Paddy & Marija | Wandsworth Town Hall & Brindisa
Wandsworth Town Hall · Brindisa, Battersea
A Documentary Wedding Story
A wedding two years in the making. Paddy and Marija booked me in 2019, postponed twice, and finally got married at Wandsworth Town Hall before dinner at Brindisa near Battersea Power Station.
Two Years in the Making
I first met Paddy and Marija in 2019 when they booked me for July 2020, and we all know what happened to weddings that summer. They were the last couple I photographed before everything stopped, on a pre wedding shoot that involved a cold pint of Camden Hells and, because it was 2020, a bag of toilet roll. When their day finally arrived it carried every bit of the emotion you would expect from a wedding that had waited this long.
The Ceremony at Wandsworth Town Hall
Wandsworth Town Hall is one of those South London register offices that quietly outperforms the famous ones. The marble staircase gives you a proper entrance, the ceremony room has good honest daylight, and the whole building photographs far grander than the price of the booking suggests. Marija’s dress was classic with details that caught the light perfectly, and Paddy’s suit fitted him like a glove, which is never as easy as it sounds. His smile said the rest. He was marrying his best friend and everyone in the room knew it.
If you are weighing up a register office wedding in London, my London wedding photography page covers how I photograph these short, one take ceremonies, and my micro weddings page is worth a read if you are keeping the guest list small like these two did.
Portraits by the Thames
The weather behaved, so we stole twenty minutes by the river on the way to dinner. There was just enough wind coming off the Thames for a proper Beyoncé moment with the veil, and Battersea Power Station sat in the background doing what it does best. Twenty minutes is all a couple ever needs. Any longer and you start missing your own party.
Dinner at Brindisa
Then a small dinner at Brindisa near Battersea Power Station. Sherry, jamón, speeches that swung between laughter and tears, and the sort of close, candlelit celebration that a big venue simply cannot fake. Small weddings like this one are why I love documentary work. Nobody performs. Everything you see in these pictures actually happened.
Oliver was a brilliant wedding photographer. We got to know him with a pre wedding shoot, when he was really receptive to our ideas of what we wanted the photos to look like, and he was full of ideas for creative and eye catching shots on the day, and it shows in the results. He was also completely understanding and flexible when we delayed the wedding because of the pandemic, then had to change the date and venue at quite short notice! He’s really friendly, puts the guests at ease and his enthusiasm for photography shines through in the pictures.Paddy
Thinking about a London town hall wedding followed by dinner somewhere brilliant? That two venue shape is the one I photograph more than any other, and these guides cover the town halls I know room by room.
Chelsea Old Town Hall guide Marylebone Town Hall guideFor more town hall days like this one, have a look at Aidan and Charlotte at Lambeth Town Hall, Helen and Benoit at Marylebone Town Hall, or Sophie and Dan at Islington Town Hall. There is plenty more from across the city on my London wedding photography page.
Ceremony: Wandsworth Town Hall, London SW18
Dinner: Brindisa, Battersea Power Station
Photography: Oliver Holder
Planning a London town hall wedding? I would love to hear about it.
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