The Old Vicarage Boutique Wedding Photography | Cheryl & Ross

Wedding Photographer At The Old Vicarage Boutique

Cheryl & Ross got married at the Old Vicarage Boutique Hotel which is located in the beautiful village of Southwell in Nottinghamshire. Friends & family joined in the celebrations and travelled from all over the UK. A special thanks to all the staff at the Old Vicarage Boutique Hotel for their fantastic hospitality.

Cheryl & Ross had an amazing honeymoon travelling around California. 

Here are a few of my personal favourites from their wedding day.

The Old Vicarage Boutique Hotel Wedding Photography

© Matt Andrew Nottingham Wedding Photograper

Wedding Preparation Tips

Wedding Preparation Tips

My job as your Nottingham wedding photographer is to document your love story as it happens, one moment at a time. Your day begins the moment you start getting ready, and I would like to offer some tips and advice on how to prepare for your big day. The morning of your wedding should be a very exciting time for you and your bridesmaids, but it can also get a little stressful. Here are a few ways to make your wedding preparations in the morning go that little bit smoother.

Top Tips
 

1. Try to get a good nights sleep before the wedding. I have been to quite a few weddings where the bride and groom have only had a few hours sleep the night before because they were still running around trying to make everything perfect for the big day. It will also make it a really long day. Try to get to bed in good time and have 8 hours sleep. Easier said than done I know.

2. Don't have too many people in your bridal suite. When you are getting ready on the morning of the wedding try to only have your bridesmaids, immediate family and vendors in the bridal suite otherwise this will add to the stress.

3. Have all of your details ready. Try to make sure that you have all of your wedding details ready ( dress, flowers, shoes, jewellery) when your photographer arrives so they can photograph these all together in one place, this will obviously save you time and you will be able to capture more of your bridal party.

4. Have some food and drink available in the bridal suite. It is very important that you and your bridesmaids have something to eat and drink in the morning, especially if you are planning on having a glass or two of fizz.

5. Make sure the bride has her make up and hair done first. If the bride has her make up and hair styled first that will reduce the risk of running late.

6. Make sure that your bridesmaids get dressed first are ready in good time. I recommend that your bridesmaids get ready at least 20 minutes before you do so they can help you get ready. This is also something that I would want to photograph.

7. If your wedding is all situated at one venue please be completely ready at least 30 minutes before you need to go and see the registrar. This would give us enough time to capture the first look with your mother or father and photographs with your bridesmaids.

8. Don't stress. Things might go wrong, but at the end of the day you are getting married and it doesn't matter if everything doesn't go completely to plan.

I hope this helps and if you have any questions, I'd love to answer them!

How Much Time Should You Allow For Formal Photographs At Your Wedding

Formal Photographs

It is a very good idea to communicate well with your bride and groom leading up to the wedding day. I always ask them for a wedding time line around a month before the wedding day, because this would then give us enough time to discuss any areas that appear problematic. 

The majority of the weddings that I photograph as a Nottingham wedding photographer have anywhere between 70 - 150 guests and I recommend that the reception would allow at least 90 minutes from the end of the wedding ceremony until they start to seat the guests for their wedding breakfast. The venue is also running to a timeline which will have an affect on the rest of the day. 

There are obviously weddings that are a lot smaller with just a handful of guests and they wouldn't need 90 mins for the formal photographs and portraits of the bride and groom.

You will be surprised at how long it does actually take to photograph family members on a wedding day. There are always combinations of family members that you hadn't thought of prior to the wedding. You will need to set aside a good amount of time to enable you to capture all of your formal photographs.

It is important for everyone to know where they need to be when doing the family formals otherwise you will be missing people at vital times and this will only delay things. I always take extra copies of the timeline and give one to the best man and one to the chief bridesmaid. It is always a good idea to use the help of the best man and ushers because they can help to organise people and get family members into position for the next photograph. 

I always try and get family formals done in 30 minutes or less, if they take any longer than this people usually get restless. You can always take the group pictures of university friends and work colleagues later in the day after the speeches and before bride and groom have their first dance.

I hope this information is useful to you and sheds some light on how I shoot the family formals on a wedding day. I also try and educate my clients well before the wedding so they know exactly what to expect on the actual day.