Church Wedding Photography

Church Wedding Photography in the UK

Church wedding photography is hugely varied in this country, because there’s so many types and varieties of church, with different lighting, atmosphere and restrictions. All of that will affect the photography to some extent. When couples decide to have a church wedding ceremony, it’s usually because of their belief, or some sort of family connection. That significance is more important than the photography for sure, but there are certainly ways of getting superb pictures of your ceremony, whilst still respecting the ceremony, guests and church.

Lighting At Church Weddings

If your photographer is well versed with working in different environments, then this really shouldn’t be a problem. From cavernous Abbeys with shafts of sunlight, to a modern, low-ceilinged Methodist church with fluorescent tubes, I’ve photographed every kind of wedding you can imagine. With the right experience, a wedding photographer will be able to use the light to their advantage and capture superb moments wherever you get married. Even a candlelit dusk ceremony in December does not need distracting flash, so it’s possible to keep the atmosphere you wanted and still get amazing pictures.

Church Photography Restrictions

Sadly, most church officiants have had a bad experience with a wedding photographer in the past. This may be because they used a lot of distracting flash, a loud camera or moved around a lot during the ceremony, distracting the couple and guests. It might not have been a professional photographer – in fact it’s likely to have been a family friend, doing the couple a favour. But that experience will lead an official to place blanket restrictions on all future photographers. Common restrictions range from no photography at all, only from the back, no flash or only after the signing. If you’re faced with any of these restrictions, I’d advise asking your photographer to speak with the church. When I’m commissioned for church wedding photography here’s how I work:

• I use totally silent cameras, so there’s no constant clicking
• I don’t use flash at all
• I’m respectful of the couple, guests and church
• I photograph from behind the vicar or priest
• I move quietly during hymns

Unless you can persuade them that your photographer will work with the utmost respect and not be distracting at all, then you may not get any photographs of the ceremony.

Check out some of my recent Church wedding photography below, so you can see how I capture the mood and atmosphere without distracting from the importance of the occasion.