The photoshoot of the decade!

Jessie Copper :: Monday 24th July 2023 :: Latest Blog Posts

Wow, this is my second of two new blog posts in two weeks, and this time I'm going back 3 years! But never fear... we may be going back in time but the images you are about to see couldn't BE more up-to-date!

Between the first two covid lockdowns - before mask-wearing had generally become a thing and when we were all still hoping that we were through the worst of it - a group of wedding suppliers (who can mostly also count ourselves as long-standing friends) took a break from our long hot summer of NO weddings, and got together to stage a professional bridal shoot.

I was ten-months pregnant at the time and lock-down had actually been a rather healthy reprise for me from all the ladder-climbing and bucket-lifting that my summers usually entailed, but it was lovely to get back in the saddle, so to speak.

It all came about due to a link with my old secondary school, Leweston - the girl's school on the hill above Sherborne. I enjoyed 8 wonderful years there back in the 90's, and have tried my best to keep in touch with the place every since. They were hoping to start hosting weddings there, and it's not hard to see why ... the grounds of the school are STUNNING, with giant cedar trees, rolling lawns, woodlands, ancient pathways, secluded alcoves adorned with silent statues, and the showcase of it all - the Belvedere... a balcony to the world, hidden at the far end of the grounds but breath-taking in it's style and scale.

And so we embarked on the planning for this wonderful shoot which - along with myself on flower duty - involved the following inimitable list of suppliers:

 Hair and Make-up - Amazing Face

 Models - Francesca Cosh and Rob Green

 Photography - Steph Newton

 Bridalwear - Bowen Dryden

 Groomswear - Reiss

 Videography - Heather Bailey 

 Cake - Lisa Notley

The shoot began within the main house which itself provides some lovely backdrops. It used to be a convent and the rooms in the Manor House have a feeling of serenity to them away from the hustle and bustle of the main school buildings.

My brief for the florals was exotic and tropical but to fit in with the Italian vista feel of the outdoor spaces and to offer a general aura of glamour and super-chic. 

I supplied two bridal bouquets to offer variety for the shoot, and for the first I used an eye-catching focal King Protea surrounded by dried helichrysum, tropical leaves and also an element of bleached foliage which gave an ethereal quality. 

The second was a little more traditional in the sense that it contained roses, snowberries and fennel flowers, but the feel was still architectural and the same foliage mix continued throughout. 

Moving outside we next shot a series of images in the Italian garden to the front of the Manor House. The warm tones of the building added perfectly to the end-of-summer tones of the flowers. 

Our models were real life couple Francesca and Rob, and as a pair they were truly stunning!

And then moving into the teeny tiny Trinity Chapel for a faux ceremony brought back so many memories of my years at school, saying the Rosary at lunch time and learning all sorts of religious practices from the lovely nuns who were such a big part of my teenage years but who have sadly all passed away since. 

Our fabulous photographer Steph had the idea that we should plan our timings for Shoot Day around finishing at the Belvedere at sunset, and she was so right. We moved on through the grounds and arrived there just as the sun was dipping and everything became bathed in a rosy glow, which added another awesome level of romanticism to the shoot.

Lastly, here are a few 'behind-the-scenes' shots from the shoot:

And there you have it! I hope to bring you details of our latest (MUCH more recent!) shoot in another blog post over the next few weeks, but for now I hope you enjoyed browsing through these warming, glorious, glowing and super-stylish shots that my fellow-suppliers and I are still so proud of.

Jx