East Midlands
Twenty years of experience across Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire and beyond. Now based in Lancashire — still very much covering the East Midlands.
Where It All Started
If you’re looking for a wedding photographer East Midlands couples trust, you’ve found one with eighteen years of experience across the region. I spent the first eighteen years of my career based here, photographing weddings across Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, and the surrounding counties. This is where I won the WPJA UK Photographer of the Year award. This is where I was ranked 1st in the UK, 2nd in Europe, and 3rd in the world. This is where I documented hundreds of weddings at venues I know intimately — Prestwold Hall, Kilworth House, Ladywood Estate, Norwood Park, Stapleford Park, Sutton Bonington Hall, Mythe Barn, West Mill, and many more.
I’ve recently relocated to Lancashire, but the East Midlands isn’t my old market — it’s very much still my market. The venues I worked at for years still recommend me to their couples. The relationships I built with coordinators and planners across the region remain strong. And my daughters still live in Leicestershire, which means an East Midlands wedding is also a perfect excuse to stay over, take them out for a meal the night before, and be at your venue refreshed and ready the next morning. Everybody wins.
Distance Is Irrelevant
I’ll let you in on a secret: distance doesn’t affect your wedding photography. Not even slightly. My longest drive last year was East Sussex back to Blackburn — and the couple received exactly the same level of service, attention, and care as if they’d been getting married five minutes from my front door.
The reality is simple. I book a hotel near your venue the night before, get a good night’s sleep, and I’m on your doorstep within fifteen minutes the next morning. Fresh, calm, and ready to work. No early alarm. No four-hour drive on the morning of your wedding. No rushing. Just a well-rested photographer who’s been doing this for twenty years and knows exactly how to deliver.
I photograph weddings across the entire UK — England, Wales, and Scotland — and I’ve never once had a couple tell me they could spot which weddings were local and which involved a drive. Because you can’t. The photographs are the photographs, regardless of how far I’ve travelled to take them.
There are no additional travel fees for weddings within England and Wales. The price is the price, wherever you are.
Venues
Over nearly two decades in the East Midlands, I’ve photographed weddings at an enormous range of venues — from grand country estates to intimate barn conversions, historic churches to modern boutique hotels. These are some of the venues I know best.
Prestwold Hall · West Mill · Norwood Park · Stapleford Park · Sutton Bonington Hall · Mythe Barn · Kilworth House · Rushton Hall · Swancar Farm · Stubton Hall · Dodmoor House · Hodsock Priory
If your venue isn’t listed here, there’s a good chance I’ve either worked there or somewhere very similar. Get in touch and I’ll let you know.
“Looking through our album now feels like we are reading a story of our day. We could not be any happier or more grateful for all of Ian’s hard work. We will forever treasure our photographs.”
Julia & Graeme ~ Mythe Barn, Warwickshire
My Approach
Nothing about my photography has changed since I moved to Lancashire. The same eye. The same experience. The same calm, unobtrusive approach that has earned me international recognition and the trust of over 450 couples.
I don’t direct your day. I don’t stage moments. I don’t pull you away from your guests for an hour of posed portraits. I observe, I anticipate, and I capture what’s real — the look your father gives you before the ceremony, the uncontrollable laughter during the speeches, the private moment between you and your partner that nobody else noticed.
Ninety-eight percent of my coverage is completely unposed. A brief fifteen-minute couple session, up to eight family group photographs done quickly and warmly, and then the honest, documentary storytelling that I’ve spent two decades perfecting. Browse my portfolio or read what couples say about working with me.
The only difference between booking me now and booking me two years ago is that I might stay over the night before and take my daughters out for dinner. Which, honestly, makes me arrive at your wedding in an even better mood than usual.
Getting Married in the East Midlands?
I accept a limited number of commissions each year. Full-day coverage starts from £2,950 with no travel fees within England and Wales. If you’re planning an East Midlands wedding, I’d love to hear about it — and I already know the best restaurants near your venue.