Merrydale Manor Wedding Photography – Melissa + Tom

One of the best things about being Cheshire wedding photographers is getting to shoot wedding photography at Merrydale Manor.

In the heart of the beautiful Cheshire countryside and rolling parkland this opulent Manor House and grounds with lake, parkland and stunning gardens has established itself as a premier Cheshire wedding venue. Melissa and Tom chose the perfect venue for their Autumn wedding.

Melissa got ready in Merrydale Manor’s gorgeous and spacious bridal suite (that doubles up as the honeymoon suite as well!) that has a bespoke makeup room with three make up stations (yes, count them – three!) The perfect place for the bridal party to get ready and for us to get those all-important bride photos. Melissa had her mum and maid of honour Abby on hand to help her with any last-minute preparations. There were also the obligatory co-ordinated robes and just a little bubbly to help things along!

Melissa’s dress was stunning. It was perfectly sculpted with a scooped low back, beautiful lace detail, a fishtail shape and an elegant chiffon train that gave her an exquisite silhouette in all of our images of Melissa. Add to that beautiful make-up by make-up artist Jessica Mae and beautifully styled hair by Hair Stylist Charlotte Medford, Melissa looked every inch the fairy tale bride. And so comfortable as a bride, she beamed all day. (us Cheshire wedding photographers just love a smiley bride)

Before we left, I managed to capture a gorgeous father seeing the bride moment as well as some fantastic bridal images of Melissa descending Merrydale Manor’s gorgeous oak staircase. Everybody then headed off to the Holy Angels Church in Altringham for the wedding ceremony. Melissa and her father travelling in style in a beautiful white rolls Royce.

Holy Angels Church Hale Barns

We feel we’ve neglected Tom so far in this blog so let’s talk about him and the boys. Tom and his grooms party all looked resplendent in their three-piece suits. We loved the tweed waistcoats boys. Tom’s grooms party consisted of his father Anthony, Tom’s brothers/best men Philip and James and groomsmen James (number 2), Jonathan and Jack.

We got some great images of Tom and his grooms party along with his mum and dad before the ceremony started.

The wedding ceremony was lovely. Churches can sometimes feel like dark spaces for wedding photographers but the high ceilings, open layout and light afforded through the beautiful windows gave us lots of light to capture beautiful images of Melissa and Tom’s ceremony.

Outside there was a chance to take a few images, this time including a very important family member, Melissa and Tom’s much-loved pet dog, who had taken the trouble to dress up for the occasion.

As the weather was poor, we decided to take a few images inside the church. The one of Melissa standing in front of the high alter in front of that spectacular domed ceiling is just stunning and really showcases her dress.

Our favourite moments of this stunning Merrydale Manor Wedding

Everybody then headed to Merrydale Manor for the wedding reception but not before we got some great images of Melissa and Tom in that gorgeous wedding car.

On arrival everybody enjoyed a drinks and canapes reception and the weather was kind enough to let us take some outside shots. Some romantic portrait shots and some fun and formal images of the wedding party. Everybody was in really high spirits and we really enjoyed capturing all the fun.

One of the many things we love about shooting wedding photography at Merrydale Manor are its fantastic gardens make a great backdrop in our images regardless of the weather or time of the year. With Autumn giving us some wonderful warm colours to work with.

The wedding reception was held in The Merrydale Suite and the tables for the wedding breakfast had been set so beautifully that they warranted some images of their own. Speeches were delivered by Melissa, Tom, Melissa’s father and Tom’s brothers/best men Philip and James and were funny, emotional and very well received. Everybody then enjoyed a fantastic wedding meal provided by the very talented team at Barretts Event Caterers.

The Merrydale Suite has state of the art tech facilities for light, film, sound and climate control. And this very much came into play when a film was played of all the guests that couldn’t attend the wedding due to COVID-19 restrictions. Oddly it didn’t feel sad, it felt uplifting seeing and hearing all the lovely, fun and silly messages from Melissa and Tom’s friends and family. It really added something special to the day.

Evening celebrations started with the cutting of a gorgeous wedding cake followed by a romantic first dance. There was also a fun sparkler serenade outside before the partying continued with everybody cutting shapes on the dancefloor.

And it was the image of Melissa and Tom on the dance floor with their loved ones around them that seemed a fitting image to close the story of their day. A gorgeously stylish and fun wedding full of love and laughter that a global pandemic and a bit of wind and rain couldn’t spoil.

Congratulations to Melissa and Tom for getting married and thank you for allowing us to tell the story of your lovely wedding day.