Marianne Taylor Photography | Portrait & Family Photographer in Cornwall
On-location portrait and family photography in North Cornwall. Siren of the Sea sessions, couples, families. Soft, romantic, coastal.
I know, I know, it’s like sneak peek central over here. I promise there will be a full wedding post coming soon! In the meanwhile, here are a few glimpses from two recent weddings, just so you’ll know what’s in store for you later on.
Vee & Will’s beautiful garden wedding in rural Essex…
…and Emily & Owen’s super cute vintage flavoured wedding in central London.
Worth waiting for, yes?
I seriously am the luckiest girl ever to get to photograph the coolest of clients and the most amazing weddings! Looking back at this passing summer I feel overwhelmed by all the beauty I’ve gotten to witness.
The pretty-factor in Sarah and James’ Suffolk wedding was definitely up there! The venue, amazing Bruisyard Hall, was one of the most gorgeous places I’ve ever got to visit. Sarah looked absolutely stunning in her Monsoon dress and Louboutins, only to be rivalled by the beauty of the surroundings and the amazing flowers from Sweet Peas and Bumble Bees, who are dedicated to growing beautiful eco-friendly flowers.
And get this, there was archery! Yes, archery! It looked like such good fun that this was one of the only times I’ve worked at a wedding wishing that I was taking part rather than documenting.
Everything at this wedding was so beautiful and well thought-out, in Sarah’s own words a lot of the credit goes to her ‘incredibly talented, creative and hard working Mum who made bunting & lavender bags, scoured charity shops for linen and plates, made 250 scones as well as planning all of the other food, arranged everything and was a total star. And the whole day wouldn’t have happened without our friends and families who made all the food, arranged flowers, BBQ’d, decorated the marquee and did a dozen other jobs to make the day AMAZING.’ Hear hear!
Before I head to Essex for today’s garden wedding, here’s a super sneaky peek from Alix & Manu’s wedding in France. I’m off to Finland next week (for a few days of hols + a wedding), but can’t wait to get stuck in processing this gorgeous wedding on my return. Keep an eye out for future updates on Alix’s blog, where you can also find links to some pics from her super stylish guests!
Sophie & Henry got married in Solihull on a sunny but windy Saturday at the start of July. I had been waiting for this wedding for what seems like forever! We had such a blast during Sophie and Henry’s engagement session last September that I just couldn’t wait to see them again and find out what their wedding would look like. And as suspected, it was all absolutely beautiful!
I just adored Sophie’s gorgeous Pronovias gown and her ridiculously high pink heels from asos, so elegant and girly at the same time. The beautiful peony bouquet from Fleur De Lis really completed the look – LOVE peonies!
The ceremony of Sophie and Henry’s wedding took place in the beautiful Church of St Mary the Virgin, followed by a reception at the Punchbowl, a stunning country pub in Lapworth. Sophie hired the jugs, cake stands, bunting and sweet jars from Vintage Teas & RSVPs. She arranged the table flowers (from Birmingham wholesale markets) herself, with the help of her mum and friends – and her dad grew the sweet peas that were in the jam jars on the top table.
I so enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere of this wedding, and I had so much fun hanging out with Sophie and Henry again after all this time. I really wish you guys all the best in your future, you rock!
I have to say, editing at 2am doesn’t feel nearly as strenuous as you’d think when you have beauties like these to work with! Keep an eye out for more from Sarah & James’ gorgeous Suffolk wedding later on.
During yesterday’s engagement session in central London I was feeling a little bit shell shocked by the amount of people and hustle and bustle everywhere. I think I just figured out the reason why! I’ve spent most of the summer covering weddings all over the UK, from cliff tops to quiet little villages, where the most ‘bustle’ you might bump into is a cow or two or perhaps a sheep – so it’s really no wonder I’ve forgotten how busy London can feel! Jacqueline & Simon’s wedding is a prime example of the lovely places I’ve got to visit this summer.
Jacqueline and Simon got married at the church of St. Nicholas Bratton St. Maur, with a reception at Bratton Farm House, in the gorgeous little village of Bratton Seymour in Somerset. I can’t tell you how beautiful a setting the village and the farm house were for a wedding! The day was amazing through and through, with a lovely relaxed atmosphere and so many beautiful touches, from Jacqueline’s exquisite Jenny Packham gown to the wild flower arrangements and all the little antique details. This really was the perfect garden wedding!
Thanks so much Jacqui and Simon for having me, I hope you’re having an awesome time on your honeymoon!
A while back I had the pleasure of getting interviewed by the lovely Rachael D’Cruze for The Photographer’s Guide to Turning Pro, a new magazine from the people behind Professional Photographer, which is aimed at photographers who are about to embark on the journey of turning their hobby into a business. The issue is out now, and you should be able to find the at your nearest newsagent’s – if you’re an aspiring photographer I think the whole magazine is a pretty good read.
This summer I’ve had the pleasure of seeing a lot of the UK on my adventures covering weddings across the country – it’s been really exciting getting to know parts of the country I’ve never visited before. For Kirsty & Richard’s wedding in the imposingly beautiful Tattershall Castle, I got to venture all the way out to Grimsby, and beyond.
Since the castle was quite a way away from the other venues in Grimsby, there was also a fair bit of travelling involved on the actual wedding day. But I’m not complaining, since I got to travel in style with the couple in Winston, a 1957 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud from Silver Spirit Wedding Cars, which was chauffeured by the lovely Harold. I have to say that was something I could get used to on a regular basis!
I just loved the Lincolnshire countryside, everywhere you looked was so very beautiful, and on the way to the reception I couldn’t resist getting Harold to pull over and dragging Kirsty &Â Rich into a field for a little portrait session!
Thanks so much guys for having me share your wedding day with you, it was so much fun! You are both such sweethearts and I wish you, and little Colbie, all the best in your future together.
As much as the process of taking the actual photographs is enough to satisfy my creative urges, I can’t help it that after a decade of working as a magazine designer in my previous career, I always get very excited about seeing my work published in magazines. You can find a feature on Simona & Dan‘s beautiful London wedding in the real weddings section of the August/September issue of Cosmopolitan Bride, which is out now.
And on that note I’m off to Somerset for what promises to be yet another gorgeous summer wedding. See you next week!
Funnily enough Helen & Tom’s wedding was the first ‘local’ wedding I’ve ever been a part of. I cover a lot of weddings in central London, and all over the UK, but for some reason I’ve never gotten a lot of enquiries for south west London where I’m based. So in that sense, this wedding holds a special place in my heart.
Helen and Tom got married at the Holy Trinity on Twickenham Green and the reception of their wedding was held at the beautiful Richmond Hill Hotel. The sun was beaming down with all it’s strength all day and the wedding had a real fun and warm atmosphere to it. Helen is one of those uber-organised brides, and I have to say that the schedule at this wedding ran like clockwork (which is a rare thing)! I also have to mention the photo booth, provided by Groovybooth, which was a real blast. I’m not normally a huge fan of photo booths, but this one definitely worked well and looked like a lot of fun – not to mention the resulting pictures were really cool.
I’d like to thank Helen and Tom for finding me so early on, and for being totally awesome, I really loved getting to know you and your families. I wish you all the best for your future together!
It’s a rainy day in Cornwall today so I thought I’d make the most of being stuck indoors and finally give you a full post on Anna & Chris’ beautiful Surrey wedding.
For this wedding we got to travel to the picturesque village of Chiddingfold in Surrey. Anna and the girls got ready at the incredibly atmospheric over 400 years old Crown Inn Hotel, while the boys were enjoying a drink to ease their nerves in the pub downstairs.
Both the ceremony and the reception took place at the stunning Ramster country house, which bathed in glorious sunshine all day. Since Anna and Chris were to became Mr and Mrs Wood, there was a nature/wooden theme running through the decorations. I really adored the wild flower arrangements and all the ‘wooden’ stationary. Such prettiness everywhere!
One of my favourite parts of the day has to be when after the speeches all the guests joined in to serenade the bride with one of her favourite songs. Such a great surprise and a beautiful moment!
It was lovely to see Amy & Jonny’s beautiful wedding featured on The Wedding Chicks, one of my favourite wedding sites out there, yesterday. Is it just me or does everything look umpteen times prettier when it’s up on The Wedding Chicks site?
Here’s a little sneaky peek from Anna & Chris’ beautiful Surrey wedding from a few weeks back. You might remember their engagement session in Richmond Park from last year. I’ll be down in Cornwall for the next week, but hopefully I’ll be able to finish this wedding and post some more pictures while I’m there. Depends entirely on whether I’m too busy sitting on the beach, reading the huge stack of books I’ve been hoarding for this trip!
It’s been a bit of a traumatic week so far, as on Monday, on my way to a engagement session, I fell down some stairs that gave way due to rust and tore the ligaments in my ankle. Ouch doesn’t quite cover it! It’s been a busy week rescheduling things and arranging for cover and extra help for upcoming events. Fingers crossed I’ll be back on my feet soon though!
In order to cheer us all up I’m finally posting some pictures from Amy & Jonny’s super pretty Kent wedding. I have to say I really adored Amy’s style on the day. Amy’s gorgeous dress and veil were by Amanda Wakely Sposa and her beautiful hair bloom, an ivory feather peony which I absolutely l-o-v-e-d, was designed and made by Yasmin Rizvi. Her perfectly ‘imperfect’ hair was carefully teased into place by Victoria Boorman and her make up was done by Vicky Snepp from Space NK in Tunbridge Wells.
The ceremony took place in the charming St Peter’s Church in Ightham, made really special by the beautiful singing from the members of the City of London Choir (with soloist Louisa Brown). This was followed by a reception in the family garden, held in a marquee decorated beautifully with flower arrangements made by a family friend, Judy Debenham (who was responsible for the gorgeous boquets as well), and lots of personal touches, such as the cute lavender bags made by Amy’s mum and the napkins which were made by Amy herself from fabric off-cuts from Cabbages and Roses‘ gorgeous fabrics. Henrietta Donovan was in charge of the catering and I must say that all the food looked simply divine!
I feel so privileged to have been a part of this lovely wedding, with such loving atmosphere and beauty all around. I wish Amy and Jonny all the best in their future adventures together! <3
Amy & Jonny’s gorgeous Kent wedding, coming to a blog near you soon!
Anna & Russ’ charming London tea party wedding took place on a beautiful spring Friday in April. Anna had put such care into every beautiful detail, that the whole day was literally bursting with prettiness! Everything from the gorgeous Montague on the Gardens Hotel, where Anna was getting ready, to her beautiful dress by Stephanie Allin from Blackburn Bridal, accessories, and especially the flowers (oh the flowers!) from Euphoric Flowers were carefully thought out to carry the theme and colours through the day and the different venues. Anna looked absolutely gorgeous with a little help from Severin Hubert from Hepburn Collection, who worked his magic on her hair, while Lina Cameron did her make-up.
The ceremony took place in St George’s Holborn from where guests were ferried to the reception in a London routemaster, while Anna and Russ travelled in style in the cutest VW Beetle driven by Helen from Polly Pootles. Anna has a keen interest in the Tudors so Fulham Palace was an ideal venue for the reception. Being a tea party, the food consisted of delicious sandwiches and mouthwatering cakes, which were all laid out in the most gorgeous manner, such a feast for the eyes as well! Create did a brilliant job with the catering.
There were also lots of thoughtful little touches, such as a bead bar by Abby from Beadoir for the young ones to make their own jewellery, and a pretty awesome candy buffet by Party Belles Events, which got both the children and adults alike pretty excited!
If I were to fall in love with a wedding and had to be monogamous (so glad that’s not the case :D), I think this one would have to be the one!
Thanks so much Anna & Russ for giving us the opportunity to enjoy so much prettiness in one day! I hope you’ll always pay such attention to the smallest of details as you did for your wedding, as they are the things that create a little magic in life.
I just found out that one of my images placed 9th in the ceremony category in the AG|WPJA Q1 contest. I’ve been taking part in the quarterly contest for a while now and this is the first time that my image has placed, so I’m really rather pleased!
In other news, I shall hopefully be posting a full blog post on Anna & Russ’ sublimely pretty tea party wedding tomorrow!
When Rachel got in touch with me originally, she booked me for a few hours to shoot her and Ben’s engagement party in Oxford. They were planning on getting married in Switzerland, but wanted to throw a party for their friends and family in the UK prior to that. Three weeks before the party Rachel phoned me and asked whether I would be available for a longer coverage, as they had just then decided that they were going to change their engagement party into a wedding! The short notice was a bit of a shock for everyone involved in the planning, but it did make sense since Rachel and Ben had already put so much time into the preparations, and since all of their loved ones were going to be under the same roof.
Rachel and her bridesmaids got ready at the beautiful Old Bank Hotel in central Oxford, but from there on things got a bit more adventurous. The unusual, and beautiful, ceremony took place outside on a hilltop in Shotover country park. It was a bit of a new situation for us as photographers logging our stuff across a huge hill, but the setting sure was worth it! I really loved the idea of guests hanging wishes onto the branches of the three underneath which the ceremony was held. In fact, there were lots of lovely details to this wedding, not least Rachel’s beautiful flowers from Daisies, and the gorgeous cars, which came from London Legend.
After the hilltop ceremony, it was back to central Oxford for the evening reception at Gee’s Restaurant, which was the perfect setting to for eating and dancing the night away.
Thank you Rachel and Ben for giving me the shock of my life by changing your plans at the last minute, it really did result in one of the prettiest weddings I’ve had the pleasure to attend this year!
I just can’t resist posting a very sneaky peek from Anna & Russ’ adorable vintage-flavoured tea party wedding, just because Anna looks so absolutely stunning getting into her gown! I’m still editing the rest of the pictures, so it will be a little while until you can see more, but I will share a gorgeous Oxford hill top wedding this weekend. Stay tuned!
I’m so stoked to finally be able to blog Sam & Adam’s stunning Andaz wedding! I know it’s so so wrong to have ‘favourite’ clients, but if I was forced to rank my clients (at, you know, gunpoint or something) Sam and Adam would come way up there. They’re just so cool and nice and super talented, and they really made us feel like we were a part of the celebration.
Sam looked absolutely stunning from head to toe, from her gorgeous Marchesa gown to her cool Nicholas Kirkwood heels, and Adam very dapper indeed in his Dunhill suit. What with Sam and Adam – and a lot of their guests – being fashion designers, the coolness factor was definitely very high in this wedding! :D
No matter how many weddings I shoot at the Andaz, it seems that there are always new spaces to discover. This time, after ceremony in the Fenchurch room, the wedding breakfast was held at the Studio, which looked absolutely stunning, not least because of the gorgeous flowers by Scarlet & Violet (oh and the cake, by Maki’s Cakes, was pretty stunning too).
After dinner the party continued in the Temple. It was really nice to bump into familiar DJs, the Wedding Smashers, once again. These guys really do know how to rock a house!
A million thanks Sam and Adam for making us feel like we were a part of your super cool ‘family’! I know the ash cloud provided you with some extra days on honeymoon, which you totally deserved! :D
