I was so honoured when Claire and Niki asked me to capture their contemporary wedding nestled in the countryside at Long Furlong Barn wedding. Of course my answer was ‘hell yes!!’ because it sounded like they had such a brilliant day lined up and they did not disappoint. I also had such a great time with them on their pre-wedding shoot! As soon as arrived at Long Furlong Barn I was photographing Claire and the girls getting ready. They make up was done beautifully by Sam from SB Make-Up.
Getting ready for their contemporary wedding nestled in the countryside
Long Furlong Barn is a stunning place to get married. The barn itself is a contemporary wedding venue nestled in the countryside and there are gorgeous views of the rolling Sussex countryside all around. It was a lovely morning with lots of chatting and bubbly on the go. Niki arrived to greet guests and I popped out to get a few snaps of him before heading back over to photograph Claire getting into her dress.
Claire looked absolutely stunning and her lovely dress was from Pure Couture Bridal. Her Dad seeing her for the first time was such a special moment and really quite emotional! The emotions definitely continued as Niki got very very teary when Claire walked down the aisle. Tt was so so sweet. Luckily he had a big handkerchief to dab his eyes while Claire was giggling at him lots! I loved the ceremony so much, it was really funny and sweet. I loved that Claire and Niki were beaming the entire time and loved that they had little fist bumps and laughs with each other throughout! We also can’t not mention their beloved doggy Otis (who I met on the pre-wedding shoot). He had his photo up on the table with a little buttonhole attached. So adorable!!
That all important confetti shot
After the ceremony, Claire and Niki were officially announced as husband and wife. Of course, this involved a shower of confetti, which looked amazing. Then it was time for beers and canapes as well as catching up with all their friends. I loved the drinks reception as everyone was so happy and laughing the whole time. The main room at Long Furlong Barn looked so beautiful. Claire and Niki had done quite a bit of DIY with making the name place cards with the dried flowers which looked lovely. The fairy lights everywhere were also such a pretty touch and really finished off the decor.
Hilarious speeches and a delicious dinner
The speeches were truly brilliant. All of the guests were laughing loud, being so enthusiastic and all the big applause. There were also a lot of happy tears as I’m sure you’ll be able to tell from the photos! Circa Events were doing the event management and catering on the day and they served up a truly delicious dinner (and let’s not forget about the mini sausage canapes!!).
Glod glitter tassels…
After dinner, we headed out into the fields to take a few photos and Claire popped on her jacket. Black denim with ‘Bride’ embroidered on the back and gold glittery tassels – she looked so cool! Claire’s bouquet and all of the other gorgeous flowers were by her and Niki’s close friend Abigail at Rose and Bloom Flowers. We also did a few photos with the bridesmaids which was really fun. It’s nice to pop back out even for 5 minutes to grab a few more relaxed style group photos.
Time for a naked wedding cake before moving to the dance floor
With Claire and Niki both working in music, I was really excited for the party. And it’s safe to say this was one of the parts they were most excited for as well! They cut their cake, which was a beautiful naked style wedding cake decorated with sunflowers, before heading onto the dance floor for their first dance. And then the dance floor was packed! Everyone was loving life and going absolutely mad.
Sunset photos to remember their contemporary wedding nestled in the countryside
We ended up getting the most jaw dropping sunset so I asked Claire and Niki if they wanted to quickly nip back out to the field to grab some photos. They said yes and it was so worth it! We still kept on dancing throughout and I tried to only take them away from the party for a few minutes before we ran back in – but it was totally worth it I think to grab a few of those stunning pictures.
Dancing the night away at their contemporary wedding nestled in the countryside
Back inside, the party was in full force! Then Niki started crowd surfing! Then ties and shirts were off! It was so much fun and a big shout out to Hi Life Entertainment for providing the awesome party. I ended the night picking up a few slices of pizza for the drive home – a perfect way to end a wedding for me. Thank you so much Claire and Niki, I had the absolute best time!
To see more of my wedding photography, have a look at my other blogs.
