Mairead and Matt - 3rd November 2012 - St Gerards Majella Church, Knowle and The Grange, Winterbourne

Mairead and Matthew chose Mairead's family church for their traditional wedding ceremony, that had great meaning, the priest had known Mairead's father for nearly thirty years. The ceremony was followed by a 'sword' arch made with cricket stumps as the happy couple headed toward their stretched limo that had been ordered as a surprise for Mairead by Matt. The Grange was a lovely choice of venue for the reception with plenty of space for the couple's 85 guests to keep warm and enjoy their reception drinks. I always say that the ultimate bridal accessory in Autumn is the welly boot, and in Mairead's case this was no exception. After the recent downpours the grounds of the Hotel resembled a muddy bog, but the very practical Mairead had thought ahead and popped on some wellies, enabling us to make use of a fantastic tree that shows off the gorgeous autumn colours perfectly. Some very inventive speeches involving games, wigs and as much humiliation as Matt could handle, followed a traditional roast dinner. A brilliant day was had by all, Congratulations Mr and Mrs (O') Dyer!

Jennie and Dan - 29th September 2012 - Immaculate Conception Church, Clevedon and Clevedon Hall

It was a real pleasure to be Jennie and Dan's photographer for their Big Day. I was made to feel so welcome by all of their family and friends. Jennie got ready at her mum's home in Portishead along with her three bridesmaids. She wore gorgeous Caroline Castiliagno gown that was belted with a very elegant Stewart Parvin and finished off with sparkling swarvoski jewellery. Her bridemaids wore lovely cornflower coloured short dresses and pretty flowergirl Isabella finished off the girls half of the wedding party in an ivory satin gown. After a traditional church marriage ceremony the Happy Couple headed straight over to their reception at Clevedon Hall where they had classic seaside treats of mini fancy fish and chips in cones provided by Parsnip Mash catering. They enjoyed their guests company in glorious sunshine before embarking on what ended up being an epic photo session where the term 'herding cats' could be used. I'm sure they will agree when they see their photos that it was worth the stress of a missing bridesmaids and groomsmen who went AWOL!  The couple finished off their afternoon with a scrumptious 4 course meal and heartfelt speeches. The newlyweds kicked off their evening party with a first dance beofre partying the night away. Congratulations Mr and Mrs Fella!

Hannah and Stuart - 27th September 2012 - Clearwell Castle, Gloucestershire

I was working with the lovely Jen on Thursday at Clearwell Castle in Gloucestershire. A beautiful fairytale venue that I have photographed  a number of times over the last few years. Stu and Hannah booked me exactly two years before their Big Day and had their engagement shoot exactly one year after that. The last two years seem to have flown by! It was good to work with Gil Gilroy again from Wedding Day Movie who did lots of fun movie style scenes that were great to photograph. Hannah's beautiful burgundy colour scheme matched the decadence of the venue perfectly and looked great with vibrant flowers and Stu's cravat. There was a subtle Beatles thenme running throughout Hannah and Stu's wedding with music playing and song lyrics dotted about the venue. Stu was flanked by four bestmen that included 3 brothers and a bestfriend who did some brilliant speeches that involved a Mrs Doubtfire impression and some school awards. After a delcious meal and some time realxing with their guests the the Happy Couple's evening party was kicked off with some amazing fireworks. Congratulations Mr and Mrs Williamson!

Louise and Ashley - 22nd September 2012 - Holy Trinity Church, Norton Malreward and Rookery Cottage

Louise and Ashley chose a wonderfully personal setting for their wedding. They were married in Louise's parents local church, in Norton Malreward, the Parish where the bride grew up. Their reception was then held in a marquee about 100 yards down the road in a field adjacent to Louise's parents beautiful home. The sun shone on the day of this Happy Couple's nuptials and most of the village came out to wish the newlyweds well. After throwing coins to the local children who had tied the church gates together as a village tradition, they left the church in a gorgeous vintage open topped car and were cheered on their way by their guests and well wishers who threw confetti. A lovely willow tree and stunning open fields with endless blue skies were the perfect backdrop for some photos of the Bride and Groom and I used every opportunity that I could to snap some pictures of Olly their two year old son who wasn't the most willing model I've ever worked with! I hope Louise, Ashley and all of their guests had an incredible day! Congratulations Mr and Mrs Pope.

Sarah and Jeff - 8th September 2012 - Kilmersdon Church and Wick Farm, Farleigh Hungerford

I do love a well planned wedding and Sarah was one of the most incredibly organised brides I have come across. When I asked for a list of group photos the couple would like, I received a list that had wet and dry weather location suggestions, the names of all the people in each photo and the point in the day that they would like the image captured.....to say I was thrilled was an understatement! Timed to perfection Sarah and Jeff's day went without a hitch. The beautiful bride got ready for her Big Day with her bridesmaid Amy at the gorgeous Babington House in Somerset. She dressed in the upper part of her suite and descended a fabulous staircase in the centre of the room as Tara and I captured some shots. We then met with a quite relaxed Jeff over at Kilmersdon Church and papped him and his groomsmen making their final preparations for the ceremony before Sarah's arrival in a chauffered Jag. After some pictures outside the church we headed over to Wick Farm in Farleigh Hungerford near Bath where guests enjoyed ice-creams served from an ice-cream bike that had been organised as a surprise by the bride and groom, and children (and some of the grown-ups) had their facepainted while realxing in the sunshine. A fabulous day, Mr and Mrs Sims will be starting off married life at their home in Bath and heading off on honeymoon in November.

Louise and Steve - 1st September 2012 - Westbury-On-Trym Baptist Church & Clevedon Hall

As soon as I arrived at Louise's mums house in Nailsea on Saturday morning I knew that I was really going to enjoy Louise and Steve's Big Day. I was made to feel really welcome and was encouraged to make myself at home by this lovely bride and her attendants. As regular churchgoers Louise and Steve chose their church Westbury-On Trym Baptist Church for their nuptials with the ceremony performed by their friend Paul. Having someone who knows you take the service, makes a marriage ceremony so much more personal. Paul had a lovely story about the couple first meeting and he added humour to what is normally a very formal part of the day. After confetti the newlyweds headed off to Clevedon in Triggols' Sunbeam chauffered by Roger and I met them at the seafront for a few pictures on the jetty looking out to sea. We then spent some time in the grounds of the gorgeous Clevedon Hall for some couple portraits before Louise and Steve relaxed with some drinks and enjoyed their guests company. A beautiful day and a lovely couple, have a wonderful time in Rome Mr and Mrs Tidley!

Laura and Ben - 31st August 2012 - Priston Mill, Nr Bath

Laura and Ben's engagement shoot had to be both rescheduled, then on our second attempt, relocated due to the dreadful weather we have had this summer so I was delighted for them that it was a beautiful sunny day for their wedding on Friday. Such a sunny day that I got to photograph one of my only alfresco ceremonies this season. This couples attention to detail was incredible and their gorgeous turquoise colour scheme was dotted all around Priston Mill  in the form of hand made bunting and hydrangeas everywhere. A joint love of games and quizzes was very much present, with an after dinner quiz, game themed table names and travel sized versions of the game on the table and the guests finding their place settings even becoming a game. Since booking their wedding photography two years ago Laura has been really interested in the photography element of her Big Day (definitely my kind of bride!!). She was one of my first blog followers and when I asked for some example images of the style they liked I got lots of different lovely shots emailed over to me. Many of which were natural photos of romantic couples in fields. So when the usual field I would have used at Priston Mill was bogged down, this down to earth bride was quite happy to go under a fence, trek up a hill and hop very elegantly over a gate to get the pictures....much to Ben's dismay. I hope it was worth it and they like the images I took in the gorgeous wheatfield we found!

Jemma and Simon - 15th August 2012 - Folly Farm Centre, Pensford

Jemma and Simon chose Folly Farm Centre near Pensford for their three day wedding celebration. Folly Farm is a lovely eco-friendly venue in the middle of nowhere and yet still close to Bristol and Bath. I've had the pleasure of photographing a number of weddings here over the last few years. I joined the couple on the second day of their festivities for the wedding ceremony and reception. Although the weather had been lovely the day before their ceremony, the heavens opened quite dramatically for most of the morning before Jemma and Simon said their 'I do's'. Everyone was quite relived when 10 minutes after the cermony not only did the rain go away but the sun came out so the guests didn't have to dash through the rain to their drinks reception. Jemma went for a vintage themed day with lots of bunting and handtied bouquets and gorgeous flower filled birdcages as centre pieces. Images and website links that Jemma sent to me before the wedding very much relected the vintage look so all of their images have been given a soft golden glow to tie in with the Big Day theme.

Becky and Richard - 11th August 2012 - Walton Park Hotel, Clevedon

I was at the incredibly popular Walton Park Hotel in Clevedon on Saturday for the wedding of Becky and Richard. I photograph loads of weddings at this lovely little seafront venue and it is at its best in the summer. Lovely views out over the estuary always make for some great pictures and Saturday was no exception. After tying the knot in a ceremony with 60 friends and family I took the newlyweds with their 3 children and other attendants out to the lovely green space next door to the hotel to capture some fun photographs in the sunshine. Wide open spaces meant that I could get the children (and the grownups) running and jumping in the grass. We then headed back to the reception after Becky and Richard had their couple portraits with the gorgeous landscape as a backdrop. Becky's choice of a vibrant cerise colour scheme looked great on her bridesmaids and there were bright pink gerberas everywhere, adding a pop of colour all over Walton Park, A really beautiful day, Congratulations Mr and Mrs Harrison!