High House Farm Brewery: A first look & relaxed wedding for Rebecca & Neil

Where to start?! Well, Rebecca & Neil got married on last week at High House Farm Brewery near Matfen, Northumberland. Right from the start of wedding planning the couple decided they wanted a relaxed day, with close family & friends, and as little wedding formality as possible.

I was thrilled when they chose to book me as their wedding photographer, and was very much looking forward to their big day. The couple chose not to have bridesmaids, groomsmen, maid of honour or best man. They chose not to have formal speeches or traditional cutting of the cake.

Melanie from The Vintage Salon & Le Keux Cosmetics came all the way from Leeds to give Rebecca a vintage make over, she looked absolutely stunning! Her Mum said "You look like you've just come out of the movies" and I had to agree!! 

The fabulous halterneck wedding dress that Rebecca chose came from Truly Madly Deeply Bridal  in Whitley Bay. 

The flowers were created by Scentiments of Monkseaton, and looked and smelled divine! The bouquet was just so beautiful to look at I found it hard to stop photographing and get on with something else :-) 

They chose to have a 'first look' instead of the tradition of not seeing each other before walking down the aisle. A first look is where the bride & groom meet up before the ceremony, to see each other for the first time in their wedding outfits. It's a lot more common in America, but this was the first time I've ever had an opportunity to photograph one here in the UK. This was done just in front of myself. I set up the Neil, and then let Rebecca come around the corner. I stayed silent, and captured the candid moments on camera. It was an amazing moment and I am so honoured to have been there. We then spent some time prior to the ceremony capturing some relaxed couples photographs, and then the couple walked down the aisle to 'One Day Like This' by Elbow - what a fab choice of music! 

The barn was decorated in a rustic, countryside style, and the order of service was amazing! 

We had a funny moment in the field with the horses. Above is Rosie, the friendly grey horse. She must have been hungry and decided that Rebecca's bolero was a tasty treat! We ended up having to leave the field pronto, such a funny few minutes with the bride and groom! I'm not having much luck with animals at the moment :-)

After the wedding breakfast the bride & groom treated everyone to ice cream from nearby Vallum Farm. There was even wedding cake flavour and pimms sorbet! Perfect for a summer wedding.

The favours were from Sweet Sally Cinnamon which is another local company, little jars of Salted Caramel Sauce which people took home, and larger jars were used as ice cream topping, lovely! 

The traditional cake cutting was something that Neil & Rebecca felt they did not want to do, I was trying to rack my brains for ideas, when I saw a post on another wedding blog where the bride & groom blew out candles on the cake to make a wish. Although this is normally reserved for birthday parties and suchlike, I proposed the idea to the bride & groom and suggested sparkly candles for a bit more fun. A wedding is all about starting off a new life together and I thought making a wish for the future on the wedding day with the cake was very fitting! 

For evening entertainment and a few more silly photographs, the couple booked a funky photobooth with me. I have to say, it went down a storm and the guests loved every second of it! 

Special thanks to Emma Bunting for the colourful bunting backdrop she created for me over a year ago now! Also Oh, Abigail who makes fabulous signs, and who I purchased the photobooth welcome sign from! 

The couple danced the night away to Kelly & The Sensations who I'd heard lots of good things about but not seen before. They were fab! A couple of the band members may have even popped into the funky photobooth during their break! 

A massive congratulations to Mr & Mrs Wood on their wedding, I'm so pleased they had an amazing time and didn't feel so pressured by traditional wedding formalities, and had the day they dreamed of. 

A big thank you for having me too, I loved every minute!

All photographs (C) Katie Byram Photography 2013. 

Please do not use without permission. 

If you are looking for fun, relaxed & quirky wedding photography for your 2014 or 2015 wedding, please do drop me a line through my website, I'd love to hear from you!!