It has been so nice this season to have lots of sunny weather (particularly on Saturdays!) and last weekend was no exception.  On Saturday morning I drove down to Symondsbury, which is a tiny little village next to Bridport in south Dorset.  It is a lovely drive along country roads and really makes you appreciate the English countryside.

I arrived at Symondsbury to meet up with Deidre and her bridesmaids  Tamra, Sam, Jess, Emily and Raquel who were busy getting ready at the Manor House.  It was all go with hairdressing and make up and the finishing touches being made to the marquee – which looked amazing. The Manor has a lawn that is the perfect size for a big marquee and even a set of steps in the middle to walk down into it from the upper lawn. I loved the touches of green around the tables with my favourite detail being the sliced limes in tall glass vases. On the upper lawn there there was a second marquee decorated in black and white with an enticing looking cocktail bar!

Deidre’s bridesmaids helped her into her dress in the living room as her dress had such a long train she needed a bit of space around her and it looked stunning when she was buttoned into it and put her veil on – a really romantic gown that really suited her.

I headed down to the church (which was actually next door!) to meet up with Alex and his best men Tom, Andy, Adam, Tom and Oliver his brother. Guests were starting to arrive and there was a real buzz as we waited for Deidre to arrive.

Deidre’s brother Robert looked very proud as he walked her down the aisle and I had a great vantage point during the ceremony to capture Deidre and Alex who only had eyes for each other and both seemed to really enjoy the ceremony.

Afterwards, guests picked up flower petals to shower the couple with as they left to walk up the hill to the Manor House. While everyone else was making their way over, I took some photographs of Deidre and Alex in the grounds which have a real secret garden feel to them with little hidden areas and old stone walls.

Deidre and Alex then spent some time with their guests as I photographed the reception drinks before everyone sat down to dinner. With so many best men, the pressure was really on for speeches but may be a bit of competition did the trick as all the speeches were great fun and there was a lot of laughter!

Here are a few of my favourite images:

I had a wonderful time with Vicky and Duncan last week and their new baby daughter Imogen who was only about 3 1/2 weeks’ old.  I last saw Vicky and Duncan a couple of years ago when I photographed their wedding so it was so nice to see them again and catch up. They have unsurprisingly been very busy since little Imogen arrived but were obviously loving it all and really keen to get some gorgeous pictures of her (which as she was such a cutie was not very difficult!).

Here are a few of my favourite images:

June seems to have flown by in a haze of weddings, sunshine and Wimbledon!  If you picture the perfect day for a summer wedding it could have been last weekend, when I had a lovely time on Saturday photographing Anne and Angus’ wedding at Maunsel House in Somerset.

I headed down to Maunsel House quite early to catch up with up with Angus and Anne who were greeting guests and trying to get their children Orla and Leilah to have a bit of a nap before the day got going.

Maunsel has a really nice atmosphere with beautiful decor yet with a really welcoming and homely feel and this was reflected in the lunch laid on for guests arriving and some very welcome cold drinks which were disappearing quickly!

Angus and his best man Bernard were getting ready right at the top of the house so I popped up to see them briefly before heading down to where Anne and her bridesmaids were getting ready.  With 7 bridesmaids there were quite a lot of dresses hanging up and some really pretty flower hoops for the little ones.

During the ceremony, Anne and Angus both looked really happy and there were readings from some of Angus and Anne’s friends and family including a very cute poem read by Anne’s little nieces Daisy and Summer.

After the ceremony everyone enjoyed Pimms and Lemonade on the lawn and for the children (and quite a few of the adults!) giant garden games.  A note to anyone organising a big wedding with lots of children – if you want to keep all your guests happy – garden games are a real winner!

Anne and Angus had decided to cut their cake and serve it with afternoon tea which was a great idea as everyone tucked in to sandwiches and cake in the shade of the pergola. Angus made a great speech with a few really nice touches including a birthday cake for Anne’s sister Catherine.

After tea, there was a break for parents to put their children to bed before I took a few shots of Anne and Angus in the grounds.  Maunsel has such a lot of nice areas for photographs so we did a little walk around the gardens to take in the best bits and the gorgeous early evening light.

It was soon time for dinner and the rest of the speeches which were extremely funny – particularly Bernard’s best man speech. I was laughing so much at one point I had to hold my camera steady!

Here are a few of my favourite images:

Last Saturday I had probably the closest wedding of the summer season – in nearby Chewton Mendip and Litton. This neck of the woods is actually a favourite spot of mine (any fellow Nigel Vine pub walkers out there?!) so it was an easy 5 minute drive past the lake over to Chewton Mendip at midday to meet up with Lucy and her bridesmaid and sister Charlotte.  They had booked a fantastic little place to get ready; the Post House B + B, which had decor I got the green monster over (think lots of old floorboards, cream flagstone floors, lovely furniture and Farrow and Ball paint!).  They were about to have lunch when I arrived so I had a wander around the house and took a few detail shots of Lucy’s dress and a few other bits and pieces before they put the finishing touches to their make up and got into their dresses.  It was really exciting when we heard the church bells start to ring and my queue to head over to the church.

I had actually seen Simon earlier at the church on my way past but he had had a bit of time to suit up and was chatting to his best man James and his ushers Spencer, David, Alex and John when I caught up with them. Guests were arriving and despite a 5 minute interval of some very very light rain it stayed bright and warm – perfect English summer weather!

Lucy arrived to meet up with little flowergirls Poppy and Isabella who were clearly loving having such pretty dresses on and it was time to head inside for the ceremony. It is so nice when vicars are relaxed about taking photographs in church. I always take a very respectful attitude to taking pictures in church (I work really unobtrusivesly and don’t use flash for example) so it’s really nice to be able to just do what I do and get as many shots as I did from different places.  After the ceremony, guests showered Lucy and Simon with confetti before they headed back to Simon’s parents’ nearby farmhouse for the reception. 

When we arrived the jazz band were playing and it looked like such an idyllic setting for a wedding reception with a huge garden next to a little brook and the marquee in the background. We took the time while guests were making their way over from the church to do some shots of Lucy and Simon and they also were glad of a glass of lovely cold champagne!

I spent the next while capturing guests enjoying the reception while Lucy and Simon enjoyed themselves and then took some shots of their speeches as they sat down for dinner. 

Flowers:  http://www.youngblooms.co.uk/

Cake:  http://www.annatylercakes.co.uk/

The Post House B +B:  http://www.theposthousebandb.co.uk/

Dress: http://www.carolinecastigliano.co.uk/

Music:  http://www.paragonjazz.com/

Here are some of my favourite images: