The day started early with some pictures at Vikkys parents house in Amersham.

Here we see Vikky, having gotten herself into 'the dress' is being admired by her bridesmaid.

I bumble around the place,
homing in on shoes and smiles.

to the left - we have a smile !

 

 

In the porch of the Church in Old Amersham,
we find the guys organising things.

Ush ush. there's ushers about . . .

It all happens so quickly doesn't it !

before we know where we are - cars arrive,
Vikki and her father pop out,

and with bridesmaids -

make a bee line for the church door !

 

that Dress simply sweeps through the doorway !

Yours truly finds himself a place at a discrete distance from proceedings.

(who want's to watch a photographer at a wedding ?)

I tend to lurk / wander about
out of sight as much as possible.

However - telephoto lenses are a definite help in this situation . .

this picture was taken from the same spot as the one above .

The vicar was a really nice guy.
I got the impression that he really wanted everyone to enjoy the wedding, instead of standing and preaching at everyone - he took a stool and made himself comfortable for a sort of chat.

whether it was a special approach for today, or whether it's his usual approach, I have no idea.

it did work. Everyone felt welcome.

 

The long lens popped into action again and found a really touching set of 3 hands (picture to the left).

 

set of 3 hands you ask . .. what sort of people were they ??

Flippin cheerful happy ones.

I can vouch for it.

Here's Vikky and Ruairi crusing out of the church.

(along with a complete set of 4 hands).

4 hands you ask . . .

 

oh . . . I give up . . don't go there. . .

yes. you had to get a picture of Brocket Hall.

It's quite splendid.

I'd raced from the church to the reception at some silly speed, guided only by a mad satnav which kept on saying.

 

redirection . . . turn left . . .

 

oh well. maps in car were a good standby.

 

I got there first anyway - which was the general plan.

then found two extremely happy smiling people popping out of a car . .

We take a few family pictures, for the record . .

what you can't see very well in this picture, is the weather.

in the distance, despite the sunshine beaming down on us, there was a thunderstorm rumbling away.

 

and it was approaching.

 

the problem was that we wanted a picture of everyone.

well . everyone was there, except for some unfortunate guests who got stuck in traffic or lost or misdirected by a satnav which said REDIRECTION - TURN LEFT.

(Hah - I didn't fall for that one - I've heard it before !)

 

so . as the thunderstorm rumbled, lightning flickered, we assembled everyone EXCEPT the missing guests, for a picture.

 

then . . like the cavalry arriving in a movie,

a mini appeared in a cloud of dust

bouncing down the road toward us.

 

I took on the role of parking attendant,

and waved the unfortunate guests,
car and all,
into the front of our picture.

You can't see it from here - but they're grinning from ear to ear - as is everyone else !

 

Sploosh.

rain falls like cats and dogs.

well . . . .. cats and dogs falling from the sky would probably go splat, not sploosh,
but never mind, the general effect was an awful lot of water
deluging from the heavens - various mystic christian types were probably manning their arks at this point,
the guests simply manned the champagne glasses. much more sensible.

Enough of such lens talk.

who cares anyway - it's for the photographer chap to worry about . .

in the following pictures, we see that the deluge has stopped, (witness the li'l puddles . . .wet ground . . . see it ! )

hah - you'll be a regular Sherlock by the time you've
checked the pictures - collected the evidence - deduced . .

The picture to the left looks really well posed.

 

the interesting thing is.

 

it wasn't.

 

it was real.

 

I was just lucky enough to be standing there at the time.

A quick mad crowd picture
thindery clouds

heck - not thindery - thundery

clouds spitting lightning

(REALLY !)

roll towards us.

Hey . this place is nice inside !

 

our friends pop into the dining room and check the wedding breakfast preparations.

I follow - being curious - and obtain a couple of pictures

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we explore a bit and find that Brocket has a rather lovely landing at the top of the stairs

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

what do we say - Vikky and her feller go exploring . . .

 

meanwhile .

an absolutely lovely little bridesmaid
is watching us from the top of the stairs . .

through her little eyes - this must be like a fairytale .

ah . the dining room fills with guests,
I take a picture to give a general overview,

then - I retire - to a rather lovely meal courtesy of Vikky and Ruairi.

thanks chaps.

sustenance really appreciated.

 

I was summoned by the butler as speeches began . . pictures below.

during the speeches we hear that Vikky and Ruairi - both Doctors,
met over a dissection table.

their eyes met over a lady called Dead Doris . . .

oh well - it must have been . . kind of . . . romantic . . . .

The lovely bridesmaid seen in the first picture also gave a speech.

she's caught here with a very very very long lens. (yes - that was 3 verys)

(picture to the right was taken from the same position)

 

with such a long lens - the trade off can sometimes be a little bit of image quality,

even on a tripod - the old wooden floor in such a building has enough spring in it

to cause a bit of wobble
however - the huge benefit of using such a long lens is unobtrusiveness.

I'm sure that she wasn't aware of the photographer.

You can deduce that this couple really have a passion for each other.

it's written all over them,
in the way they look at each other,

in the beaming smiles . .

I catch Vikky in a doorway -

I say - staythereaminnit,

pop - take a picture -

then go wandering off looking for more pictures.

Its god knows what time in the evening and she's STILL SMILING !!!!

 

Aha . . . .much dancing ensues

I find that the band are playing in front of a Van Dyke

(Van Dyke being court painter to Charles II as I recall -
not that I was around then - I just look that old . . )

I mentioned this to the band.

they said - nah - don't think it's real.

I checked with the staff .

the painting IS real

 

oh well - as long as it's appreciated . .

 

the dancing is going strong

I slip away into the night,
very tired

but with a mind filled with
brilliant memories.

 

 

 

 

 

 

and in the entrance hall,

laid out, as if in a still life

is Vikky's veil and bouquet.

 

I quickly take a picture of it,

then stumble across the gravel to find my car.

 

thank you Vikky and Ruairi.

a lovely day, and one to remember.