Sarah and Kevin chose the perfect venue for their wedding. The award-winning Mill Barns offers beautiful contemporary barns with outdoor terraces and eight acres of stunning gardens and all at a waterfront location.
On the day I arrived early so I get take some shots of Sarah and her bridal party getting ready. Hair and makeup were well underway and there was a little prosecco on hand to help things along!
I then headed down to the bar to catch up with Kevin who was mingling with guests as they started to arrive. The bar lead out to one of Mill Barns’ three waterfront terraces so guests could take their drinks outside to enjoy the sunshine and the stunning views.
Sarah looked beautiful in a lace detail fitted dress with a simple veil. She absolutely beamed all day and looked so at ease (the perfect bride to photograph – ask any Shropshire wedding photographer!)
One of the many things I love about shooting wedding photography at Mill Barns is the impact it has on first seeing it. Guests are wowed by their first glimpse of this stunning venue which looks as if it’s floating on water. Entrance to Mill Barns is over a footbridge poised over shimmering waters where you make your way through the grand double doors into the impressive Mill Stone Barn. It’s brilliant to start a wedding with an entrance like this!
The ceremony was held in The Mill Wheel Barn with its exposed timber beams and dramatic glazed aspect overlooking the Mill Pond. What I loved about it is that it is bathed in natural light (we Shropshire wedding photographers are obsessed with light by the way!). This allowed me to get fantastic images of Sarah and Kevin as they took their vows.
After a beautiful ceremony Sarah, Kevin and their guests enjoyed a drinks reception and enjoyed some live music. There was a great confetti moment (take a look at my images) before everybody spilt outside onto the Mill Pond terrace for drinks and mingling and I was able to take lots of portraits, group, formal and fun images of Sarah, Kevin and their guests. I also took the chance to quickly whisk Sarah and Kevin away to get some gorgeous portrait shots of them around the grounds of Mill Barns. That’s another reason why I love shooting wedding photography at Mill Barns and that’s that there are so many beautiful photographic opportunities around their eight acres of grounds and gardens.
The wedding breakfast was held in the Mill Pond Barn and the barn was dressed exquisitely. Sarah and Kevin had chosen simple wildflower arrangements with purple, white and green foliage in an array of different bottles. The look beautifully complimented the natural oak beams of the bar and the white table linen. It looked amazing.
The wedding breakfast kick-started with Sarah and Kevin being received by their guests to rapturous applause. After a sumptuous wedding breakfast meal that Sarah and Kevin had designed themselves with Mill Barns chefs, there were some very well received speeches before everybody headed back onto the terrace with a drink in hand to stretch their legs, enjoy the views and catch the late afternoon sunshine.
Now I must mention the cake. It was spectacular, it had three tiers with three different cakes with fantastic flavours including Malibu, Limoncello and Champagne. It looked incredible.
The evening celebrations started with a romantic first dance that quickly saw Sarah and Kevin joined on the dancefloor by their loved ones. I loved the father and daughter dance – it was very sweet.
Now, this lot were up for a party and Sarah and Kevin had thought of everything. There were Instagram tags and free flip-flops. I particularly liked the classy open-air photo booth that allowed everyone to stand around and enjoy the fun of guests dressing up for their photos. And live band ‘Nanna Radleys’ whose mixture of Pop, Soul, Funk, R’n’B, Mowtown and modern-day music saw Sarah, Kevin and their guests on the dancefloor all night. I saw sing-alongs, dance-offs, dance circles, limbo and lots of lunging. I tell you, there were some impressive shapes cut at Sarah and Kevin’s wedding party!
As the sun went down I quickly took Sarah and Kevin outside onto the terrace above the shimmering water to get a portrait shot. The image of the pair of them with all of their loved ones partying away behind them inside seemed a fitting image to close the story of their lovely wedding day.
Working with couples like Sarah and Kevin and shooting wedding photography at Mill Barns is what being a Shropshire wedding photographer is all about. Congratulations you two and thanks for having me there.
