To enter the competition, there are just two steps.

1. First, pick one of the four images below and tell me why you like it in no more than 30 words. Write your preference as a comment on this post (or on the Win an Engagement Photoshoot post on my Facebook page).

2. Then, drop me an email (hello@jonathanryderphotography.com) and tell me a little about yourselves – how you met, where & when you’re getting married, and what kind of wedding you’re planning.

That’s all there is to it. I will announce the winner by the 2nd of May here, on my Facebook page and on my Twitter account.

You’ll need to get your email to me by midnight on the 30th of April – and please do check the Conditions below before you enter.

Good luck!

Jonathan

Image 1: Kate & Seamus

Image 2: Lisa & Damien

Image 3: Katie and Jimmy

Image 4: Sarah & Danny

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Competition Update!

Congratulations to Jo and Jonny – I look forward to meeting up with you soon!

Thanks very much also to my other competition entrants – I will be in touch.

Best regards,

Jonathan

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Conditions

- To be eligible, you must have set a date for your wedding and be getting married (or having a civil partnership ceremony) either this year or next (2013 or 2014).

- Your shoot can take place at any time (subject to my availability) between the 1st of July and 30th of September, 2013.

- You are only allowed to make one submission per couple.

- You must submit your entry by midnight on the 30th of April. Your entry consists of both your comment on this post (or on the Win an Engagement Photoshoot on my Facebook page) and your email to hello@jonathanryderphotography.com. It’s your responsibility to ensure that I receive your entry and no late entries will be accepted. I will acknowledge receipt within 24 hours by email, so if you haven’t heard back from me by then, please get in touch straight away.

- I reserve the right to publish images from the shoot on my blog, website and Facebook page, and possibly in a UK or Irish wedding blog.

- Your shoot can take place at a venue of your choosing, subject to my agreement and provided that it’s available and that we can obtain permission to shoot there without Jonathan Ryder Photography incurring any additional charges. The venue must be within a 30 radius of Belfast, Northern Ireland, unless you are prepared to cover my additional travel costs.

- The prize for winning the competition is a photoshoot and you will be able to choose one image from the shoot to be professionally printed in any size up to 12*8 inches and set in a signature mount. I’ll also give you a personal viewing of the images from your shoot and you can choose any one to be printed. This prize is not exchangeable for cash.

I loved shooting Eimear and Seamus’ family the other week. They live in a beautiful place, which usually makes for a good shoot, and we were blessed with some lovely sunshine … but they made my job so easy. They’re warm, relaxed and their kids are fabulous – full of fun and all with a glint in their eyes. It was hard to put my camera down. Although we were only shooting for a couple of hours, I could have gone on all day (and then gone back the next). I hope you like the shots as much as I do.

I came across the fine work of Suzy Coyle (aka Suitcase Suzy) recently when she was playing with You, Me and the Sea. I grabbed a few shots of her performing that evening, and a more considered portrait shoot seemed to follow naturally.

Here’s a short bio of Suzy …
Suzy started out singing & writing songs from a very early age. After a ten year musical absence, Suzy returned to the scene a few years ago in a 60’s inspired covers band. She has worked on an eclectic repotoire including recording and collaborating with local artists and dance music promoters, such as N.I Soul troop, You, Me & the Sea, Katie & The Carnival, Sam Dalton Music and a host of others. Suzy is currently concentrating on a self-penned musical journey involving a smorgasbord of sounds. Nothing is impossible… so why not join the ride?

Upcoming gigs and other musical adventures:
17th March Laverys Belfast *NI SOUL TROOP
23rd March The Melting Pot Rostrevor *NI SOUL TROOP
17th May Limavady (oh danny boy festival) *Suitcase Suzy Solo Show

other musical happenings:
Recording with You, Me & the Sea
Suitcase Suzy Solo EP plans are brewing….

More info here:
https://www.facebook.com/SuitcaseSuzy
#suitcasesuzy on twitter

It’s been a while since my last bridal shoot. Teaming up with the right people is so important and on this shoot I got to work with some of Northern Ireland’s best wedding businesses. Seeing such a great team of professionals work together was really inspiring. It  left me feeling lucky that I was the one who got to frame it all at 50mm – and helped me develop some new wedding photography ideas too.

Here’s who was involved:

All flowers were by Tim Kirkpatrick and Jill Montgomery of Belfast’s Floral Earth (http://www.floralearth.co.uk/). Stacey Kilpatrick from SAK Designs looked after Jessica’s make-up (http://sakdesigns.co.uk/). Hair styling was by Gina Montgomery McCall from Silk Hairdressing (http://www.facebook.com/gina.mccall.58). The veils were supplied by Rebekah McCann-Williams from Visionary Veils (http://www.visionaryveils.co.uk/), who also advised on styling. Dresses were very kindly supplied by Leondra Clarke from Belfast’s Forever Bridal (http://foreverbridal.me.uk/). Daniel Parsons from Paper Bark (http://www.paper-bark.com/) produced bespoke stationary for the shoot. The Ulster Folk & Transport Museum (http://www.nmni.com/Home) very kindly let us shoot at Cultra Manor, as well as within the museum itself, at the ‘Old Rectory’, the ‘Bank Manager’s House’ – and finally the ‘Meeting House’, which is also a fabulous wedding venue with a distinctly ‘alternative’ feel to it.

Working with the right model is so important too and we were thrilled to work with Jessica Courtney, who brought elegance and grace to the shoot despite a biting February wind.

Katie and Jimmy got married just before New Year’s Eve at Kilbride Parish Church in Doagh, near Ballyclare in Northern Ireland. It was such a pleasure to be part of their wedding. My day started at around half nine, when Katie was just beginning to get ready. I didn’t finish shooting until past 11pm, but I could easily have carried on into the small hours. Katie and Jimmy are lovely – and they’re a lot of fun to photograph. Katie looked stunning too. Their family and friends created a great atmosphere, in the plush surroundings of the Galgorm, and I love the images we captured.

I can’t remember time ever flying by so quickly as in 2012. Looking back over the year’s images really brings it home. Photography is a constant learning process – exciting, eye-opening, moving - and I’m very grateful to everyone who’s been involved in my journey this past year. I’ve met some lovely new clients, worked with talented models and made a bunch of great new contacts and colleagues. I can’t wait to get started this year.

So, Happy New year to you and best wishes,

Jonathan

I’d been looking forward to this shoot for a while. We kept saying we’d do it and things kept getting in the way. But now I’m glad we had to wait. Stormont looked beautiful, with golden leaves tumbling down to the ground as we shot.

Rozina was great to work with and also looked after her own styling. Her make-up was by the very talented Amanda McCann (click here for Amanda’s Facebook page).

I went down to take some images of the trainees at work the other week – and then took some shots at Chocolate Memories’ 2nd birthday and product launch party the following week – which included some great speakers, an excellent ‘flash mob’ and, yes, lots of lovely chocolate. Yum

Niketa and I took a walk around Redburn Country Park in Belfast last weekend, somehow managing to find a window of sunshine on a very wet day.

It’s a lovely place, just between the city and Holywood, overlooking the airport and the harbour. It feels quite wild too. On a reccy the previous evening, I found myself in pitch black on the way back at one point, with bats sailing silently through the air above me.