Walton Hall sits on an island in the middle of a 26-acre lake, so everyone coming to your wedding crosses an iron bridge to reach you. That is a hard opening to follow. Emily and Craig's day didn't have to try. They met at Big Fellas nightclub in Pontefract, a long way from a Palladian house on an island.
"I turned up in a peach shirt. Peach was the colour scheme. Nobody believed it was an accident, and I stopped arguing."
The VenueWhat Waterton Park gives you
- iAn island and an iron bridge. Walton Hall is a Palladian house from 1767 on an island in a 26-acre lake, and guests come over an arched iron footbridge to get to it. On Emily and Craig's day there were white bows tied the length of the rail and the fountain was going behind them. It is the frame that says Waterton and nowhere else.
- iiThe Gamekeeper's Cottage. The morning happens away from the hotel, in a cottage with oak beams tucked into a corner of the original grounds. Eighteen stone steps up. Worth knowing when you set the timings, and worth knowing before anyone picks their shoes.
- iiiTwo buildings, one lake. You can marry in the historic hall out on the island or in the newer hotel on the mainland, and they will take anything from 6 guests up to 145. Both sides look at the same water.
- ivIt was a nature reserve before it was a hotel. Charles Waterton walled his 250-acre estate to keep the wildfowl safe, which is how the world's first nature reserve ended up in Wakefield. The birds still behave like they hold the deeds. Full venue notes are in my Waterton Park wedding photography guide. This page is the day itself.
A Real Waterton DayEmily & Craig, May
Sunny from the start, and it stayed that way. Here is how the day ran.
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The Gamekeeper's Cottage
Emily got ready in the cottage with her bridesmaids around her. Small rooms, one good window, one wall light. The black and white frame on this page is lit by that lamp and nothing else, hairspray and all. I had arrived in a peach shirt with no idea peach was the colour scheme.
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The Waterton Suite
The ceremony was in the Waterton Suite in front of 62 guests: gold chandeliers, deep blue curtains, a peach sash on every chair. Craig turned round at exactly the right moment. Grooms usually do. The trick is being sat watching him instead of watching the door.
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Confetti, then the geese
Out onto the flags for confetti. Paper hearts everywhere, the whole wedding party throwing, and Emily laughing with one of them halfway into her mouth. Then we walked out into the grounds and met the other residents. A pair of geese had a nest near the water and made their position on passing bridal parties completely clear. Nobody was hurt. I have the pictures.
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The bridge
We saved the bridge for last. White bows along the rail, the fountain running, water underneath, and the two of them at one end of it with the island behind. Ten seconds of standing still is all that picture needs. Everything before it is the reason they can.
"Save the bridge until after the ceremony and don't rush it. The rest of Waterton is lovely. The bridge is the bit that could only be here."
PricingA full day at Waterton Park
A full day of Waterton Park wedding photography starts from £1,800, with no travel charge anywhere in Yorkshire. The pricing page has what's included and the shorter options.
Emily & Craig's SuppliersWho made the day
Venue: Waterton Park Hotel, Walton. Flowers: Michelle's Flowers. Cake: Kelly's Cake Kitchen. Chair covers and styling: Cushty Chair Covers. Cars: Nostell Chauffeur Co. Photo booth: Jellybean Photobooth.
