Rachel & David / Wedding at The George in Rye

Despite the complexity associated with having a bag locked in an inaccessible town hall overnight, Rachel & David’s wedding at The George in Rye is one of my undisputed favourites of the year. I love shooting for friends from the same group more than once. It represents a great vote of confidence and it also leads to stronger pictures because the better you know your subjects, the easier they are to photograph. Rachel & David’s wonderful wedding in Rye was just such an occasion. In 2014 I shot for Sarah & Tom at Cripps Barn in the Cotswolds and since then they have kindly referred me a number of lovely clients including Rachel & David and Alex & Luke; whose wedding in Woldingham I shot in 2015. Sarah & Tom, thank you guys for all the amazing referrals!

Rachel & David’s wedding took place in the extremely beautiful town of Rye in East Sussex. Rachel got ready with her bridesmaids at The George in Rye, which also hosted the reception. Meanwhile David got ready around the corner at The Mermaid Inn which sits on one of the most stunning cobbled streets I’ve ever seen. Rachel’s room at The George was very cool, with a downstairs bathroom and a little courtyard just adjacent to the main bedroom. Despite being a small space, it was perfectly formed and between the lovely setting and a truly stunning bride, the getting ready yielded a lot of great moments. Rye is eminently walkable (I know I sound like The Rough Guide) and it was very easy to pop around the corner to catchup with David at a convenient point in the morning.

The ceremony took place at Rye Town Hall which is about 50 meters up the road from The George. It’s a good looking building, and the Council Chamber, where the marriage itself takes place, is really rather handsome. One of the cool things about this wedding was that Rachel & David really did get married in Rye. The jaunt from The George to the Town Hall is so short that Rachel, her girls and Dad made the walk up the hill amongst the bustle of a regular Saturday. As a photographer I love this sort of thing because in my experience people are universally generous and charming towards a bride on her wedding day and the cheers and shouts of good luck/congratulations invariably generates smiles and great pictures. Following the ceremony, which was lovely, Rachel & David were announced back into the streets of Rye as a husband and wife by the town crier, Rex Swain. Rex is a gent of prodigious years but this has neither robbed him of his voice, which is suitably impressive, nor his enthusiasm. After being announced, Rex led everyone down the street back to The George where drinks and canapés awaited.

The George in Rye is a bit of a gem really. It’s the sort of finely run establishment that is really hard to find, but which seems to achieve its excellence almost effortlessly. The Ballroom, where the wedding breakfast and evening reception was held is a magnificent room, striking and classy, a blend of white walls, lovely floors and beautiful inlayed wallpaper.

Following the speeches, which were at turns moving and hilarious, we stepped away for a few creative portraits around Rye. I believe Rye would look stunning in any conditions, but the weather was glorious and it was fun to make the most of this wonderful town. Rachel & David’s first dance, took place rather aptly, in the Ballroom. Rarely does a first dance have a more appropriate setting! The evening was a blast, drinks on The George’s Balcony, brilliant live music and bridal party limbo. Yep. Limbo. It was amazing and Rachel is freakishly good at it. I assumed that she’d grown up in the circus, but she assured me not!

Anyway, enough from me, time for some photographs. My thanks to Rachel & David for having me, they were absolutely lovely and working for them was a joy.