An incredible festival wedding in the grounds of beautiful Timsbury Manor near Romsey in Hampshire. Having earlier in the week had the legal ceremony which officially joined Laura & Steve as husband and wife, it was now time to let the world know through the power of music, partying, fire pits and and yurts!
Live music is an absolutely huge thing for both Laura and Steve, and their friends and family. Music festivals run through their story as a couple, and so it was the most obvious and natural thing in the world to throw their own weekender and invite everyone to join them for their outdoor wedding under the trees and the whole festival experience of multiple bands, camping and quite possibly the occasional sore head in the morning!
Bridal prep back at Laura’s family home in Havant, while Steve and assorted early arrivals were already on day two of the festival having set up and camped overnight at Timsbury Manor. Big thanks to Paul Murphy for acting as second photographer through the course of the day: he was on hand at the estate to capture the early goings-on while I spent the morning with bride and bridesmaids. With a wedding like this there was too much going on to risk missing any of it. Base camp had the sort of air that only a campsite can create really, with a slow shuffling towards wakefulness through the course of the morning as guests rose and got ready at their own pace. Laura’s prep meanwhile was much as bridal prep often tends to be. The fizz was in full flow, hair and makeup was taking place in various corners (very cute little dried festival flowers being woven into hair – nice touch) and Dad was staying safely away from the chaos, occupying himself with the decorating of the wedding car, a proper old-school VW Camper.
Now I’ve done a little camping in my time myself, and if there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that it’s rather less fun when it lashes down with rain the whole time. So it was with some trepidation that we looked out of the windows that morning to heavy grey rainclouds sweeping across the county. (Timsbury Manor was a good 40 minutes from our starting point, so there was a lot of phone conversation between the two ends about how heavy it all was, which way it was heading and all the rest). It did look for a while that the weather really was going to go the full Glastonbury and we’d end up with iconic bride-and-groom-in-the-mud photos, but happily on this occasion it decided to play a blinder. Not only did the rain disappear just as we were heading towards the estate for the ceremony, it then faded beautifully away to be replaced with blue skies and blazing sunshine for the rest of the day. Proper festival weather, I guess – a little bit of everything, just for added excitement!
All the legalities had been taken care of earlier in the week on Day 1 of this wedding extravaganza, so now Laura & Steve had total freedom to put on their very own, personal ceremony in front of friends and family in the great outdoors. There’s a beautiful spot near the centre of the estate with a pergola, perched on top of a little hillock overlooking a lake, and it was here that they made their declarations and exchanged rings in front of their assembled guests. It all had a really lovely, down-to-earth and organic feel, whilst still being structured and led by the celebrant. And then they were married. For the second time in a week in fact, and that counts as very married in my book. Time to celebrate!
So what was in store for the rest of the day? Well, music certainly – a lot of music. Three bands that day I seem to recall, each playing a couple of sets; some folkey, some swingy, and building up to some proper rock in the evening. Seriously good music. Beer tent, cocktail bar (named after the bride and groom’s darling pet guinea pigs), barbecue, fire pits… all taking place in the beautiful grounds of the estate, on the sloping lawns beneath the huge marquee. Photos here, photos there… group pics with the festival taking place in the background, couple photos in some gorgeous quiet little spots down by the lakes… chilling out in the colourful Yurt village (shout out to Baylily Bell Tents – can’t be the easiest job in the world putting all those fellas up!). As ever it’s ultimately the people who make the wedding, and it turns out that Laura, Steve and co very much know what they like when it comes to a party!
Daytime rolled on into the evening, the fires were lit, the marquee started to glow in the dusk, and inside it was absolutely banging as the final band returned to the stage for their second set. The dancefloor was absolutely heaving, the tunes were flowing… and in the morning they could all stumble out of their tents and kick it all off again before having to pack up and head home. Now that’s how to marry in style! Congratulations Laura & Steve. Awesome, awesome wedding!!!
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Making it possible…
Venue: Timsbury Manor, Romsey
Wedding Dress: Bleu Bridal
Makeup: Taz Bayley Makeup
Hair: Jazz Rawlins
Florist: Catkin & Pussywillow
Suits: Moss Bros
Celebrant: Lisa Lane
Caterer: Hog Squad
Bands: MK3, Kojak’s Revenge
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I hope you’ve enjoyed this little selection of images from the day. That’s just part of the finished set, and friends and family can view the full series, and the storytelling slideshow, in Laura & Steve’s private online gallery (although you’ll need to ask them for the password first).
If you are currently planning your Timsbury Manor Romsey wedding and would like to know more about my wedding photography services, packages and prices, please do get in touch to check availability and ask me any questions you might have. I’m only too happy to help however I can.
Thanks as ever for reading, and come back again soon for many more photos from many more beautiful weddings!
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