Caitlin and Connor must have a genie in a bottle, because they managed to put together a beautiful wedding celebration in just a few weeks, and what was meant to be a quick ceremony in the Taunton Registry Office turned into a celebration with 22 family members from as far as Cornwall and Yorkshire, coming to Taunton to celebrate at the stunning Castle Hotel. So many of the beautiful touches were made by either Caitlin herself, or one of the other members of the family. Most impressive of all was the last-minute cake designed and baked by Connor’s sister-in-law, who made this stunning showpiece with three days’ notice!

Although the day was seemingly typical of this summer – scattered rainfall all day – it stayed dry at the crucial moments. I met the couple in the Bridal suite of the hotel, and we began shooting some photos of Caitlin helping Connor into his military uniform. As both the bride and groom are part of the armed forces, it was a great element to the weddings and made for some beautiful images. I had never photographed a military wedding before, and it created so many fantastic moments during the getting ready phase.

Connor then left to the pub next door to have a few drinks with the rest of the guests, while Caitlin’s sister and mother joined her in the suite to help with makeup and the final touches. We took some getting ready photos of the ladies and the bond between the three of them was so strong – non-stop laughter and the dynamic between the three of them was great to see. The bridal suite was a beautiful room. It had its challenges as all the large windows kept vying for attention and made certain angles difficult to capture, but with a few tweaks to the lighting and using the blinds we ended up with some beautiful light in the room.

I couldn’t believe how well the locations worked with the flow of the day. The hotel, pub, and registry office were all within a minutes’ walk of each other and this was perfect with the weather. There was a gap and we just made it to the registry office before the heavens opened again. I had never shot a wedding at the Taunton registry office, and for anybody wondering if it’s a good location for the ceremony – absolutely. The officiant, Paul, held an incredible service and the rooms they have there are gorgeous. This is one of the great aspects of getting married in the UK – there are so many old prestigious buildings to have your ceremony and many of them are used by local registry offices.

Canapes were served in the garden of the hotel and although threatening rain it stayed dry. The gardens were a great place to capture some of the family portraits, the old hotel making a beautiful backdrop. Once canapes were complete the guests moved inside for dinner and speeches. As this was a family wedding the atmosphere was intimate but lively with both sides of the family brining their own dynamic and making for a great celebration. One of my favourite parts of the job is seeing multiple generations of a family get together and celebrate the love of one of their own. It’s always difficult not to get emotional and Caitlin and Connor made it especially difficult with their heartfelt speeches. The cake cutting was done using Connors military sword that was another unique touch to a wonderful wedding.

The Castle hotel was the perfect backdrop for an intimate wedding of this size. The garden room used for the wedding dinner was stunning, with great artwork and lighting to accompany the view of the gardens out back. The hotel exudes character and my aim for the occasion was to capture some of these details in all their glory and try and incorporate the great colours and sense of nostalgia that the hotel had me feeling. I hope I get to shoot another wedding here one day!