The Coppermines sits in the valley beneath the Old Man of Coniston, a cluster of seventeenth-century cottages at the end of a rough track. Lauren and Karl married there in September 2022. There is no lawn, no staircase, no orangery. There is a fell on each side and weather coming over the top of them, and it made one of the films I am proudest of.
Fairbank Wedding Barn is a different Lake District. Open ground, long views, a high-ceilinged barn with the light coming in through the roof. Rebecca and Ryan married there in June 2024 with a band and a lot of dancing. The Netherwood Hotel is the third kind, a big Victorian house above Grange-over-Sands with the whole of Morecambe Bay laid out below the terrace. Andy and Alex were there in March 2022.
Armathwaite Hall, on Bassenthwaite Lake, is the fourth venue I have filmed in Cumbria, the grandest of them and the furthest north.
Every one of those days had weather in it. Cloud on the tops in the morning, sun by the ceremony, rain by the speeches. The couples who marry here have already accepted that, and the films are better for it.
I'm Chris Oxley. I film weddings at country houses and private estates across the UK.
I started this because when I got married in 2015, we didn't have a videographer. I wanted to build something I wished had existed for us. Films that hold up years later. A real record of a real day, not a montage of prompted moments.
I handle the consultation, the filming, the edit, the grade, and the delivery. I film a limited number of weddings a year, and I'm personally at every one.
Recognition: TWIA Regional Finalist
Venues Include: Grantley Hall, Froyle Park, Storrs Hall, Brympton House and 15+ leading venues
Lake District weddings are destination weddings for almost everyone at them. Guests travel in the day before, stay two nights, and the wedding becomes a weekend. That changes the shape of the day. Mornings are slower. People walk. The pre-ceremony hour has more in it than at a venue an hour from home.
Venues are spread out and the roads between them are slow. Most days are single-site for that reason, with the ceremony on the grounds or in a licensed room and everything else within a hundred yards.
The light is what you are paying for. Water reflects it, fells block it, cloud filters it. A Lake District wedding rarely has the same light for more than half an hour, and that is the pleasure of filming here.
Many wedding videographers arrive with a shot list. I don't. I arrive early, stay quiet, and pay attention. The film comes from what actually happens. I might offer the occasional quiet prompt when it matters, but I'm not staging moments or running through the same poses as everyone else.
I tend to work with couples based in and around London who want something honest. A real record of a real day. Not a highlight reel built from the same five moments as everyone else's.
I film fifteen weddings a year. That number lets me edit every film personally, respond to every email myself, and still show up fully present on your day. Every frame graded and cut by me. No outsourced editing. No house style.
"We don’t even know where to start! Hiring Chris to shoot our wedding video was the BEST decision we made for our wedding. From the first meeting we had to discuss his style and approach, we knew we were on to the right person. Chris’ attention to detail is parallel to none."
"We weren’t originally going to get a videographer but it was worth every penny. The whole day is so much to process that you forget bits after. Having this video to treasure forever was the perfect way to cure the wedding blues."
"Before meeting Chris, we weren’t sure how to appear on film. After working with him, we felt completely comfortable, and he captured every organic moment we wanted."
Give your guests the two-night version. A Lake District wedding with everyone leaving at midnight for a three-hour drive is a waste of the place.
If your ceremony is outdoors, have the indoor plan fully dressed and ready, not as a fallback but as a real alternative. The call often gets made an hour before.
Ask your venue about mobile signal before the day. At The Coppermines there is none, and it is the best thing about it, but the band and the caterers need to know.
Drone footage here is worth having and depends on the site. I check the airspace and the venue's position on it for every wedding before I commit to it in the film.
If you are marrying in the Lake District, send me your date and venue. I take on a limited number of weddings a year so that I can edit every film myself, and I will come back to you personally within a day.
Send your date, venue, and the collection you're leaning towards. If you're not sure, just outline your plans and I'll suggest the right approach. I'll come back to you personally within 24 hours.