Filtering by Tag: Lewes wedding

Lisa & Trevor - A Glorious Spring Wedding

March 12, 2024  /  Rebecca King

After a very busy wedding season last year, and my season starting early in 2024, I really haven’t had much time to write my blogs. I’m sure you’ve been devastated by its absence (hehe).

This lovely wedding took place in April last year, at the beautiful Southdown Grange Gardens in Lewes. We were lucky as the rain stopped briefly, and the sun even graced us with it presence. The gardens were looking so pretty as the spring blooms were out.

Southover Grange Gardens is the registry office for Lewes. We are very lucky here in Lewes as the building and the gardens are rather stunning, and that’s in every season. I have been blessed by being able to photograph many weddings; maternity shoots and family portraits there. I ended up photographing five weddings there last year, and have already been back there this year.

The gardens are also surrounded by many historic places, so if you wanted to go elsewhere for wedding photographs you could go to the castle or medieval ruins, Lewes has plenty of places for a fabulous photo op.

One of theses places is Keere Street. It is a very historic and steep cobbled road. It was said that King George IV drove his coach and horses down it for a wager. It was on this street that my lovely couple had their ‘first look’. If you don’t know what that is, it is where the couple first see each other on their own, before they walk down the aisle. It’s so they can have a moment for only the two of them. Unfortunately, as everyone was running late we were unable to do it in the gardens, so we made the most of the situation and took the photographs of the ‘first look’ on Keere Street. It was a really magical and emotional moment. It was lovely as their daughters (who were bridesmaids) were there also. There was not a dry eye.

The ceremony carried on in this vein, and it was very moving and emotional. They were a special couple, and everyone in the room thought the same. We carried on the celebrations into the gardens for their couple shots, and some family and group shots.

The bride and groom looked stylish in their matching Kurt Geiger gold adorned shoes. The bride wore a beautiful lace dress and the groom had a fabulous aubergine coloured suit. It’s. nice to see a groom in a different colour suit and being adventurous with their wedding outfit.

One thing on my wedding photography wish lists was to have a wedding with a bus. I love the colour and fun that they bring to wedding photographs. It’s lovely to have all the guests travelling together to the venue.

As it turns out I ended up having three weddings with buses last year, that’s so typical wait for one bus and three turn up!

This was one of those weddings. We all travelled to West Hove Golf Club to celebrate with the newlyweds. There were doughnuts, personalised pink shots. The reception room was decorated in fairy lights and yellow and green balloons, and many photographs of the happy couples life together so far. I try to take polaroids too of the day, so they were added to the many photographs.

It was a beautiful day, and a lovely way for me to start off my 2023 wedding season.

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categories / East Sussex wedding, Lewes, Lewes wedding, Photography, Spring Wedding
tags / wedding hair, weddings, wedding bouquet, wedding shoes, wedding dress, wedding blog, Lewes wedding, Spring wedding

S & A - A Short But Very, Very Sweet Wedding

May 26, 2023  /  Rebecca King

I had the absolute pleasure of photographing this lovely wedding last September. This wonderful couple had been together over thirty years.

It was a small ceremony with only their close family. It took place at the stunning Southover Grange in Lewes. It’s one of my favourite places, especially as it is where I got married nearly twenty-five years ago. It holds a special place in my heart. It was a very rainy day, but that didn’t stop the happy couple and their guests having a few photographs taken in the beautiful gardens. I even took my umbrellas, but they embraced the rain.

It was a short working day for me, but if a wedding is taking place in my home town of Lewes I am happy to accommodate a smaller wedding and work only a couple of hours, so please send a message and I can see what I can do.

Unlike couples from mixed-sexed relationships, these lovely guys were not able to legally become a married couple until 2014, when same-sex marriage was finally made legal. Up until then same-sex couples could only have a civil partnership, and that didn’t happen until 2005!

My pronouns are she/her and I am a proud LGBTQIA+ ally. I am extremely grateful that they trusted me to capture their weddings day.

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categories / East Sussex wedding, Lewes, Lewes wedding, Photography, Autumn wedding
tags / weddings, Lewes wedding, lewes, Southover Grange Gardens

Vicky and James - Piddinghoe Church/Pelham House

June 24, 2022  /  Rebecca King

What a beautiful spring day we had for this lovely couples wedding. March can have very unpredictable weather, it can be snowy or rainy, but luckily we had glorious sunshine. It was so warm I didn’t need a coat, and that’s a big deal for me.

The wedding ceremony took take place at a 12th century, Grade 1 listed church in Piddinghoe. The reception afterwards was held at Pelham House, a 16th century renovated town house in Lewes. I really had a history lesson that day.

My day started at Pelham House, as the bride and her squad were getting ready there. Pelham House has a separate building where you can do this, away from all the preparations for the celebrations later. Claire from Modern Vintage wedding hair and make up was finishing off the brides make up. The beautiful lace fitted wedding dress from WED2B in Brighton was hanging up, and sparkly shoes were scattered everywhere. The two adorable flower girls were all ready in their powder blue floral dresses. They were angels all day, and were brilliant at having their photographs taken.

When everyone was ready we all made our way to the Church, grabbing the stunning exotic bouquets on our way. They were made by Lily’s Florist in Peacehaven.

Piddinghoe Church is a beautiful church, It has a stunning bell tower, stained glass windows, and a lovely vista of the River Ouse. And on this day the churchyard was full of daffodils.

When we arrived everyone was waiting in the church, except for the couple’s beautiful children, and the bridesmaids. They went in first, with the bride following on the arm of her very proud father.

The sun shone through the stained glass windows and it filled the church with soft dappled light. It wasn’t the best for photographs, but it does make the church look beautiful and serene. It was a traditional church service with hymns and a lovely reading, read by the brides aunt. After the service, it was outside in the Spring sunshine for Confetti throwing, and the group and newlyweds photographs.

I like to start off with the photographs of everybody, and then smaller groups until you get down to it being the happy couple and me. This way not everyone has to hang around, groups can go and make their way to the hotel or get a drink etc.

I think it’s important that the couple have this quiet time. It’s their first moment that it’s only them (and me) since they tied the knot, all the stress, all the planning has built to this moment, and now it’s over. It’s now time to relax, have fun and enjoy being with your loved ones, and celebrating this happy event.

After the photographs at the church were finished, and some Champagne was drunk (not by me), we left to go to the reception at Pelham House in Lewes. We had such warm weather that everyone was able to have drinks outside on the terrace. The bride had a brilliant idea of a picnic hamper that was filled with (non messy) food for all the children. This liminal space after the wedding ceremony and before the wedding breakfast can be a bit of a chore for the young ones, but it wasn’t for these little legends as they spent the time having fun by repeatedly rolling down the slope in the grounds. I’m sure there must have been plenty of grass stains to get out of some very pretty dresses. All the children were so well behaved and they were a pleasure to be around.

I then briefly took the couple away from the drinks and canapés for photographs on the sweeping staircase inside the house. We did what every couple that gets married there did and took photographs on the beautiful picturesque windows at the top of the stairs, above it on the ceiling has a striking hand-painted trompe-l'œil mural.

My couples like me to also take natural and candid photographs of their guests enjoying their day. It is a nice contrast to the more posed group and family shots. I do enjoy taking these photographs as everyone is relaxed and enjoying themselves. This enables me to focus on the guests. Everyone always makes such an effort and care with their wedding outfits, so it’s nice to be able to take the time to appreciate them, as sometimes on the day the couple are too busy to notice all of those details. There were some fabulous outfits at this wedding. The grooms mother was a particular favourite of mine. She looked outstanding in a royal blue dress with a red hat and matching red shoes and bag. There were some other fabulous outfits, from a silky emerald green dress to a brightly coloured floral suit. They were a very cool group of guests. Unbeknownst to me the at the time (until I looked through my camera lens) that the guest list was even cooler than I had originally thought as Liam Gallagher from Oasis was one of the guests. He was sporting an aubergine suit with a bouclé brown coat. If only we could all be as cool and iconic!

It was soon time for the wedding breakfast, speeches and cutting the cake. The bride had some how found the time between, three children, two jobs and organising a wedding to make a three tiered, multi flavoured wedding cake. Not only did it look stunning it also tasted delicious.

It was then the disco and the first dance, which the couple were dreading. It’s funny how traditions at weddings can make you do something you feel uncomfortable about. I think nowadays that it is your big day and you should choose what traditions to take forward and do, and what ones you want to leave behind. You need to feel as relaxed and as happy as you can. If you can’t make your wedding day about you, when can you?!

I had a thoroughly wonderful day at this wonderful couples wedding, I had taken lots of beautiful photographs, had some delicious food, I’d been given a big bag of flying saucers and fizzy cola bottle sweets to take home, and I met lots of lovely people including a rock star. If Carlsberg did weddings…

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categories / Brighton wedding, East Sussex wedding, Lewes, Lewes wedding, Photography, Sussex Wedding, Wedding dress, Wedding Photography
tags / wedding hair, wedding veil, wedding bouquet, wedding dress, wedding blog, Lewes wedding, lewes, Loved up in Lewes, Pelham House, Church wedding, Bride, Bride and Groom, Sussex wedding, East Sussex wedding, east sussex, Oasis, Liam Gallagher, Brighton wedding

Josie and Rob - Anne of Cleves House

March 16, 2022  /  Rebecca King

This was my final wedding of last season, and what a lovely one it was to end on. It was such a warm and intimate occasion. Everyone was so lovely and kind and there was so much love involved.

This wedding took place at the wonderful Anne of Cleves House in Lewes. It is a beautiful medieval home that was given in a divorce settlement between King Henry VIII and Anne of Cleves, his fourth wife. It is located about five minutes walk from the brides childhood home. I met her and her family there. We took the short, but picturesque walk to the venue. which was such a lovely thing to be able to do. What made the choice of venue even more special was that it was where the brides parents had also been married.

I am always in awe of my brides, the work they put into organising their weddings, all in-between working, home life, and a lot of the time, childcare. So many brides invest so much time in making their day perfect, and a lot of them also spend time making favours or decorations to bring a more personal touch to the day. Josie went one better, as she made her own wedding dress, and her daughters bridesmaid dress. I can sew, but I cannot master making clothes, let alone a wedding dress. It was the most beautiful dress, and I have to say, I’m so impressed by her for doing it. The decorations she made were brightly coloured pom poms wreaths and bunting, and even some fabric fortune cookies. The talent obviously runs in the family as Josie’s mum made the stunning wedding cake. it was a beautiful two tier chocolate cake, covered in flowers that matched the colour scheme and the bouquets.

It was such a beautiful and sunny September day, we even got a quick twenty minutes free to walk from Anne of Cleves House to the beautiful Southover Grange Gardens, to take a few Bride and Groom photographs. As I always recommend to my couples it’s a good idea to have that quiet moment with just them and the photographer, a little moment of calm and reflection on what is a crazy busy, but magical day. I love Grange Gardens for photographs. It’s a beautiful green space, that’s full of flowers and trees and different textures. It’s a walled garden, so it feels like your away from everything. Also the beautiful 16th century Grade II listen Manor House is a lovely backdrop. I love to get the chimneys and rooftops in the background of the photographs, sometimes you have to try to avoid other newlyweds though as it is also a registry office.

This was such a wonderful wedding, it was so informal and relaxed. The children were having a blast running around the house and gardens, they were enjoying all that this lovely venue has to offer, even wearing the costumes they have out for any visitors. It was a great day, spent with lovely people to celebrate this wonderful couple.

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categories / Wedding Photography, Wedding dress, Sussex Wedding, Photography, Lewes wedding, Lewes, East Sussex wedding
tags / wedding hair, wedding veil, weddings, wedding dress, Lewes wedding, Sussex wedding, East Sussex wedding, Anne of cleves, wedding bouquet, wedding blog, Lewes

Lucy and Ryan - Lewes Castle/East Sussex National

January 19, 2022  /  Rebecca King

I’m thinking back to the heady warm days of August (yes, I know it takes me ages to get around to writing these blogs). Lucy and Ryan tied the knot at the stunning venue of Lewes Castle. Lewes castle is in Lewes, unlike Leeds castle that happens to be in Kent!

Lucy and Ryan were a Covid couple, they had had their wedding day cancelled three times, but thankfully the rules were changed a few weeks before their big day, so everything could go ahead just how they wanted it to.

I was fully vaccinated by this time, so I felt a lot more at ease. I had still been wearing a mask whenever I was indoors, which is tricky because my viewfinder steams up. Luckily, Lewes Castle is an outdoor venue so I had no worries about masks during the ceremony. I would only have to wear one for the evening meal and party, which was to take place at East Sussex National Hotel in Uckfield.

Lewes Castle is a beautiful venue, it’s a late 11th century Norman castle. It has stunning panoramic views of the South Downs, and of the old town of Lewes below.

The wedding ceremony at Lewes Castle takes place under the West Tower archway, which is surrounded by roses. The guests sit in The Pleasure garden under the shade of an old lime tree. There is so much to see at the top of the castle, the only drawback of getting to the top is there are so many steps!

After Lucy and Ryan’s ceremony we took some photographs with the views of Lewes in the background. Then it was down to the Gun Garden for drinks and canapés, whilst beautiful music was played on a cello and violin. I got to steal the happy couple away, only for a few moments for some photographs around the beautiful location. They weren’t fans of having their photographs taken, but I felt it was my duty to make sure that they had at least a couple of them together, as they would surely regret it in the years to come. It’s not every day you get married at a historic castle. They wanted documentary style photographs. Documentary wedding photography will tell the story of your day, through candid, unposed images . It allows you to spend all your time with your friends and family, without any awkward posing or hours of formal group shots. Which can give you an authentic feel of the day. I did request that we did one group shot of all the guests, it’s very rare that you can get all your loved ones in one place at the same time, so its nice to have at least one photograph of them all smiling. I did have different guests asked me to take photographs of them with their loved ones, which I was more than happy to do.

After Lucy and Ryan received their photographs they did say how much they loved them, and how they had been enjoying going through them to have them printed to put in an album. I will always do my utmost to give my couples exactly what they want and more, I am glad I took them away for five minutes and gave them the photographs they didn’t know they wanted.

After a couple of hours in the sunshine in the Gun Garden with drinks, food and even a caricature artist, it was time to all get on the wedding bus and head off to East Sussex National Hotel for the food, speeches and an evening of fun and dancing.

I am taking bookings for 2022/23, our prices start from £500. All packages included edited images on a USB.

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categories / East Sussex wedding, Lewes, Lewes wedding, Photography, Sussex Wedding, Wedding dress, Wedding Photography
tags / wedding hair, wedding veil, weddings, wedding dress, Lewes wedding, lewes, Lewes Castle, East Sussex national, Castle wedding