At The Mill Wedding Photographer | Charlotte & George

Charlotte and George’s magical wedding in Charlotte’s home village of Stillington, near York, was quite simply breathtaking.

Charlotte’s family welcomed me into their home early on in the day as the girls got ready and had their hair done. There was excitement in the air along with the smell of homecooked treats from the kitchen. When Charlotte’s Dad first saw his daughter in her dress, the impact of what today meant to both of them came to the fore and there were many happy tears.

There was a laughter and excitement in the local church of St Nicholas too as George and the guests waited in anticipation for Charlotte to arrive. Her entrance took everyone’s breath away. The ceremony was lovely and was followed by a short blessing at a different church a couple of miles down the road, St Mary in Marton in the Forrest, where we were treated to a local group playing string and woodwind instruments. The weather took a little turn for the worst as we took some family group photos, but it was no bother and wasn’t long until the sun came out again by the time we were at our next destination – At The Mill.

At The Mill is a brand new wedding venue near York. This was their first ever wedding and boy did they do it well! In a dream collaboration with Will’s Marquees, Abbi Ollive’s dedicated team created a stunning wedding wonderland complete with a little island in a pond tickled by weeping willows, a gorgeous gypsy caravan, a shiny red VW camper, an inviting fire pit and numerous other cosy corners. It was beautiful and the guests loved it. A jubilant confetti tunnel welcomed the happy couple followed swiftly by champagne and canapés. The sun made a welcome return and the guests got to enjoy the lovely grounds before we headed into the marquee for the wedding breakfast.

Unlike any other wedding I’ve been to, one surprised guest at each table was nominated to don a chefs hat and apron, and cut and serve the meat for their table. This brought much laughter to each group! The food, courtesy of the amazing Friends for Dinner, was incredible. Following desert I was informed that a certain multi-award winning celebrity was also dinning with us. I didn’t believe it at first but it turned out to be true Ed Sheeran was one of the evening guests! As you can imagine this brought another level of excitement to the evening but without overshadowing the stars of today – Charlotte & George.

The speeches were great with quite a few references to George becoming Yorkshire which were particularly hilarious. Before the ceilidh began, George, Charlotte and I caught some lovely evening light to get a few shots of them alone together enjoying each other’s company. We were happily spoilt for locations to choose from. Before we knew it we were back in the marquee and the dancefloor was a happy riot of smiley dancing people! An excellent ceilidh which saw young and old dancing together and having a fantastic time. As the light went outside, The Mill became even more magical as a fire and numerous little lanterns were lit. It was so pretty!

The ceilidh later became a disco and the disco became the end of an amazing, unforgettable Yorkshire wedding. Thank you so much Charlotte and George for asking me to be your Yorkshire Wedding Photographer! Like George, I’m technically not very Yorkshire at all, but I like the idea a lot.

Here are a few of my favourite images from the day…