Knightor Winery | Dani & Darren
6 Stunning Moments from This Cornwall Wedding That Will Make You Change Your Rustic Barn Wedding Plan
- Real Weddings -
Watch: Dani & Darren | A Maven Visuals Wedding Film
Ever wondered what a small, beautiful & rustic wedding looks like?
Because Dani & Darren absolutely nailed it when they got married at Knightor Winery, located just above the shores of St Austell Bay on the South Coast of Cornwall (an absolutely stunning little wedding venue).
Fortunately they had Maven Visuals Wedding Films along to document it all in a wedding film, so we could share the best wedding moments with you.
Here are our 6 favourite moments from “Dani & Darren | A Maven Visuals 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]
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Moment 1/6: They had the best bridal prep location I’ve seen.
One of the biggest after-thoughts when it comes to planning a wedding is where you’re going to get ready.
You’re going to go there looking like you’ve just got out of bed, so any old venue will do right?
Usually, it’s a parent's house, or a hotel room. If you’re super lucky, you’ve booked a wedding venue with a bridal suite, but even those can be a bit hit or miss.
As a wedding videographer, I often arrive at a bridal prep location and let out a secret deep sigh… another horrible dark orange room with nothing but the make-up artists ring-light to help me.
This is a massive shame, because when you think about it - a bridal party of 4 to 5 is probably going to take a good 3-4 hrs to get hair & make-up done… so the bridal suite is actually around 1/4 of where you’ll spend your day.
However, Dani did something I had never thought of - and booked an Airbnb.
Admittedly the motivation was simply practical, they wanted to have their wedding in Cornwall but lived in the midlands. As a result, they had to find somewhere to sleep… but regardless the house was stunning and super budget-friendly.
Moment 2/6: The Ceremony Room
There’s rarely a barn-style wedding ceremony room that’s easy for me to film, but there was just something that Knightor Winery got right.
I’ve filmed in similar barn-themed ceremony rooms at weddings all over the UK, and Knightor Winery manages to avoid all the common pitfalls associated with them. Here’s some examples
Usually the Windows Suck.
In barns, there’s always a massive window behind the couple so the guests can see them, but it absolutely destroys wedding photographers and wedding videographers alike - because such a strong overpowering backlight (in an otherwise dark room) is almost impossible to film & photograph beautifully.
BUT Knightor Winery’s window was perfect.
The window was perfectly sized to allow light in as intended, whilst keeping it possible for us wedding videographers to work with it to keep the shots looking beautiful.
Usually it feels cramped.
Even the smallest weddings often have wedding guests crammed up against each other, quietly praying the ceremony is brief so they can stop battling their internal claustrophobia.
BUT The Knightor Winery Wedding Barn felt spacious
Although it was a small wedding… it actually wasn’t that small. There were still probably around 80 guests… but Knightor Winery won against the other barns because the room was long. We could stay well out of the way with our cameras, and the guests had all the room they needed.
If Barns aren’t done right… it falls flat
Pinterest shows us what's possible with Barn style weddings, but the reality is it’s sometimes harder to pull off. Get the decor or location wrong and you’re left with flat, orange wedding photos & videos.
BUT Knightor Winery looked Stunning
The 18th Century barn constructed with traditional Cornish granite immediately gives it an atmosphere unlike any other wedding barn ceremony I’ve been to. On top of that, Dani & Darren (assisted by the Knightor Winery team) decorated it in a way that felt full of life and truly them.
Moment 3/6: The Cherry-Blossom Confetti
Knightor Winery gave a unique 18th Century twist to the traditional confetti walk by introducing stairs into the equation.
The initial confetti throw as Dani & Darren walk down the stairs continues to be one of my favourite shots of 2022, and if you’ve spent any time looking around my Devon wedding videography website, you’ve probably seen it!
When it comes to confetti - you want to go with the biggest petals you can.
You also want a great wedding photographer and/or wedding videographer that’s going to organise your guests properly. Usually, the wedding photographer is the one to organise the guests - but as a wedding videographer I’ve been known to do it myself if the wedding photographer would prefer.
If you’re getting married in Devon & Cornwall, or even Knightor Winery itself - you can get the exact same photographer & videographer that Dani & Darren had in a special joint package deal here!
Moment 4/6: The Heart-Wrenching Best Man Speech
We’ve already covered how great the Knightor Winery Wedding Barn was, and the speeches were in the same place - with the barn being expertly converted in just a few minutes by the excellent Knightor Winery staff.
But this was less about Knightor Winery, but instead about how great the best man's speech was.
Best Men typically like to jump on the computer and google 'best man speeches’ or ‘best man speech templates’ (it shows fellas). Luckily for Darren, he decided to have 2 best men, one of whom is a fantastic children's book writer.
After a great build up, sharing stories of the past and going through all of Darrens best qualities - they simply took a moment to acknowledge the pride Darren's mother would have for him, as she had unfortunately passed away before the wedding.
I’m not sure there was a dry eye in the house. It was an expertly delivered, touching moment.
Moment 5/6: The Sparklers
Sparklers are actually pretty dangerous.
As I like to remind guests when I’m filming the wedding - they are literally explosive sticks of fire.
Guests never do what they’re told either, as I’m sure you imagine - and more than once we’ve had sparkler shots ruined by someone not listening and lighting his sparkler prematurely, and I also once enjoyed being stabbed in the back by a drunken grandma wielding one. Unpleasant times.
Dani & Darren had no such issues, because they followed the expert sparkler strategy: grab a few close family & friends and get stunning sparkler photos with a smaller group rather than the entire wedding party.
And the results speak for themselves. Again, some of my favourite sparkler shots of the year.
Moment 6/6: The First Dance
90% of couples are scared about this bit.
If you’re not a dancer (like me) or interested in being the centre of attention (also like me) then the idea of combining both of those things with the first wedding dance is horrifying.
The thing is… it’s always going to be less awkward if you swallow your fears and go all in.
One of the saddest endings to a wedding can sometimes be “the shuffle”. That thing that awkward folks like you & me do to ‘just get it over with’.
It’s especially sad when the couple signals for everyone to come on to the dancefloor and nobody does…
Dani & Darren were the perfect example of how to do it right - practice a few simple moves, get on the floor, and have a good time with each other.
Whilst you watch their first dance, you can clearly see how they almost forget everyone else is there - their focus becomes each other, and they’re having a laugh like they would in their kitchen.
and it looked great.
A perfect end, to a perfect day.
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 photography & wedding videography team that Dani & Darren 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
Watch The Trailer for Dani & Darren | A Maven Visuals Wedding Film
