Steve Gerrard Photoblog

This Blog Has Moved!

2008-10-06T15:24:00.001+01:00

The Blog has now moved to HERE

After months of discussions, thoughts and testing, I'm excited to have now launched the brand new Steve Gerrard Photography website. And the new blog is now a major part of it. For that reason I will (I promise!) be updating the blog more often than ever. You can now find the blog here >>> NEW BLOG

Evelyne and I are really pleased with the new site and would like to thank Chris Garrett for all his work designing it for us.

Please have a good look around when you have a few minutes. There's plenty to see. If anyone has any problems viewing any part of the site please let us know.

CLICK HERE FOR THE WEBSITE

In Flames & Gojira in Manchester

2008-10-01T13:52:00.001+01:00

On Monday night I was up in Manchester to shoot metal bands In Flames and Gojira. I'm a massive Gojira fan so it was a pleasure to meet the guys from the band and I'm pleased to report they're super-nice. Guitarist Christian even gave me a free Gojira shirt. The band took a few minutes for me to take some portraits of them. Here are some of my favourites...

I'm not such a big fan of In Flames but they were also great guys to hang out with and sorted me out with some beers. We also got some great photos of them before the gig..

This afternoon I'm off to Nottingham to meet with underground Legends, The Melvins. I'll post photos here asap..

Becky & Paul - Superstar Couple!

2008-09-19T17:46:00.007+01:00

I know, I know!! My blogging has slacked again. Things have been so busy, blah blah blah...
But here's the thing... Next week sees the launch of the brand new, super-slick, all singing, all dancing Chris Garrett-designed, funkadelic Steve Gerrard Photography website. The blog will be a major part of the new design so I am going to be updating it all the time. I promise! No, really!
Just check back next week and see the new-look site for yourself.

In the meantime, I've been meaning to blog Becky & Paul's wedding for a while. They were married last month and had their reception at The Belfry. Their wedding was fantastic for several reasons... It was relaxed, great fun, the weather was glorious, had super-friendly guests, the staff at The Belfry could not be any better, but mostly because Becky & Paul are like our dream couple. We got on with them so well and they went out of their way to help us get great images for them. I believe we succeeded...

The night before the wedding Becky managed to cut her hand on a glass and didn't leave hospital until 4am. Here's the damage...

Paul sees his bride for the first time...

A few shots outside the church before heading to The Belfry...

Work it!

Becky & Paul know I'm always trying to do something different with my ring shots so when we borrowed the rings Becky said, "I can't wait to see what you do". No pressure then...!!

Errr... that's dripping water...

Did I mention the weather?

After dinner it was time to escape with the couple...

Yowser!

We love rule-breakers ;)

Becky you superstar!

First dance... and a shared moment with Dad...

And later we escaped again and used the inside of the venue, along with our video light...

Seriously guys, Evelyne and I had such a good day with you both. Thanks for having us there and we wish you every happiness for the future.

After the wedding I got a lovely email from Paul's mother saying "A big thankyou Steve for all your time and patience throughout the day you are a true professional at what you do, I cannot wait to see the photos the day was perfect, thankyou once again Pauls mum x"

...followed shortly after from an email from the couple saying

"Just a quick email before we fly off to say thank you for all your hard work and effort on our special day. We are so grateful to you both and we have had so many people come to us saying how good you were, not just with your photography but also how you interacted with the guests. We are so impressed with the amount of time that you spent with us and cant wait to see the outcome, we know its going to be amazing. Numerous couples who get married within the next few years have asked for your details, I hope you dont mind but I have passed them on!! Becky from the Belfry was also very impressed and informed Becky that she would be unofficially recommending you!!! result!! "

Result indeed. Thanks guys.

Baby No.2 - The countdown begins...

2008-09-05T19:50:00.000+01:00

There are some images which, even with my most amazing lens, I could never capture. Below are the first pictures of Elliott's future brother/sister who is doing well and expected to arrive into the world around 24th February 2009.

There's only one word for images like this - Amazing!

We cant wait to meet the new addition to the family. And when he or she arrives you can guarantee we'll be making a big noise about it right here on the blog :)

Pre-wed Shoots & Fast Cars

2008-09-01T18:13:00.002+01:00

What's with this weather?! I'm supposed to have a pre-wed shoot with Emma & Dan in 2 hours but with the rain coming down like this it looks like we'll have to reschedule. Grrrr....

Luckily we had no such problems for Claire & Andy's pre-wed shoot and we headed out into the Digbeth backstreets where we almost spent more time chatting than we did shooting. They're a great couple and I'm really looking forward to their wedding this weekend. Let's hope the weather improves!

This weekend we had 2 weddings including Ory & Karim's in London, which was great fun. Ory looked amazing and I can't wait to start going through their images. Friday's wedding was closer to home at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens with Simon & Olga. Another really great wedding and such a cool venue for photographs. Both these weddings will be blogged here asap but here are a few images from Olga & Simon's pre-wed shoot. They brought along Simon's daughter, Rachel who celebrated her 10th birthday on their wedding day..

Ok... I love this shot so much I just ordered it for the studio wall. Some people can't work out what's in the background. Can you?

Usually I find corporate jobs can be extremely dull. I don't do too many for that very reason. Occasionally though they can be extremely undull (I doubt that's a word!). Recently I was asked by the MD of Jaguar Cars to come to one of their track days in Gaydon to cover the event for them. It was a gloriously sunny day and I not only got to shoot some beautiful cars but I also got taken around the track in a brand new Jaguar XK at 150mph! Officially the fastest I have ever travelled on land. If anyone's wondering what to get me for Christmas...

I recently set up a Facebook Page for Steve Gerrard Photography and we already have almost 200 people who have joined so thanks everyone. It's a pretty cool way of keeping in touch with people. If you'd like to have a look CLICK HERE

Emma & Pete

2008-08-26T18:27:00.000+01:00

More and more we're booking weddings further afield than the Midlands, which is great. As much as we love living in Birmingham, it's always good to have an excuse to escape. This year we've had weddings in London, Devon and in December we have a wedding in New York. Emma and Pete got in touch with us after quite a thorough search for a photographer and, as they live a couple of hours away in Newark, it was another excuse to escape and visit an area I've not visited much before.

They're happy to spend time to make sure we get great photos for them and their pre-wed shoot was one of the most fun pre-wed shoots I've done. We started off exploring the streets of Newark while trying to dodge the rain...

We were on our way back to their house when I spotted this field with that great sky. Favourite!

Their wedding also took place in Newark and this time the sun was shining. Emma looked amazing. I mean, just look at that dress!! Pete scrubbed up pretty well too ;)

On to the church...

Then we headed off on our own to get some portraits of the new Mr & Mrs Dowse..

Unfortunately this gorgeous building is also the cheesiest nightclub in Newark according to Pete. What a waste!

Check out the table plan - hand-made by our blushing bride...

And what an amazing venue for the reception...

Later in the day we decided to grab a few more photos of the couple...

Great couple, great venue, great weather.... Thanks for a GREAT day guys. The album will be stunning.

V Festival 2008

2008-08-19T14:51:00.002+01:00

This weekend has been fantastic and depressing in almost equal amounts.

I spent the weekend at the V Festival where I was photographing on behalf of the festival promoters. The first day I was there by myself, running around in the rain trying to catch as many bands as possible. Nobody was allowed to photograph Girls Aloud apart from their own photographer, which was a shame. I wonder what they have to hide?!

Here are some of my favourite images from Saturday...

Amy Winehouse, One Republic and Lenny Kravitz.

I'm used to shooting girls in white dresses but this was a little different..

Kings Of Leon (one of my fave bands of the weekend) and The Zutons.

And headliners, The Verve.

The low point on Saturday was having to walk for an hour in heavy rain to get back to my car. Thoroughly depressing! And then after I parked my car on our driveway it was broken into and my iPod and SatNav were stolen. Not good at all!

Luckily Sunday was a major improvement as the weather improved and I was joined by Evelyne and Elliott for the day. It was Elliott's first ever concert so I made sure the first band we saw was a good one - The Hold Steady. Here he is getting into the festival spirit.

The Hold Steady, Estelle, The Kooks and Lostprophets.

As you can see, by Sunday the bad weather had left its mark...

The Script played on the day their album went to Number 1 in the charts.

And here's the lovely Duffy on stage...

And here she is getting fondled by my son!

Elliott also hung out with Maximo Park backstage.

The Pigeon Detectives and the ladies' favourite, Stereophonics.

Here's a good story.... When I was still enjoying my previous life as an international DJ I played in Chamonix in France at a club called Deluded. I was in Chamonix for two days and while I was there I met a girl called Evelyne. I'm now married to her and we have a son and another baby due next year. The two guys who booked me to play the club, Livesey and Graham, were at the festival this weekend and here they are with the "fruit of Deluded" :)

And finally.... mega-headliners Muse closed the festival in fine style.

A London Wedding

2008-08-14T17:45:00.001+01:00

I had been looking forward to Paul & Simone's wedding ever since they booked us last year. It's our first London wedding and the couple had already suggested jumping in the white London cab they'd booked for the day and getting photos out and about around the city... My kinda thinkin'!

The wedding was at the RSA and the day ended up being a particularly fun wedding as they're such a laid-back, friendly couple and I came home with some of my favourite wedding images ever!

Definitely one of my fave groom portraits yet..

And Simone looked amazing in that dress...

After the ceremony it was out into the London streets...

This one is already a huge wooden print for their wall...

I wasn't gonna miss the opportunity to use the Street Art exhibition at Tate Modern... :)

"Frank" even sang the song "Simone" just for the bride :)

Paul and his best man..

Thanks for having me there on the big day guys. It was a pleasure. I wish you both every happiness for the future..

The Big Picture Interview

2008-08-08T21:10:00.001+01:00

The supercool people who look after The Big Picture website recently asked me to answer a few questions about my music photography and the interview is now up on their site. CLICK HERE to read the full interview.

Trash The Dress on TV

2008-08-02T09:09:00.000+01:00

Attention all brides!!

You may have heard of the mostly-American phenomenon called Trash The Dress where brides book a post-wedding photo shoot with the intention of creating some stunning images which may or may not damage the wedding dress (usually the dress just needs cleaning afterwards). "What a waste" people say, "to put a beautiful dress in the cupboard never to be seen again".

Now a UK television company is looking for girls who have married in 2008 and want to trash the dress live on TV. If you'd like to get involved in the show please email anoushka.chengadoo@itvplc.com including a photo from your wedding, the date you got married, a contact number and any ideas you have for the Trash The Dress photo session.

If you'd rather do a session without the eyes of the world on you, feel free to email me to chat about your ideas.

Wendy Dawn Thompson and Paul & Becky's pre-wed

2008-08-01T18:19:00.000+01:00

It's a long way from shooting rock bands when photographing somebody like Wendy Dawn Thompson. Wendy is a mezzo soprano opera singer from New Zealand and was looking for some new press shots, so we headed out on a sunny Tuesday afternoon and came back with some great, relaxed portraits. We got on really well and I even learned a little more about the world of opera!

Here are a few of my favourites...

This weekend is the wedding of Paul and Becky at The Belfry and I'm really looking forward to covering their day for them. They're such a cool couple and Becky is sure to make a gorgeous bride. Here are some photos from their pre-wed shoot...

See you tomorrow guys.... :)

Steve on the Telly... and the Download Festival

2008-08-01T12:50:00.002+01:00

Last night I was invited onto a TV show called Ditto Music to talk about my photography. The show is on the Red Channel and is looked after by an enthusiastic team of people who are out to promote new music and educate people on the music business. It's a chaotic and somewhat shambolic environment but that's very much part of its charm.

They asked me about the bands I've shot previously and why good images should be important to bands trying to make it in the tough world of the music biz. We also held a competition for one band to win a shoot with yours truly. It was good fun and I'd like to thank Matt, Lee and the team for inviting me onto the show.

A few weeks ago I covered three days at the Download Festival and got to shoot a couple of legendary bands, including KISS. Below are a few of my favourite shots from the weekend..

KISS -

Kiss fans attempt to break the world record for face paint...

Motorhead & Judas Priest -

Rise Against, Comeback Kid & The Black Dahlia Murder -

The AMAZING Dillinger Escape Plan -

Bleeding Through & 36 Crazyfists -

Biffy Clyro, Job For A Cowboy and Bullet For My Valentine -

Incubus & Amon Amarth -

Apocalyptica and Coheed & Cambria (can you spot a theme here?!) -

Airbourne scale dizzy heights and The Offspring go for the bloke-next-door look -

The Cavalera Conspiracy and the mighty Testament -

Jimmy Eat World & In Flames -

Romance is alive and well...

Gerrard Rocks!

Time for something a little more artistic..

A great festival yet again. Roll on 2009...

Slaves To Gravity

2008-07-30T01:25:00.004+01:00

I just returned from photographing a gig for Rock Sound magazine featuring a great new band from London called Slaves To Gravity. After the gig I asked the band if I could take a few photos of them in the car park behind the venue and they were good enough to oblige. Here's just one photo from the shoot..

Slaves To Gravity are all set to tour Japan and the US next and look set for big things. Check out their MySpace page for more.

Today has been a great day. Elliott was back in nursery so Evelyne spent the day in the studio helping me get some stuff organised (she's more organised than me by far!). We also met Steve & Steph about shooting their wedding in New York in December. I look forward to every wedding but that's gonna be something special. Can't wait! We also FINALLY got a fridge and kettle in the studio so now I can make myself (and anyone else who visits) a cup of tea whenever I like. Bliss!

Today we also had another wedding confirmation for 2009 when James called to say he and Lorraine would like us to cover their wedding at Cotswold House in Gloucestershire. It looks like a great venue. James emailed to say "After seeing your work and meeting with you it really was the easiest decision we've had to make in all of the planning." I have a feeling we're gonna get on just fine :)

Liz & Simon - The Main Event

2008-07-26T00:50:00.001+01:00

You may remember my Devon Knows post from May featuring photos of Evelyne, Elliott and I enjoying some rare English sunshine over my birthday weekend. We were down there for Liz & Simon's wedding which took place on my 40th birthday. They even got me a cake!

It was a really great wedding with a lovely bunch of people and Liz & Simon are the kind of people we could easily be good friends with. The weather was glorious and in the evening the light was just perfect. Here are a few images from their day...

Simon did himself proud with a little gift left for Liz as she got ready... from Tiffany's no less!

After the ceremony we headed down to the pier in Torquay for some more unusual shots. I love doing shoots like this!

Enjoy!

The reception venue was 45 minutes drive away nearer to Plymouth..

OK kids, strike a pose!

In October Liz and Simon are off traveling the globe for 12 whole months. I'm SO jealous!! They'll have such a good time. Thanks for having me at your wedding guys and for making my birthday fun even though I was working :)

Big Little News!

2008-07-25T12:19:00.000+01:00

I know I know.... I'm SOOOO behind on blogging again! Bad Steve! To those people asking if I've fallen off the planet I apologize and promise to be a better blogger in future. Things are crazy busy at this time of year and if I'm not shooting a wedding or a pre-wed shoot, I'm photographing a rock festival or catching up with all the post-production which naturally occurs from having so many shoots. It's hectic but great to be so busy.

I have a ton of shoots to blog and will attempt to catch up next week so keep checking back.

In the meantime...

Evelyne and Elliott have been in Montreal visiting family and friends for a month and had a fantastic time enjoying the typically glorious Canadian summertime weather while we dodged showers in jolly old England. They returned last week with some news for me so I just wanted to share the photo below (not taken by me) with you all...

Yes indeed, Elliott is gonna have a brother or sister early next year and Evelyne and I are super-chuffed! As my friend Steph commented, "You're practlically a Gerrard brood!"

Sarah & Matt - MARRIED!

2008-07-06T18:00:00.001+01:00

Sarah & Matt's wedding was my first at Highbury Hall in Moseley, Birmingham - a very grand venue with a magnificent dining room and dramatic decor. They had such an easy-going, fun day and were great sports when it came to getting photos.

We started at the church with some photos of Matt and his boys..

"Go on! Give her a kiss!"

Their grandparents were married in the exact same church over 50 years ago!

The weather at Highbury hall could not have been better...

God is in the details..

Errr... don't ask!

One for the wall...

Another great wedding and a lovely couple who were so laid-back on their big day. They even took time to email me on their honeymoon to say thanks! Right back atcha guys, I had a great day. Thanks for having me there. Hope the shoes are ok!

Poppy & The Jezebels

2008-07-05T13:01:00.003+01:00

Oh, my job is so tough!
This week I had the pleasure of spending time in the company of Poppy & The Jezebels who needed new photos for the release of their new single "UFO" which comes out in August. The weather was against us a little but we managed to brave the elements as much as possible and came back with some super-cool pics.

I also popped along to the Glee Club on Wednesday night to catch one of my favourite bands, Idlewild. Last time I saw them they were opening for U2 but this week they played a really intimate set of acoustic numbers and rare b-sides and album tracks. Amazing gig which is reviewed on Birmingham Live along with my photos.

Jodie & Oliver @ Packington Moor Farm

2008-07-04T12:13:00.002+01:00

It's been another busy few weeks. Evelyne and Elliott are over in Montreal for a month visiting Evelyne's family and friends. Sounds like they're having a fantastic time too and, from the photos they've posted on Facebook, Elliott has grown quite a bit just in the past couple of weeks. Can't wait to have them both back but in the meantime I'm keeping myself occupied with the photography. Some nights I've been in the studio past midnight but that's fine. I love it!

Jodie and Oliver came in to see their wedding photos last week (on our new bigger monitor) and set about choosing their faves for the album. They're going to have a GraphiStudio album and I know the images they've chosen will make for a great storybook album. They had a few problems on the run up to the big day thanks to the original venue deciding they no longer wanted to have weddings there, so they had to change both the venue and date of their wedding. Being the stars they are they took it all in their stride and ended up with a gorgeous venue at Packington Moor Farm.

Then, a couple of days before the wedding, their lovely little dog (who featured in their pre-wedding shoot photos) added to their troubles by EATING THE WEDDING CAKE!! They ended up replacing it in time... Twice! Yes, the first wedding I've shot where they had two cakes.

So here are a few of my favourite images from Jodie and Oliver's big day...

Believe it or not, this is a cake...

... and so is this.

Spot Lee, my second shooter...

Smokin'!

Jodie's favourite..

Guys, despite any problems in the run up, your wedding was perfect on the day and Lee and I thank you for having us be a part of it with you. I'll keep the story of the barn to myself ;) Have a great future together.

June is Rockin!

2008-07-01T00:24:00.002+01:00

This month has been a month of photographing some of the biggest bands in the world which is quite an honour. Since shooting Liza Minelli and The Sex Pistols I've also photographed Kiss, Bon Jovi and yesterday I got to shoot Linkin Park and Jay Z at Milton Keynes. Here are a few pics...

I have ordered a big version of this one for the studio wall :)

I also got to shoot my favourite singer/songwriter, Kathleen Edwards. She may not be as popular as the bands above but I urge you to check her stuff out. I reviewed the gig on the Fused Magazine site. Here are some photos of my second favourite Canadian girl...

After the show I got to chat to Kathleen for a while and her merch guy was kind enough to take a photo of us. Unfortunately, he managed to get the focus COMPLETELY WRONG!!! Gutted!

Fiona & Mike - MARRIED!

2008-06-27T20:47:00.001+01:00

I've been away for a while and haven't found time to update the blog until now. I have tons of stuff to post but for now I just wanna share some images from Fiona & Mike's wedding at Ettington Park Hotel, a fantastic venue with so many great locations to shoot. I was in my element!

On top of that Fiona came out with the immortal phrase, "A dress is for a day, photos are forever" before lying beneath a huge tree for some photos. What a star! It also helped that she's gorgeous of course.

Here's some of my faves from their wedding...

The venue itself. One of my favourites..

Fiona had one of the most beautiful dresses I've seen. And the cutest bridesmaids...

It's the world-famous Steve Gerrard "Skip Shot"!

Love this shot with the reflections..

The rings..

Love this cake shot too. And what a cool cake!

Here's another Fiona. I shot her wedding back in December..

Thanks guys for having me along for the day. It was a fantastic wedding and I wish you both all the best for the future...

Anarchy in Birmingham

2008-06-13T00:23:00.000+01:00

In one week I have gone from photographing Liza Minelli to shooting the Sex Pistols!! In fact I was the only photographer that got to get photos from last night's gig at Birmingham Academy. I had to shoot from the balcony but I had a great spot because.... are you ready for this??!!.... I was the warm-up DJ at the gig!

Ok, let's backtrack 31 years here. When I was at school the first single I ever bought was The Sex Pistols' "Silly Thing". I sent my mom into town to buy it cos I was too young. I'm not sure how appropriate my mom thought it was for a little boy to be listening to the Sex Pistols but anyway... I even managed to have my mom deliver me on Sid Vicious' 10th birthday! That's commitment!

And here we are in 2008, all somewhat older, and, as there was no support band for the gig, I was asked to DJ before the band. I even managed to get a few singalongs from the crowd when I played The Clash and Sham 69 :) It wasn't all old punk stuff though, I managed to drop in some Cancer Bats, The Bronx, Gallows and a little Jane's Addiction too. Oh, and Frank Turner.

You can see my review of the gig on BrumLive.com but here are my fave pics from the gig...

This weekend I get to photograph another musical legend when I shoot KISS on Friday night. I'm hoping for a classic Paul Stanley or Gene Simmons image for the studio wall. Wish me luck...

Laura & Anthony's Pre-wed shoot.

2008-06-07T13:51:00.001+01:00

Laura & Anthony get married next month and for their pre-wed shoot they asked if they could bring their two kids down with them. Of course I agreed. I'm glad I did too. Together they make a great family and we went out and had a bit of fun with them and got some cool photos in the process.

Laura's going to make a great bride and it sounds like it's going to be a fun wedding. Hope you enjoyed your picnic guys! :)

Liza Minelli - Live!

2008-06-05T12:18:00.002+01:00

Who would have thought it, but this week I was honoured to shoot the living legend that is Liza Minelli!

Liza was performing at Birmingham's Symphony Hall and I not only photographed her for Birmingham Live but also got to stay for the whole show, which I have to say was pretty spectacular. Not my kind of music at all really but nobody can deny the talent and star quality that Liza has, and she knows how to put on a real show.

You can see my review on Birmingham Live but here are just a few of my favourite photos... They were taken with a long lens as I wasn't allowed close to the stage on the night due to there being a seated audience.

As if shooting Liza wasn't unusual enough, while I was there Adam Woodyatt who plays Ian Beale in Eastenders came over to me asking where he could buy my photos. Random!

Restyle Me

2008-05-27T17:12:00.003+01:00

The new issue of Live 24-Seven magazine is out this week, featuring a shoot I did with Rachele who won a full makeover including shopping spree, nails, make-up and hair. She didn't want anything too over-the-top as she works in A&E at the hospital and wants to be able to get ready quickly in the mornings. She still had quite a transformation though and was so easy to photograph.

Here's the spread from the magazine. The only image that's not mine is her "before" shot which she sent in for the competition...

This is my favourite..

This Bank Holiday weekend was great fun despite a severe case of miserable weather. Saturday's wedding with Matt & Sarah was a really nice easy-going day and they were lucky enough to have the only good weather of the weekend. Highbury Hall in Mosely, Birmingham is a dramatic and grand venue and the couple were up for escaping to get some great images of them on their own. (PHOTOS HERE SOON)

The rest of the weekend was a wash-out due to the weather so we used the time to chill out, catch up on some TV ("Dexter" mainly) and try to teach Elliott how to walk. He's getting good too! He also tried a little pizza for the first time and seemed to enjoy the experience...

Devon knows...

2008-05-23T14:36:00.001+01:00

Hey, am I blog-update king this week or what?! I wonder if it'll last...

A couple of weeks ago I got to shoot Liz & Simon's wedding in Devon and we decided to make a weekend of it with Evelyne and Elliott joining me for the trip down south. The weather was glorious all weekend and Liz & Simon could not have had a more perfect setting for their big day. (photos here soon)

The day of the wedding was also my 40th birthday. During Simon's speech he called me up in front of everyone before presenting me with a bottle of champagne and getting all the guests to sing happy Birthday to me! How nice is that?! On their wedding day!
They even got me cake..

The next day Evelyne, Elliott and I headed out into the Paignton sunshine for a great day. We played with my 50mm macro lens and came home with some super-funky pics for the family album.

Don't I have the cutest family... ???!!

The great British seaside...

Too much seaweed for ya? Just say "No!"

Elliott can't decide from today's menu..

Watch out Emily! I can do flowers too ;) (Ok, not as good as you!)

Stella owe me some free beer in return for this one.

The sun in my sky.. :)

Evelyne gets all arty on us..

After a fantastic weekend away, Evelyne surprised me with breakfast...

Amy & Imran - MARRIED!

2008-05-22T21:45:00.005+01:00

One of the great things about photographing weddings is getting to witness one of the happiest and most emotional days of a couple's life. To be responsible for capturing that day with our cameras is quite a responsibility but also an immense privilege. And when the couple happen to be friends of ours that privilege is even greater.

I've known Imran since my DJ days and have got to know Amy quite well too. Amy said she'd been looking for someone to photograph their wedding for a while and "had just about given up" when she found out I had started to shoot weddings. We met up for a drink, showed them some more photos and eventually ended up shooting their big day.

On Tuesday, Amy & Imran came over to the studio to see the results and I hope they won't mind me saying it got quite emotional. In a good way :)

It was a fantastic wedding and Amy looked amazing.

She arrived in style in a VW camper van at Swinfen Hall near Lichfield.

Look around the secluded sides of a fancy venue and you might just find a cool background to shoot the groom and his ushers..

The rings on a chess board...

Imran sees his bride for the first time..

Awwww....

Errr... tall groom alert!

"Jazz Hands"!

Blue skies, sunshine and a nice bit of flare :)

Evelyne helped me out at this wedding which was great. This is one of Evelyne's and the couple are considering it for their wall..

Imran's speech was one of the most emotional I've witnessed, and all the better for it.

Imran's a teacher so his best man decided to interview his pupils for a little video presentation... To this question most answered "Tall"!

Amy has the best smile! :)

fave groom portrait ever! (by me at least!)

Yet another fantastic wedding and great fun. Evelyne and I want to thank Amy & Imran for having us be a part of their day. The album's gonna be great!

Cheers.

Canon 5D MkII - Want One!

2008-05-21T12:34:00.001+01:00

Oh no! Something else to steal Steve's hard-earned cash from him! The new Canon 5D MkII.

Although still a rumour it looks likely this baby will be available this summer with some sexy new features to get yours truly raiding his piggy bank. My main camera is still the Canon 1DS MkII but I've been looking to upgrade my 20D which I currently use as a second camera on most shoots. The new 5D is set to be priced between £1750 and £2k but looks worth every penny.

As if that weren't enough I've been eyeing up the Canon 85mm 1.2 lens too. Looks like I'd better get some work done to get some cashola in the bank...

As y'all know I shoot a lot of bands but occasionally I get to photograph gigs which take things to the next level as far as entertainment, crowd involvement and real passion is concerned. And so it was with Canada's Cancer Bats when they descended on the Birmingham Barfly last week. Singer Liam Cormier spent the whole gig in amongst the crowd, making for an energetic performance as well as some tricky photo situations but I came out unharmed with some great shots. You don't get images like this with many bands. Check out a full review of the gig at Birmingham Live!

Simon & Lyndsey - MARRIED!

2008-05-19T18:43:00.002+01:00

Simon & Lyndsey's wedding at Hogarth'sin Solihull was a fantastic wedding with a great bunch of people, including my lovely friend, Hannah, who actually recommended me to the couple (thanks Han!).

As always I stayed for the duration, only deciding it was perhaps time to leave when the DJ finished playing!

Simon & Lyndsey are a great couple and were happy to take time to get some great pictures during the day. Here's just a few of my faves...

Look at the light in this one. Gorgeous! Possibly my fave flowers shot yet.

How cute is the flower-girl?!

You may remember Lyndsey from their pre-wed shoot. She made for a beautiful bride as you can see...

And the boys don't scrub up too badly either..

The weather on the day was all over the place. Sun one minute, dark black clouds the next. Makes for dramatic photos though :)

Here's the couple minutes after tying the knot..

Lovin' the ring shot!

The evening reception featured a mini casino set-up which went down a storm...

First dance..

Lyndsey looked just as great at the end of the day as she did walking down the aisle..

And then it all started to get a little messy (as it should!)

Go Hannah!!

Cigars all round...

After all that cake, some people were seeing some worrying signs with their teeth! (ps. they're not real!)

I'm really pleased I got to witness such a great wedding and I wish Lyndsey & Simon a fantastic future together. Cheers for having me guys..

St-St- Studio Live!

2008-05-12T16:21:00.002+01:00

And so it was... Last weekend saw the official launch of the new studio for Steve Gerrard Photography and we invited friends & family and clients past & potentially future down for a glass of champers, a look-see and a friendly chinwag. Thanks to everyone who came down to help us celebrate, especially my mom & dad who surprised me by turning up when I thought they were home in Spain! The lengths they'll go to for a free drink never ceases to amaze me...

So here it is... The new studio! Still some tweaks to add but it's looking pretty good already I think..

Evelyne has obviously been a MASSIVE help making the studio look so good. I don't know what I'd do without her. She really is the BEST!

This man helped a lot too.. Thanks Lee.

The legend that is Chris Unitt..

This is where I'm sat right now...

Following the launch we headed out to celebrate my 40th (!) birthday. My birthday was actually May 10th but, as I had a wedding that day, we decided to have a double celebration on the 4th. First we went for an amazing dinner at Cielo. Seriously, if you live anywhere near Birmingham and you like Italian food, make a point of trying it out. The staff there looked after all 22 of us brilliantly and even went to the effort of making a great cake!

Good food, good company and more champagne.. What else d'ya need?

I'll be shooting Steve & Steph's wedding in NEW YORK in December...

Lisa & Roland master the cheesy linked-arms drinking pose..

Tony in rare "Devil Horns" pose...

My nephew Miles gets my brother Paul with the "rabbit ears"!

Rosie drove up from London just to be there. What a star!

Thanks again to everyone who made it out to help us celebrate. We had a great day. Thanks also to Emily & Stef for looking after Elliott for us.

Cheers!

It must be a sign!

2008-05-01T10:10:00.004+01:00

I'm sat on the floor typing this entry to my blog. My desk has gone to the studio but my computer, for now, remains at the home office!

Yes folks, it's a full-on, all-action, slightly panicky week here at Steve Gerrard Photography as we put the finishing touches to the studio ready for the launch on Sunday. We've done more shopping than we can afford, got pictures on walls (a few more to go yet) and taken a van full of stuff down to the space with the help of our uber-cool friend, Lee.

And yesterday the guys finally turned up to fix the sign to the front and it looks pretty damn fine I think..

Every kid dreams of having their name in lights. I decided vinyl was much more 2008! :)

Please excuse the mess on the other side of the windows. I promise that's my next job!

Not too much else on this week, as all our time and effort goes into studio preparations. On Monday I did manage the 90 minute drive to see Pete & Emma regarding their wedding in July and I'm happy to say they've chosen us for the job. Sounds like it's gonna be a fun day too. On the way back, by complete contrast, I stopped off at Nottingham Rock City to shoot death metal band, Vader. Great band to photograph!

Anyway, I have work to do... :)

Go and check out American Photo magazine's Top 10 Wedding Photographers 2008. There are plenty of glaring omissions such as Jeff Ascough (who just launched his brand new website) and Jerry Ghionis (who I'll be spending 5 days with next month!) but there are still some fantastic people on the list. Bit odd that they're all from America though!?

Images On Walls

2008-04-26T23:00:00.003+01:00

11pm on a Saturday night and while the rest of the world is out getting up to all kinds of no good, I'm home updating the blog! What's going on?!

Well, I decided my favourite girl, Evelyne, deserved a bit of a treat so I surprised her with a trip to Madrid where she'll meet up with one of her best friends from Montreal for a couple of days. She left this evening and I'm sure she'll have a great time. Meanwhile, that means I get to play Dad with Elliott, which is just fine by me! He's asleep now so I'm sat here with a beer and updating the blog.

Earlier today I was back at the studio with my good friends Nikki & Dave who helped me with some new skirting. I also dropped off some of the new pictures for the walls which, I have to say, look fantastic! We still have more to come later this week. Here are a few of the images we've chosen to grace the walls of the new space...

Some nice bright colours with an image taken in nearby Sutton Park..

A couple of black & whites with the "Aaahhh" factor...

Some dramatic wedding images...

Gotta have the family lifestyle shots...

And a great one of Dave and the boys...

My award-winning shot of Poppy & The Jezebels..

Two more of my favourites...

And of course I have to have some live band shots on the walls. So here's WiL Francis from Aiden and the legend that is Slash...

I'm happy we got a great and varied selection of images which represents all sides of my work. Can't wait to see it all finished and ready to open to the world. Only a week to go!

I added a nice new feature which you'll see on the left-hand side called "SAY HELLO". Please take few seconds to leave me a message.

Studio Update... :)

2008-04-24T17:55:00.003+01:00

Ten days to go til the studio launch and it's far from finished but you can see some of the new colours here with our beautiful model, Evelyne.

We're also strangely excited by our new Open/Closed sign designed by the wonderful Neil Woodward...

Our pictures for the walls are set to arrive this weekend. But first I have Fiona & Mike's wedding which looks like it's going to be a great day...

Steve Gerrard Photography - Studio Launch

2008-04-23T18:09:00.001+01:00

Ooh, it's all very exciting!

The official launch of our new studio for Steve Gerrard Photography happens on Sunday 4th May and we've just emailed out the invites, which you can see below.

We've finished painting now and our lovely leather couch has been delivered. We've ordered a ton of great images for the walls which should arrive any day now.

All that's left is a sign for the front window, a bit more furniture and, most importantly, a kettle and a fridge!

If you're reading this and you can join us on the 4th you'll be more than welcome...

Peter The Apprentice

2008-04-22T09:52:00.001+01:00

A few days ago I did a shoot for a great guy called Peter Kent from Atlanta, Georgia who was looking for some portraits with a difference to pitch himself to potential employers. Over a couple of hours I set out to get him a great variety of shots, some quite formal, some more edgy.

Peter almost made it to the US version of The Apprentice. He may not end up working for Donald Trump but I'm sure he'll do well in his chosen field.

And my favourite from the day..

I wish Peter all the best for his future in business.
I just had to take a photo of this sign which is on one of the most heavily graffitied walls in the city!

Charlotte & Steve's Rock & Roll Wedding

2008-04-18T06:36:00.002+01:00

I've mentioned on here before about the uber-cool wedding we shot with our most rockingest couple yet - Charlotte & Steve.

Turning up at the venue and being greeted by Steve's band, The Batemans, soundchecking with the Foo Fighters' "Everlong" immediately suggested this was going to be a fun day and that's exactly what it was...

The whole wedding was held at Homme House in Herefordshire - a lovely venue looked after by a very posh but very down-to-earth couple who are justifiably proud of the place. And with the daffs in bloom it looks even better.

I was assisted on the day by my good friend Lisa Gault and as usual, shot the day from start to finish...

and Charlotte looked stunning...

Charlotte and her family are French and, despite the fact that I'm married to a French-speaker, my French n'est pas bon. This didn't stop Charlotte's grandparents chatting to me though. I wonder what they said!

As usual, we escaped for a while with the couple for some relaxed portraits. Not too long though as it was a little on the chilly side.

At the wedding breakfast each table was named after a different band, including Queen, Motley Crue, Bon jovi and Metallica

And here's why we stay until the very end. You don't want to miss pictures like these:

Oh yeah, it's the classic bride shot with the guitar and the devil horns.. :)

and finally...

Some of these photos were featured in a 2-page spread in Live 24-Seven magazine. A great keepsake for the couple! Thanks to Charlotte & Steve for having me along to shoot their day for them. They rock!

Off To Sunny Spain..

2008-04-14T12:24:00.000+01:00

At the beginning of this month we treated ourselves to a short mid-week break to Barcelona, a city Evelyne and I have been wanting to visit for ages. It was our first ever foreign trip as a family of 3 and we had such a great time. It's certainly different trying to get about places when you have a 9 month old with you but Elliott seemed happy to just go with the flow...

The city itself is beautiful. Travel writers recently voted it the Number 1 city to visit in the world and it's easy to see why. Here are a few images from our trip:

Some of Gaudi's architecture and design...

The sun shone pretty much the whole time I'm happy to say and Evelyne and I took a lot of photos..

Cheer up Elliott!

The incredible climbing baby..

I'd highly recommend Barcelona if you haven't been and we're sure to return when we have chance.

The Keys To The Future

2008-03-28T09:02:00.000Z

It's an exciting time at the moment for Steve Gerrard Photography as we have just been given the keys to our new studio in the Custard Factory in the Digbeth area of Birmingham. We plan to use the space not to take photos (I always work on location) but as an office, a gallery and a comfortable place to meet clients. Up until now our office has been based at our home in Great Barr but it's time for us to move onto bigger and better things, as well as separating home and work life a little more. As you can see below the space has some work to be done before it looks how we envision it but we're looking forward to making it our own over the next few weeks. I'll be updating this blog as we go... We're looking for paint today.

This weekend I'm gonna be on the telly again which is always equally exciting and worrying. Luckily I've already seen the programme and it's nothing too embarrassing. It's called Mobile Act Unsigned and is on Channel 4 at 9:30 Sunday morning. The show follows the band Envy & Other Sins as they go through the process of recording their first album, along with promo videos, interviews and, of course, a photo shoot. Set your Sky+!

Here are some photos that I took a few days ago for a hairdressers in Walsall...

Rock & Royalty

2008-03-25T10:34:00.002Z

Easter weekend is often a time for taking it easy and sitting in front of the TV with the family while deliberating on how best to eat a Cadbury's Creme Egg. The past few days, for me at least, have been quite the opposite. From photographing Velvet Revolver on Saturday to spending all day Easter Sunday shooting Amy & Imran's wedding. Then on to a family lifestyle shoot on Monday morning followed by Amy & Nigel coming to view their wedding pictures later that day. And then today I got to meet up with Niki Evans from X-Factor to do some photographs at her home in Tamworth. All in all it's been another hectic but extremely fun few days, and it looks set to continue...

Photographing a band like Velvet Revolver can be a surreal experience. Standing two or three feet in front of a rock icon like Slash is a real buzz and I feel privileged to have pictures of him in my portfolio. The band played superbly on Saturday too and it was great to hear "Patience" make it into the set. The venue was bustling with rock royalty that night too. From the ex-members of Guns N Roses and Stone Temple Pilots to the support acts which featured Meat Loaf's daughter, Pearl, Anthrax guitarist, Scott Ian and Robert Plant's son drumming for the first band of the night. Robert was even there to show some fatherly support. You can see a review of the gig and more photos on the Birmingham Live! site.

Sunday's wedding was one we'd been looking forward to for a while as it was the wedding of our friends Amy & Imran. The whole day was fantastic and great fun and the couple were easy to work with, helping us to capture some fantastic pictures for them. When we asked to borrow them for a few minutes in the evening they were well up for it and seemed to enjoy being photographed in a slightly more creative way. The video light came out and we went for a bit of drama to contrast with the smiles and laid-back vibe throughout the rest of the day. I'm sure they'll love the results. It was amazing to have Evelyne working a wedding with me again too. She'd missed the last few to look after Elliott but this week my parents were back from Spain and happy to have him for the day.

I didn't know what to expect when I met Niki Evans. I've never seen X-Factor so I never knew anything about her but we got on great and discovered we had a lot in common. We got some nice relaxed shots of her with her two dogs and it looks like I'll be doing more shots for her portfolio in the future.

Days off are hard to come by at the moment but we did manage to squeeze in a day to visit the Cotswolds with our good friends Emily & Stef and their little girl Imogen. It was truly fantastic to escape, even if it was only for a short time. While we were there we took some pictures of the three of them. Emily's a photographer but wanted to be on the other side of the lens for a change. Hopefully she'll like the pictures. We stopped in the small town of Tetbury for lunch, only to find out that Prince Charles and Camilla were there to open a shop. I had my long lens with me and managed to grab a shot of them. You just never know who you'll bump into while you're out with a camera...

Anna-Maria

2008-03-07T16:28:00.002Z

Saturday morning I was awoken by messages from people saying they'd just seen me on TV. It was the programme following Envy & Other Sins after they won the Mobile Act Unsigned competition. The photo shoot we did featured in the programme with a quick interview with yours truly which wasn't too embarrassing. They even called me "top music photographer Steve Gerrard". If only that were true...

I have started getting a few enquiries recently from models looking for new portfolio images. It's not something I've done
much of yet but for those that are happy to go with my way of working it can be great fun and hopefully we come back with a
bunch of pictures which are different from the norm. Yesterday I spent a couple of hours with the stunning Anna-Maria. Here's a few photos from the shoot...

Claire & Dave

2008-03-02T16:27:00.000Z

We have just shown Claire & Dave the photos from their wedding in Warwick and, happily, they were made up with the results. Here are a few from their day...

Shooting The Chiefs

2008-02-17T10:56:00.001Z

Friday night Evelyne and I managed to blag our way into an invite-only gig at the Barfly where Kaiser Chiefs were playing to around 500 people. It's always good to see huge bands play in intimate venues and, although I'm not a big fan, the Kaisers put on a great performance, with Ricky Wilson obviously loving playing to such a small crowd. I've reviewed the gig for BIRMINGHAM LIVE! and here's some of my fave photos from the gig..

On Saturday it was off to Somerford Hall near Stafford to shoot the wedding of Susan & Neil, a lovely couple who had a very relaxed, fun day with a great group of friends and family. My good friend Lisa Gault helped me out on photographic duties as Evelyne was looking after Elliott, and between us we got a fantastic selection of images for the couple. I had so many nice comments from people about how we worked at the wedding too which is always good. No weddings now til March 8th but plenty of gigs to shoot, including Jimmy Eat World, Megadeth and one of my favourite bands, the Dillinger Escape Plan all coming up this week.

Irena

2008-02-14T10:26:00.002Z

Lithuanian pop singer, Irena, contacted me about having some photos done and, although she originally wanted to do them all inside, it was such a lovely day I convinced her to have some outdoors as well and we got her a great variety of images all in the space of about an hour.

Steve on Channel 4

2008-01-28T13:07:00.000Z

This week I was asked to photograph the winning band from Channel 4's Mobile Act Unsigned show. Envy & Other Sins won a million pound record contract and needed some images to use for promotional purposes. We spent a few hours with the band and tried to get a really good variety of shots for them. The whole thing was filmed for an upcoming programme on Channel 4 which looks at what's happening with the band since winning the show. Here are a few of my faves from the day...

A Wet Weekend

2008-01-23T10:53:00.000Z

Billy Connolly once said "There's no such thing as bad weather, there's just the wrong clothing". That may be somewhat true but unfortunately, when it comes to photo shoots, the people in front of my camera don't necessarily want to be wearing overcoats and wellies. Especially when you're the bride!

This weekend was very wet and that meant certain challenges as I undertook a fashion shoot in the woods, two band shoots and a wedding but in the end we just got out there and had fun, trying to avoid the worst of the weather whenever we could. Here are some of the results...

Claire & Dave's wedding in Warwick was great fun with a fantastic bunch of people. The bad weather wasn't allowed to dampen people's spirits one bit and we got some great pictures for them. They're in Canada for their honeymoon now and we'll show them a slideshow of their day when they return. After that I'll be able to post my favourites here.

Our Wedding

2008-01-20T10:01:00.000Z

Live 24-Seven magazine came out and it features a spread on our own wedding from October. Being on the other side of the camera for once was fun and we're indebted to our photographers for capturing such amazing photos for us. It's a great momento of a fantastic week down in Cornall.

Rosie & Matt's Wedding

2008-01-18T17:24:00.000Z

Winter weddings always create challenges for the photographer due to the lack of natural light but it's a challenge I'm happy to rise to. Rosie & Matt were married at the end of December and yesterday I met with them to show them a slideshow of images from their day. A few tears were shed but for all the right reasons and their Queensberry album is going to look fantastic.

Here are just a few of my faves from the day..

Prong in London

2008-01-16T12:39:00.000Z

My first job for Terrorizer Magazine saw me down in London to meet with industrial metal band, Prong. A great band who I last saw live at the beginning of the 90s and I'm glad to say they're still a fantastic live act.

The shoot was at Camden's Underworld venue where I met with vocalist, Tommy for a quick portrait before sticking around to shoot the main gig.

Fiona & Simon

2008-01-08T20:06:00.000Z

Fiona & Simon had their winter wedding at St. Wilfred's Church near Coventry and then a reception at the Forest Of Arden Hotel. The weather was miserable for most of the day but it never dampened anyone's spirits and it was a great day finishing up with the bride and her girlfriends in Pink Ladies jackets dancing to the hits from Grease.

Life in the undergrowth

2008-01-06T22:25:00.000Z

Today saw me more than living up to the "Jeckyll & Hyde of photography" tag, with 2 shoots which were completely different.

The first was with Amy & Nigel whose wedding we are covering next month. We did their pre-wed shoot on location around The Mailbox centre in Birmingham. It was a chilly day but the sun came out and we captured some nice relaxed shots of them together. This is a great way to work with them prior to the big day, helping them to feel more relaxed in front of the camera.

Immediately afterwards I met up with six musicians who form a band/art project called Insectoid. They're an experimental electronic project and the members all dress in insect masks, gas masks and boiler suits. It made for some great images and I'm sure they'll be happy with the results.

Rosie & Matt

2008-01-04T19:54:00.000Z

Rosie & Matt are a great couple getting married in Streetly near Birmingham. We met at The Belfry golf club for their pre-wed shoot and had fun getting a mixed bag of images. They were easy to work with and by the end of the shoot were really getting into it!

Welcome...

2007-12-31T19:17:00.001Z

Welcome to my photography blog where I will be posting images and news from my varied shoots.

"Professional Photographer" magazine dubbed me the "Jeckyll & Hyde of photography" due to the fact that one day I'll be shooting some cute kids or a wedding, the next I'll be photographing some of the world's biggest rock bands. And that's exactly how I like it!

For me, it's the variety in photography that is just one of the reasons it has become my life's passion. Whether I'm shooting for NME or Rock Sound or capturing the magic of a wedding day, I'm there to tell a story through my photographs.

To get us started, here are just a few of my recent photos...

Cheers
Steve

We have been booked to photograph weddings throughout the UK and overseas. Venues include Birmingham Botanical Gardens - New Hall in Sutton Coldfield - Moxhull Hall - Grafton Manor, Bromsgrove - The Abbey Hotel, Redditch - Rowton Castle, Shrewsbury - Clearwell Castle - Swinfen Hall, Lichfield - Somerford Hall, Staffordshire - Ettington Park Hotel - Walton Hall, Stratford-Upon-Avon - Forest Of Arden Hotel - Radisson Hotel - Patshull Hall - Headland Hotel, Newquay - Lord Leycester Hospital, Warwick - Lichfield Guild Hall - Studley Castle - Homme House - Highbury Hall, Mosely - Wood Norton Hall - Weston Park - Hogarths Hotel, Solihull - Eastnor Castle - Packington Moor - The Belfry, Wishaw - Drayton Manor Park - Alright Hussey Hotel, Shrewsbury - Coombe Abbey - Delbury Hall - RSA, London plus many more.