The Story So Far
all of my most recent wedding can be read about here on the blog
Andrea & Luke - A Quirky/Cool Didsbury House Hotel Wedding - Manchester Wedding Photography
With nods to the time of year in Andrea’s stunning champagne wedding dress and autumnal bouquet, plus bridesmaids in varying green dresses of their choosing, vans for the groomsmen and a few surprises along the way, I had an absolute ball capturing this incredible Didsbury House Hotel wedding.
There is something so special about developing a relationship with a venue - or series of venues as the case may be with the Eclectic Hotel group. This collection of STUNNING Manchester wedding venues, perfectly placed in both the city centre and in the leafy, quirky suburb of Didsbury has been designed with impeccable style but even more than that - they exude warmth and accessibility. Whilst some luxury wedding venues or hotels can almost feel cold and unattainable in their grandeur, The Eclectic Hotels never sacrifice comfort and ease of use PLUS respect for the spaces’ individual histories. Great John Street Hotel, tucked into a quiet corner off Deansgate was once a school and the names of the individual suites and rooms reflect and pay homage to this fact. King Street Townhouse is large and grand and such a gorgeous reflection of modern (that rooftop infinity pool!) and Georgian (that tiled floor! The rich sumptuous wallpaper and books and so much art) and, perhaps my very favourite to spend the day at, the wonderfully cosy Didsbury House Hotel - alongside it’s sister venue Eleven Didsbury Park, once private residences and now transformed into exclusive-use wedding venues that wrap you up and make you feel like you’re throwing a big fat house party for your very favourite people….this combined with perfect customer service and an events team that are tack-sharp but completely at your service and your wedding will be in only the safest of hands.
So when Andrea and Luke got in touch with me and filled me in on their plans for their October Didsbury House Hotel wedding, I was THERE. With nods to the time of year in Andrea’s stunning champagne wedding dress and autumnal bouquet, plus bridesmaids in varying green dresses of their choosing, vans for the groomsmen and a few surprises along the way, I had an absolute ball capturing this incredible Didsbury House Hotel wedding. The things that were the most important to Luke & Andrea were the music, the food (pies!), the giant cheese wedding cake and spending the day surrounded by their amazing and hilarious extended friendship circle. The ceremony felt intimate and emotional and we cheered the happy new Mr. & Mrs French with a truly epic confetti shot! When it came time to photograph the bridal party, we had an absolute ball because this group was so close-knit and were truly up for anything I threw at them! I then snuck this beautiful pair off to the amazing Fletcher Moss park for some magical golden hour wedding portraits.
Andrea & Luke were so warm and welcoming and I seriously did not stop laughing all day - their pleasure was just so infectious and everything I LOVE about weddings. Thank you so much for welcoming me into the fold guys, I had a ball! Here’s a bit of what we got up to…
DREAM TEAM
Venue - Didsbury House Hotel https://www.eclectichotels.co.uk/
Dress - Glamour Bridal https://www.glamourbolton.com
Hair/MUA - Nichola at Estilo https://www.facebook.com/estilobolton/
Groom’s Attire - Slaters https://www.slaters.co.uk/mens-suits
Kim & Lee - An Elegant, Relaxed, Didsbury House Hotel Wedding - Manchester Wedding Photography
Seeing us into Spring properly was yesterday’s STUNNING Didsbury House Hotel wedding of Kim & Lee.
It’s SPRINGGGGGGG!!!! This is my VERY favourite time to work as a Manchester wedding photographer - the seasons up North are dramatic and bold and so so lush in their hues and scents. It’s a veritable feast for a wedding photographer! Seeing us into Spring properly was yesterday’s STUNNING Didsbury House Hotel wedding of Kim & Lee. This longtime couple (they’ve been together 8 years!) got married in the sunlit ceremony room surrounded by 60 of their very nearest and dearest family and friends, plus their gorgeous children Lilly and Henry. They assembled a crack team of incredible suppliers with soft, fragrant floral touches by the genius Sian of The Flower Lounge - including a showstopping floral backdrop - and tunes by the dudes of Bloomsbury keeping the party going all night. It was an emotional, hilarious, beautiful day and I had an absolute ball capturing these memories for them. Thank you so so much for including me in your amazing wedding day guys, I loved every second of it! Here’s your sneak peek!
Dream Team
Venue - Didsbury House Hotel https://www.eclectichotels.co.uk/didsbury-house/
Florals - The Flower Lounge https://www.didsburyflowerlounge.co.uk/
Hair & Makeup - Jodie Smith http://jodiemakeup.co.uk/
Dress - Pronovias from The Bridal Path https://www.thebridalpath.net/
DJ & Band - Bloomsbury https://bloomsburymusic.com/
Vintage VW Hire - Lovely Wheels http://www.lovelywheels.co.uk/
Ellie & Rick: A Family-filled DIY Peak District Wedding (with bonus Didsbury Wedding Party!)
Every detail of this wedding was so carefully chosen and so perfectly complementary. Also it makes it even easier that Ellie & Rick were just two of the loveliest humans I've been lucky enough to meet in this wonderful job. As it was a fairytale, let's start as the best ones do, at the beginning.
Okay so I've been hanging onto this wedding for months for a couple of reasons: the first being that it was accepted to be featured on the amazing Love My Dress wedding blog and I wanted it to bask in it's own glory there for a bit (you can check out their feature HERE!) and the second because it was a quintessential summer wedding with that perfect not-too-hot but sunny weather and a bit of wedding magic that you can only dream of. Of course you'll recognize the photos: they are literally splashed all over this website and my social media. Every detail of this wedding was so carefully chosen and so perfectly complementary. Also it makes it even easier that Ellie & Rick were just two of the loveliest humans I've been lucky enough to meet in this wonderful job. As it was a fairytale, let's start as the best ones do, at the beginning.
Once upon a time...
okay maybe we won't go that literal.
But in all seriousness, this wedding came to me from the likeliest of sources: the husband and wife duo responsible for giving me the kick up the butt I needed over the last year and taking Kate McCarthy Photography to the next level - Mr. & Mrs. Jonny & Emma Draper. When I began my mentorship with Jonny last year and began re-vamping what was then known as Squid & Pearl Photography, Emma took time out of her insanely busy schedule running Love Bridal Boutique to get her nails done at Elegant Touch in Didsbury. Seemingly an unremarkable event but Emma's beautician was none other than bride-to-be Ellie. As the two were chatting about Ellie's upcoming August wedding, she mentioned that they'd decided against having a photographer for the two day event. But as they talked more and Ellie described the extraordinary Jenny Packham 1930s-style gown, the intimate ceremony planned to be perfomed by Rick's dad in front of only immediate family, the floral arrangements by award winning florist Sian of The Flower Lounge and the epic house party planned several days later at the Parsonage in Didsbury, Emma knew that this was going to be an unbelievable event and a photographer's dream. At this point I was only a few weeks into my mentorship with Jonny. Until I went full-time as a wedding photographer, I had been working part time around my job and last year was still building up my clientele. This was the opportunity to shoot an incredible wedding that wouldn't have been photographed otherwise and even better it was to be over a couple of days.
When Jonny came to me with Ellie's details and the background on the wedding, I didn't even need to think about it, I was sold. We began emailing, had our Skype chat and got on like a house on fire. Once the boring bits of paperwork were out of the way and Ellie & Rick confirmed that they'd like to go ahead with booking me, we immediately scheduled their pre-wedding engagement shoot for a few weeks time at the start of June. We spent a gorgeous afternoon wandering the grounds of the Parsonage, veering off to Fletcher Moss gardens with their bouncy lab Lola and chatting all things wedding.
The day of their wedding, August 31st 2016, I was picked up by my second shooter Amy and we headed off for Castle Cliffe, a private residence just outside Bakewell in the Peak District. With stunning views and clear blue skies, we knew we were in for an epic afternoon. When we arrived, the whole place was buzzing, Sian had filled the space with the most stunning lavender and blue bouquets and table dressing; Rick's neices were running around in their party finery whilst Ellie, her mum Debbie and sister Katie calmly sipped champagne and were dolled up by the lovely Samantha Green. What followed was a day filled with laughter and happy tears and dancing and beautiful food and SO. MUCH. LOVE. Seriously this day was just one perfect haven of love. When Amy and I had finished documenting our part of the day, we left as the family was settling in with cakes and fizz in the most magical golden light...
Three days later I arrived solo to The Parsonage and was greeted by an ever-relaxed Ellie dressed back up in that unreal dress setting out food and glasses and hanging bunting, arranging Sian's flowers..Rick was checking the sound and lights in one room, making sure the beer was chilled in another. They had hired an ice cream cart, the ceremony had already happened and they were heading off on their epic North American honeymoon the next morning so there was just ease and excitement and anticipation for the night of dancing and drinking ahead. We even managed to sneak off for a 10 minute shoot in the Parsonage Gardens which, despite them being in the same outfits, ended up a bit dreamier, a bit sexier than our shoot just three days earlier.
I cannot tell you how much this wedding has meant to me, how encouraged and embraced I felt by Ellie & Rick's wonderful family, how it reminded me over and over again how lucky I am to do this job. Because it doesn't feel like work...it feels like such an honour. And I still get nervous and I still have so much to learn but what a joy it is documenting love, capturing all those moments you miss because you're so wrapped up in the chaos and excitement of the day. Love is imperfect and sometimes messy but it is also honest and patient and builds families and is the force for good in this world. Thank you again guys for having me along, here is the story of your day.
Photography by Kate McCarthy Photography with additional second shooting and assistance by Amy Louise Photography
Venues Castle Cliffe and The Parsonage
Florals by The Flower Lounge
Dress by Jenny Packham 'Harlow' from The White Closet Didsbury
Hair & Makeup by Samantha Green
Accessories by Donna Crain & shoes by Emmy London
Suits by Kenneth Cole with waistcoats by Next
Cakes by Cocoa Cabana and Lord of the Pies
A Parsonage Gardens Love Story: Ellie & Rick's Pre-Wedding Shoot
I was introduced to the lovely Ellie by my mentor, Jonny Draper. Ellie is a beautician who has known the Drapers for some time and, several months ago, mentioned to them that she hadn't yet booked a photographer for her wedding this coming August. Ellie and her fiance Rick weren't too concerned but obviously as a wedding photographer, Jonny was on the case! He emailed me straight away, knowing that with this being my first year, I did still have some availability and did I want to get in touch with this wonderful couple about shooting their intimate family celebration in Bakewell at the end of August?!
I immediately emailed Ellie and introduced myself. We got on like a house on fire and I knew it was meant to be! Ellie and Rick are so low-key and very family orientated, choosing to have a tiny ceremony (presided over by a family member!) at a rented house near Bakewell then a big wedding bash at the gorgeous Didsbury Parsonage several days later. I was hooked, these two were my kind of people!
We arranged to meet at the Parsonage on a humid evening in early June to catch up in person and have a pre-wedding shoot. They brought along their gorgeous labrador puppy Lola and we spent the next hour walking and talking through the lush green Fletcher Allen gardens, laughing as Lola ploughed through muddy bogs having the time of her life. These two were so relaxed with each other, so comfortable, it was an absolute joy to hang out with them. You can really feel the love and connection they share...and we all need to be reminded that this kind of love is in the world. I CAN. NOT. WAIT for this wedding, it's going to be AMAZING!
