Mottram Hall – A Beautiful Cheshire Wedding Venue
The Lee Brown Photography Guide to Wedding Photography at Mottram Hall. With roots within the Georgian era of history, Mottram Hall began life as a manor house built around 1750 by William Wright.
It is constructed of Flemish bond orange brick with buff sandstone dressings, with a Kerridge stone slate roof, nine brick chimneys, and a facade with projecting end pavilions that have 20th-century extensions. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building.
Located at the end of a beautiful tree-lined driveway, the hotel is the perfect countryside escape from the hustle of modern life. Well-tended and loved grounds surround the hall along with a private lake, idyllic woodland, and a sprawling golf course providing the venue with a simply stunning backdrop to any event, especially wedding photography at Mottram Hall!
Preparing For Your Mottram Hall Wedding
With a number of large suites and a bespoke bridal preparation suite, Mottram Hall is the perfect setting for your morning bridal preparations. With large windows flooding the rooms with beautiful natural light, Make-Up Artists and Hair Stylists will be in the perfect setting to relax and prepare you for your very special day ahead.
From a photographer’s point of view, the rooms are spacious enough that we can remain in the background without distraction but also have enough natural light to capture all the little moments, the laughter, the excitement, and the occasional tears of joy that might come along.
Being a hotel also allows the partners to get themselves ready for the day ahead. As a photographer, it’s great to spend a little time with both people in the morning of the wedding not only because it allows each other to see the goings on but they’re often very different stories that strive to be captured.
Mottram Hall Wedding Review – Sarah & Craig
Lee is a fantastic, funny, friendly, and down-to-earth guy with a brilliant laugh!! He made us laugh from start to finish throughout our wedding day and it was amazing for us to share our day with such an amazing photographer!
Lee is non-intrusive and you don’t even know he’s there sometimes! Lee is great at organizing big groups quickly to get the family portraits nailed and then on to the natural shots which are amazing!
We can’t thank him enough for how he portrayed our wedding day and will always be grateful for the amazing memories we can now look back on in years to come!
We are constantly still looking over our photos over and over because we love them so so much! Fab guy, 5 plus stars, very highly recommended!!
Love Sarah & Craig X
Your Ceremony At Mottram Hall
Having great indoor and outdoor spaces for wedding ceremonies, Mottram Hall is a splendid all-year-round wedding venue. In the summer months, you have the choice to have a ceremony out in the lush and colorful rose gardens or in the cool air-conditioned St Andrews Suite. In the winter, a gorgeous candlelit ceremony in the same suite can be had, keeping your guests toasty warm.
The plus side of having a civil ceremony is that usually, your registrar will be totally relaxed about photography as opposed to a church where there might be a little more strict. This will allow me to capture all the intimate moments between you as a couple. It will also allow me to capture reactions from your loved family and friends who have gathered to spend the day with you. A short walk down from the suites brings you to your wedding ceremony, no cramming into a wedding car, no traffic, just a carefree and relaxed stroll.
A Relaxing Afternoon At Mottram Hall
So after you’ve celebrated your love and completed the formal part of your wedding day, it’ll be time to exit your ceremony and into the welcoming arms of family and friends. Champaign will be toasted and drunk, delicious canapes eaten and you will be hugged and kissed like there is no tomorrow. As a photographer, these moments are truly precious and mean a great deal to my couples, I simply blend into the background and just watch the afternoon unfold.
There are a couple of very cool things that you can do during this time to keep your guests entertained –
- Confetti! This a great photo opportunity that can involve everyone, get large petals that float around you for maximum effect!
- A Musician/ Singer! A great background to any drinks reception and one to keep the attention of your guests.
- Close Up Magic! This is the showstopper, guests will be overjoyed (and baffled) by a little magic.
- Garden Games! With large gardens at Mottram Hall, boules, hoops or croquet will keep kids both little and big very happy!
Portraits With The Couple
Whilst your guests are entertained, we usually have a quick stroll around the gardens of the hall for some couple portraits. I usually spend no more than 20 minutes with you during the day and maybe 20 minutes again in the evening during what we call the ‘Golden Hour’ for portraits. My goal ultimately is to create a fantastic set of natural portraits with minimal of fuss and also I want you to enjoy your party with your guests.
During the day, the rose garden to the rear of the hall is perfect for strolling and chatting portraits. Colorful in all seasons, shoes will stay dry and dresses will remain clean whatever the weather. In the evening, the sun sets majestically over the front of the hall giving an amazing setting for some truly romantic portraits.
Top 5 Portrait Locations for Wedding Photography At Mottram Hall –
- The Front Of The Hall. A classic ‘WOW’ location with amazing architecture and splashes of color from the floral borders.
- The Pond. Located past the Rose Garden, this secluded location gives privacy for you and quirky reflections for your photos.
- The Rose Garden. A delightful paved area to wander around through the different roses looks great and smells even better.
- The Driveway. Lined by tall trees, the driveway is another classic ‘WOW’ location for you to wander down.
- The Window. Located at the top of the main stairs, a great wet weather location. Beautiful light and Georgian decor, perfect!
Splitting the sessions up not only means you’re not away from your guests for ages, but it means that you can have a few moments of just you both throughout the day to chat about it all. I’ll just be sitting hiding in a bush taking a quiet photo.
Bad weather never stops a great wedding! The inside of Mottram Hall is just as beautiful but as a photographer, a creative, if you will. We use that creativity to maximum effect. There are plenty of indoor portrait spots to use, all I need is gorgeous natural light and a little trust from you.
Mottram Hall Wedding Review – Rebecca & Tom
Lee is such a great guy who instantly made us feel relaxed and comfortable from our initial consultation meeting.
He explained exactly what he could do to make our wedding photos truly special and listened to what we wanted… and boy did he deliver!! Our wedding photographs are truly beautiful… I know everyone must think that of their own wedding!
Lee captured the emotion and love during the day and provided us with memories to treasure for a lifetime. He even helped us to find a videographer at the last minute and nothing was ever too much trouble.
He made connections with our families on the day which made everyone feel they were in safe hands and was so subtle in his approach we didn’t even realize he was photographing us, which resulted in natural shots… exactly what we wanted.. 5 stars is not enough to explain just how amazing a photographer Lee Brown is… huge thank you Lee!!!
Love Rebecca and Tom X
Wedding Photography At Mottram Hall – Family Formals
Another part of the day is taking some photos with your family. I know, we’ve all been to weddings where they seem to take forever and you’re just stood about. I like to think that my formal session is a little different. I’m highly organized and jovially assertive with asking guests to do what you have paid me to do. I draft in help from your bridal party to find family members and I always recommend that you allow guests to check in after the wedding breakfast.
I recommend no more than 8-10 group shots, that way it takes no more than around 20 minutes and gets everyone involved –
- Brides Parents
- Brides Siblings
- Brides Grandparents
- All Brides Family
- Grooms Parents
- Grooms Siblings
- Grooms Grandparents
- All Grooms Family
- Bridal Party (Bridesmaids & Groomsmen)
Again you are pretty spoilt with areas around Mottram Hall to use. There is the front of the hall which creates a majestic background to your images with the architecture behind. There is also the gardens to the rear which give you a colorful wooded background to your images also. My group sessions are fun, quick, and painless.
Your Wedding Breakfast At Mottram Hall
Mottram Hall is pretty much an expert when it comes to delicious food in gorgeous surroundings, they will take good care of you when it comes to your wedding breakfast. From a photography point of view, I don’t photograph much of the meal. I don’t think most guests are keen to have memories of eating their beef and dauphinoise potatoes so I tend to leave you to it. After pudding, there is the chance for me to wander the tables capturing you chatting and relaxing with your guests.
Speeches! Always a fun part of the day and something that I always look forward to. If anyone is particularly nervous about making a speech, I thoroughly recommend having the speeches before the meal commences. Those speakers will be allowed to enjoy their food, not spend 2 hours fiddling with their notes, and most importantly, not drink too much. Speeches are traditionally made after dinner as a way of closing the wedding breakfast so if that’s your preference then it’s all good.
The Wedding Party (The Best Bit)
Taking part in the St Andrews Suite, one of the best days of your lives will end in one of the best ways! No matter what kind of entertainment you choose for your evening party, you will have an unforgettable day. Your evening guests will have arrived and you get to enjoy all the congratulatory hugs and kisses all over again. You might cut an amazing cake and take to the floor for your first dance, I definitely recommend having a practice in private first!
Great evening entertainment can include –
- A DJ! A DJ who can read a party crowd is worth their weight in gold. They will have you all up and dancing throughout the night.
- A Band! Ahh, I do love live music and because they’re playing their heart and soul out to you, your guests will enjoy it more.
- A Wedding Singer! Not only do many of them just sing, but they also dance and they get the crowd involved, amazing memorable moments
- A Sax Player! Again, they’re playing their heart and soul out but they also join in the partying!
- A Magician! Someone to wow your evening guests and re-hype your day guests for the amazing evening party to come!
From a photography point of view, I like to get into the action when it comes to the party. You can find me either in the middle of the dance floor with your guests or wandering around looking for roars of laughter or hugs of joy. It’s just great fun and I’m lucky enough to be able to say that I get to go to a party every week.
Mottram Hall Creative Portraits
This is a particular style of photography that I specialize in and love to capture. Using creative lighting techniques along with unique locations around Mottram Hall, we spend a few minutes together to create a final set of portraits that are unique to you. Again I create these with the minimum of fuss for you both, they’re just a great way to finish off your wedding photography collection.
Thank You!
Thanks so much for reading this guide to wedding photography at Mottram Hall. I have to say that it’s one of my very favorite wedding venues in Cheshire and I’m very lucky to visit a few times every year. If you’re considering Mottram Hall for your wedding, do go and visit, you won’t be disappointed.
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How can you get in touch with Mottram Hall about weddings?
Email – weddings@mottramhall.com
Call via – 01625 828135
Website – www.mottramhall.com
Address – Mottram Hall, Wilmslow Road, Mottram, SK10 4QT.
Instagram – @mottramhallweddings
Mottram Hall’s Wedding Brochure?
View the Mottram Hall wedding brochure here.
Which Registry Office do we need to contact about our wedding?
Macclesfield Registry Office – 01270 375140
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Also please check out my About Me page for information about who I am and why I do this with my life. Then if you like the sound of everything simply get in touch via the Contact page.
