Backdrop inspiration
Getting married in Suffolk? Give this list of awesome wedding photo backdrop ideas to your photographer to ensure you have a wedding album to treasure forever.
Wedding photographs are an incredibly important part of your big day. At the time, when you’re soaking up every magical moment you won’t realise it, but once the music has ended on the last dance of the night, your wedding album and your memories are the two things you’ll have that will last forever.
If you’ve chosen Suffolk, and Woodhall Manor, as the location for your wedding, then you’re already off to a flying start when it comes to making sure your wedding photos are spectacular. Once you’ve booked your photographer, it’s important to do your homework and think about how you can get the most out of them and your location. This is especially important if your photographer isn’t from Suffolk or hasn’t worked at your venue before.
To help you get the wedding album of dreams from your big day at Woodhall Manor in the beautiful county of Suffolk, we’ve compiled a list of the best wedding photo backdrops at the venue and in the surrounding area. Pass this to your photographer to ensure you get mantlepiece-worthy couple shots.
The 16th century manor house
The historic building of Woodhall Manor itself is a wonderful place to start when it comes to any big day photos, but especially couple shots. Its romantic ivy-covered red brick façade is ornate, but classic enough to make sure you’re still very much the focus of the picture. Use the stone front porch as a natural method of framing, to create a stunning shot that draws eyes to you, the wedding couple, in all your finery. For a more artistic shot move further away from the venue and it’ll blur creatively in the background creating a dreamy aesthetic.
The Dovecote
Woodhall Manor’s Dovecote is a very special outbuilding that looks like something straight out of a fairytale. You can have your ceremony here, as it’s licensed for outdoor weddings, but whether you choose this option or not, it should still be top of your list for a wedding photo backdrop. The enchanting space has a secret garden-like feel to it and a cute little nook with beams inside that is a gorgeous place for a newlywed photo opportunity.
The gardens
Woodhall Manor is surrounded by acres of sublime manicured gardens and in spring and summer, you should focus your attention on all areas of the outside space for your wedding photographs. The flower-covered walkway in the Rose Garden is as romantic as it gets when it comes to couple shots on your wedding day. Stroll through the archway hand-in-hand and get your photographer to capture candid shots of your just-married bliss.
The gateway
One of the first rules of good photography is framing the photo well, and Woodhall Manor’s ornate iron gateway at the top of the drive, is the perfect way to nail this. Stand between the pretty gates with the long drive stretching towards the manor in the background and your perfect wedding photo will be almost guaranteed.
Sharon Cudworth Photography
The fields in front of the manor
If you’re hoping to create a rustic vibe to your wedding, then head out the front of the manor’s grounds to the fields for your wedding shots. You know those pretty photographs of couples standing amongst the crops with the sun setting behind them… that could be you!
The light-flooded rooms of the manor
Having a winter wedding? If you don’t want to shiver in the gardens (although how pretty would a picture look on the frost or snow-covered lawns?), then don’t despair. Woodhall Manor might be historic, but that doesn’t mean it’s dark inside and a remarkable number of the rooms are in fact flooded with natural light, which your photographer will love. The Ballroom, nestled within its own walled garden, the contemporary Cherry Blossom and even the wood-panelled Bishop’s Room are glorious backdrops to use for your photographs.
Sharon Cudworth Photography
Aldeburgh Beach
If you’ve got time between the ceremony and reception or fancy a first look wedding shoot instead, then make the most of Woodhall Manor’s fantastic location within the Suffolk Coast and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. For coastal shots with the sea breeze in your hair and the beach as your backdrop there’s charming Aldeburgh, with its historic houses and broad beach. Head to Maggi Hambling’s The Scallop at Aldeburgh Beach, a huge stainless steel sculpture that will give your wedding photos an arty edge.
Woodbridge
One of the nearest towns to Woodhall Manor is pretty Woodbridge, with colourful, medieval buildings and a lovely location on the River Deben. Wedding couple shots with The Tide Mill Museum and boat-filled river in the background will be a heavenly snapshot of your special day.
Felixstowe or Southwold Pier
Give your couple pictures a traditional seaside style by heading to one the nearby piers – just the two of you and the sea in the background. Plus the long straight lines of the piers’ railings and walkway are a photographers dream.
Rendlesham Forest
If you go down to the woods on your big day you’re sure of a lovely surprise when you see your wedding pictures. Forests are fabulously romantic places for wedding photographs, with shafts of light beaming through the trees and the trunks forming a natural frame to your couple shots. Rendlesham Forest is near the manor, and is the perfect spot for a romantic stroll with your photographer capturing the moment.
