Ramsgate wedding photographer Cemanthe McKenzie is hoping to secure a win at The Wedding Industry Awards 2025 after being announced as a regional finalist.
The mum-of-one and owner of Lemon Feather Photography is competing in the hotly fought photography category with the aim of being recognised as the best in the south east.
Cemanthe, who is also a business and documentary photographer, said: “I was absolutely delighted to be nominated by one of my 2024 couples for this award and so happy to have votes from other couples. Weddings are my soul!”
The first step on the road to national glory will be a triumph at the Regional Awards event in November. Here, the companies that receive the best feedback from their clients and have caught the eye of the expert judging panel will be crowned regional winner and go on to the national finals in January 2025.
Cemanthe has been involved with photography for more than 20 years and in 2020 took the decision to close her marketing company of 10 years and focus full-time on her passion.
She says the catalyst was the birth of her son Jamie followed by the death of her favourite client due to cancer.
She said: “I decided life was too short. People were saying I should do my photography full time and so I thought I would go for it. In January 2020 I closed my digital agency and in February I set up full-time in photography, just before the [covid] virus shut everyone down!
“I did a lot of social media for Looping the Loop [performance company] during covid and used that enforced down time to build the business and now I have never been busier or happier.
“I had a goal for 50 weddings a year and for 2025 I have 47 already.
“I always wanted to be a photographer, I wanted to be a war photographer but my mum said ‘you’re not doing that!’ On my 21st birthday in South Africa I used the money I was given to buy my first Pentax fully manual camera and my mum’s brother-in-law taught me how to shoot fully manual. During covid I did another photography course.
“Winning the award would be one the highlights of my year and the best way to end what has been a very difficult year in my personal life.
“It’s an acknowledgement of how hard I’ve worked since covid to get back on my feet. Photography is what I was born to do and it would be the most welcome accolade to support that.”
Damian Bailey, founder of The Wedding Industry Awards, said: “Since 2011 The Wedding Industry Awards has been dedicated to recognising and rewarding excellence in the wedding industry and this year’s regional finalists are clearly at the top of their game
“Our awards are unique as they are voted by recent wedding couples and it’s not the total number of votes that companies receive that leads to success. Instead, we focus on the quality of the feedback they get from eligible couples, amongst other things. Larger companies and talented individuals compete on a level playing field and the best wedding suppliers always rise to the top.”
Find Lemon Feather Photography at: https://www.lemonfeatherphotography.com/
