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Read moreWedding photography at The ICA, London
I love The ICA. It’s a crisp, clean canvass on which to paint. Shelley and Alex obviously felt the same because their extremely laid-back wedding could easily be pictured in the Oxford English Dictionary under “cool”.
At every pre-wedding meeting, we would usually spend about 45 minutes chatting about stuff in general - then fill the last 10% of our time actually speaking about ideas and timings for their day! These guys are stylish: their main brief was that there was no brief.
After half an hour or so at the stunning St Martin’s Lane Hotel shooting the preparations it was a short walk across to the ICA in Carlton House Terrace to catch up with Alex and record the final few moments before the ceremony.
I always revel in the countdown nature to this part of the day. It goes from quiet, to a few people, to everybody - and then that wonderful wedding day tension reaches its climax with the arrival of the Bride. Suddenly there are pictures everywhere and it’s like trying to keep plates spinning.
I’ve been working in London for over twenty years, but every time I walk under Admiralty Arch and down The Mall, it hits me what an amazing city this is. This point is surely never lost on family and friends attending a wedding at The ICA, located at the very epicentre of our famous capital. Buckingham Palace five mins down that way, Churchill’s bunker and war rooms across the road, Horse Guard’s Parade behind that - all with Big Ben and London Eye watching over the scene. Amazing.
This day just flowed. Everything gelled happily and, departing mid-evening, I felt I’d seen a wedding exactly as it should be done. As little fuss as you can make it and as much enjoyment as you can pack in. Good for them.
Below, as usual, are only a few from the overall commission. Click any thumbnail to enlarge...
Sarah & Scott, Wedding photography at the RSA London
When you shoot a wedding at a single location, it can sometimes present as many issues as it solves. Often, where venue staff turn around a room for multiple uses it can impact on timings, restrict guest movement and frankly can look a bit messy.
But there is none of this at the 250-year-old Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, tucked away in John Adam Street, just off the Strand. How can you not adore an organisation founded in a coffee shop?
Early December saw my first shoot at the RSA and it has immediately become one of my favourites because it’s the exact opposite of the the issue outlined above - this venue offers significant variation. I love it.
My clients, Sarah & Scott, wanted a simple, stylish, people day. Their wedding ceremony took place in the vaults, three floors below street level, an atmospheric environment enhanced by candlelight. It was interesting, historic, romantic and thoroughly appropriate for December.
Once married, it was up into the Great Room for drinks and ultimately the guests settled into the gorgeous, contemporary Benjamin Franklin Room for the wedding breakfast. This was one of those commissions that whizzed by, an absolute pleasure to shoot.
I was so grateful to be welcomed in and generously treated by the family. Their calm, genuine ambience contributed to a very personal set of photographs, exactly what we all hoped to obtain.
As usual, here are just a few to give a flavour of the day. Click any thumbnail to enlarge...
