First Wedding of the Year at Ansty Hall, Coventry
Our first wedding photography for this year was at the beautiful Ansty Hall in Coventry, a 17th century country house with its own church in the grounds. I was looking forward to this assignment as I had met with Rachel and Dominic a couple of months before for a pre-shoot and could see what a fabulous background and setting we would have.
On the day, Angela O’Neill who is my 2nd Photographer was with me and her style really helped on getting the right shots. At Craige Barker Photography, my intention is to capture the emotion of the event and this is made more possible by having a second photographer, to secure those moments the main photographer might miss, through being elsewhere. In this way we have a more complete memory of the day, with posed and candid shots adding an extra element. To me, this is what modern wedding photography is about, giving the bride and groom a full sense of what happened throughout their day and a reminder of the small details that may otherwise go unnoticed.
It was great fun to work with Rachel, her Mum and the bridesmaids as they got Rachel ready for her big day – and what a fabulous job they did. Rachel was radiant and beautiful and I even managed to capture her in a more pensive moment, before the ceremony began, reflecting on the big step she was about to take. Dominic and the groomsmen took a slightly different approach to their pre-wedding preparations, and simply straightened each other’s buttonholes!
In the church, the Vicar set the tone of the day with his enthusiastic welcome to the wedding party. The ceremony was up-beat and cheerful – as a wedding should be – and what a beautiful place to be married. The stained glass windows in the church were worth photographing on their own, and they added an enchanting background to the photos of the marriage itself. In one photo, you can see Angela taking another photo of the happy couple from a different angle to myself, illustrating the value of this photography partnership.
Once the ceremony was over, it was a short walk across the grounds from the church to the reception. Despite the wedding being held in Coventry, both families have a Liverpudlian background, and thus a determination to have fun, which was written all over their faces on the walk back!
It was a glorious day and I was proud to take the photographs. When the last Champagne cork has popped, the five layers of the cake have been eaten, the wedding dress stored safely with the silver shoes and the last of the bouquet flowers pressed, Rachel and Dominic will have a wedding album to forever remind them of their happy day. That’s what wedding photography is all about.
