Halfway Through 2025 — A Wedding Photography Recap 

Written By Oliver Holder
A favourite wedding photograph from the first half of 2025 by Oliver Holder
Halfway Through 2025

Brighton · Kent · London · Bristol

A Mid Year Recap · January to July 2025

Six months, a dry hire warehouse in Brighton, a nature reserve in Kent and the usual run of London town halls. Sixty eight photographs from the first half of 2025, as it actually happened.

The Story So Far

Every summer I stop for a minute and look back at where the year has taken me, usually at exactly the point the schools break up and everybody else leaves for the sun. The first half of 2025 brought some proper highlights. Working at Fabrica, a stunning dry hire wedding venue in a former church in Brighton, was one. Another was Elmley Nature Reserve in Kent, where you photograph a wedding while marsh harriers drift over the ceremony and the sun goes down behind the reeds.

The Morning

Champagne in pyjamas, the last of the hair and make up, and the moment a room full of bridesmaids sees the dress for the first time. The quiet hours are where the day actually begins, and where the first tears usually turn up.

The bride in pyjamas opening champagne in the kitchen on the wedding morning Bride laughing with a glass of champagne as she gets ready with her bridesmaids Bridesmaids applauding and welling up as the bride reveals her dress Bride laughing with delight once her dress is finally on Close up of a pearl covered sleeve as the bride is helped into her dress The bride’s father seeing her in her dress for the first time Groomsmen in tartan kilts getting ready together before the ceremony Two boys in black tie fidgeting in the pews during the ceremony Bride standing in a shaft of light in a dark chapel Bride pausing beside a framed photograph of a loved one who could not be there

The Ceremony

Town halls, flint churches, barns and one ceremony watched entirely from under umbrellas. There is no second take at any of it, which is why I get there early, work out where the light is falling, and then stay well out of the aisle.

Bride walking down the aisle with her father in a panelled ceremony room Guests packed together under umbrellas in the rain to watch the ceremony A young guest in sunglasses and a bow tie clapping during the ceremony Groom laughing as he puts the ring on the bride’s finger Bride and groom walking back down the aisle at an outdoor ceremony Bride and her bridesmaids in black dresses laughing outside a flint church Bride sitting alone on a lit staircase in a darkened room

Confetti and the Way Out

Ten seconds of complete chaos that everybody remembers afterwards. Steps and doorways do half the work, stacking your guests so that every face is visible in the frame.

Bride and groom walking down the steps through a huge confetti shower Bride and groom in a confetti shower outside a grand entrance at night Bride and groom leaving through a confetti shower on the town hall steps Bride throwing her bouquet in the air on the steps in a confetti shower Bride and groom walking through a confetti shower on a bright summer day Bride standing with her arms outstretched in a shower of confetti Groomsmen spraying champagne outside a stone church Bride and groom leaving in a classic car as guests line the church wall

Portraits

Twenty minutes, no more. That gap between the ceremony and the wedding breakfast is the only quiet the two of you get all day. An hour is too long, and everybody starts wondering where the drinks have gone.

Bride holding her bouquet aloft, veil flying, with her wedding party behind Bride and groom walking hand in hand down a London street Bride lying back across a stone ledge on a city street beside her groom Bride in a short dress and groom in black leaning against a dark wall Groom lifting the bride between fountains on a sunny day Bride and groom sitting on confetti covered steps against an old brick wall Bride and groom embracing in a narrow doorway Bride and groom walking across a black and white tiled floor beneath a chandelier

Speeches and the Wedding Breakfast

The best speeches make a room laugh and then quietly take the legs out from under everybody thirty seconds later. I spend this part of the day watching the listeners rather than the speaker, because that is where the photographs are.

Guests wiping their eyes during an emotional speech at the wedding breakfast A guest giving a speech in a barn as the bride wipes away a tear A guest in a curly wig delivering a speech into a microphone A bridesmaid delivering a speech with a microphone under a glass roof A guest resting their head on the table during a long candlelit dinner A guest laughing at the dinner table over a plate of food Close up of the couple’s hands as they cut the wedding cake A child guest lying on the ground being handed a drink

Everything In Between

The frames that fit nowhere else, which are usually the ones I like most. Garden games, a magic trick at the bar, two guests putting the world right in a dark corner, and a bride pausing beside a photograph of somebody who could not be there.

A guest playing garden games on the lawn in front of a country house orangery Guests drinking bottled beer together outside in the sunshine Guests helping each other finish a drink outdoors after the ceremony Guests laughing and pulling faces during the drinks reception Guests laughing together over drinks at the reception Guests reacting with delight to a magic trick at the bar Two older guests deep in conversation in a dark panelled room The bride’s parents laughing together in a doorway Bride laughing beside a red brick wall with her groom holding her

The Dance Floor

The final chapter, and the part I would never want to miss. I tend to stay for about an hour after the first dance, longer if you want me to, because this is where people stop being wedding guests and go back to being themselves.

Bride and groom dancing alone in a spotlight on a dark dance floor Bride and groom resting their heads together during their first dance Bride and groom sharing their first dance as guests look on Bride spinning her dress out across the floor of a candlelit room Bride and groom kissing in the middle of the evening party, drinks in hand Bride reaching out with a drink in the dark of the evening party Guests dancing closely together on a packed dance floor A guest swinging their partner around the dance floor as the crowd cheers A guest in a pink suit and hat dancing with his arm in the air Bride and groom holding each other close in the dark of the evening Groom dancing with guests crowded around him A guest in sunglasses drinking straight from the bottle on the dance floor Groom throwing himself into the dance floor surrounded by guests A guest spraying beer over another guest during the evening party Looking down on the dance floor from above as guests dance on wooden boards Guests dancing under coloured lights and smoke Guests dancing wildly, one with his shirt pulled open A packed dance floor of guests with their arms in the air

Wherever You Are Getting Married

The second half of the year was already filling up as I wrote this, and it showed no sign of slowing down. But wherever you decide to get married, whoever you bring with you and whenever your day falls, the approach stays the same. Relaxed, jovial, and focused on naturally beautiful photographs that will still look right in thirty years. That is true in London, in Bristol, and anywhere else the trains or motorways will take me.

Oliver was an absolute star at every stage of our wedding planning and on the day itself. An incredibly talented photographer, he truly captured the authentic happiness of both us and our guests. He beautifully spotted and captured those small moments which tell a big story, all the things we missed during the busy day, meaning we can relive our day over and over again.
Rachel & David

How did the year end up? The sequel is in my halfway through 2026 recap. For the longer arc there is the best of 2024, and if you are mid decision on a photographer the testimonials page and portfolio are the fastest way to work out if my style is your style.

Season: January to July 2025
Venues: Fabrica Brighton, Elmley Nature Reserve, London and Bristol
Photography: Oliver Holder

Jetting off somewhere warm and still deciding on a photographer? I would love to hear about your plans.

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