Somali man aged 112 married teenager. He marries 17 year-old from same village at wedding in Somalia.
October 29, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Somali man, ‘112′, weds girl, 17 |
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Hundreds of people have attended a wedding in central Somalia between a man who says he is 112 years old, and his teenage wife. Ahmed Muhamed Dore - who already has 18 children by five wives - said he would like to have more with his new wife, Safia Abdulleh, who is 17 years old. “Today God helped me realise my dream,” Mr Dore said, after the wedding in the region of Galguduud. The bride’s family said she was “happy with her new husband”. Mr Dore said he and his bride - who is young enough to be his great-great-grand-daughter - were from the same village in Somalia and that he had waited for her to grow up to propose. “I didn’t force her, but used my experience to convince her of my love; and then we agreed to marry,” the groom said. The BBC’s Mohamed Olad Hassan in Mogadishu says the marriage in the town of Guriceel is being described by Somalian historians as the first of its kind in the Horn of Africa nation for over a century. |
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Smarter wives make for a longer marriage! Younger wife for marital bliss!
October 26, 2009 | Filed Under Uncategorized, Weddings | Leave a Comment
‘Younger wife’ for marital bliss |
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The secret to a happy marriage is choosing a wife who is smarter and at least five years younger than you, say UK experts. These pairings are more likely to go the distance, particularly if neither has been divorced in the past, according to the Bath University team. The findings predict a happy future for pop star Beyonce Knowles, 28, and rapper husband Jay-Z, 39. The work is published in the European Journal of Operational Research. The researchers studied interviews of more than 1,500 couples who were married or in a serious relationship. Five years later, they followed up 1,000 of the couples to see which had lasted. For better or worse They found that if the wife was five or more years older than her husband, they were more than three times as likely to divorce than if they were the same age. If the age gap is reversed, and the man is older than the woman, the odds of marital bliss are higher. Add in a better education for the woman - Beyonce has her high school diploma, unlike husband Jay-Z - and the chances of lasting happiness improve further. Those who have never divorced fare better too. But couples in which one member has been through a divorce in the past are less stable than those in which both members are divorcees. Dr Emmanuel Fragniere and colleagues do say that men and women choose partners “on the basis of love, physical attraction, similarity of taste, beliefs and attitudes, and shared values.” But they say that using “objective factors” such as age, education and cultural origin “may help reduce divorce”. |
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Sweden church allows gay weddings
October 24, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Sweden church allows gay weddings |
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The Lutheran Church of Sweden - the country’s largest - is to conduct same-sex marriages from next month. Around 70% of the church’s 250-strong synod, or church board, voted to back the move, making it one of few global churches to allow gay marriage. Sweden’s government introduced a new law in May allowing gay couples the same marriage rights as heterosexuals. Three-quarters of Swedes are members of the Lutheran church, though church attendance is low. The Lutheran Church says gay couples can now get married by any of its priests from the beginning of November. Individual priests will not be “forced” to perform same sex ceremonies, though substitutes will have to be found if they refuse. The church - which split from state control in 2000 - backed the government’s decision to legalise gay marriage in May. But some clergy had questioned whether church ceremonies - and the term matrimony - should be reserved for heterosexual unions. Others opposed the move on the grounds it contravened the scriptures. Limited opposition In response, the Archbishop of Sweden, Anders Wejryd, told reporters: “For my part, the right decision was taken, but I can empathise with the many who believe this has gone too fast.”
Sweden’s largest gay rights group, the Swedish Federation for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Rights (RFSL), welcomed the move. “[We] congratulate the Church of Sweden for its decision. [The church's] homosexual and bisexual members will finally be able to feel a little more welcome within society,” the group said in a statement. Sweden was one of the first countries to give gay couples legal “partnership” rights, in the mid-1990s, and to allow gay couples to adopt children from 2002. It become the fifth European country, after the Netherlands, Belgium, Spain and Norway, to recognise same-sex marriage. |
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Wedding guest lost in Dorset.Police help to find wedding venue.
October 20, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Police hunt lost guest’s wedding |
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A man who became lost in Dorset after flying to Britain for his son’s wedding made it to the event after detectives spent a day tracking down the venue. Joe Arseneault, 75, lost all details of the venue, near Blandford, by the time he arrived at Wareham railway station. He had also forgotten to tell his son of his arrival time from Canada. Dorset Police arranged accommodation and dinner for Mr Arseneault, before ringing registry offices and hotels and delivering him to the event.
Mr Arseneault had flown in from Toronto to see his son, Paul, get married. A taxi driver initially came to his aid when no-one came to pick him up from the station on 25 September. Mr Arseneault, who did not have a mobile phone, had lost all information about the time and whereabouts of the event the next day. A Dorset Police spokesman said: “By the following morning, officers had made contact with directory inquiries, various registry offices and venues and hotels in the area that regularly hold weddings and services, without success. ‘Efforts and kindness’ “By 11am, Pc Simon Wilcox found the location of the wedding in Hilton, near Milton Abbas.” Pc Wilcox arranged to pick up Mr Arseneault and took him to meet other relatives. Mr Arseneault’s new daughter-in-law, Kathryn Arseneault, said: “Joe is 75 years old, and it was his first time out of Toronto for many years. “He’d forgotten to tell us which train he was arriving on, and he had lost his information slip, so he was effectively utterly stranded until the police helped him out.” Pc Wilcox said: “I would like to thank the efforts and kindness of the taxi drivers at the train station who initially dealt with Mr Arseneault, ensuring that he was reassured and kept out of the cold.” |
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Concorde in service for weddings in Surrey.What are the iconic/top/best/ wedding venues in Somerset/ Dorset?
October 20, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Concorde in service for weddings |
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A Concorde passenger jet has been brought back into use in Surrey - as a wedding venue. Surrey County Council said love was in the air at Brooklands Motorsport and Aviation Museum, where couples could now tie the knot on the aircraft. Business manager Jan Knott said the council used to receive weekly requests to get married on the aircraft when Concorde was in service. Concorde completed its last commercial passenger flight in October 2003. Councillor Denise Saliagopoulos said: “We were more than happy to provide a civil wedding licence that will mean this much-loved icon of the air can continue to be a place for happy memories long into its retirement.” It is hoped the first wedding will soon be held on board - giving the grounded aircraft a new role 40 years after its first supersonic flight. |
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Orchardleigh House, Somerset, Wedding Fayre 21st February, 2010
October 20, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Hi,
It’s come to that time of year again would you be so kind to advertise our fayre on your site as per last year.
If you are intersted in exhibiting i will send over a pack as well.
The details for site are as follows:
Orchardleigh will be hosting their annual wedding fayre on Sunday 21st Febuary 1-5pm
Orchardleigh Wedding Fayre 2010
Orchardleigh House
Orchardleigh Estate
Frome
Somerset
BA11 2PH
Advance tickets and further info please contact Eve or Karen on 01373 466 477 or 07923 633 486 or weddingfayre@googlemail.com proceeds for Macmillan Cancer Support.
How hard can it be to be a wedding photographer? With the recent case of a couple who successfully sued their wedding photographer, the answer should be “use professional wedding photographers”
October 20, 2009 | Filed Under Photography, Weddings | Leave a Comment
A couple have successfully sued their wedding photographer for his shoddy coverage of their big day. Anyone can point a camera at a happy couple, but what pitfalls do the professionals face?
The memorable shots from Marc and Sylvia Day’s wedding are unusual, to say the least. Decapitated guests, a ceremony hardly visible through the gloom, and random close-ups of… not the bouquet, or a snatched kiss, but of carriage wheels.
The three-year-old bridesmaid - caught in one snap without her clothes on - could have done a better job.
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SEND YOUR BAD WEDDING PICS
 But only if you took these yourself and so have copyright
Email: yourpics@bbc.co.uk, subject BAD WEDDING
MMS from UK: 61124
Int MMS: +44 7725 100100
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The Days are so upset that they’ve taken their photographer to court for breach of contract over the £1,450 photo and video package.
But how hard can it be to get great shots at a happy occasion, where everyone is dressed up in picturesque locations? Most guests bring along their own cameras, after all.
Harder than it looks, says Paul Cudmore, a past winner of Wedding Photographer of the Year, who has been in the business for 18 years.
“It’s all about emotions and capturing emotions. And obviously you’ve got to look out for vans driving past in the background.”
The secret is in the planning - knowing what the bride and bridegroom want, who will be there, where the best locations are.
Then there are the timings.
“Brides are always late arriving, so you have perhaps four or five minutes to get shots you’d normally spend an hour on.
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 A guest told me that at the last wedding she went to, the photographers were blowing whistles at them  Paul Cudmore
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“And brides and grooms - most of whom haven’t been married before - don’t realise that it can take quarter of an hour for people to leave the church and assemble for photos. I’ve had reception venues phoning me to ask where everyone is.”
Most tricky of all is the group shot most couples want, if not for themselves, then for Mum and Dad, Auntie Mabel, and their grandparents.
To get that many people to stand in the right place, to look in the right direction - and to smile at the right time - can be like herding cats.
“It’s all about communication, making the guests and the wedding party feel relaxed and happy,” says Mr Cudmore. “At one wedding, a guest told me that at the last wedding she went to, the photographers were blowing whistles at them.”
One of Neil Thayer’s wedding shots
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Neil Thayer, a wedding photographer based in Bath, says it’s the photographer’s job to keep everyone happy.
“It’s like getting all your family together at Christmas - some people don’t get on, there are husbands and wives who have split up and come together for this big set-piece. There can be a lot of tension. On one job I was on, there was very nearly a fight.”
And even if fisticuffs aren’t on the horizon, many of those being photographed simply want to crack on with the celebrating. They complain that the photos are taking too long, and itch to get off to the bar.
How does Mr Thayer keep things moving along, and still get the right shots? “I never stop talking to people, even if it’s making silly jokes. I always make sure I work with the ushers, and know their names - because they will know the names of the people I don’t.”
Camera trouble
Then there are the naturalistic reportage shots popular with couples today. The only trouble is, people often freeze when they sense a camera lens pointing in their direction.
“They stop, crack a smile, then say ‘Are you finished?’ I say yes, they breathe a sigh of relief, relax, and start talking and laughing again. I keep shooting,” says Mr Thayer.
There’s more to it than fancy kit
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“The bride and groom are not often together,” says Mr Cudmore. “She’ll be on one side of the room talking to someone, and he on the other. You have to instruct them to stand next to each other - not fake reportage, but staged reportage.”
Both live in fear of mechanical failure, whether it’s a camera card corrupting (which happened once to Mr Cudmore) or car trouble (Mr Thayer locked his keys in the boot and almost missed the reception).
“I always take two cameras and three or four lenses,” says Mr Thayer.
“You’ve got to have back-up kit - I always take double. And I always pack a needlework kit in my bag in case of accidents,” adds Mr Cudmore, who often finds himself helping to tie cravats and advising relatives on which side of the church to sit.
And if there are small children involved?
“So many people tell them ‘you’ve got to be good, you’ve got to smile’. Then these little four and five-year-olds build up this big worry. I tell them ‘we’re going to have lots of fun, the bride will look like a princess and you’ll be helping her’.”
His advice for choosing a photographer for the big day? “Look at their portfolio and make sure it is all their own work.”
Below is a selection of your comments.
I’ve only started in this industry and shot my first wedding recently. It’s an incredibly daunting task. The timing, the constant awareness needed to capture moments, the technical difficulties in low light, people herding, research, and the time consuming post-processing all make this a lot more difficult than imagined. People just dive in, thinking a £500 camera with a built-in flash will cut the mustard. Not a chance. I’ve spent over 4k on gear, and need more lenses and light tools, six months of deep research and practice, 12 years using Photoshop professionally as a graphic artist. I’m still nervous about every shoot.
Emmett McLaughlin, Liverpool
I was married just outside of Gloucester 13 months ago today and I still get upset thinking about our wedding photos. We scoured the region for a photographer and had several discussions with him about the shots and style we wanted. Although I remember being nervous on the day how shots would come out, it wasn’t until a week later that we received the final images and were absolutely devastated. None of us alone after the wedding, or full-length shots of my dress, or with my bridesmaid or family. Family shots like “where’s Wally”. We wrote to him afterwards to ask about some make-up shots and let him know our disappointment but received no reply. It all sounds so trivial, but it nevertheless hurts when there’s no picture taken you can bear to have on display of your wedding day.
Jessica Oldroyd, London, England
As a professional photographer I can categorically state that wedding photography is a very special skill, a skill which I do not have. There is no second chance, no room for any error and no room for a small mistake. The ONLY way to learn wedding photography is to work as an assistant to a wedding photographer - not an easy job to get, either, as you are a potential threat to their business.
Chris Young, Caheragh, West Cork, Ireland
I’m one of the new breed of photographers I’m afraid. I’ve had some tutoring and attended classes in lots of photography disciplines, but none of it can really prepare you for what you will face on a real shoot. I’ve been fortunate that I’ve been chosen by friends to shoot weddings for cost of printing only or for free, and they have been happy with my work, but it’s clear the real professionals earn every penny. It’s exhausting, stressful work. You only get one chance at taking these photos, and the pressure and responsibility doesn’t really hit you until the big day. Best left to the pros.
Roy Stoliday, Southampton
We also have terrible wedding pictures. The only one we have framed was taken by my father and we never look at our album as the photographer’s pictures are dreadful. We plan to renew our vows after 10 years (four years time) and have some decent pictures taken by a talented photographer, and as a bonus our children will be there too.
Corrine, Sleaford
We didn’t have a photographer at our wedding - we couldn’t face spending hundreds of pounds to have a stranger boss everyone about for hours while we all got tired and bored. Our friends and family took lovely shots, we have a beautiful album, and everyone looks so happy and relaxed because they are being photographed by people they know.
Sarah S, York, UK
We had a fabulous photographer for our wedding, not stupidly expensive and he really captured the mood of the day. It was only after we booked him we realised he had won Wedding Photographer of the Year. Friends of our paid twice as much for theirs, who managed to get a fire extinguisher in every photo of the bride before the ceremony and tourists’ heads looking over the castle walls.
Sarah, Sutton Coldfield
I got married in pre-digital times, 14 years ago. The photographer took three rolls of film, but when they were developed, the machine broke and two of the films, including the one with the church pix, got completely over-developed. While we only have happy memories of the main part of the ceremony, the lab made some manual black and white prints of as many church pictures they could, including some close-ups of bride and groom. They look absolutely stunning and everyone thinks it was done this way on purpose. I was very impressed by the skill and dedication of everyone involved to save as many pictures of our special day as possible.
Chris, London
I worked as a wedding host at a country house hotel and saw all kinds of photographers come and go. The digital era appears to have promoted a scatter gun effect in which the man behind the lens takes thousands of shots and hopes to get a good one. The best we worked with - and the ones who had the best rapport with guests - were the old school ones. We would support them and herd guests into the right places at the right times, but high cost doesn’t mean high quality. Our recommended photographer was about mid-price and did Hasselblad work for the main photos and his daughter caught people in unguarded moments with a digital camera. A great pairing with an old school camera and new fangled digital one.
Gavin, Manchester, England
Many people are not using professionals because they think that the images shot by their guests will suffice and see it as a way of cutting costs. But a good wedding photographer can make the day run so much more smoothly. As well as taking pictures, the photographer is the one person prior to the reception who can organise and stage-manage the event ensuring that everyone is in the right place and guiding things along. It is an immensely stressful job with a huge amount of responsibility and certainly not for the faint-hearted. Yes, pros can be expensive but it’s a three day job when all of the pre-organisation, editing, and post production is taken into consideration and so costs need to be covered.
Andy Newbold, Leatherhead, Surrey
We just asked guests to share their pictures with us. We ended up with the most fabulous photos and one guest even put an album together which was very special. My advice is not to pay out - the pictures we ended up with are exceptional quality, very natural and really catch the essence of the day.
Daphne, Northants, Daventry
As we were living abroad before our wedding, my parents arranged everything for us, so when we got back the photographer was already booked. At our first meeting she said she’d driven by the church (chosen because I’d know the minister my whole life, not for its appearance) and on a scale of 1-10 it rated about 3 for attractiveness, turning her nose up. I asked if she’d walked around to the little churchyard - of course she hadn’t, should have fired her right then. She decided we would do most of the photos at the reception in a concrete courtyard, with the wrong lighting, shadows, a bench poking into half the photos, people squinting. She upset half the guests, bossing them about & as she only had a hand-held camera, they thought she was another guest. The photos are very average, but my friends took much better (=relaxed) ones. The technique and equipment is only half of it - the bedside manner counts for a lot. This was pre-digital - these days your guests can do it all, just have a list & maybe one friend to make sure which group shots you don’t want to miss.
Jane, York
I was told by the person who taught me the science behind the camera, about wedding photography: “The ceremony lasts an hour, the cake may last three days, the bride won’t fit in to her dress in five years, but… your photographs will have to last a lifetime.” That mantra has stuck with me and in a business where the end product is still very disposable, it is one reason why I very rarely take any wedding photographs; because when pressing the shutter release, the image not only has to look good tomorrow, it still has to be appreciated 10, 20 or 30 years down the line.
Sean, Chesterfield, Derbyshire/Barcelona, Spain
At our wedding, our photographers (she had a team working with her) were brilliant. Never in your face and capturing emotion and moments and lighting… the pictures are as much art pieces as they are printed memories. Eight years later and we still keep in touch with her. We’ve been to several of her exhibitions and have one of her photos (not of our wedding) hanging in our hallway. Bottom line - it’s not the equipment or luck, though those help. It’s the eye of the artist holding the camera.
John F, Philadelphia
Over the past 10 years I shot countless weddings. I came to hate wedding photography as it is repetitive and very ungrateful. I admire those who are willing to cope with weddings. Stopped the whole wedding business about a year ago and switched entirely to studio work. And I love my photography again.
Charles, Belfast, UK
We didn’t have a massive budget for our photographs, and found the extortionate prices some photographers were charging truly jaw-dropping. Our photos were OK, but I really believe that I could have done as good a job. Had I not been the groom, I would have done them myself.
Shane, Sale
That takes me back. Our photographer was brilliant, kept chatting, got all the shots we wanted and was a reasonable price. Not the 1000s quoted above. You need a good photographer. It is an art. I know someone who had a friend of a friend to do their wedding photos and they were just snapshots. Nothing outstanding for the mantlepiece.
Ian, Romford, UK
It takes more than just a good camera and a flash. It’s all about reading a situation, learning how to use light and understanding group psychology. Not to mention weddings always put you in impossible situations… situations where the biggest names in photography would say “no way…you can’t do that”. So if you don’t think you can work your way out of any situation, don’t even think of ruining someone’s wedding. Every day I see wonderful photographers on Flickr. Amazing work from amazing people. Thing is about 90% of them should never go near a wedding. Photographing things and photographing people are two very different things.
Robert Burress, Liss, Hampshire, UK
I got remarried last November in a Gothic style of wedding, which was new to the photographer. Although the finished album turned out fantastically, the photographs on the day were a real chore. After the wedding itself, it took about an hour for all the pictures to be done in every configuration imaginable… and 20 minutes after the guests had left for the reception. It started to feel as though the day was more about him and his pictures than about me and my husband.
Heather, Willenhall
This is a sad reflection on today’s industry where anyone with a camera can now call themselves a photographer. As a professional and full-time photographer for 27 years, I have seen the standards within this industry eroded because of amateurs and weekend photographers who posses very little in the way of technical training or knowledge, vocational qualifications, no professional affiliations, no insurance, and no ability. I hope this is a valuable lesson and wake-up call for non-professional photographers that sub-standard work is not acceptable, and that they should get trained and get affiliated with a photographic organisation.
Ian Arthur, Glasgow
Some friends of mine chose their wedding venue (civil) simply because of the picturesque location it offered for photographs. The bride had a list of specific shots she wanted. Everything had been prepared for; they even allowed two hours for the full range of photographs in this spectacular garden with stunning wide-reaching vistas. On the morning of the wedding, I flung open my curtains with eager anticipation of a perfect day only to see…
…nothing. Not even the tree 30 feet away from my bedroom window. The DENSEST fog in many years had descended. It could have been a disaster but their photographer was a genius. She took close-ups of everyone, little vignettes of buttonholes or bridesmaids’ beaded pumps or family groups inside the venue, then returned on the next decent day and took the vistas the couple had been so enchanted by. When the prints were placed in the album, the entire effect was eye-moistening.
Jaye, Rutland, England
I’ve been photographing weddings for over 10 years now and the industry has changed substantially. There are many photographers out there using sub-standard amateur equipment. The problem with underexposed photos in the church above is caused by the use of cheap lenses on a cheap camera body - 99% of churches do not allow flash photography so you need wide aperture lenses to cope with the low light conditions. The problem is that many people believe wedding photography is a less professional art than perhaps fashion or editorial. It is in fact probably the most demanding area of photography there is. You only have one chance, the lighting conditions are constantly changing and you have to keep people happy at the same time. I did a photography degree but only experience can teach you the pitfalls of this industry.
Ian, Sevenoaks
We just didn’t have the money to spend over £1,200 on photographs, so we bought loads of disposables and got people to send us pictures they had taken on their own cameras. The quality of these was brill. Your mates know how to take your best picture.
Caroline, Winchester
I’ve stopped agreeing to be “official” photographer at friends and family weddings. It is simply the most stressful role to play and the results can be hit and miss. My tip: get a nice long telephoto lens and be inconspicuous and take candid photos after you’ve done all the staged cheesy stuff. It also helps to know your location beforehand. Give me landscapes and nature over excited, tipsy wedding revellers any day of the week.
Adam, Manchester
I used to provide tech support to a number of clients including a wedding photographer. Every time he wandered in with his latest video editing disaster I cried a little on the inside for the poor victims. It wasn’t my place to tell him he was destroying dreams but I think anyone looking for a photographer should ask to see some kind of portfolio. There really are some muppets out there who see an easy few hundred quid in the making.
Bob, Derby
Wedding fayre at the Menzies East Cliff Hotel, Bournemouth, Dorset
October 19, 2009 | Filed Under Weddings | Leave a Comment
Wedding fayre at the Menzies East Cliff Hotel, Bournemouth
on Sunday 25th October 2009 from 11am - 4pm.
Entrance Fee: Free Entrance.
53,Grove Road, Bournemouth, Dorset, BH1 3AN
Woman from Wellington, Somerset, to marry after crossing ice cap
October 19, 2009 | Filed Under Travel, Uncategorized, Weddings | Leave a Comment
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Ice cap trek spells wedding bells
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Katie-Jane and Tarka walked across the Great Wall of China together
Some women go to extreme lengths to get their partner to propose to them, but not many would undertake a dangerous mission to cross the world’s third largest ice cap. But that’s exactly what Katie-Jane Cooper from Clayhidon, near Wellington, is doing. The 29-year-old and her partner Tarka L’Herpiniere, 27, have always been adventurous and that love could lead to a marriage proposal. Should the duo make it across the ice cap in Southern Patagonia - without the aid of a kite - a hidden wedding ring will end up on Katie-Jane’s finger. Tarka’s love of dangerous activities and mountains stemmed from his childhood where he grew up in the French Alps. Since then, Tarka has continuously pushed his body to extreme lengths, having completed nearly 30 expeditions to date. Katie is also a keen sportswoman; at the age of 17 she won the Individual National Schools Eventing Championships, and in 1997, she was runner up to Zara Philips at the national championships. So, it was only natural that when the couple met that they would undertake adventures together. “Most of our ideas our spawn from Katie’s mind and then I develop them. So Katie mentions them in jest usually and says ‘I’d like to go and visit Southern Patagonia’ and then I kind of mould it into more of an adventure,” said Tarka.
“When I was suggesting the Great Wall of China, I was actually suggesting holidaying, taking pictures, a one week - two week walk, and then Tarka escalates it into these huge, mammoth tasks,” said Katie-Jane. And the latest mammoth task involves completing a full crossing, north to south, of the Southern Patagonian ice cap fully unsupported. To make the trek even more difficult, they have decided to take only the exact amount of food rations they require (37 days worth for a 40 day crossing due to the weight limit) which means they cannot afford any mistakes or delays. “For me it’s by far my biggest challenge yet,” said Katie-Jane. “My previous expeditions that I have been on, all I’ve had to do is keep going; it’s been a battle not to give up whereas this one technically is incredibly demanding.” And one of the demands includes having to propel down a 600-metre cliff face. To prepare for this, they have been abseiling down the Avon Gorge, while imagining that their reality will be ten times as far. “[I'm] incredibly wary of the 600m ice cliff. I’m very much concerned of the fact that because it is an area of such incredible weather, and because we have such limited food supplies we have to navigate in what would normally be considered as ‘inadequate conditions’ to be manoeuvring around crevasses,” said Tarka. He said normally they would sit it out in a tent but because they have such a limited food supply, they are going to have to keep going.
“When I prepare, I genuinely prepare as if it is someone else going and not myself. That’s my way of getting through,” said Katie-Jane. “But now with a week to go, I have to mentally prepare myself with my sport psychologist that it’s me who has to go and that I’m capable and have the skills.” Being a couple has also meant they have had to take a special mental attitude to the expedition. “If one of you has an argument, then that could be death. It can’t happen, there has to be rules set in place before you go,” said Katie-Jane “Tarka is the expedition leader so his decision is always final even though we have discussions and we have to stand by that despite being a couple and thinking you’re always right.” Cold and hunger So what part of the trip are they least looking forward to? Tarka said he dreads the cold, wind and hunger, but “although I dread all that, I also have a strange love of it at the same time”. “I really love to see how far you can go as a human, how much control you have over yourself and the elements and to see whether you can be in a position to be in control in an out of control situation.”
“We know the chances for success are pretty slim, so to still go out there with the right attitude that we can still achieve it despite it being impossible, has meant a lot more mental preparation,” said Katie-Jane. “If we’re going to talk about it statistically, we’ve probably got a 40% success rate because we’re going for such an unusual technique but deep down inside, I wouldn’t go unless I thought I had a better chance than that,” said Tarka. Katie-Jane added: “We don’t give up, we’re there to succeed. In general we like to be winners so we’re push to the bitter end.” And what better impetuous to complete the mission than the promise of an engagement at the end of it? Tarka has even sewn a ring into his suit. “If I make it, Tarka has promised me that we will get engaged to be married which is amazing. “I’ve been discussing this with him and if he breaks his leg and we have to be evacuated does that mean it’s off and he said yes but that’s not fair!” The couple leave on Saturday, and you can follow their progress every step of the way on the Rivers of Ice website. |
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Wedding photography on Sandbanks Beach, Poole, Dorset illegal?!
October 15, 2009 | Filed Under Photography, Weddings | 1 Comment
PHOTOGRAPHER BEACH BAN INFRINGES ‘CIVIL LIBERTIES’
A photographer who was told by a council official he was not allowed to take pictures on a Dorset beach without a permit - because of a new ‘by-law’ - is lobbying local MPs.
Speaking to Amateur Photographer (AP) he also fears the rule will hit wedding photographers who regularly use beaches for their work.
It has also emerged that photographers must seek permission from Poole Council before taking ‘commercial’ photographs on ‘council-owned land’. The council says photographers also need to prove they have ‘public liability insurance’.
Steve Cook was taking photographs on the council-owned Sandbanks Beach for a charity project when a council warden stopped him.
He displayed a photo rights card, issued last year by the Bureau of Freelance Photographers, but to no avail.
Amid reports that a commercial photography permit is also now required for the borough’s ‘public highways’, the incensed photographer last night wrote to council chiefs and local MPs, Annette Brooke and Robert Syms.
In the letter, seen by AP, Cook blasts the move as ‘petty officialdom’.
He adds: ‘Originally I was told that it was a Poole by-law, now it just seems that there is a secret (i.e. no-one knows about it) directive that all professional photographers need a permit to take photographs in the Borough of Poole, including pavements and public highways.
‘Not only is this blatantly an infringement of civil liberties, going against Home Office and Number 10 advice, but it is totally unworkable.
‘I would need in excess of 20-30 permits a week to carry out my work (as would other pro photographers, including the Daily Echo’s)….’
Cook has called for an end to the ‘outrageous restrictions’ on the ‘livelihood and civil liberties of all professional photographers’.
Among those furious at the news is Nigel Atherton, Editor of What Digital Cameramagazine.
He said: ‘This kind of story makes me really angry. There seems to be a growing trend among Britain’s local authorities to behave as though they’re running North Korea.
‘Councils should be reminded that they do not ‘own’ the beaches, roads, parks and other public spaces, they are owned by the public whose taxes pay to upkeep them.
‘Councils are elected by their residents to maintain and look after them on our behalf, not to throw their weight around like tin-pot dictators banning photography and anything else they take a dislike to.’
Poole Council admits that the warden was ‘incorrect’ in telling Cook that the move was the result of a new by-law.
In a statement a council spokesman added: ‘While we are keen to promote our beaches and other locations in Poole for this purpose, we must also balance this with the interests of other beach users and our duty to ensure public safety.’
The incident is the latest in a long line of clashes between photographers and officialdom over the past couple of years - sparking Amateur Photographer’s nationwidecampaign to defend the rights of photographers in public places.