London to Cliveden House Wedding Day

“We LOVE the photos and slideshow, thank you so much!!”

It was a pleasure photographing Abigail and Henry on their special day last year. Having found me online and after just a couple of emails I was booked and already looking forward to what would be a brilliant occasion. The wedding day would be split between London and Maidenhead as each location had a very special meaning to Abigail and Henry.

The day started nice and early at Cliveden House. It’s a luxury hotel in Maidenhead and would later that day be the location for the evening meal and celebrations. I parked up and got a taxi to The Bridge Hotel in London where Abigail was with her besties for bridal prep. As a photographer having a clear travel plan of how to get to the various locations on a wedding day is so important. Thankfully between the bride and groom and myself we figured out the logistics perfectly.

Abigail is all smiles during bridal prep at The Bride in London.

Bride and her brother in a London cab

Abigail and her brother in the cab on the way to the church.

I stayed with Abigail for the duration of bridal prep and hopped in the taxi with her and her brother to St Marys Church in Barnes where her dashing groom Henry would be ready and waiting for the wedding ceremony. St Marys is a lovely big church with plenty of room for myself as a photographer to capture all the good stuff! :-)

It was time for the confetti shot and boy did the happy get confettied, is that even a word! There was enough confetti for three weddings, you’ve got to love it when the whole basket gets emptied!

Take that!! Everyone loves confetti!

Instead of everyone driving to the pub reception the bride and groom took some time out to walk to the The Watermans Arms, on the bank of the River Thames in Barnes. I love it when this happens as so many picture opportunities present themselves and you never know what will happen. We came across cars hooting their horns, children looking on in awe at the beautiful wedding dress, shop keepers wishing them good luck! All of the locations Abigail and Henry passed meant something to them which adds emphasis to the photography and capturing the moments.

bride and groom walk through Barnes, London

Walking through the streets of Barnes to the reception.

Abigail and Henry wave a shop keeper in Barnes, London.

After the cutting of the cake with a gigantic military sword :-) and eating some delicious fish and chips it was time to jump in a cab and shout “ follow that car” as we headed off to Cliveden House. The bride and groom really wanted some photographs taken before the guests arrived and despite my driver taking the wrong turn (much to my frustration) we made it! Cliveden House is a beautiful and majestic luxury venue set in Maidenhead. Built in 1666 by the 2nd Duke of Buckingham as a gift to his mistress, it is now an exclusive 5 star hotel.

Bride and groom at Cliveden House, Maidenhead

The room where the wedding reception took place was incredible with gold plated ceilings lined with art and features. As more guests entered the room it became standing room only for the speeches. The day finished downstairs where the dancing shenanigans took place. It was a brilliant wedding day and almost felt like two weddings in one!

Congratulations to Abigail and Henry!

To view the gallery highlights please keep scrolling and If you would like to chat about your upcoming wedding please click here!

Whimsical Floral Anglo French Wedding in Berkshire

Whimsical Floral Wedding in Berkshire

An amazing floral inside outside Berkshire wedding day that I’ve been so excited to blog for a few months now. I was really pleased to hear that one of the wedding industries leading wedding ideas blog, the awesome Whimsical Wonderland Weddings chose Clementines and Nicolas big day to appear on their blog! With the bride and groom being French as well as the majority of the guests it was a wedding day that was a beautiful mix of Anglo French styles and cultures.

We had our amazing photographer Kevin Fern who covered the wedding in pictures, we loved his photography style straight away. We wanted to go for a spontaneous, colourful and premium feel and we knew Kevin was the perfect photographer to achieve our goal

Emotional first look for the bride and groom

Clementine and Nicolas explore the grounds of The Old House, Wolverton, Tadley

The day started with groom prep at The George & Dragon Hotel in Tadley to shoot Nicolas and the guys getting ready before moving on to The Old House in Wolverton, Berkshire where Clementine and close family stayed the night before and was also the location for the marquee wedding reception. The Old House was a fantastic wedding venue and one that I hadn’t shot at before. For some reason many couples think that they should hire a photographer who has shot lots of weddings at their chosen venue but that’s most definitely not the case. Someone who is a creative is inspired by new locations and that’s how you get the most creative wedding photography. The Old House was the perfect venue for Clementine and Nicolas and their big day with a vast expanse of amazing grounds to hold the marquee and evening party shenanigans, which there were many!

bride and groom during speeches at the old house

Clementine and her husband Nicolas during speeches

Showing off those jazzy blue shoes at The Old House, Tadley

I have never photographed a wedding dress quite like the amazing bespoke floral dress designed by Lisa Lyons Bridal! Wow! And then there were the blue shoes, awesome! Who says everything has to be white! It’s your day, make it spectacular and just how you have always dreamed it should be! I’m sure if there were any budding brides at the wedding they would have had dress envy! When Nicolas saw his bride to be outside the Old House during the first look his jaw dropped! I love first looks as it is an opportunity to capture genuine heartfelt emotion between just the couple while they share their moment together. The wedding ceremony itself was held at St Catherines church in Wolverton so everything was within a ten minute drive. This is always great news for a photographer and videographer as when we have to factor in driving between venues, traffic, parking, etc the closer things are to each other the better. Speeches were split with the bride and grooms parents saying some heartfelt words outside on the lawn while there was still some light and a few more later in the evening from the couples close knit friends. Speeches always make for great pictures and it’s a part of the day I look forward to as I know I’m always going to capture some spontaneous emotional moments. As the bride and groom hit the dance floor for their first dance they were swiftly accompanied by their guests to shake rattle and roll the night away! Did I just use an old Elvis Presley song in my blog post, I did! I’m really not that old :-)

From start to finish it was a brilliant wedding to photograph!

Please scroll down to view a large selection of my favourite images from the day!

Rochelle and Farook Stylish Wedding at Hedsor House, Taplow

The photos look amazing, we’re so happy with them. Cant wait to show all our friends and family.

Bridal prep was a hive of activity! Children excitedly running around, bridesmaids chatting and makeup artists doing their thing! When I walk into a bridal suite the energy of the room always hits me. I love it when I look around and there’s a million things happening. My brain is instantly in gear and I can’t wait to start shooting. As any photographer will tell you good light is key in capturing and creating amazing images. Thankfully the awesome wedding venue, Hedsor House in Taplow has huge and I mean huge windows in the bridal suite, perfect for my documentary natural light style of wedding photography.

I shot the day primarily with my faithful Nikon D750, Nikon 24-70mm 2.8f lens and Sigma 35mm 1.4f. I would encourage all budding photographers to start by using a prime lens. It really focuses your eye and makes you work around a subject. It also saves on gym membership, I wish I knew how many steps I take shooting a full day wedding..thousands I bet!

Farook was getting ready in another room with his best mates so the morning involved switching between rooms depending on what was happening.

Rochelle looked stunning in her dress and bought her father to tears. I was so happy to be in the right place at the right time to capture that moment. It’s these spontaneous moments full of emotion and love between a father and daughter that inspire and motivate me. If you asked them to pose straight after it just wouldn’t be the same. It’s why I love shooting the way that I do. Keeping things real and honest so whenever a couple looks back on their pictures it brings back the same real emotions and memories.

Holly and Vincents stylish summer wedding at the Riverside Pavilion, Henley on Thames

I absolutely loved shooting Holly & Vincents big day in Henley on Thames. I met up with Holly and the girls at her home address to shoot the finishing touches of bridal prep. It's funny how some brides show signs of nerves, others rushing about here, there and everywhere but Holly was a picture of calm, so relaxed and chilled out! The wedding ceremony was held at the Sacred Heart church before we all hopped in our cars for the 5 minute journey to the Phyllis Court Club, Riverside Pavilion. With views of the River Thames on one side and gorgeous green bowling grounds on the other it was a superb location for a summer wedding! 

It's fab when a groom says " we're in your hands Kev, you're the pro " as we nip out to take some cool couple shots! Holly & Vincent were so easy to photograph and happy to completely trust me with their pictures! One of the nicest couples I have shot this year! 

"Kevin shot our wedding day and provided us with stunning photographs. His style is unobtrusive and he captured some beautiful candid shots. Highly recommend" 5 STAR - Holly & Vincent