Jen and Dharmesh were married at Cliveden House in Berkshire in the summer of 2013. Cliveden sits on a terrace above the Thames at Taplow, forty minutes west of London, in parkland the National Trust looks after. Guests come up a long avenue and the house appears all at once, which is a good way to start a wedding day.
They had a civil ceremony in the house, came out onto the front steps into a lot of confetti, and then we walked the gardens until the light went. A rain shower came through in the middle of the afternoon and turned into the best half hour of the day.
The morning and the ceremony
Cliveden has bedrooms and suites in the house itself, so the morning happens upstairs from the ceremony rather than an hour up the M4. Jen’s shoes got their portrait in the morning, on a plain white background.
The ceremony was in one of the panelled rooms: red walls, chandeliers, gilt chairs and family close in around them. Useful to know if you are booking: the rooms here are lit from tall windows down one side, bright by the glass and dim at the back. If you have any say in where the ceremony is set up, closer to the windows is better, and a later start gives you warmer light through them.
Confetti on the front steps
Guests went out ahead of them and lined the steps, saris and morning suits side by side, bridesmaids in pale yellow. Jen and Dharmesh came out through the front door into a shower of rose petals.
The front steps have room for a crowd on both sides, so this works well with big numbers. Hand out the petals before the ceremony ends, so nobody is still looking for them when the doors open.
Portraits in the gardens
Then we walked. The Parterre first, the clipped beds below the terrace, then out along the lawn with the long view down towards the Thames, then the arched pavilion in the grounds. The grey sky helped. Flat cloud is kind to skin, and it keeps the greens of the garden looking the way they should.
Then the shower came through. Rain is not a disaster here, because there is a good deal of covered ground: the porte cochère, the pavilion, the arches. Two of their best photographs came out of that half hour. The practical upside of Cliveden is that you never leave: no cars, no convoy to somewhere else, and an hour outside gives you four or five different-looking places within a few minutes’ walk. The terrace faces roughly south-west, so if you can, keep ten minutes free for it in the last hour before sunset.
Back inside the house
The staircase inside the house is the picture people come to Cliveden for, and it takes ten minutes. We did that, then the front of the house, a tall arched window and the stone steps at the side, all within a short walk of each other.
Worth settling before the day: the house is Grade I listed and the grounds belong to the National Trust, so there are places where photography is limited and places where it is not. It is easy to work with, but ask the venue rather than finding out on the day.
Jen and Dharmesh
Congratulations to you both, and thank you for having me. A house like Cliveden can swallow a wedding if you let it. Yours never felt small in it: a full family on the steps, a lot of petals, and a rain shower that ended up giving you two of your favourite photographs.
Cliveden House questions
How far is Cliveden House from London and Heathrow?
About twenty minutes from Heathrow by road and under forty-five minutes from west London. Taplow and Burnham stations are both on the Elizabeth line, a short taxi ride from the house.
Where are the best wedding photographs taken at Cliveden?
The terrace and the Parterre, with the view down to the Thames. After that the front steps, the staircase inside the house, the pavilion and the Long Garden. They are all a few minutes apart, so you do not lose an hour of the day getting to them.
What time of day gives the best light at Cliveden?
The last hour before sunset on the terrace. It faces roughly south-west, so the light improves all afternoon and a later ceremony puts your portraits closer to the best of it.
When do I get my Cliveden wedding photographs?
Within a week of the wedding.
Getting married at Cliveden House?
I’m a London wedding photographer with more than 20 years and 500 weddings behind me, and Cliveden is about forty minutes from town. London prices start from £1,350 for five hours. Cliveden is usually a full day, with the morning, ceremony and gardens all in one place, so most couples here go for eight hours at £1,800. Your gallery comes back within a week. Send me your date and I will tell you straight away whether I am free. Venue details are on the Cliveden House website.
Related: luxury wedding photography, Asian wedding photography in London and another Berkshire wedding at Wasing Park.
More luxury venue weddings
Country houses, castles and gardens within reach of London. The full list is on my wedding venues page.
Pennyhill ParkA country house hotel in Surrey, photographed quietly through the day.
Goodwood HouseThe Yellow Drawing Room, the Ballroom and 12,000 acres of parkland behind the house.
Leeds CastleThe castle reflected in the moat, with portraits timed either side of golden hour.
Maryam & HaddiThe Nash Conservatory, the Temperate House and how a 4pm start shapes the light.
