Kate McCarthy Photography

Home
United Kingdom
Manchester
Kate McCarthy Photography

Natural, relaxed fine-art wedding photography based in Manchester & Cheshire

30/07/2026

Darlings I’m still here! My sharing has been lighter than usual due to an absolutely jam-packed July of travelling up and down the country capturing BEAUTIFUL weddings (like gorgeous Jo & James a few weeks ago!).

We are now neck-deep in that wild chaos that is juggling a busy wedding season, a full slate of editing and summer holidays with the tiny queen (who is currently on unlimited screen time whilst we try to work a little in the day). I am currently on top of emails but if you’re expecting a response and I haven’t yet got back to you, please do give me a nudge.

I’m on track to have all weddings edited and sent within my 8 week turnaround (and some a few weeks early even!) and will be sharing more beautiful photos as I chip away but I cannot thank you all for your patience and support in my 12th (!!!) year telling your stories full time.

As I do every year to prevent that pesky burnout, I have got a couple cheeky holidays booked in August but with it being wedding season, I’m not totally disappearing on you and will be keeping an eye on my emails if you need anything.

September invoices have mostly been sent now (a little early to help with the most-neglected mid-season admin pile) so again, nudge me if yours hasn’t come through.

Thank you thank you thank you to all of you for continuing to support my small business and allow me to have the career of my damn dreams. I literally can’t do this without you! Have a wonderful weekend!

28/07/2026

Georgia & Andy … “They say nothing lasts forever
But they ain’t seen us together
Or the way the moonlight dances in your eyes
Just a t-shirt in the kitchen
With no make-up and a million
Other things that I could look at my whole life
A love like that makes a man have second thoughts
Maybe some things last forever after all” (Luke Combs)
What a perfect Monday I had capturing this STUNNING city centre wedding at my favourite pub, The Black Friar Salford . Georgia & Andy really know how to throw a party and I have adored getting to know them and being a part of their day.

Their sneak peek is linked in the bio, read all about what we got up to!

Venue The Black Friar Salford
Content Abbey 🫶🏻 Wedding Content Creator ✨ Lancashire, Manchester 🇬🇧
Singer Imogen-paige music 🤎
Cake The Palms Bakery , Rachel
Dress Jane Hill Bridal from DOTTY BRIDAL ™️
Decor Kole Events

20/07/2026

Carla & John … once more, with feeling.

Because your wedding should always be a day (or two!) that feels the most like YOU. For this beautiful couple, that meant keeping their ceremony just for them and then opening up the celebrations to all of their favourite people.

Thank you to the new Mr & Mrs Barrand for inviting me along this past weekend, it’s truly been an honour to tell your love story.

The full sneak peek is now live on the blog!

Venue Abbey House | Hotel & Wedding Venue
Florist
Hair Coco Hair And Beauty
MUA Beth Taylor
Cakes FINCH BAKERY 🍰🪩⚡️
Singer Samwise
DJ Ryan Smith Wedding Host & DJ
Dress SHONA JOY

16/07/2026

Carla & John … ‘Do you remember when we met?
Oh, that’s the day I knew you were my babe
I wanna tell you, oh, how much I love you
Come with me
To the sea
Of love’ (Cat Power)
The sweetest elopement in my favourite city with my bestie subbing in as witness (and content creator) for this beautiful couple. Thank you for the trust, my loves. I can’t bloody wait for the grand celebrations on Saturday!

13/07/2026

Jo & James … “Loving you
Is some kind of wonderful
Because you’ve shown me
Just how much you care
You’ve given me the thrill of a lifetime
And made me believe you’ve got more thrills to spare”
(Natalie Cole)
A sweltering fever dream of a Lake District wedding working alongside some absolute gems of fellow wedding suppliers. The connections that lovely Jo & James and I have in common are surreal and I’ve adored getting to know them and telling their story. Click the link in bio to read all about their gorgeous day..

Venue Holbeck Ghyll
Bouquets .blossoms_
Styling Perfectweddings
Video Jo Gendle Films
Dress Maggie Sottero Designs | Wedding Dress Designer
Sax Al Grant sax
Photobooth oldschoolbooth
DJ Nick Campbell

07/07/2026

I think winter weddings are a little underestimated.

People worry it’ll be dark too early. Or cold. Or rainy. They imagine they’ll have to compromise on photographs somehow.

But honestly? Some of my favourite galleries have been made between October and February.

The light is softer. Everyone naturally stays a little closer together. Candlelight starts to glow earlier. And because golden hour arrives before your wedding breakfast, we can often sneak away for ten minutes while your guests are finding their seats, leaving the rest of the evening completely free to celebrate.

There’s something wonderfully unhurried about a winter wedding.

Nobody expects endless time outside, so we make the most of the moments we have. We find beautiful window light, quiet corners, dramatic skies, cosy interiors and, if you’re up for it, five minutes outside just after sunset when everything turns the most incredible shade of blue.

And if it rains?

Well… I live in Manchester.

We’ll be absolutely fine.

One thing I always tell my couples is this: beautiful wedding photographs have very little to do with perfect weather.

They have everything to do with how the day felt.

The season simply gives us a different backdrop for your story.

And every season has something beautiful to offer.

Manchester wedding photographer, Cheshire wedding photographer, winter wedding, winter wedding photography, Manchester winter wedding, Cheshire winter wedding, luxury wedding photographer, documentary wedding photographer, relaxed wedding photography, golden hour wedding portraits, candlelit wedding, cosy wedding inspiration, UK winter wedding, Manchester weddings, Cheshire weddings, wedding inspiration UK

06/07/2026

Tracey & Stewart … ‘You can’t hurry love
No, you just have to wait
She said love don’t come easy
It’s a game of give and take
You can’t hurry love
No, you just have to wait
Mama said just give it time’ (The Supremes)

What a dreamy day of SO MUCH LOVE. I cannot thank the new Mr & Mrs Smith for welcoming me so very warmly into their lives and allowing me to tell their love story. Their full sneak peek is linked in the bio, read all about what we got up to!

02/07/2026

Guys, I’m not AT ALL usually this moody (swipe for my more natural, cackling state). But I had to scroll miles back for the last time I stuck my mug on the grid and I love these headshots taken by my pal .portraits so here we are: VERY. SERIOUS. ARTIST. KATE.

If you’re new to my teeny corner of Instagram, welcome! You made it! I’m so excited you’re here! The whole reason and why for working as a wedding photographer is exactly to meet gorgeous in-love couples like you - you’ve come to the right place!

Working as a full-time wedding photographer for over 12 years now has only reinforced my deeply hopelessly romantic nature. I LOVE your love stories (and have been living my own for over 17 years with my exceptionally dreamy ginger husband) and find that my best photographs happen when I step back and wait for those beautiful in-between moments. The magic happens in the space between the snogs, the pull back into the embrace, the deep breaths before the I-dos.

I love this work so much.

And I also LOVE a list - so here are my top ten favourite love stories (real and fictional) of all time.

Who are yours??

1. Anne Shirley & Gilbert Blythe (Anne of Green Gables)
2. Barack & Michelle Obama
3. Paul Newman & Joanne Woodward
4. Sam & Tusker (Colin Firth & Stanley Tucci in Supernova)
5. Elizabeth Taylor & ALL of the husbands
6. Jo March & Friedrich Baer (Little Women)
7. Evelyn Hugo & Celia St James ( The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo)
8. Meredith Gray & McDreamy
9. David & Patrick (Schitts Creek)
10. Kurt Russell & Goldie Hawn

29/06/2026

Sometimes people ask where I get my ideas from.

The honest answer is... films.

Not because I want a wedding to look like a film set, but because I’ve always been drawn to stories that make ordinary moments feel extraordinary.

The way somebody lingers in a doorway.
The quiet before everyone arrives.
The colour of late afternoon.
The feeling that something important is happening, even if nothing much is happening at all.

I’ve never been completely comfortable calling myself an artist. It feels like a title someone else should give you.

But I do know that wedding photography sits somewhere in the middle of art, storytelling and time travelling.

It’s noticing.

It’s collecting.

It’s finding beauty in moments that would otherwise disappear.

Every photograph in this carousel reminds me, in one way or another, of a film that’s stayed with me over the years. Not because I’ve recreated a scene, but because it gave me a feeling I’ve never really forgotten.

Maybe that’s what I’ve been chasing all along.

Not perfect photographs.

Just photographs that feel like something.

The kind you look back on years later and remember, all at once, exactly how that chapter of your life felt.

I’d love to know...

Which film has quietly shaped the way you see the world?

Address

Manchester
M335

Website

http://www.katemccarthyphotography.co.uk/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Kate McCarthy Photography posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Business

Send a message to Kate McCarthy Photography:

Want your business to be the top-listed Event Planning Service in Manchester?