Susie and Rob Clearwell Castle Wedding
If you are thinking of a stylish and elegant wedding venue then this is it. Clearwell Castle situated in the heart of the Forest of Dean in Gloucestershire is the perfect wedding venue and it's no surprise that it has won best wedding venue in 2016 / 2017 and I am now delighted to share with you this blog from a recent wedding there with Susie and Rob.
I first met up with Susie and Rob at their home in Cardiff to discuss their wedding back in 2016 and when they said that they were getting married at Clearwell Castle I could only hope at the time they would book me to be their photographer. Having previous shot at that venue I have to say it this has to be my favorite, no questions about it.
Moving on to 2017, Susie had arranged for a pre-wedding shoot and what a day we had for it. Shot at Southerndown beach in the Vale of Glamorgan we had everything we could have possibly asked for, clear blue skies lots of sun, a beach and a pretty awesome sunset to finish off the day. check it out here to see what I mean.
It was to be an early start for me, arriving at Clearwell Castle around 8am. Beautiful blue skies lush green grass, but that wasn't to last unfortunately as which I will mention later.
As like most of my wedding, I am booked for a full day. Covering the bridal preparation until late in the evening. Susie and the girls were getting their make and hair done at keepers cottage and the best part of arriving early was that breakfast had been servedand I swear I didn't take any, Susie I promise ;)
The morning progressed where the girls moved up to the Castle to the bridal suite and as Rob was also getting ready just a few rooms away it gave me an opportunity to get a few groom shots which are not always possible when shooting alone.
The ceremony was held at the church just outside the Castle grounds which meant a short walk for Susie and her dad down the driveway, passing the donkeys ( I wonder how many brides they have seen in their time) :), whilst Rob at the front of the isle was looking very calm and composed waiting for the arrival of his bride.
The weather started to take a bit of a turn after we all left the church. We managed to quickly grab the traditional group and family shots before it was time to head inside in the dry. Not to worry, this certainly didn't put the dampers of things. Yes plans had to change, shooting around the grounds of the Castle was out of the question but there were still plenty of shots to be taken inside, although we did finish up the night with the final shot being outdoors.
There are lots of people involved in making these weddings so special for a bride and groom and in particular on this day a big thanks and mention to the following that made this day a very special one to say the least.
Jackie Parsons for the cake
Charmaine Gorwill Makeup Artist
Joanne from mac for make up