Bignor Park, Pulborough | Toni & Callum
5 Moments That Makes South Downs National Park the Ideal Wedding Location
- Real Wedding -
Watch: Toni & Callum | A Maven Visuals Wedding Film (Trailer)
Take a peek behind the curtain of a wedding held in a stunning hidden rural estate in the heart of West Sussex
In 2021, we covered the wedding videography for the wedding of Callum & Toni at Bignor Park, near Pulborough.
Bignor Park remains, to this day, one of my favourite events I’ve filmed at and some of the nicest venue staff I’ve come across.
Fortunately Callum & Toni had Maven Visuals Wedding Films along to document their day in a wedding film, so we could share the best wedding moments with you.
Here are our 5 favourite moments from their wedding film.
Author: Chris | Wedding Videographer
Chris is a wedding videographer based in Tavistock, Devon. He’s a Blog writer, Wedding Videographer, & most recently a qualified skydiver. [See More]
Moment 1/5: The First Look with the Father of the Bride
I’m not the kind of wedding videographer that tries to pretend wedding video is somehow superior to wedding photos.
If you manage to get a great wedding photographer before they get booked up then the moments they capture will be some of the most impactful and memorable photos you ever have taken in your life.
That said, this is one example of a father of the bride's first look that I think the wedding videographer took the trophy on.
In the film you can rewatch the physical transition from anticipation to glowing pride… a very touching moment that could never be captured on a single image.
Also, I was the wedding videographer… and the wedding photographer isn’t here to defend himself, so it’s easy to declare myself the winner in this instance.
Moment 2/5: When we saw Bignor Park from the Sky
Bignor Park Estate is MASSIVE.
Being Eleven Hundred Acres, it’s crazy that I’d still describe Bignor Estate as “a hidden gem” near the South Downs… But it is.
In addition to its grand gardens (which are perfectly decorated for weddings), the ceremony was performed in a Greek Loggia, with plenty of space around the edges.
This is great for wedding guests with disabilities, large numbers of wedding guests, or just for wedding photographers or wedding videographers like me to sneak around unnoticed during the wedding ceremony itself.
But combine all of that with the aerial footage from the drone, and you have yourself some venue-of-the-year worthy views for your wedding film.
Moment 3/5: This special twist on the traditional wedding confetti walk.
I can’t really remember if I was informed of this bubble walk, or whether the wedding bubbles were a surprise… but they were a welcome gift.
My favourite thing about these shots though (is firstly and foremostly how happy Toni is with her decision to choose bubbles over confetti… but also) the fact that if you look closely you can see the Groom is holding his phone down the aisle as if he has a business call on hold.
(You’ll be pleased to know he didn’t… it’s just his bluetooth failed to connect to the speaker he was using for the ceremony exit music, and so he improvised with the phone speaker instead. Outstanding.)
Moment 4/5: When professional dancers took the first wedding dance.
So, it turns out Callum & Toni both have a background in Drama & Acting.
And it also turns out they’re insanely talented dancers.
And so they decided to dust off the dancing cobwebs and make a real wedding dance… and it was a big hit with the crowd.
It turns out it’s really hard to focus on wedding videography when Callum starts chucking Toni about the sky like she was a tennis ball.
But it looked elegant, skilled, and of all the hundreds of wedding dances I’ve filmed… I reckon it would probably have scored the highest on Strictly Come Dancing.
Moment 5/5: When the party was outdoors
The party was really the peak of this wedding for me personally.
Firstly, it helped that Callum and I knew each other because we both grew up in Tavistock, in Devon. Even though we didn’t know each other personally - we had many mutual friends attending the wedding, so it was great to see people I hadn’t seen in years.
Secondly, the fact that Bignor Park hosts their evening weddings in the Courtyard is the coolest thing ever.
Obviously it relies on good weather, but so many wedding parties happen in some dingy dark corner… and if the DJ is chosen on a strict budget they never have the correct lighting to out-balance the sadness of the overall aesthetic.
When you’re outside however, you can just chuck a CD on through some boombox speakers if you want, you’re still going to get amazing shots.
The perfect mix of cool evening air & the sun slowly setting over the crowd makes for some amazing images.
That also means that even if your dancing is terrible… you’ll still look great in your wedding photos & wedding videos… worth considering.
So, feel free to jump in the conversation!
Which one of these moments were your favourite? Have any made you want to plan your wedding differently?
Remember: If you want the exact same wedding videographer that Callum & Toni had, you can check to see if we’re available here!
In addition, if you’d like to see more of my work as a wedding videographer in Devon, you can do that here.
Happy wedding planning!
Chris
The Trailer for Callum & Toni | A Maven Visuals Wedding Film
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