Bowdon Rooms Wedding Photographer // Charlotte & Tom – Manchester Wedding Photographer

Wedding Photographer at The Bowdon Rooms

My second photography gig this year was at The Bowdon Rooms in Altrincham. This is a really unique Cheshire wedding venue which dates back a hundred years to Edwardian times. It’s main feature is it’s stunning ballroom with incredible chandeliers. It is a perfect venue for the kind of couple who want something a bit different for their wedding day and it suited Charlotte and Tom down to the ground. It had been around eighteen months since I was last a Bowdon Rooms wedding photographer so it was good to be back there again.

My day started at Charlotte and Tom’s house in Sale which is just around the corner from where I live so it was great to shoot a wedding so close to home. Despite being February it was a gorgeous day, not too cold and dry as a bone. At Charlotte’s I began by photographing some of the details such as the wedding dress and shoes. Charlotte was wearing a dress from Manchester Wedding dress shop The Case of the Curious Bride and shoes by Vivienne Westwood which were really cool and not like any wedding shoes I’d seen before. I love it when bride’s do things differently! The flowers were stunning too with really deep colours. The first picture below is a close up shot of the flowers which is a shot I wouldn’t normally put in a blog post but the colours are so amazing I had to put it in. Charlotte was getting ready with her four bridesmaids, her mum and dad and her cat Kanye who was just as grumpy as his namesake!

Cheshire Wedding Venue

I headed over to The Bowdon Rooms to photograph Tom and his groomsmen but I was tipped off by a guest that they were all in the pub around the corner so legged it over and got some cool shots of the short walk to the venue. The groom and his ushers were all in smart matching suits and Tom’s younger brother was carefully looking after the rings. Things were quite relaxed until the bride didn’t arrive on time and then people started to get a little stressed! Charlotte eventually arrived in her vintage car with her dad and we were on with the ceremony of matrimony! As soon as the ceremony was over we headed outside and the bride and groom were congratulated by their guests and I hung around in the shadows shooting natural documentary wedding photography. A Bowdon Rooms wedding photographer is challenged by the lack of grounds, there is only a small strip of grass at the front but I like a challenge! We also used the road which looked great using a long lens. I always shoot with a fast shutter speed when using a long lens to ensure images are pin sharp. I also used a derelict building I found nearby and we got some stunning images using my Sigma 35mm art series lens utilising it’s wide aperture of f1.4.

Natural Documentary Photographer

During the speeches and wedding breakfast I continued to photograph things naturally with plenty of reactions captured candidly. I also took the couple off for some extra portraits just for five minutes in an upstairs room which had some fairy lights hanging from the ceiling. I also had some hand held fairy lights which I held in front of the lens and remotely fired a flash behind the couple. This was held by a bridesmaid and directed at the couple giving a strong rim-light.

The evening finished with plenty of dancing on the sprung dance floor which I really enjoyed as a Bowdon Rooms wedding photographer because it meant I could bounce along to the music as I snapped away. The dance floor was set off wonderfully by the light up letters which were provided by my friend Ollie from The Word is Love. They really gave the room an extra special touch. Have a look below to see for yourself.

Congratulations Charlotte and Tom, thanks for choosing me to be your Bowdon Rooms wedding photographer. Choose to watch the slideshow or scroll through the images below x

Close up of wedding flowers. A blackboard shows a countdown to the wedding day. The wedding dress and veil hanging up. A cat called Kanye. The bride hugs her mother. Charlotte pins a buttonhole onto her dad. The father of the bride speech. bowdon-rooms-wedding-052 One of the bridesmaids has her make up done. A cool family photo. The bride and her friend laugh at a joke. The bride has her make up done. Charlotte folds her arms and laughs. The girls share a joke and chat for a while. Everyone laughs together. The bride goes upstairs to try on her dress. Charlotte's friend fastens up the wedding dress. Charlotte looks nervous as she gets ready. The veil is put over Charlotte's head. Charlotte smiles, she is ready for the wedding. A freind checks everything is correct. The bride laughs nervously. The father of the bride waits at the bottom of the stairs. She walks down towards him. He gives his daughter a big hug. The girls laugh together as they are ready to go. The groomsmen are ready outside the local pub. The groom smiles nervously. The lads walk to the bowdon rooms for the wedding. The fine Cheshire air fills their lungs. Bowdon rooms wedding photographer. Tom's grandmother chats with his grandfather. A necklace is tied. The boys tie their shoelaces. The ballroom at the Bowdon Rooms wedding venue. The page boy holds the wedding rings. The vintage wedding car. The bride and her dad in the car. The bridemaids wait for the bride. Tom looks to see his bride enter the room. The bride walks up the aisle. She gets to the front. Her dad reveals her from under her veil. bowdon-rooms-wedding-198 The view of the matrimonial ceremony from the back of the room. Tom puts the ring on Charlotte's finger. They share their first kiss. The father of the bride smiles at the happy couple. The bridesmaids enjoy the ceremony. The couple walk back down the aisle. Tom's brother looks pleased with himself. The bridesmaids look happy. Guests pose for a photograph. The bride is having fun. The bride shows her ring to some guests. One of the guests laughs her head off. Tom's mum gives Charlotte a hug. A photograph of the bridal party. The young usher. A smiling groomsman. A bridesmaid laughs at an usher. The couple pose for a portrait. They walk holding hands. They walk right in the middle of the road. They share a kiss in the middle of the road. The couple stand holding hands. Light up letters from the word is love. The bride's name tag. The wedding breakfast room looks incredible. More guests laughing. A man with a big beard is smiling. A young boy looks very bored. A man undoes his tie. Keith starts his speech about the couple. Charlotte enjoys the speech. A couple laugh to each other about the story being told. Tom begins his speech. Charlotte and her dad look at each other. Tom raises a toast at the end of his speech. The best man begins his speech. He tells some jokes about the groom. The mother of the bride like her wedding photography. A guest cries. Tom winces at the joke being told. A shot of the room through an internal window. The bowdon rooms dance floor is set on a bed of springs. The couple have their first dance. The dance floor is filled with people enjoying the wedding at the bowdon rooms. A guest dances. A couple are feeling romantic. They danced the whole night through. A bridesmaid strikes a pose on the dance floor. A woman laughs at her husband. Some more pictures of people dancing. A girl dances next to a big light up letter. A man closes his eyes and hugs himself. The bowdon rooms wedding photographer has finished his day's work.