When I photographed Jon’s surprise proposal to Anu at the Tawny Hotel/Foxtail Barns, it was such a lovely moment to document.  If you follow my blog you’ll know that Anu did say “Yes”! Here’s their blog if you missed it.  After delivering my pictures to J&N they asked if I would photograph their wedding at Stoke Place Hotel in Buckinghamshire – how could I refuse?! Most importantly for me, I got to tell their story in full, from engagement to them saying “I do”, so I was chuffed when they asked me ☺️.

Stoke Place Hotel Wedding Photographer

Come their wedding day I set off very early from my home in Staffordshire to be sure I arrived at Stoke Place in Slough in good time.  When I arrived I spent some time walking around the wedding venue, scouting locations etc. sipping a nice coffee.  Whenever I work at new wedding locations I always take time to scout the area.  Stoke Place in Slough is a beautiful venue, with 26 acres of gardens with large lakes and an abundance of nature. It really is spectacular.  

After enjoying my morning walk it was time to kit up and start photographing J&N’s wedding details, which were now being set up by all the other wedding suppliers.  Their venue stylist was on hand setting up for the outdoor ceremony, placing a big flower arch which looked amazing! 

Some ducks and geese even popped out of the water to see what all the commotion was.

I knew Jon was arriving soon from looking at our schedule plan (something I ask all my couples to fill out – I need to be organised!!) so I positioned myself at the entrance to the rear garden where the wedding was being held.  I spotted Jon and his brother grabbing their jackets from his car boot, about to walk over to meet the florist.  After taking some pics of Jon chatting with the florist and being helped with his buttonhole I managed to say hi and meet his brother.

Stoke Place Hotel Wedding Photography

Before the guests arrived I wanted to send the drone up to capture an overhead perspective of the garden and ceremony location now it was all dressed.  These came out great! I love the drone for weddings, just the perfect tool to show off the venue and atmosphere.  In case you’re wondering, I’m fully qualified to fly one too, so no YouTube shorts of me running into the lake to gather my drone here 🙂

From here on in it was capturing both Jon & Anu’s family and friends arriving and having a drink together.  This is something I enjoy photographing, families coming together naturally, some of who have never met before.  After capturing the guests and all the details etc. I made my way inside the venue where Anu would be waiting to make her entrance, accompanied by her bridesmaids and flower girls.

Buckinghamshire Wedding Photography 

When I caught up with Anu she was in her dress waiting to make her entrance, looking relaxed yet nervous with excitement.  A quick hello and a brief chat with her bridal party and we were off, being signalled to make our way downstairs to walk to the ceremony!!! The route around the main building was lovely.  Anu was being helped by her bridal party to negotiate the gravel driveway before entering the nearby woods and gate entrance to the ceremony location. This is where I was now waiting at the end of the aisle, photographing Jon who couldn’t help but keep smiling!

Anu’s entrance to the garden was graceful and beautiful, her bridesmaids throwing rose petals before her under blue skies, it certainly brought a tear or two to the eyes of some of the guests.  The ceremony was brief but a joy to document, the outdoor space was so easy to work in, allowing me to get all the angles I could imagine.  Me and the videographer could move around without too much distraction which is just how I love to work.  When J&A walked back down the aisle together they looked so happy 🙂 It was such a lovely ceremony!!

I left J&A to be congratulated by their family and friends and looked to document the proceedings from afar.  So nice to see everyone outside in the sun enjoying the day in each other’s company.  I disappeared for a while to photograph the reception room as I got word it had been decorated and was ready to be viewed.  The afternoon had flown by and it was now time for me to whisk J&A away for some relaxed portraits, making the most of the beautiful grounds and waterfronts.  From all of these images, the jetty by the lake and inside the woods are some of my favourites.

From here on in we next found ourselves sitting inside enjoying food and listening to the very funny and emotional speeches.  Jon had a good number of people in hysterics at some of his jokes.  Before the day came to an end Jon and Anu asked me to stay for another 30 mins to get some more photos of them on the grounds before leaving.  This was something we spoke about in the pre-wedding chat so I was really happy to do this and the light was looking lovely too.  There was one location we didn’t have the opportunity to visit earlier in the day, so we headed that way for a walk and got some stunning shots with the Canadian Geese and their chicks – be sure to take a look at this pic!!

After a few pics of family and friends saying farewell it was time for me to depart too. I said goodbye to Jon & Anu and thanked them both for taking me on their journey.  It’s not very often you get to photograph a couple’s proposal and their wedding so this one felt very special 🙂 We had a hug and said our goodbyes…

In the end, I presented them with 100s of images that told their wedding day in full. For all my wedding blogs I select just 50 to share, so here they are! Enjoy!

Suppliers on the day:
Stoke Place Weddings
The Garden Room
Patrick Collins