Family and children's portrait photographer covering Chester, North Wales and the North West. Friendly, informal and relaxed style. Maternity, newborn, children, families, teens, 'rock the frock'. Contemporary image processing using tints and textures for something a little out of the ordinary.
Served areas
- Chester, North Wales and the North West
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I have a gorgeous Tibetan terrier called Badger. I cannot walk past a dog without petting it. You should probably know that I'm secretly hoping there'll be a dog at your wedding, even if you don't have one. I believe that love is love regardless of race, sexual orientation, gender, religion or ability.
AS I SAID I'm based in Chester but I want to tell the story of your wedding wherever it's taking place - be that in the UK, Europe or beyond. I genuinely LOVE what I do. I'm not just talking moderately enjoy, but all out, borderline inappropriate public display of affection levels. Random life highlight - I once received a personal video message from my favourite actor Nathan Fillion thanks to one of my wonderful brides.
If you're HELL BENT on having me shoot your wedding, then I'd love to hear from you as soon as you say "yes" and long before you say "I do". Whether you are planning an intimate 3-hour micro wedding, a huge 3-day festival or anything in between. Authentic photos that show everything in action, taken by someone who is calm and relaxed, fun and easy going, who will blend in seamlessly.
And, even better, heading to the most beautiful places in the world with our favourite people to get married and then party until dawn, under the stars. Claire photographed our destination wedding in France and we absolutely LOVE our photographs! Not only is she incredibly talented, Claire did a great job of making us feel at ease - very important if, like us, you don't like to be photographed!. I know destination weddings take a heap of work to pull off, and I'll be there, documenting all your plans turning into a magical reality.
Photos
Reviews (20)
E. J.
Apr 12, 2022
Claire was the most incredible photographer! She is such a lovely person and fit into our wedding party so well. Claire captured the most incredible pictures we've ever seen! She is so talented I would highly recommend her for all my friends for those that want natural, authentic happy pictures to remember the day. Thank you for every memory and moment you captured perfectly for us!
Michelle Mathews
Oct 10, 2021
What can we say about the wonderful Claire? After our original wedding photographer cancelled at short notice, we were left scrambling for a new photographer and stumbled across Claire. We call it fate! To this day we love looking at our wedding photos. They are the most beautiful memories of the best day, and Claire captured it all perfectly, down to all the little details and moments that made our day special. She is also just an all round lovely person to have around on your wedding day. If you're thinking about booking Claire - go for it! You won't regret it.
Alice Pizey
Oct 08, 2021
It wasn't long before I came across Claire when we were researching photographers for our wedding. After finding her website and looking through her gallery we knew instantly that she was the wedding photographer for us, and when she responded to my initial email I just loved her even more. Claire was so easy to get on with and really enthusiastic about our wedding plans, it felt like she really 'got' us. Claire's style felt like nothing we had seen before.
Every wedding in her gallery had the Claire stamp but still so different. For me your photos are more than just the couple and the wedding party, photos should capture the atmosphere, the guests, the details, and all of Claire's photos showed this. Our wedding photos couldn't have been more perfect. Claire's photos tell the story of the whole day, the reactions that you wouldn't expect to be captured, the details that made the day special.
We never made our formal wedding album because we couldn't possibly select 50 of our favourite photos, the job felt like it was too much, instead we have our photos framed around our home on show rather than hidden away in an album and go back to our gallery more than just our anniversaries. Do not hesitate if Claire has availability to join you on your wedding day, you will not regret it (and I say this 7 years later).
Every wedding in her gallery had the Claire stamp but still so different. For me your photos are more than just the couple and the wedding party, photos should capture the atmosphere, the guests, the details, and all of Claire's photos showed this. Our wedding photos couldn't have been more perfect. Claire's photos tell the story of the whole day, the reactions that you wouldn't expect to be captured, the details that made the day special.
We never made our formal wedding album because we couldn't possibly select 50 of our favourite photos, the job felt like it was too much, instead we have our photos framed around our home on show rather than hidden away in an album and go back to our gallery more than just our anniversaries. Do not hesitate if Claire has availability to join you on your wedding day, you will not regret it (and I say this 7 years later).
Fiona Rosler
Oct 01, 2021
After our wedding plans changed thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, we needed to find a UK based photographer at somewhat short notice. I had seen Claire's work on a friend's wedding and her photos had always stood out to me as being so beautiful and natural. They really captured the essence of the celebration. I contacted Claire and she arranged a call which was so helpful to talk about our vision for the day - only having 8 guests I was a bit worried about the wedding looking small or subdued but Claire completely put our minds at rest.
On the day she was friendly and professional, and put us all at ease. The first few photos were ready within days and I was so so happy with the quality and what Claire had mangaed to capture. My husband and I both love every single photo we have of our wedding, and I have no hesitation in recommending Claire to anyone!
On the day she was friendly and professional, and put us all at ease. The first few photos were ready within days and I was so so happy with the quality and what Claire had mangaed to capture. My husband and I both love every single photo we have of our wedding, and I have no hesitation in recommending Claire to anyone!
Hannah Cross
Sep 30, 2021
Like many couples the pandemic had really messed us about and in the end my partner and I ended up splitting our wedding across two dates at short notice. Photographers were impossible to find but thankfully a friend of a friend connected us to Claire! We loved the style of photography we saw on her website and the universe aligned so that she was available on our date!
She immediately made us feel happy and reassured that our wedding was going to be documented how we had hoped! Our budget was limited but Claire walked us through what our options were and we managed to find something that worked for us. Everyone absolutely loved Claire at the wedding - as a result there are some really wonderful shots of our friends and family. All through the process ClIre was responsive and kept us in the loop about our photos. So friendly and patient with her subjects I'd recommend Claire 100%
She immediately made us feel happy and reassured that our wedding was going to be documented how we had hoped! Our budget was limited but Claire walked us through what our options were and we managed to find something that worked for us. Everyone absolutely loved Claire at the wedding - as a result there are some really wonderful shots of our friends and family. All through the process ClIre was responsive and kept us in the loop about our photos. So friendly and patient with her subjects I'd recommend Claire 100%
Harriet Brown
May 30, 2020
We spotted Claire's incredible work on Instagram and instantly fell in love with her style and she was one of the first suppliers we booked when planning our wedding in Italy (June 2019). Claire was brilliant to deal with in the build up to the wedding and on the day she made us both feel completely at ease and enjoy having our photo taken. When the photos arrived we were blown away, she captured the day perfectly. Claire gives 100% and genuinely cares about her couples.
Lorraine W
May 13, 2020
Claire was our wedding photographer in October 2018 and I'd recommend her to the moon and back! She was professional and personable from the off, responding swiftly to emails and giving us all the advice we needed. Plus, she managed to take some wonderful photos even in the face of terrible weather and a venue with limited artistic appeal! I'd also especially recommend you reach out to her if you hate the idea of having your photo taken and want a really down to earth experience - she made a pair of insecure introverts feel so comfortable throughout the whole process, and you can really tell in the final results. I continue to consider Claire a friend, and wouldn't hesitate to work with her on any photography project in the future. Thanks Claire!
Manon Martel
Feb 03, 2020
Claire is an absolutely brilliant wedding photographer. Having looked at lots of wedding photographers, we came across her photos online and fell in love with them and her style! She photographed our destination wedding in Italy and the photos didn't disappoint! Every single one was stunning and we couldn't be happier with them. Even better, Claire made two very camera shy people feel very at ease and enjoy the experience!
Her lovely personality and jokes allowed us to forget that we were having our photo taken which meant we got beautiful and natural shots of the entire day! Claire was a joy to work with throughout and we couldn't recommend her enough!
Her lovely personality and jokes allowed us to forget that we were having our photo taken which meant we got beautiful and natural shots of the entire day! Claire was a joy to work with throughout and we couldn't recommend her enough!
Charlotte Jones
Dec 02, 2019
We chose Claire because we wanted natural wedding photography which captured the emotions and true feeling of our wedding day and Claire did exactly that. She captured our wedding at Thornton Manor beautifully and the photographs and album she designed for us are stunning and the perfect reminder of our special day. There were so many moments she managed to capture between friends and family which we wouldn't of seen if Claire hadn't been there and been such a good photographer. She made the whole process from start to finish so easy and actually fun! Thank you Claire for capturing our happily ever after.
James Coleman
Oct 18, 2019
We were fortunate enough to have Claire photograph our Christmas wedding. We knew that a good photographer can make or break a wedding day and the second we saw Claire's website, we knew we had found the perfect person to share our day with. Claire was friendly, personable and incredibly discreet throughout the day. The photo's that Claire presented us, (some the very next day via email - which we saw for the first time, waiting for our honeymoon flight) the most amazing photo's that were beautifully shot and captured the atmosphere of the day. If your wedding photo's mean something to you, then book Claire. You won't be disappointed.
Nicole Ffion Marshall
Apr 26, 2019
Anthea Bourdouane
Oct 05, 2017
Bethan Williams
Aug 03, 2017
I had no idea about wedding photography and Claire was a friend of the family so I though that she was a good place to start. After meeting and looking at her work, there was no question in my mind that she was the one for us! I'm still stunned 4 years on when I look at the images she captured of us, I struggle to find the words to describe how happy we are with them. Since we got married Claire has photographed many of our friends and families weddings and with each one the pictures are unique, original and capture true love at its best.
Lucie Elliott
Jun 22, 2015
Just finished looking at our wedding album taken by Claire and we are absolutely thrilled! the images are stunning & really capture the magic & vibe of our special day. Claire is joy to work with if you are considering booking her for your big day DO IT! You won't be disappointed I promise! Thanks again Claire you have captured our special memories beautifully to last a lifetime
Samantha Caird
Apr 07, 2014
Heather Lucas
Dec 19, 2013
Lana Fisher
Rebecca Young
We love our photographs so so much! It took me back to our day looking through them all and just made us both feel so lucky and blessed to have such wonderful people in our life. So a big thank you to you for capturing so many amazing moments in such a beautiful way. You really are first class at what you do and a lovely person too. Thank you again for being part of our day and hopefully part of our future.
Philippa Lee
In arranging our wedding, our choice of photographer was always the most important thing to us outside of our vows as we knew the photographs would be the only tangible thing left to look back on in years to come. With this in mind, we actually arranged to meet Claire before we had even booked our wedding venue and knew immediately that she was 'The One', even though there were nearly two years left until our big day.
Boy we are so glad that we did! On the day itself, Claire was amazing – capturing the magic of the wedding with her unique Claire Penn eye for beauty and attention to detail and with such subtlety that we hadn't even realised that some of the most special moment had not escaped her shutter! Put simply, words are not adequate to express how beautiful Claire’s work is.
Nothing short of an artist, she captured the excitement, the emotion, the elation; the absolute essence of everything that made our wedding day the most wonderful day of our lives and we feel so lucky that we can still transcend the months that have passed and return at will to our most special day because of the magical Claire Penn. Three words of advice to engaged couples = "book Claire Penn"
Boy we are so glad that we did! On the day itself, Claire was amazing – capturing the magic of the wedding with her unique Claire Penn eye for beauty and attention to detail and with such subtlety that we hadn't even realised that some of the most special moment had not escaped her shutter! Put simply, words are not adequate to express how beautiful Claire’s work is.
Nothing short of an artist, she captured the excitement, the emotion, the elation; the absolute essence of everything that made our wedding day the most wonderful day of our lives and we feel so lucky that we can still transcend the months that have passed and return at will to our most special day because of the magical Claire Penn. Three words of advice to engaged couples = "book Claire Penn"
Rachel Davis
We got our photos from Claire last weekend and we were absolutely blown away by them. She captured our day perfectly and we can not recommend her enough. We originally chose Claire having found her on Instagram having done another wedding at our venue. We loved her relaxed style and the fact that she focused more on capturing moments than staged photos.
We booked Claire 2 years in advance without meeting and only met 2 month before the wedding to run through things and she made the process so easy. On the day of the wedding we had so much fun, Claire put us at ease and even offered advice along the way (look up when your about to cry!)
God knows how she does it but the majority of the time you don’t even realise she is there. When we went through our photos there were so many where we thought it was just us in that moment. We cannot thank her enough
We booked Claire 2 years in advance without meeting and only met 2 month before the wedding to run through things and she made the process so easy. On the day of the wedding we had so much fun, Claire put us at ease and even offered advice along the way (look up when your about to cry!)
God knows how she does it but the majority of the time you don’t even realise she is there. When we went through our photos there were so many where we thought it was just us in that moment. We cannot thank her enough