A Grand Hotel Brighton wedding, Hannah & John had a civil ceremony at the Grand in their suite that looks over the Brighton seafront. Hannah got ready in a hotel room upstairs and the bridal gown hanging up with the bridesmaids dresses was one of our first shots. the light blue and purple colours were echoed in the flower arrangements too, including the buttonhole for John and the groomsmen. It took a surprisingly long time to balance both wedding rings on their sides!

Grand Hotel Wedding Ceremony in Brighton

The wedding guests were serenaded by a violinist before and during the ceremony. Hannah made her way down the beautiful staircase in the Grand Hotel and into the intimate ceremony to meet John for their marriage ceremony.

The weather forecast had promised some pretty fierce wind and rain, but we were lucky to escape outside to throw some confetti and for a few photos on the seafront before the weather picked up.

Hannah & John had a short wander down the Brighton promenade on the seafront for a couple of shots with the famous West pier in the background, before stopping on the way back in front of the Grand Hotel for another photograph before we retreated back indoors.

Brighton Seafront Themed Wedding

We shot most of the group photographs on the elegant central staircase, using some off camera flash and some careful compositions to get some great group photographs indoors, despite the weather. The decorations of the suite in the Grand Hotel had a beach theme, with round bouquets of roses and other flowers within colour scheme. There was also a sweet table, designed to look like bucket and spades, and a three-tier wedding cake adorned with shells and seafront decorations to fit within the beach and colour theme.

The rest of the wedding photographs were shot around the Grand Hotel foyer and the staircase, using some natural light from the skylight and some off camera flash where necessary. We needed to use a snoot to hone the beam from the flashgun into a spotlight and avoid spoiling the ambient light in the background on a couple of these shots. The interior decoration of the hotel was a beautiful location for some indoor photography.

Using fast lenses for this indoor shot in the Grand Hotel staircase was essential, and my Sigma 24-35mm F2 was very useful for utilising some of the light from the lamps and skylight to expose this shot correctly. I also tried the spotlight technique on the actual stairs, with the help of one of the Ushers to fire the light directly at John & Hannah.

The first dance took place underneath the chandeliers, with a little help from my flashguns. At around 8.00pm the wind and rain had dropped slightly and, I wanted to use some of the lights on the seafront promenade for a backdrop for some final portraits of bride and groom.

Wedding Suppliers:

• Venue: The Grand
• Florist: Webb and Farrer
• Hair and Make-Up: Tia Bliss