I first met Jo in the Lake District, and we connected straight away. The more we talked, the more we found we had in common, it was like catching up with an old friend. And she makes a mean hot chocolate with chilli. Later that evening I met Dean and Coco the dog and learnt more about the plans for their wedding. With family and friends living all over the world, they had decided to wed in Portugal where Dean’s mum, Ze, and some of his family still live. The more I heard about the wedding, the more I loved the sound of it, it was so ‘them’. From driving out to Portugal with Coco their dog to their plans for the day itself, with some of the details being made by Jo’s mum, Sheryl, and brought over from South Africa. With family and friends travelling from seventeen countries around the world to take part, it promised to be a truly special occasion and I was thrilled when I was asked to help them remember it through my photography.

The wedding took place at Quinta de Sant’Ana, a vineyard in Gradil, not far from Lisbon. Gradil is a quiet little town, well off the tourist trail, where very little English is spoken. This certainly added to a few of the adventures I had out there. The local people couldn’t have been friendlier and sign language, a few basic Portuguese words along with a lot of smiling went a long way.

Quinta de Sant’Ana is a beautiful setting for a wedding. It is a family run vineyard producing wines in the traditional manner. It proved to be a great place for the families to stay in the run up to the wedding, with some helping tread the grapes and the younger members of the family enjoying visiting some of the resident animals.

I travelled out to Portugal early, just in case I encountered any delays or my luggage decided to take in a few other destinations en route to Lisbon (I do hand carry all my camera gear just in case). This gave me an opportunity to get to know Dean and Jo’s families as well as getting a feel for the area. Both families were so warm and welcoming, inviting me to join them throughout the day and sharing their evenings with me.

The day of wedding dawned a little misty but this soon burned off with blue sky and sunshine being the order of the day. The girls made an early start in their preparations at the local hairdressing salon.

I really enjoy this part of the day, with all the anticipation and excitement of what lies ahead. To be allowed to get so close with my camera as the bridal party are pampered and transformed is a privilege and I LOVE it.

This is a part of the day where I get a chance to be creative and try and something a little different for the bride and groom to remember their day by. I believe that it is so important to tell the story of the day as all too often couple are so busy getting ready and worrying about their guests that they do not have time to take everything in. This next image not only shows Jo’s shoes, an important detail, but it also captures the essence of where she and her family stayed during their visit and prepared for the day.

When photographing a wedding I always keep the wedding album in mind. The details really add to the telling of the day’s story, as well as being a poignant reminder for the bride and groom.

Dean’s cousin, Claudia, did a fantastic job with the girls make up. She is a lady of many talents – as well as make up artist to the bridal party, she had a big hand in some special celebrations later in the evening (but I will save that for a future post).

I will finish this post with an image of the bride’s bouquet. The feathers, provided by Jo’s mum Sheryl, give it a touch of individuality as well as making it very personal.

I will post more images from this wedding soon, so please come back to see them. In the meantime I would be thrilled to hear from the friends I made at the wedding. If we haven’t already connected through Facebook, you can find me at www.facebook.com/louisebeattie1. Click on the link, I would love to hear from you.