Wedding Photography by Duncan Holmes - Scotland and beyond

This entry was posted on September 5, 2018 by Duncan Holmes.

It was about 9 years ago that a friend first asked me to shoot their wedding. Since then I, in the guise of Photography by Duncan Holmes, have had some fabulous opportunities to shoot weddings, bridal fashion and all sorts. I'd had a camera in my hand as long as I can remember, but only really took it up seriously in my early thirties.

Rachel at Mansfield Traquair in a dress by Freja Designer Dressmaking

Never one to do things by half measures, once I was bitten by the wedding bug, I decided to shoot some images for my portfolio and for advertising. This lead to my first model shoot, with 5 models, shooting in the gardens of a stately home, makeup artist and hair stylist as well as a dress designer providing dresses from her vintage collection. I even contacted a local florist and we had bouquets for the models. Conditions were challenging with torrential rain in the morning and bright sunshine once we started shooting. But in the end we ended up with some great images.

Gemma at Prestonfield House Hotel

Since then I've been shooting weddings and events all over the place, mostly from the top to bottom and coast to coast of Scotland and Northern England, but I've also had the opportunity to shoot in Shanghai and Alicante which provided their own challenges.

Natalia at Ardgowan Estate

I'm kind of addicted to the adrenaline rush of shooting weddings. With even the best plan, there's always the unexpected to keep you on your toes. Plus you get to meet people at their best, full of joy and love and hope for the big day! I'm a hopeless romantic, so in many ways I'm perfectly suited to the job at hand!

Sarah at Newhall Estate

But in between the day to day of weddings and events I still try to squeeze in time for my own shoots.

I shoot a varied mix of subjects and styles to broaden my skills, but I always seem to return to bridal.

Lorna in the gardens at Newhall Estate

Erin in a dress by Freja Designer Dressmaking

With that in mind I've picked out pictures from four separate shoots with Freja Designer Dressmaking of Edinburgh. We shot at Prestonfield House Hotel, Mansfield Traquair, Ardgowan Estate and Newhall Estate. Each venue, model, dress and day provided me with inspiration for different styles of shoot and challenged my skills in different ways.