Their wedding was to be a ‘walking wedding’ where the bride gets ready at her parents’ house, walks to the church, then after the ceremony, she,  her husband and guests walk back to a reception at the family home. The boys also got ready at a holiday cottage in the village and walked to the church.

The guests had been transported from Ipswich to Tattingstone on a vintage bus

We took some time away from the reception and had such good fun doing portraits and group shots around the village.

The reception was held in a marquee within the garden of Claire’s parents’ house, and there were so many lovely details. Claire had provided a basket of flip flops for ladies to change into once the killer heels had turned into murderous heels.

There was a basket of blankets for guests to wrap up in or sit on.

Each blanket had been embroidered with the date of the wedding

The tables were named for some of Claire and Chris’s favourite places

After the meal and the speeches came the first dance, which is where tradition went out the window as they hit the floor to “A message to you, Rudy” by The Specials

Before I close this blog post, I would like to share one final image of the day. If you didn’t immediately notice, take a look in the bus window. Please don’t be alarmed, this is Chris’s niece, who, by all accounts, is a bit of a tinker! This was her little joke. It’s one of their favourite photos of the day

It was quite possibly the hottest, and brightest day of the year and you can see how scorched the ground had become over those few weeks in the early summer.

The girls got ready in the  gorgeous bridal suite in a cottage in the grounds of the Hall

Although some of the local residents are voyeurs!

Virginia looked so beautiful – she reminded me of a European princess you’d see in Hello magazine

Virginia and Oli were married at Wickhambrooke Church, over the border in Cambridgeshire

Viginia’s father gave his speech in English, Spanish, French and Flemish, which was rather impressive!

After the meal as the day cooled a little, people took the opportunity to explore the grounds

Virginia and Oli’s first dance

The couple had asked me to become their wedding photographer as they wanted to feel relaxed on the day. The documentary style is just right for allowing the day to progress without direction from the photographer.

Here is a small selection from the day:

The bridal preparations took place in one of the suites at Maison Talbooth. Here the mother of the bride and mother of the groom share their excitement.

Beautiful hair and make up by Gail Gardner

The girls were actually getting changed in a different room, so with Eric already at the hotel it was a quick dash upstairs with lookouts posted at every turn!

It was a glorious day for the short walk down to the pool house where champagne was served and where the speeches took place.

Although most of the day was covered in reportage style, I always suggest that we spend some time taking informal portraits of the bride and groom. Rather than it feeling like a disruption to the day, most couples enjoy having a little time away from the throng.

After some delicious food served out on the lawn, it was time for the dancing to begin. I love this shot of Cherie and her dad.

And of course the bride and groom’s first dance.

Links:

Maison Talbooth

Gail Gardner

I was thrilled to receive a photopass for the Pink gig at Portman Road, Ipswich last night. I was shooting for Heart FM and a selection of photos are on their website.

It was very difficult to shoot as there were so many restrictions placed upon us, not least being only allowed a song and a half in which to capture our images!

Pink makes a grand entrance being hoisted high above the stadium in a box from which she drops half way through the first song.

Here are some of my favourites from the evening:

I think this one is my personal favourite:

Please remember that these images are copyrighted and must not be used without prior permission

These images were taken at the bride’s parents’ house near Woodbridge in Suffolk, which is where the wedding reception will be held.

I’m really looking forward to being their wedding photographer this summer.

Shortly after their wedding, Claire and Chris will be moving to Singapore to work for a few years, and one of the things they will miss will be the glorious Suffolk coast, so I suggested we might do the pre-wedding shoot in Southwold. Now I am very fond of the Suffolk beaches in the winter, when they are all but deserted and it has become a family tradition that we go for a walk on Southwold beach on New Year’s Day. For some bizarre reason I assumed we would have the place almost to ourselves, but on a glorious day in half term, it was never going to be!

Here are some of the images from the shoot and I have tried my best to make it look like we were the only ones there!

It was a glorious spring day, just right for a wedding.

It was the car’s first wedding of the season and it had been a little reluctant to come out of the garage, but fortunately it decided to play ball and Rachel was able to arrive in her dream car.

OK, technically it wasn’t a reception venue as such, it was a small, family wedding so the guests were welcomed back to Karen and David’s house.

Karen is from the Philippines and her dress had the Spanish influence which is traditional over there.

Karen’s parents were unable to come to England for the wedding, but her aunts made journeys from Zambia and Stockholm  to represent them.

We had had some beautiful spring days in the week prior to their wedding, but the weather changed and Saturday was cloudy and drizzly. I always tell my clients not to worry about the weather. Umbrellas make for great images and it very rarely rains solidly for a whole day. Even if it does, an experienced wedding photographer will be able to work around the elements.

The wedding ceremony took place at the Church of the Holy Family and St Michael in Kesgrave. It is a neat but rather unassuming church on the corner of the A1214 and Ropes Drive. At the rehearsal, Father Peter told me some of its fascinating history. The church is dedicated to the memory of Michael Rope, a local man and one of the designers of the R101 airship, who perished along with many others in the airship disaster over France in 1930. You can read more about it here

Karen was given away by her aunt, Epiphane

The rain stopped so after the ceremony, we took a walk through the parks in Kesgrave,

before heading back to the house for a buffet and cupcakes.

This was such a lovely wedding with members of both families meeting each other for the first time. There was very little formality though, and I came away with my facing aching from smiling and laughing so much.

David’s grandmother is almost 94, which Karen’s aunties couldn’t quite get their heads around, especially the fact that she has such wonderful skin!

They even insisted on hugs to bring them the gift of long life and soft faces!

I loved meeting them all and am now busy designing their album, a copy of which will be winging its way across the world to Karen’s parents in the Philippines.

These pregnancy photoshoots take place in the client’s own home using natural light. This means that the expectant mother is comfortable and relaxed.

I especially love this image as you can see a little foot as the baby decides to have a bit of a stretch.

It’s a lovely record of a very special time in a woman’s life and many clients choose an enlargement for their bedroom or the nursery, or select several images for an album.

The expectant father is welcome to join in.

Please contact me to book your maternity photography session or to enquire about the bump and baby package.