I first met Lily (and her mum) at a wedding fair at Kettering Park Hotel when they were looking a photographer for Lily’s Kelmarsh Hall Wedding. We hit it off pretty much straight away. They both really liked the way I try to capture the atmosphere of a wedding with lots of pictures of people laughing, smiling and just generally enjoying each other’s company and the occasion.

A couple of weeks later we arranged to get together, this time with her fiancée Séan, to have a proper chat about the photography for their Kelmarsh Hall wedding.

Kelmarsh Hall

It was my first booking at the stunning venue located close to the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border. Kelmarsh Hall was built in 1732 for William Hanbury, a famous antiquarian. Designed by James Gibbs, Pevsner, in his 46-volume The Buildings of England guides, described the building as being, “a perfect, extremely reticent design, done in an impeccable taste.”

Venue Walkaround

I met up with Lily & Séan again several weeks ahead of their Kelmarsh Hall wedding day. As well as taking in the tour of the stunning hall itself, we spent almost an hour wandering around the beautiful gardens. What was very apparent at that stage was that there would be no shortage of locations for gorgeous pictures on the day.

The Big Day

The forecast in the run up to Saturday, 20th July 2019 was patchy. We looked virtually guaranteed to get rain at some point, it was just a question of how much.

As I pulled into the car park of The Bull’s Head pub, just down the road from Kelmarsh, in Clipston, there were plenty of breaks in the cloud. Here I met Séan, his groomsmen and most of his immediate family. After dishing out and attaching their buttonholes, the boys made their way to Kelmarsh Hall.

Bridal Preparations

I headed in the opposite direction to Lily’s parents’ house, where the bridal party preparations continued. Lily had a whole crew of ‘best women’ as well as four flower girls, so the place was rather busy! The readying process was well advanced, however. Outside, a few short, sharp showers were making their presence felt.

Once Lily had arrived and was in with the registrars, I made my way into the main ceremony room.

Séan was incredibly relaxed at this stage, laughing and joking with his guests. That said, he had noted that he was being kept waiting slightly!

The Formalities – Kelmarsh Hall Wedding Ceremony

Finally, everything was set, and a wonderful, light-hearted wedding ceremony ensued. The happy couple even managed a fist bump or two!

Lily & Séan only wanted to do a handful of formal group shots, so we did the rest as I followed them around.

I always love to get the newlyweds to walk through a gap between their guests during their confetti walk, and Séan really wanted to make use of the tall steps outside the back of Kelmarsh Hall for this.

Kelmarsh Hall Wedding Breakfast

As is becoming increasingly popular, Lily & Séan decided to do some of their speeches before, during and after their meal. Remember, it’s your wedding day, and you should do whatever makes you happy!

Kelmarsh Hall Wedding Day Portraits – The Gorgeous Gardens

Once the wedding breakfast had finished, we headed out into the gardens for a wander. It was the first chance Lily & Séan had had to relax during the day, and they were both glad to get a few quiet minutes together. It also provided lots of nice pictures, and we could easily have lost another half an hour wandering around.

Unusually, the new husband and wife elected not to cut their beautiful wedding cake themselves.

Kelmarsh Hall Evening Wedding Reception

The couple decided to have their evening entertainment provided by something of a local celebrity. Back in the ‘70s Des Dyer was one part of the singer-songwriter duo who fronted a band called Jigsaw. Jigsaw’s biggest hit was a song called “Sky High”, which made the top 10 in the UK, number 3 in the US and topped the charts in Japan. They provided an awesome cover of Phil Oakey’s “Together in Electric Dreams” for Lily & Séan’s first dance.

Further Information

You will find further information about my wedding photography services on the following pages:

My Wedding Photography Packages

How I Work – Wedding Photography by Karl Drage

A Typical Wedding Day – Documentary Wedding Photography by Karl Drage

Portfolio – Wedding Photography by Karl Drage

Why Can Wedding Photography seem so Expensive?

Questions you should ask a wedding photographer

Get in Contact

If you’d like to enquire about my availability, to discuss other options or if you have any queries, please use one of the methods on the Contact Us page to get in touch. While I am based in Northamptonshire, I am willing to travel out of area, though please be aware this may bring with it an additional cost.

Karl Drage is a professional Northamptonshire-based wedding photographer covering the following counties:

Bedfordshire Wedding Photographer | Buckinghamshire Wedding Photographer | Cambridgeshire Wedding Photographer | Leicestershire Wedding Photographer | Northants Wedding Photographer | Oxfordshire Wedding Photographer | Rutland Wedding Photographer | Warwickshire Wedding Photographer

Providing wedding photography services in the following towns and everywhere in between:

Corby Wedding Photographer | Daventry Wedding Photographer | Huntingdon Wedding Photographer | Kettering Wedding Photographer | Leicester Wedding Photographer | Milton Keynes Wedding Photographer | Northampton Wedding Photographer | Oundle Wedding Photographer | Peterborough Wedding Photographer | Rugby Wedding Photographer | Stamford Wedding Photographer | Wellingborough Wedding Photographer