James & Susan celebrated their intimate Duthie Park wedding ceremony with family & friends at a beautiful Crathes Castle reception in Aberdeenshire
We know that when a Scottish lass marries an English lad, the wedding has to be in Scotland. We just do weddings better (sorry England!), it’s true though 😉 To be fair Susan & James had their awesome Scottish wedding AND a party reception down in London, where they live, the week after – the best of both worlds.
They met at their gym Christmas party, I’m going to imagine it was over a stationary bike, their eyes locked, and the rest is history.
Preparations
I joined Susan and her bridesmaid Eilidh at Susan’s parent’s house in Aberdeen to start the day off. There was plenty of champagne, laughs and joy as everyone got ready together. Everyone was very chilled out and we had lots of time to take some stunning bridal portraits of Susan in her childhood home that I just love.
James was getting ready at The Chester Hotel in Aberdeen with lots of friends and family there to support him and join in a wee pre-ceremony celebration. My lovely second shooter Jade was there to capture it all. This is why we always shoot with two photographers so that both parties get all the fun and frolics captured throughout the day. Prep is one of my favourite times to arrive as no one pays too much attention to the photographer, as they’re too busy getting ready and before you know if we’re BFFs with grandma and we’ve blended right into your day.
The Ceremony
James & Susan decided to have a Duthie Park Winter Gardens wedding ceremony, to account for Aberdeen’s not so great reputation with the weather. But wouldn’t you know it, it was an absolute belter of a day – in Aberdeen! I know! I swear it’s us, Joy Story is the lucky weather charm*. So all their guests were able to enjoy the lush gardens outdoors until it was ceremony time. The English guests must have been amazed by the weather, I’m sure it’s not what they were expecting!
The ceremony included some lovely readings by both James and Susan’s Mums and before you know it they were MARRIED! Then it was champagne time! Susan’s Dad was chief champagne pourer though I’m sure the champagne I seen in each of his hands were both for him (well deserved though!).
We enjoyed a short photo session with our lovely couple around the Winter Gardens with lots of laughs and lush backdrops and then it was off to the reception.
The Reception
Crathes Castle in Aberdeenshire, a short drive away, was the lovely reception location. If the weather was good there was to be a drinks reception in the walled garden. Well – the weather was GRAND. Yay! So everyone could mill about outside enjoying the sun, catching up with friends and family and exploring the lovely grounds of Crathes Castle. And there’s a LOT of lovely grounds to explore.
We had great fun doing the family photos and candids of guests and then we snuck Susan & James away for a wee 10 minutes to capture some of them around the Castle grounds. A wee 10 minute wander is all it takes to capture the beauty of your surroundings and of your just married glow!
We had an amazing time and I hope you’ll enjoy looking through the gorgeous images below.
Let the Aberdeen sun-fest begin… (it might never happen again!)
Sarah x
*Not a guarantee 😉
Creative Team
Ceremony Venue: Duthie Park Winter Gardens, Aberdeen
Reception Venue: Crathes Castle, Aberdeenshire
Second Shooter: Jade Esson Photography
Caterer: Harry Fraser
Are you having a Duthie Park Wedding? Get in touch to book a consultation and find out how we, as an alternative wedding photographer, can capture your wedding day love & laughter!
