Tuesday 31 January 2012

Beach Dreaming & Forever Film

With the onset of a cold and frosty spell with the possibility of a sprinkling of snow, my thoughts quickly turn to balmy beaches and the sound of splashing waves. Images brim full of memories, and these holiday snaps are reminiscent escapist moments from happy summertime Ibiza and Formentera. They are shot on my lil ol' Minolta using film: FUJI 400s pulled one stop.


I LOVE film and don't use it half as much as I'd like to. It seems the convenience of digital has made film redundant...art directors insist on immediate capture to tweak on set and clients need images yesterday. So sad as film ROCKS! The colours are sublime and radiate a magical luminance.


No wonder analogue is becoming increasingly expensive to buy and process. Only just ealier this month saw sad times as film giant KODAK, a company who didn't commit to digital technology fast enough, file for bankruptcy after dying a slow painful death. 


I'd like to think that film is not on the way out. Huge respect goes to the  fine art photographers who are doing an amazing job of singing praises from the rooftops and living the dream. One of them  being Jonathan Canlas who holds the life changing Film is not Dead Workshops: http://jonathancanlasphotography.com/workshop


Such a workshop is yet another dream but for now these holiday snaps are a little reminder of the beauty of film and how I should shoot it more often....


This set also goes out to my God daughter Miss Iyla Rose who is about to be joined by a baby brother. At such an unsettling time for a two year old who has been the center of the universe for the last couple of years, these images are a reminder of how gorgeous she is and how much she is loved. LOVE x











There is one bogus image - a digital impostor.....guess which one!!!? x x 







Sunday 22 January 2012

Pretty in Print

Ooooooh how lovely to see one of my images in a fave mag: You & Your Wedding, advertising The Ivory Boutique http://www.theivoryboutique.co.uk which stocks heavenly creations from some of my fave designers such as Lusan Mandongus  http://www.lusanmandongus.com and Jesus Peiro http://www.jesuspeiro.com



I'm super thrilled to also have four images featured in "Weddings in Hampshire" magazine. Ben & Emma from one of last Summer's weddings are quite the beautiful couple. I'm a big fan of the printed image, so in this age of digital media, it's great to see work actually printed on a tactile surface. Excuse the dodgy phone pics!!! LOVE x






Thursday 5 January 2012

Happy New Website...


I am super excited to introduce my new website: www.stephanieswannweddings.co.uk 

to celebrate I'm offering blog readers:

 10% discount off all weddings falling between May-Oct  
15% discount off low season weddings from November-April 
15% off weddings Monday-Friday all year round

to claim right click and save the voucher below

if you know of any engaged couples please share...thank you

LOVE x





Monday 2 January 2012

Happy New Year & Happy Birthday Blog...1 year old today!

May 2012 be a happy, healthy year for all, full of peace, love and lots and lots of cake & kisses. As we enter in to a beautiful sunny new year (please more twenty twelve uk sun), Viva Loves is one year old today after a whirlwind year full of photos and not enough blogging! It's a New Year's resolution to blog more so watch this space :)


My other New Year's resolutions include:


1. make more time for hubby
2. cut down on coffee (this will be a toughie)
3. cook a new recipe each week
4. magic my home back with some tlc
5. sleep more!




Happy New Year & Happy Birthday Viva Loves! The chocolate panettone was utterly delicious ;)    LOVE x