol ..

Speaking of making light work, I shot some images of our village decorations yesterday. Our 'local life' magazine wants one for its front cover and I couldn't have picked a better day to take it. There was not a breath of a breeze anywhere, and the lights stayed stock still for my whole 25 second exposures ..

Santa's due again today. His little elf at Amazon is delivering a lovely new lightbox for me today - in time, I hope, for me to shoot a couple of portraits this afternoon. I won't get chance to use it tomorrow. Tomorrow is Christmas party day. Tomorrow I'll just be light-headed ..

Downhill to Chrimbo ..

It's downhill to Christmas now, as I shot my last Wedding of the year in a rather dank and soggy Wilmslow last weekend. Good fun was had by all, of course, though thoughts of sunset shots at 9.30pm seem a long way off for the time being ..

Yesterday the PR head was back on again as I was shooting head-shots at a firm of solicitors in Altrincham, though I can see the diary is thinning out as we approach the festive season. It's certainly not like my 'old days' on the newspapers when I even worked on Christmas Day, photographing new-born babies. Not to worry, I'm glad of the slow-down, especially as it'll be 'Beer o'clock' again on Friday when I meet up with a handful of other freelance photographers for our annual Christmas bash. Thank God there's nothing in the diary on Saturday ..  

My favourite Punk Pensioner ..

You'll have to speak up a bit today. My ears are still ringing from a UK Subs gig in Manchester last night. They're one of my fave bands, still going strong after almost forty years, and it was a trip back in time to be thrashing about in the mosh-pit at The Star and Garter. That's my idea of a gig .. no barriers, no separation between artist and fan  .. and no 'three songs and you're out' crap if you're a photographer. I know I say it every time but I can't help but feel smug when I compare punk to the kind of dreary dross that 18 year olds are listening to today. Where's the power, excitement and energy in the manufactured garbage of people like Adele? Oh yes, I feel so superior. Punk keeps you young, too. Lead singer Charlie Harper here? He's 72 !!...