A month of good things

How can nearly a month pass by without posting? Easy - just be busy - i many different ways.

Two shoots on the project, an evening with Hamlet at the Royal Exchange, a trip to Lisbon, an Irish wedding, Saints winning the Superleague, agreement on exhibition space, submitting the Arts Council Funding application and a bit of work in there too. Photographically, the wedding was the bees knees. It was my nephew's nuptials in Dublin. The ceremony was held at the Church of the Three Patrons, also known as the Servants' church - built for the servants of the Dublin rich so that they could be nearer to god but not their masters. And then on to Carton House - think big, Victorian country estate house. Queen Vic stayed twice, I think. Which is a bit much when she never found the time to visit Manchester. And Marian Faithful lived in a cottage in the ground for eight years.......

An Irish wedding now takes three days; the warm up, the wedding day and the cool down. I got to shoot the reception drinks while the Real Photographer was off shooting the couple and various groupings and I had a free hand on the cool down evening which is were the shot here comes from; another nephew and a nephew-once-removed. Drink had been taken, a comment made and a good laugh had. I love capturing these moments of real relaxation and joy. At the wedding, I met cousins I have not seen for decades and in the days afterwards, various old photographs were emailed. These included one of my grandfather in 1903 passing through Liverpool on his way to America. A treasure of a picture that captures the young man at a moment in time. I hope that Charlie and Brendan's grandchildren come across this image sometime