Charlie and Callum celebrated their wedding at Mar Lodge Estate, surrounded by ancient woodland and the mountains of the Cairngorms National Park. Just outside Braemar, it’s a place that feels properly immersed in the Scottish landscape — grand in scale, but surprisingly intimate once everyone is gathered inside.
Their spring wedding made the most of both sides of Mar Lodge. Outside, the estate opened up into woodland, mountains and huge Highland skies; inside, the warmth and character of the lodge created a completely different atmosphere as the day moved from ceremony to dinner and eventually the dancefloor.
I photographed the wedding predominantly on 35mm film, alongside medium format and digital. Film felt particularly at home here. The softer colours of the landscape, old interiors, changing Highland light and darker evening spaces all brought something different to the photographs.
As always, I wanted the setting to be part of the story without turning the wedding into a photoshoot. We took a little time to make portraits around the estate, but much of the day was photographed as it happened — conversations, family, friends, movement and all the smaller moments unfolding around Charlie and Callum.
By evening, the scale and quiet of the Cairngorms had been replaced by a packed dancefloor inside Mar Lodge. From the stillness of the landscape to the chaos of the party, it was exactly the kind of contrast I love documenting on film.
Photographing a Wedding at Mar Lodge Estate
Mar Lodge Estate is an incredible place to photograph a wedding because there’s so much variety without ever needing to travel far from the celebration. Sitting within the Cairngorms National Park near Braemar, the estate is surrounded by woodland, open landscape and mountains, giving the photographs an unmistakable sense of place.
What I particularly love about photographing here is the contrast between outside and in. The scale of the landscape can make everything feel huge and cinematic, while inside Mar Lodge the atmosphere becomes warmer, darker and much more intimate.
The Stag Ballroom is probably the most distinctive example of that. Its historic interior and extraordinary collection of antlers create a setting unlike almost any other Scottish wedding venue. As the daylight disappears and the evening takes over, those darker interiors work beautifully with the grain, colour and atmosphere of 35mm film.
The estate also means portraits don't need to become a major expedition. Woodland, the lodge itself and views towards the Cairngorms are all close enough that we can step away for a short walk, make some photographs and get you back to your guests rather than losing an hour of the wedding day.
If I could give one piece of advice to couples planning a wedding at Mar Lodge, it would be to leave a little flexibility in the schedule. Light and weather can change quickly in the Highlands. If there's suddenly ten minutes of incredible light over the mountains, having enough breathing room to step outside and make use of it can result in some of my favourite photographs of the day.
Mar Lodge doesn't need much interference. Give the landscape, the building and the people enough space, and there's already an enormous amount there to photograph.
