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Kelly and Craig at Caer Rhun Hall, Conwy Valley

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Wedding Photographer North Wales

Moody skies, a custom deck of fantasy cards and lot of big trees! Kelly and Craig will officially be our last ever wedding at the rather splendid and grand Caer Rhun Hall in the Conwy Valley-What a way to remember the place as well! Great weather, amazing guests and a first dance to look back at and chuckle about. ;)

We already knew Kelly (and bridesmaid Beth) having shot her dad’s wedding a few years ago (thanks for the recommendation Colin!), so it was an incredibly relaxed experience for us. Starting with the ladies getting their hair put up in Enigma in Llandudno in the morning while Phil got the job of shooting the chaps over at the Pancake House in Rowen (hard life, eh Phil?!), we headed over to Caer Rhun for the ceremony. It was the first time we’d shot a ceremony in the banqueting hall, usually being cramped into the corner of the smaller lounge, so it was quite a relief to find that we had plenty of space and lots of lovely light for once!

After the ceremony it was off to the marquee on the lawn with drinks and canapes for the guests while we whisked Kelly and Craig on a whistlestop tour of the gardens to get the shots we wanted. Along with our favourite tree in North Wales (a lightning-struck, ancient, giant spruce tree is always good for a bit of drama!) we found a little patch of long grass at the end of the pitch and putt with the suitably moody clouds and the sense of drama that we love so much in our pictures and shot it to death before making our way back through the gardens, stopping at the maze and wall-arch on the way for a few more pics. :)

Congratulations to you both-We had a great time shooting your big day for you-Wishing you all the best of love and luck in the world for your future together.

Fresh. x

 

P.S. Beautiful flowers were by Andrea at Luna (as always!) and the makeup was by the lovely and very talented Emily from La Belle Epoque Beauty in Bangor.

Phillipa and Dave at the Faenol Fawr

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Faenol Fawr Wedding Photographer North Wales

A bride and groom that are game for anything we suggested, a super-secret one-off location shoot, a classic North Wales country house venue and the funkiest campervan we’ve seen yet-Four great ingredients of a successful wedding!

As we often do here at Fresh Photography, we popped out the day before to try and find a location to whisk our bride and groom out to during the day to get our characteristic ‘epic album centrepiece’ shots that we’re known for. We went EVERYWHERE! Eventually I saw the place that I had imagined and tried to get access, but it’s completely closed to the public, covered in security cameras and signs and access is strictly forbidden.

Unless you’re friends with the head of security of course..! An hour of negotiating and arm twisting (and obviously, offers of beer) secured one-time only access to one of the grandest buildings in the North West, sadly abandoned but full of what we photographers term ‘character’. There’s nothing like putting an immaculately dressed bride and groom in a completely trashed area and catching the dichotomy between the two scenes in a single shot. :)

We managed to get some funky shots on the way back down the MASSIVE driveway as well-With some amazing ancient oak trees and vast blue skies offering their services as backdrops against the funky campervan (thanks to Nellyweds for taking her off-road and not being precious about these things-Amazing service!) and because I wanted a shot of the campervan in motion I put the life of the ever-willing Mighty Milton in grave danger by getting him to lean out of my car and drag the shutter as I overtook the camper on the way back to the Faenol Fawr. It worked and he survived so I’m not sure what the fuss was about… Sorry Phil. ;)

Gorgeous flowers were once again supplied by the very talented people at Dorothy’s, the extremely highly-recommended camper can be found here and of course, the Faenol Fawr provided a space for the ceremony, amazing food, shelter and hospitality, all to an absolutely impeccable standard for the day.

All the very best Phillipa and Dave-Thank you for using Fresh -We hope you have an amazing time being married! Love and luck to you both.

Fresh. x

Amy and Shane at the Seiont Manor, Caernarfon

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Seiont Manor Wedding Photography

We often hear a lot of people explaining about how ‘home made’ their wedding details are, how they have customised certain details of their big day, or how much time they have put into making their own day exactly how they want it to be, but Amy and Shane took this to a whole new level! Never before have we walked into a hotel room to find the bride putting the final stitches into the wedding dress that she made herself from scratch!

Shane and Amy had travelled up from London to have a bohemian blessing at the fabulous Seiont Manor Hotel in the heart of Snowdonia, having been married a few days previously at a registry office ceremony in their native lands! The reason? They love Snowdonia! In fact, they love Snowdonia so much that at least half of the wedding party climbed the mighty Tryfan the day before the wedding, leaving many aching and glad to sit down during the less hectic moments of the day!

The seating for the ceremony was set up beneath three of the oldest and grandest oak trees within the grounds of the hotel and the blessing was led by a close friend in the beautiful dappled light that the trees provided. A makeshift ‘choir’ (of three!) led the singing, tears of happiness were everywhere and an amazing time was had by all! :)

In the afternoon there was dancing to be done! A live Celidh band provided entertainment and some funky calling for the drinks reception which could, thanks to the beautiful weather, be held outside. We even managed to get out to the stunningly calm Llyn Padarn for some pretty pics, shooting straight into the sun for maximum dramatic effect.

Normally, we like to thank and mention the hair, makeup and venue dressers at this point, but Amy and Shane did it all with the help of their friends and family, so there’s nobody to mention at all! Amy did her own hair and makeup in the morning (whilst finishing off the aforementioned dress!) while Shane was busy getting the room ready. The simple and elegant flowers were as simple and elegant as it gets, and the pastel gerberas even played a starring roll in Amy’s hair.

All the best of luck and luck to you both-We feel privileged to have been chosen to shoot your big day for you and had an absolute ball!

Fresh. x

Carolyn and Colin at Château Rhianfa, Menai Bridge

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Wedding Photographer Chateau RhianfaWe found ourselves back once again at the glorious Château Rhianfa on Anglesey on one of the hottest days we’ve shot a wedding on this year. It’s a match made in heaven, a classic French Château in perfect weather, overlooking the picturesque Menai Straights and a black tie wedding full of familiar faces! 

When you get to a certain age you get to know exactly what it is you want in life-For Carolyn, this is her horse, her dogs and of course, Colin! This is easily one of the most elegant weddings we’ve shot, with flowers in Carolyn’s hair, matching bouquet and table decorations, a saxophonist playing jazz during the champagne reception and canapés, the aforementioned black tie dress code and some of the finest speeches we’ve ever heard!

Hair was by the award winning Julia Nicholls, the simply stunning makeup was by our favourite, recommended makeup artist, Keena Mellor and once again, we found ourselves working alongside Joe of Perfect Day Production for the videography-always a pleasure to work alongside such consummate and talented professionals!

Congratulations to you both-It was a glamorous and fun filled day to remember and we wish you all the best for the future!

Fresh. x

 

Emma and Adam at the Kinmel Manor Hotel and Spa

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Wedding Photographer Kinmel Manor North walesAnother beautiful wedding at the recently revamped Kinmel Manor Hotel and Spa and another beautiful day to go with it (who says weddings in Wales HAVE to be wet?!).

Adam (and Emma to a slightly lesser degree!) is football mad, and this was reflected in the distinctly Manchester United-themed table names, featuring a selection of famous names, and the perfect surprise was arranged by Emma in the form of a framed, signed Cristiano Ronaldo shirt, handed out during the speeches, much to Adams delight!

We managed to steal 20 minutes just after dinner and take a quick stroll up to a field of wheat, looking luscious and green in the setting sun. This is what we photographers like to call golden hour, and it was the perfect description for the photos taken-Giving a stunning, golden-glow to the light that you just can’t get at any other time of the day. It was worth the wait and the results speak for themselves!

As the night went on, the crowds increased and the insanely talented guitarist/singer Steve Rikard, (a legend around these parts) played a cracking set, covering everything from The Kooks to Pink Floyd, pretty much note for note. A very talented guy indeed!

Video was once again supplied by one of our working partners, Joe from Perfect Day Productions. We’ve shot a LOT of weddings alongside Joe now and he’s our preferred videographer, being easy going, great to work with (you’d be surprised just how many videographers aren’t!) and extremely laid back, letting everything just happen-a lot like ourselves!  Venue dressing and flowers by the ever-lovely Mandy and the team from Mantones-Probably the hardest working venue dressing company in the world-for good reason! Reliable, hard working and generally amazing at everything they do! :)

All the very best for your future together Emma and Adam, thank you for being so easy going and climbing every gate we showed you on your big day! :)

Fresh. x

Peach and Pie-The Wedding

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Neil and Roxanne, Gwydir Castle Wedding Photographer

An amazing mix of Mexican-American meets Welsh castle, meets petting farm! There was a real party atmosphere at the wedding of Neil and Roxanne, with peacocks, a barbecue, hay bales, bunting and a live ceilidh band (yes, the spelling is correct!) which kept everybody dancing well into the wee hours!

Starting at Neil and Roxanne’s house, a classic Lincoln Continental took Roxy and her father off to Gwydir Castle in the pouring rain. If there’s a more beautiful place to get married in North Wales then we’re yet to see it. Nestling next to the pretty market town of Llanrwst, the ancient walls, stunning building, candlelit rooms and sprawling grounds, complete with peacocks in full feather makes the venue more than just a bit special. Luckily,the rain stopped as soon as the ceremony was over and the sun came out, just in time for the photos! Brilliant timing!

Then it was off to Bodafon Farm in Llandudno for a party! Lots more friends turned up, a barbecue was had, people made idiots out of themselves on the photo booth (standard…) the band played and people danced ’till they dropped-All in all, a completely perfect day!

Along with being a wedding full of gorgeous people, it also featured many of of favourite suppliers and friends of Fresh, including the frankly brilliant (and award-winning) Andrea of Luna Flower fame who produced one of the most beautiful bouquet’s we’ve ever seen, as well as the slightly deranged Dawn of Phase 3 hairdressers in Colwyn Bay who not only produced some stunning hair up for all the girls in the morning (genius/madness-it’s a fine line…), but also entertained everybody by dancing. Well, it might have been fitting as opposed to dancing, but it was to music. :) Also, an honourable mention must go to Two Best Men, videographers of note who have produced a stunning piece of cinematography and were an absolute pleasure to work with.

Here’s to the awesome Mr and Mrs Rylance and your equally awesome family-We wish you all the love and luck in the world, may you have parties (and barbecues of course) for many years to come. :) #peachandpieswedding

 

Fresh. x

Cara and Christian at Bodnant Welsh Food Centre

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Cara and Christian, Bodnant Welsh Food Wedding PhotographerA wet, dreary, moody and rainy morning gave way to a stunning, red-tinged, warm and sunny evening at Cara and Christian’s wedding at the absolutely beautiful Bodnant Welsh Foods in the Conwy Valley. In fact, it was so nice that the DJ’s for the evening (the ever-accommodating and rather brilliant Event Lounge) decided that it would better to have the first dance outside as nobody wanted to go in! This meant that we were able to capture a first dance outside as the sun set, not something we get to do very often, living and shooting weddings mostly in Wales!

A beautiful day, a great crowd of guests, a stunning venue and an utterly lovely couple reminds us why we love what we do-It was an absolute pleasure to capture all the action on the day!

All the best to you both for now and your future together-Wishing you a life-long, happy and loving marriage!

Fresh. x

 

Amy and Nefyn at Ness Gardens

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Amy and Nefyn at Ness Gardens

Click for larger. All images ©Fresh Photography 2015

Finally-A long-overdue dry wedding in the UK! In fact, it was lovely at the rather wonderful Ness Gardens on the Wirral. We’d never shot this venue before but we’re glad we have now-What a stunning place. It’s a bit like a photographer’s playground-Everywhere you point your camera is another amazing shot. We could have spent a day just taking the bride and groom’s portraits, but time constraints meant we got about half an hour, so we literally ran around the place, taking as much in as possible!

Then it was off to Neston Cricket club to finish the day with Amy and Nefyn’s friends and family, pausing only to catch the dramatic sunset from the balcony. All in all, an amazing day and one that we’re proud to have been a part of.

All the love and luck in the world to you both!

Fresh. x

 

Chelle and Dan at Seiont Manor

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Chelle and Dan at the Seiont ManorChelle and Dan got married! And, quelle suprise, it rained..! As we always point out to our brides and grooms, if you want guaranteed weather, you’ve got to go abroad. And take us. Obviously. :)

Still, the rain didn’t put a dampener on the proceedings and being the adventurous sort, our lovely couple jumped in the car with us and we shot over to Llanberis to get some funky shots-Luckily it cleared up just enough to dive in and out of the car to get the shots we needed-And it was worth it! Despite getting stared at by some baffled locals from a pub in the middle of nowhere, we still had fun at the abandoned petrol pumps, the moody skies simply lending a more dramatic edge to the pics. :)

Congratulations Chelle and Dan-We had a properly good laugh and loved every minute of your day!

Much Love to you both,

Fresh. x

 

Fantastic makeup by one of our recommended suppliers, Keena Mellor MUA. Go to the link and show her some love!

The venue was the Seiont Manor, near Caernarfon-Find out more here: Seiont Manor

 

Hayley and Ciaran at the Rhos Fynach

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Hayley and Ciaran, Rhos Fynach

Another new venue to us (despite spending a good portion of our youth drinking there), and once again, lots of details and homemade decorations bringing a bit of class to the wonderful wedding of Hayley and Ciaran! The rain came in the afternoon and it decided to stay, giving us some moody skies, a force ten gale and a stunning rainbow, but not too many chances to get out and get the pictures we love taking! Still, our plucky bride and groom braved it and we managed to get some fairly epic skies and floaty dress shots as a result! :)

Congratulations to you both, it was an absolute pleasure and we wish you all the best, love and luck in the years to come. :D