Moddershall Oaks Wedding Photographer in Staffordshire
I’ve worked as a Moddershall Oaks wedding photographer in Staffordshire a few times over the years, it’s a gorgeous lakeside venue set in 72 acres of grounds and surrounded by woodland. Every season at Moddershall Oaks is different, you’d be forgiven for thinking a lakeside wedding is only really possible in the warmer months… think again!
Atmospheric weather and a winter chill in the air can make for some really dramatic, award-winning Moddershall Oaks wedding photography!
Amie and Steve’s Moddershall Oaks wedding
Winter weddings are always extra cosy and special, but add Christmas into the mix (with a big roast dinner, baubles, and twinkly fairy lights) and I’m like a big kid! So, when Amie and Steve asked me to photograph their winter wedding at Moddershall Oaks in Staffordshire, I started dreaming about all the festive fun (and also the Christmas dinner!).
This is a bit of a celebration article, as it’ll soon be Amie and Steve’s first wedding anniversary, and I thought it was about time I shared some more images from their day, as well as some details of their awesome suppliers. Amie is well known for being the ultra-festive fairy, so what better time of year to get married than the week before Christmas?!
Unfortunately, their original wedding date had to be postponed due to the pandemic, but they kept themselves occupied for the year and brought baby Tobias into the world (got to keep yourselves busy, right?). Amie and Steve made themselves a family in more ways than one, with Steve also legally adopting their older son Tristan three months before they got married.
Getting ready
I started the day getting ready with Amie, who was wandering around organising everyone and everything, whilst also feeding baby Tobias, and just being the incredible force of nature that she is! Hair Elegance bridal and Beauty and the Bride joined Amie and her bridal party in Blush Lounge, Moddershall Oaks’ salon-style space for getting ready – glam squad, assemble!
Each image captures the emotions of the moment, it fills up our hearts and eyes just looking at them.
Amie & Steve – Moddershall Oaks Wedding
Amie got into her beautiful, fitted dress from Ava May Bridal in Oulton and her shoes from Irregular Choice, and headed out to meet her emotional Dad who was waiting patiently outside. The flowers she’d chosen from Lilly Bee Flowers on Etsy had a wintery theme, with muted greens, pops of blue, and even a few pine cones amongst big white blooms.
Sadly, two days before the wedding, their older son Tristan and Amie’s sister had to self-isolate, so they were unable to join them on their special day. Amie was heartbroken, but they quickly planned to have another smaller ceremony in the new year, which actually worked out as being much more manageable for Tristan. For their wedding at Moddershall Oaks, Amie’s Dad would walk her down the aisle, and Tristan would do the honours in the new year at wedding number two!
Winter wedding at Moddershall Oaks
Steve was waiting outside in his suit from Black Tie Coventry with all their guests in the December fog, wrapped in blankets and under umbrellas. Call me crazy (and Amie definitely did!) but there was something really magical about having a winter wedding outdoors and then all huddling together inside to get warm. Restrictions meant they had to reduce the number of guests they invited, but I was determined to make sure they still had an amazing and memorable day.
Rich made 30 guests feel like 300, and everyone loved him! Our images are just breath-taking! We still keep looking back through them and reliving our day, over and over again!
Amie & Steve
Having the ceremony outside in the fog made the day totally unique, and they said their vows in front of their guests (who may or may not have thought they’d lost the plot a little bit, but they all had huge shivery smiles on their faces!
Their guests were suffering a bit in the cold weather, so we got everyone back indoors as soon as possible after the ceremony. After some warming drinks, plenty of hugs, and quite a few happy tears everyone was suitably defrosted!
I quickly organised a few quick furniture moves to set up a really lovely area for some group portraits in the warm, in front of the brick fireplace. As a Moddershall Oaks wedding photographer, it’s always important to be flexible and think on your feet – especially for group portraits in December!
Amie and Steve
Before losing the last of the light, I snuck off with the newlyweds for some quick photos together as a couple outside (brrrr!). Neither of them had been looking forward to the portraits section of the day (like most people, they aren’t big fans of having their photo taken and were convinced they weren’t photogenic!), but they ended up absolutely loving it!
The woodland walk was amazing in the descending fog, and I used some off-camera flash to create some really atmospheric portraits, including some by the lake as they snuggled on the little jetty over the water, with fairy lights in the grounds around them. I’ve captured lakeside portraits at a Moddershall Oaks wedding before (check out Loz and Steph’s summer wedding for a totally different vibe), but this scene was something I could only have dreamed of – A little bit of winter magic!
Moddershall Oaks wedding reception
The tables had been laid with Personalised cracker seating plans from Enjoy Chocolate, as well as reindeer table names, and bauble wedding favours from Gannit’s Garage – so the scene was set for everyone to tuck into a big turkey dinner with all the trimmings!
There were some really emotional speeches over their wedding breakfast, especially as some very significant loved ones were unable to join them.
Rich is just incredible at what he does! He somehow manages to be everywhere he needs to, at just the right time to capture the most incredible images.
Amie & Steve – Moddershall Oaks wedding
After food, their guests surrounded them with sparklers outside, and (of course) we had to get a picture with the enormous Christmas tree for Mrs Christmas (well… Hopkins now actually!).
There were a few tactical naps taken before everyone recharged ahead of the evening party! Shhhh, don’t wake sleeping beauty!
They’d opted for individual cupcakes with festive decorations from Simply Scrumptious Cupcakes, plus a more traditional wedding cake on top that they could cut together. I love this photo of Amie taking control of the situation (as always!!).
Then it was time for their first dance, joined by some of the little ones and then all their lovely guests piling onto the dancefloor in celebration.
Hot tub and party time!
As the party got going, Amie and Steve snuck off for a few moments of peace together in the hot tub – I followed and made sure to capture some beautiful images before leaving them to have a little splash about and relax. They returned to the dancefloor with wet hair and ALL the enthusiasm, then partied the night away in fabulous style!
After all the antics around the grounds and during their crazy party, Amie had her wedding dress professionally cleaned by Wed Clean – they worked wonders apparently, so never worry about your dress getting dirty, just enjoy the day!
Congratulations – Happy anniversary – and thank you!
It was such a privilege to be Amie and Steve’s Moddershall Oaks wedding photographer. They both work so hard, and their lovely little family welcomed me like one of their own. Happy anniversary here’s to many more! And maybe a few more December dips in outdoor hot tubs??
Are you looking for a photographer for your Moddershall Oaks wedding?
If you are looking for Moddershall Oaks wedding photographers, I would love to chat about your plans. Just get in touch and my amazing PA will check my availability and handle all the admin for us!
I photograph weddings across the whole of the UK, as well as further afield in Europe and the rest of the world. For more inspiration, check out some of the most recent wedding adventures on my blog! If Christmas is your thing, have a look at a recent winter wedding at Brympton House, or perhaps this Christmas wedding at The Shard – super twinkly! There are also some warmer ones, perhaps a summer wedding at Clevedon Hall will warm you up a bit after all this talk of December fog?!
