Chloe + Crawford

12 Sept

Chloe and Crawford tied the knot in August at Chloe’s family parish, St Michael's in Forres, followed by a lively celebration at her family home, Cluny Farm, on the stunning Moray coast in northern Scotland. With two sisters, Eve and Ellie, as bridesmaids, along with her best friend Lydia, Chloe was surrounded by her closest loved ones.

The day started with bridal preps at Cluny Farm, where the atmosphere was warm, fun, and filled with excitement. While Chloe’s dad, Robert, was busy putting the finishing touches on the marquee, her mum, Kirsty, was getting ready inside the house with their daughters. The weather was a bit windy with brief spells of rain, but when the sky cleared, I took the opportunity to capture some epic aerial shots of Cluny Farm with the drone, set against a dramatic, moody sky.

After the bridal preps, I headed to St Michael's Church, where Crawford made a memorable entrance in his "Bandit Beer" branded Land Rover – a very cool arrival for a groom. As guests began arriving, I switched into 'ninja mode,' capturing those candid moments of love and joy shared among friends and family.

The church, a picturesque 13th century building nestled amongst trees and set in a field beside the River Lossie, provided the perfect backdrop. As Chloe arrived with her dad, Robert, the sun broke through the clouds, making for a truly beautiful moment. Standing at the top of the aisle alongside the awesome photographer and all-around nice person, Laura (from Eilidh Robertson Photography), I captured Crawford just before the bridal march, his calm demeanor tinged with excitement and anticipation. The bridesmaids led the way, followed by Chloe and her dad, and it was a heartwarming privilege to witness that father-daughter moment as they walked up the aisle together.

The ceremony was traditional, filled with love and happiness, and a joy to film. Once the vows were exchanged, everyone made their way back to Cluny Farm for the reception. Despite the blustery weather, guests either sheltered in the marquee or enjoyed drinks and canapés on the lawn. After the photos and canapés, the speeches began, and they were incredibly heartfelt – even I found myself with a lump in my throat at times.

As the evening progressed, Laura and I took Chloe and Crawford out for a stroll around the fields to catch the golden hour light. We were fortunate to have the sun make an appearance, casting a gorgeous glow over the stunning landscape. This created some amazing footage of the couple in the beautiful setting.

With the band set up, we returned to the marquee for the first dance. Chloe and Crawford chose the classic “Daydream Believer” by The Monkees, which was an awesome choice as I’ve loved the Monkees since I was knee-high to a grasshopper. Anyway, I captured about 30 minutes of disco and ceilidh dancing, and the floor was packed with guests having the time of their lives, making it easy to film all the fun and laughter.

Once I had everything I needed, I made my exit, leaving the party to continue late into the night.

I asked Chloe and Crawford to answer my usual four questions and below are their answers.

Can you give me a brief rundown of your wedding day?:

We started off the day at St Micahel’s Parish Church in Dallas; with a very personal, jolly and heartfelt service held by Reverend Steven Manders, who knows the family well having married two of Crawford’s sisters previously.
We left the church under a flurry of confetti and hopped into Crawford’s old Landrover to our reception which was held at the family farm.
We were so so lucky with the weather, the weeks and days leading up to the wedding had been wet and horrible and although it was a windy day, we managed to miss the downpours which seemed to hit everywhere but Cluny!
Champagne and canapés were served in the tipi marquee before moving onto speeches and food. Following the meal the weather had died down a bit which let out guests relax and socialise in the garden with drinks before our first dance.
The band really got everyone involved and after a couple of ceilidh dances the dance floor was full for the remainder of the night. We finished off with the classic Loch Lomond before leaving our guests to party on.

What do you remember most about your wedding day?:

We both agree that the wedding church service was one of the things we will remember so fondly. The minister Steven has the ability to capture everyone’s attention so well and made our service so personal, funny and genuinely enjoyable for everyone.
Taking a moment out of the day with Laura and Robert as well to walk through the fields by the venue and see the cows/have a moment to ourselves was lovely.

Why did you choose your wedding venue?:

Cluny is Chloe’s family home and where she grew up. It felt right to get married somewhere that was so special and personal to the both of us and our family.

What made you decide to have your wedding filmed?:

The day goes by so quickly and you both experience different parts of the day with different people. Having a wedding video allowed us to look back on the fun moments of the day that we didn’t see, the joy in all our guests faces and have the day captured to look back on as we get older and memories fade. Robert was just amazing on the day, he made us feel so comfortable, was so easy to get along with and just made the day even more special in capturing all the funny, silly and heartfelt moments. I would recommend absoloutley everyone to have their wedding filmed and am so glad that we did.

Chloe + Crawford's wedding // Forres, Scotland