WE ALL KNOW THAT RECOMMENDATIONS IS THE BEST FORM OF BUSINESS, AND THAT'S WHY THESE REVIEWS AND TESTIMONIALS ARE SO IMPORTANT.
PROSPECTIVE BRIDES AND GROOM - AND THEIR PARENTS, CAN READ WHAT MY CUSTOMERS (AND MANY OF THEM NOW FRIENDS...) HAVE TO SAY ABOUT ME AND THE WAY I WORK DURING A WEDDING.
If you wish to speak with any of my brides and grooms who have kindly written reviews, I would be happy to speak with them so that they can speak with you.
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WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHER REVIEW: JENNIFER AND SIMON
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Jennifer and Simon were married earlier this year, and what a great day of wedding celebration it was too at Earsdon and Tynemouth.
Jennifer has made me turn red with this glowing review, but I'm sure it will be of use to those brides and grooms to-be as they consider their wedding photography and their choise of wedding photographer.
".......For several months before Simon proposed I had sneakily started to look around the web for wedding venues in the North East. Naughty I know but having waited patiently for 6 years I wanted to be all prepared and ready to go when Simon proposed - and Simon expected nothing less from me!
The one website that kept popping up time and time again was Dirks blog and I was soon hooked, I used his site as a wedding brochure for all the venues and fell in love with the relaxed smiley nature of his photos. What I think though sealed the deal was his beautifully written personal accounts of the couples, and their kind words said in return. He sounded like he truly got to know the couples and the families in the year(s) leading up to the big day, so when we finally got engaged and set our date I thought of no one else to call for our photographer than Dirk.
From that first call I made to Dirk in January he made me feel relaxed and at ease. He was patient and understanding when I had to keep postponing our initial meeting due to my work abroad, and when my Chief Bridesmaid/future sister-in-law and I finally met up with Dirk at the Grand Hotel, Tynemouth exactly one year before the wedding, we instantly fell in love with him. It felt like we'd been friends for years and we swapped stories and laughter for a good 40mins before any of us had realised that we'd not even spoken about the wedding or photography. Needless to say I spoke with Simon evening and we hired Dirk without ever meeting another photographer.
Simon finally met Dirk in Scarborough on Valentines Day for our pre-wed photo-shoot; as Dirk explained it was really just some time to get to know each other better and get to feel a little bit more relaxed in front of "a strange man" with a camera. We had a wonderful time, it was my childhood home so I loved showing them both around the castle, harbour and south beach, and that we also came away with some fantastic photos of the two of us was just a bonus! After our day trip out together Simon came away happy that our wedding day was going to be captured naturally without too much fuss, we'd made the right decision with Dirk - as if there was ever any doubt?
Our wedding day went perfectly without a hitch and Dirk didn't miss a beat. He almost dissolved into the guests and got the most superb shots that people didn't even realise were being taken! He also keep us on track for the beach photos we so desperately wanted. The weather hadn't played ball after the church so just after desert Dirk came up to us on the top table to remind us that the sun would soon be setting, so we grabbed my wellies and invited the guests to forego there coffees if they'd like to join us for a brisk early March paddle. We're so glad we did, as with the last moments of the setting sun Dirk took some of the best photos of the day!
Dirk you are a true star and we can't thank you enough for capturing the story of our day so beautifully and making it eternal...."
The one website that kept popping up time and time again was Dirks blog and I was soon hooked, I used his site as a wedding brochure for all the venues and fell in love with the relaxed smiley nature of his photos. What I think though sealed the deal was his beautifully written personal accounts of the couples, and their kind words said in return. He sounded like he truly got to know the couples and the families in the year(s) leading up to the big day, so when we finally got engaged and set our date I thought of no one else to call for our photographer than Dirk.
From that first call I made to Dirk in January he made me feel relaxed and at ease. He was patient and understanding when I had to keep postponing our initial meeting due to my work abroad, and when my Chief Bridesmaid/future sister-in-law and I finally met up with Dirk at the Grand Hotel, Tynemouth exactly one year before the wedding, we instantly fell in love with him. It felt like we'd been friends for years and we swapped stories and laughter for a good 40mins before any of us had realised that we'd not even spoken about the wedding or photography. Needless to say I spoke with Simon evening and we hired Dirk without ever meeting another photographer.
Simon finally met Dirk in Scarborough on Valentines Day for our pre-wed photo-shoot; as Dirk explained it was really just some time to get to know each other better and get to feel a little bit more relaxed in front of "a strange man" with a camera. We had a wonderful time, it was my childhood home so I loved showing them both around the castle, harbour and south beach, and that we also came away with some fantastic photos of the two of us was just a bonus! After our day trip out together Simon came away happy that our wedding day was going to be captured naturally without too much fuss, we'd made the right decision with Dirk - as if there was ever any doubt?
Our wedding day went perfectly without a hitch and Dirk didn't miss a beat. He almost dissolved into the guests and got the most superb shots that people didn't even realise were being taken! He also keep us on track for the beach photos we so desperately wanted. The weather hadn't played ball after the church so just after desert Dirk came up to us on the top table to remind us that the sun would soon be setting, so we grabbed my wellies and invited the guests to forego there coffees if they'd like to join us for a brisk early March paddle. We're so glad we did, as with the last moments of the setting sun Dirk took some of the best photos of the day!
Dirk you are a true star and we can't thank you enough for capturing the story of our day so beautifully and making it eternal...."
How lovely .. If you would like me to be your wedding photographer, ANYWHERE in the UK or abroad for a destination wedding - check your date now as I only photograph a limited amount of weddings each year, to make sure that you are never 'just another bride' ....
Ring now on 0778 7150966
DIRK VAN DER WERFF
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| ELLINGHAM HALL - THE VENUE FOR AMY AND FRASER'S WEDDING IN NORTHUMBERLAND |
I've photographed a number of lovely weddings at Ellingham Hall in Northumberland. This exclusive use wedding venue in the north east of England is VERY popular with families who wish to spend a long weekend over their wedding, with accomodation in lodges and the beautiful old hall.
Arriving on a Friday and having time to settle in, followed by a wedding on the Saturday and then a long lazy Sunday is a lot of people's idea of heaven.
The last wedding I photographed was back in December, when Amy and Fraser flew in from Calgary, Canada. Amy booked me after reading about the wedding of Liz and Steve whose wedding I covered in summer at Ellingham Hall - without even meeting me, that's confidence!
We all had a great day for a winter wedding and recently I received a lovely testimonial and review both from Amy and from her mum Christine.
Christine's first:
"When your daughter and her fiancee live thousands of miles away in Calgary, Canada and they are arranging their wedding day in England, there is plenty of scope for things to go wrong!
However, they made an excellent choice choosing Dirk for their special day having seen examples of his wedding photography on the internet.
While they were over in the UK for a visit in September, Dirk came to meet the happy couple and it was immediately obvious that he would be a pleasure to work with. He showed a genuine interest in who they were and so they relaxed in his company.
They ended his visit with a walk in the sunshine to take some pictures and he took a fabulous photograph which he presented framed to them on their wedding day.
He arrived early at Ellingham Hall in Northumberland, giving himself plenty of time to take pictures of the hall and decorations before the crowds descended. His presence throughout the day and evening was unintrusive when taking photographs, but several guests commented that he was easy to talk to and in fact some people thought he was a guest at the wedding!
Wedding days are always a little stressful and when the bride and groom are still suffering from jetlag, there could have been some tension. But, Dirk put everyone at ease and captured some beautiful images which will evoke wonderful memories of a very special day'.
Now Amy's kind words:
" .... Just wanted to say a big thank you for being our wedding photographer Dirk!
You were excellent and did exactly what we asked for. You made us feel comfortable on the day, let us be ourselves and produced some beautiful pictures.
It was so nice to know that we had an experience photographer onsite, it was one less thing to worry about and let us get on with the serious business of enjoying our big day!! Thank you again...."
AMY AND FRASER
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| CATHY'S MAGGIE SOTTERO DRESS |
CATHY AND DAVE WERE MARRIED AT BEAMISH PARK HOTEL ... BECAUSE OF THEIR JOBS, I WAS UNABLE TO BLOG THEIR WEDDING AS NORMAL - BUT I HAVE BEEN ALLOWED TO USE ONE IMAGE TO GO WITH THEIR REVIEW!
".... When we first started looking for wedding photographers, we realised it wasn’t going to be easy.
All the websites of the photographers we stumbled across showed photograph upon photograph of formal, cheesy poses, brides and grooms peeping out from behind trees or set up ‘wacky’ faces from the bridal party.
Not exactly photos you’d want to have on your living room wall for years to come...
In a moment of frustration, I think I typed something like ‘relaxed wedding photography, no cheesy poses’ into Google and Hey Presto, Dirk’s name came up!
From our first meeting, we knew we weren’t going to have to look anywhere else for our wedding photography.Dirk knew exactly what we wanted, but answered all our questions, and he was even happy to meet the parents before the big day. Even though he encouraged us to look around and make sure we were happy with our choice, we didn’t bother, knowing that Dirk would do the job exactly as we wanted.
And Dirk didn’t disappoint!
Despite the torrential rain on our pre-wedding shoot, we had a fun and relaxed afternoon in
I was so excited to get a text from him saying ‘I’m on site, will be there in a second!’ on the morning of our wedding, knowing that he would get some lovely shots right from when he arrived!
I’d read reviews on Dirk’s website about how well he fits in on the wedding day and sure enough, every single guest we spoke to after the wedding commented on him.
Everyone said what a lovely bloke he was – one guest even said ‘that was the only wedding photographer I’ve seen who I’ve actually liked – I usually want to punch them by the end of the day after they have made the guests wait around for three hours before herding them into some ridiculous formal pose’.
Dirk was the opposite – the group shots were taken in about a minute and every single person is smiling from ear to ear!
Dirk was with us from 11 until around 9 on the day of the wedding, and he was hard at work for every single second. He even became like a third bridesmaid (minus the dress…), helping me with flowers and gifts when I was looking a little overwhelmed!
He took us away during the lull before the disco for a maximum of five minutes to get some photographs of the two of us alone – nobody even noticed we had gone and they turned out to be some of our favourite pictures!
Because of our jobs, we had asked Dirk if he wouldn’t mind leaving our photographs off Facebook and his BLOG, and we were very grateful to him for respecting our wishes.
Our photographs were ready for viewing less than a week after the wedding, and a gorgeous box with over 600 photographs was waiting for us on our return from honeymoon.
We love every single picture as they are so relaxed and everyone looks so happy – the photographs really tell the story of the day and we’ve looked at them over and over again since the wedding.Thank you, Dirk – we couldn’t have picked a better wedding photographer!
CHARLOTTE AND GRAEME'S WEDDING AT HOME
I photographed Charlotte's wedding to Graeme at Chester le Street and in a beautiful marquee at her parents home in Rickleton, Tyne and Wear
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| CHARLOTTE AND GRAEME IN THEIR MARQUEE DURING THEIR WEDDING |
We were quite nervous about the pre-wedding shoot we had planned a few weeks before the wedding but there was no need to be nervous at all, he put us at ease and we just spent the afternoon chatting away and getting to know each other.
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| LOVE IS IN THE AIR FOR CHARLOTTE AND GRAEME |
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| CHARLOTTE FINISHED GETTING READY IN THE LIVING ROOM AT HOME BEFORE HEADING TO THE CHURCH AT CHESTER LE STREET |
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| BEST SHOT OF THE DAY ... CHARLOTTE TURNS HER BACK ON PHOTOGRAPHER DIRK VAN DER WERFF |
Whilst on our honeymoon on Boracay Island in The Philippines we got word that Dirk had uploaded some of our photo's on Facebook.
Even though it was our honeymoon, we couldn't resist heading to the nearest internet café and logging on and we were over the moon with the results!
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| CHARLOTTE AND GRAEME ENJOY THE CAELIDH IN THE MARQUEE AT THE END OF THEIR WEDDING CELEBRATIONS |
I would recommend Dirk to anyone - particularly if your looking for more natural pictures.
Graeme's best man and fiancé were so impressed with Dirk that they have booked him for their wedding next year!"
CHARLOTTE FISHER
See a sneak peek of their wedding, posted the week after their BIG day .. HERE
CATHERINE AND GARY KESTER'S WEDDING REVIEW FROM TYNEMOUTH
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Catherine and Gary on the beach at Tynemouth .... and image which made the front cover of their wedding books
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Catherine's fabulous wedding Doc martin's especially painted for the occasion!
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I love photographing weddings in Tynemouth, there's such a lot of interesting churches and venues and hotels and some of my nicest photography in the last couple of years has been created at weddings in Tynemouth.
Last summer I photographed Catherine and Gary's wedding at The Grand Hotel Tynemouth and we had a ball, and as seems 'de rigeur' we ended up on Tynemouth Longsands one the speeches were over and everyone had had plenty of champagne!
Gary has kindly send a review of my performance as photographer at their wedding, and as he is a very talented videographer and photographer too, there was no pressure ... :)
"...Photography is something a lot of people misunderstand. I earn my living from it too so I know how easy some people think it is.
Given that anybody can buy a camera these days, even in things like their phones, surely this means that anybody can be a photographer, right?
Wrong - and Dirk proves exactly why, because there’s much more to photography than just taking a picture. What Dirk did on the wedding day of Catherine and I was not just capture what was happening and where, but pressing his shutter at exactly the right moment and from exactly the right angle to crystallise everything into beautiful, artistic images that help us remember a day that, to be honest, was all a bit of a blur in our heads (when it’s your turn, you’ll see!)
Taking amazing photographs is only one of Dirk’s many skills, and his other skill is far less common, because throughout the day Dirk, while never stopping, was only visible when he needed to be.
Amazingly, he took everything he needed and that we wanted without ever making his presence felt, unless it was time to stage portraits and quick group shots or respond to requests, in which instances his friendly manner and good humour set people at ease and brought out their best for the photographs.
An intrusive or overbearing photographer can easily get in the way and slow things down, while one that is too timid may well miss something magical. Dirk is neither, and we can safely say that his presence was as professional as it was welcome and enjoyable.
Selecting the right wedding photographer is a big decision, and we made the right one.
So thank you Dirk for helping make our big day everything we wanted it to be, and for producing a portfolio of photographs and wedding books that has stunned all who have seen them.
We’re delighted!..."
Gary and Catherine Kester
See a sneak peek of their images, posted a few days after their wedding, HERE
See a sneak peek of their images, posted a few days after their wedding, HERE
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Catherine and Gary have fun drawing a love-heart in the sand art Tynemouth
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LEILA AND LEWIS' WEDDING REVIEW FROM SUNDERLAND GLASS CENTRE
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LEILA AND LEWIS ON THEIR PRE-WEDDING SHOOT ON WHITBURN BEACH ONE EVENING - PHOTOGRAPHY BY DIRK VAN DER WERFF WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
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BLACK AND WHITE GIVES A WHOLE DIFFERENT FEELING TO THE IMAGES FROM THEIR PRE-WEDDING SHOOT
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ONE OF THE MANY IMAGES I CREATED AT LEILA AND LEWIS' WEDDING AT SUNDERLAND INTERNATIONAL GLASS CENTRE
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LEILA'S LOVELY DRESS FITS THIS WEDDING PORTRAIT ON TOP OF THE GLASS ROOF AT SUNDERLAND GLASS CENTRE PERFECTLY - PHOTOGRAPH BY DIRK VAN DER WERFF WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
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Wedding reviews are very important to a bride when she is researching for a wedding photographer.
Reviews give a one-to-one impression of the hard work and personality and skills needed to be a top-class professional creative wedding photographer.
That's why I put such value on wedding reviews by brides and grooms - and often Mum's and dad's too, as often they pay towards the cost of the day's celebrations, sometimes in their entirety!
This week, Leila kindly wrote to me with a review of her and Lewis' summer Humanist wedding at Sunderland Glass Centre, one of the newer, more distinctive wedding venues in north east England.
It was an exciting day for more than a couple of reasons, it was my first Humanist wedding, indeed it was my first wedding photography commission at Sunderland Glass Centre and the modern, post-industrial setting made for some lovely photographs.
It being summer of course we had the weather too .... dark dramatic skies, heavy rainfall, skittish winds playing up and down the River Wear .... but what a great day Leila and Lewis had, and I had a lovely time with all their friends and relatives capturing the essence and fun of their great wedding day!
Leila writes: When we were seeking a wedding photographer, I searched literally dozens of photographers’ websites, and I must admit that Dirk’s grabbed me instantly. His photos stood out a mile, and those that came close were from photographers charging twice as much.
I loved the relaxed, natural, yet at the same time very precise feel of the photography. Relaxed doesn’t mean sloppy, but rather effectively and skilfully capturing the atmosphere of the wedding day, the exact moment people gasp or smile.
Once we had signed up, it was a bonus to have the pre-wedding photo shoot. This gave us a chance to get used to being photographed and to tell Dirk about what we wanted.
Our wedding was slightly unusual in some ways but Dirk was enthusiastic about doing something different. Our venue had an industrial feel and the weather on the day was dramatic and changeable, but rather than spoiling the day this added to it as Dirk used the setting to create lovely, unique images.
On the day we were married facing inwards in front of large glass windows so the lighting was a real challenge, but Dirk captured the ceremony fantastically and a year on the photos evoke the reality brilliantly.
During the day, Dirk blended in easily with the guests and was charming and polite with everyone. Some group shots were taken but these were arranged quickly and efficiently and were in keeping with the informal style.
After the wedding day, we were able to enjoy looking at our photos on honeymoon, just 4 days after the wedding. Everyone who has seen them has commented on how much they love the photography. We have found Dirk to be very professional and provide excellent service throughout.
We haven’t yet committed to a wedding album, but the main thing is that we have a set of fantastic photos that capture our wonderful day, and that we can enjoy forever....."
Many thanks indeed to a great couple and their family and friends - it was an absolute pleasure to be part of your day at Sunderland Glass Centre. If you would like me to be the official photographer at your wedding in Sunderland - or anywhere in the country, I would be delighted to hear about your plans! Telephone me in the office until 6pm on 01429 423165 or anytime on my mobile 0778 7150966 and tell me all about your BIG day!
IT'S ALWAYS GREAT TO RECEIVE A REVIEW OR TESTIMONIAL FOR ALL THE HARD WORK AND PHOTOGRAPHS I CREATE AT A WEDDING.
MANY OF MY BRIDES LIVE ABROAD OR AT THE FAR ENDS OF THE UK, COMING BACK TO THE NORTH EAST, CUMBRIA, THE BORDER REGION OR NORTH YORKSHIRE TO GET MARRIED.
This wedding review is from Nicola about her and Jonathan's wedding at Lanchester in Durham and at Van Mildert College - the university where they first met in Durham.
".... Planning a wedding can be a stressful time especially when the bride and groom are living 120 miles apart and the bride is 300 miles away from where she is getting married!
Choosing Dirk as our wedding photographer photographer however removed a massive part of this stress. He provided us with fantastic support before, during and after our wedding. With us living so far apart it could have been easy for a photographer to just leave it to the day and hope for the best but not Dirk!
Dirk came to my parent’s house to explain the various packages available to us. We were able to look at his previous weddings in full to get inspiration for our own wedding and we also looked at the types of wedding books available.
One of the reasons why our photographs are so special comes down to the fact that Dirk met us at the venue during a brief visit two months prior to our wedding.
He saw the church where my parents were also married and then looked around where our reception was being held. We then had some photographs taken around the lake and on Prebends Bridge which was special too us - and on our wedding day we stopped off there again to have some more photographs taken!
Getting to know Dirk before the big day helped us to feel relaxed and because of that we were very relaxed on our wedding day and Dirk felt more like a friend than our photographer.
One of the things we love most about our A3 wedding book is how it captures our whole day. Dirk was at my house whilst we were getting ready and photographed the build up to the grand event! He also did this at Jonathan's preparation 45 minutes away.
One of things we didn’t want was the guests hanging around whilst hundreds of photographs were being taken and although we had some group shots the majority just captured the special moments of the day. This helped make the entire day feel really calm.
We had a rather wet wedding day but I was determined to have some pictures taken by the river down in Durham. After the service Dirk followed us there and the results we feel were stunning. They really add to the uniqueness of the album and show the beauty of the city - and the photograph of us walking down the hill to the bridge with the Chinese student on her bike we chose for the front page of our wedding book!
Everyone wants to have the perfect wedding day but when the last glass of bubbly has been supped, the last crumb of cake gone and the thank you cards have been sent it can all appear to have been a bit of a dream.
You better be quick though as with a service like this he will definitely be booked up fast!
Your wedding book or album therefore needs to be able to bring back all the wonderful memories and transport you back to the time of your happy day.
We both feel our photographs do exactly that and everyone who has seen them has loved them.
We can’t thank Dirk enough for all his time and effort and would recommend him to any potential bride and groom.
DIRK VAN DER WERFF 2012
