A love story...


Once upon a time... well all stories start like that don't they. Weddings are part of the love story and recently I thought how lovely it would be to share some of the love stories of couples whose weddings I have photographed.


I've stayed in touch with Nicola & Kiel, recently catching up to do some family photography for them, so thought it poignant they be on of the love stories. I was so happy they wanted to share it. I mean, what's not to love about love...

Wedding couple sitting on a bench on New Walk, Leicester, outside The Belmont Hotel on their wedding day.

Nicola & Kiel


Kiel and I actually met over a fence way back in 2004, when we were just 17. He came to visit my next-door neighbour, who he had met at his college. Kiel always takes the mickey out of me when we talk about this as it was warm day, and I chose to get my sun lounger out and set it up to chat as I couldn't be bothered to stand. So, I thought I'd get it out and relax instead. He always says to me, "Who sunbathes in the front garden?" I definitely wasn't sunbathing, but I just couldn't be bothered to stand up!


Anyway, as Kiel came up this way a lot over the early summer holidays, we became closer and worked out that we had lots of friends in common. Although we had never met before this, and we lived only a few miles apart, it was strange that we had never crossed paths earlier. 


We spent most of the first few weeks of summer together, just walking along the canal with our friends, chatting away and quietly falling in love. 


After a few weeks, all of a sudden, we kind of just stopped hanging out together. 

Kiel got into fishing with his friends, and I had lots going on myself with babysitting my younger brother. So we didn't really meet again for around four or five weeks after this, until one day I just thought, "I'm going to call him and ask him if he wants to catch up."

I had his mobile number, but I wasn't allowed to call mobiles from the landline, as I'm sure you will remember — it was so expensive to do that! But my mum was out, so I thought, "What the hell, I'll do it!


Over the next few days and weeks, we became really close again, seeing each other again and staying up late in the kitchen just talking about, well anything. Kiel says its one of his favourite memories those late night chats together. 


Kiel's late mum would called him to come home, he would bike all the way home and then run down to the phone box to call me so we could talk again. He says it was 20p for 15 minutes back then, so he would save up his 20ps from selling sweets and crisps at college which was banned back then "thanks to Jamie Oliver's health kick in schools and colleges" to call me in the evenings.

Black and white wedding photo of a newlywed couple waving to guests at The Belmont Hotel, New Walk, Leicester
Black and white photo of a bride dancing in her dress on New Walk, Leicester after getting married at The Belmont Hotel.

Come, probably early October, Kiel had unfortunately lost his beloved nan. He told me on the phone how much she meant to him and how devastated he was to lose her. I thought I would try to cheer him up and invited him down to listen to music and snacks.


So, after a difficult day at the funeral, he came down and we just sat and listened to "The Box" on TV by the fire. We talked about his nan, my family, and just about life in general. We had both had tough upbringings, so we had a lot in common, with Kiel always having a busy home life with lots of family challenges, and me having lost my beloved dad the October before. 


After many hours of talking that night and just blurting out everything that would probably scare the average normal 17-year-old off, it was here, that night in front of the fire, that we actually said to each other that we really liked each other more than a friend.


Now, thinking back, we were both head over heels in love, but being 17 and still young, we said to each other, "I really like you, like more than a friend."


That was 22 years ago and if I'm honest it we often said in the past we should have met earlier or we should have got married earlier, had children earlier etc. but truthfully we have come to realise things just happen at the right time for us and not when we think or even others think things should happen and its worked out perfectly. 


We are just as in love now as we were at 17 and we have spent more time together than we have ever have apart.


Nicola & Kiel had an autumn wedding and said, 'I do' at the lovely Belmont Hotel, New Walk.

Photograph of a wedding couple just married at The Belmont Hotel, New Walk, Leicester, kissing in the park opposite the hotel.