Firle Church and Firle Place
Kate & Christian
Originally built in Tudor times, and transformed in the eighteenth century, Firle Place in Lewes is set against the breathtaking backdrop of the South Downs. It made the perfect setting for Kate, who’s British, and American Christian’s English country wedding – giving one Trans-Atlantic romance the perfect happy ever after!
Kate looked stunning, relaxed and radiant in an unfussy full-length white sleeveless gown, while her four bridesmaids wore similar dresses in midnight blue and two of the younger members of the bridal party were adorable in white dresses with blue sashes.
The surrounding countryside made for a dramatic, romantic background to some of the images of the happy couple under a big sky. Kate grew up locally so one thing she really wanted to do was go up to the Firle Beacon and have photos up there. After the ceremony at Firle Church we headed up to the Beacon straight away and caught some beautiful moments.
There’s a Georgian Riding School in the grounds of Firle House, but Kate posed with a couple of her own horses. Christian, in his top hat, joined them too!
There were also some good backdrops provided by the many surrounding trees, while the beautiful 13th Century St Peter’s Church where the ceremony took place, and the local village, were also full of interest.
Some guests traveled to the reception in an old Routemaster bus, while the new Mr and Mrs arrived in style in an open carriage.
As ever, I wanted to capture every second of the day, from the bridesmaids getting ready and chatting over cups of tea in the morning, through to the speeches and dancing in the evening.
Kate and Christian’s reception room at Firle Place really did look incredible, with a glitterball, large chessboard floor and huge white drapes hung hammock-style from the impressive raftered ceiling.
As ever, the devil was in the detail, and so I made sure I got photos of things like the seating plan and the old fashioned conductor’s ticket machine used on the guests’ bus, not forgetting the South Downs route signs to give a sense of place.