Last summer, Ireland made history by becoming the first country in the world to pass gay marriage by popular vote, and since last November it has been made official for LGBT couples to marry. Romantic love between any two people is beautiful, and the way they want to celebrate their special day should be their choice. People are starting to think outside the box when it comes to their wedding day. They want it to be different and more creative in terms of their wedding style. Not every woman wants to wear the long, floaty white dress and full veil, and not all men want to wear a tuxedo, cufflinks and a bowtie. Some couples would prefer to get married in a hotel, or outdoors on a beach. The church wedding has become less popular in recent years.
I spoke with Anna Kerslake, a photographer for her business ‘Rock and Roll Wedding Photography’ who specialises in photographing unconventional weddings.
Anna Kerslake, wedding photographer for Rock and Roll Wedding Photography
“I noticed that the wedding photography industry was inundated with traditional wedding photographers, and I realised that there was a gap in the market to cater for the alternative and LGBT community. I wanted to bring passion, more vibrant colour, and a personal touch to the wedding industry. I wanted every aspect of the business to be well thought out. I offer a boutique wedding photography service. I photograph weddings for rockers, hippies, the LGBT community, people who love the 1950’s style and anyone who wants a non-traditional wedding. I have a passion for the unconventional. When it comes to weddings nowadays people like to show their individuality. The focus now is more about celebrating their love with their family and friends. I still do church weddings, but a lot of my clients are looking for something a little different, and that’s one of the reasons they choose Rock and Roll Wedding Photography.”
“My style started to develop through my work in fashion and music photography over the years. Originally I wasn’t going to go near the wedding industry because it was extremely saturated. However, when I looked into it further, I realised it was mostly traditional photography that was available. I began to develop a style based around emotive photography. I worked on conceptual projects, music albums, and I learnt to push the boundaries of photography. This led me to be nominated for ‘Photographer of the Year’ in the 2015 Student Media Awards for my creative portraiture’. I also provide alternative engagement and pre-wedding boudoir shoots. A boudoir shoot is an opportunity for someone to give the gift of romantic photographs to their husband or wife to be.”
“In July 2015 I won my first award at the ‘Expressions’ portrait exhibition. My photograph was exhibited in Longford, and it was chosen for the exhibition brochure. I was thrilled with this. I was also recently nominated for ‘Ireland’s Best Young Entrepreneur’ in the start-up category for Rock and Roll Wedding Photography. To be a finalist for this was amazing.”
“Certain religions have different traditions. In the pagan religion it is customary for couples to incorporate a hand fasting ceremony into their wedding. This involves tying their hands together with rope, to symbolise their union. This is where the expression ‘tying the knot’ comes from. Many people who aren’t pagan are also choosing to integrate this into their ceremony. Other couples like to have humanist ceremonies. A humanist minister focuses on the couple and their love for each other. There are different organisations throughout Ireland who provide alternative celebrants to marry you. The Spiritualist Union of Ireland and The Pagan Federation of Ireland are popular organisations for hosting non-traditional weddings.”
“Creative photography is my absolute favourite, because it adds another level of sparkle and fantasy to a photo-shoot, that’s why I’m bringing it to the wedding industry.
Anna Kerslake, Alternative Wedding Photographer
Contact: 085 165 6856
www.rockandrollweddingphotography.com
twitter is: @rocknrollwedpho
