Janet Wareing Photography

A Glorious Summer Wedding at Beech Hill Hotel and Spa - Becky and Gareth

I loved every moment of photographing Becky and Gareth's wedding in late May.

They chose Beech Hill Hotel and Spa as the venue for their wedding as it had a great history for them. It was the place of their first holiday away together and they had such a brilliant time that they wanted to get married there and it's not difficult to see why.

Standing on the banks of famous Lake Windermere, Beech Hill Hotel is a luxury getaway in a stunning location - heck, you can even sit in a hot tub while enjoying the views from the terrace spa! Wouldn't you want to go back?!

It's a place of roaming tiered gardens, balconies and terraces, a place you could spend many visits getting to know and still keep finding new gems. It's one of the great pleasures of being a wedding photographer that my work takes me to places like this, I'm spoilt rotten (it's awful, really!).

The Hotel was the perfect place for everyone to flock - both the bride and groom, and lots of family and friends had stayed the night before, the morning of the wedding saw everyone gathered together.

I wish I could have had a bird's eye view of the hotel that morning, with members of the wedding party dotted on different terraces, stepping out from their rooms to enjoy the view, each hidden from view of one another.

Gareth had sent champagne to the girls so that they could celebrate while they had their hair and make up done. Up in their room, the guys toasted the big day too. I loved seeing Becky apply her own eyeliner, her signature look; it was only right that she wore her make up the way she loves it on her wedding day too.

Friends and family looked on as Becky and Gareth exchanged rings in a spectacular ceremony at Beech Hill, baby Oliver watched from the front with Best Man Adam, good as gold (Oliver was very well behaved too!).

Becky and Gareth had woven just the right amount of Harry Potter magic throughout their day. From Daily Prophet orders of ceremony to a Honeydukes inspired sweet table bursting with goodies - the children had some fierce competition from the adults to get to the sweets!

The afternoon was celebrated with a Lake Windermere cruise, setting sail from the hotel's jetty. I was lucky enough to be invited along to join in the fun. It was just spectacular. Becky and Gareth took their family with them and had an hour of sailing, soaking in the Lake District's beauty and toasting their wedding day.

The groom was even lucky enough to be allowed charge of the boat, a wedding day treat.

Back on dry land, it was time for the speeches. I'm quite an emotional wedding photographer, but it's not often I need to pull myself together during wedding speeches. The father of the bride's speech was so touching that I had to take a deep breath and keep focusing on my camera to keep from crying. There were a lot of sparkly eyes around the room.

Keeping with their personal touches, the bride and groom had their first dance to Green Day's Time of Your Life. As the sun began to set on what had been an unforgettable day, all of the guests moved outside to the balcony, to carry on the dancing, toasting and celebrating, all the while serenaded by Matthew Stephens, taking requests and making sure everyone enjoyed themselves.