Northumberland Wedding Photographer
Northumberland is the northernmost county of England and one of my favourite places on the planet. It just has so much variety - from 64 miles of wild North Sea coast, to high moorland (most of which protected by Northumberland National Park), to dense and ancient woodland. It's the least densely populated county in England and it's this remoteness and opportunity for solitude, that I love.
Northumberland is home to many stately homes such as Ellingham Hall and Linden Hall. These are impressive country piles with large and immaculately kept grounds. Venues such as Newton Hall, Woodhill Hall and le Petit Chateau offer a modern and quirky take on the traditional stately home, with unusual furnishing and a sense of daring and fun.
The area also has more low key, alternative venues such as Northside Farm and The Barn on the Bay. Farms, barns and glamping (Think yurts, teepees and tents) wedding venues are increasingly popular and are places I like to photograph. They are ideal for the sort of bride who'd rather wear hiking boots than high heels on her wedding day!
Northumberland is a dream playground for engagement and pre-wedding couples shoots. The Northumbrian coast offers the perfect minimalist backdrop with the chance of dramatic sunrises and sunsets. Many of the beaches are overlooked by castles such as Bamburgh or Dunstanburgh. Closer to home, Tynemouth beach is overlooked by the Priory which was founded in the 7th century.
Kielder Forest has tall trees and dense woodland, all surrounding the reservoir which is the largest artificial lake in the UK. Kielder is a Dark Sky Park, which means that it is free from light pollution and is perfect for star gazing.
Northumberland is an ideal location for adventurous outdoors couples who want to experience the north's rugged beauty.
Northumberland weddings
Alex & Sam chose to have their wedding at the fun and quirky Le Petit Château in Northumberland on New Years Eve. It was a special day and a brilliant way to end the year. I love getting up on the dance floor to get wild party photos.
And there's no wedding party like a New Year's Eve wedding party!
Ellie & James did their wedding, their way.
Outdoors in Northumberland, where it started raining in 1973 and has never stopped. DIY flowers, paper cranes. The bride's entrance accompanied by a sunglasses wearing ukulele player. A hand fasting ceremony. Relaxed. Laid back.
This was a real documentary wedding for me with only a handful of group photos on the beach.
Oh, and did I mention that the bride and groom ended up in the sea?
I hadn't realised before the wedding that Norma and Brian were heavily into jazz music, with Norma being a singer and Brian being a guitarist. The penny only dropped when the band arrived for the evening reception and Brian picked up a guitar to play. With lots of their friends and family into music too, it meant that the dance floor was more popular than you'd expect for an intimate wedding.
I met Tanya and Craig at a wedding fair in Newcastle upon Tyne. When Tanya told me all about her plans to marry at Newton Hall in Northumberland I was thrilled to become her wedding photographer and couldn't wait to photograph this unique venue for the first time.
Sarah and Bry's wedding at Ellingham Hall was EPIC!
It was my first time photographing a wedding at this Northumberland wedding venue and I was suitably impressed.
I drove through the heavy fog cloaking the Northumberland countryside, hoping the weather would change. It was late November, when the days are already very short and good light for wedding photography can be elusive.
Northumberland Couples
Sometimes it's about picking a location that complements a couple and sometimes it's about picking a location that contrasts with a couple. Emily and John are a cool, creative couple into all things alternative, so driving out to Kielder Forest at sunset for an outdoors, romantic engagement couples session was a change of gears for them.
I hooked up with Emma and Paul on a wild, windswept day at Druridge Bay on the Northumberland coast. I was looking for couples who were up for a laugh and willing to try out some of the crazy photography experiments I had in mind. Emma and Paul were good sports and were super patient as I brought on smoke bombs, prisms and tried a Brenizer panorama.
We had glorious weather for Lynsey and Alex's pre-wedding sunset session at Collywell Bay. The sun was shining, the air was warm and the sea was remarkably calm.
Add in Lynsey & Alex's own quirky style and the amazing light and I couldn't help but capture some beautiful photographs.
Kielder Forest and Water Park is one of my favourite places to photograph a pre-wedding session. The terrain is so varied, from dense forest to open water, and the light is totally different from one hour to the next, that I feel like I could go there every week for the next 10 years and still not exhaust it's possibilities.
Given the choice, I'd far rather make pre-wedding photographs at somewhere like Kielder Water & Forest Park than a local park. It just brings you nature on a grander scale. The views are bigger, the night sky brighter, the trees taller. It's the biggest man-made lake in Northern Europe and, at over 250 square miles, the largest working forest in England – all in the heart of Northumberland just an hour and a half drive from my front door.
Stick a pin in a map pretty much anywhere on the Northumberland coast and you'll find an epic location to photograph an engagement session. Time it for golden hour, that time of magical light an hour before the sun sets, and you'll have something really special. Add an awesome couple up for an adventure and you have perfection.
Enter Jess and Tom...
What could be better than photographing an adventurous couple at golden hour on a forest hike in Northumberland?
Instead of a short trudge around the local park for our pre-wedding session, we drove up to Kielder Water and Forest just before sunset. We then set off on a hike through the woods, getting lost on purpose.
The light and scenery was stunning but the best thing about the session was getting to know Alexandria and Sam.
Kyra and Kev rocked their pre-wedding shoot at Druridge Bay on the Northumberland coast, despite the fact that a storm was blowing in. We had already had to cancel more than once as the weather was atrocious, but this time we pressed ahead and were rewarded with some dramatic skies.
I love brave couples!
Chris and Rebecca love the wild, so I had no trouble tempting them to get lost deep in the wintery Northumberland countryside at stupid o'clock in the morning. The light during the sunrise was magical right up until the storm clouds rolled in and the rain started.
Danielle and Callum were staying at a cottage at Seahouses when we scheduled our engagement photo session. Bamburgh Castle and beach were just up the coast and it was a location I had been looking for an excuse to shoot in for some time. This was the perfect opportunity!
Northumberland Wedding venues
Northside Farm is an exclusive use wedding venue, set within 400 acres of farm land in the picturesque Northumberland countryside. It was a venue I’d heard great things about and jumped at the chance to shoot Tash and Adam’s wedding there over the summer.
I had never heard of The Parlour at Blagdon until earlier this summer. Three months later and I have three weddings booked there. There is a real buzz about this unique, boutique, shabby-chic wedding venue which is based in Northumberland, just 10 minutes north of Newcastle.
Newton Hall is a modern, contemporary wedding venue in Northumberland. It's like a non-traditional, stylish take on the classic country hall. Situated in a National Trust designated area of outstanding natural beauty, it is surrounded by spectacular countryside and close to the breathtaking Northumberland coast.
Le Petit Château is a French inspired boutique hotel, pub and wedding venue nestled in the heart of the Northumberland countryside. It's fair to say Le Petit Château has become very popular very quickly with Northumberland couples.
The Barn on the Bay is a quirky, boutique wedding venue. It really suits couples looking for an alternative wedding venue. People who love the outdoors or a festival vibe especially.
Alnwick Garden and Treehouse is a wedding venue I am familiar with, having visited several times. I have spent time in the gardens, eaten in the Treehouse restaurant, second shot a wedding in the Treehouse, and I have a wedding later this year in the Pavilion.
It is a truly unique wedding venue in the north East of England, and I can't believe that it has taken me so long to review it.
Ellingham Hall is a great venue for photography. The reception rooms are large with high ceilings and big windows, so the dark wood panelling isn't an issue. Each room has it's own unique character, so even if the weather is poor you have plenty of options to vary your indoor shots.
Lindisfarne Castle is a 16th-century castle built on Holy Island, near Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England. One of the most special and unusual things about Holy Island is that it is only accessible from the mainland at low tide by means of a causeway.
Linden Hall is a magnificent grade II listed Georgian country house set in the heart of a beautiful 450 acre private estate.
Kyra and Kev's wedding at The Alnwick Garden in Northumberland was a great lesson in how to deal well with inclement weather on your wedding day. You cannot guarantee the weather if you are getting married in Northumberland whatever time of year it is.