A Styled Wedding Shoot in Somerset: Behind the Scenes at Everards Farm

Lydia Kraitman
Jan 17
6 min read

Updated: Jan 22

January 17th 2026

I feel incredibly lucky to have spent 2025 working with the most wonderful couples. Couples who trusted me with their weddings, their celebrations, their flavours, and their desserts. That trust is not something I ever take lightly.

But this post isn’t about that side of the work. This is about the bit couples don’t always see.

People toasting at a candlelit dinner, smiling and holding wine glasses. Elegant chandelier and pearls hang above a decorated table.

The behind the scenes.

The collaborations.

The creativity.

The styled wedding shoots.

Back in September of last year, Lucy and I organised a styled wedding shoot at Everards Farm in Somerset. Lucy, founder of Knot & Co, acted as stylist, organiser, and coordinator, bringing her trademark calm, organisation, and joyful energy to a day that had chaos written into its brief. We wanted it to be something different. Something a bit chaotic. Something that showed how food should actually be enjoyed, not just something that looks pretty in the photos. We invited our vendors to be guests and had a wonderful evening eating pies and playing with goats in the dark.

Woman in a forest setting sets a table with glasses and a candelabra. Soft lighting, white tablecloth, and flowers create an elegant mood.

Then winter arrived. Christmas followed closely behind. Suddenly we were wrapped up in the end of the year, the long nights, the lists, the baking, and the general blur that seems to happen somewhere between October and January. We didn’t really have time to process what we’d created on that very wet, slightly chilly, late summer evening in the woods in the heart of Somerset.

And now, sitting by the fire and welcoming in a new year, it felt like the right time to tell you about it.

Bride in white dress with bouquet and groom in black suit stand together outdoors, under wooden arch, both looking relaxed.

For anyone unfamiliar, a styled shoot is a collaborative project where a group of wedding suppliers come together to create and photograph a fully realised wedding concept. There’s no couple who's big day will be ruined if you want to pause and go again, no guests waiting to be fed, and no single moment that can’t be adjusted.

These shoots have become a real necessity in the world of social media, blogs, and the constant need to show your work in a polished, styled, professional manner. If I’m honest, at first I resented it. I’m a pastry chef, not a computer wiz. I want to be in the kitchen, not worrying about algorithms, captions, and whether I’ve posted enough this month.

But as the year went on, something shifted.

Styled wedding shoots became essential in ways I hadn’t expected.

It’s a space to explore ideas, test styling, and see how things actually work together in real life, not just in your head.

For me, they became a chance to experiment properly. To test flavours and menus without compromise. To trial designs and learn what’s actually possible and what needs rethinking.

Four people smiling and shaking hands near a fenced goat pen in a grassy park. Overcast sky and trees in the background. Casual attire.

Everards farm was our venue of choice. It is a special place. Beautifully considered, thoughtfully luxurious, and full of possibility. Owned and hosted by Tracy and Robbie, the venue offers a rare combination of generosity, flexibility, and genuine warmth. A grand hall. A beautiful barn. Gorgeous grounds. A lake. They allowed us access to every corner of the venue, trusted us completely, and oversaw the day with quiet reassurance. Tracy even joined us for dinner, which says everything about the atmosphere they create.

The shoot itself became known as our Chaos shoot. A woodland picnic style wedding. Slightly unhinged elegance. An intimate gathering of friends rather than a formal production. We set the guest number at fifteen, because that’s what Everards can sleep, and I loved the idea of a group of friends spending the day together onsite. Hanging out by the pool or the gym. Exploring the grounds. Visiting Wells. Then coming together at the end of the day to celebrate a wedding with good food, good wine, and good company.

We didn’t want it to feel polished or staged. We wanted it to look like a real wedding. Guests laughing. Food being eaten. Chairs pulled out of place. Styled shoots can sometimes feel too perfect. Empty chairs. Untouched food. This was the opposite.

Lamb resting on a white-clothed table adorned with white flowers and a draped chandelier. Calm, serene atmosphere in a dim setting.

The starting point, unexpectedly, was the arrival of two baby pygmy goats. Flash and Gordon. From there, the idea grew. Dining in the woods. A long table. Candles. Pearls. Ribbons. A full dining setup placed deep among the trees. The table itself was intentionally abundant. Long, layered, and slightly wild. Covered in pies, quiches, salads, bread, cheese, cakes, brownies - seasonal delights highlighting the flavours of somerset. We loved the juxtaposition between the woodland setting and things you wouldn’t normally expect to find there. Chandeliers hanging from branches. Candles dripping wax onto dried leaves. Pearls dangling from trees and ribbons fluttering in the breeze. A full dining table set deep in the woods.

For me, the cake and the food were the most important part. Large plates were passed down the table, people leant across each other to grab a treat, dishes were slices, crumbs were dropped and knives were licked. The cake sat right at the centre of it all, not removed for a formal moment, but woven into the evening. The couple remained part of the party. The sharing style of the meal flowed straight into the cake cutting. No awkward pause. No calling everyone over. Just another part of the celebration, allowing the cake to work as both centrepiece and food, rather than a separate moment that pulled focus away from the purpose of the night.

For the flowers, we wanted something equally unexpected. Wild. Thoughtful. Natural. Without even being asked, the floral designs were entirely food safe. Designed by Immy of Immy Heloise Floral Design, the tablescape felt alive rather than decorative. Her knowledge, creativity, and instinct for restraint resulted in something utterly unique and completely at home in the setting.

Bride in white dress and pearls with groom in tuxedo feeding goats through a fence. Rustic setting, emotional and joyful mood.

Capturing all of this required a calm eye. The light wasn’t ideal. The rain arrived. Darkness fell faster than expected. But the day was documented in a way that feels natural, warm, and real by Harry of Nolan Media, who covered both photography and videography. Even when conditions weren’t on our side, he arrived with lighting, experience, and problem-solving that made everything work. Supporting the video coverage were Erin and Peter , ensuring nothing was missed as the evening closed in.

Woman with long red hair takes a photo outdoors. She's smiling, wearing a lace top. In the blurred background, a couple sits on the grass.

Alongside that, the quieter moments were caught too. The close-ups. The in-between bits. The behind the scenes. The moments that don’t always make it into the polished final gallery but matter just as much. This perspective was captured beautifully by Hannah of Wild Cherry Content, who documented the day in a more relaxed, observational way, while also being the kind of person who quietly steps in to help whenever needed, and is also the queen of organising styled shoots - we learnt a lot from her.

The stationery tied everything together beautifully. Menus and place names that felt considered, original, and completely at home on the table. Created by Ella of Francis and Fable, the designs fitted the aesthetic perfectly, and she was so patient while menus and guests were finalised. I am now on a personal mission to fill my office with as many of her samples as I can.

A couple embraces warmly at night, dressed in formal attire. The woman wears pearls. A soft, joyful atmosphere with blurred people in the background.

We didn’t want models who hadn’t met before. We wanted a real couple. This is where Sara and James came in. They brought laughter, ease, and genuine connection to the shoot. They weren’t performing. They were just being themselves. That natural dynamic runs through every image, and you can tell that they often forgot that the cameras were there.

Hair and makeup were bold, elegant, and intentional. Hair by Lily of Tranquility Hair created a beautifully styled up-do that tied perfectly into the overall look, while makeup by Gowree brought a striking glamour that held up through the entire day and into the evening.

A black goat stands among flowers and a tiered cake adorned with pearls, lit by warm candlelight in a dark, moody setting.

And then there were Flash and Gordon. Beautifully behaved. Completely unfazed by chandeliers, cameras, candles, and the madness of a woodland dinner in the dark.

Shoots like this give space to experiment. To ask what is really doable when you let your mind run wild. They’re not just helpful for suppliers, but for couples too. They show what’s possible when you loosen the rules a little. When you trust people to do what they do best. When you allow ideas to evolve rather than forcing them into neat boxes.

Bride and groom joyfully toast with guests outdoors. She wears a white dress and holds flowers. Celebratory mood in a lush, green setting.

Working on shoots like this has opened my eyes to the skills of the vendors I get to work alongside. To the joy of collaboration in an industry where so many of us usually work alone. I feel more connected than ever. I’ve made friends. Proper ones. And I feel incredibly lucky to have spent the last twelve months meeting and working with such talented, generous people. I now have people willing to eat my recipe trials and have learnt things I could only find out by doing. Most unexpectedly, I bonded with a team of vendors who have supported Lydia Kraitman Cakes in a way I could never have imagined. What started as a practical necessity quietly became one of the most creatively fulfilling parts of the work. We even had a Christmas party!

I can’t wait to see what 2026 brings.