Marwell Hotel Hampshire
As a Marwell Hotel wedding photographer, you know you’re going to have a great day shooting for a couple when you see a card that says ‘I’m gunna marry the S*** out of you!’. And I was right! Lauren and Shane were a pleasure to shoot – not just because of their impressive ‘comic-con’ theme to the day, but because the couple were just so into one another, at times it felt like they were the only two people in the room.
I started the day’s coverage with Lauren and the Bridal party at the as their wedding photographer at Marwell Hotel. It was a fun and chilled out morning, with everyone enjoying one another’s company. The moment Lauren put her dress on was special – Not only was the gown stunning, but she wasn’t afraid to show off her impressive collection of tattoos. She oozed class, but with a cool edge, making her one of the most unique brides I have shot to date. She was just too cool!
Shane also had some impressive tattoos, and my second shooter, Megan, captured him getting ready with the groomsmen in the couple’s home in Portsmouth, which was adorned with collections relating to all things comic-con, Disney and anything popular-culture; a hint at what the decorations for the wedding breakfast was to be! Once the guys were ready, they headed to the hotel and enjoyed greeting the guests in the lovely sunshine.
Natural wedding photos from a top Hampshire Wedding Venue.
A unique hotel
Before we knew it, the ceremony time had arrived. Lauren and her bridesmaids made their way to the rear of the venue to make their entry whilst the guests waited eagerly. It’s interesting to note that I have an identical photo of both Shane and Lauren pulling the same, ‘calm-breathing’ face just moments before they were united. But the nerves soon disappeared, and you can see from their beaming smiles that it went off without a glitch.
Wedding ceremony The Marwell Hotel, Hampshire.
The guests made their way out into the sunshine for the group photos whilst the venue at the Marwell Hotel was transformed for the wedding breakfast; each table featured a ‘Harry Potter’ or ‘Game of Thrones’ theme with hand-made table centers, made by Lauren and her Maid-of-honour. They were so impressive that there are plenty of shots of the guests admiring the craftsmanship!
The speeches are often my favourite part of any wedding day – You get to learn nuggets of information about the bride and groom that make you appreciate how lucky you are to be photographing their special day. In Lauren and Shane’s case, who knew that such love could blossom from meeting while working at Sports Direct many years ago? Queue much fun, laughter and a few tears from the guest!
The couple portraits were fun to shoot – we were so lucky to get wonderful light during the Golden Hour and that session gave Shane and Lauren a chance to enjoy one another’s company. However, the grounds of the 60 acres of stunning woodland surrounding the Hotel contained a few pot-holes and we were pleased to discover that the guests had been watching, and laughing, whilst Megan and I had nearly fallen over – TWICE – because we were too busing taking photos and not looking where we were going – But that’s dedication to the cause for you!
They transitioned into the evening’s festivities with a jovial game of ‘Mr & Mrs’ and a first dance that was interrupted with the biggest confetti canon I have ever seen – at one point, I thought I had lost the bride and groom! Fortunately for me, it just made for some excellent photo opportunities. And what can I say – Lauren knows how to party, and we got some great shot of everyone dancing, including a massive group dance to ‘Saturday night’!
Thank you to Lauren and Shane for letting me be a part of their special day!
