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Wedding Photography Blog

Wedding Shoot: Emily and Martin

December 16, 2009 | Filed Under: Bournemouth photography, Dorset photography, Highcliffe Castle 

While summer still remains the most popular season for weddings, there’s always quite something special about ceremonies that take place in the Winter – especially if it’s nearing Christmas time. With champagne ditched for mulled wine and plenty of fun to be had with decorations and details there’s definitely a different feel to a wedding shoot in December.

Emily and Martin chose to have their wedding ceremony at Highcliffe Castle in Christchurch, Dorset with their reception taking place at the Hallmark Hotel in Bournemouth.

The month leading up to the wedding was dire weather-wise, really dire, so it was a pleasant surprise to open our curtains to brilliant blue skies. The sun really helped set Emily’s golden wedding dress sparkling too.

Highcliffe Castle had quite minimal Christmas decorations but there was a tree in the back of the ceremony room which proved to be a useful prop for the rings.

Groom, Martin didn’t know Emily had hired a Lamborghini for him to travel to the wedding venue in, but we did! There was something quite rock and roll about hearing it throw up the gravel in the castle grounds.

Emily also arrived in style in a cream Buick.

I was impressed she was able to show off the dress without a wrap or a shrug. It was flippin’ freezing!

The ceremony room at Highcliffe Castle is like a big gazebo. That meant Martin had to close his eyes when Emily drove passed in the car to meet the registrar.

Phil the Best Man did a good job as ring bearer and rounding up folks for the group shots.

The sky was almost a bit too perfect I was concerned it would look fake. It was actually this blue.

Emily’s dress had a lovely long train.

After the ceremony the wedding party gathered for a hot toddy. It smelt so yummy and cosy.

There was another wedding less than an hour after Emily and Martin’s so we quickly had a run around outside to grab some shots in the lovely grounds. Time was of the essence!

Emily was very adventurous and made her own wedding cake, including the cake toppers! The tables were set up like a Christmas party with crackers and bowls of decorations for the table centres.

Another gift from Emily to Martin was used as a decoy for the Lamborghini reveal the morning of the wedding!

Because everyone had their Christmas meal and had pulled their crackers a lot of the wedding party kept their paper hats on. This made for some jolly speeches!

No, the Best Man didn’t put on a Powerpoint presentation, but he did organise a very funny slideshow, with plenty of Photoshop’ed images of the Groom and an impressive backstory to go along with each shot.

Don’t ask.

Food consumed, speeches done and glasses raised, there was a break between the reception and the evening do which marked the end of the photography. We left Emily and Martin to enjoy the rest of their day and wrapped up our last wedding of 2010.

With thanks and congratulations to Mr and Mrs Merrick.