Camera Repairs

Is there anything more annoying in life than an intermittent fault? You know the sort of thing, like the car that only starts when it feels like it but behaves perfectly every time it's taken anywhere near a garage.

On the wedding last weekend one of my flashes decided to work to rule. I'm sure anyone who takes pictures will realise that the timing of an image is a vital aspect when capturing real moments in time. The last thing a photographer needs is that nagging thought of, is the camera going to fire when I push the button. Of course I try and plan for every eventuality and is one of the reasons I carry so much equipment on a wedding. My car is heavily loaded with up to 5 cameras and three separate flashes, not including spare tripods and studio lighting etc. The majority of the equipment never sees the light of day and stays securely in the boot but the thought of it being there just makes the nerves settle that much easier.

So having successfully substituted the faulty kit and finished the job it was time to inspect the camera and flash for anything obvious. It became apparent that a trip to the repair shop was in order. A trip into Central London (Oh Joy) to Fixation and quick chat with the repair team sees me leaving my camera/flash with them to investigate and report. Fixation are authorised Nikon and Canon (apparently some people use Canon) repairers and also have a thriving hire and sales section. It's interesting to spend half an hour or so just looking at the various equipment they have on display. I must admit I was very tempted by the roller style camera bags, perfect for those long haul flights and a really cool solar panel for running a laptop ... hmmmm.

A couple of days later a phonecall tells me the camera is ready, the culprit being the hotshoe, I had guessed this to be the case and was pleased when my theory was confirmed. I had feared a chase the fault exercise, where everything that can be replaced is replaced in an effort to find a fault (I used to work in the motor trade). I've tested it several times and all seems in order. The true test will be this weekend at a Bar mitzvar i'm shooting, The backups are all on charge just in case.

So all in all I'm very pleased with the service ... just wish they weren't in the city.

Vanessa and Williams Wedding at the Chancery Court Hotel, Holburn

This Sunday I had the honour of photographing Vanessa and Williams wedding. The whole wedding took place at the Chancery Court Hotel in Holburn London. This hotel is fast becoming one of my favourite locations to work in the city and certainly ranks amongst the best (the Land mark followed by the Savoy are still my personal favourites).

As a special surprise for the couple, the brides father had booked the three waiters. This is the second event i've worked with these guys and both times they have been absolutely astounding, I honestly can't say enough about what they add to an event. Without wishing to give too much away the basics are these guys are hidden Opera singers, as always they brought an exceptional twist to the event.


A truly fantastic wedding with beautiful people who I'm sure all had a magnificent day.

Tanya and Deans Wedding, Gosfield Hall, Essex

Recently I had the fantastic honour of photographing dean and Tanyas wedding at the magnificent Gosfield Hall just outside of Braintree. most of my work tends to be in London and its a refreshing change to be asked to photograph at a location more local.

The whole day was incredible and much fun was had by all involved. Shortly into the day the panic started when Tanya realised she may not have packed the wedding rings where they should be. What entailed was cars being despatched to search for the missing jewellery. For a short time the stress levels began to climb but all worries disappeared after a phone call from Dean informing all that they had been found.

All in all an incredible day spent with beautiful people. For their wedding slideshow click play below, it's about 10 minutes long, you can also see it here Tanya and Deans Wedding slideshow.

Ok it looks bad, but i'm working on it

Ok so the blog looks pretty bad at the moment, but i'm working on it guys. Hopefully it will be OK eventually.

American Football Photography at Britbowl

A couple of weeks ago the British American Football season 2009 finished with it's annual finals. the games were played at the keepmoat Stadium in Doncaster.

This year the Colchester Gladiators had achieved the honour of being the southern champions in Div 2 there BritBowl final was against the Leicester Falcons.

I set out to instead of simple shoot the game to capture the day from as a player would experience it.



Above is a short slide show of images that tell the story form the Gladiators point of view. The game itself has been touted as the best game ever played on British soil .... when you're on the wrong side of a one point game that's hard to believe.

Brads Bar Mitzvar at Brocket Hall

Last weekend I was honoured to be asked to photograph Brads Bar Mitzvar party. The party was held at Brocket Hall an amazing place and a photographers dream.

You really are spoilt for choice when it comes to backgrounds, every time you turn round there's more places to shoot, absolutely incredible.


The week before I'd also photographed the actual Bar Mitzvar practise in the synagogue. Because of religious reasons the actual ceremony is held on Saturdays and is not photographed.

The party went without a hitch and was fantastic! entertainment was supplied by Europes best football skills player and some pretty morbid magicians, that happily shoved nails up their noses amongst other things (the teenagers loved them).

Is there a better job on the planet? I don't think so.

Photography Business Marketing

OK, so I've been hearing from a lot of friends in the business how hard this year is getting and that their ever shrinking amount of clients is starting to be a worry. I then think about the new guys coming into this, the best business on the planet, and it concerns me they are really getting the bad end. Not only do they have very few return clients, many are just starting out and are unsure of how to attract the new business necessary to pay the bills. It worries me that the people with the photographic skills could be falling at the first hurdle because of todays market. I'm very excited to announce that I've just finished writing a one day course that's going to blow your mind, one day and you will walk away with the knowledge and a plan of how to be that business you want to be.

It's aimed at any photographers who have mastered the skills needed to take pictures but are currently struggling to gain the business they want. Anyone that has already signed up for my free photography tips on my website will get the info as soon as it's published (if you haven't signed up yet do it now www.martinwilmottphotography.com ). I'll also put the details up here in the next day or so.

I'm just waiting for confirmation from the hotel on the date then i'll release the details. I'm sure you're capable of making a success of you're business and I want to help you with it.

The course will cost £250 and i'm so confident in the content that i'll make this promise to you. If at the end of the day you don't think it has been worth it and the methods and secrets i've released to you won't work, i'll give you your money back! Read that sentence again ... that's a cast iron guarantee that if you don't think it's worth it you'll get YOUR MONEY BACK.

Any questions don't hesitate to e-mail me (click the ask me a question on the right).

looking forward to meet you guys!

Matt & Kellys Wedding, Wivenhoe House, Colchester

I'm just back from a wedding viewing with Matt & Kelly. They got married a couple of weeks ago at Wivenhoe House, just outside Colchester.

It was a truly fantastic day and even the threatened wet weather stayed away long enough for us to get some great shots.

As you'll see in the video below Matt is what you might call "a tall guy" which made the composition a challenge.




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Why Lifestyle Photographers Don't Use Studios

A couple of years ago I discovered the joys of the "What the Duck" cartoon strip ( You can vist the WTD website here ). It's a comic strip about a duck who's occupation is a photographer. He gets into the scrapes that all photographers have seen at some time with funny outcomes. Anyway watch the video above to see one of the many reasons why I hate photographing people in a studio setting.

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Photographers Assistant

A couple of days ago I twitted about what I call my Photographers assistant. It's something that i find invaluable and thought I'd pass on the information just to make anyone else who shoots weddings life a little easier.



Hope you find this useful.

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