Thornton Manor's Dell Pavilion - Caroline & Andrew

Thornton Manor is a cracking Wedding Venue. In fact there are 4 (yes FOUR) locations on the grounds where couples can get married. Last year, I had the fortune of shooting a beautiful wedding at Thornton Manor's 'Lakeside Pavilion' (see Shauna & Ben's Blog), next year I'm in the the 'Manor House'....and the 4th location - 'The Walled Garden Marquee', would mean I've completed Thornton Manor :-) This particular Wedding was at 'The Dell Pavilion' aka 'The Waterside Pavilion'.

The Pavilion is in such an idyllic location, opposite a small tranquil lake, completely surrounded by trees, with the Manor in sight. The bonus for this particular wedding was that the trees had begun to change colour. Today was set to be a great day. Firstly though, with the bride and her ladies, at 'Astbury House' on the outskirts of Chester.

In a beautiful Vintage Rolls Royce provided by Chester Wedding Cars, Caroline took the short journey to St Lawrence Church, Stoak Village, to meet with her Bridesmaids. Andrew, the Groom and all other guests would be waiting for the big arrival.

THE CEREMONY.

Congratulations to Andrew & Caroline on becoming Husband & Wife. The party could commence, but before this, a few shots of the happy couple at both the Church and the 'Dell Pavilion' at Thornton Manor. Notice, the handsome Bailey in these photo's.... Caroline & Andrew's loyal dog, donning his suave Wedding attire - a neckachief stating "My hoomans are getting married". Sadly Bailey passed away the following week, so it was important that he was captured on their special day. Images of memories that will be with Andrew & Caroline forever.

As you can see, the venues surroundings are stunning for a wedding photo shoot. I love to utilise the best of nature not just for backgrounds, but as foreground content to show depth of field. It's also impactful to use natural elements to frame the key subjects, similar to several images above. After a few Group shots, guests were invited in to wine and dine.

Credit where it's due, Andrew's array of talent is unrivaled in all of the many weddings that I've captured. He wrote and sang a song, which he sang to Caroline during his speech - It was pretty impressive too. Then, some of the moves that he and Caroline practiced for the First Dance deserved the standing ovation [evidence to follow :-)] - It's great to see some animated guest reactions. Time for a spot of "Mr & Mrs" before the First Dance.

Told you so!!!!

It has been such a pleasant day. The weather has been kind. The time of the year, for me, the best time of the year to marry (due to the light), giving lots of opportunity to be creative.