Well, James wasn't keen and I have to admit I was feeling a bit nervous. But for two people that resemble Chandler Bing of FRIENDS fame every time we have photos taken (you may have noticed our healthy friends obsession by now) we thought it would be good practice for our wedding photos. Also it was a great excuse to take my new straight teeth for a test drive!
So we headed out on a frosty and windy (get a load of James's hair in the last photo!) Saturday morning to a farm just outside of Chipping Campden. The night before Stef told us to bring props, to which we started racking our brains on what we could take. Our favourite thing to do is to spend time with friends and family and we figured we couldn't really take them as props on our engagement shoot! The next on our list was food! Good, yummy, local food. But again photos of us stuffing our faces probably wouldn't be one for the wall! We decided we would don our comfy walking clothes and get all country, seeing as we were going to a farm and it was a cold Cotswold morning. We were really pleased with this decision.
We walked around the farm acting as natural as possible! It does help that we spend most of our time together laughing. Stef pointed out some cracking places to have photos taken (even though we didn't realise what she was doing at the time, for example the sun shot!) we especially love the industrial look of the barn door.
Stef brought a slate and chalk to do some fun written messages to each other. We clearly left our creativity at the door when she asked us to write something on it. All we could think of were innapriorate or offensive messages to each other, so Stef suggested our pet names. Cue major cringe... chicken and Bear. My brother-in-law on seeing the photos said at first he thought that we had written a Ludicrus album title on the slate 'Chicken and Beer', James wished we had been that cool! Nope, just our super cringe pet names. It didn't matter though because it actually turned out to be one of our favourite photos.
You may have seen Stef's own blog on Our engagement shoot here. She mentions the unexpected...she's right there. Here are the things we didn't expect:
~We didn't expect to enjoy it
~We didn't expect for the photos to be so wonderful ( and that's not a reflection on Stef but ourselves)
~ we didn't expect to find as many wonderful places to have photos taken at this old farm and renovated barn
~We didn't expect to find a new friend.
We love Stef and how she manages to inject personality and intimate moments into photos, whilst retaining her style. Whether it is a wedding photo, a picture she takes on her camera phone, photos of her holidays or a photo shoot for Cotswold Style Magazine, you can tell it is a Stefanie Calleja-Gera photo. Seriously iconic.
Stef says:
'A really great way to get to know your photographer is a pre-wedding shoot - not only does it really help to calm any camera-shy nerves, it also gives me a brilliant insight to what you’re all about as a couple, so that I can reflect a little piece of your personal style through the images I create; be it free-spirited and fun-loving or refined and elegant, whatever the weather, I’ll beat to your drum.'
We would completely recommend a pre wedding photo shoot. We feel really calm about having obits taken on the big day but we also know we have chosen the right photographer for us. These photos will be around forever, so they gave to be right! No pressure Stef.
We can't wait to spend some more time with you Stef, and we have total faith that our Wedding photo's will be keepers!
Stef has also worked with Meg, taking professional photos of Meggie's. The website is coming soon!
Millie and Meg xxx (and James!)
