Kate & Karl's dream wedding at Rockbeare Manor

by Karolina Wedding photographer, July 2022

As a wedding photographer, I get to see a lot of beautiful weddings and trust me when I say, they are all different and unique. From the venue to the decor, from food to the atmosphere and the couple. It is clear as a day, that every couple has their unique desires for what will make their wedding day that perfect day. Every couple brings their individuality to their wedding day even if it's big or small, it will show.

So, without further ado, I would love to tell you, from my point of view, how one of those unique weddings unfolded and what was it that made it unique.

But first, here is your dream team Photography & Videography - @bykarolinaphotography Florist - @emmahewlettfloraldesign, Make-Up Artist - @emmaroberts.mua, Hair Stylist - @natalienicholsbridal, Venue - @rockbeare_manor_, Dress Designer - @pronovias and Celebrant - @fanfareceremonies

Strap in for a story of Kate and Karl’s wedding.

Video Highlight.

Kate and Karl held their beautiful wedding at Rockbeare Manor. It was mid-April and the day was served with gorgeous weather. Having this stunning house with a garden and fields, it was a no-brainer that it will be a perfect backdrop for the couple's portraits.

Wedding Memorabilia

This wedding, in particular, was very emotional and there were many tears from the couple as well as friends and family members. Kate’s mother Jackie passed away back in 2017 from cancer and so her name was mentioned many times throughout the day in the ceremony, speeches and well into the night. The couple commemorated the bride's mother in the best way possible. They had a cancer research donation box to raise money for cancer. A ballet shoe pins for every guest, and the pin held a special memory behind.

Kate's mother loved dancing and as they said in the speeches, Jackie would be the first one on the dancefloor, stealing the show. Of course, this meant that they will have a dancefloor, as the night would not be the same, and guess what, Kate was there the whole time. Isn’t it sweet?

Bride - Father First Look

Kate had her dad at her side throughout the day and they both shared a few emotional moments including a father-daughter first look, emotional speeches and later on a dance together. Their first look was the sweetest moment of the day.

As he entered the room, his sweet smile and beautiful soul coloured the room and as he saw his beautiful daughter they couldn’t hold back the tears. It truly was hard to hold back the tears for everyone. While witnessing everything unfold in front of my camera, all I could think was how beautiful their relationship is and I won’t hide, I got emotional too as it was just too heartwarming to see them so happy, yet still, feel the sadness that their beloved wife/mother could not be there with them.

The day was put together by the amazing suppliers and helping hands from friends and family. The events manager at the venue helped to coordinate the day and make sure that nothing is overlooked. He greeted the couple after the ceremony with a glass of champagne and made sure that the couple is well fed throughout the day which was necessary due to their busy schedule.

Preparations

As the bride was getting ready, everyone was running around, half-dressed, half makeup done and the atmosphere was slowly becoming more and more festive. She got ready in one of the suites on the first floor, with a balcony overlooking the beautiful entrance and the fields nearby.

The groom chose a billiard room for him and his groomsmen which they used to do the finishing touches on their attire from pinning the buttonholes to their ties and finishing touches to their overall look.

Now… Make-up is done, hair is curled, the dress is on and the final touches are being done. The only thing that's left is the veil, which didn’t take long to be put in, but suddenly transformed the bride into the princess that she is. It all fits perfectly together and let's not forget the ballet shoe pin, which no questions asked, had to be there with her.

Seeing it all together was breathtaking, and she felt amazing as her smile shone through the pictures. It was such a pleasure to photograph their day. The room was filled with gorgeous humans, smiles and love and it was nearly time to go to the ceremony, but before we did, we had to take the opportunity and photographed Kate in the room she was in and how her look came together.

Ceremony

The ceremony room looked divine moments before it was filled with people in love. This room gave off WOW factor vibes. What a beautiful space to hold your wedding ceremony in. The natural light coming through, created perfect light for the couple at the front.

The ceremony room, decorated with flowers and filled with natural light was already with people waiting for the groom and the bride. Just before the ceremony, we snapped away a few pictures with the whole bridal party and moments later it was time to go down the aisle. The groom was already waiting filled with excitement and most likely a slightly faster-beating heart as he knew, his bride is worth marrying twice! Yes, this was their second wedding, but the one they had waited for since the beginning of the pandemic.

We are now at the peak and the most important part of the day - The ceremony. Fan the celebrant performed a super personal ceremony making many guests giggle, smile and shed some tears. The ceremony set a scene for the celebrations for the rest of the day.

Confetti

Soon after the ceremony, the couple had their grand exit with confetti. This part of the day is always full of surprises as many decide to throw confetti how they see fit, sometimes and quite often into the couple's faces. This was exactly what happened there, to start, the bride's brother threw it in her face which then made many including the bride have a good laugh. As the couple proceeded through, another guest threw confetti in Karl’s face. As if they all had it planned out. They were fun moments for everyone. A good laugh, a story to tell, and also pictures and videos to show for it too.

Speeches

Having so much happened already, it was still far from the happy ending for the day. Everyone sat down for dinner and the speeches were on the way. Additionally to the emotional ceremony, there were emotional speeches. These were one of the most emotional speeches I have ever heard. There was a lot of laughter, and jokes were thrown around, but often, Jackie's name came up and stole the tears of many. She took a piece of everyone with her away. Even though I highlight the emotional aspect of the ceremony and speeches, by all means, it was super fun and laughter-filled day.

Newlywed Portraits

Let's not forget the beautiful grounds that the Rockbeare Manor had to offer. This meant that I could not waste any opportunity presented to me. So, that said, we were served by a beautiful sunset and I knew exactly what I had to do. I went to the head table and took Kate with me to take some photographs of the sunset. We showed off her gorgeous dress and embraced the veil and the overall look she and her stylists had created. She looked stunning is an understatement, but in all truth, I think that her smile shone brighter than the sun. This was then a perfect opportunity to take more newlywed portraits.

Dancefloor

As the day went into the night, the music became louder and the light was finally on. When I say lights, this is what I mean… Neon heart signs and colourful lights strategically lit up the dancefloor. This was also a perfect setting for the couple to cut the wedding cake followed by their first dance. This then escalated into the dancefloor to finish off the night that the couple waited for… a long time.

Would you like to have a dancefloor that steals the show like theirs? Here is a tip for creating dancefloor pictures that look like theirs:

To begin with, you need loads of lights, the more the merrier, that change colour and move around. This helps to create these colours on the dancefloor and in general, it makes it look like a proper nightclub, and you know what? It's hard to stay away from the dancefloor when it looks this good. I use light-breaking tools when taking photos so I can use the light to my advantage and create images like this… Aren't they just magical?

The end.