Bowburn Hall Hotel Durham | Summer Wedding of Kendra and Steven
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Bowburn Hall Wedding Prep Photography
I was delighted to be asked to photograph Kendra and Steven’s wedding day at the stunning Bowburn Hall Hotel just outside of Durham. Having met this lovely friendly couple at the venue in the months leading up to their big day, I was immediately drawn to the possible wedding photo possibilities in their beautifully decorated ceremony room and delightful gardens. We spend some time walking the grounds and talking through locations, visualising their wedding photos. This is so important to me in making sure I work with my couples to deliver the images they want and that capture the magic of their special day. Also, I am a Durham boy by birth and, although I am now based in Yorkshire, It was great to make the relatively short trip back up north for the day.
Bridal prep was at the Ramside Hall Spa hotel where I met Kendra and her mum Tina. I enjoy this part of the day, capturing the final moment of hair and makeup preparation with a mixture of fun and relaxed and more posed photographs. This sets the tone for the day and we had huge fun making these images, working with Sabrina Corrin who was doing a fabulous job of make-up and Keegan Harris of MAS hair, both of whom were great fun. Check out the images below of their fantastic work!
Bowburn Hall Hotel | Luxury Wedding Location in Durham
Bowburn Hall Hotel is an amazing and beautiful location to hold your civil wedding or celebration. Close to the historic city of Durham and within easy access to the A1 motorway, the venue has stunning gardens in which, during the summer months, you can also hold your ceremony making use of the ornate pagoda and stylised seating areas.
Able to host up to 160 people, there are plenty of areas to explore, as you can see from my gallery below, which make for fabulous wedding photographs. Inside Bowburn Hall itself, I was determined to make use of the ornate staircase and chandelier for Kendra and Steven’s wedding pictures. It would truly set the tone for a very special wedding day.
The venue was prepared beautifully by the staff at Bowburn Hall Hotel and made a magical backdrop for a very special wedding.
I caught up with Steven and his best man Chris, who is also his brother, and captured some groom prep images outside the venue. There was time to get my drone up and took some scene-setting images, something which I do for no extra charge for all my wedding couples.
Wedding Prep Continues in the Bridal Suite | Bowburn Hall Hotel
When Kendra and her mum arrived I joined them in their stunning wedding suite where we finished off the bridal prep photography set. It was just the ideal setting to show off Kendra’s ‘Stella York’ wedding dress from Blue Bow Bridal shop in Durham. The colours and the textures in the room and its decorations were perfect so show off her stunning wedding dress. Once she had dressed I re-joined Kendra and we set up her ‘dad reveals’ shots which I did twice for her father and step-father. Both were individual but equally emotional for all concerned, it was hard not to feel moved by their natural reactions. The wedding bouquets from Anna at ‘Flori and Fern’ look amazing in these photographs.
The Wedding Ceremony | Bowburn Hall Hotel
The wedding ceremony was beautiful and the decorations in the room helped to create a sense of occasion. The ceremony went without a hitch and the staff Bowburn took care of the newlyweds and seemed very attentive.
Despite the threat of rain, we were lucky enough to have dry conditions for the formal wedding photos. I again used the drone for the larger group shots which looked fabulous with the whole group from above. I then used the more formal gardens for the wedding party and posed photographs. It was overcast, but the lack of direct light meant no harsh light and more even and consistent wedding images.
We re-visited the gardens throughout the day and evening making use of the formal settings and beautiful design of the grounds of Bowburn Hall. We were spoilt for choice but ended up using the garden pagoda, the quirky French van which is converted into an amazing bar, the small wooded area and the formal water feature for Kendra and Steven’s wedding images. The range of shooting locations and backdrops makes this such a perfect venue for wedding photography.
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After Dark Wedding Photography | Bowburn Hall Hotel
If you are looking for a photographer who will be with you throughout the day, even at dusk or when the sun has gone down, then you need to make sure your photographer can work with the available light. Your photographer needs to be competent in the use of flash and off-camera lighting techniques. I am happy shooting in natural light but I also offer that extra dimension to your wedding photography and keep on shooting when the natural light has disappeared, after all, the party is still going strong! ‘Natural light only’ photographers mean just that so choose wisely.
Any beautiful wedding needs a beautiful finish, and that’s just what these newlyweds got! As I had planned my shooting locations in advance, I was able to ask the couple to step out from their evening-do and quickly capture the night-time ‘wow’ shots without keeping the newlyweds from their guests for too long. This is so important because it feels like your day passes so quickly. I arranged the poses and compositions using off-camera flash techniques which add an extra element to your wedding photos and gives your wedding album that ‘wow’ feel.
Congratulations to Kendra and Steven
In summary, it was a beautiful wedding day at an amazing wedding location presenting a huge range of opportunities to capture truly memorable wedding photos you will cherish forever.
Congratulation to Kendra and Steven. I hope you continue to re-visit your happy memories through your stunning Graphistudio Wedding Album.
If you would be interested in speaking to me about photographing your wedding at BowbrunHall Hotel then please get in touch, it would be great to speak. Also I have 15% off my package prices for weddings booked in October 2021 so don’t delay!
