Montse & Paco – Sunset Engagement Session at Stourhead National Trust
Montse and Paco came all the way from Mexico to have their engagement photos taken at Stourhead. Montse had a clear idea of where she wanted their session to take place. She loves Pride and Prejudice and was drawn to the architecture and landscape at Stourhead, particularly the temple and the surrounding nature.
We had their engagement session in August, planned for the evening ( sunset) . We met at the Lakeside Entrance at 5 pm and had a short chat before meeting Anna from the National Trust. Anna kindly showed us around and helped us move between locations using a small buggy, which made the session easy and fun. She also brought a bottle of champagne to celebrate the engagement, which was a lovely addition while we enjoyed the views from the Temple of Apollo.
Even though the weather was quite grey and there wasn’t a visible sunset, we had a really wonderful time walking, chatting, and creating natural images for Montse and Paco.
Planning Engagement Photos at Stourhead
Stourhead is managed by the National Trust. Personal photography is allowed, but engagement sessions and professional photography need to be arranged in advance with the Stourhead team. At the time of writing this blog post, the photography fee for an engagement session at Stourhead was around £150. This fee also helps support the maintenance of the gardens and architecture.
Our session lasted around 1.5–2 hours, which gave us enough time to chat before we started and move between different locations without rushing.
If you’re planning engagement photos at Stourhead, it’s worth booking in advance, as some dates can be booked up. From my experience, an evening session works particularly well. It usually takes place shortly after Stourhead closes to the general public, and you can often have large areas of the grounds to yourselves.
It’s also important to consider the time of year. If you’re planning a couple session in winter, check sunset times and when the session can realistically start, as daylight is much shorter.
If you’re thinking about an engagement session or proposal at Stourhead and want something relaxed and natural I’d love to help you plan it.
