Black and white wedding portrait of the couple kissing, with the veil blowing in the wind. Gilbert White Wedding Photography

Gilbert White Barn Wedding | Fleur & Ben

What a perfect summer wedding! You couldn’t ask for better weather, or a more perfect setting, for an English Wedding in the Hampshire countryside. Carol and I are big fans of Gilbert White’s House in Selborne, it’s very local to us and we were delighted when Fleur got in touch to ask us to shoot her and Ben’s wedding. They had been guests at a wedding we shot two years ago. So they already had a good idea of how we work – unobtrusively, with no interference to the flow of the wedding day. The only time we ever ask couples to pose for a picture is for family group shots. Even our couple portraits are as relaxed and natural as possible with very little posing and direction. The rest of the day is shot entirely as it happens, which is key to telling the story of the day.

We are a recommended supplier at Gilbert White Barn.

Carol & Paul

Bride having her makeup done, photographed through a window, to show interesting reflections. Gilbert White Wedding Photography

English Country Wedding

The day started with hair and make-up at Fleur’s Mum’s with close friends and family. Carol stayed with Fleur afterwards, as I went along to St Mary’s Church which is just across the road from Gilbert White’s House. One of the benefits of booking both of us to shoot is it allows Carol to stay with the bride, while I go and get pictures of the groom’s final moments of being single. The church is a beautiful classic old English church. The vicar was kind enough to allow me to stay at the front throughout the ceremony, while Carol covered things from the back. It’s great having silent cameras, so that the vicar and guests don’t even know I’m there. We always try to be as discreet and invisible as possible – especially important during the ceremony.

After the ceremony the couple and guests walked from the church, across the road and into the beautiful cottage gardens at the back of the house, before crossing the grass meadow to reach the barn. It’s so picturesque there, you couldn’t ask for a more scenic view. Everyone chilled out on hay bales and picnic benches for the drinks reception, which made a great relaxed atmosphere. I love seeing people relax at weddings and just enjoy themselves, it’s what weddings should be all about – friends and family, just chatting comfortably and having a nice day out.

Portraits

We shot two portrait sessions on the day, firstly shooting through the long grass just in front of the barn, but the sun was very high at that point so we did a second shoot later on after the meal, when the lower sun makes for better light. I really love the top portrait with Fleur’s veil blowing in the wind, it’s pure romance and didn’t require the couple to do anything more than kiss. Portraits can be kept really simple and still be beautiful, even if the couple don’t like posing. My job as a photographer is to make you feel relaxed enough to let go and look natural, not to make you feel awkward.

This was truly a beautiful wedding to capture. Carol and I really felt part of the day, which is the way we like to work. The best pictures occur when couples and their guests forget that you’re there as photographers and just accept you as part of the day.

A Gilbert White House wedding by Paul & Carol. If you like this wedding, you should also check out Joe & Gemma’s Village Hall Wedding.

Gilbert White Barn Wedding Photographers

Wedding Suppliers List:

Wedding Venue – Gilbert White’s House & Barn
Hair & Makeup – Totally Flawless
Vintage Props – Vintage Your Day
Catering – Vanilla Catering

Would you like to see another of our Gilbert White Weddings? Check out Beth & Ciaran’s day

Are you getting married at Gilbert White’s House? We are recommended photographers for the venue and live locally. Why not get in touch, we’d love to hear from you.

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