Pamela and Sven were referred to me by a friend back in 2021, looking for someone to cover their big day at the Riverside Lodge Hotel in Irvine. We had an initial Zoom call (as so many of my first chats with couples were during lockdown!) and then met up a few weeks before their wedding to go over the running order of their day.

Cue 15th July this year. With a slightly risky weather forecast in mind I set off for the wedding venue. Getting there early, my first stop was to have a wander around the hotel exterior and plot out some places to take Pamela and Sven a walk to after their wedding. I don’t like taking my couples away for too long, so was looking for some nice areas relatively close-by to the hotel. Luckily I was spoiled for choice!

Then I went in to get some photos of Pamela and her daughter Katie getting their hair and make-up done. They were both really relaxed and unfazed by everything going on around them.

By this point my second-shooter, Paul, had arrived and was taking some fun photos of Sven and his groomsmen, as well as capturing the ceremony room itself. This was my first wedding at Riverside Lodge and I have to say – lovely venue and the staff could not have been more helpful!

Nerves were definitely starting to build a bit as we headed through the hotel for the ceremony. The ceremony itself was beautiful and Father Chikanya – who had stepped in at the last minute due to a Covid-cancellation – did a great job marrying the new Mr. And Mrs. Stockey!

Post-ceremony the venue staff did a sterling job herding everyone outside for group photos. Remember that risky weather forecast? I needn’t have worried! The sun shone gloriously overhead all afternoon. This meant that I decided to wait and take the couple photos later in the day when the sun would be a bit lower in the sky and the light a bit nicer. I do always have a plan for a wedding day, but those plans need to be flexible depending on the circumstances as they unfold! Changing things around freed up some time in the afternoon for candid photos of the guests having a good mingle!

The speeches and meal followed; memorable highlights of the speeches include the best man whipping out some dangly-eye glasses; Sven very eloquently explaining his love for Pamela and their life together; and Katie surprising Sven by having learned the first part of her speech in (I’m told) flawless German then challenging him to a Jagerbomb...

Post-meal I took Pamela and Sven for a walk with some fizz and gave them time to chat. I don’t like these photos to feel too posed – I'd rather give my couples a little bit of space to enjoy each other’s company while I try to capture nice moments between them.

After this we headed back indoors for the cake-cutting, first dance and everyone hitting the dancefloor. I stayed for a while after the first dance to get a good range of shots of everyone having a good time celebrating Pamela and Sven’s marriage. I feel very lucky to have been introduced to them and asked to shoot their big day – and hope you’ve enjoyed hearing about it from my side of things.

If you are looking for a wedding photographer we can’t recommend Peter enough. He made our day so relaxed and nothing was too much bother. His attention to detail was amazing!
Both he and Paul worked very hard to make sure everything was perfect.
The service they provided was very personal and we also had lots of fun and laughs.
Thank you so much again!

- Sven & Pamela