Nicole & Matt’s Relaxed & Joyful Great Fosters Wedding
On Saturday I returned to my favourite Surrey wedding venue, Great Fosters, for Nicole and Matt’s long awaited nuptials. I’ve captured many weddings at the venue over the years, and it was also my own wedding venue, so I always look forward to documenting a Great Fosters wedding! The day was relaxed, full of emotion, and the weather was amazing.
As with all my pre-pandemic couples, we’ve been on a bit on a journey. Nicole and Matt originally planned their wedding for September 2020, then then (whispers) ‘covid’ took hold, and you can guess the rest. Nicole and Matt live in America, so much of the wedding had to be planned, and postponed long distance, but the day finally arrived, and what a day! Everything was literally perfect, and for Matt, an American, and all his friends and family, the sun decided to show up and disprove the notion that it’s always cold and rainy in Blighty! It was absolutely scorchio!
Great Fosters is an Elizabethan mansion, with the original homestead being built around 1550. That makes it very old indeed. 🙂
These days it provides the perfect setting for those seeking a quintessentially English venue for their wedding. Nicole, who is English, and Matt, chose to hold their humanist ceremony in the orangery, and their wedding breakfast in the tithe barn. Meanwhile, the extensive gardens, complete with moat, Japanese bridge, and topiary maze, provide gorgeous backdrops for bride and groom portraits.
I have to say, this was such a brilliant day to photograph. From lovely Nicole and Matt, the bridesmaids, groomsmen, families, and all the wedding guests (many who like Matt and Nicole had flown in from the states for the wedding), without exception were absolutely wonderful. I love a couple who give me free rein to do my job and trust me to document their day in my usual style. For me this gives me the freedom to be creative and that leads to the best results. I particularly love the fact that Nicole and Matt just let themselves live in the moment, relax and feel all the emotions, and didn’t worry about the camera. What I was therefore able to document are relaxed and authentic images that show a couple deeply connected, in love, who find each other hysterical, and who flourish in each other’s company.
Nicole and Matt, thank you so much for choosing me. Hope you love your preview, and I wish you both (and not forgetting Master Tucker back in the US of A), a lifetime of happiness. J x
Venue – Great Fosters
Flowers – Augusta Florals
Dress – Martin Thornburg
Shoes – Sophia Webster
Bridesmaids dresses – Davids Bridal
Hair – Carolanne Armstrong
Makeup – Mel Kinsmen
