Fulham Palace Wedding Venue - Claire and Johnny

Good Afternoon Folks,

I hope this finds you well and ready to read about the pre wedding photography shoot at Fulham Palace of Claire and Johnny. When I first met Claire we had such a giggle and wandering around the gorgeous grounds of Fulham Palace with them both was no different. We had such fun as we made all sorts of plans for their big day. This venue is set in the heart of London adjacent to the River Thames but it feels a world away from the hub bub of the outside world, this really is a tranquil paradise. Firstly there is the most gorgeous courtyard that takes me back to something a little Elizabethan for some reason (I don't think it is; note to self, research a bit of history) then a world of gorgeousness opens up along with a lovely cottage garden. I really do think we could be on a three week wedding photography fest here!! We spotted a very nice church just outside the grounds and I was all up for popping along to have a look; now Johnny is the font of all knowledge and informed us that this was the church that was used in the filming of The Omen; not wanting to have dodgy lines across my imagery I made a hasty retreat…oooooh scary!! I like wedding stories but not sure that would fit somehow and I would be petrified. I am in a very privileged position to know the dress Claire will be wearing as it is another magnificent creation from our very own Emma Tindley, designer extraordinaire. There were frequent "I know what Claire's wearing" chants in a sing songy voice to Johnny. Johnny the wait and the surprise will be all the sweeter when you see your gorgeous bride for the first time; she will take your breath away. Claire seeing Johnny waiting for you at the end of the aisle will melt your heart. You two are gorgeous, wonderful and everything in between and I cannot wait to photograph your day :)

 Claire :)

East Sussex Wedding Venue Buxted Park Hotel Uckfield East Sussex - Becky and Nic

Good Afternoon Folks,

We are back at the gorgeous East Sussex wedding venue that is Buxted Park Hotel in Uckfield for the pre wedding photography shoot of Becky and Nic.

The evening was lovely and we were able to make the most of the fading light. Usually my Olympus OMD's come along with me to these shoots but today we had my new camera that I have called the beast of Bodmin Moor! I wanted to put this little baby through its paces so this was our first outing together and the beast behaved very well so much so that we had a fun day out at last week's wedding. I still have my lovely faithful old friends but one will be relaxing a little bit more now. They have worked so hard for me they can enjoy a little more time off; yup I know I am completely nuts :)

I love working at Buxted Park, not only is it a beautiful venue but the staff are brilliant and nothing is ever too much trouble for them. Becky, Nic and I had a lovely wander around the grounds and it was nice to see all the bits and bobs that had changed since my last visit. I have also spotted some new little nooks and crannies I would like to utilise if possible.

So here are today's images; Becky and Nic are snuggled just inside the doorway and behind them is the magnificent East Sussex rolling countryside with just a hint of haze that I think gives this image real atmosphere. We had loads of fun at these steps, and I love capturing those little glances and laughter that really brings a wedding story alive. This is one of our little nooks and crannies and I love it; Becky looks amazing and I cannot wait to photograph her and I think this image looks just dreamy. I do love a good door and Nic just had to be resplendent here, and doesn't he look good.

So here we are in autumn, I cannot believe where the year has gone. I do love the changing seasons; soon the countryside will be oozing with the richness of the autumn colour and we will be left with fond memories of a summer that felt carefree and deliciously warm.

Claire :)

Weddings at Slaugham Place Slaugham West Sussex - Tracey and Mark

Good Afternoon Folks, I was recently with Tracey and Mark for their pre wedding photography shoot at Slaugham Place near Lower Beeding West Sussex and what a glorious evening we had for the shoot. It was lovely and warm, the skies were azure blue and it was hard to believe that earlier in the week the rain had just lashed down incessantly! It was lovely to be back at Slaugham again to reacquaint myself with the many wonderful features the venue has and I also am keen to try out a different angle for the big day too. We chatted about Tracey and Mark's big day and they have some brilliant things planned that I cannot wait to see so I think a fun time will be had by all. So here are today's images and we start with the bridge and those magnificent weeping willows, so rich in depth and colour, which is a beautiful frame for Tracey and Mark. The weeping willows make an appearance once again but utilising a completely different light that really suits this shot; there is a quality and mood to the light that really evokes a dreamy mood with a couple of smashing leading lines thrown in for good measure! I just love this image of Tracey, she looks absolutely amazing and I cannot wait to photograph her on the big day; I just hope that she now sees what I see! I know that we have had the most awful winter that seemed never to end but I think the blossom and tree colours have been spectacular this year and this image shows this tree off to perfection; just look at its shape and how it frames Tracey and Mark, so although the smallest part of the image, with the use of light, they are still the most dominant as one's eye is constantly drawn to them both. This image should be called magnificent Mark, it is a strong black and white image with very definite leading lines and I love it! It really has been a busy few weeks for me, I had a great seaside wedding yesterday and one more this weekend in total contrast to yesterday's scenery. I am hoping to blog some of the wonderful protrait shoots I have done recently too, so keep checking back. Claire :) http://www.woodlandhillphotography.co.uk

Weddings at the Ravenswood Sharpethorne West Sussex - Faye and Alex

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Weddings at South Lodge Hotel Lower Beeding West Sussex - Debbie and Matt

Good Morning Folks,

I was recently at South Lodge Hotel for the pre wedding photography shoot of Debbie and Matt.  The rain was incessant but that did not hamper our fun!  We had a lovely wander around the hotel to get some ideas for the day and the rain abated just a little bit so we could venture outside.  The initial plan was to use umbrellas but the strong winds put pay to that idea.  As this was not an actual wedding day and dresses weren't involved the intrepid gang decided to just go for it and have some fun.

The images today show mainly the outside just because we were giggling like children when doing some of the shots and looking at them makes me smile.  The first image today was taken inside; South Lodge is one of those venues that has it all for both wet and dry days, so if you get married there folks, the weather will not be a problem.  We fly in the face of wind and rain, yes it was time to go outside, but I stress this is something that may not have been at the top of Debbie's list had it been on her actual wedding day.  The pre-wedding shoots are all about fun, being a bit silly and relaxing in front of the camera so we just went for it!  Image two is a nice stroll along the drive, then piggyback time!  I discovered this little nook when looking for somewhere that would be a possible outside shot and this was lovely and dry.  The huge vagaries of the weather in this country are great because something always appears that may have been overseen otherwise and this little nook is no exception.  I love the shape of the branches behind too, it reminds me of something out of a fairytale. Last but not least just a bit of silly fun, we were mucking about trying to get the 'kick' correct.  When Debbie did it Matt didn't and vice versa.  We were double up with laughter and was one of the visitors to the hotel was most intrigued at what we were up to!

It was a beautiful day for my wedding yesterday and this week sees album ordering and wedding editing for me.  Have a great week folks and looking forward to catching up with you all later.

Claire :)

Wedding Photography at the Norfolk Arms Arundel West Sussex - Ellen and Andrew

Good Afternoon Folks,

I was recently with Ellen and Andrew for their pre wedding photography in Arundel, West Sussex.  They are getting married in the most beautiful little church, St Leonard's in South Stoke, which is just outside Arundel.  The Norfolk Arms in Arundel is a hotel full of character just situated on the High Street with Arundel Castle as its backdrop; how fabulous.

We had a bright and sunny albeit chilly day for the shoot and it was wonderful to stroll around Arundel looking for interesting places for the wedding day.  The roads leading to the church are very special to Andrew as he spent many hours as a young boy cycling around them.  So I think it is really lovely that he will be able to add to his already wonderful memories the day he marries Ellen.

So on to today's images; the first image I love because the backdrop is so textured and interesting; it was Andrew who mentioned this to me and what an eye he has; well done Andrew :)  I love the second image and to me this is what the pre wedding shoot is all about; banishing those photography nerves and having some fun.  Last but not least another little nook that we discovered for the wedding day and I have some plans here, but I just love this tender moment, yup it was -2 and I think Andrew's lips may have frozen to Ellen's hair, but hey that's what love is!

Have a great weekend folks; I am busy editing here but I might, just might go wild and hang some washing out in a minute...oh yeah life on the edge!

Claire

Wedding Photographers for Hayne Barn House Hythe Kent - Pru and Simon

Good Afternoon Folks,

I was recently with Pru and Simon for their pre-wedding photography shoot at Hayne Barn House, Hythe, Kent.  The day was chilly but at least it wasn't raining!

This is a very special wedding for me because I have to do something a little different; deliver the images to Simon as I am taking them!   Simon is not able to see due to a nasty road accident so our aim is to put him in the very special position of having his wedding photographs before Pru even.  The pre-wedding photography shoot was to put our plan into action and it definitely worked I think.

The day started at Pru and Simon's house and we set off to the venue with a planned detour along the way.  The sat nav was turned off in the car and my own personal sat nav in the form of Simon directed me to our detour then to the venue; now this is amazing, Simon can calculate my speed too!  The only hiccup was the non-existent bridge that Pru and I were at a loss to find, Simon was insistent it was there until he remembered it was a different town; it kept Pru and I on our toes though.

So on to today's images and the descriptives are for Simon, so here goes:-

Image One - This is where we started in the gardens, we are at the half moon crazy paved steps, you are looking deep into Pru's eyes and you holding and facing each other.  This imagery has the symmetry of the yew trees behind and they are a lush green, the sky is grey.  The steps lead you up to where you are both posing.  The image shows you both in your surroundings so you can see all of the Yew Trees, the steps, the path and a little bit of grass either side.  Even though are not the biggest subjects in the image everything leads to you, making you the most important part of the image.  Oh and the coffee is on the wall behind me at the bottom of the path near to the house!!
Image Two - You are both walking back towards the house, you are looking at Pru and Pru is looking back up at you.  It is such a happy image and you are smiling and very relaxed in each others company.  You halfway along the lawn with the half moon steps and yew trees behind you; this image is again very lush and green but with grey skies.  The coffee is very nearly in your grasp Simon!
Image Three - This is a black and white image of Pru in the room where we were chatting to the wedding planner; Pru is on the sofa opposite to the one where you had the meeting, she does not have her glasses on and I am taking the picture slightly to one side.  You are standing to the side and slightly behind me and she is giving you the most loving look; her eyes are soft and dewy and she is smiling beautifully.  Or to put it another way the look that is totally opposite to the one she gives when you are being naughty ;)
Image Four - This is you Simon in glorious black and white, it was taken in the same room as image three and you are sitting on the hard backed chair next to the window.  I have taken the image of you in profile from the right hand side of your face.  It is classically lit in a rembrandty style (like I explained to you on the day).
Image Five - This is another black and white image of you both.  It was taken in the conifer trees just behind the crazy paved path with the yew trees.  If you remember, we saw it and walked back and on the way back there was talk of you jumping that little wall that split the garden into tiers;  the anal, sensible one (me) said no.  I know, I know I spoil all your fun.  This is taken from your left side and Pru is looking up at you, she has a minxish glint in her eye and I do believe she may have been caressing your buttock at this point; needless to say you have a very satisfied smile in this image Simon :)

We had loads of fun on the day and you both always make me giggle.  When Simon was being minxish, which folks was more often than not Pru had this look that she gives him.  I kept on saying "ooh Simon you don't want to be seeing that look, you have been naughty again."  He said "do I get that look often Claire" I responded "quite a lot Simon, quite a lot"  he just laughed and was even more minxish......love it!

I am so looking forward to seeing you both and the ever gorgeous Umber on the big day.

Have a great weekend folks and catch up soon,

Claire :)

Wedding Photographers for Buxted Park Hotel Uckfield East Sussex - Nicola and Dean

Good Morning Folks,

We had a stunning day for the pre-wedding photography shoot at Buxted Park Hotel, Uckfield East Sussex.  The funny colours that you are about to see are blue skies!

I met Nicola and Dean in the wonderful bar at Buxted as they had enjoyed a wonderful lunch there; I can testify the food is amazing :)  After a nice chat with Nicola's parents they wandered off and we went exploring.  Pre-wedding shoots are a great and unhurried way to find new spots to use on the wedding day, and if the weather behaves itself (ha, ha) then we have plans!

Today I am posting 5 images; the day was so lovely I thought we needed cheering up with blue skies and sun!  The Church that is next to Buxted looks like quite a hefty walk when driving to the venue but I was really surprised that you could walk to the venue through the grounds in a matter of minutes; wouldn't that be lovely on a wedding day.  Here we see Nicola and Dean having a sneaky walk with blue skies and yes folks...warmth!  The backdrop of that magnificent house never fails to make me gush and it really is a wonderful backdrop for the wedding photography; I don't like to be too serious so we were being silly as usual.  I like the rim lighting in this image and with the black and white tones gives a dreamy look to the overall image.  The Pillars are brilliant, on sunny days they create all sorts of wonderful shadows and on rainy days gives a bit of shelter if one wanted to nip outside for some shots; I love this shot of Nicola basking in the rays and what are those weird contraptions on her face...oh yes sunglasses; it has been so long since I last saw them.  Last but not least a very debonair Dean; he is not going for the traditional wedding attire and I cannot wait to see him on the day, he really has chosen the most fabulous outfit; gutted though because he won't be wearing his flat cap :(

As a little side note all the images were taken with the Olympus OMD; I am really enjoying getting to grips with these little beauties.  Still love my faithful friends of course!

Have a great week folks and catch up with you all later.

Claire :)

Wedding Photographers for Dorset House Bury West Sussex - Imogen and Guy

Good Morning Folks,

I recently had a lovely pre-wedding photography shoot with Imogen and Guy ahead of their wedding at Dorset House, Bury, West Sussex.

The day was bright and not too cold surprisingly!  We had a lovely wander around the grounds of Imogen's parent's house and it was good to chat about their day a bit more.  I am really looking forward to photographing the wedding service for all sorts of special reasons.  Dorset House looks absolutely lovely and I cannot wait to get photographing there on the big day.

So moving on to today's images; I do love a good view; every season has its own beauty, winter shows us the trees and their amazing shapes that are a well kept secret in the summer and autumn.  Part of a pre-wedding shoot is to banish those photography nerves and a get a real felling for what it will be like on the big day and there is nothing like 'the kiss' although we did have some silly fun afterwards, not sure Guy suited Imogen's lip gloss though!  We popped into a nearby field, despite the warning 'beware of the bulls', now I was a little reticent but Imogen assured me there wasn't a bull to be seen and look how relaxed we all are :)  This is Guy looking very debonair and probably just making sure there wasn't a bull lurking anywhere; ahhh happy days!

As I sit here and write this we have snow, yes snow, I know snow; last year I was in short sleeves, what on earth!  Now today sees the opening of the Bluebell Railway line to East Grinstead; this is trés exciting for us.  There have been test runs all week and I can hear the chuff, chuff of the engines now and once it is open I am certain to hear the whistle as the trains merrily make there way to and from East Grinstead.  I hope if you are local you are going along to see this little piece of history.

Looking forward to catching up with you all next week.

Claire :)

Wedding Photography at Glorious Goodwood - Kelly and Paul

Good Afternoon Folks,

Well I was back again at the Goodwood Hotel, Goodwood, East Sussex for the pre-wedding photography of Kelly and Paul.

I do love pre-wedding shoots as it is a good to get to know my couples a little better, it banishes all those photography nerves and is jolly good fun!  It is lovely to wander around the most beautiful wedding venues we have in the South East and it is a time to chat and make plans for the big day.

Kelly, Paul and I strolled around the Goodwood Estate and the majesty of Goodwood House never fails to disappoint.  At my last visit we had fast cars and on this visit I was treated to vintage aircraft; happy days!

So on to today's images and once again apologies for the watermarks; the few have ruined it for the many as usual!  I love this image of Kelly looking dreamy and thoughtful about her wedding day and it was here that an image we are planning unfolded so stay away rain!!!  I do love Goodwood House in the background and again you can see those clumps of mistletoe and I cannot wait to see how the landscape will change when I photograph there again.  Kelly is looking wonderful and sultry here and I love that minxish look Paul has; what on earth is he going to be up to I wonder!  Last but not least we are in the whiskey bar with Paul doing mans things in the mans bar with man furnishings!  He still has that minxish smile...love it!

Enjoy your week folks, I am looking forward to meeting lots of lovely clients and editing my latest sessions.

Claire :)

Wedding Photographers for South Lodge Hotel Lower Beeding West Sussex - Emma and Andy with the Olympus OMD

Good Morning Folks,

It was lovely to be back at South Lodge Hotel, Lower Beeding, West Sussex to prepare for the wedding photography of Emma and Andy.  The day was gorgeous; there was sniggering, guffawing and full blown laughter and the shoot was reminiscent of something out of a carry on film; he, he love it!

I know and love South Lodge but there are still lots of things to discover there, we started off on what we thought was solid ground but due to the huge amount of rain we ended up feeling like we had been on a long hike.  Emma thought I was a wuss because I did not like the mud...well my boots were getting dirty and she found my facial expressions extremely amusing.  We ended up back in reception and the look of amusement the concierge's face was a picture.

So today I am posting three images and sadly these are the first with the new watermarking regime.  I am so sorry to have to do this but recent events have given me no choice; I hope they do not spoil your enjoyment too much.  So on to image one is the pre-mud phase of the shoot, what more could you want, a beautiful building azure skies and humour continually bubbling away with Emma and Andy.  We thought we would have a wander on the long lingering driveway and there were some superb pools of sun, so what do you do when you have a pool of sun; yes piggyback!  The last image of the day is using a quirky mix of lighting and I used the varying colour temperatures to draw the eye to Emma and Andy in the telephone box.

All the images were taken on the Olympus OMD and I am tending to use them solely for my pre-wedding shoots now.  My faithful friends have approved this and are very much enjoying the time off; rumour has it they have been partying and drinking cocktails...honestly!

Enjoy your week folks and I would love to have your opinion of the new watermarking system.

Claire :)

Wedding Photography at Crondon Park Stock Essex - Kelly and Darren:Essex Wedding Photographers

Good Morning Folks,

Yesterday the intrepid trio braved the cold for a pre-wedding shoot at Crondon Park, Stock, Essex and this is a very special wedding for me.

I lived in Essex for about 7 years and Darren's sister is one of my oldest friends so this wedding is like photographing family. Debs and I lived next door to each other in our City heydays and it was really like living in one house with two front doors.  Ohhh the stories we have of those days and alas a couple slipped out over a lovely birthday lunch, which always makes Jacob and my Goddaughter Emily laugh.  Debs is not quite so impressed but embarrassment is all part of a Godmother's job description!

It was so lovely wandering around the venue with Kelly and Darren and I really enjoyed chatting about their plans for the day; I have a couple of shots that I am planning and if all goes well weather wise on the day I hope to be able to make them into actual images.  I also love it because in my official capacity I know things that everyone else doesn't; he, he, I love this job!

So moving on to the images I have chosen today; the first image was taken in front of the frozen fountain, it proves there are some good things about it being bitterly cold!  I also love it because we were being just a bit silly as you can probably tell.  The views at Crondon are wonderful and image two demonstrates this during a tender moment.  I love image three because it is just a lovely picture of the two of them and is further enhanced by being in black and white. So here he is the main man himself, young Dazzler looking mighty fabulous in an edgy black and white.  Last but not least his beautiful, beautiful bride to be and Mother of their gorgeous son Henry.

I cannot wait to photograph your wedding and it really is not long now, so see you soon you two :) xx

Claire