Gabby and Ben first got in touch with me back in March and I knew right away that these two were going to have a super fun wedding. Sometimes you can just tell - so I was really happy when they decided to book me.
Saturday was the big day - and what a day!
Gabby got ready with her close family in Battersea. The house had the most amazing natural light everywhere so I was overjoyed with it!
For me, one of the most special parts of the bridal prep is always when the bride walks into a room, in her dress, and everyone sees her for the first time.
I mean, how great is this? And a what a proud Dad!
I left Gabby and rushed off to meet Ben, who was enjoying a nice pre wedding pint.
When I arrived I found he’d made friends with this little guy, Dash, who was more than happy to have a picture with the groom on his big day.
Before we knew it, we were all at Chelsea Old Town Hall and waiting for Gabby to make her big entrance… which she duly did.
And the sight of his beautiful bride was enough to bring Ben to tears…
The ceremony was lovely and emotional and all the things a ceremony should be.
Best Man, Sam, watches on proudly as his best mate marries the woman of his dreams.
And then it was done. Husband and Wife - time for the first kiss and a celebration!
Then they were greeted by their guests on the famous steps of Chelsea Old Town Hall - how happy do they look!?
After some bubbly and some laughs the guests made their way to the reception venue while Gabby, Ben and I took a few pictures around the Chelsea area.
I lost count how many times ‘CONGRATULATIONS!’ was yelled from the people of Chelsea but it was wonderful!
The happy couple reunited with their guests back at the Hollywood Arms for lots of food and drinks and then three genuinely world class speeches from Gabby’s Dad Mike, Ben and Best Man Sam.
Here is Ben delivering his speech in style.
And Gabby’s sisters Felicity and Justine really enjoyed the Father of the Bride’s speech!
I know we’re all still living in a time of restrictions and general weirdness right now, but I’m so, so delighted that receptions, and particularly the couple’s first dance, are back!
The time had come for me to leave Gabby and Ben with their guests but, before I left, we popped back outside for a few night time shots.
Gabby and Ben also chose to have a highlight video for their big day. For more info on highlight videos - click here!
That’s all for this little sneak peek, folks. I’ll add one or two more pictures from this wedding to the Facebook and Instagram pages as I edit them, so feel free to follow along over there.
Big thanks to all at Chelsea Old Town Hall and the Hollywood Arms for being so great.
Thanks also to all of Gabby and Ben’s guests for being amazing, extremely photogenic and for taking such good care of me all day.
Special mention to Gabby’s Mum, Denise, who was a great help - particularly at Bridal Prep - and to Sam the Best Man for his help during the formal shots and for giving me a little shout out in his speech!
A huge thanks to Gabby and Ben for being so utterly brilliant - you guys are great!
Big congratulations to you both! 🥂
If you were one of the people watching the Zoom, my sincere apologies if my big bald head blocked your view at any point! I tried my best to stay out of your way, I promise!
Back at the start of 2020, which feels like an age ago now, I ran a competition for one lucky couple to win their wedding photography.
Ida and Hugo were the winners of that competition and yesterday was the big day!
They were married at St Clare’s Church in Framlingham, Suffolk.
It’s a lovely little church, just a few minutes from Framlingham Castle (which will become relevant later).
Ida arrived to the admiring glances of her flower girls Ilithyia and Gaia (who did an excellent job, by the way) while the rest of the guests and the groom were all waiting inside the church.
Ida made her grand entrance and Hugo got to see his bride in her dress for the first time.
Although he was later allowed to remove his mask, even here - with it on - you can see how incredibly proud he was to see Ida walking toward him - it’s all in the eyes!
The ceremony was really nice and although the number of guests was limited, it was live streamed for all of their friends and family that couldn’t be there in person.
Ceremony complete, register signed - time for a celebratory high five!
After the ceremony we headed the short distance to Framlingham Castle. Hugo was a few minutes behind as he had to pack away the live streaming gear but that didn’t stop Ida excitedly strolling into the castle grounds like a boss!
Hugo caught up in no time though, and the two of them looked great hanging around the castle grounds - and the weather really did it’s bit for them. What. A. Day!
You won’t know it from the pictures, but there was actually quite a few people milling around and enjoying the sunshine. We lost count of the number of times ‘CONGRATUALTIONS’ was yelled to them!
It was almost time to leave the castle grounds but there was still time for a little dance on the bridge.
Hugo grew up around the Framlingham area and knows the place extremely well, so he knows all the best spots and all the right people - so we still had a few more stops to go…
There was the rustic red brick barn, which I loved!
This incredible rope swing which I also loved. We did get lots of romantic pictures of Hugo pushing Ida on this swing, but I thought for the purpose of this little sneak peek, this picture was too good to not be the one! 😂
Oh, and I wasn’t the only one who thought these two playing on the swing was fun - this little guy was intrigued too!
Just a quick note - if a dog makes an appearance at your wedding in any way whatsoever, even if just for a brief moment, I will become best friends with that dog!
Before I knew it, it was time for me to leave these two to it, but not before utilising golden hour for one last shot.
That’s all for this little sneak peek, folks. I’ll add one or two more pictures from this wedding to the Facebook and Instagram pages as I edit them, so feel free to follow along over there.
A huge thanks to Ida and Hugo for being so amazing - you guys are great!
Big congratulations to you both 🥂
If you were one of the many people watching the live stream, my sincere apologies if my big bald head blocked your view at any point! I tried my best to stay out of your way, I promise!
Well what can I say about Debi and Chris, except what an amazing couple!
Like so many other couples this past year, just getting to a point where they could actually get married has been a crazy, crazy journey!
They’ve had to postpone, then they were tricked by an inaccurate government press release only to have their hearts broken the day after when the rules were amended and like everyone else, they had the fun and excitement sucked out of wedding planning.
In the end they decided to postpone their big celebration until 2023 but to go ahead with a small ceremony this year as soon as they were allowed.
Yesterday was the day - these two wonderful humans finally got to marry one another!
They got married at the beautiful Brookfield Barn in Horsham. It was my first time working at Brookfield Barn and I loved every minute of it. It’s a lovely venue to photograph. Because of the current rules the main barn area was closed, so there is still plenty more for me to explore next time I’m there - can’t wait!
Being a small ceremony (a prelude to a big celebration still to come), Debi and Chris decided to do things their own way and so they actually arrived together - and in some style!
They also decided to walk each other down the aisle - which I thought was just wonderful.
Luckily the weather was really good and so a socially distanced ceremony could be done outside without the need for masks. It may have only been in front of a small number of people but it was no less lovely for it.
Over this last year I have had the pleasure of photographing a handful of weddings restricted to a small number of guests and one thing that they all have in common is that when the couple have their first kiss as a married couple, the guests whoop and cheer loud enough for twice their number.
Yesterday was no exception and their guests did Debi and Chris proud!
A fun little fact that some of you may not know is that due to data protection rules, I’m not allowed to photograph the couple signing the wedding register. The way we get around this is that after the official signing is done, the couple have a dummy register placed in front of them and they kind of ‘fake’ sign it.
Of all the many weddings I have photographed, and all the many couples that I’ve seen do this, Chris was by far the most excited person I’ve known to do a pretend signing. I really love this picture - what a grin!
It wasn’t just the signing though, these two were excited and happy all afternoon and honestly, it was a joy to capture the day for such a fun, happy couple.
Soon enough - and to more whooping and cheering from their guests - it was time to walk back up the aisle, this time as husband and wife and to sneak off for a cheeky glass of bubbly!
One of the many things that any photographer at Brookfield Barn will surely always spot is this pretty amazing rope swing!
Debi and Chris were well up for cuddling up and having a little go on the swing, and it was great fun and made for some gorgeous pictures.
Everything was good until….
We realised we got dust all over the bum of Chris’s new trousers! 😬😬😬
Thankfully they weren’t ruined.
We continued our nice little stroll around the grounds of the barn and anyone who knows me won’t be remotely surprised to learn that I was super keen to make use of the lake (loooove those reflection shots!)
It was a beautiful afternoon for a beautiful couple and it was so lovely to finally get to capture these two getting married.
I’m already looking forward to 2023 when Debi and Chris will be back at Brookfield Barn with significantly more guests for a big ol’ party!
Debi and Chris booked a highlight video with their package too
That’s all for this little sneak peek, folks. I’ll add one or two more pictures from this wedding to the Facebook and Instagram pages as I edit them, so feel free to follow along over there.
Massive thanks to Sophie and the team at Brookfield Barn for taking such good care of me - you guys are great!
And a huge thank you to Debi and Chris for choosing me to capture your big day and for being so much fun yesterday!
David
