Preston Wedding Photography

At first glance, Ashley and Richard’s beautiful winter wedding in Preston is a feast for the eyes. But when you hear a little about their story and the fact that they created this amazing day in just three months time you’ll be staggered. I’m used to getting fairly last minute wedding enquiries, so at first Ashley’s email wasn’t that out of the ordinary. But when she told me why the couple had chosen a Tuesday in December to tie the knot, I knew I had to be involved in this wedding. This blog post gets a little more personal than most so bear with it…

Very sadly, the couple had been expecting their first baby, little Wilf, who came too early into the world back in summer. They decided to make his due date into something to remember and set it for their wedding day. That left them with just 3 months to plan everything.  Now most people would opt for ease and speed in this situation. Not only is planning a wedding a hugely daunting task, but the couple were of course dealing with all the heartache that came from losing Wilfred. Plus Ashley threw herself into a new university course. I’m in serious awe of this woman!

But absolutely no corners were cut on the planning of this day. Ashley designed her own beautiful dress with the help of Erica Stacey Bridalwear, created all the stationary, styling and decor for the day. In fact, the day we met I sent her on her merry way charity shop hunting for wedding bits and bobs!

The day arrived and it was a total whirlwind! Ashley and her bridesmaids were getting ready in Preston city centre, just a short walk from the Church, which shares the name of baby Wilfred. After the beautiful ceremony, guests headed off onto the vintage double decker bus whilst I whisked Ashley and Richard off for a little tour of photo-spots around Preston to make the most of the last of the winter light. We then headed out to Haighton Manor, where the wedding party enjoyed their meal surrounded by beautiful festive decor (created by Ashley of course!)

The last stop of the night was to return to Preston city centre where the couple and the wedding guests took over Hartley’s bar. Again, Ashley had transformed the place with her own personal touches and there was a great, relaxed, festive feel to the evening.

I’ve said it once and I’ll say it again – I’m in total awe of these two. To have gone through something so heartbreaking and to channel their energy into creating such a perfect day for themselves and their friends and family to enjoy is astonishing!  I’m so so lucky to have had two straightforward pregnancies, but I’m very close to someone who’s been through the grief of losing babies, in very similar circumstances to Ashley and Richard so their story really touched my heart. It made me even more determined to capture the day for them – the laughs, the nerves, the joy, but of course the emotion.  Wilfred was on everyone’s minds, mine included,  but the day was one of love and celebration, family and friendship and remembering.

Congratulations to Ashley and Richard on creating such a beautiful day – I’m so pleased I had the chance to be a part of it. Here’s to you, your next adventures and your happy ending.

Wedding Team:

Venues: Haighton Manor. Hartley’s Bar Preston

Dress: Designed by the bride. Created by Erica Stacey Bridalwear Manchester

Flowers: Margaret Mason Flowers

Styling/Props/Stationary – all made by the bride

Make-Up: Julie Foster

Here’s a selection of just some of my favourite images from the day. Big thank you to my assistant Jodie for helping me on the day.