FORGED IN LOVE
PHOTOGRAPHY
Documentary Wedding Photography for Cavan, Meath and Dublin
Hello you awesome people…
Feel free to check out some of the awesome weddings I’ve had the absolute honour of capturing for some amazing couples but if you don’t have the time or patience ha you can check out my portfolio here.
Let’s work together.
Like every wedding photographer on the planet this is what we live for and if we could we would shoot weddings 365 days a year but that’s physically impossible. So if you think I'm the one for you don’t delay and ensure your date is available as space is limited. Instagram or Facebook will be the quickest response but for booking please fill in the form from the link below and check your spam cos your reply could end up there, I'm so excited to see what we can create together.
Rathsallagh House Wedding Photographer
I loved being a Rathsallagh house wedding photographer. It’s one of my favourite venues I’ve photographed at in 2024 having the privilege of traveling up and down Ireland for weddings this year. Here are some images from Ais & Petes awesome day back in September. The day full of emotion, colour and even their dog turned up for a couple of snaps. With family and friends at the heart of everything they planned that was evident in the atmosphere throughout the day with all the hugs, inside jokes and a few tears here and there.
As a documentary wicklow wedding photographer, I was excited for this one as it was the first time I got to be at Rathsallagh house. Winning the wedding suppliers country house venue of the year for a second year in a row they really know how to run a wedding. located in Ireland just south of Dublin ( 55 mins Dublin Airport) on the Kildare Wicklow border, Rathsallagh is closed exclusively to couple’s on their wedding Day. with fantastic fantastic scenery to enjoy, the wonderful facilities and the great location Rathsallagh has to offer with 270 acres of Parkland and Walled Gardens.
They have been hosting wedding parties for almost 30 years now and their experience in that regard is hard to surpass. They can comfortably seat from 50 up to 250 guests . Smaller Weddings are a speciality at Rathsallagh as it is set up to provide a soft romantic setting with lots of candles and garden flower arrangements provided at no extra charge. Because you have exclusive use of the estate on your big day , Rathsallagh is considered to be one of Ireland’s more unusual and exclusive wedding venues. and no detail is over looked by the team.
Thank you so much to Ais & Pete for having me along for the ride and what a day it was!! enjoy the images below and if you’re planning to have your wedding at Rathsallagh and need a wicklow wedding photographer who will just let you enjoy your day and capture awesome wedding photos that don’t need to be set up then contact me HERE for availability
Best Of 2023 Wedding Photography Cavan
2023…. what a year!!! I can honestly say it’s been a year of absolute learning. Whether that is in photography or personally all know is I’ve definitely grown in both. I always stumble on these best of posts just because I put so much of myself into every wedding that I never know what to chose at the end ha but below is a selection of shots from this year they’re in no particular order. I’m so thankful for everyone who put their trust in me this year, but we are only getting started 2024 we are gonna go bigger and better.
Theres been so many wins this year. I got into the I.P.P.V.A, I went to my first DocDay conference and met so many amazing photographers. I can honestly say that this has been the biggest influence so far in my career. I got to do a work shop with the amazing Kevin and Annie Kheffache, two of my biggest influences in wedding photography. I met Dave Cremin who is up there with the best of street photographers in Ireland seeing that man work on the streets was amazing and I really should do a post about my street photography and I built so many relationships with fellow photographers and I feel like I finally found my people.
2023 has been the first full year of Forged In love photography after my rebranding and moving to Co. Cavan wedding photography, I discovered google is a full time job on its own when you own a business ha and I can say my mid year identity crisis is fully behind me. I moved more to a documentary style but I can’t help myself with the creativity sometimes ha but for 2024 my goal is to show people who they are at their wedding so focusing more on the connection and moments between the people in front of the camera.
Everything you see on my website is Real. Real People, Real Moments from real weddings happening in real time. There is no A.I trickery in any of these images (besides tidying up any distracting elements etc )
I’m so thankful to my couples for trusting me to capture the moments that matter the most to them. They are all shot on FujiFilm Cameras between the X-T5 and X-T3. I’m so happy to be going into 2024 with a camera system (I’ve upgraded to 2 X-T5s now :) ) that allows me to get up close and is unobtrusive to people allowing me to shoot weddings in the style I love and I’ve finally settled on my colours that I’m so happy with now. I’ll never stop learning and improving as much as I can as long as people want me to shoot their weddings I’ll bring my personality and style to every wedding!!!
“For the ones who don’t mind getting the dress dirty, looking silly in love, will give it socks on the dance floor, who care more about how the day feels to how it looks, who want real emotions, real moments and real memories to look back on.
Tips for picking your wedding gown.
Some helpful tips for picking your wedding gown
DO RESEARCH TO FIND WHAT YOU LIKE.
There are so many tools available to us. You could go the old fashioned route and rip out pages of magazines. Most people nowadays use Pinterest, you an create mood boards with examples and have all your wedding plans in one place. If you see something online screenshot it, try not to have specific dress in mind but have a them and when you’re ready take it to your first dress appointment to help your bridal consultant.
2. BE OPEN.
Bridal consultants will often tell you that they see women come in with a set idea of what they want for a gown, then try it on and don't actually love it, instead, fall for something completely different to what they even imagined. Keep an open mind while wedding gown shopping, you never know you might surprise yourself and everyone else.
3. SHOP EARLY.
Most gowns take months to prepare so shop early also factor in alterations, you don’t want to be rushing around the week before your big day trying to alter your dress and always remember its easier to take a dress in than be uncomfortable all day with a dress that’s a bit snug so shop for your size in the moment not for what you think you’ll be on the day.
4. FIGURE OUT YOUR BUDGET.
The dreaded M word…. money, money, money. The factor of everything we do. Just remember you only get to do this once. Are you going to keep the dress or sell it after? If you’re going to sell it that could help factor in spending a bit more in the first place, if you’re on a tight budget, try 2nd hand. Claires dress in the top image was found in a charity shop, I now right and its stunning. Sustainability is on trend at the moment so no-one is going to care if you didn’t buy brand new. Also plan in for non-obvious costs into your budget. If you have 2000e to spend on a dress don’t blow the whole lot on the dress, remember you have shoes and accessories to factor in as well. And don’t try on gowns way above your budget it will always lead to disappointment! I must remember that next time I want to buy a car actually :/
5. FIND A GREAT BRIDAL SALON
Two things to factor in when picking a store to shop in. 1 - do they have the style you’re looking for and 2 - what is their customer care like. Experience is everything in this industry so read reviews and book an appointment. Please don’t just show up or you might end up disappointed. The guys at Love Ellie in Virginia, Cavan are amazing, click he link to go to their IG page
6. SHOP ON A WEEKDAY
Bridal shops are jammers on a weekend. Meaning you’ll get less attention and the experience won’t be as good, so you have holiday days in work use one of them, take your most trusted friend or family member, make a day of it and don’t feel guilty having a mimosa ;)
7. Be Prepared to Try on a Lot of Gowns
Unless you’re filming for season 5 of love is blind or extremely lucky, the chances of finding the perfect dress on the first try is pretty slim. So a little patience might have to be exercised and prepare yourself for many dresses but remember it’s a marathon not a sprint. That’s why it’s good to start early…. just in case!
8. ARE YOU MORE TRADITIONAL or TRENDY
Perhaps you're more the type who wants to look classic and timeless on your wedding day (think lace). Or maybe you're a fashionista who loves being up to the minute on trends. Either way lets get some cool as f**k pics - contact me here
9. STAY TRUE TO WHAT YOU LOVE
its so easy to bend to other peoples opinions. The sister who wants you the wear a leather jacket, the mom who wants you to have the one with the most lace, the granny who wishes you would wear her dress. just remember this is your day so make sure you….
