Wedding Inspired Styled Shoot at Blackfriars Priory, Gloucester

What is a wedding styled shoot, anyway?

A styled shoot is when a group of wedding vendors team up to create beautiful, curated images. Everyone involved usually has different goals: for me, it was a chance to get more UK-based photos and connect with local suppliers. For Mi, it was about designing a moodboard that felt truly her — with pink and green as the key colours.

For other vendors, styled shoots are an amazing opportunity to gather content in the quieter months and bring their brand vision to life.

Another great thing about shoots like this one is the freedom. On a real wedding day, you work with whatever you’ve got, often under time pressure. Here, we could slow down, try new things, and get creative without any of that stress. It’s the perfect playground for wedding creatives.

The setup: A wedding shoot at Blackfriars Priory

We set everything up inside Blackfriars Priory, a beautiful 13th-century venue right in the heart of Gloucester. It’s a pretty well-known spot in the UK wedding scene — full of character, with ancient stone walls and big windows that let in the most gorgeous light.

We styled a round table setup in the main hall. Lynne from Rustic Rentals handled the styling, while Rebecca and her amazing team from Oak & Ivy worked their floral magic. The two of them collaborated beautifully to bring the moodboard to life, with stunning attention to detail.

We also had dreamy stationery by Kate from I Like Pens Studio, including menus, place cards, invites, RSVP cards and more. The detail shots turned out so good — every vendor brought their A-game and the whole thing came together in the most cohesive, Pinterest-worthy way.

The models & styling

We had two setups: a model couple and a model bride. All three of them were absolutely fantastic to work with. The couple had a more alternative look — both heavily tattooed — which created a beautiful contrast with the romantic, ethereal vibe of the decor. It added such an edge to the whole shoot and made the images feel really unique.

The solo bride had a softer, more classic style, but her contrasty hair colour gave the setup an unexpected twist — she looked amazing. All three of them embraced our slightly out-of-the-box ideas with total enthusiasm, and I’m so grateful to them for that.

Hair and makeup were done by Kate and Laura, who incorporated the colour palette and theme perfectly into their work. The result was stunning and tied everything together visually.

We were also lucky enough to have five dresses and two veils to play with, kindly provided by Lavelle Bridal and Rebecca Anne Designs. The veils were embroidered, which added such a romantic, delicate touch — so much fun to photograph!

Final thoughts

This wedding shoot at Blackfriars Priory was an absolute joy. I loved collaborating with such a talented team — every single person was lovely, professional, and brought real energy and creativity to the day.

I’m also really happy with how the photos turned out, and I enjoyed playing around with some video too — something I’d love to keep exploring.

That said, I think it’s important to be transparent about what a styled shoot is. As beautiful as the images may be, they’re not quite the same as real wedding photos. We have lots of time to find the perfect light and pose, and we’re not dealing with tight timelines or unpredictable weather. And while our models were amazing (and the couple really is a couple!), it’s not quite the same emotional intensity you get on a real wedding day — and that emotion is something I genuinely love capturing.

Still, styled shoots are a fantastic creative outlet, and I can’t wait to organise one that’s fully based on my own vision next time.