Pengenna Manor Wedding Photographer

What a Pengenna Manor wedding photographer is working with

Pengenna Manor sits in a quiet valley at Trelill, near Wadebridge, three miles inland from the North Cornish coast. At its heart is a 13th-century manor house with an Elizabethan wing, surrounded by converted barns, two acres of gardens and more than 300 acres of farmland. It has been the same family’s home for around 160 years, and it is always booked exclusively, so the whole place is yours.

Weddings here are relaxed and outdoorsy: a ceremony in the orchard or the walled garden, drinks on the lawns, dinner in the Cowyard Barn or a marquee, and guests staying on site in the house, the barns or the glamping field. Dogs are welcome too.

An old family house in its own valley, and the whole place is yours for the weekend.

The ceremony spaces at Pengenna Manor

Outside, the Summerhouse stands at the end of an avenue of heritage apple and cherry trees, looking down the valley, and seats up to 150. The Walled Garden in front of the Elizabethan wing lets you marry under the arch of the original 450-year-old front door, and the Rose Arbour at the bottom of the lawns looks out over the old walls and the valley; both take up to 80.

Inside, the Cowyard Barn is a 200-year-old cowshed with a vaulted beamed roof and a stepped floor, so everyone can see, for up to 150. The restored Stables, with cobbles, shutters and bare stone, take 65, and the Drawing Room, with its mullioned windows and wood burner, suits a tiny wedding of up to 20.

How I photograph a Pengenna Manor wedding

Choosing a Pengenna Manor wedding photographer is really about choosing someone you are happy to have around all weekend. I have photographed weddings across Cornwall since 2009 and I work quietly and unobtrusively, so most of your guests will only notice me when the previews arrive the next morning. A good Pengenna Manor wedding photographer should know the venue’s spaces before the day, so I will walk the gardens and barns with your timeline in mind and plan where the light will be.

A Pengenna Manor wedding photographer has a lot of variety to work with: old stone, orchard, walled garden, barns and open valley, all within a few minutes’ walk. I keep portraits short and close to the party, and I use the late light down the valley rather than dragging anyone off for half an hour.

Documentary first, but not rigid: family group photos from your list, a few short portrait walks with gentle direction, and as much or as little posing as you want. Inside the barn I work without flash until the dancing starts, so the evening looks like candlelight and festoons, not a flashgun.

Planning your Pengenna Manor wedding photography

Pengenna is a weekend venue, so think about whether you want the welcome drinks or the day-after brunch photographed as well as the wedding itself. On the day, leave twenty minutes free before sunset for the Rose Arbour and the valley: it faces out over open countryside and the evening light is the best of the day.

If rain comes, the Cowyard Barn and the Stables give you two good indoor options, and I will plan both versions of the day with you beforehand. As your Pengenna Manor wedding photographer I am based in Cornwall, so there is no travel charge. There is more on my Cornwall wedding photographer page, and a full Cornish barn wedding in Tiffany and Ben’s day at Nancarrow Farm.