| Samantha Hook

Sarah and Wayne - Stoke Rochford Hall 27th December 2012

As you know, I’m now using Facebook to post pics of my most recent weddings and my blog is feeling a little unloved! So I’m taking a little time today to update things here as I can tell you a little bit more about the gorgeous couples that grace my home on Facebook. Be sure to check it out here.

So let me tell you a little bit about the wonderful wedding I shot at the end of last year, with the gorgeous Sarah and Wayne. They chose Stoke Rochford Hall in Lincolnshire for a really elegant, romantic winter wedding. Stoke Rochford Hall provides the perfect setting for Christmas weddings, with lots of roaring fires and the stunning entrance hall in warm dark wood.

Sarah looked a vision of glamour in her gorgeous antique lace wedding dress, complimented by beautiful vintage inspired hair and make-up. Wayne didn’t let her down either! Looking incredibly handsome in full morning dress.

We weren’t sure what the weather would bring but the sun came out on cue during the ceremony giving us the chance to take some beautiful photographs by the bridge in the grounds of the Hall. That meant taking their group photographs inside, after the meal. The Hall gave us a gorgeous background to these, creating a real “Downtown Abbey” feel!

An elegant day was followed by a really fun evening, with everyone up and dancing. Wayne and Sarah allowed us to spirit them away for a few minutes for some evening photography, allowing us to create some stunning, dramatic and romantic portraits.

I was joined by my usual partner in crime, Paul Saxby, and the other element that made this day so special for us was that it was our first “fusion” wedding. Sarah and Wayne were presented with a gorgeous DVD of their day incorporating stills and video, all set to their favourite songs and the words of their speeches. The result was incredibly emotional, I think I may have seen a few tears from Wayne!

by Samantha Hook Posted on May 2, 2013

My Poor Unloved Blog!

Hello! Long time no speak! How are you doing? You look well…

I’ve been cheating on my blog… with Facebook. Facebook allows me to post news, offers and photographs so quickly and easily and it also allows me to hear back from you, so it’s rather taken over the time I should spend blogging. If you’re interested in all things weddingy, then do join me over there: www.facebook.com/SamanthaHookPhoto

In the meantime, here’s the very lovely Olly and Jen. You can check out their beautiful wedding at Swancar Farm, Derby, just by clicking on the photograph.

S xx

Shalena and John’s Beautiful Kelham House Wedding

Shalena and John’s day was so much fun to shoot! Their wedding ceremony at South Muskham church was so personal and moving that I had to stifle a bit of a tear myself (I’m soft like that!) Shalena and John just looked so happy!

Shalena looked so gorgeous and glamorous I couldn’t wait to get her and her new hubby in front of the camera. They had a whole team of bridesmaids and groomsmen who were up for some creative photography too, so I just knew we were going to create something special. Everyone was so brilliant, even following me into the woods to get some added drama into the photographs. Luckily it was all worth it as Shalena sent me the most lovely email once she received the photographs:

Sam the pictures are amazing!!!! You are so talented! Thank you so so much for capturing our special day! We were both so overwhelmed looking through them all last night!! We will be recommending you to everyone we know! I knew they would be amazing but they took my breath away!

There really is nothing nicer than knowing you’ve played a small part in helping a really lovely couple remember the best day of their lives! I have the best job!

Thanks to Shalena, John and their guests creating such a great atmosphere and being such great sports, we were able to create a fun and unique collection of wedding reportage and contemporary portrait photographs.

It helped too that the venue looked so gorgeous, Kelham House has been totally transformed into a real gem of a wedding venue with a beautiful new banqueting room and stunning grounds. However, my favourite touch was this wonderful sweetie trolley which I was surprised to discover was made by our groom. Wow, eh? What an amazing job he did.

As ever, I’ll be posting these and a few more on Facebook so do tag yourself in any you appear in!

Finally a big thanks to Mr Matt Reid who joined me on the day, helping it all to go swimmingly and taking some gorgeous shots, as always.

xoxo

by Samantha Hook Posted on October 2, 2012

Claire and Ryan’s Wonderful Wedding at Stoke Rochford Church and Hall

Claire and Ryan are a fun and gorgeous couple who chose to get married right here in Stoke Rochford.

Stoke Rochford is such a beautiful village and boasts not only the stunning Hall but also a beautiful church with the wonderful Vicar, Eric, who performed a perfect, personal ceremony for the couple.

From the moment I arrived at the Hall to meet Claire and her party in the morning, I knew it was going to be a great day, full of fun and laughter and lots to photograph! Claire and Ryan both looked great and their guests were so welcoming and fun, it wasn’t difficult to get some really great shots.

Here’s a little taster of this great day. As ever, you’ll find the whole collection on the Clients’ pages and, if you were part of this beautiful wedding, don’t forget to tag yourself on Facebook!

by Samantha Hook Posted on September 22, 2012

Heather and Daniel at Sutton Bonnington Hall

Hello there!

Well, looks like that was our Summer then! Seems like it’s disappeared all too quickly but what a brilliant summer it’s been for weddings.

I’ve worked with some wonderful, gorgeous, creative, fun and funny couples and have loved every single one of them. The only problem with so many fabulous weddings to photograph has been keeping up with the blog!

There are still some wonderful weddings to photograph this year but over the next few weeks I’ll be sharing with you some of my favourites from this year.

Heather and Daniel’s beautiful day at Sutton Bonnington Hall seems like a great place to start!

Heather and Daniel are such a great couple, full of fun and laughter, so I knew their wedding day would be a really relaxed, happy day.

Their church ceremony in Castle Donnington was so moving and personal and made the perfect start to the day. Heather looked simply stunning: she couldn’t have chosen a dress that suited her better and it’s classic elegance was topped off by a stunning cathedral length veil.

The reception then kicked off in the wonderful surroundings of Sutton Bonnington Hall. Not only was this a picture perfect location, the team at the Hall could not have been more friendly or more attentive and the food was delicious!

Daniel is the first groom I’ve met that has actually serenaded his bride during the first dance, good lad! And with that, the evening really got going.

So the whole day was a dream to photograph, but what made it even more special for me was the fact that Heather and Dan were happy to spend a little time with me and explore the grounds a little, to create some really special images.

Here’s a taster of their magical day:

As ever, you can see more on Facebook or check out the whole collection on the Client Pages

Talking of Facebook, I promised a special offer this month just for my lovely FB friends - well keep ‘em peeled as I’ll be posting details of how to get a beautiful hand-made and most of all free canvas!

xoxox

by Samantha Hook Posted on September 17, 2012

Lindsay and Jonathan at Tutbury Castle

Well it’s been a great week - lots of bookings coming in for next year now, so if you’re thinking about photography for a your 2013 wedding, get in touch soon!

It was also great to catch up with Lindsay and Jonathan to relive their beautiful Tutbury Castle wedding. Tutbury is a picture-postcard perfect village complete with its own Norman castle. Lindsay and Jonathan were married in the village church before begnning a fun-filled reception up at the castle. Their formalities were completed with a historical hand-fasting, just to make absolutely sure their day was one to remember, which was followed by one of the most impressive wedding discos I’ve ever seen.

When it came to photographing the couple, I was so inspired by the drama of the castle ruins. This was matched by some pretty windy but sunny weather and big skies full of clouds, making me come over all Wuthering Heights! Lindsay and Jonathan looked so amazing together (I do like a man in a kilt me) and were happy to spend a little time with me in the evening, allowing us to create some magic together.

You can view their whole collection in the Client Galleries and, as ever, there is lots to see on Facebook, including a slideshow.

See you soon,

by Samantha Hook Posted on August 3, 2012

Ch-ch-ch-changes!

Hello!

Well I’ve got so carried away with Facebook I’d rather forgotten all about my home here! And I’ve actually got quite a lot to shout about. To keep totally up-to-date, please head on over to my home on facebook, just search for Samantha Hook Photography and you’ll find me! There you’ll be able to keep up-to-date with all my recent weddings as well as any offers or competitions - and there’s about to be a biggy, so keep ‘em peeled!

In the meantime, you may notice there have been a few changes around here. That’s because I’m very happy to announce that I’ve just launched the sparkly new BoHo Studios with Paul Saxby. After lots of hard work we now have a gorgeous, big studio in Stoke Rochford where we are busy providing something a bit different in portraits and commercial photography. So do pop over to our website and take a look!

That’s allowed me to concentrate on nothing by wedding photography here so expect a whole new focus on weddings and wedding related stuff (mainly shoes, probably!)

Sam

xoxo

by Samantha Hook Posted on July 17, 2012

Pimp Spot! All Bunched Up - Wedding Flowers and a Whole Lot More

Hello There!

I wanted to share with you some gorgeous work but the wonderfully talented Kathy Johnson at All Bunched Up

Kathy recently produced some beautiful work for the Belton Woods Open Evening, showcasing their beautiful Hawthorn Suite and her inspired table centres, flowers, chair covers and ties, table-plans, sweet tables and decor.

We were lucky enough to have Kathy design the decor for our wedding celebration at Belton Woods and were blown away by how well she understood our theme and how much creativity she worked with; creating the perfect atmosphere through flowers, table centres, lighting and unique decorative touches.

Kathy’s also worked with many of my couples in the past, producing some of the most beautiful bouquets I’ve seen. She’s now a favoured supplier at many local venues and is helping to create some of the most stylish weddings around

by Samantha Hook Posted on April 15, 2012

Emma and Nick’s Vintage Winter Wonderland

Emma and Nick’s wedding was my first of 2012 and what a way to start the new year! Not only did they both look amazing and chose the perfect venue in Derby’s Cathedral Quarter Hotel, they even had snow to make their day even more magically romantic.

As you can see, Emma has an amazing sense of style. I LOVED her vintage gown and this was complemented perfectly by her hair and make up styling. The result was a real sense of classic Hollywood glamour. Luckily Emma also added a vintage inspired fur stole which was great for adding texture to her portraits but, more importantly, helped keep her warm when we ventured into the snow.

With “The Artist” about to win big at the Oscars I had lots of inspiration for ways to match this sense of old school movie magic in their photography. I was also gifted a gorgeous staircase and some funky lighting in the venue as well as some wonderful snow (the proper settling kind!) and some beautiful architecture - so there was no shortage of ways to add a touch of drama.

But wedding’s aren’t just about the photographs (so they tell me anyway!) Emma and Nick’s day was made the success it was by their wonderful guests who were all ready to party. Of course this meant I had lots of opportunity for natural, reportage photography too!

The Cathedral Quarter Hotel in Derby not only served as the perfect backdrop to Emma and Nick’s big day but everyone there worked their hardest to ensure the day was wonderful.

My only disappointment was that I missed the snowball fight that happened in the early hours - I honestly can’t think of a better way to end a wedding celebration!

Derby Cathedral Quarter Wedding

by Samantha Hook Posted on February 26, 2012

New Year - New Family!

Hello! As many of you already know, I’ve been a little busy. And I’m very pleased to announce that on 23rd December 2011 Eloise Arwen Sutton finally made her appearance. Now we’re a little biased here at Casa Sam but I can tell you that she is pretty darn gorgeous! In the few weeks that she has been with us she has already firmly established herself as “in charge” but who could resist this face!

However, you can’t keep me away from a gorgeous wedding and I was lucky enough to be able to bring my gorgeous girl with me to Derby on Saturday so that I could be a part of Emma and Nick’s big day. I’m so glad I did as it was the perfect romantic, snowy wedding.

Emma and Nick chose the Cathedral Quarter Hotel in Derby for their special day and it was just perfect, from the cocktails to the beautiful surroundings to the wonderful staff who made everyone so welcome. Emma made a stunning bride in impeccable vintage style and both her and Nick were brilliant to photograph, in fact the whole day was a photographer’s dream. I’m only sorry I missed the snowball fight that happened in the small hours of the following morning!

There’ll be more pics later, but in the meantime, here’s a taster of how lovely a winter wedding can be!

by Samantha Hook Posted on February 6, 2012

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