Julia & Josh’s Garden Party Wedding.

Ashford in the Water, Derbyshire.

Julia and Josh married in a ceremony in Josh’s Aunt’s back garden in Derbyshire. Julia and Josh are a super laissez-faire couple (Julia is French), which was a good fit, as I’m quite a laissez-faire wedding photographer. It was a beautiful day and the weather was nice.

That probably undersells it a bit. I arrived to discover that what Josh’s Aunt actually owns is a huge estate in Ashford on the Water, just outside Bakewell. So the back garden wedding ceremony actually looked a bit more like this:

And you can’t even see the land with the reception marquee in this photo (or the walled garden, chickens or land for horses and cattle to graze).

I’m used to people having large back gardens. When I turn up for a garden party wedding I’m not really expecting to have to elbow my way in between a trampoline and a shed (although I am totally up for that vibe, too). I’m just not used to finding a national trust property when I arrive.

Anyway. I have a new approach to blogging. We look at a handful of photos and actually talk about them, rather than me showing you 100 images at once.

And I really could show you 100 photographs from this day – it was spectacular.

The Bridal Suite.

I’m going to kick off with this photo of the bridesmaid steaming the dress. For me this works on several levels. It’s a good detail shot of the dress. In the right hand of the frame you can also see the brides shoes. But it’s also a bridesmaids picture. It tells the story of the care that goes into preparing for the wedding. It captures the drinks on the mantlepiece (champagne, tea, water). It also gives a feel for the room that we’re getting ready in. There’s a much tighter picture to be had in here, but I love all the little grace notes around the edges (though not the dressing gown, that’s just included for visual balance and because I try not to alter the scenes I find myself in).

I’m also a huge fan of the cinematic 16:9 aspect ratio. The squarer and more even the image the more calm it feels. Once you get to 2:3 (which is traditionally the ratio of 35mm film) it starts to add a little tension and drama. And then 16:9 is super cinematic. It is something I use sparingly though, as I’m aware that not many people will sell you a 16:9 print.

The Boutonniere.

People sometimes expect me to help out with the boutonnière (or buttonhole, I just thought I’d get a bit French on you). I love watching people figure this stuff out themselves and I really want the wedding to transpire just as it would if I wasn’t there. I know a lot of photographers are like having a spare wedding planner in your pocket, but I’m really not that guy. I will let it unfold naturally.

(I did have to get a toolkit out of the shed and rescue a bride who was locked in her dressing room once, and talk down another who was having a full blown panic attack… but generally speaking I will not get involved in the proceedings.)

The Vows.

Julia, writing her vows on the morning of the wedding. I don’t know if this is final draft or the first draft. The best man is also, across the grounds, writing his speech. I know that in his case it was the first draft (and yes, there are photos).

The Groom’s Arrival.

There are times, when covering a wedding by yourself, when you really wish that you had another photographer to capture the bits you miss. I did totally miss the gathering of guests in the walled garden, as I was busy covering bridal preparations. But I did manage to spot Josh leaving the house to join the guests out of the window where Julia was getting ready. And the distance & the framing in the window makes it a really nice tranquil photo.

The excited bride.

Julia, pretty much ready, and you can feel the mixture of nerves and excitement steaming off her. Another (ab)use of the 16:9 aspect for that cinematic feel.

The Bride Walks Down The Aisle.

Julia & Josh got married under the huge weeping willow in the gardens. I sunk back into the weeping willow as she walked down the aisle knowing that there were two paths I could take. Moving forward would give a clearer image, whereas sinking back into the tree would give a hazy look as the leaves obscured the view and became elements of the photo – but at the risk of losing good moments. Do you take the safe shot or the risky one?

Well you know me. I also went black and white so the leaves add a mysterious haze to the picture.

The White Album.

At several points in the day Julia’s family got up and gave us a rendition of a Beatles song. Here they are singing Julia. There was not a dry eye in the field.

Bubbles.

Julia and Josh exited the ceremony to a tunnel of bubbles. You can see the finished result at the top of the page – But here is a guest getting in some practice.

The Garden Party.

Sometimes I like to stand as far back as possible to capture the whole scene. This is one of those photos.

The Newlyweds give a speech.

There were many speeches. All of them wonderful, and even including more performances of Beatles classics. But I’m just going to share this one as it’s a beautiful image of Julia & Josh together that I think really captures the connection between them.

The Chick.

It being a live farm, with live animals and all, there was a tiny little newborn chicken that

Josh definitely did not drop when it was his turn to handle it.

A portrait.

Julia and Josh were definitely a bit sozzled by the time I took them out for some portraits. But here they are, horse in the background, living life to the fullest – what more could you want?

Shoesies.

I’m not going to pretend I understand why people drink perfectly good drinks out of shoes when there’s a perfectly good glass in their hand. I can’t imagine it improving the experience of either drinking or shoe-wearing. Apparently it’s a sports thing and usually involves a sweaty trainer – which, if you think about it, only makes it worse.

I also wasn’t sure if this gentleman was planning to join in with his coffee…

The Triangle Solo.

Rather than knocking a fork against a wine glass, the bridesmaids and groomsmen had been using this musical triangle to get peoples attention throughout the day. When the band played they were open to all sorts of audience participation – including this guest’s impromptu triangle solo and Julia joining in with the ‘doo-doo-doo’ backing vocals on Lou Reed’s Walk on The Wild Side

And the coloured girls go:

The Wedding Marquee

Do I have a sharper image? Of course I do, but you’re not going to see it. Because by this time of the evening this is how it felt – a little blurry, a little hazy. Light and warmth emanating from the marquee. Movement.

It’s a much better picture than the sharp one you may have been expecting from a professional wedding photographer.

Not the first dance

Not the first dance, but a lovely relaxed moment between Julia and Josh again. Also, there was a lot of chaos and fun had on this dancefloor. This is one of my favourite moments (below), But If you want to see more I’d watch the slideshow below.

The Twilight Zone.

This being a July wedding, sunset and twilight were running pretty late into the evening. I’m not sure it ever got truly dark this night. This is the remaining guests outside at the end of the evening when I left

That’s me signing off. If you did want to see loads of photos (soundtracked by a couple of songs from The Beatles Revolver) then here’s my highlights slideshow:

The Slideshow

A little bit About Me

Hello, I’m Simon, a Derbyshire Wedding Photographer with a relaxed, documentary style. If you’d like your wedding covering with a similar laissez-faire attitude and artistic vision, please drop me a line to see if your date is available.