The reception of Carolyn & Marc’s wedding took place at the Lamb Tavern in Leadenhall Market in the City of London. The Market itself is absolutely beautiful, and I completely fell in love with the lovely pub with all its gorgeous details and wonderful atmosphere (not to mention the amazing food!). I will definitely be going back – hopefully to shoot lots more weddings. :D

I don’t usually plan the pictures I want to take at a wedding in advance, since I want to let my mind, and eyes, to be free to react to what ever is happening around me. But prior to this wedding, knowing where the reception would be taking place, the one picture I knew I really wanted to get was the bride and groom with the beautiful market as their backdrop. I managed to drag Carolyn & Marc away from the festivities just before our time came to an end, and finished the day with the picture I’d had in my head, the last one in this entry. It literally was the last frame I shot and I couldn’t be more pleased with it.

I had so much fun at this wedding and I want to thank Marc and Carolyn for putting their faith in me and trusting me to ‘do my thing’ on the day. I’m still gutted I couldn’t stay for the whole night and thus missed Marc performing with his band – until 4am I hear! What a great party, you guys, quite literally, rock.

The best thing about having a photographer as a client, was the amount of time that was scheduled into the wedding day for photography with just the bride and groom. It was such a luxury to be able to spend some time alone with Carolyn and Marc, trying out a few different locations for some cool portraits. At most weddings I’m lucky if I get the bride and groom alone for 15 minutes! I do think the shots we did get prove what a difference it does make to add in some extra time for portraits into your schedule on the day.

Leaving the Townhall, our first stop was Carolyn & Marc’s hotel, The Rookery, tucked away in an alley behind Smithfields Market, which really was a real gem. If you are looking for a sumptuous weekend break in London, or indeed an atmospheric place to spend your wedding night, be sure to check this beautiful little hotel out! We found lots of interesting places within the hotel and it’s patio area to shoot in. On our way to the reception at Leadenhall Market, we stopped for some more shots with the City as a backdrop – I really love the way these turned out. Oh yes, and the shoes. While I’m usually all about the bride’s shoes, on this occasion I couldn’t very well ignore Marc’s cool footwear! :D

Carolyn & Marc got married at The Old Marylebone Townhall, which is an impressively imposing building, and a really beautiful setting for a civil ceremony. I loved photographing all the details of this wedding, from what the bride and groom wore, to the flowers and the all the individual touches. Also, the guests, from France, UK and further afield, where by far the coolest customers we’ve ever had the pleasure of photographing.

The fact that Marc himself is an accomplished photographer, added some extra pressure – in a good way. Obviously I always want to give my clients my best, but knowing that another photographer has chosen you to record something so important, really makes you bring your A-game. I have to add that Marc behaved himself impeccably well (despite Carolyn and I teasing him mercilessly for trying to check out my settings :P), even though I know how hard it is for a photographer to hand the control of photography over to someone else.

This wedding is also a testament to what a difference it makes to have two of us photographers present instead of just the one. Just take a look at Susanna‘s amazing shots of guests on the underground and on the streets, which she took travelling to the reception venue while I was off taking portraits of C + M. This is something the bride and groom would never have witnessed were it not for there being two of us. Susanna’s first love, street photography, really shines through in the kick ass shots she captured at this wedding. Love them.

There’s plenty more to come so stay tuned.