Happy Birthday Patrick! It was a delight for us to be able to celebrate with Patrick his six decades of fantastic living and we hope this video is one he looks back on with happy memories for years to come. Patrick’s guests arrived at the Four Seasons Hampshire Hotel for a formal birthday celebration and as the guests arrived, they were wowed by the Hampshire countryside with its rolling hills and rural loveliness. The party was concocted so it was a surprise for Patrick and he seemed genuinely touched!
You can’t fake the surprised look which plays across his face when greeted with all his loved ones assembled together in one room. The party started with everyone quaffing champagne and catching up before moving inside for a very lavish supper. As the guests were taking their seats was a great time for us to really get about the room and film all of the various table groupings – it’s sometimes a bit tricky not to get in people’s way, but our experienced camera operators are great at being there while managing to steer clear of all the traffic! A skill developed over many years. Patrick may be 60, but you sure wouldn’t know it the way he carried on celebrating well into the evening! Well done Patrick! Many happy more.
Is there any sound more cheerful than that of a steel band? It immediately conjures up images of sunshine, Caribbean beaches, rum drinks in coconut half-shells, and a laid-back holiday vibe. So what could possibly be a better choice for a musical accompaniment to this wedding reception in Oxfordshire? As wedding guests milled about enjoying a drink they were able to sway to the compelling beat of ‘La Bamba’ and other Spanish songs. The six piece group were well-rehearsed and played together with precision.
They were clearly enjoying themselves as much as we were loving listening to them. They swayed to the rhythm of the music as they were playing keeping the beat nice and steady. Their flamboyant shirts were as much a part of their performance as anything which went a long way to building their Caribbean vibe. The bride and groom were loving the music and the chilled-out effect it was having on their guests. For them, it was the perfect August outdoor wedding reception. The venue worked really well too with the mature trees and tall grasses which helped to create different spaces where people could gather and visit – all the while being within earshot of the Steel Band. An inspired choice for a wedding reception, we’d say!
Winnie & Gee celebrated their civil wedding at Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire on a fine recent June day. Earlier our videographers caught up with Winnie as she was preparing herself at a nearby hotel. Our videographers are always drawing upon techniques used in feature films and television in order to create interesting shots – it’s boring to just point the camera directly at someone and let it roll. There’s no artistry in that. So we experiment. Check out the shot at the very beginning of this clip where we shoot Winnie’s reflection in the mirror, the pull back and then the camera does a slow pan up her beautiful white dress. The thing is that it is exactly what your eye naturally does in a situation like this, so we use the video camera to recreate the movement of the eye. It all makes the final video feel a lot more natural.
The civil ceremony was lovely with Winnie making a spectacular entrance sweeping up the aisle. Check out the little tear which Gee wipes from his eye. It’s a fantastic moment. Once completed, the wedding party took themselves outside for photographs and to enjoy a glass of champagne in the sun. We were able to get lots of shots of the wedding party (and using some post-production tricks to convert some to b&w). Winnie & Gee executed a very polished first dance – something we really admire them for! Best wishes Winnie & Gee!
Yane was tucked away in the Chesterfield Hotel where she could have some space and quiet to prepare for her church wedding to Tim. With a little help from her friends, she was soon ready to go and posing for a few photographs in her stunning dress. As she was putting on her finishing touches, the guests were starting to arrive nearby in Hanover Square in the heart of London at St George’s Church where Tim was waiting to catch a glimpse of his bride. Yane arrived in a spectacular white Rolls Royce before being walked up the aisle. It’s a nice bit of editing there where the film changes from black & white to colour when they share their first married kiss – you can do amazing things in post-production. While the bride & groom had a vintage car to travel to the reception in, the remaining wedding party were ushered over in rickshaws – a nice eco-friendly touch.
Once they all safely arrived at Dartmouth House there was drink waiting to welcome them. The group posed for a bunch of wedding photos – the highlight of which had to be when all the blokes hoisted up Yane for a photo in their arms. Good thing they didn’t drop her. After dinner the dancing began. With a large contingent of Brazilians it wasn’t hard differentiating between the English and the Brazilians on the dance floor – they are a nation of people with rhythm and they didn’t disappoint. We wish a rosy future for this dancing couple.
Sarah & Richard chose to be married in London’s lovely borough of Mayfair with its stone buildings and historic squares which ooze history and class. Richard took advantage of Farm Street Church’s vicinity to several great pubs to sneak in a cheeky pint at the Punchbowl pub nearby. Talk about steadying your nerves! Farm Street Church has lovely architectural features including wonderful stained glass windows high above the altar – a romantic choice for a traditional church wedding. Although the bride arriving in a London cab wasn’t such a traditional choice; but was an inspired one. When the service concluded the church was an ideal backdrop for some group photographs. Before long it was time to board the red bus (or the white taxi cab) for the short ride to the National Liberal Club for the reception.
Within the ‘old-world’ confines of the National Liberal Club, we were able to make our way around filming all the guests while they enjoyed a glass of champagne. Sarah & Richard made a point of greeting all the guests as they made their way in for supper (with our camera on hand to film all the interactions). Later everyone was able to mix it up a bit on the dance floor, interacting with each other and enjoying celebrating the union of Sarah & Richard. Thank you to them for choosing to share their special day with us.
St Mary Brookfield Church, an imposing red-brick London church, was the setting for Lucy & Nick’s church wedding. The high vaulted ceiling of the church drew the eye upwards past the stained glass windows and allowed bountiful daylight to stream in which were optimal conditions for filming. The elegant groomsmen in their morning suits made sure that everyone was seated, comfortably ready for Lucy’s grand arrival to the church (in a gorgeous vintage Rolls Royce). Lucy was a beautiful bride and all eyes were on her as she walked down the aisle where Nick stood ready to give her a quick kiss.
When the ceremony was complete, our beaming happy couple walked hand in hand out of the church where they were showered with confetti and posed for photographs. Throughout, they kissed each other and glowed with happiness. The reception took place at Kenwood House where the champagne stood ready to greet the wedding party. To the music of the fiddle and guitar duo, they enjoyed some time to visit with all of their guests. The bucolic lawns of Kenwood House made a suitable backdrop for wedding photos and the August sunshine meant that guests lingered outside as long as they could. They were drawn inside by the promise of a wonderful meal – a promise which was definitely fulfilled. Lucy & Nick, we wish you all the best!
At Bloomsbury Films, we are pleased to see that our reputation for producing the UK’s finest wedding videos has really begun to spread. We now regularly receive enquiries from all over the UK and it doesn’t stop there. In 2009 we attracted interest from Italy, Netherlands, Norway, USA and even from the King of Bahrain!
No small wonder that Bloomsbury Films is now the videographer of choice for many society and VIP weddings, enjoying the backing of many prominent event planners. In the light of this demand we have begun to expand our resources so we are better placed to meet the demand we are receiving around the UK.
To help potential clients, we have put together some specific information about our wedding and event videography is some of our most popular locations. For more information, choose from the links below
Should your area not be listed above, don’t worry as we will still be able to provide our high quality service to you. To check availability and to discuss your needs, please contact us!
The backbone of our business is wedding videos, which we love doing – it’s always an honour to be there for someone’s special day. But we also do a lot of corporate video work; so to combine both of these by providing live event filming for the National Wedding Show at London’s Earls Court was right up our alley!
The National Wedding Show is a chance for some of the best bridal designers to showcase their creativity and skill in front of their clients and peers. As one beautiful model after another came out wearing spectacular wedding dresses, it was clearly going to be a tough assignment for us! We used a two-camera set-up so we could have a master shot showing the whole stage but also have a second camera to get in close and film lots of detail, after all when it comes to choosing wedding finery it comes down to the details. We were then able to cut between the two to give a real impression of what it’s like to be at a fashion show.
It wasn’t just the brides who were accommodated for in the show, there were spectacular morning suits, and less formal suits for the groom, wedding outfits for flower girls and ring bearers plus looks for bridesmaids. There were also trends of multi-cultural weddings which reflect the current wedding industry in the UK. It was a great event and we were glad to be a part of it.
Many clients visiting our website and YouTube channel find it useful to watch clips featuring a venue they are planning to hire for their event. Over the years we’ve filmed at hundreds of venues around the country so now have an enormous resource which we can offer people access to. Consequently, we have just launched a weddings & event venues section on website which lists all these in an easy to use way. Over the coming weeks we shall be adding more and more videos. We are excited that this will provide a fabulous opportunity for people planning their weddings & events to visualise how they might look in these locations.
For 2010 Bloomsbury Films has already been booked for dozens of new and interesting venues both in the UK and overseas. We therefore hope that we shall be able to continue adding to this resource in the future and look forward to helping our clients plan the perfect day. To visit our new wedding & event venues page click here.
A few months ago we decided to launch our own Facebook Page as a way of interacting with past, present and future clients. We now upload highlights of different jobs to the page as they are completed, so visitors can see our range of work and make comments in an easy, friendly environment. I am pleased to say it is very popular, with clients taking a keen interest in the videos and newcomers watching these as a source of inspiration. Indeed our videos seem to not only serve as an example of good videography, but provide an excellent source of ideas for planning their wedding or event!
We heartily welcome comments from prospective clients, whether they are wondering about how to achieve the best videography, which photographers we recommend or what venues to book. As film-makers we know a lot about making things look good, so our advice is sought after on many subjects. Meanwhile the ‘Discussions‘ section of our Facebook page has a number of topics that are being widely shared. We’ve also included some general tips and advice which we hope our clients enjoy.
If you haven’t already subscribed to our Facebook page or know a friend who might like to check it out, please don’t hesitate to look it up at The Bloomsbury Films’ Facebook Page
