24th December 2017 / Photography Wedding
Venetia & George's Fireworks Wedding - Marden, Kent
Venetia & George’s fireworks wedding on the 5th November was an absolute belter and photographing it was a complete joy. Venetia & George were married in Marden, Kent at St Michael & All Angels Parish Church before heading back to Venetia’s family home, just outside the town for a truly incredible reception.
Venetia got ready at home with her two bridesmaids and was looked after by one of my favourites, the wonderful Alison Smith of Bridal Beauty. Her dress, which was stunning and suited her perfectly, was a bespoke Emma Victoria Payne design and featured an intricate embroidered bodice with delicate and beautiful beadwork. Venetia’s parents’ home, where the post ceremony festivities took place, is a wonderfully charming Georgian farmhouse and boasts some extremely attractive grounds. The main house was a photographic dream; big windows and interesting compositions everywhere you looked. The barn, where the evening reception took place, was converted into one of the coolest multi-level bar/dancefloor/snug setups I’ve ever encountered and the wedding breakfast took place in a beautiful marquee complete with viewing deck looking out over the lake. What an outstanding setup!
I caught up with George and the gents at Church shortly before the ceremony. George is a remarkably affable chap and always seems to be smiling. Nerves didn’t seem to make the slightest dent on him! The service was beautiful and afterwards the new Mr & Mrs F were greeted by cheering guests lining the pathway to the car. Confetti complete, we grabbed a quick ‘all guests’ photograph before making our way back for the reception.
Drinks were served in the Barn before crossing to the Marquee for dinner and we found a few minutes to slip away and take some portraits in the gorgeous surroundings of Venetia’s childhood home. The boathouse was my favourite spot and reminded me of something from Swallows & Amazons, one of my best-loved novels when I was little. Venetia is an inherently calm person and, on the surface, rather serene, but paired with George you immediately see their shared, and very wicked, sense of humour. We spent most of the time during portraits falling about laughing – always a good sign and extremely helpful in producing really authentic natural images!
Venetia & George are massive fans of fireworks and Guy Fawkes night and, as such, thought it’d be apt to hold their wedding on the 5th November. Fantastic! They first contacted me because they’d spotted some photographs I’d shot at Harriet & Alistair’s wedding of a sparkler departure and thought I might be the man for the job. Needless to say fireworks played a big part in their day! Following the drinks reception, everyone crossed to the viewing platform to watch a magnificent fireworks display. Reflected in the lake below it looked incredible and was indisputably the best I’ve seen in ten years shooting weddings.
George was incredibly close to his late Mum, and her absence was sorely felt. He talked about her during his speech and she sounded like a remarkable lady. She was Japanese and, alongside lots of honoured relatives who had made the 6000 mile trip to be in attendance, her heritage was reflected in the sumptuous styling of the dining tent. Following the wedding breakfast, the guests made their way back to the Barn where Venetia & George took their first dance as husband and wife accompanied by the awesome 29 Fingers. From here, things got wild rather rapidly. This crowd can PARTY! The evening was a whirlwind of wild dancing, special guest performers (read Venetia & George!) and much merriment. I’m not a fan of the word, but it was genuinely epic. Come midnight, Venetia & George took their leave down a tunnel of extremely enthusiastic sparkler-wielding guests.
What a tremendous wedding this was. It had it all, a gorgeous, and very lovely couple (who looked incroyable) a cracking setting, a super-charged party and lots of sparkle and bang! It shall forever be remembered as the fireworks wedding at Tony Hart Photo HQ, but it was so much more. Hats off to Venetia & George for pulling off such a triumph; many congratulations guys and thanks so much for having me!
Merry Christmas everybody. If I can be of service in 2018, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
