Wedding Raheen Woods Hotel Athenry Co Galway

I had the pleasure working at Helen and Colm's recent wedding in Clarinbridge followed by a reception in the Raheen Woods Hotel Athenry.
Helen and Colm are two people whose company I feel very relaxed in and from the moment I first met them last January and their wedding was a pleasure to be working at.
They were very lucky with the weather on their special day, beautiful sunshine as well as the most glorious Autumnal colors on display.







Chilled out was how everything was in Helen's home and after a brief visit there, I headed off to the church to meet up with Colm and his groomsmen Eamon, Noel and James.







After spending a brief few minutes taking shots with the lads, the beautiful bridesmaids Etna, Jane and Anita arrived shortly followed by the beautiful Helen.





Fair play to Edel and Mark for being brilliant in their roles as Flowergirl and Pageboy....two smashing and well behaved kids.




An emotional moment for quite a few "fathers".....handing your daughter over to her future husband.









A big thank you to Fr Willie Moran who was a gentleman. It's not at every wedding that a priest welcomes the photographer and offers him any help any assistance that he wants....thank you Fr Willie for being a gentleman.





The sun shone beautifully on Helen and Colm's wedding day, but it was bitter cold also....and with that in mind, we took the group shot in the heat of the church.



Helen walked up the aisle with one man and down it with another!



These are the moments that I strive to capture on a wedding day.....Colm pulls his father Leo in for a hug as opposed to the formal hand shake at the end of the ceremony.


After the ceremony and the hand shakes, we crossed the road to Clarinbride Park to get the Family Portraits as well as some Bridal Portraits in the glorious autumnal sunshine.







We finished our Bridal Shoot in Athenry before heading onto the Raheen Woods Hotel to enjoy the party.














How about this for a wedding cake? Pure class!






Helen and her friends have a bit of fun!



Edel watching a movie to pass the time




Colm gets a small bit jittery just before the speeches!


....and Helen get's in on the act too!



I thoroughly enjoyed Colm's speech.....funny, witty and spoke a lot about the important things in life....family.








....even pulling pints on his wedding day!




Well done to the wedding band "Raindance".....a class act that kept the dance floor full all night!










Thanks very much Helen and Colm for letting me play a part on your wedding day.....I'm sure your aware of how much I enjoyed it. All of our meetings have been fun and I was delighted with your reaction after you received your wedding images yesterday. I hope our paths cross again in the not too distant future!

Wedding Ardilaun House Hotel Galway

It's great being familiar with the people whose wedding you are covering and that was the case with Becky and Steven's big day.
I covered Becky's brother Ronan's wedding last summer and we would have crossed paths at that as well during our "meet up" regarding their big day. "Young, happy and great awareness" is how I'd summarize Becky and Stephen and it was a pleasure to be around them on their wedding day.






When I arrived in St Colemans Church Corofin, I must admit to being taken aback by the beautiful flower's and their arrangement. This is something that I normally don't notice too much, but for this particular wedding the church was stunning.....congrats and well done to Louise Collins and Samantha Foran who were responsible for its floral presentation.





Stephen was a treat to work with along with his best man Seamus and groomsman Benny who travelled all the way from "down under".....they were up for all kinds of fun!



"....better smile, the photographer's pointing the camera at us!".


Becky's brother Ronan (a good friend of mine) escorts Becky up the aisle.









I'm not sure why Frank has a microphone in front of him......the power of his voice is simply breathtaking.....you'd want to buckle up and have your seat belt on when going up to the gallery when he's on duty! Top drawer material and a great job Frank...well done!


The lads enjoy themselves during the ceremony....really in the moment and absorbing the whole occasion.



Of all the weddings that I've done, this is the first where I actually say releasing of doves. Beautiful creatures who gave Becky a small fright when they eventually came out of their dwellings.


We travelled into Quincentennial Park in Salthill to grab some photos en route to the Ardilaun Hotel in Taylors Hill.




The beautiful Aoife, Becky and Jenny


I was delighted when Becky and Stephen agreed to cross the road to the Prom for 5 minutes of photos....the sky was very moody and lent itself to some lovely shots.





After out brief stroll on the Prom, we headed up to Taylors Hill to the Ardilaun Hotel for a mighty reception.
Ronan always has either a pair of scissors or a microphone in his hand.....and very competent with both!


Stephen absorbs his dad's speech


Seamus shows us what he found after entering the toilet that Stephen used just before the speeches!!


Becky's mum Ger tells a few stories of Becky's youth.

Becky and Stephen wandered out the back of the hotel for some fresh air after their meal, and I availed of their few minutes there to grab a handful of shots







First dance as husband and wife!



Thanks very much Becky and Stephen for letting me play a part on your wedding day. I received your "thank you" card all the way from Australia today....thanks a million, means a lot to me. Please God our paths will cross again in the not too distant future.

Mind yourselves over there!!