Wedding Films

Looking Back at 2019

Wow, I don’t do blog posts often do I? I should really try to keep up on these more.

So, anyway.. as with every year since I have been filming weddings, I am amazed by my love of doing what I do, the fantastic wedding couples and wedding suppliers I meet along the way and the beautiful places I go to to create wedding videos. I really am so grateful to anyone that books me, recommends me and is at all interested in what I do. It means so much that I get to do this for a living and people enjoy my work.

Something I have really tried to put across to potential couples this year is that my videos are all very much based upon each individual couple. The music I choose, the style of the video and everything is very much tailored to suit each individual wedding. Some wedding films will be a lot more upbeat, others might be more emotional and cinematic, some will be a bit of a party and others might be a bit more mellow. I try to make sure each film is unique, so it’s good to watch a few examples of my work to really understand that rather than watching just one wedding video and thinking that must be my style. I want each wedding couple to feel like their film is unique and not just fit into a format that each video follows.

The wedding industry is a fantastic community and with filming weddings I get to see people at their happiest whilst doing what I love the most. This year, I have had the joy of filming some exceptional weddings with beautiful people from all around the United Kingdom. This year has actually featured a little less travel than usual and I have largely ended up in the Surrey area, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and some slightly further afield in Devon, Kent and London.

I am quite lucky that I quite often get to do so many new venues that I haven’t shot at before, rather than sticking to a select few I like to do something new which always allows me to create fresh, different and unique work. This year I have been to some stunning venues, I will link some of them below and also link to a video (wedding film trailer) from each of these venues:

Grittleton House - Naomi & Ben Wedding Trailer: https://vimeo.com/369440321 - Grittleton House is in the lovely Chippenham in the village of Grittleton right near Castle Combe, a stunning part of the world and Naomi and Bens wedding trailer hopefully shows that off!

Newton Park Barn - Amazingly I filmed two weddings at this tiny little family run venue this year, a small barn in the middle of Milton Keynes (I am based in Salisbury, nowhere near Milton Keynes so how I had two weddings here I will never know!). However, I am so so glad I did as it is a fantastic, intimate venue that has the most stunning scenery and the hills across from the barn are perfect for some beautiful couple shots. Matt & Jess’ wedding from the barn is one of my favourite weddings this year and I love the upbeat style I made their wedding video to, here is a link to that video: https://vimeo.com/360355666

Pennyhill Park - Pennyhill park in Bagshot, Surrey is part of the Exclusive Hotels group and it turns out I filmed 4 weddings at 4 of their venues this year, the others include The Manor Barn in Castle Combe, The Royal Berkshire Hotel and Lainston House in Winchester. They are all STUNNING venues and the weddings were equally stunning and Shanie & Stuarts wedding from Pennyhill Park (featuring a games room!!) was just incredible, that wedding trailer can be seen here: https://vimeo.com/354943454

I have also had the pleasure of shooting at a couple of venues from the Bijou Wedding Group with a fantastic wedding at Botleys Mansion and another stunning wedding at Cain Manor and since then I am delighted that they have invited me to come on as a wedding supplier partner, so hopefully, I will be filming a few more weddings at these beautiful venues! Here is Rebecca & Tims trailer from Cain Manor in July 2019: https://vimeo.com/353404499

I could go on and on about so many of the beautiful weddings and venues that I have filmed at this year but that could get quite boring, but if you are on the search for a wedding venue hopefully some of these suggestions might help!

I can’t finish this blog post before mentioning some of the incredible suppliers I have had the pleasure of working with this year, particularly a few photographers I am lucky to regularly work alongside. The first big mention goes to Alisa Roberts Photography who I am looking forward to working with a lot in 2020 and we both took part in our first ever styled shoot together this year which I will link below! Check out her Instagram, her photos are incredible but more than that she is an infectious personality that will fill every wedding guests day with joy. Also a very very big shout out to Angela Ward Brown much the same can be said about her and her photos continue to blow me away and I love any chance I get to work with her. I can also list so many other amazing photographers I have worked with in 2019 such as Murray Freestone Photography, Nicky Hill Photography, Lydia Stamps, Annamarie Stepney, Rebecca Frost , Joe Short Photography, Anneli Marinovich Photography and many many more!

My first ever styled shoot:

I also actually filmed two wedding right in the centre of Salisbury this year too, despite being based in Salisbury I so rarely ever film weddings here (or at least right in the centre of the city!), but this year that all changed with Abi & Nathans wedding at St Johns Place and Chloe & Henry’s wedding at The Red Lion.

In 2020 I have so many exciting weddings lined up and I feel more than ever that I have a clear vision on what I try to offer to each couple that books me. I hope to provide more value, better wedding videos, more amazing moments and a smile as I do my job every time. Thank you so much to everyone that has booked me in 2020 and at this time I still have some spaces available for anyone that is considering it. I look forward to meeting you all and being a part of your special day.

Thank you for allowing me to do what I do for a living, in return I will work as hard as possible to create unique, creative and special wedding films for you :)

To finish, here is my showreel for 2020 featuring a little snippet of all of the amazing weddings I was lucky enough to film in 2019:

UK Wedding Videography

Okay... so it turns out I haven't been keeping up on my blog posts. In-fact, I have rarely done any blog posts at all, I guess it's all just been a bit too manic! 

So I thought I'd write a general update about my weddings videos in 2017 and what the plan is for Ben Radley Wedding Films going forward in 2018 and beyond. Each year since I started on this crazy journey, it has grown and grown very quickly. I could say 'I didn't expect it', but I love what I do and I have put in the work to make that happen.

Last year (2017) sent me all across the UK I filmed weddings in Cambridge, Gloucester, Somerset, Herefordshire and beyond. As well as in my more local spots such as the New Forest, Bournemouth, Southampton, Winchester and the super local (hometown) Salisbury. Travelling to so many different locations to create wedding videos sparks so much creativity within me as each location, venue and wedding couple are completely different. 

If you need any inspiration for your wedding here are some of the venues I shot at last year: 

This is just a selection, there were many more which I might create a whole blog post about in the future, but these were just the ones I remember at the time of writing! 

I always look back on my films and see constant improvement with each one, so I genuinely always believe the last one I did is the best so far. Each time I tweak and improve, that's how this creative game works, it's never-ending. My wedding videos went through so many changes and improvements last year, the variety of weddings helped with that. What you see of my work now is the most satisfied I have been with the quality of work I produce for my wedding couples. 

In 2018 - the wedding season has already begun - I hope to further grow and expand my reach and variety of weddings that I shoot. I love unique weddings, I love driving to new locations I have never been to before, exploring them on a wedding day and shooting something special. 

I hope Ben Radley Wedding Films continues to work with amazing couples and make creative, unique wedding films. I love what I do, and I genuinely feel a great connection with every couple.  Long may that continue. 

Ben Radley

Below is my 2018 Wedding Film Showreel for those of you that haven't already seen it on other areas of my website: 

Rachel & Jamie | Owl Lodge, Lacock

3rd September 2016

Quite possibly the happiest couple EVER! Rachel & Jamies wedding at The Owl Lodge in Lacock could not have been a rainier more miserable day... BUT it did not matter whatsoever. Rachel & Jamie just smiled their way through the day and adapted without a stress in the world. They just enjoyed themselves and so did every single guest. The rain meant I had to adapt my filming and it really does test your skills as a wedding videographer when you have to find unique couple shots indoors. I fortunately worked with a fantastic photographer in James Green Photographer to come up with some unique shots throughout the day.

I love filming weddings and every time the couple come back overjoyed at what you have produced for them you just know it was all worth it. Rachel & Jamie were so happy with their final package. The wedding trailer below captures the constant joy on their faces throughout their wedding day: 

Becca & Michael | The Clock Barn

28th August 2016

WOW The Clock Barn Wedding Venue in Whitchurch is such a fantastic wedding venue. Filming weddings at The Clock Barn is made so simple by their pinpoint organisation and their almost 'three-tiered' barn with a room for the bride to get ready, a little room at the back for smaller ceremonies and then a large dining hall in the middle which can also be used for larger ceremonies. 

Becca & Michaels wedding was such a happy day, everyone was just so delighted to be there. Filming everyones joy as Becca & Michael tied the knot was just a pleasure. My favourite part of the day was capturing Becca & Michael dancing the night away together. I captured some beautiful slow motion shots of the smiles on their faces as they sung and danced to the music. Their wedding video was a joy to edit and their were some really emotional speeches that helped to a great story of the day. Below you can view Becca & Michaels Clock Barn wedding film trailer:

Feedback:

Ben filmed our wedding day and I couldn’t recommend him more! He was really easy to be around and made you feel at ease in front of the camera lens - he was almost invisible! The films (short and long) are amazing and such an amazing memory for us to look back on and enjoy. Can’t thank you enough Ben!

Ashleigh & Stephen | Rhinefield House

7th August 2016

I was fortunate enough to film two weddings in two days in the New Forest and Rhinefield House is just a dream venue for any wedding videographer. Ashleigh & Steves wedding was another beautifully sunny day and they had their ceremony outside in the grounds of Rhinefield House. Outdoor ceremonies are so nice when the weather is just right! 

The day went perfectly and everyone was so chilled out as they enjoyed games on the lawn with great views of the New Forest all around, so much to film and so many nice shots to put into the final film. One of the highlights of the day was Stephens poem during the ceremony, I immediately knew it would becoming the backing track to their film trailer. I love when something like this just stands out and I can see immediately how I am going to piece the trailer and film together in my head. Everyone danced the way into the night with Rhinefield House looking fantastic. You can view their wedding video trailer below: