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Wedding Photography at Branston Hall near Lincoln

I love photographing weddings at Branston Hall for many reasons. The building has a simple and elegant grandeur and a seemingly effortless ability to host a variety of different wedding day schedules. I’ve been fortunate to photograph a number of weddings at Branston over the years, all have have had their own character and differences; again the mark of great wedding venue. From pre-wedding discussions I know that each bride and groom have added unique touches or made changes to schedule to create their own wedding day with personal.  See more wedding photography at Branston Hall here.

The outdoor wedding ceremony was at 3pm and I was commissioned to shoot for 7-8 hours. The resulting photographs were later presented on DVD and an upgraded 60 page, large merlot coloured 14×11” storybook wedding album plus, a half size album as a present for Richards mother.

We found conversation easy when we first; I remember Belinda was particularly taken by the images she had seen in my portfolio that whilst natural had meaning and held storytelling ability.

Together we had outlined a plan where I would spend time in the morning shooting documentary style images for the most part and with no direction or posing for the guys. This would then combine with similar coverage plus some relaxed directed shots with Belinda; the result would begin to build the storyline to their wedding day.

Here is Richard and Belinda’s wedding day story at Branston Hall….


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The remainder of the day I would include as many documentary and undirected photos as possible during the  wedding  ceremony, drinks on the terrace, wedding breakfast etc. Crucially though I would set aside 2 sessions during the day where we’d take a short time away from guests, a quiet time for Rich and Belinda to enjoy with each other whilst we shot some images.

In the lead up to the wedding day; I was mindful that whilst Belinda was going to be a confident bride in front of the camera, she would definitely want a collection of directed images of the two of them together. Richard on the other would most likely respond better to a more hands off documentary approach at certain times of the day.

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This wedding day had been a while in the making; as is often the way in life ,Richard and Belinda had chosen to put family first. Supporting the family Richards business had also to take priority for a number of years. It was now time for Belinda and Richard to focus on themselves and it well worth the wait.



Bridal Preparations – Whilst Belinda and her bridesmaids enjoyed a glass or two of bubbly. I shot a series of jewellery and wedding dress images for the wedding album.





Branston Hall Hotel with its countryside setting had been chosen in part because of the opportunity to be married in an outdoor wedding ceremony. As well this, guests would able to enjoy the hotel, lawns and terrace and added to that the prospect of producing some really special wedding photographs appealed to them both.

Perfect weather greeted me on my arrival which was great as this meant the planned outdoor wedding ceremony would be going ahead.

Outdoor Wedding Ceremony

Richard was spending the morning at the hotel getting ready with his sons and best man; whilst Belinda prepared in separate part of the hotel with her bridesmaids. A perfect setup, meaning I could spend my time switching between photographing the venue, bridal preparations, outdoor ceremony area and also see Richard and the boys before and during the build up to the wedding ceremony.

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Belinda looked amazing and although we had planned to; we had a quick chat about she felt and whether she was comfortable to spend a few minutes with me to shoot the series of photographs you see here.


The wedding ceremony was setup and the string quartet prepared.

Guests congregated excitedly in the wood lined room of the grand bar. Richard had got used to me being around very quickly and for the most part soon forgot about the fact he was being photographed.






Belinda’s arrival and walk down the aisle was full of emotion for everyone; the love and feelings Richard holds for Belinda clearly hit with full impact when their eyes met. What followed was a wedding ceremony with laughter, tears and bucket loads of love an adoration.

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Drinks where then served on the terrace and the string quartet provided the soundtrack.

Family and group photo’s at Branston Hall are great because without leaving the terrace where everyone can enjoy drinks and chat I can photograph the family formals utilising different backgrounds. This later brings variety and interest to the wedding album.
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There are some obvious and less obvious areas to shoot at Branston Hall. I wanted to create a series of 30 or so photographs of Rich and Belinda together and Bellinda on her own. The purpose would be to create images and several pages in their wedding album. For the images, I wanted to use the soft natural light found in a small wooded area. As well as directing a few static shots I first asked Belinda to take a slow walk through the trees.



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Looking over my shoulder to Richard; Belinda, her wedding dress contrasting with the greenery looked amazing.

I then asked Richard to join Belinda and they walked slowly, chatting and cuddling. I shot from a distance away able to create another series of photographs with a very natural feel. Despite my minimal initial direction; Belinda and Richard took the opportunity to enjoy their time with each other.

The images you see here.






Wedding Breakfast and speeches










After a couple of hours of eating drinking and a great round of speeches we stole one last chance to get outside for 10 mins whilst the sun was setting lower in the Lincolnshire sky.

Belinda & Richard walked back to their wedding reception they had time alone to reflect on their fabulous day and my wedding photography was complete at Branston Hall for another day.

If you are think of getting married or having your wedding reception at Branston Hall and would like to know to more then check out the these blog posts and call 07548 514341 or send me a message.

There are few places in the UK where you can have your wedding ceremony outside, so for some inspiration check out the other outdoor wedding ceremonies I have photographed here, outdoor weddings

I am based near Market Deeping and shoot many weddings  each year. To s  throughout Lincolnshire, Rutland, Cambridgeshire and further afield. To see a wider selection of my work check here.

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Contact details – If you’d like to get a quote, talk with me about your wedding plans or check my availability please send me a quick note and I’ll get in touch with you.