Morecambe dad's wedding videos win him a top award

Morecambe born and bred Stephen, 37, was named Videographer of the Year in the County Brides Awards 2024, at the The Mercure Piccadilly, Manchester.

It’s a world away from his previous job working with his brother and father in the family’s fireplace and plumbing business, and something Stephen hopes will inspire others.

“I went to college and university and studied media, so cameras is on my resume,” he explained. “However, I got a bit sidetracked. I stopped working in the media industry nearly 10 years ago, and I started working with my brother and my dad – but I remember saying to them that I would like to be self-employed.

“I started picking up cameras again and got back into camera work and started filming weddings and just put my all into it.”

Stephen dropped his hours to build up the fledgling business, even working for free at first as he developed its profile.

“I made 500 leaflets advertising a free wedding video,” he said. “Looking back now, it probably wasn't my best idea, but at the time I thought it was good and I spent countless days walking around houses dropping them off. And I rang four or five local venues and asked if anyone wanted the weddings filmed for free.

“I worked really hard and I'm proud of myself and my family, they're very supportive. Being able to cut my days down probably made it easier for me but I still had to put the work in. It's definitely possible, even with the tricky kind of climate we are in at the minute.”

Stephen, who has received great online reviews, admits the accolade so early in his career took him by surprise.

“I didn't expect to win it,” he said. “On the day of the actual event, my son was poorly and my wife was working so I was watching it on a live stream. I was a bit gutted that I wasn't there but obviously I’m still over the moon. It's still only the beginning for me, so I will keep going and hopefully I will be there one day!”