Wedding Photography By Andy @ Forged In Love

So, you’re thinking of hanging out with me on your wedding day to take some pictures? firstly - can I just say you’re a bunch of legends and secondly - Hi…i’m Andy a documentary wedding photographer based in Mullagh in Co. Cavan which is about 15 mins from where they found the Book of Kells all those years ago.

I photograph all over Ireland and abroad too. From someone who’s quite shy in front of the camera, I have a deep understanding and empathy for the couples I get the honour to photograph. thats why my approach is to let you enjoy your day and hopefully you forget all about the photos. thats why my photography has been described at still moments full of movement and emotion. For me the most important thing is that the phots are about the wedding, the wedding isn’t about the photos.

“He has a very special way of showing YOU in a photograph ”

— Aoife & Conor 2022

A Few Images That Say A Lot About Who I Am….

Below you will find a few images…. I say a few its around 30 that show who I am as a photographer, an artist and a person. when I first picked up the camera, I always wanted my images to be about something and not just “of something”. They are also say so much about the couples that choose myself to photograph their wedding days. Relaxed and chilled couples who see their wedding day as an excuse for a good knees up, who want more from their photos than just standing around fake smiling. Real people, Real emotions, Really good photos. I hope you enjoy reading through this blog and looking through the images

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A Relaxed Documentary Approach From The Very Beginning Of Your Day

The Pre-ceremony part is my favourite to photograph. I love hearing all the goss, the excitement of what is going to happen throughout the day, the human connection and behaviour and some ties a little bit of chaos. This part of the day allows people to get used to me being there. To change people expectation of what wedding photography is. As I don’t set anything up this can be a little confusing to some people but 99% of the time you can see the nerves leaving their faces as they realise they don’t have to be posing and been moved around. I want you and your guests to have the day you were meant to.

Authentic and real moments

I don’t pose or set shots up so that allow for real moments, the real of who you are and the people you love the most. I want to show people who they are. To let the in between moments become your new favourite memories. so i’m always ready for moments like below

“His personality shows in his work you can tell he truly loves what he does”

— Rob & Jen 2022

Spontaneous Moments Of Joy

Changing The Perspective Of Your Wedding Photos

I always knew what way I wanted to shoot weddings. I’m very influenced by street photography and telling stories so my approach to weddings is the same. I’m constantly moving trying to find that new angle, new perspective, If a vendor or coordinator tells me that a previous photographer took a photo here or there. I’ll take it on board and turn around because my goal is to give my couples images that they haven’t seen before. But if you ask for an image thats ok I’ll try my best to get but with my own take. But what i’ve realised over the last couple of years is that if you believe in something so strongly then so will others and most importantly surround yourself with people who believe in you even when you don’t believe in yourself because thats how you get to where you want to be. That transforms into your wedding too if you believe in what you want from your day then so will the people around you.

Still Moments Full Of Movement

One of my favourite comments I've ever got is that “my images look like they are full of movement or motion” even though they are still photos. I like to emerge myself into a wedding. constantly watching and listening to what is happing through out the day not only to the couple but t what’s going on around them.

Kids At Weddings…

Kids=chaos dogs even better in all the best possible ways. I get it, not everyone will want kids at their wedding and thats ok but I love being able to photograph the unpredictability of them. with two young nephews myself I know how to approach the photographing of them (bribing them mostly works) but I also now hen to leave them alone, when enough is enough.

Yes I DO Take Group Photos

I am a documentary photographer – It’s what I am known for, it’s what I win awards for. And i know my skill at documentary photography is why you’ll choose me to photograph your day. However, if you do want some group shots, I’ll happily take them for you and keep these group shots relaxed and make sure they don’t take over your day. i’ll aim to take all your group shots within around 15 minutes, capturing all those key people in around six group shots. However, even with our relaxed approach, there is always some people you’re left standing around waiting for! so I might end up getting a bit loud ha Group shots are entirely optional – it’s completely up to you if you want some or not. but dont forget im there to serve you if at any point of the day you want me to take a photo for you just grab me, please avoid bums and hair though. But most of all tell about the people you want photos with and why

“We really don’t want to be away from our wedding for too long” “We are so awkward at posing” “We want enjoy our day” “We don’t want the posey style photos”

These are some of the of the most common things that pop up on my enquiries. That tradition of endless posing, endless portraits, endless standing around and endless interruptions of your day. That’s exactly what I avoid on your day and thats why my couples book me. My couples want to relax and enjoy their day. I don’t need you to be standing around your venue posing in every corner for instagram. I need you to be with the people you love. To hug and kiss them, to laugh, to cry and be the people you are. The way you feel about your photos in 20 years is so much more important than how they look to others on instagram for 5 mins.

Immersing In The Wedding

with out the distraction of posing and setting up images it allows me to stay involved in the wedding. watching for the moments that you think may have passed you by. Telling the story of the day is the most important part for me. showing what happened not only to you but your guests too.

I Love The Party !!!!

Although I will photograph the parts of the wedding y couples hire me too as long as we are aligned in what we want from your wedding photography. I’m there to document the day whether that is 6hrs or 12. But the little kid in me does a little dance when I know im gonna get to photograph the dancing. When people give up the inhibitions and just let go.

I absolutely love that I get to do this. its not a job to me its in every ounce of my being and I hope you love what I do too. thank you for supporting me and to all my futures couples we got this !!!

“For the ones who don’t mind getting their shoes 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. Stress free natural photography for couples in Dublin, Cavan and Meath and all over Ireland.

Destination Weddings In Gibraltar, Spain - Carol & Niall

Being chosen to be someones wedding photographer is an absolute privilege and one I will never take advantage of. But being flown to another country to capture the most important day of a couples life is the biggest compliment I think I’ll ever receive, not only a photographer but as a person and friend.

Niall and Carol decided that it was time to do what they knew they were gonna do eventually anyway, they planned and executed moving country, changing jobs and getting married all with in 5 weeks of each other (yeh they’re crazy) but only Niall and Carol could achieve something like this. So off they went to Gibraltar, a small province of the United Kingdom, on the south of Spains coast, flew over the people most special to them and tied the knot in a registry office and the rest is history. Welcome to the world of Mr and Mrs McKeever.

Unfortunately for Carol, her family couldn’t be there as she is originally from Brazil but she did have some Aunts and Uncles in Spain who took the time to travel down and spend some time with everyone. She hadn’t seen them in over two years due to covid and the emotions were running high, it made for some real moments. I wanted to capture these precious moments so I made sure not to interrupt the scene and just quietly documented it as it unfolded, approaching the day in a candid and uninterrupted style.

To Niall and Carol, I love you guys and I’ll see you soon for our holiday, you will forever be in my heart and my friends for life.

“The best decision Niall has made in our whole relationship was hiring you to take our photos, I'm in shock, I knew you were good but I’m so happy with them. You are a legend!”

- Carol and Niall via WhatsApp

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.