The Elephant hotel Wedding Photography, Katie & Tom
In June I was in Pangbourne to photograph the wedding of Katie and Tom at The fabulous Elephant Hotel. I love being an Elephant Hotel Wedding photographer, it’s a great place full of rustic charm, perfect for a wedding.
Katie and Tom got ready in separate locations before heading to The Elephant. The ceremony was held in a wood panelled room in the hotel, which was so pretty and flooded with plenty of natural light. The ceremony was lovely with a mixture of emotions, both laughter and a few tears. I especially loved the vows that Tom and Katie wrote for each other. The ceremony finished with a tying off ritual before exiting the room to a chorus of cheers and applause.
An epic confetti run followed and then the drinks reception on the landscaped lawns. Many drinks and laughs were shared.
Here's what Katie & Tom had to say about their wedding
What was your favourite part of the wedding?
Katie: I loved the whole day but one really special moment for me was at the beginning of the speeches. Back when Tom and I got engaged my brother made a joke that he would play the bagpipes at our wedding (despite not having a single musical bone in his body). We both laughed it off and thought no more about it until my brother got up to introduce the speeches and, lo and behold, pulled a set of bagpipes from beneath the table. He had been practising for months and pulled off a (slightly iffy!) rendition of 'Amazing Grace' for us. It was such a surprise, I couldn't stop laughing at the shock.
Tom: Beyond the obvious reasons, I loved the ceremony. We had a fantastic celebrant who made the whole thing feel so personal, warm, funny, and loving. Even when we mixed up what we were saying or where we were standing she made us laugh about it and kept the whole thing going beautifully. I also loved the ceilidh that we had in the evening. It was such great fun and got everyone up and dancing right off the bat which then carried on throughout the evening. It was really social and got everybody mixing and dancing together.
Please let me know about any personal or DIY touches you added to make the day a little more ‘you’.
We had a couple of very personal moments in our ceremony that made it feel special. Though we were initially a bit reluctant, we ended up writing our own vows and we're so glad that we did. Katie's sister also wrote us a poem that she had put in her card to us. When we opened it the day before the wedding we immediately asked her to read it out as part of the ceremony.
Throughout the rest of the day we also had a few homemade touches that helped us save a few pennies as well as making everything feel more 'us'. For our confetti we used dried petals that we had been saving ever since we got engaged. This meant we could incorporate flowers (and memories) from loads of special occasions including our engagement, new jobs, birthdays, our parents' gardens and many more! As a bit of a pandemic-project Katie also hand embroidered favour bags for all of the guests. Finally, Katie's dad is very handy at woodwork so made us a beautiful wooden base for the cake as well as a last-minute Quoits set for the garden.
Why did you choose your venue?
We had actually booked a different venue nearby but just two weeks before our date that fell through and we found ourselves scrambling to find an alternative. Several of our guests had booked to stay at the Elephant and someone jokingly suggested we ask if they could host. So we did. Amazingly, they could and after a couple of hastily arranged planning sessions, they had everything arranged exactly as we envisaged. The day itself went without a hitch and we couldn't be more grateful to the incredible staff there.
Although it wasn't what we had originally planned, in hindsight it definitely should have been. The whole space flows beautifully from the ‘Herd room’ where we had our ceremony, through the lounge and ‘Elephant room’ where we had our meal and later dancing, out to the sunny garden. We had around 100 guests and the space was the perfect size to feel buzzing without feeling too crowded. It was also brilliant to have so many of our guests able to stay either onsite or very nearby and for those that needed to get home, the nearby village parking and train station were so convenient.
Finally, Pangbourne village is right on the Thames so we were able to sneak away after our meal for some stunning photographs in the streets and the field alongside the river.
How did you find using Lee Dann Photography, were there any particular things about my approach that you liked, and how did you feel about the photos once you received them?
We chose Lee Dann because we really liked his documentary-style. Neither of us wanted to spend ages posing for portraits and we wanted someone who could unobtrusively capture the day exactly as it was, really focusing on our guests and bringing out their individual personalities. We also wanted to see some of the little moments between our loved ones that we maybe missed on the day. Lee was absolutely brilliant at capturing all of this. Looking back at the pictures now, the one thing that has struck us is how happy and relaxed everyone looks.
It's also worth mentioning how lovely we found Lee to work with. He was really friendly and personable, taking time before the event to get to know us and what we wanted, checking in again a week or so beforehand, and then on the day being such a nice guy - getting the shots, guiding us through it, and making suggestions without ever being in-your-face or bossy.
If you were doing it all again what would be the one bit of advice you’d give yourself at the start of the planning process?
Trust your gut and don't be afraid to change course if something doesn't feel right. Some of the decisions we took were incredibly easy, we spoke to suppliers like Lee, and just felt it clicked. Whereas there were a couple of decisions we took that we had an uneasy feeling about early on but ploughed ahead. In the end, our fears were realised and we had a lot of pressure to change things last minute. If we'd listened to that little voice earlier on, we might have saved ourselves a lot of stress.
On a cheerier note, our second piece of advice would be to consider a Celebrant because they can give you so much more control over the details of the ceremony. We originally booked a Registrar but, for reasons related to giving notice, had to change tack when we had a last minute venue change. It turned out to be one of the best decisions we made - our ceremony ended up being so personal and meaningful it was one of the real highlights of the day (see answer above!).
A selection of images from Katie & Tom's Elephant Hotel Wedding
I took a little breather while the guests, Katie and Tom enjoyed their meal before capturing some brilliant speeches. As Katie mentioned, her brother surprised her by learning to play the bagpipes and playing during the speeches. It was brilliant!
Following the speeches Katie, Tom and I went for a walk around Pangbourne and down by the river for a few natural couple photos. The light was gorgeous, with the warm summer sun starting to go down in the sky. Definitely an advantage of waiting to do the portraits later in the day.
The night for me came to an end after photographing the Ceilidh dancing. I love Ceilidh and this was a fantastic end to my coverage of this fabulous wedding.
A Summer Wedding Photography at The Elephant Hotel
I have photographed many weddings in fine venues all over the UK. I can see why Katie and Tom chose to get married at The Elephant Hotel. A beautiful Hotel set in the middle of the bustling town of Pangbourne. If it's a rustic venue you are looking for, this really is the place. The photo opportunities are endless and it is a dream venue for a photographer, with so many fantastic options available.
I really loved working with Katie & Tom, such a lovely couple and a great celebration.
I hope you enjoy the photos and if you are planning a wedding I'd love to hear from you.
Thanks for looking.
Suppliers
Bridal Hair and Makeup: Corina Barrett; https://www.bridalhairandmakeup.co.uk/
Dress: Bridal Reloved, Wallingford
Suits: Cookham Formal Hire
Celebrant: Helen Noble Celebrant of Surrey; https://helen-noble.co.uk/
Videographer: Mark Shipperley Films; www.markshipperleyfilms.co.uk
Flowers: Green and Gorgeous; https://www.greenandgorgeousflowers.co.uk/
Cake: Pretty Cake Studio; https://www.prettycakestudio.com/
Band and DJ: Ceilidh Tree; https://ceilidhtree.co.uk/
