MGANE STUDIO / DOCUMENTARY WEDDINGS

You bring the party.
I’ll tell the story.

Relaxed wedding photography across Bath and Somerset. You can be yourselves, enjoy your people and leave the photographs to me. A little guidance when you need it, and plenty of time to enjoy your day.

Tell me about your wedding ↗
A breeze lifting the bride’s veil during an outdoor wedding ceremony

DOCUMENTARY PHOTOGRAPHY – Bath

Bride and groom laughing on a stone terrace as the bride’s veil blows in the breeze

01 / FEEL COMFORTABLE BEING YOU

You can just
be yourselves.

If being in front of a camera makes you a bit unsure, that’s fine. You don’t need to know how to pose or what to do with your hands. When we take a few photographs together, I’ll help you settle in.

You don’t need a magazine-perfect wedding, either. The photographs are about the two of you and the people you’ve brought together. There’s room for the nerves, the laughter and things going a little off-plan.

For most of the day, you can simply get on with it. Have a conversation, give someone a hug, enjoy yourselves. I’ll be watching for the photographs.

The aim is lovely photographs where you recognise yourselves. The expressions, the people, the way you are together. Things you’ll be glad someone noticed.

Bride in a dressing gown looking down during wedding preparations
Couple seated together during their wedding ceremony, surrounded by guests
Bride standing on a wooden staircase in warm window light

02 / WHAT MATTERS TO YOU

Spend your day
with your people.

Tell me what you’re looking forward to. It might be seeing everyone together, a quiet moment after the ceremony or getting straight onto the dance floor. I want to understand your plans, including the bits that matter most to you.

My coverage follows the day as it happens, with a little time for relaxed portraits of the two of you. I don’t organise formal group photographs, so we’ll make sure that approach suits your plans before you book.

We can make beautiful photographs together without disappearing for ages. Then you’re back with your guests, enjoying the wedding you’ve planned.

Newlyweds walking together along the beach
Bride and groom together beside a tree in a sunlit garden
Newlyweds sharing a kiss in front of Bath Abbey
Black and white portrait of newlyweds beneath tall windows at the top of a staircase

03 / SOMEONE YOU CAN RELY ON

You enjoy the day.
I’ll keep an eye out.

You’ve already got enough to think about. You shouldn’t need to manage your photographer as well. I’ll keep an eye on the light, the people and what’s happening next.

I’ve photographed more than a thousand weddings across Europe and the USA over more than thirty years. That experience helps me anticipate moments, adapt when plans change and know when to step forward or give you a little space.

Looking back on her wedding, Ella wrote: “They were both so lovely, friendly and welcoming, and they made us feel completely at ease.” Read her story and other couples’ experiences below.

04 / FEELING AT EASE TOGETHER

Let’s see if
we get along.

Your photographer is around for some quite personal moments. It matters that you feel comfortable with the person behind the camera. Have a look at the photographs, read a few reviews and ask me whatever you’d like to know.

I like a laugh and a proper celebration. I’m also happy to get on quietly while you’re with your people. There’s no need to keep me entertained or wonder what I need you to do next.

Before you decide, let’s have a chat. Tell me a little about yourselves and see whether you’d enjoy having me there.

Bride, groom and guests listening to a wedding speech
Bride standing beside a horse in a meadow
Bride and groom dancing beneath warm lights during their wedding reception
The dance floor, the lights and the two of you. Wedding photography by Michael Gane, MGANE Studio.

05 / LITTLE MOMENTS, BIG MEMORIES

It all becomes part of the story.

The day moves quickly. The photographs give you a way back to the moments you remember — and plenty you missed.

THE DAY IN MOTION

And then the party happened.

A few seconds of real weddings, real reactions and the bits you can’t stage. Press play, turn up the sound and enjoy.

Bride and bridesmaids sharing a moment around a table

The in-between.

The small exchanges and fleeting expressions nobody thought to organise. Often, they tell you everything.

Bride and friends gathered together on a bed during preparations

The people who matter.

Your friends, family and all the life going on around you. That is the story worth keeping.

Bridesmaids laughing with bouquets and a young flower girl

The joy.

The grins, the mischief and the laughter you couldn’t hold in if you tried.

Wedding guests dancing together in a black and white photograph

The party.

Once the music starts, the story keeps going. Be right there in the middle of it.

AN ORCHARDLEIGH SPECIALIST

Orchardleigh House. A place I know by heart.

Few venues feel more familiar to me. From the Island Church to the Ballroom, I’ve photographed over 800 weddings at Orchardleigh House, near Frome. I’ve put together a dedicated page about my time working there and the documentary approach I bring to each day.

Explore Orchardleigh weddings ↗

ELMHAY PARK / THE ORCHARDLEIGH ESTATE

The garden. The Orangery.
Your kind of party.

I’ve photographed many weddings at Elmhay Park. Explore a little of the setting, the celebrations and my relaxed approach to telling your story there.

Explore Elmhay Park wedding photography ↗

WELLINGTON BARN / CALSTONE, WILTSHIRE

Rolling hills.
A proper celebration.

A beautiful barn, countryside that makes you stop and look, and space to enjoy the day your way. Wellington Barn is one of my favourite places to photograph a relaxed wedding, just over the border in Wiltshire.

Explore Wellington Barn wedding photography ↗

HARTHAM PARK / CORSHAM, WILTSHIRE

That staircase.
All those possibilities.

A magnificent country house, a cosy library and beautiful grounds. Hartham Park is a place I’d love to photograph again. Here’s a little of what makes it special, with Katie and Thomas’s Christmas wedding on film.

Explore Hartham Park wedding photography ↗

GRITTLETON HOUSE / WILTSHIRE

An extraordinary house.
A day that’s yours.

That arrival along the drive, the magnificent staircase and the sound of a string quartet before the ceremony. Grittleton House is one of my favourite places to photograph a wedding.

Explore Grittleton House wedding photography ↗

REAL WORDS FROM REAL WEDDINGS

You don’t have to take my word for it.

Reviews from clients I’ve photographed over the years, including when I worked as thefxworks. These wedding reviews are on my former Google business profile. Their words give you a feel for what it’s like to work with me.

Read the wedding reviews on Google ↗

5.0 / 5

★★★★★

75 Google reviews
From my former wedding photography business, The FX Works

JUST TEN WEDDINGS A YEAR

A smaller diary.
On purpose.

I’m no longer photographing weddings every weekend. I take on just ten weddings a year, and each is quoted individually.

Tell me when and where you’re getting married, and a little about the two of you. You don’t need to have everything worked out. I’ll reply personally and we can take it from there.

HOW BOOKING WORKS

Straightforward from the start.

01 — We talk. You send your date and plans. I confirm availability and give you a personal quotation.

02 — Reserve your date. Once we’ve agreed everything, you pay a £280 booking fee through a private secure Stripe page. It comes off your total.

03 — The balance. I send your private final-details and balance link. Check your plans, then pay the remaining balance securely with Stripe, 28 days before the wedding.

Tell me about your wedding ↗
Katie & Thomas · Church ceremony and celebrations at Hartham Park, Corsham

A little more wedding life · Hartham Park, Corsham

Little moments.
Worth playing again.

A few seconds can bring a whole day rushing back.

Katie and Thomas’s wedding, with celebrations at Hartham Park in Corsham. The happy nerves, the confetti and the people who made it theirs—all wrapped up in a short film.

Alongside your photographs, Moving Moments includes short filmed highlights and a portrait montage like this. A little piece of your day, ready to share with the people you love.

Real moments. Your people. Something to watch whenever you fancy going back.

Tell me about your wedding
Wedding stories

Their day. Their words.

A few words from couples and families I’ve photographed over the years.

We arranged our wedding just two months before getting married, and Michael & Tracey made our day even more special by capturing it so beautifully. We love your natural style of photography, capturing genuine moments as they happen… Read full story Close story

We arranged our wedding just two months before getting married, and Michael & Tracey made our day even more special by capturing it so beautifully. We love your natural style of photography, capturing genuine moments as they happen rather than everything feeling posed or staged.

You made us feel so comfortable in front of the camera, and captured so many beautiful moments that we will treasure forever. We requested several special mantle piece photographs which were important to us and Michael ensured that these were captured. Looking through our photos feels like reliving the day all over again, and we couldn’t be happier with the memories we now have to look back on.

With my stepdad being terminally ill, having these moments captured means more to us than you could ever imagine. Being able to look back on our wedding day and have these memories with the people we love most is something we will always hold close to our hearts.

You didn’t have to do what you did for us, and the fact that you gave up your time and talent for free is something we will never forget. Your kindness and generosity have touched our hearts more than words can say.

These photographs are so much more than pictures. They are memories we will treasure forever, moments we can look back on and hold close to our hearts for the rest of our lives. Knowing we have these memories of such a special day, with the people we love most, is a gift we will always be grateful for.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, not just for the most beautiful photographs, but for your kindness, compassion, and for giving us something truly priceless. We will never forget what you have done for us.

Love, Lea & Liam❤️

Lea HumphriesBride
Lea Humphries wedding photograph
We honestly cannot thank Tracey and Mike enough for capturing our wedding day so perfectly! ❤️ They were both so lovely, friendly and welcoming, and they made us feel completely at ease. We knew we wanted our wedding… Read full story Close story

We honestly cannot thank Tracey and Mike enough for capturing our wedding day so perfectly! ❤️

They were both so lovely, friendly and welcoming, and they made us feel completely at ease. We knew we wanted our wedding photos to capture all the special moments, emotions and little details of our day, but what we didn’t realise was just how much we would love having them there with us throughout it all.

Tracey and Mike were absolutely amazing from start to finish. They were so kind, so professional and just genuinely lovely people to have around on such a special day. They made us feel so comfortable in front of the camera, which meant so much to us, and nothing ever felt forced or awkward. At times, we honestly didn’t even notice they were there! They blended in so naturally with our guests that it felt like they were part of the wedding rather than just there to photograph it. They really did feel more like guests celebrating our day with us, and we think that is such a special quality to have as wedding photographers.

They managed to capture so many beautiful, natural moments without interrupting anything or making us feel like we had to pose all day. From the big, emotional moments to all the little candid moments in between, they were there capturing memories that we will now get to look back on and treasure forever. The photos themselves are absolutely gorgeous, and we honestly couldn’t be happier with them! Every single picture brings back so many emotions and memories, and looking through them feels like reliving the whole day all over again. They have captured everything so beautifully, and we will treasure these photos for the rest of our lives.

What we loved most was how much care and thought they put into everything. They weren’t just there to take photographs; they genuinely cared about us, our guests and making sure we had the best possible day.

We feel incredibly lucky to have had Tracey and Mike capture one of the most important days of our lives. These photographs are memories we will look back on for the rest of our lives, and we will always be so thankful that we trusted them to capture them for us. They have given us something so special, and we honestly couldn’t recommend them highly enough.

Thank you both from the bottom of our hearts for everything you did for us, for being so wonderful, for making us feel so comfortable and for capturing our day in the most beautiful way. We will forever be grateful for the memories you have given us, and we cannot thank you enough for being such a special part of our wedding day. You are both absolute stars, and we will be recommending you to everyone! ❤️📸✨

Ella ForsterBride
Ella Forster wedding photograph
MGANE Studio — formerly known as thefxworks

Kind words.
From earlier weddings.

A few short excerpts from couples I photographed under my former wedding photography name. These reviews were originally shared on Hitched.

5.0 / 5 overall from 14 reviews on Hitched Read all the reviews on Hitched (opens in a new tab) ↗

A few things couples ask

Your questions.
Honestly answered.

A little clarity before the big day. If there’s something else on your mind, just ask — I’ll answer personally.

Will we spend ages posing — and can we have group photographs?

I’d much rather you were enjoying the party than standing in a line while someone goes looking for Aunt Mabel. Your wedding day passes quickly enough without spending a big chunk of it waiting for photographs.

If you’d like a few group photographs, of course I’ll take them. My recommendation is to keep the list to five at most, decide which combinations matter to you beforehand, and ask someone who knows your guests to help gather them. We can make those photographs, then get you straight back to your people.

For the two of you, we can slip away for around 10–15 minutes for a few relaxed portraits. A little gentle direction when it helps, then back to the celebration. The rest is about real moments as they happen.

Should we have photographs of us getting ready?

Couples often ask me this. After documenting over a thousand weddings, my honest answer is that you don’t have to. Whatever the wedding checklists say, those quieter hours can be some of the most personal moments of your day — just you, your closest family and friends, and that lovely mixture of nerves, laughter and excitement.

Give yourselves room to relax, breathe it all in and enjoy being together. There’s something lovely about a morning that belongs to you, without a photographer in the room. A few phone photographs taken by the people you love can become wonderful little memories of their own.

If preparation photographs really matter to you, just ask. I can arrange them by special request for one of the couple, at the venue where your ceremony takes place. I can cover both of you only if you’re getting ready in the same building at that venue, with preparation spaces in the same immediate area and timings that allow. I don’t travel to private homes, rented accommodation or other getting-ready locations away from the ceremony venue.

My priority is to be at your ceremony location nice and early — at least two hours before the ceremony begins — to photograph the setting, the details and the anticipation as everyone arrives. Any preparation coverage needs to fit around that, so I’m ready for the part of the day that brings everyone together.

How much of our wedding day do you photograph?

I arrive at the ceremony location at least two hours before the ceremony, ready to photograph the setting, the little details and the anticipation as people arrive. The Wedding Story follows the ceremony, the celebrations, speeches, cake cutting and first dance, through to the beginning of your evening party.

We’ll agree the exact coverage and finish time before you book, so you know what’s included. If you choose Moving Moments too, I capture short filmed highlights alongside your photographs — a collection of memories, rather than a full-length wedding film.

How many photographs will we receive, and when?

You receive all the successful photographs from your day, beautifully edited, in a private online gallery. There’s no fixed number to hit and no good photographs held back just to fit a package. Every wedding has its own rhythm, people and moments.

Your gallery is delivered within two weeks, with no watermarks or download restrictions. You can share it with your family and friends and enjoy the story together.

How do we book, and when is the balance due?

Start by sending me your date, venue and a little about your plans. I’ll check availability and confirm the price and coverage with you personally. Once everything is agreed, I’ll send your private booking link to check your details, sign the agreement and pay the £280 booking fee.

The booking fee is part of your total, not an extra charge. Your date is confirmed once the agreement is signed and the fee is received. The remaining balance is due 28 days before the wedding. Nearer the day, I’ll send your private final-details page so you can check your timings and plans before paying the balance.

If you book within 28 days of the wedding, the balance is due when Michael requests it through your private final-details page.

Read the wedding terms → · All FAQs →

Your wedding

Tell me what
you're planning.

There's no pressure and no automatic booking. I'll read your message and get back to you myself.

Based in Somerset, I photograph weddings in Bath, Bristol, Wiltshire and further afield. Just tell me your date, where you're getting married and anything you'd like me to know.

I'll use your details to reply to your enquiry. Privacy policy.

Or email mganestudio@icloud.com directly.

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