A brand new expo for the UK photography industry – Click Live!
We’re proud to have been asked by our friends at Graphistudio to curate and host the wedding stage at the first ever Click Live Expo – a brand new event for the UK photography calendar, taking place this year on 23-25 June at NAEC Stoneleigh in Warwickshire.
It promises to be a carnival of photography with educational classes, industry leading trade exhibitors, interactive portrait pods, a variety of speakers across different photography genres and of course, the soon-to-be-world-famous wedding stage!
FedWed x GraphiStudio
The wedding stage is provided by Graphistudio and hosted by FedWed. We’ve been working with Graphistudio since before we launched and we are forever grateful for their support. The Graphistudio stand at Click Live promises to be an epic way to come and experience their incredible product range.
The Wedding Stage at Click Live – 3 days of inspiring education for wedding photographers
Over the course of 3 days (23-25 June 2024) we’ve curated a roster of presenters with a range of styles and a variety of opinions. There will be a mixture of talks/presentations, live demos and interviews plus we will finish each day with a chat-show style panel discussion with that day’s presenters where you can get to know them a little better and ask questions yourself.
We’ll introduce each speaker and their talk below…
The Wedding Stage end of day chat show
At the end of each day, most of that day’s presenters will take part in a chat show style panel discussion where your stage hosts Adam and Ste (FedWed co-founders) will ask them more questions about their talk and take questions from the audience, so make sure you stick around for that!
USE THE CODE FED50 AT CHECKOUT FOR A HALF PRICE ADMISSION TICKET!!
The Wedding Stage Schedule
SUNDAY 23 JUNE
11AM CHRIS DENNER
12PM ADAM LOWNDES
1PM BEN APPLEBY
3PM SCOTT JOHNSON
3:45PM DAY 1 CHAT SHOW
MONDAY 24 JUNE
11AM STE WALKER
12PM YORK PLACE STUDIOS (TALK)
1PM TONI DARCY
2PM EVE DUNLOP
3PM DAY 2 CHAT SHOW
TUESDAY 25 JUNE
11AM ADAM JOHNSON
12PM YORK PLACE STUDIOS (INTERVIEW)
1PM TONI DARCY
2PM MAURICIO ARIAS
3PM DAY 3 CHAT SHOW
Chris Denner - Being Unapologetically Yourself
Sunday 23rd June – Presentation 1 at 11am
My name is Chris Denner, and I’m a crime fighting vigilante. Well, that’s not strictly true but its more interesting than saying I’m a UK native with 24 long and eventful years under my belt in this wonderful wedding photography industry of ours.
To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment. Fads and trends emerge and then wilt away, and as a creative it can be confusing connecting with your genuine self.
I`ll be discussing that how as a forty something punk with hand tattoos I connect with my clients, and shoot authentic imagery that mirrors my needs as a creative.
Discussing my individual self-initiated art projects, my musical career, and wedding ethos, it`ll be a deep dive into my mindset, creative output, and marketing methods.
And it’ll be funny. Or maybe it won’t. Show up and find out.
Adam Lowndes - Wedding Photography Behind the Scenes Content - How To + Why
Sunday 23rd June – Presentation 2 at 12pm
Hailing from the Potteries, Adam has been educating other photographers for some years now. He holds a strong knowledge of social media and marketing which has helped many other photographers to achieve better business results. All of his techniques are self-taught through his own trial and error running his photography business. He’s one of very few photographers who has found a strong foothold on TikTok which now gives him regular bookings. Organic reach is his thing so it’s tactics and strategies he teaches not how to spend £££ on ads. His open extroverted personality is his USP when it comes to attracting more wedding couples and more students for the education side of his business. His wedding photography business has gone from strength to strength over the years. His focus lies on his local wedding scene rather than targeting far-flung venues as he cherishes time spent at home with his friends and family more than the glamour of a wedding abroad which I’m sure a lot of people can relate to. You’ll struggle to meet a photographer as aspirational but as down to earth as Adam.
Join Adam Lowndes – a wedding photographer from Staffordshire, UK – for a talk all about how creating and sharing behind-the-scenes footage transformed his wedding photography business. With behind-the-scenes content, he can give his couples clear displays of his actions on wedding days which in turn removes any fear they may have for what their wedding photography will be. This is a talk with a practical element of editing and creating behind-the-scenes content while also discussing the vast positives of doing so.
It may seem new and scary but this is a path least travelled and thus one of the most undersaturated areas of marketing for a photography business.
Ben Appleby - Light is Light
Sunday 23rd June – Presentation 3 at 1pm
Hey, I’m Ben! The dreadlocked, bearded, overly excitable wedding photographer known as HBA Photography, and husband to Hannah, the real brains behind our business!
Having spent the first part of my career touring the world as a musician, I found photography by accident. Now, Having shot over 850 weddings in the last 15 years, I feel like I’ve seen it all, but every wedding is still different. I still get total buzz at the thought of creating new images and awesome memories for couples.
For every wedding I shoot, I know how important every frame is. I want my couples to look at their images and instantly feel something. But more importantly, I want them to look at the images in 30 years time and truly feel something. Something deeper.
For every atmospheric portrait, there’s a forgotten tender moment captured. For every epic widescreen moment, a subtle detail shot. It’s not just another wedding for me.
But what makes me tick..? Honestly, it’s not weddings or photography. I learnt photography as a career skill, not through a growing passion. Of course, now, yes, it’s a passion. I look at everything through a viewfinder in my mind’s eye and I can’t unsee lines, compositions, or light and shade. But I love my downtime away from weddings and photography so that I’m 100% fired up and fresh on a wedding day, ready to create. I love to make things, build things, and be outdoors. I love to hate exercise…Some of my best thinking is done when I’m out on a run or swimming in a lake. To me, everything around me is an inspiration, but most of all, I love to sit and have a leisurely breakfast and coffee with Hannah and chat about everything and nothing.
“Light is light” – Embrace it, use it to your best advantage, and forget about it. We’re surrounded by light 100% of the time, whether it’s natural light, flash or continuous light, but we take it for granted. I’m obsessed with it. Some light we can control, other light we can’t, but it doesn’t mean it can’t be harnessed and used to create something beautiful. I want to break down how I best use the light I see in front of me to my advantage to create images that are creative, but more importantly, mean something to the subjects. I want people to look at a photo and not care what the light is it, or how I’ve used it, or what equipment I’ve used and appreciate the photo for its story and context. Light is light. Nobody cares about the light if it’s a beautiful photo.
Kate & Brent Kirkman (By Lumiere) - Can You Problem Solve Under Pressure? Fail Safe Lighting and Camera Settings for Wedding Photography!
Sunday 23rd June – Presentation 4 at 2pm
Prior to becoming a professional photographer Kate worked in Marketing at ITV, and for International branding agency Lambie-Nairn. Over for the past 15 years she has written regular articles and columns for the trade’s press, judged competitions, spoken at industry events, run a training school and represented Nikon as a global Ambassador. Now both she and her husband Brent, are not only Sony European Imaging Ambassadors, but also Rotolight – Masters of Light. Together they run visual content agency CREATE and Kate specialises in luxury boudoir through new brand MUSE.
Brent, likewise, spent over 25 years in Global IT specialising in CRM and Mobile prior to becoming a cinematographer. As an ex-developer of cutting-edge tech, he has a vast knowledge of website and mobile phone technology which helps CREATE stay ahead of the field. Combine that with his CAA GVC drone pilot licence and his Navy diving qualifications and you have a truly formidable set of talents in one neat little package.
Kate & Brent have recently relocated to Cornwall but still shoot weddings all over the UK and Abroad. They describe themselves as people ‘who need water to breathe’.
Wedding days are beautiful, emotional, and…unpredictable. From unexpected lighting changes to last-minute schedule shifts, even the most experienced photographers can face challenges that threaten to derail their performance. This talk equips you with the knowledge and skills to be a proactive problem-solver, not a panicked photographer.
We’ll delve into fail-safe camera settings and lighting techniques that will give you the confidence to handle any situation with ease. Learn how to anticipate potential challenges before they arise, and discover how to strategically adjust your settings and lighting to capture stunning images, even under pressure.
This session will cover:
Forecasting Challenges: We’ll identify common wedding day hurdles – from low-light ceremonies to fireworks – and explore how to prepare for them beforehand.
Mastering Camera Settings: Discover camera settings that adapt to the critical moments, ensuring you capture sharp, well-exposed images every time.
Lighting Like a Pro: Learn how to deal with tough lighting scenarios. We’ll discuss working with natural light, flash and continuous lighting.
The Art of the Pivot: We will talk about the importance of developing your “sixth sense” and explore methods for agile problem-solving. Learn how to adjust your camera settings on the fly, ensuring you capture those once-in-a-lifetime moments, no matter what.
We hope you will leave this talk feeling more confident, prepared, and empowered to handle wedding photography challenges.
Scott Johnson - How to PRINT money: the art of selling printed products!
Sunday 23rd June – Presentation 5 at 3pm
Scott Johnson is based in Essex, UK, and has photographed weddings worldwide. Known for being fun and energetic, Scott travels the world as an educator and mentor.
He holds two Fellowships with the Society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers (SWPP) in Wedding and Documentary Photography. His documentary Fellowship in 2017 on the Auschwitz camp in Poland, taken entirely on film, has received praise from across the world.
In 2018, he was awarded ‘Master Photographer’ with the SWPP. In 2019, he won the Open & Natural World category in the SWPP 20×16 print competition, and he finished runner-up in the Wedding Classical category, having won that category in 2016. He was the only British winner at WPPI in Las Vegas in the 2019 annual awards, with first place in the Wedding Contemporary category (Gold distinction). In 2022, he was awarded three Gold and one Gold Distinction at the WPPI Annual 20×16 competition. His SWPP awards journey was completed in 2021 when he won Architectural Photographer of the Year. In 2023, he won the ‘Wedding Day’ category in the SWPP 20×16 print competition. He was a finalist in the inaugural Icon Awards 2024 with two top-ten-placed images.
He is a global ambassador for Fundy Software, as well as at Studio Ninja and Graphistudio.
How to PRINT money: the art of selling printed products!
Ste Walker - Simple Couple Sessions - How to get couples to be themselves and be more relaxed yourself at the same time!
Monday 24th June – Presentation 1 at 11am
I started my wedding journey in early 2017. I have a love for photographing human beings and I find that weddings are the best place to do this. I’ll soon be shooting on my 5th continent and have documented weddings in Sri Lanka, Albania, Kenya, Across Europe and soon in the Americas. Connections, Beauty and Love are what I focus on to create my style. I strive for a non-specific style that has a strong consistency. I have a huge passion for helping others after I received so much help to get where I am today. That is why I co-founded FedWed with Adam Johnson to create a welcoming and relaxed platform for people to connect, learn and book more work.
Dom & Liam Shaw (York Place Studios) - Is this something? Finding photographs from the seemingly insignificant.
Monday 24th June – Presentation 2 at 12pm
Tuesday 25th June – Presentation 2 at 12pm
Dominique & Liam Shaw
Photographers and Authors of “Is This Something?”
Dominique & Liam (York Place Studios) are photographers, authors and educators with a worldwide reputation for creating big photographs from seemingly insignificant scenes. Dedicated to treating all moments equally, the brother and sister team’s street-inspired documentary approach celebrates humour, relationships and connection in even the smallest of interactions.
Equally committed to creative education, that same signature approach forms the basis of their acclaimed new workshop book “Is This Something?” – an exploration of the subtleties of composition and moment throughout every stage of a wedding day.
Whether sharing their ideas through conversation, the written word or through the images themselves, their mission remains the same today as the day their journey began: to push, with every photograph, to create something new and to take better pictures.
Monday: Is this something? Finding photographs from the seemingly insignificant… Dominique and Liam demonstrate how to find photos from scenes where there appears to be “nothing” going on.
Tuesday: A live interview with York Place Dom & Liam… Adam and Ste will interview Dom and Liam on the wedding stage about their careers, how they found and developed their unique style and take questions from the audience.
You’ll also be able to buy a signed copy of Dominique & Liam’s book “Is This Something?” at Click Live!
Toni Darcy - Get creative with flash modifiers!
Monday 24th June – Presentation 3 at 1pm
Tuesday 25th June – Presentation 3 at 1pm
Toni is a wedding photographer with over 10 years experience in the industry. Her growing love of understanding and controlling flash light with modifiers has led her to become a MagMod Ambassador. Flash portraits at a wedding are now second nature when it comes to creating unique imagery for each of her couples on their wedding days.
Flash in general can be a scary prospect. Toni is here to show you that getting creative with flash doesn’t have to be something that we fear or avoid. In this step by step live demo Toni will be showing you simple ways that you can use flash modifiers within your photography to get more creative with your own work using flash modifiers.
Eve Dunlop - From Persona to Pixels - Building a Photographic Style Rooted in Personality.
Monday 24th June – Presentation 4 at 2pm
I have been a photographer quietly shooting weddings for 17 years, with well over 600 under my belt. Shooting intuitively and unobtrusively so I can really observe and connect with the stories that unfold in front of me. My photojournalism is both emotive and playfully creative. I’m deeply passionate about making pictures that the people I photograph will love seeing. Their story of raw beauty, fleeting glances, and pure joy to keep forever. I thrive on the delicate balance between artistry and the documentation of the joyful human experience that are weddings.
In this talk, I look into the sometimes profound journey of finding your unique voice in photography and discovering how to truly see yourself within your own work. Through a blend of personal anecdotes, practical insights, and artistic exploration. How navigating the creative process of self-discovery behind the lens can help you feel confident in your art even through the most demanding wedding season or times of self doubt. We’ll explore how to break free from the confines of imitation and external influence, empowering you to unearth your authentic vision. I believe understanding the significance of introspection, self-awareness and perspective can help you create beautiful work that resonates with your clients and reflects who you are.
Adam Johnson - How it’s made: the stories and settings behind some of my favourite images.
Tuesday 25th June – Presentation 1 at 11am
Shooting weddings since 2010 as ARJ Photography, I’ve photographed weddings in 21 different countries around the world from small 8 person weddings in Finnish ice hotels, to thousand guest weddings in the desert of Abu Dhabi and everything in between. My style of photography is multidimensional but rooted in authenticity and art, and I love to share my passion and knowledge for the craft of artistic wedding photography which I’ve been doing since 2015 through workshops, conferences and online content. In 2024 I co-founded FedWed with Stephen Walker to take that to the next level.
I’ll show you some of my favourite images I’ve shot over the years around the world and break them down so you know the stories behind them, why I shot them, why I love them and how to build a portfolio around the kinds of photos you love to shoot, enabling you to attract clients who truly value what you do and how you do it.
Mauricio Arias - VALUE - Self - Art - Business - Community
Tuesday 25th June – Presentation 4 at 2pm
Mauricio Arias invites fellow photographers into a world where every snapshot tells a story, transcending mere images to become narratives of light, shadow, and emotion. With a career spanning over 14 years at the forefront of Chrisman Studios, Mauricio has woven his experiences from his beginnings in
Nicaragua, his upbringing in California, and his current life in Italy into a rich tapestry of artistic expression and edagogical dedication.
Beyond his accolades and international recognition, Mauricio is a perpetual student of life and photography, an ethos derpinning
his approach to capturing images and sharing knowledge. His journey has been marked by curiosity and humility, leading him to explore over 15 countries as an educator, where he has
conducted more than 35 workshops. Mauricio’s passion lies not just in the art of photography itself but in the joy of fostering growth and inspiration within the photography community.
As a formal ambassador for PROFOTO and a celebrated figure among the best in the wedding photography industry, Mauricio’s philosophy extends beyond capturing moments. He believes in the power of photography to uncover the unseen and to tell stories that might otherwise go unnoticed. His work, recognized by MyWed.com, Fearless Photographers, Junebug Weddings, and more, reflects a commitment to excellence and innovation. However, it’s his role as a mentor and educator that truly encapsulates his contribution to the field.
Mauricio’s approach to teaching is rooted in a belief in the potential of every photographer to uncover their unique voice.
He shares the technical expertise required to excel in the fast-
paced world of wedding photography and the softer skills of storytelling, creativity, and emotional connectivity. His sessions are designed to inspire, challenge, and elevate,
encouraging photographers to see beyond the lens and embrace the artistry of their craft.
His work has been spotlighted by global media outlets like Huffington Post and CNN, not for fame, but as a testament to his vision and impact. Yet, in his own words, the true measure of success comes from the moments of breakthrough and illumination he sees in his students and peers.
VALUE – Self – Art – Business – Community
For Mauricio, photography is a dialog—a means to connect, communicate, and share perspectives. As he steps onto the stage or into a workshop, he does so not as an icon, but as a fellow traveler on the journey of discovery and creativity. He invites you to join him in this journey, to explore the depths of what photography can be, and to find your unique story within the infinite frames of possibility.
In welcoming Mauricio Arias to share his insights and experiences, we’re not just learning from an acclaimed photographer; we’re embarking on a journey with a dedicated educator, committed to enriching the tapestry of the photography community through shared knowledge, mutual respect, and an unending curiosity for what lies beyond the next shot.
