A Spring Wedding at Hampton Castle, Herefordshire

Hampton Castle sits just outside Leominster in north Herefordshire, and if you haven't visited it's worth making the trip even before you're thinking about it as a wedding venue. The medieval castle, the formal gardens, the parkland and the River Arrow running through the grounds - it's a substantial and impressive place, and it photographs well in every season.

Alice and Matt were married there earlier this month and were lucky enough to have a clear, bright March day for it. The ceremony took place outside in the castle grounds, which given the time of year felt like a genuine bonus, and the sunshine made for a strong start to everything that followed.

The Venue

The team at Hampton Castle are experienced at running weddings and the day flows well as a result. For photography the grounds offer real variety - the castle exterior, the formal gardens, the riverside walks, the walled areas that give you shelter when you need it. In March the gardens are just starting to come back, and there's a quality to the early spring light across the stone and the surrounding countryside that works really well.

The castle itself is a strong backdrop for the more structured parts of the day - arrivals, group photographs, couple portraits - but there are also plenty of quieter spots where things happen more naturally without any prompting. It's a venue where you're rarely short of somewhere useful to be.

For couples who are weighing it up, the exclusive use option is worth knowing about. There's no crossover with other events and the space is generous enough that the day never feels crowded. The layout of the grounds also gives the day a natural rhythm, moving from one part to the next without anything feeling forced or rushed.

The Suppliers

Alice and Matt had a great team around them on the day and it's worth mentioning everyone who helped make it work.

Make-up was handled by Sam at Indulge Beauty and Make Up, with hair by Auburn Bridal Hair. Getting the morning preparation right sets the tone for everything that follows, and having the right people around during that part of the day makes a real difference to how relaxed everything feels before the ceremony even starts.

The florals were by The Herefordshire Flower Studio and suited the setting well. There's a real advantage to working with a local florist who knows the county's venues, and the arrangements felt right for the character of the castle and the grounds.

Vocals during the ceremony were provided by Emma Katherine Singer, which added a really personal touch to the outdoor ceremony, and Peter Kuznicki Visuals was on hand throughout the day as a live artist - watching someone capture the day in real time with brush and paint is always something guests gravitate towards and it makes for a genuinely unique record of the day.

Evening entertainment was in good hands with DJ Richie Palmer and Nightporters, both well known locally and both good at what they do. It was also great to be working alongside The Magician Patrick and Adam Lyduch Films - there's always a good atmosphere on a day when you know the other suppliers around you.

Photographing a Spring Wedding at Hampton Castle

Spring tends to get overlooked in favour of summer, but it's a fantastic time of year to get married in Herefordshire. The countryside is coming back into colour, the light has a sharpness to it that softens as the year goes on, and venues like Hampton Castle look particularly good when the gardens are starting to bloom again.

The one practical consideration with a March wedding is the length of the day. The light is at its best around the middle of the day, and it's worth talking to your photographer early on about when portraits fit into the schedule. It's something I always work through in detail with couples beforehand, and at a venue with this much space it pays to have a plan.

A Note for Couples

If you're considering Hampton Castle and you're in the early stages of thinking about photography, it's worth making contact sooner rather than later. The venue books up quickly and the more popular dates tend to go well ahead of time. Having photographed a number of weddings there I know the grounds well, which makes a practical difference when it comes to planning the day and making the most of what the venue has to offer.

Congratulations to Alice and Matt - a really good day and a pleasure to be part of.

Russell Lewis is a documentary wedding photographer based in Bromyard, Herefordshire. To enquire about availability or to arrange a conversation about your wedding, visit www.russelllewisphotography.co.uk