Winchester University Wedding Photography - Hannah & Tim
Hannah & Tim tied the knot on a beautiful Spring day at West Downs Campus, part of the University of Winchester, very recently. It's always a special moment for me when I return to this venue - it's the scene of the first wedding I ever photographed, and it remains one of my favourite places in Winchester for a ceremony. Everyone who lives in Winchester will be familiar with the very attractive building as they'll all have driven past it many times; oppsite the hospital on the Romsey Road - the main route out of town to the West. What many people don't realise though is that this lovely brick-and-flint building, now home to the University's art gallery and business school, also contains an absolutely beautiful wood-panelled chapel with vaulted ceilings - a hangover from its previous life as a public school (don't quote me on that, but it's the story I've been told at least).
I thought I would take the opportunity here to show a couple of group photos as they don't tend to appear in my blog very often (of course I do still take them and they are just as important a part of the day as any other to me) - this particular wedding was a bit different to my usual coverage which is generally all-day and to a large extent documentary photography. This time though it was a smaller session; just the family and group photos, a few time-outs with the couple, and the ceremony itself - it's something I can and do offer but it tends to only be for shorter-notice enquiries when I happen not to have a full-day booking already lined up. And as a further twist, Hannah & Tim had arranged their schedule for the day to take all of these - the groups and photos of the two of them together - before the ceremony. It's an increasingly popular approach in the USA and is finding its way over here now as well; I've got a couple of further weddings lined up this summer like that (the classic American approach is to combine it with a private 'first look' where the groom gets to see his soon-to-be-wife in her dress for the first time just before the ceremony). It certainly takes a lot of the time pressure away from the drinks reception after the ceremony.
And then on to the ceremony itself, up in the chapel. An interesting little feature of this venue is that, while it was originally a religious venue, it's now licensed for civil ceremonies. The little give-away here is that in the group photos above you'll notice the iconography in the screens in the background - for the ceremony itself these are covered up to remove any religious connotation. (The team at the University will take care of all of this for you, and I happen to think that the little gold panels they cover them with look superb as well). Hannah walked down the aisle on her father's arm, with the beautiful Spring sunlight flooding in through the tall windows to the chapel, accompanied by her sister playing the violin. We had charming readings and a beautiful ceremony, vows were made and rings exchanged, and Hannah & Tim were suddenly Winchester's newest husband and wife.
Before the Winchester University part of their wedding day concluded, we gathered everyone together for a large group shot on the terrace outside the link gallery. The sun was seriously blazing by now, setting the scene perfectly for an afternoon and evening of celebrations still to come...
Many congratulations to you both, Hannah & Tim, and wishing you many happy years together!
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If you are planning your wedding at Winchester University and would like to know more about my wedding photography services, packages and prices, please don't hesitate to contact me to discuss your plans - I'm only too happy to help however I can.
Hope you enjoyed the photos of this wonderful occasion and, as ever, thanks for reading,
Stephen