Tony Kluge Photography

A little indulgence

2011-10-12T13:49:00.000-07:00

Well, I don't really post up pics of my little one on facebook like most (it's my profile after all!) but I do love taking pictures of her, so I'm going to indulge myself after a long hard wedding season and put some up!

Hopeless photos

2011-09-30T01:26:00.000-07:00

If there's any group of professionals besides actors and musicians who could be accused of boasting, it's photographers. Guess it's part of the job, a bit of self promotion, but while I take my work deadly seriously, I don't mind poking a bit of fun at myself - check out the headless kid below - the photo didn't work out quite the way I had imagined! This is the only place the bride and groom will be seeing this one!

Kathryn and Richard at The Stradey Park Hotel

2011-06-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

Friends of friends of friends, these guys booked a year ago through some friends of friends. At the time I'm sure I told them that they should be fine for good weather til mid June (their wedding was on the 11th June) based on Mother Nature's performance for the last 3 years running. Well, I was kinda right and kinda wrong. As Kathryn rolled up in her magicly white wedding car, the heavens opened. And it wasn't just rain. As the videographer leapt into the car for shelter with Kathryn and her dad, a great bolt of lightning struck, followed by the obligatory thunder clap and some pretty harsh hailstones. My forecast was as good as Michael Fish and his hurricane. So I dived into the car too.

Still it made for some fun photos, and in true Welsh style, an hour and a half later we were laying on the grass in Parc Howard taking pics there in full sunshine. It turned out to be a gorgeous day and with a fun and really genuine couple, a great time taking the photography too. Thanks guys!

Well I don't normally take the groom and his best men to play rugby, but hey, they brought the ball, I had a camera and 5 rugby players in suits, so why not!

The beautiful bride, don't really need to say much more!

It was a busy household that morning I can tell you, but Kathryn had just a moment getting ready and at the top of the stairs when I could tell she was a little pensive thinking about the big day ahead.

Natural shots number two

2011-06-08T00:23:00.000-07:00

Promised them, so here they are..... There's also some other natural shots you can view here

Swansea 'scapes

2011-03-17T10:46:00.000-07:00

OK, I know we are fortunate to live in one of the most beautiful places in the UK, and on sunny days it's right up there my top 5 on the planet (well the ones I've been to anyway, and there's a fair few). But really, the photos of the area have been done so many times. And there's so much more to the place, a certain passion, a lust for all things fun, and a cheeky twinkle in the eye of people who live here, like, they know this is one great place. I haven't seen anyone trying to capture this so I'm gonna do some Swansea landscapes of my own, including the people. Here's a start.

a little indulgence

2011-03-17T10:01:00.000-07:00

It isn't often I get time to trawl the 50,000 images I have sitting on various discs and play around with them, so just doing a few now. This one was a bit of playing around - my wife agreed (she's so good) to be the model again. Took her to an industrial estate just next to my grandmother's in South Chicago. These places are fast disappearing to be replaced by some grim post modern type apartments, and I can really remember them from my early years. I also took some inspiration from the stunning photography of Matt Blum who often uses unconventional locations. It was a bit of a precursor to an industrial landscape shoot I did for a wedding back here in rainy Wales (I'll post some of them up soon).

Hiring a photographer

2011-03-16T06:58:00.000-07:00

I’ve already done a spiel on hiring ‘Uncle John’ for your wedding photography. Today I’m going to add a little about my style, and how style should inform your decision as much as price considerations.

So you’re sitting there thinking, I have £15,000 to spend on my wedding. It sounds like a heck of a lot of money – it is, but by the time you put everything together you’d be surprised. It’s actually really easy to spend a lot more, so you may need to go get yourself a stiff drink at this point! How much do I spend on peripheral things like chair covers, photographer, cake and so on?

This is where you need to take a step back and ask what the value against each of those items is. If you look at chair covers for instance, while the devil is in the detail and you may need to provide these to make the overall ambience of the room appealing, you do need to ask yourself how much you want to spend, in comparison to how much use you’ll get out of them, and who will remember them.

Now of course I’m going to sell the photography bit, but it really is important – after you have put your dress away, after the cake is eaten, the drink drunk, what do you have left? Well hopefully a whole lot of joyful memories and a partner for life, but if your memory is like mine (or your big day was also a big party), you’ll have forgotten half of the day. The only thing (apart from a video if you have one, and I really do rate these when done properly) you will have to show your kids, or just reminisce over, will be your photographs. I can authoritatively say that you need to get yourself a good photographer. My wife and I got married before the days of wedding fairs and before many photographers even had websites (I sound so old!), and we chose someone from a phonebook – suffice to say we really didn’t do our research.

GROOMS LISTEN UP! Even if you could care less about photographs, don’t risk putting yourself in my position; hiring a photographer who wasn’t anything like the best you can afford. You will pay dearly, as your wife will remind you every other day that your photos are rubbish – I know because that is what happened to me!

So let’s assume I have convinced you to go for the best you can afford. How do you decide on what is the best? Well, forget looking at price lists. Look at every website you can find, or go to fairs. And see whose wedding photographs make you go - “that’s what I want to look like!” (and I don’t mean scouring for dress ideas girls!). Make a list of the photographers that you like who are in your area or prepared to travel to you. Then and only then check the price lists. Some will not advertise their prices – they are generally but not always aimed at the higher end of the market, where people don’t make their main choice on price. Others provide everything for £299 and advertise on a lamp-post. I advertise my prices online – I don’t believe in aiming cheap, but I do provide great value for money and this can be seen by anyone who is interested.

I also make sure that my packages can be made bespoke to your needs – you are the paying customer after all. If a photographer is not prepared to take your specific requirements into account it is because the requests are not in keeping with their style, or they are not flexible – either way they are probably not the photographer for you. For instance, I often get asked if I do selective colouring (making most of the image black and white and keeping certain elements colour). The answer 99% of the time is no, because I personally think it looks naff, except on rare, very rare occasions. So if you asked me I would say probably not, and you would know to go elsewhere.

You may ask what elements of style to look out for. Here’s a few tips:

- “haven’t I seen this photo elsewhere?” If you have seen it replicated by other photographers, e.g. the groom and best men all jumping in the air, chances are you probably won’t have a very individual album

- Black and white and colour – does the photographer provide these both . Do colour image stand out because of their colour? Do black and white images make good use of contrast or do they look more ‘grey’?

- Looking a little different – are there quirky photos that look a little unconventional – a good indicator as to whether your photographer will make your album unique

- Natural and relaxed. Everyone now claims to do this. I think an excellent indicator of whether your photographer is good at this if the photograph of a ‘group’ photo is relaxed and natural. It shows the photographer can work with people in a situation which does not lend itself to natural, and still carry it off.

- ‘Trends’ – at the moment everything is ‘vintage’ style – I actually love this style, really love it ( I mean that old fashioned polaroid look). However I hate when everyone does it all the time, there are so many ways to do a photograph, it would be like doing selective colouring or black and white on everything. If you want this that’s cool, especially if your whole day has been laid out in a vintage theme. But keep an eye out for a photographer who can apply good judgement to their image. Once everyone does it all the time it becomes a trend, and will date terribly. You won’t get trends with me, just my style.

- Look out for a sense of design – the best photographs in the world can be spoilt or undersold if in a poor quality layout or album. Properly mounted and presented images can make you feel emotional when looking back at them, poorly presented ones just leave you feeling flat.

You can make up your own mind as to whether my photography style fits yours against these criteria, if it doesn’t, hopefully it has helped to narrow things down a little for you.

As it happens....

2011-03-15T12:24:00.000-07:00

I often find myself telling prospective customers about the relaxed approach to photography that we take at weddings ( you may also have seen my WM Magazine ad campaign 'Camera Shy?'). But if I'm honest, I always tend to show what I consider are the technically best shots, which doesn't always back up the claim, as sometimes some of these can be posed (not many mind!). So here's a selection of images that were 100% of the moment, no posing, just as they happened. There's also some more here..

these two just couldn't stop crying!

little tearaway liked his mom's selection of hairpiece

he was so bored, he yawned!

perfect light on the hairspray at bridal preps

kids are usually a doddle to get candid photographs of and bring out the best in the adults too

never seen a dad so proud when his daughter walked in

these guys were 50 going on 15, but a great laugh

That's it for this batch - I'll trawl for some more soon.

Just a little someone

2011-01-21T01:48:00.000-08:00

May as well get used to being photographed with a photographer for a dad....

Seaside Weddings

2011-01-21T01:12:00.000-08:00

I guess this one is long overdue given the stunning coastline that I'm so privileged to live near. There are a number of venues in the area that are immediately accessible from the beach - the most popular is probably Oxwich Bay Hotel, which seems to have undergone a bit of a rennaissance lately, it has a lovely marquee adjacent to the hotel overlooking one of the best stretches of beach in Wales I reckon.

I'm personally a fan of Swansea Bay - provided you can ignore Port Talbot, there are stacks of opportunities for some conventional and some not so cliche (more my bag) wedding shots. These are pretty popular for couples having their reception in Morgan's Hotel, Sketty Hall or The Marriott. Here's a couple of shots for you from Oxwich.

Chinese Wedding in Swansea and the Glasses Kid

2011-01-02T06:17:00.000-08:00

Well it has been a while since I've been able to get any wedding stuff up on here - phew, what a year. After promising my incredibly patient wife that things would slow down in the winter, it ended up that I was working Christmas eve to get things finished and delivering photos to here there and everywhere between Cardiff and Swansea.
At the risk of sounding ungrateful, I'll move on to where I started - I had the fortune of some really different weddings to photograph this year, one of which I've pasted a few photographs from below.

A lovely couple, Matt and Yu, had their wedding this year just down the hill from me in Clyne Chapel - a lovely venue even on the worst of occasions, and just as well as it didn't stop raining all day. It was a fantastic mixture of Chinese and western wedding traditions, and I felt really privileged to be able to photograph this day - thanks guys! Yu changed dress around 4 or 5 times which was a joy for more shots, I was really happy with the shots, but my favourite has to be the 'glasses kid' - couldn't resist it!

Have your wedding photographed for free!

2010-12-29T04:57:00.000-08:00

This may sound a little too good to be true, but for one lucky couple this year, we will photograph their wedding for free!

What's the catch? Well, it's a bit of an application process really (of course we are hoping for plenty of interest!). We are looking for a completely unconventional, off the wall wedding, probably from a couple who haven't really got a whole lot of cash to spend (though if the application is good enough, we'll accept anyone). Also, as photographers, you'll need to give us completely free reign to photograph your day as we like, with a view to doing something really different, and we mean different.

If this sounds a little risky, you probably shouldn't apply - we are looking for unusual people with an incredibly unusual wedding, who would love unusual photographs, for free.

The only ts&cs really are that this obviously does not apply to booked weddings, and prints and albums must be paid for if wanted (at the normal rate - this is not a way of making up the cost!) We will consider all dates that don't conflict with dates already booked, up until April 2012.

To get an application form, please email tony@tonykluge.co.uk. Good luck!

Bespoke Artwork Albums Launched

2010-08-18T11:16:00.000-07:00

After being a tad fed up of hearing that storybook albums are boring, or, well just a bit tacky, I knew that they were being undersold! They are great products, which are a bit like a flash car, cover 'em in muck and they don't look like much. Treat them right and they'll blow you away.

So I undertook to work on building a real album, one that stood out from the crowd and really made the most of the storybook idea.

Here's what I came up with, I'll be posting some more sample pages up shortly! To read more about these albums, visit my website

Nothing particular

2010-06-25T13:02:00.000-07:00

Well, can't think of anything particular to write about for these photos, I just liked 'em and wanted to share!

Wedding architect

2010-06-25T12:54:00.000-07:00

I'm always amazed at how soem photographers fail to spot the truly spectacular things around them. Ok, let's be honest, the Marriott in Swansea may be an OK hotel, but for a photographer the place is simply uninspiring to the highest degree. It's surrounded by beaches, which are fine, but what about the stunning architecture of the new buildings there? You never see it! So at a recent wedding, since we had a really open minded bride and groom, we moved away from the beach and amongst the buildings - here's some of the results...

Copestick Murray - Commercial Photography

2010-06-23T10:37:00.000-07:00

I just recently completed a photo shoot for Copestick Murray for their newly launched wine website. They wanted some pretty straight forward shots to sell the products, but I also threw in some more unusual shots, as I knew the web designer would be able to provide something much more appealing with these, to complement the rest of the site. Check it out - its a nice looking site!

Top notch wedding services for less

2010-06-02T10:40:00.000-07:00

Well, recently I got together with a superb wedding videographer based in South Wales (Cherished Memories Video) and we were having a discussion about how bloody expensive advertising was, and how expensive most things in the industry seemed to be similarly expensive, (and yes this does translate into costs having to be passed on to the consumer). So after much debate, we came up with the idea of a group of like minded, high end wedding services, who could get together to do a bit of joint promotion a bit more effectively. It took us a while to find the right people, but we got there in the end.

And so South Wales Premier Wedding Services was born - a group of 15 wedding services who are all offering 10% off their services, if you book the first one full price. You'll be pretty surprised at some of the quality names on there (even if I do say so myself!).

So instead of us spending 10% of our budgets on advertising, we are spending our 10% on you, the customer! Why can't everything in life be so simple!

If you would like to save a bit of money (well, quite a lot actually) , then give me an email on tony@tony.kluge@yahoo.co.uk, telling me when you are getting married, with your contact details, and I'll happily get one sent out to you straight away.

How to choose a photographer

2010-05-29T01:07:00.000-07:00

Over the next few weeks I'll be adding a load of hints about how to go about choosing a good photographer for your wedding. OK so here's the first one:

Decide what is most important to you. It may sound an obvious one, but often the first thing people will ask is what is the price, quickly followed by something like 'can you provide all day coverage plus huge album plus good quality photos'?

What applies elsewhere applies to photography - you get what you pay for. If price is your driving factor, there are photographers out there who will provide you with a cheap package. I have to say here I am not one of them. That's not to say your photos won't be any good, and some photographers at this end of the market take great pride in what they provide. However in my experience (including my own wedding!) you are not likely to get anything particularly different, inventive, or enjoyable on the day. Really creative photography that is spontaneous on the day, and images in your album that are different to those of your mates and family does cost. Customer service should come as standard but there are levels of it, and you should always get good value for your money no matter what you pay - it just depends on what you value!

A note on 'Free' weddings: some people know friends or family that can help keep costs down. Many photographers will advise strictly against this, I'm not such a killjoy, especially since friends of mine were kind enough to risk me on their big day and that's how I started out. And they'll tell you this because they want you to spend your money on them.

But don't just assume that everyone who holds a camera can manage a crowd, take the right images, know how to process them and look after you properly on your day, let alone actually use the camera properly. It's about weighing up the risk against the cost - if you know they can do the job and have seen lots of their work, then you'll probably be fine. You may not get professional images, but you'll get something you're happy with and have saved money in the process.

The big BUT is whether there is anything you are not 100% sure they can do. If you're not, don't even go there, as you'll only have yourself to blame if things go wrong, and you can't ask for a refund. It's also likely that your relationship is gonna deteriorate, and every time you look at your photos you'll have a horrible sinking feeling.

Next time: what to consider once you know what you want to pay!

Great Venues

2010-05-16T00:23:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd just add to my list of places that I have seen do things right (which amazingly many don't!):

The Orangery at Margam Park

Why do we like it? Well its a huge venue for a start, if its raining people will still have a good time. The main hall is light and airy, and if you have over 90 guests its really a place you want to consider (its also straight off the M4, though you feel as if you are in the middle of nowhere). The ceremony is held in the old stone floored half, seperated by a beautiful glass partition. It's not just the Orangery, there's a gothic castle, acres and acres of green parkland, stone ruins, and a Church.

I think the most impressive thing is that it's council-run - you'd never believe it! Oh, and the food is pretty good two - they do a killer cawl!

Kids at Weddings

2010-05-15T23:59:00.000-07:00

Personally I love kids at weddings, they are hardly ever camera shy and usually act before they think, which is just perfect for photography. I caught this little boy waiting in the church entrane with his mum - his expression was great, so I took a little of the colour out just to make the most of it.

Lifestyle Portraits

2010-03-27T06:20:00.000-07:00

A recent commission by a mum in Swansea wanted me to do a portrait photo session with her teenage children, but to capture them as they wanted to be rather than in a more formal family shoot. So I found out what they liked to do - the guy was a real pro on his saxophone while the girl was a real surfy chick.

We set up a studio in the home for the saxophone shots - I wanted to get some cool blur effects for a montage and needed total control over the light and backdrop. At the other end of the scale, getting some surfy shots wouldn't do in the house, so we popped down to the beach and got some great shots - it was the middle of winter though you'd never know it from the pictures.

Sara and Ian's Wedding at Fairyhill

2010-03-27T04:27:00.000-07:00

Winter Wedding at Fairyhill

We recently did another wedding at Fairyhill on Gower- the first winter/spring wedding we've done there. Sara and Ian had a small wedding but the day was just as impressive as some of the bigger events we have been to. And while winter weddings can be tricky, the light on the day was superb and the main building at Fairyhill helped to make the most of the fantastic light.

The bridal suite has a lovely bay sash window looking out over the expansive lawns.

The photo below wasn't set up - honestly! Mum, sister and bridesmaid were working hard to make sure Sara's dress was fixed in place well.

The main room has a grand piano and opulent furnishings which really set off any photos - no nasty fire exit signs and flourescent lighting here!

Even the gardens are beautiful in the winter.

What a venue!

If you are having a winter wedding, it can be one of the most atmospheric times of the year for photographs, and it can be cheaper to book wedding venues, so shouldn't be a second choice.

Photography vs Art

2010-01-10T04:39:00.000-08:00

My interest in photography really stems from my interest in art. As my style has developed, I like to throw in a mix of art based images for my clients, and if I am shooting purely for my own pleasure, then this is almost a given before I start.

Here's a couple that I was commissioned for in a recent wedding. I love when my clients are really open minded and willing to try different styles for portraits or weddings, as it really makes for individual albums and prints. It's really easy to get a pleasing shot out on Oxwich Bay or anywhere on Gower really (they call it an area of outstanding natural beauty for good reason), or in the beautifully groomed parks and gardens of Swansea.

Taking an interesting wedding shot on a drab grey

day in Port Talbot is another matter - yet some of my best shots (I think) have been against industrial backgrounds with slightly surreal compositions. It's not for everyone but even the sceptical clients are usually pleased with the results once they see the final image. It's certainly very helpful to be able to take a different approach when the weather is miserable and there are no green spaces available.

Its up - check it out!

2010-01-08T08:11:00.000-08:00

My new website is up and running. These things always take longer than you think, but I think its been worth it.
It has been designed to reflect what I believe makes me different from many of my competitors in the area. The Colour Mill had the brief to make it reflect the individual, hand crafted nature of what I do.

In a world of digital photography and digital processing, there is so much scope for doing everything en masse, that after a while everything looks the same - and this goes for websites too. I love to be different, even if it is not to everyone's tastes, and I'm happy that Benj at the Colour Mill and Anthony at Ballyhoo Commerce have given me something that really shows this and reflects on the individual attention and artistic element that I give to each and every photographic print that I process.

Anyway, enough navel gazing, here's my site: www.tonykluge.co.uk

You can buy prints, log in if you have been married or been at one of the weddings I have photographed and order your favourite prints, or just have a gander.

Hope you enjoy!

New website coming soon

2010-01-05T09:39:00.000-08:00

Keep an eye out here in the coming weeks for our new website. Designed by Benj at the Colour Mill, he's done a great job in conjunction with Anthony at Ballyhoo Commerce who has set up a bespoke content management system for the site - great news for computer idiots like me!

Benj has also redesigned the Tony Kluge Photography logo, bringing in the handcrafted element to both the site and logo.

We're also just about to launch our own range of photographic products, whether it's a portrait shot or a wedding, these are great. From handmade frames to acrylics, block prints and more, just check out the new website.....

Do You Travel?

2009-02-03T07:59:00.000-08:00

Just a quick note on here really to all potential clients wondering - Yes, I do travel further than the confines of Swansea! As a wedding photographer based in Swansea, I undertake work throughout South Wales, doing wedding and commercial photography in Cardiff of course, as well as Newport, Monmouth, Usk, Pembrokeshire - most of South, Mid and West Wales really. I have had that many people ask me, 'Do you travel to do wedding photography in Cardiff?'. Not a problem - I go anywhere (just see the pictures below)!

Travel Pictures

2009-01-30T05:59:00.000-08:00

I was having a trawl through some of my travel photos from a couple of years back. These were all taken on a point and shoot before my days of undertaking professional photography - I'd love to do this trip again but with my Nikon!

These were all taken in South-East Asia and India, where you don't have to look for inspiration, it finds you!

You can view more travel pictures from across the world on my main website

Weddings at the King Arthur Hotel, Gower

2009-01-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

Having just undertaken a winter wedding at the King Arthur Hotel in Gower, I feel pretty happy with the images taken there. Doing a shoot in near darkness without a lot of support lighting equipment is a bit of a job for sure, but the venue did help. This is certainly one of the region's best venues in my opinion, if you are reading this and looking at places to get married. It's highly atmospheric, right on the edge of the Cefn Bryn hillside on Gower. The wedding service is run like clockwork, and while such an outfit exceeds itself, it never aims to feel stuffy or pompous.

Because the venue is a pub and inn at the front, with a hidden away but roomy and elegant reception room at the back, it feels like two wedding venues in one. I've now been to a couple of weddings there, both in summer and winter and they do a great job in both seasons. Just in case you're wondering - I'm not on commission! I just like to keep my customers and visitors to my site informed. I've popped some images on from the last wedding there.
Click here if you would like to see more examples of wedding Photography in Cardiff and Swansea.

2008-12-03T12:08:00.000-08:00

I just completed a Food Photography talk for Neath Photographic Society - it was good, there was a fair amount of interest in food photography (I think!) It was interesting to see how this society is so established - they have their own dark room and studio, I think they have been going now for some time in the 1930's. It was a bit daunting to talk to a room of semi-pros and amateurs to be honest, but hopefully they picked up a thing or two about food photography. There's now a competition on, titled 'Food and Wine' which I will be judging in February and I'm looking forward to seeing some of the entries - I'll post them up on here when they are all entered.

In the meantime if you want to see some examples of my food photography you can visit www.tonykluge.co.uk
You can also see some of my wedding photography on there which I have taken in Swansea, South Wales and elsewhere.

swansea photographer wedding photography in swansea photograper in cardiff wedding photographer in cardiff

Welcome to the Blog for Tony Kluge Photography - the sister site to www.tonykluge.co.uk

2008-11-21T05:57:00.000-08:00