Woodland Wedding at The Dreys // George & Laura
In September 2019 I had the absolute privilege of photographing George Blagden & Laura Pitt-Pulford’s woodland wedding at The Dreys. The weather for an outdoor wedding can be hit and miss, and, as we started the day, it was most definitely miss. It was drizzling gently whilst Laura, her parents, and friends got ready in the upstairs rooms of Amano in West Malling. By the time I arrived at The Dreys, it was bucketing down. I swapped my boots for old trainers, encased my feet in dog pooh bags (not as mad as it sounds – they work wonders for keeping your feet dry), and sat in my car for a few minutes waiting for a break in the rain. It didn’t come. I headed out into the deluge and made my way through the woodland to the ceremony area. Twinkling under the fairy lights and the raindrops, the guests were gathering, donning rain ponchos and opening umbrellas.
The Dreys – Woodland Wedding Venue in Kent
Laura arrived on the arm of her proud dad, so excited when she saw George, and amazingly, as the outdoor ceremony started, the rain began to slow. By the time adorable Louis le Yorkie raced up the aisle bearing the rings, the rain had completely stopped. Everyone sang along to Que Sera Sera and cheered the new Mr & Mrs Blagden as they dashed through the woodland under a flurry of petals. The afternoon passed with canapés and drinks before dinner in the marquee, fantastic speeches and a surprise ukulele performance from Laura who had written a song just for George. When you have a bride whose career is in musical theatre, you know it’s going to be good, and it really was amazing. The cake (a fabulous creation by Laura’s mum, Karen) was cut and the evening party got started.
Early on, when George & Laura first booked me, they’d asked me for band recommendations. I said I thought Superspokes would be the perfect fit for the vibe and atmosphere of their wedding. They went to see the band play live, absolutely adored them, and booked them. I love Superspokes, they are so bloody talented and have untold amounts of energy and really get a dancefloor jumping.. There was a crepe truck for fortification in the evening, Twister for the brave, and of course, the dance floor, where you’d be forgiven for seeing double as there was a a life sized cardboard cutout of George as Louis XIV in Versailles as well as the real George.
George & Laura and their woodland wedding at The Dreys; proof, if it was needed, that rain needn’t dampen an outdoor wedding.
Laura Pitt-Pulford & George Blagden – Woodland Wedding at The Dreys
We are speechless.We are cuddled up in our hotel room – we ordered room service, and then put the slideshow on with glasses of wine. We completely re-lived our wedding day just now, and we both were crying our eyes out. We have never looked so happy as we do in these pictures!! We laughed out loud at some of the moments you captured. And you have such a gift for capturing exactly who people are – there are some photos that so accurately represent who these people are to us, and it is so special to see them enjoying our day with us. We honestly don’t know where to begin in telling you how blown away we were by them. We never in a million years imagined they would be this good (even though we hired THE BEST). We cried and laughed our way through each and every one of them. What you do is incredible!!!!!!! We’ve never seen wedding photos that truly capture a day, or people in the way that you have. Each one is like a little piece of art. We’re not sure we’ll ever be able to thank you enough to be honest. We never realised till we got married how important these photographs would be. It really was the happiest day of our lives and yet a day that goes by so quickly and moments can, over time become blurred, but even when we’re 90 years old we will look at these photos and still be able to recall the effortless happiness we felt on that day. You’ve captured it in every single photo. We’d give you all the awards if it was up to us.”
If you’re getting married at The Dreys and you like what you see, get in touch! You can see more from Laura & George’s wedding in My Best of 2019 round up
Laura’s dress www.pronovias.com // George’s suit www.jennisandwarmann.uk
See more outdoor weddings here
I adore the look and feel (ethereal, magical, radiant of the Bride and Groom, yet real and Apple Cider and Cinnamon dreamy) of the Blagdens’ wedding! I wish you were in the USA, my daughter had to postpone her wedding until next November because of Covid-19. They already have a photographer but I would hire you in an instant if I were there! Thank you soo much for sharing their amazingly beautiful nuptials!
Thanks so much for your lovely comment, Lolita! So sorry to hear your daughter has had to postpone her wedding. I hope she has an amazing day when it finally comes around!