Athelhampton House Wedding In Dorset, Daniel and Clare

It's the case that for us, every wedding special and unique. Each of our couples have so much love and affection for each other, that it inspires us to pull out all the stops!

Daniel and Clare's Wedding at Athelhampton House in Dorset was no exception. We started off the day with Clare where she was getting ready with her bridesmaids at Kingston Maurward Manor House, a stunning Elizabethan 'E' plan manor house, not far from their wedding venue at Athelhampton. Such a gorgeous location for any bride to spend the morning of her wedding :) I wore an extra hat and used my background as a make up artist to skillfully do Clare's make up. Soft and elegant was the order of the day. David stayed a bit to photograph some of the make up process before visiting Daniel and the guys getting ready at the White House across the road from the manor.

The ceremony was held in the Great Hall inside main house, a Dorset manor house with a rich and interesting history. Athelhampton gardens and the house itself are open to the public and well worth a visit. We knew the gardens were going to be a feature of the day, and we kept an eagle eye on the sky to make much use of it before any showers. We encouraged Dan and Clare to just take a stroll around the gardens, enjoying their first stunned moments as a married couple and David and I photographed as they explored the grounds.

The day could not have been more perfect, an adorable couple, great families, warm friends and a great band to end the evening with.

Best Wishes to Dan and Clare!

Teri

Quick shouts, another amazing cake creation from www.cakesbylisanotley.co.uk and the beautiful wedding car provided by Christine and Reg of www.barnesweddings.co.uk :)

Great Fosters Pre Wedding Photography, Clare and Michael

It's always a great feeling when we are recommended by our clients to their friends, Clare and Michael were introduced to us by Claire and Darrell (who's wedding we photographed in Berkshire at Lillibrooke Manor last year).

Great Fosters in Egham is just about an hour from where we are based and since the wedding would be at Great Fosters Hotel we suggested to use the wedding venue as one of the locations for the pre-wedding photography. We met up at Clare's parents house in Egham and photographed around the garden then headed over to Great Fosters.

I think we spent more time chatting, finding out about Clare and Michael's wedding plans and exploring Great Fosters with them than we did taking pictures! Getting together was a lot of fun and everyone is really excited about the wedding, it's going to be an amazing day.

It is wonderful to photograph two people so in love, we can't wait for the wedding!



*Update* Clare and Michael's wedding photos are now on the blog Great Fosters Wedding Photography :)

Wedding Photography in Dorset at Up Cerne Manor House, Charlie and Hay Ming

What an amazing day we had with Charlie and Hay Ming! We started the day at Charlie's parent's cottage, which has the warmest feeling about it. Every time we visit there, I feel like it's walking into a 'hug', it's just got that kind of feeling about it. But that could also be because Linda (Charlie's mum) and Charlie are such warm people, that I get that feeling when I am around them.

Often, we are asked if we have photographed certain venues. While it can be nice to have photographed at a venue, prior to a wedding, it's not essential since we are able to work out very quickly what we need to do in order to capture the wedding day, with the time constraints, lighting issues, and layout of the venue. A wonderful example of how we have to be able to photograph a wedding day, regardless if we have been at the venue before is the wedding day of Charlie and Hay Ming.

Charlie and Hay Ming's wedding ceremony was at Holy Trinity Church in Dorchester, with the ceremony conducted by Father John Rice. The reception was to be at a privately owned Dorset Manor House called Up Cerne Manor. Because it is a private home, it was not possible to visit it before the wedding day. So it was a surprise how amazing it was, and presented some exciting options for us. So while it's good to get to visit a venue before the day, when that isn't an option, I like to think that we rise to the occasion with style, and finesse.

Charlie and Hay Ming personalized the manor with framed wedding images of their parents, and other close family members. It was a lovely touch. One image of Charlie's parents wedding, where they had their little westie dog in the photo with them was a big favorite. We tried to duplicate that shot with Charlie and Hay Ming's dog, which resulted in alot of fun, lol.

What can we say about Charlie's gown and veil, there aren't enough words. Designed by Elie Saab, both gown and veil could have been made just for Charlie, she made them both look stunning. When we got to Upcerne Manor, and we saw the grand staircase there, (which Linda had been telling us was awesome and she was right!), we knew that we had to take advantage of it for some dramatic shots.

The day ended in fireworks, and cigars all round, which Hay Ming insisted David enjoy a cigar with him,, an offer David couldn't refuse. :)

It was one of the most fun, joyeous weddings we have ever been part of. Charlie and Hay Ming made us feel like part of their families, and I can't say enough how much David and I loved being part of the day.


Amazing wedding cake by Lisa Notley www.cakesbylisanotley.co.uk our favourite wedding cake lady :)