Evelyn and Chris were married at Southover Grange, one of the first weddings there after its restoration and relaunch. It’s a beautiful setting in the heart of Lewes, with immaculate gardens and light-filled ceremony rooms that open straight out onto the lawn. For couples planning a wedding in East Sussex, it’s hard to find a registry venue that feels quite so considered.
They kept the tone relaxed from the outset. Both are doctors and have spent much of their lives travelling, so much of the planning happened from afar. You would never have known. The day felt calm, thoughtful and well held by family and friends.
Evelyn began the morning in East Dean, in a house overlooking Belle Tout Lighthouse. The views across the Cuckmere Valley are some of the best in this part of East Sussex, and even before the ceremony the landscape felt like part of the story. From there she travelled to Lewes to meet Chris at Southover Grange for their ceremony.
Afterwards, rather than heading straight to the reception, we drove to Seaford Head for portraits. It was the middle of a heatwave. The grass had turned yellow and the cliffs looked almost bleached in the sun, but it was striking in its own way. Evelyn and Chris were more than happy to hop a stile and walk through the fields in their wedding clothes. That sense of adventure suited them. As an East Sussex wedding photographer, having places like Seaford Head and Beachy Head within reach makes days like this possible.
The reception took place back in Seaford, in a marquee set up in Chris’s mum’s garden. She is a keen gardener and regularly opens the space for local events, and it showed. The borders were full, the details personal, and the whole setting felt deeply connected to family. It was less about spectacle and more about welcome.
As evening fell, they honoured Chris’s Scottish heritage with a Ceilidh. The energy lifted quickly. Dancing spilled across the marquee floor and the garden beyond, laughter carrying late into the night.
From Lewes to Seaford and along the cliffs of East Sussex, this was a wedding that made the most of its surroundings. Personal, relaxed and rooted in the landscape they call home.
