Wedding Photographer Leeds | Emily and Nick's Wedding Photography Adel Church and Mercure Parkway Hotel

We first met Emily, Nick and her dad, Malcolm at a wedding fair at the Mercure Parkway Hotel, Leeds and we hit it off immediately.  We were delighted when they asked us to photograph their wedding.  Having got to know Emily and Nick pretty well since they booked us as their Leeds wedding photographers over a year ago, photographing their daughter, Lexie as a new baby and being invited to her christening at the beautiful St John the Baptist Church, Adel some months later, we were so looking forward to sharing their wedding day because we knew they would be fantastic to work with and regardless of what the weather was doing, we knew it would be an amazing day, in the company of lovely people.

We've had a lot of rain this wedding season but the rain on Emily and Nick's wedding day can only be described as torrential with flood warnings up and down the country.  As wedding photographers at the Mercure Leeds Parkway, we arrived for Emily's preparations and went up to her room where the girls were getting ready and not surprisingly, the first thing mentioned was the weather.  Emily said that no one could do anything about it so she could choose to cry or to smile and she chose to smile - all day - because what mattered more than anything was that she was marrying Nick.  Her wonderful attitude made us feel better and we were absolutely determined that no matter what the weather threw at us, Emily and Nick were going to get stunning photographs!

After spending some time with the girls, we left for the church to meet the boys.  This church has the most beautiful arched doorway which does offer a little bit of shelter and it was an obvious choice of location for the photographs of Nick and his attendants who remained good natured throughout and really helped us a lot. 

Although it didn't actually stop raining, there was a distinct change from torrential rain to a slight drizzle as Emily arrived with her proud dad.  The vicar, Ian White, had already said that as long as he knew that Emily was "on the premises" at 12.30 pm, he didn't mind us taking our time with photographs outside.  We knew how important it was for Emily to have photographs with her dad and Emily's bridesmaids did a fantastic job of protecting her dress and keeping her dry as they all walked up the path.

Ian kindly allowed us both to photograph the wedding ceremony and afterwards, we decided that the best plan of action was to photograph the smaller groups inside the church before leaving for the hotel and completing the larger family groups there.

On arrival, the rain had eased, allowing us to get some photographs of the couple with their Beauford outside the hotel.  Whilst they spent some time with their guests, we kept a close eye on the weather, hoping for a break as it alternated between drizzle and bucketing down with no sign of a complete let up.  We completed the group photographs inside the hotel, along with some of the new Mr and Mrs Gregson, before photographing the ballroom set up for the wedding breakfast, returning some time later for speeches.  

We decided to check on the off chance it had stopped raining and finally, it had!  We all jumped in our car and drove back to Adel church as there were some images which we were desperate to take.  We really wanted to do something very special for Emily and Nick and guys, we have to say, you were amazing!!!!  We hope you love these as much as we do.

On our return to the hotel, it was almost time for Emily and Nick's first dance together, followed by Emily's dance with her dad.  We would have loved to have had a dry day but despite a soaking, we enjoyed every single minute spent with this lovely family and their guests.  Thank you so much to both the Ash and Gregson families and huge congratulations to Emily and Nick.

If you are interested in booking us as your wedding photographers at the Mercure Parkway Hotel, Leeds please call us on 01977 730159

     

Wood Hall, Wetherby Wedding Photography | Nikki and Sean's Wedding

It was our pleasure to be Wood Hall wedding photographers for Nikki and Sean on the last day of June when you'd think that you would have a decent chance of wall to wall sunshine.  However, it continued with the mixed bag of weather we've been having a lot of lately and again, shower dodging was the order of the day, just as it was when we met the couple at Bolton Abbey for their engagement shoot.  Sometimes we get lucky and the rain comes when it doesn't matter.  This time, it decided to throw it down right at the end of the civil ceremony!

We travelled to Nikki and Sean's home in Baildon first to photograph Nikki having hair and make-up done and also to take photographs of her gorgeous vintage style lace dress which was hanging in the couple's bedroom.  The light in the room couldn't have been more perfect.  

We left for Wood Hall Hotel and the although it was very windy, the rain managed to stay away right though the boys' photographs and for Nikki's arrival with her dad, Richard.  So far, so good.  

A lovely civil ceremony followed and a quick check outside as the couple were about to exit confirmed it was raining.  As it looked like it might blow over, we decided to wait it out whilst the guests enjoyed champagne and sure enough, the sun came out a short time later, allowing us to get outside and photograph everyone together, followed by a shower of rose petal confetti.  Because of the wind, we chose a more sheltered area for the smaller group photographs as the rain clouds loomed large again and we just managed to finish them when the heavens opened and everyone dashed for cover.

As Wood Hall does offer a degree of shelter at the entrance, we used this area for some photographs of Nikki and Sean before checking to see if the Vavasour suite was set up for the wedding breakfast.  It really did look spectacular and Nikki, having a keen eye for detail, had done an amazing job, including a sweetie table and framed family wedding photographs on display around the room.

After dinner, we headed outside again and the rain had stopped - briefly.  We got some fun pictures with the girls and had just got the bridal party on the grass for some more and it started again.  A big tree offered some shelter for Nikki and Sean and the bridesmaids deserve a huge thank you for helping keep them dry whilst we were working and for not caring too much about getting wet themselves.

Back inside to photograph the casino and vodka luge and check timings for the first dance with the band and a very enthusiastic and excited bridesmaid came rushing in to tell us about the spectacular rainbow which had appeared.  We had to move fast as these things tend to disappear very quickly.  A sunshine and rain mix sometimes has its advantages and wow, what a bonus to be able to capture Nikki and Sean with a whole rainbow behind them!

With the first dance routine covered, as well as the antics around the vodka luge, the last important thing that Nikki wanted us to capture was the sparklers.  As Wood Hall don't allow fireworks, this was the next best thing for Nikki.  It's a challenge lighting eight sparklers at once but it was such a laugh getting these images.

Mr and Mrs Murphy, your wedding was amazing, even if the weather kept us on our toes. Thank you for allowing us to share it with you.

To enquire about our availability as your Wood Hall wedding photographers, please give us a call on 01977 730159

Wedding Photography at The Bay Tree Hotel, Burford, Oxfordshire | Rachel and James

A couple of years ago we were photographers for James's brother, Thomas, when he married Sarah at Waterton Park and it was at their wedding that we first met James and Rachel.  At the time, we had no idea that they were planning to get married but we were over the moon to receive a call from Rachel to ask if we were available on their wedding date and if we would be prepared to travel to Burford in the Cotswolds to photograph their wedding.  As we are Yorkshire wedding photographers, this is where we usually work but we are happy to travel pretty much anywhere and on 23 June, it was our pleasure to be wedding photographers at the Bay Tree Hotel in Burford for Rachel and James.

As it's some three hours' drive away, we decided to travel down the day before so that we could settle in our hotel and also meet up with Rachel and James at the Bay Tree Hotel for a look around the venue ahead of the wedding.  This pretty hotel was impossible to photograph prior to the wedding due to the number of cars parked outside.  However, we noticed that by early evening, most of them had disappeared enabling Alex to get a couple of nice images, even though by now, it was throwing it down.  And we thought we'd left the rain behind in Yorkshire!

As this was a 3pm civil ceremony, we met up with Rachel and the girls around mid-day and what struck us was how happy and bubbly Rachel was.  In fact, she never stopped smiling all day long which made for great photographs.  Wearing her beautiful vintage style dress which suited her perfectly, she looked amazing.

Photographs of James and his attendants were next and with the weather holding up nicely and with perfect soft light, we kept the boys busy for a while in the walled garden behind the the Bay Tree Hotel.  It was lovely to see James's family again, his mum and dad, Mary and Peter, joining their two sons in the garden for photographs.

We were lucky again that the registrars conducting the civil ceremony gave us no restrictions on photography during the proceedings and it was a pleasure to be able to capture it as there were some great expressions and moments to photograph. 

The couple had asked for mainly a relaxed and informal style of photography, some family group photos, a few couple shots and a spectacular shower of rose petals. The rain clouds started gathering whilst we were outside, ominously threatening a downpour, which meant working really quickly but we managed to get everything we needed - just - before we headed off indoors for everyone to sit for the wedding breakfast.  It's quite unusual for the bride to make a speech but Rachel did and it was hilarious as she told the story of how she and James first got together.  

Soon after the speeches ended, the new Mr and Mrs Cass hit the dance floor with a fun routine they'd been practicing, including a bit of air guitar playing from James, making for some great images, before we hit the road back to Yorkshire.

We hope you're having a fabulous honeymoon and a huge thank you for asking us to be your wedding photographers.

To ask about our availability to capture your wedding at The Bay Tree Hotel, Burford please call us on 01977 730159