In some ways, Fiona and Sean’s small relaxed pub wedding was quite unusual – for example, we held the portraits session at neither the ceremony nor the reception space, but a third location in between. But in actual fact, Fiona and Sean’s wedding was what every wedding should be: totally chilled, and focused on what they actually wanted from it.
Of course what this looks like will differ from couple to couple, but for Fiona and Sean, it looked like an intimate group of their nearest and dearest enjoying a registry office ceremony, a vintage red bus tour, and a reception at their local pub. What a day!
Registry Office ceremony
Before the small relaxed pub wedding reception, of course, came the equally relaxed ceremony, held at Ampthill Registry Office. Fiona arrived with a big smile on her face, so ready to marry the love of her life! On top she wore a dainty necklace and a pearly headband in her loose waves, whilst some iconic royal blue heels peeked out from beneath her beautiful wedding dress (can you believe she got it from Coast? For more incredible high street wedding dress inspiration, check out Lulu and Simon’s London wedding.)
Inside, Sean was similarly full of nervous but excited energy, standing at the top of the aisle in front of all of their loved ones. He wore a light sage green three piece suit, with a blue tie and matching pocket square. Rosehip Bespoke Floristry created an elegant bouquet and buttonhole for each of them, using white flowers and greenery to create two simple yet chic arrangements.
After the ceremony, we dodged the rain long enough to take a confetti shot, using confetti that Fiona’s mum had dried and prepared herself.
Red vintage double decker bus
Then, it was time for Fiona and Sean to take their guests on an adventure. The vintage double decker bus was one of the things that they were most excited about going into their wedding day, but also the most nervous:
“The amazing thing about having a small wedding is that all the stress of planning has been drastically reduced.” they explained. “The biggest concern was what to do with our guests between the ceremony and reception venue. So we’ve booked a vintage double decker bus because we wanted to keep the party going!”
With all of their guests aboard – and, equally importantly, bottles of prosecco and glasses – the bus kicked into life and hit the open road (by which, I mean the A Road). Spirits were high as we arrived at the second destination of their small, relaxed pub wedding day, a church in Woburn with the most amazing façade: a.k.a. The perfect spot for portraits!
Relaxed outdoor wedding photos
Whilst Fiona and Sean’s guests enjoyed their prosecco on the gravel and grass outside of the church, I took both couple’s and group portraits against the glorious backdrop. As well as the impressive, historic stone walls, there was a towering, ornate red and black door, which we used as our primary spot.
With photos taken and the gap in the timeline successfully filled, we all clambered back aboard to the final venue of their celebrations: the pub!
Small, relaxed pub wedding reception
Because you can’t have a small, relaxed pub wedding without a pub, can you?! The particular pub they chose was The George Inn, in Maulden. They went for The George Inn because “in all honesty, we decided to abandon our initial wedding plans and needed to organise a wedding in 12 weeks – so we went with availability, affordability and somewhere we knew locally that does amazing food!” Sounds like a pretty perfect middle of the Venn diagram to me…
At the pub a Buck’s Fizz station awaited, as did a box of flip flops for aching feet, a Polaroid guest book, and a semi-naked buttercream cake.
The private hire room at The George Inn is upstairs, and has a really chilled vibe to it – with comfy seating as well as plenty of room for dancing. Fiona and Sean held their speeches on the floor, almost ‘in the round’, which was a lovely way of involving everyone! My final task for the day was to take photos of their cake cutting, before bidding a sad farewell and leaving them to their evening.
Relaxed wedding photography
Your wedding day shouldn’t be stressful: it should be a super chilled day where you can have plenty of FUN, like Fiona and Sean did. That’s why my job doesn’t start and end at taking photos: I’ll be there throughout the planning process for any advice, recommendations or tips I can offer, as well doing everything I can on the day itself to keep things as smooth and stress-free for you as possible – whilst, of course, taking photos you’ll want to treasure forever. (Don’t want to wait? You can grab my wedding planning guides for free to get started).
Gushy Note
But don’t just take my word for it! Here’s what the wonderful Fiona had to say…
“What can I say about Laura! She was one of the best decisions we made leading up to our wedding. The planning and preparation beforehand was second to none and, when it came, the whole day was seamless and she was always on hand whenever we needed her. We’ve had some of the previews through since the big day and photos we’ve seen are AMAZING! From the organised family photos and to the more candid shots, they all look fantastic. We can’t recommend Laura enough and again a massive thank you to her for capturing our day so brilliantly.”
Contact me
So, if you’re planning a chilled wedding day and are looking for the right wedding photographer to capture it, then I think we might be the perfect match – please do get in touch here to tell me all about your plans, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
