Neil & Emma’s beautiful Tutbury Castle Wedding Photography

Neil & Emma’s Beautiful Day by Tutbury Castle Wedding Photographer Gareth Newstead

I had been looking forward to this wedding – I always love the opportunity to go back as to one of my local venues as a Tutbury castle wedding photograpaher – but with both the groom AND the best man as pretty awesome wedding photographers themselves there was an added element of definitely wanting to make sure I brought my A game to the day! Luckily, both Neil & Emma, and all their family and friends made me feel so welcome, and were so chilled out throughout the whole it was an absolute pleasure to capture their day.

The day started at bridal prep, with Emma getting showered with gifts & surprises from Neil, he must be one of the most romantic and thoughtful grooms I know. I mean the guy arranged a flash mob to sing while he proposed to her (I’ll come back to that later) so there were lots of tears from Emma in the morning! She definitely got her own back though when everybody saw her looking absolutely beautiful in her dress for the first time – it was time for the bridal party to be wiping away the tears!

Heading to the church in very swanky cars, Emma and her dad were full of smiles and laughter outside the church. Inside, Neil was eagerly awaiting the arrival of his bride, and his face was so full of love when he saw her arrive. The ceremony was romantic and felt very personal with guests doing the readings. Then while the register was signed and the candles were lit, Neil & Emma had done it again and the Flash mob were back surprising everyone by standing up in their random seats and starting to sing! It was now time for the bride and groom to walk down the aisle as husband and wife and outside the church after a quite incredible confetti shot with canons, we took the opportunity to take some couple shots whilst their guests headed over in the sunshine to Tutbury Castle, for the reception. Heading over there themselves, in a Bentley convertible, was a pretty awesome way to travel in the Spring sunshine, and Neil & Emma’s smiles said it all!

Tutbury Castle is such a fantastic backdrop for a wedding reception and we had plenty of fun throughout the day with short couple shoots around the grounds – luckily this couple were not afraid of heights, or of climbing up and down castle ruins, or of smoke bombs! I’m so glad too, because the resulting photos look incredible, massive thanks to best man Darren for running round like a crazy man with the smoke bomb!

The speeches were most definitely an emotional affair – Emma’s dad started off by tying everyone up with wool (yes you did read that right!) and the message behind that was really touching, and Neil’s speech, particularly his beautiful tribute to his mum, made everyone feel incredibly emotional. The best man’s speech was awesome too, original with plenty of games and audience participation – an amazing effort all round!

The dancefloor was most definitely bouncing – from Emma & Neil’s first dance, to plenty of guests dancing with masks of the happy couple’s faces, to Neil’s Full Monty with friends, it was such a fun place to be, and of course, plenty of photo opportunities for me to capture!

Neil & Emma, I was honoured that you asked me to capture your wedding day and it was an absolute joy to be a part of your special day. You are so strong for one another, and you are a perfect couple, I wish you a lifetime of happiness together.

If you’re interested in booking me as your Tutbury Castle Wedding Photographer then please don’t hesitate to get in touch here.