Throughout the month of November, our Photo of the Day series will be taken over by each of Rangefinder‘s newly minted 30 Rising Stars of Wedding Photography in 2019. The 30 honorees are featured in our November issue, and each of their full, 30-photo submissions, reviewed by the competition judges, can be found in our online gallery. For more behind-the-scenes insights, follow us on Instagram.

Ash Powell seems to know who she is as a photographer after just one year—and that is no easy feat. She has a timeless, cinematic approach to her images, which she achieves by using natural light and capturing moments as they are unfolding. “I have always been obsessed with novels and films, so I love being able to use photography as an outlet to tell love stories.”

Using mainly Canon 5D Mark IIIs and 35mm and 85mm lenses, Powell—who’s based in Cornwall, England—wants people to look at her work and always know it’s her who created it. “I stay true to the things I like photographing and always share work I’m proud of, regardless of whether it’s trendy or not.”

Below are her behind-the-scenes insights on three of the photos from her submission this year.

These two grooms decided to get ready together ahead of their wedding celebrations. This was in fact their second celebration, after having a smaller and more intimate town hall ceremony a few months prior. Their day was relaxed and getting ready together allowed them time to enjoy each other’s company alone, away from the preparations of the day. Both of them sat down to read through their vows and looked out the window to see the outdoor ceremony being set up below them. As soon as I saw the symmetry in the framing, I quickly took this image before they returned back to reading. 

Just before Amaia walked down the aisle, we took a few quiet moments to take some portraits. The room we were in didn’t have very much light except this one window. I love using natural light, so I asked her to simply face me and turn slightly to the window, look up and out. I like the less-is-more approach to naturally lit window portraits. It really highlighted the beautiful details in her nontraditional wedding dress from Needle and Thread. For this time with the bride, I usually ask everyone to leave the room to allow us some alone time, which then gives the bride an opportunity to unwind to settle any nerves she may have. 

The churches in England are amongst some of the most beautiful I have seen, and they come in various sizes. For this wedding, friends and family packed into this small and stunning church, which meant there was little room to move around without being obtrusive. My bride had grown up going to this church, so it was an important element to the wedding day. It was up to me to ensure I moved around as discreetly as I could while photographing the ceremony. Whilst going down the aisle, I stopped to catch the flower girls mid-hymn. With her bouquet in one hand and her order of service in the other, this flower girl glanced up just for a moment as I took the photo.