A Wedding at Bristol’s
Folly Farm Centre
I was over the moon when Alex and Adam booked me as their Folly Farm Wedding Photographer. I had known about the venue for a long while and it was firmly on my wedding venue bucket list!
As I approached the venue up the long drive, rising high above the Chew Valley below. The breathtaking views on this gorgeous summer’s day took my breath away and I just couldn’t wait to get to work!
Alex and Adam’s vision for the day was informal and fun with good food, good friends and epic views. They wanted a low impact, eco-conscious wedding and wanted natural wedding photography to capture the day as it unfolded.
The Clients Said…
“I was a bit overwhelmed when I first started looking for a wedding photographer! I spent hours scrolling through instagram and websites trying to identify the right fit.
I was drawn to Becky’s natural documentary style and the happiness she seemed to be able to capture from her shots. In our initial call, her enthusiasm for our venue, Folly Farm Centre and her warm personality meant the decision to pick her was very easy.
The pre wedding process was easy and clear. I felt reassured by her attention to detail and understanding of what we were looking for in our check in call ahead of the wedding.
On the day it was a pleasure to have her there. She blended into the background but was also available whenever we needed. So many guests were complimentary of her.
We love the photos! They beautifully capture the day and we cannot wait to see the rest.
I wholeheartedly recommend Becky to anyone, especially those wanting a more informal (i.e. less staged) day.”
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The Wedding Day
When I arrived at Folly Farm, Alex and her bridesmaids were busy getting ready in a studio room just next to the courtyard where the ceremony decorations had already been set up. The wedding venue was simply adorned with sunflowers and greenery and looked beautiful. After hair and make-up had been applied Alex got into her gorgeous bridal gown before being snuck out through a side door.
The ceremony took place in the Courtyard next to the Oak Barn which looks out over the epic Somerset views. A wooden structure was decorated with flowers, and a pretty stone wall separated guests from the fields below. The bridesmaids each walked down the aisle by themselves, ahead of the bride, holding a simple bouquet of sunflowers.
Once the marriage formalities had been finalised and the register had been signed, the newlyweds shared their first kiss as husband and wife before being cheered back down the aisle by their friends and family.
After the guests had welcomed the newly-weds into their new married lives together by showering them in confetti, reception drinks were served. Guests quickly got to work on the lawn games, and I enjoyed capturing the antics!
After a handful of group photographs the guests were called into The Oak Barn where speeches were delivered, and the wedding breakfast was served!
An enormous buffet of cakes and puddings (which had all been made by the mother of the bride) were served in the Atrium and guests tucked in and spilled out onto the sun-drenched lawns to enjoy the setting sun.
Alex and Adam’s wedding was probably one of the hottest weddings I have ever photographed! Thankfully, all their guests were staying on site, and so after the wedding breakfast had been served, lots of guests retired to their rooms to freshen up and change into cooler clothes.
The bride, groom and I took a short stroll around the 250-acre Nature Reserve for some bridal portraits before they returned to join their wedding guests for rounders, swing-ball and even the limbo!
Once the sun had set, guests made their way inside and split into two groups; those who wanted to watch England Vs Argentina in the Rugby World Cup, and those who wanted to dance!
A Sustainble Wedding Venue
Folly Farm is Avon Wildlife Trust’s 250 acre Nature Reserve with multiple event spaces to cater for different size wedding and events.
The venue consists of a handful of restored farm buildings with eco features such as solar energy and biomass heating. There is also a reed bed sewage system and rainwater is harvested from the rooftops. They have a strong ethos around protecting the environment and offer educational trips in order to further their cause. Being a charity, any money raised through events such as weddings is put back into the Avon Wildlife Trust.
Folly farm has on-site caterers and suitable facilities for self-catering too. The venue uses local produce year-round and buys fairtrade wherever possible.
The farm is audited twice yearly by Green Tourism and has won several awards including the Gold rating in 2015, and a Silver award for Sustainable Tourism in the Bristol, Bath and Somerset area.
The venue has stunning south-facing views over Somerset’s Chew Valley. Set high above the valley the distant views include the Mendip Hills and Chew Valley Lake. There are woodlands aplenty and wildflower meadows in Spring.
The venue offers two night wedding packages, where guests can stay the night before and after your wedding, making it suitable for couples wanting a long, relaxing weekend of celebrations rather than a single day event. There is space for up to 50 guests amongst the Farmhouse and Studio bedrooms.
Alex and Adam had wanted to have an eco-conscious wedding with minimal impact on the environment. They chose local suppliers, keeping the carbon footprint as low as possible. Alex chose reusable bottles as gifts for her bridesmaids. They had friends and family help with things like cakes and stationary, and completely avoided single use plastic.
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