A Worcestershire Wedding Photographers trip to Woodhill Hall

Ciara & Mike’s wedding was a big adventure for me, as a Worcestershire wedding photographer. Their wedding took place at Woodhill Hall near Otterburn in Northumberland. This was actually more northerly than Gretna Green in Scotland and it represented quite the journey, but my god it was worth it! Woodhill Hall was set in or very near the Northumberland National Park and the scenery was out of this world. Woodhill Hall is a venue of beauty but it is also brimming with character. I was able to grab photographs with beautiful backgrounds where ever I pointer the camera….which is nice! This coupled with the fact everyone was so relaxed and having a good time, reportage wedding photography came extremely easily.
I just want to thank Ciara and Mike for bringing me to Northumberland. I enjoyed every minute…. I wish you all the best in your future together and may our paths cross again at sometime in the future.

Their Love Story

1) Please tell me how you first met? The what, when, where’s and how’s?
Mike – We knew each other at work – we met when we both worked in a school in Sunderland – but Ciara left for a new job and that seemed to be that. But on the last day of term we were out having a drink to celebrate the end of term and by chance I met Ciara who was at the same pub. I knew I couldn’t let the second chance go, we chatted, arranged a date the following week and it went from there! First and last time I’ve ever asked anybody out!
Ciara – I wasn’t sure if it was a ‘date’ date so I had to check at the start of the night!!

2) When was it you knew they were the one? Was is something in particular they did?, Did they grind you down? (joke) etc. etc.
Mike – I think I always knew somehow, even back in the early days when we were just fairly distant colleagues at work – there was something I can’t to this day explain that just drew us together. When I caught sight of her again on that last day of term, I KNEW what I had to do and that pulled me completely out of character to go and ask her out. I always thought she was the most amazing, beautiful, bubbly, cheerful, funny person – but something inside of me knew from the moment I met her that she’d have a huge significance on my life and I still don’t know how I ever could have known that.
Ciara – Mike’s such an amazing person – he makes me smile every day and we have so much fun together. He also challenges me and I love it when we chat about the big (and little) things in life! I knew he was the one when he fell in love with Edinburgh just as much as I have over the years.

3) Could you give us the story of the proposal? Please leave out no details… (Was it a surprise?, Was it elaborate?, How did it make you feel?)
Mike – We went to our favourite city, Edinburgh, to stay with family for the weekend. I’d planned that I’d ask her on the Saturday, I’d spoken to her parents and her friends, I thought she was half expecting it – as it happened she didn’t have any idea and I kept trying to pull her away as we walked around the city to somewhere quiet and romantic – she kept saying “nah, let’s go up here, there are good shops on this street!”. Eventually we got to Edinburgh castle and I got down on one knee and proposed to her. Then about five seconds later a couple of tourists asked me to take their picture quite unaware of what we were doing!! She said “yes please, now get up!” It was a blur, but an amazing blur.

4) Please share what you most love about each other?
Mike – I love her spirit, her kindness, her sense of humour and her outgoing nature that has made me a more outgoing, confident person – more than anything just I love the time we share and the thought of our future together.
Ciara – I love Mike’s sense of humour, his compassion and his enthusiasm for what he does – he always gives the children he works with 110%. He can also surprise me, which I love!

5) If you don’t mind sharing, can you tell me something quirky, funny or silly about your partner? Little habits, something they do…
Mike – She loves singing – but would admit herself that she’s both absolutely tone deaf, and unable to remember the words to most songs so she just makes them up.
Ciara – Mike loves to make lists – although he wouldn’t admit it! It makes me smile when I find random notes around the house with facts he wants to remember.

6) What is your perfect day together? (apart from the wedding day)
Mike – Edinburgh again, waking up and having breakfast followed by going off into town on the bus, wandering round the shops and buying all manner of tat, going up to the castle, having an ice cream at the park and going and finding somewhere nice to eat….heading back to the house and spending the evening with family playing games, chatting the night away.
Ciara – I agree!!! (although I’d never say no to a drive and long walk with the dog anywhere in Northumberland – it blows the cobwebs off after a usually long week at work)!

7) Apart from the obvious, what are you most looking forward to on your wedding day?
Mike – I’m looking forward to having everyone together and enjoying the Friday night before the wedding with all our loved ones in one place celebrating with us.
Ciara – Exactly – having all those people in one place, celebrating with us!

8) There are so many different wedding styles you can choose from. What is your favourite wedding trend at the moment?
Mike – I just love the quirkiness and personal touch at Woodhill Hall – I love the fact we have made the wedding completely our own from the decorations to the menu, the table names – we’ve been given free rein to make our day ours and we’re not really going along with any particular trends or themes – it’s just our day. All our friends and family, together in a big house for a big party!
Ciara – Our home is a bit of an eclectic mismatch so Woodhill is a ‘home from home’ for us, which is why I think we fell in love with it as soon as we saw it. It was number 6 on a long list of places to visit but nowhere else measured up. We booked there and then!

9) What was it that inspired you to go for the theme or the decor you chose for your wedding?
Mike – We wanted something that felt intimate and very much ‘ours’ – we had so many ideas but generally just wanted everybody together, happy and celebrating our day with us the way we wanted it to be – and that’s exactly what I feel we’ve got here. We wanted the wedding to have a nod to everyone who’s made us the people we are – and all the little touches we think will mean something to the people they’re meant to! We wanted the broad theme to be Northumberland because me and Ciara have spent so many happy days exploring all these places and they mean a lot to us.

10) Please tell me one thing you wish you had known at the beginning of your wedding planning process?
Mike – That it would come up so damn quickly. It was almost two years ago we got engaged and it felt such a long way in the future. Now in the blink of an eye it’s here!
Ciara – How long the ‘little bits’ actually take to make/come together!