Leeds Castle Wedding // Wenshuo & Laurence
One of Kent’s most magnificent wedding venues, Leeds Castle is brimming with history and provides a breathtaking back drop for a couples’ big day. During it’s 900 year history, it has been home to six of England’s queens, and was a palace used by Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. Lord Conway described it as “the loveliest castle in the world”, and it’s not difficult to see why. So on a warm Saturday in August, I headed there to photograph the wedding of Wenshuo and Laurence. The bride and groom both got ready at the castle, each in separate rooms, as guests gathered in the Library in anticipation of the ceremony. The Dining Room where the couple would tie the knot is beautifully decorated in soft tones of sea green and panels of chinoiserie, and has a very romantic feel to it. With a harpist and violinist playing, the scene was well and truly set. Straight after the ceremony, celebratory drinks were served in the Library whilst the couple took some quiet moments together and we took a walk around the grounds for some portraits. The wedding breakfast was held in the Banqueting Hall; old stone, dark wood panelling and deep crimson walls gave it an entirely different feel and mood to the wedding ceremony room. – I love a venue which has distinctly different rooms as it gives more interest to the photos, and I think it must be nice for the guests to be ‘wowed’ as each stage of the day passes. Speeches followed dinner, and it wasn’t long before the couple had their first dance and the party started. A great day and a lovely Leeds Castle wedding.
