Linda and Rob got married at St Peter & St Paul’s in Nutfield, then moved up the road to Bletchingley Golf Club for the reception. After a week of rain, the sun came out for them.
The church
St Peter & St Paul’s is an old Surrey village church. Stone, good windows, and enough light that I didn’t need flash.
Church ceremonies give you less room to move than most people think. You pick two or three positions before it starts and you stay in them. The rest is timing.
The piper
They had a piper for Linda’s Scottish side. Bagpipes in a stone church are loud in a way that’s hard to describe if you haven’t stood next to it.
He piped them out at the end, which is a gift for a photographer. Everyone comes out at once, everyone’s grinning, and there’s a clear focal point instead of the usual scatter on the path.
Bletchingley Golf Club
The reception was at Bletchingley Golf Club, which has the one thing most Surrey venues don’t: uninterrupted open space and a long view.
Golf courses are underrated for wedding photos. Nothing in the background, no cars, no wires, and grass that’s been cut to within an inch of its life. In late sun it looks far more expensive than it costs.
Music through the day
Octavia played violin through the champagne reception, and the piper came back to play everyone into dinner.
Live music during drinks does something a playlist doesn’t. People stay put and listen instead of drifting to the bar. Easier to photograph, and a better hour for everyone.
Congratulations to Linda and Rob.
Planning a Bletchingley Golf Club wedding
- Church plus a nearby venue works well. Nutfield to Bletchingley is a short drive, so you’re not losing an hour of your day in cars.
- Use the open ground. If your reception venue has a view, ten minutes out on it near sunset is worth more than an hour of posed groups.
- Live music at the drinks reception is worth the money. It changes how the hour feels and how it photographs.
- Don’t panic about rain in the forecast. It had rained for days before this one and the day itself was sunny. Surrey weather changes fast, so build in a bit of flexibility rather than a fixed photo schedule.
For more venues in the county, including Nutfield Priory in Nutfield itself, see my wedding photography in Surrey page. If you’re planning a Surrey wedding, have a look at my prices and send me your date. I’ll tell you straight away whether I’m free.
