Hi, I’m Albert Palmer and I think weddings are awesome.
When I was younger, I had a dream of becoming a singer in a rock band… I failed, as you can see…
But as a grown up I love to photograph weddings. It’s my aim to capture the emotion, the life and the energy of the day. To tell the story like it is, without intervention.
I grew up in a cottage in the countryside miles from any shops or city centres. Both of my parents were artists of different sorts. My dad was a wood sculptor, he made me wooden toys and encouraged me to enjoy my freedom. My mother was a musician and between concerts she would teach people what she knew. Neither of my parents had a camera and they don’t even have photographs of their wedding day.
Looking back now that seems strange as we were a very creative family. I was taught to read and play music, given a pencil and piece of paper to draw when I was bored and sent outside to kick a football around our fields in the summer. I was in the school orchestra and did well at art. My teachers were encouraging but I was never taught how to use my creativity to earn a living.
I loved music and art but selling a painting of a bowl of fruit to earn a living didn’t seem like a realistic expectation. I’ve always appreciated photography but only started using a camera in secondary school. I shot black and white film and learned basic darkroom techniques. Later at University I moved to digital. I kept up drawing for a while but soon realised that I could tell the stories more easily with a camera. It just came naturally and people really took notice of my work. At first I photographed flowers and landscapes, but it didn’t take long before I started to develop a love of photographing people. Friends at parties, family reunions and models. It was liberating to share my vision of the world with others and be complimented in return.
Seeing the joy people get from looking at my work is a huge motivation. That is partly why I enjoy photographing weddings. A wedding day is an incredible time. I’m anxious to get started but as soon as I start I find it hard to stop. There are so many emotions, feelings and details and I watch from the sidelines and capture what I see. Whilst every wedding follows a similar format I’ve yet to photograph two weddings that are the same. Each time there is a new story to tell. I give a helping hand when needed but I stay in the background capturing the important moments as the story unfolds. I know my photographs bring joy to those who see them. They evoke important feelings and memories. I photograph what I see.
I believe that getting married is the most incredible thing you can do. Giving yourself, completely and wholly to one another and being accepted by them is… well, something that can’t really be described with words…
And that’s where I come in.
My photographs are much more than a ‘documentary’ of the day. They have life and energy. They let you remember the events of the day, but they also remind you of how you felt. I know you will love your photos for the rest of your life. They have value well beyond what you pay for them. Put simply my aim is to create the most beautiful story of your day. A love story.
And that’s what it’s all about. Love stories. Weddings are the greatest celebration and there’s nothing better to photograph. Creating these images means everything to me. It is my world and I see it as a huge honour.
I live in Bristol, but it doesn’t matter where you’re getting married, I’d love to meet and hear your story.
I’m proud to have had my work featured in many wedding magazines and bridal websites.