I’ve shot at both St Barts & The Oyster Shed before, so I knew what to expect today, though as ever, every wedding is different, because every couple are different.
I started at The Grange St Paul’s where both Morag & Mark were getting ready. I went to Morag’s room where she had all her bridesmaids & her mum with her. It was great to meet Emily & Morag’s sister’s Kirsty & Katryn, I have to thank Katryn at this point for providing us with the wedding quote of the day (probably best I don’t actually tell everyone what it was!).
I met Mark in the bar downstairs where he was having a drink with his brother & best man Jon, & one of his ushers. Always great light in the bar at The Grange, tinged with a little led from the bar lighting. We travelled to St Bartholomew the Great by cab and met the other ushers who checked through the arrangements with Mark while I got some shots of St Barts & guests arriving.
I got some lovely shots of Emily, Kirsty & Katryn outside waiting for Morag to arrive, & some more lovely shots of them together with Morag once she had arrived….very rare to get so much time to get those shots, very pleasing when I do.
The ceremony at St Barts was beautiful, as ever. I’ve shot there many times & every wedding is treated as if it’s the only one they’ve ever done. It’s always good to see everyone at St Barts as they now recognise me & knowing I’ll be discreet they give me free range to shoot as I wish. St Bart’s is designed in such a way that it’s very easy to keep to the shadows & lurk behind pillars. I can get great shots from all angles due to the way the alters are arranged with a walkway all around it. The light is very directional & using it well is always a bit of a challenge, but one that is very satisfying when used effectively. Group shots are great out in the gardens & we had some fun getting them all done. We saved the group shot of everyone for The Oyster Shed later on.
After some group shots & drinks, Morag & Mark & I headed over to The Royal Exchange & got some beautiful shots of just the two of them. I often suggest The Royal Exchange for some photos, once again it’s because of the wonderful light and the pillars there. It also has a wonderful London feel & is rarely very busy on a Saturday.
Everyone else had gone to The Oyster Shed & that’s where we headed next. In other posts as an Oyster Shed wedding photographer I’ve banged on about the wonderful light there, I won’t go on about it, but I do have to just say how wonderful it is working with such beautiful light. Getting the light to work for you is half the job for a photographer & the huge windows all down one side of the restaurant really make it so light & airy it makes it great fun shooting there.
We did a big group shot of everyone shortly after we arrived & did some impromptu groups outside against the river with the Shard in the background.
The speeches were fantastic for getting some great shots of guests, because there was a lot of laughter & a few shocked faces, particularly during Jon’s best man speech….!
I must mention Morag & Mark’s band, Mojo Gang, because they were excellent & kept the dance floor full.
Thanks to Morag & Mark for being such a fantastic couple to work with & Kirsty & Katryn for making it such a fun day!
Also thanks to Sarah at The Oyster Shed for her help & for looking after me on the day.
This wedding was shot at two wonderful London wedding ceremony & London Wedding venues