I’ve always marvelled at the capacities that children have. Take their capacity for innovation for instance. It’s amazing. Kids are supremely talented. They’re willing to take chances, to take risks, to live on the edge, to truly try and fly. If they don’t know how to do something, they’ll at least have a go at it. By way of example, let’s take a simple nursery rhyme. If they don’t know the words, they’ll take a hack at them. ‘Hickory-dickory dock, the mouse ran up the cock.’ Oh really? Oh, okay then. You see, kids aren’t afraid to fail – they’ll have a shot at it no matter what. And herein lies a lesson for all of us: if you’re afraid to take a chance, you’ll never come up with anything original or creative. And that’s a fact, Jack. Now let’s fast-forward to your wedding day…

It’s 5.30pm, your vows are over, signing of the register is done, confetti lies strewn everywhere, family and friends are hugging, kissing, drinking bubbly, looking smooth (and the Best Men has already started hitting on your good-looking friend from work). Right! Time to go to work, so your photographer whisks you off for the formals. Click, click, click, stand, pose, this angle, that angle, this barn door, that pond, click, click, sunset shot, kissy-kissy, huggy-huggy, job done. You go on honeymoon, photographer develops your beloved photographs, you get back home, you take delivery of your photographs and then you wonder why they look fairly to moderately okay. Be honest, they actually look quite crap. So you blame the photographer. Ja, you’re right to blame the photographer. But only 50% right. You need to take the other 50% of the blame. Unless of course you made a conscious effort to take the first paragraph above to heart. So read it again, I’ll wait for you.

Okay, now that you’ve hopefully read the self-help course in paragraph 1 again, here’s the lowdown: Unless you are willing to see the world through the eyes of a child, throw caution to the wind, forget everything you know about conventional ‘stand and pose’ wedding photography you will never, ever, ever, not in a million years get the outstanding, edgy, creative photography that truly reflects who you, your partner, your family and your friends really are. Play! Be fun! Be happy! But most of all, take a chance or two – and innovate! I’m not saying you need to be silly and stupid – just be prepared to take yourselves a little further. They’re your wedding photographs and you’re going to have to look at them for a bloody long time, so best YOU make them exceptional because nobody else will. And challenge your photographer – make him sweat a little. Who said you can’t come up with some ideas on your wedding day? I challenge my couples all the time to think on their feet and they love it because it turns the formals into one, big, happy adventure. We have a motto in our family that works for Helen, myself and the kids: LIVE. LOVE. LAUGH. Try using it on your wedding day, then try using it throughout your married life, it’s worked wonders for us, I hope it does for you too.