A few years ago, I photographed the beautiful wedding of an old Uni friend at The Walled Garden at Cowdray in the South Downs, and I have been wanting to get back to that part of the world ever since to shoot more weddings. Luckily for me, the lovely Jenny spotted that particular wedding blog post and, as a result, booked me for her stunning wedding to Joe at Bignor Park. Here’s how their amazing day went…

With Bignor Park being a few hours away from home, and because I like to meet my couples before their wedding day, I booked accommodation and travelled down the day before. I like to do this with weddings that aren’t local as it ensures I’m in the area and won’t get stuck in traffic on the day of the wedding, but it also acts like a little holiday for me too! A night away from home so that I can explore a new area and have a bit of me time is always a plus point to shooting weddings outside of my immediate area, especially in the midst of a busy wedding season.

The South Downs is a particularly beautiful part of the world and I never tire from visiting. There are so many spectacular wedding venues, such as Cowdray House, Upwaltham Barns, Grittenham Barn, Fitzleroi Barn and Amberley Castle, to give you some inspiration if you’re planning your own South Downs wedding.

The morning of Jenny and Joe’s wedding, I met with Jenny at The Town House B&B in Arundel, where she was getting ready with her girls. Jenny’s happiness and loveliness shone through and it was a pleasure being with her as she was made up by the talented Tamara and dressed in a beautiful gown from Willowby.

It was an incredibly hot day with bright blue skies, absolutely perfect for an outdoor ceremony, although certainly a challenge for us photographers! Luckily, with such a relaxed and lovely couple and the assistance of the incredibly helpful Louise at Bignor, the wedding went off without a hitch and it was my absolute pleasure to capture every part of it.