On the 7th of June I woke up to the rumblings of thunder and heavy rain on my window and my heart sank.  I have shot weddings in rain before now and it has worked out really well, looked very atmospheric, but it does certainly put me into a nervous disposition!  I worry more so for the reaction of the bride, groom and other guests – their cheerfulness, despite bad weather, is what makes for good photos – but that isn’t always available if it’s bucketing down and they’re cold!

So I went to Little Hay Farm in Lichfield, where the Bride-to-be was casually getting ready.  She seemed absolutely unfazed by the rain, I was so relieved!  Kate is an outdoor girl for sure.  She had already been up and out to feed her horses and her mum was pottering around in her slacks doing chores.  What a laid back group of ladies!

The ceremony was at 2pm at Packington Moor in Lichfield, Staffordshire.  An absolutely beautiful venue.  By the time we got there it had stopped raining and as we were sailing through the vows, low and behold, the sun came out!  And despite what the weatherman said (more showers, thunder & lightning) the sunshine and blue skies stayed with us for the rest of the day!

Anyway, I should stop being so British in just talking about the weather… after the ceremony ended, we all flocked outside where drinks and canapes were had and which filled the air with delicious aroma!  They had a fantastic solo singer and guitarist playing at that time as well, it just made such a delightful atmosphere.

Taking photos of Paul the Groom and his Groomsmen was very funny.  Paul No.2 (Paul the Groom’s Best Man) had the idea of ‘Ape to Man’ – certain positions were not the easiest for certain ones to get into without splitting ones trousers.  However, it was achieved without any tears!

The Bridal party and her fellow horse riding friends were just as much up for a laugh with the photos.  I found a large stack of hay bales and a ladder.  It didn’t take really any convincing before they were all up there!

As for Paul and Kate, they were such good sports.  They even donned their wellies and trudged through mud in order to get into the field (I hope you think it was worth it!).  I personally love that shot.  To be honest, they were so easy to photograph being such a handsome couple!  It was a pleasure to do their photos.

All in all the wedding was a wonderful one.  The decor was stunning, for which a big congrats goes to Sonia their talented Bridesmaid.  The gorgeous wedding cake you will see below was made by Paul’s mum too!

Paul and Kate, I wish you every happiness in your marriage together.  You are a wonderful couple and it really shows that you’re best friends as well – how beautiful!

 

I travelled up into the breathtaking countryside of Llangedwyn, Oswestry in Wales to shoot the wedding of Pauline & Richard.  On the 12th of April I arrived at this rather stunning Country House called Plas Uchaf where the bride was getting ready and the ceremony was going to take place later that afternoon.

When I entered the bridal suite, Pauline was surrounded by her doting bridesmaids made up of her three closest friends, her soon to be step daughter and her own little daughter Ellie.  My favourite part of that morning was capturing the reaction of her three children seeing their mum in her gorgeous wedding dress as she invited them in to the room one by one.  Ellie, bless her cottons, burst into tears…in a good way!

During the course of the morning, I also had chance to pop up to Rhoslan – the family farm where the reception was to take place – where Richard was getting ready and, of course, feeding the animals!

The ceremony was a wonderfully intimate affair with less than 40 fitting into the main hall.  Pauline, following her bridesmaids, came down the staircase to meet Richard and become his wife.

The reception was held on Pauline’s family farm.  Sat cosily in the yard, between the house and the cattle, the marquee was beautifully decorated and the unique centre pieces for the tables were a great idea – Wellie Vases!  I love the feel of a wedding when it’s held in a location of great attachment to the couple.  Things seem so relaxed and homely.  There was a lot of love in the atmosphere anyway!

All the women were asked to bring wellies to don for the ladies group shot and being in the hub of the farming community, they all came fully equipped and raring to flash their fancy footwear!  They were all such good fun!

There was so much laughter throughout the day.  Pauline was one of the most happy brides to be around and anyone who sees Pauline and Richard together can immediately tell their love for one another- they’re such a delightful couple!  I wish you both all the best in married life together!

On the 8th of March I had the pleasure of shooting my first wedding of the season with a totally lovely couple, Becki & Tim, who had an absolutely lurrrrvely reception venue but let’s start at the beginning of the day…

I knocked on the door of what I presumed was the Bride’s family home – a man answered, looking at me completely baffled as to who I was and what I was doing on his doorstep.  Dread flooded over me thinking I had the wrong address but then he burst out laughing – it was only the Father of the Bride playing a prank – thanks Jeremy!

So the atmosphere of the morning was full of fun and good cheer while I toddled off to take accessory shots (I particularly loved the old fashioned dolls house in Becki’s former room with which I used as a setting for the bridal shoes!)

When it came to getting Becki into her beautiful wedding dress, tears started to flow from both Mum and Bride – I was really moved by their closeness.  Once make-up was re-touched, Becki provided us with a very enjoyable and unique experience in playing some songs on her mini grand piano.  It made for a very beautiful scene – like something out of a period drama with Becki in all her finery.  I believe this was cause for a second re-touch of make-up for Mother of the Bride, Alison!

For the ceremony we travelled to Yate Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses where the Father of the Bride doubled as the registrar.  I can imagine it’s a rather difficult thing to sign your daughter away to the protection of another man – good job he likes Tim then really!

On to the venue we went where the poor VW Camper van they were using nearly conked out half way up a hill.  Shame it didn’t actually, that would have made for a good pic having the Bride and Groom pushing it up!  But we arrived safe and sound at the stunning Tortworth Court in South Gloucestershire.  With the sun flooding across the gardens we went straight into doing the couple’s shots.  The wedding party dined in the Orangery which was a gorgeous glass roofed Victorian building and then for the evening party, they moved onto the star studded ceiling marquee.

After welcoming their evening guests and cutting the cake, Becki surprised Tim with what looked like a whole new wedding dress as she strode onto the dance floor – She had in fact stripped off what was a detachable lace layer to reveal a very chic and foxy dress!  Once the dancing was under way, there was no stopping them all, so me and my mum Tania (second photographer) slipped away as they carried on partying into the night.

The fabulous end to an amazing wedding day.