For a wedding photographer capturing love couples share on the day, there’s no better time than the wedding photo shoot. The following are some of my favourite from the Midlands from the years gone by. 

Friends vibes and local gems! Zuhal&John, Market Harborough Wedding.

I met Zuhal and John late winter 2022 when I was invited to their apartment above a hairdresser’s parlour here in Market Harborough. Not only does the place have a certain vibe, but also the view and some history to go with it! Primo, it’s situated on the corner where from you can see the Market Harborough world go by and for some reason it instantly reminded me of the Friends series and the Central Perk-the caffe where the characters would hang out. Secondo primo 🙂, there’s a story that apparently before the big events of the conflict between the royalists and the republicans in the 1600s, namely some of the turning-point battles that took place around Naseby, no other than the Charles himself spent a night or two there, in the very flat. How cool is that?! 

Then there was Zuhal and John themselves, kind, warm-hearted, genuine and lovely people who found each other in this crazy world we live in today. Zuhal is from Turkey, more specifically connected with the Kurdish culture and origins, while John, born and bread in England does have some polish blood in his line. I love connecting with people from different cultures and in this case I was delighted to connect with both of them through experiences I’ve collected while visiting and living in those countries. It needs to be said again, they’re some of the most kind-hearted and lovely people I’ve been able to tell the love story of with my wedding photography. And I am so lucky that we have connected!

Z&J decided to vow love and devotion to each other locally, in Market Harborough at the Three Swans Hotel Wedding Venue, a place where I’ve been documenting weddings numerous times by now and always praise the organisation and decor there. It really was smooth sailing throughout the day and I would recommend for to couples wanting to get married to look into the options the Three Swans Hotel offers (-I’m not affiliated with the venue, btw). Coming back to Zuhal and John, I think the favourite and most exciting - not only for me, the couple, but also for the locals out and about in town on the day - was the wedding shoot we decided to take a stroll to. Whilst walking through the streets of Harborough, it was lovely to hear people cheer “Congratulations!” from all directions! This, amongst other things, makes living in Market Harborough so enjoyable and fulfilling-the feeling of community and support you can expect to receive from all sorts of directions. Go Harborough! :)

Then there was the cultural aspect of the wedding I enjoyed a lot! Namely, Zuhal’s family, who travelled from both close and far brought some memorable and important tradition to the wedding, something you’d expect to see at a Kurdish wedding. The henna ceremony, the music and dances, the accessories and a couple of rituals performed by Zuhal’s family members made it a unique experience, one I’ll remember and I’m so honoured I was able to document.

Have a look at some of the pics from Zuhal&John’s wedding below.

Congratulations Zuhal&John! I’m looking forward to seeing you around Harborough! :)

Mike

Wedding Photographer Market Harborough

Venue: The Three Swans Hotel, Market Harborough

Winter weddings are unique! And they’re definitely not for the faint-hearted! But that’s exactly what Lucy&Liam are like and, to promise love to one another till death do them part, they had decided to seal the deal at the Cathorpe Manor Wedding Venue, Leicestershire this winter. Spoiler alert, it was an amazing wedding full of funny, surprising and joyful moments many will remember for years to come!

I first met Lucy and Liam prior to their pre-wedding photo shoot at the Foxton Locks not far away from Market Harborough and right at the doorstep of a beautiful village of Foxton. It was obvious to me back then that these two, made for each other people, will have a memorable and beautiful wedding, which did of course happen. It was magical and I couldn’t ask for better light and surroundings of the venue to deliver a beautiful canvas and painting-like aura to the images. Have a look for yourself below!

For anyone considering Cathorpe Manor as a wedding venue, I would recommend it. Absolutely! And make sure to see it all the way around to fully appreciate what it has to offer. Also, be prepared to be surprised by how well organised and structured the reception room, the bar and the dance floor are as this made the evening super easy to move around. 

Lucy&Liam, you two rock! And I can’t wait to catch up with you for a coffee to chat again and share more than a few laughs!

Mike

Photographer: www.promenadestudios.com

Venue: Cathorpe Manor

Let me take you back so that we’re on the same page here. Picture the scene: you’re 8 and your parents take you to a Mega Waterpark, tell you that you can ride whichever slide you like for however long you want and if you need anything, just ask a staff member. Oh, and you also have no limit on the ice cream you can eat at the bar located right in the centre, you’re outdoors where the sun is shining bright and everyone wants to play with you, they’re friendly, full of ideas and buzzing with the same kind of energy each and every cell is exploding within you! You got that? Great! Because THIS is how I felt documenting the wedding of Kealey and Kye who tied it at the Crockwell Farm in Daventry, a venue that without a doubt I’ll be counting in as one of my absolute favourites in the area, if not of all time!

Kealey and I have history, actually, which made it even more special to be honoured with the task to document her and Kye’s love. Back in 2012 Kealey finished the A2 Level Photography course I was teaching and she graduated as the top one in her class. (I hope she thinks she had a good teacher 😉) When she contacted me asking to photograph her wedding, I must admit I almost shared a tear - I never thought I’d be so lucky to reconnect with some members of that small group of hugely talented and brilliant young people again, and of course, to document such a beautiful wedding! Everything about it was perfect, just like the waterpark scene described above! The planning, the venue preparation, the people involved (both guests and staff), the weather, and of course the two most important people of the day who didn’t stop smiling and sharing their happiness with everyone involved until the early hours of the next morning. 

I briefly noted the weather on the day above, but I think it needs a longer mention - how on earth do you get 18 degrees C in mid-November on your wedding day wrapped around days of cold temperatures, fog, gloom and no colour at all?! We really hit a jackpot with the light! I laughed that Kealey and Kye must have some sort of special connection with the powers above because this…, well this doesn’t happen very often! I was therefore super happy to take Kealey&Kye away from the guests for a gorgeous golden hour wedding shoot, which could easily be mistaken for a staged editorial material - as noted by the venue. On that topic next, as I travel around to deliver wedding photography, I get to know venues, managers and the staff involved and unofficially rank them in my head whilst creating and delivering memories to couples. The Crockwell Farm, ladies and gentlemen, simply blew my mind! And I mean a record ‘Home-Run’ here, a hat-trick, slum dunk, and whatever fireworks play you have in your favourite sport! There isn’t a one single better, more accommodating (for both the suppliers and couples) and welcoming venue I have had an absolute joy and pleasure to photograph a wedding at in the region of Nottinghamshire. Period. I can only wish the photos you can see below give a bit of the essence of what it is truly like. If you’re planning a wedding and looking for a place, well you absolutely MUST give this one a go! It will not disappoint! I would come back to Crockwell blindly agreeing to photograph any event rain or shine, it’s THAT GOOD!

I am very excited to be able to finally share this blog photo story as the memories from Kealey&Kye’s wedding have been now delivered via an online gallery and they’ll have an almost impossible task to choose the best picks for their wedding album -  there are so many great ones I would seriously struggle! But I’m sure they’ll be in touch soon and I can’t wait to present them with the printed version of their memories I feel so honoured to have captured.

Kealey&Kye, “thank you” doesn’t cut it. I simply couldn’t be more grateful to witness the love and joy you share with each other! I hope you love these photos as much I do. 

Until next time!

Mike

Wedding Photographer

The magic came from:

Venue: The Crockwell Farm, Daventry

Hair: LuceW - Instagram here.

Make up&beauty: Rhian Webster and Lauren Webster.

Cake: Lyla May ‘Cake Away’.

Music: Matt Strafford band.

Wedding Photographer: Mike, Promenade Studios Wedding Photography.

Ehhmm… Wait, what? What just happened?? I mean, H O W ?!…

When I saw Jemima and Ash for the first time, grinning wide from ear to ear as they approached from their car (, you know like when you see long-time friends you parted with for whatever reason, and after all those years you feel like not a second has passed since you you saw each other last?) well, in that moment, I knew I was up to something great! But I underestiamted what ”great” means. Back to the drawing board, I guess because quite frankly, I can’t believe how much of a connection we made and I’m still buzzing and cannot wait to document their love story on the wedding day in April 2023!

Jemima and Ash radiate love, warmth and laughter! Think nuclear reactor gone haywire, exploding, burning half of a continent and you’ll just about hit the quarter of what these two are like! Sorry, a bit too extreme? Oh boy and can you joke with these two?! Throw any idea at them and they’ll be like “Yeah, let’s go for it! - this made the shoot ,really, and with that, it couldn’t be easier to embrace the golden hour light during these beautiful autumnal evenings we’ve been recently having. We were all in and, quite frankly, it was difficult to stop 🙂 As we walked around the area near the Pool at the Castle Mews, Derbyshire, I enjoyed getting to know these two - except it was, again, more like catching up with friends; friends I think I made and, especially in these weird times, who reminded me that there are definitely better things to cling onto than the buzz of what’s going on with the world. (P.S. Switch off your TV! Now!) Because for Jemima and Ash, the world is having and loving each other. And you can print that with a capital L. 

Thank you Jemima&Ash for letting me capture Your love! Can’t wait to catch up with you again on the BIG DAY! 🙂

Mike

Wedding Photographer

Promenade Studios