We are beyond proud to be in a position to recommend some of the very best artists, makers and designers in the UK, through our Little Book Wedding Directory.
One such individual, whose work we have been sharing for several years now, is Dorset based wedding photographer, Richard Skins.
I set out to make 2020 the year we dug a little deeper into this wonderful wedding world, it feels to me like time to reveal more about the people, personalities and processes behind this glorious creative community and I’m so happy today to be sharing a conversation with Richard. By the way friends; book your wedding photography with Richard prior to the end of February 2020, and you will receive a Dorset based couples/engagement shoot entirely for free!
Let’s go find out more…
Richard Skins + Follow
Richard, please introduce yourself…
Hello Love My Dress readers, my name is Richard, and I’m a UK & Destination wedding photographer.
I’m based in Dorset but cover all over the UK and destination weddings across Europe.
What are your typical fees and what is included in these fees?
My price starts at £2,250, and this covers all day wedding photography, typically for a wedding, this is around 12-14 hours, so everything is covered throughout the day. You can find more details here.
Tell us how you started out in photography and what drew you to wedding photography in particular?
I studied film-making at university but while there picked up my first digital camera with help from my mum which started off a hobby and a love for photography. After I finished uni, I started doing the odd job for family and friends from commercial work, portraits to even gig photography. A good friend then asked me to photograph her wedding, I had never even considered it before. Now 10 years later I’m so glad she asked me as I might never have gone this direction and found the job that I love.
What do you love most about being a wedding photographer?
This might sound weird to say on a wedding blog which helps couples style their wedding, but I’m not that interested in the little things that make a wedding, cakes, dresses, suits, table decorations etc. For me it’s all about documenting people, I love to capture them at their happiest and to record the range of emotion that can be displayed on a wedding day.
How would you describe your signature style and approach?
I think my style is always evolving, but I try to focus on a documentary-style which honestly portrays a wedding. I like clean compositions and love using light to direct the eye.
What/what inspires you? Do you have a muse?
I think from studying film-making there is definitely inspiration from movies, people like Roger Deakins, Jean-Pierre Jeunet or Wes Anderson come to mind.
What do you think makes your style of photography appealing to couples?
I’m very relaxed at a wedding, so I think that is definitely appealing to couples, they can enjoy the wedding without being worried about photography.
And how long do couples need to wait to receive their photography after the wedding?
Within roughly a week they will receive a preview gallery with around 40 images, the remaining pictures usually take between 6-8 weeks depending on the time of the year.
Have you noticed any changes in what couples want/need in wedding photography in recent years?
Wedding photography has definitely changed over the years since I started. You really get polarising styles nowadays, some focus on a purely street documentary style with no posing to others who’s main aim is to create a more fine-art fashion look. Both are beautiful in their own right, and I think it’s good to have options for couples with their own personal taste.
What are your favourite kinds of wedding photographs to take (ie, getting ready shots, couple portrait shots etc)
I think it has to be the speeches. I always love photographing this part of the day, you really see emotions on everyone’s faces, whether it be happiness or sadness from a lost family who can’t be here to witness the day; it is always a privilege to document these moments.
What does an average day for a successful wedding photographer look like?
A good coffee to start, followed by giving my cat some affection and then start editing with some BBC 6 music to help along the way. Good music is definitely the key to winding down those long editing stretches.
What kind of things do you like to do away from work?
I love to travel but also enjoy home time, so it’s always a delicate balance to feed the two parts of my soul. I think combining my job with travelling has definitely helped in this respect, I have loved exploring the continent for weddings over the past few years.
What would you be doing if you weren’t running your own design business?
I think something creative, but I do love being my own boss, so if it wasn’t this business, it would be another venture.
What advice would you pass on to couples nervous/not keen on being photographed? For some people, being photographed can induce real anxiety!
If they have hired a documentary style wedding photographer then not to worry at all. A lot of my couples, one or the other doesn’t usually like having their picture taken, and most the time they end up loving it on the day. I’ll be playful and give them various tasks to do with one another with the main aim is for them to forget they’re being photographed, it really does work, and the relaxed images work nicely with the documentary style which I do for the rest of the day.
What advice would you pass on to couples in general to help their day go more smoothly?
Talk to all their wedding vendors, they all do this week in and week out so can offer some valuable advice which is going to help on the day. In terms of photography then make sure the photographer has all the relevant information for the day, I give a questionnaire to all couples, which really goes into detail, so nothing is missed.
What about guests and other people taking photographs at weddings – where do you stand on this?
It doesn’t really bother me in truth, this is the world we live in now.
What’s next for your business and brand?
2020 is going to be really exciting, I’m going to start doing one to one mentoring this year, and I’m looking forward to sharing what I have learned over the past 10 years to wedding photographers who are starting off on their own path.
Tell us about your involvement with Love My Dress…
Love My Dress is my favourite wedding blog! I’ve been featured on a few different blogs now over the years, but I still love the way LMD feature one of the weddings I’ve photographed! You can tell they put in a lot of effort.
Also, Annabel is so passionate about the wedding industry and supporting the fantastic ray of suppliers who work so hard for their clients, it’s incredible to see this level of support from a wedding blog.
Annabel View all Annabel's articles
Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.
