Mellissa and Joell's Coton House Farm Wedding Photography

 

Today I’ve got a gorgeous wedding at Coton House Farm to tell you all about. Coton House Farm is a luxury barn venue in the Staffordshire countryside, not far from Lichfield, so it’s a great choice for couples who want to get married in the West Midlands. It’s a place I’ve shot at before, and one of the things I like about it is the views across the gently rolling Staffordshire countryside, and the big skies that accompany it.

When I had my final Zoom with Mellissa and Joell they revealed that Joell had rather inconveniently broken his ankle! There was, understandably, a bit of concern about how he was going to make it through the day, and whether he’d be hobbling down the aisle, or able to elegantly execute the first dance. 

Coton House Farm is a lovely rural venue, and really lent itself to the traditional fete vibe that Mellissa and Joell had created, with coconut shies, splat the rat (my personal favourite) and ring toss for their guests to enjoy. Joell and Mellissa’s friends had kindly agreed to set up the garden games, and they managed to fit in a bit of practice to give them the upper hand later, too.

Inside the wedding breakfast room was even more fun – two patient ladies were kindly leading a group of perplexed lads as they dressed tables and chairs, tying fiddly bows and daintily arranging things as they went. Watching ten burly men bewildered by bouquets and dessert forks is one of those wedding moments I’ll never forget!

Soon Mellissa arrived with her bridesmaids, and it was clear that the bride was experiencing a few pre-ceremony nerves. To help her feel calm, I did what any good wedding photographer would do, and took her outside to play splat the rat! After a few unsuccessful swings of that bat (it’s mighty difficult you know!) she was ready to start preparing her hair and make up.

It was a sweltering hot day, and Mellissa and Joell had arranged for some lovely vintage vehicles to take them to St Giles C of E church where the ceremony was to take place – a beetle and a VW camper. Melissa’s dad was a little early, and like all good brides, Melissa was a little late, so he was left pacing outside the venue for half an hour stewing on his nerves! Fortunately, when Mellissa arrived, it was all smiles and laughter and they were ready for the big moment.

I hadn’t been to St Giles before, but one of the things I loved about the beautiful old church was its hidden passageway, that allowed me to move quietly move around during the ceremony to get some images of the bride and groom and guests from different perspectives. The last thing you want to do as a photographer is cause a nuisance during the ceremony, so this was a real blessing and I was so pleased to be able to capture all the ceremony’s special moments well.

With the ceremony over, the wedding guests piled onto a bus which took them to Coton House Farm to continue the celebrations. Everyone got stuck into the traditional games, and there was some real competition brewing on the coconut shies as family and friends vied to be the victor.

Joell’s brother acted as his best man, and being military, was an excellent asset when it came to corralling all the guests out to the front of the barn for a group photo – he was definitely used to dishing out marching orders!

The heat and alcohol combined made for a very entertaining set of speeches following a delicious wedding breakfast. Joell’s brother acted as MC and led the stag do attendees in a rousing song when Mellissa’s dad got up to speak, before taking to the mike himself and, suitably greased by plenty of prosecco and a few beers as well, divulging plenty of embarrassing stories about the groom.

We were blessed with an absolutely incredible sunset as the evening continued, and you know how much I love a golden hour photo! It was a brilliant moment to spend some time outdoors and get some shots of the very happy newlyweds, before heading back inside for a floor-filling wedding band – one of the best ones I’ve seen (get in touch if you want the details). Everyone was up on their feet dancing, and Joell and Mellissa were hoisted triumphantly into the air by their friends – fortunately no ankles were harmed in the making of this scene!

IF YOUR LOOKING FOR A Coton House Farm Wedding Photography , THEN CONTACT ME TODAY TO DISCUSS.