Lotti & Ash - Hereford Wedding Photography

Ahh, the summer of 2018. What a great one it was and what great weather. If only every summer was this hot. I also had some really storming weddings with some rather lush couples and great guests. Today’s blog is from July and … a pretty wet day! But that did not stop it from being one of my favourite weddings from last year. The couple were Lotti and Ash and they first met when they were only 3 years old. They even showed me a photo of the two of them together at about this age onstage at a churchg event. How wonderful is that! This story made me smile when I heard it as we chatted over coffee prior to their day and then on their wedding day I was quite emotional about it. What a beautiful story … They eventually got together as boyfriend and girlfiend in their mid teens and Ash proposed on a beach in North Wales in 2017.

My day of Hereford Wedding photography started with bridal prep and a hope that the drizzle would go away before the day kicked in. I arrived at the house and had to work very fast to get some good shots of Lotti and her 12 (yes twelve) bridesmaids! Wow! The photos below of all individual bridesmaids before the ceremony was quite a mission. Anyway, before that, I had the usual time of chatting, photographing and laughing with the family and bridesmaids as well as getting to chat to Lotti about the day.

When Lotti got into her dress (designed by Kenneth Winston and bought in Clare De Lune bridal in Eastbourne) she looked stunning and this obviously caused some tears from her Mum and Dad and even her brothers. This is the reaction I always hope for and they delivered!

A quick drive to Gorsley church (where Lotti and Ash met as children) and I caught up with Ash and his 9 (yes nine) groomsmen. What a fine bunch of men they were too in their Moss Bros suits and included a guy whose wedding I am looking forward to shooting this coming year. I managed to get the photos of the boys dodging the wind and rain and was in time to catch Lotti arrive with her Dad.

There were more tears as Lotti came down the aisle with her gorgeous flowers (from The Flowerhouse in Ross on Wye) and this time from Ash and it was not the only time that day. As a groom who cried lots on my own wedding day, I am always overjoyed to see this. It also makes for the best photographs! The ceremony was very personal and when they walked back down the aisle as Mr and Mrs they had a quick reception before we headed to Gorsley woods … and rain! The good thing about shooting in the woods in the summer is that it does give you some dry cover the downside of it was that we had to go through the brambles to get there. It did not bother Lotti though and in she went without a second thought and we had a great, dry 10 minutes before we got back in the car to get to the wedding venue – Lyde Arundel near Hereford. It is a stunning venue, although when we arrived it was very wet and guests were huddled inside or running to get inside. What a complete contrast to the rest of the summer.

With the rain falling outside I put up some lights and we did the group photographs in one of the large rooms. I love shooting groups this way and am always pleased with the results as they look very different to the natural light ones and seem to zing somehow. You can judge them yourselves and let me know how you feel about them.

The rain did eventually stop and we managed some time outside for a few shots with the couple before they stopped to play an impromptu game of tennis. Watching Lotti run round the court in her dress was very funny and gave them some great photographs.

The wedding breakfast was served shortly after this tennis match and I had the pleasure to be seated (I do not usually sit for the wedding breakfast) next to two of my previous brides and grooms. It was so nice to chat to them and remember Chloe and Will’s wedding from a few years back and Claire and Tom’s wedding from the previous October. Both weddings were really unique and full of joy throughout. Sadly I had to cut my conversations short when the speeches started and these were full of laughing with some tears – mainly Ash’s! This is always one of my most favourite parts of the day as it gives me the chance to get lots of happy faces photographed and give the couple a real sense of the day.

The final act of the day was to watch Ash dancing with his groomsmen when they crashed the first dance and pulled out a superb choreographed set piece for the guests and an amazed Lotti! It was brilliant!

We managed some more photos outside with some lights and a red sky before the band – Bass 12 got the guests partying until the very end. It was a lovely day and I am so pleased that Lotti and Ash chose me to capture their day. They were wonderful hosts and I felt so welcomed by them and their guests. So thanks guys and so pleased you loved your photos.