Wedding Photographers Bristol, Somerset Wedding Photography

And so to my final wedding of the year – on Monday I had the pleasure of photographing Anouska & Ben’s wedding at Halswell House, Goatshurst. The day dawned cold and crisp – but the weather didn’t really matter because the whole event was taking place within the house, which was lovely and warm with roaring fires and beautiful festive decorations.

Anouska got ready with her bridesmaids and family whilst Ben greeted the guests and showed them in to the ceremony room. The service was very sweet and Anouska got a little bit emotional (as did some of the guests!) and everyone was treated to a wonderful cello performance from Ben’s brother John whilst the couple signed the registrar.

Then it was off outside to brave the cold for some lovely portraits of the newlyweds before heading back inside to enjoy the reception. Anouska and Ben both work in the restaurant industry so food and drink are very important to them. They’d brought in their own team of caterers to create and serve the food and the canapes were some of the nicest I’ve ever seen!

They’d even arranged for a dessert buffet with a wonderful selection of cheeses as well as a pick and mix sweet selection and homemade brownies and shortbread. It was very hard to keep my hands to myself whilst photographing the set up!

It was clear that a lot of thought had gone into the details of their day, with one the most interesting pieces being the table plan that featured a photo of every guest with the name of their table. The beautiful framework for the plan was created by Anouska’s dad.

Suppliers: Dress: Sassi Holford; Florist: Gilded Lily

Anouska & Ben and now off to Australia for honeymoon, so their full gallery won’t go online until some time in February when they’re back and have had a chance to come in and view their images first. But in the meantime here are some images from their day:

**Update** Anouska & Ben’s full gallery is now online and can be viewed here.

It’s that time of year again when we can all take a break, spend some time with our friends and families and eat until we can’t move! Christmas – don’t you just love it?!! Even my dog Poppy is getting in the mood (see embarrassing picture below!). 

2008 has been another great year for Caroline Pilling Photography. By the end of this year I’ll have done 32 weddings for many lovely couples that have made my job so easy and enjoyable! I’ve worked at lots of different venues this year including Ston Easton Park, Bishop’s Court, Tone Dale House, The Rectory Hotel, Orchardleigh House, Halswell House, Forde Abbey, the Matara Centre, Charlton House, Maunsel House, St Audries Park and Huntsham Court, to mention just a few, and have photographed weddings in Somerset, Bristol, Dorset, Devon, Cornwall, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and even Surrey!

Looking ahead to 2009, I have some exciting new things planned for the business – including the opening of my very own studio premises, the official launch of the portraits side of my business, and my exciting Gorgeous Intimates sessions too! I’m also looking forward to photographing lots more weddings, and I’ve got some lovely couples booked for next year that I know I’ll enjoy working with. I think it’s going to be a very busy year!

So I’d like to take this opportunity to wish everyone reading this blog – current clients, past clients, future clients and any other blog visitors – a very Merry Christmas and hope you all have a fantastic 2009!

On Saturday I covered my penultimate wedding of the year and it was back to one of my favourite venues – Ston Easton Park for the wedding of Victoria and Tom.

Unfortunately both Tom and Victoria were suffering from the horrible flu bug that’s doing the rounds at the moment and so they weren’t really feeling all that great. But you wouldn’t have known it to look at them, with Victoria looking like a beautiful Christmas fairy in her gorgeous dress!

After the preparations it was off to All Saints Church in the nearby village of Publow for their marriage service, with everyone singing the carol Silent Night instead of one of the hymns, to reflect the time of year.

Then it was back to Ston Easton for the reception and we had just enough time to nip outside for some lovely photographs of Victoria and Tom before the light started to fade, as well as making use of the grand staircase in the hotel.

Suppliers: Dress: Clifton Brides; Cake: Sweet Art Cakes; Flowers: Ultra Violet Flowers.

Victoria & Tom’s full gallery will go online once they’ve been in to view their images, but in the meantime here are some images from their day:

**Update** Victoria & Tom’s full gallery is now online and can be viewed here.

To celebrate the official launch of the portraits side of my business in 2009 I will be running a special promotion. All portrait sessions booked to take place in February or March 2009 will be half price! This means that studio sessions are from just £25 and location sessions from £50. Call or email now to find out more and book your session.

* Terms and conditions apply. Offer does not apply to pre-wedding portrait sessions.

Last week I got a lovely thank you card from one of my summer couples Mandy & Rich. This is what they wrote:

To Caroline

Richard and I wanted to say a personal thank you for everything you have done in allowing us to have the most beautiful wedding photographs we could have imagined. It has been such a pleasure meeting you and working with you. We look forward to being able to stay in contact with you.

All our love Mandy & Rich xxx

Thanks guys – it was an absolute pleasure to work with you both and I so enjoyed being part of your day and beyond!