London Wedding Photography - Paddy and Marija - Wandsworth Town Hall and Brindisa

Paddy and Marija's wedding was way overdue, they got married at Wandsworth town hall and then had a small dinner close to Battersea power station.

Wow, what a journey these two beauties have been on, I first met Paddy and Marija in 2019 and they had booked me to document their wedding day in July 2020... and we all know what happened then! They were the last couple I photographed before all this craziness happened in their pre wedding shoot which included toilet roll purchasing and a cold pint of Camden Hells.

Their wedding day had every element, a beautiful couple, huge amounts of emotion also filled with love and laughter. The dress was stunning, classic yet unique with details that caught the light perfectly and Paddy looked like an absolute Groomzilla! His suit fitted him like a glove (which is not always easy to find) and his smile said it all, he was marrying his best friend!

The weather was absolutely perfect and when it came to taking a few portraits by the side of the river thames we had just a little bit of wind too for that real Beyoncé moment.

Here are a few of my favourite images from their day.

“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. Thanks for everything Oliver!
”

— Paddy

London Documentary Wedding Photography - Jen and Rich - The Ned Hotel

Jen and Rich tied the knot at The Ned Hotel in London – what an amazing place for a wedding! If you’re looking for somewhere with character and history, then this is definitely the venue for you. Jen looked absolutely stunning in her dress, and Rich couldn’t take his eyes off her.

Jen was able to get ready in one of the best rooms in the hotel with its own private roof terrace, how many places do you know where you can have your makeup done outside! The ceremony was held in the RWB room and it had a really intimate feel to it. After the ceremony we took some photos around the hotel and by the royal exchange, Jen and Rich were so relaxed and happy all day long, it was a real pleasure to photograph them.

After the formal photographs were all covered the guests retreated to The Saloon in The Ned were they were very well fed and watered. There were some very amusing, emotional and entertaining speeches before these two cut some cake and danced the night away.

There was so much love in the air, it was an incredibly emotional day. I feel privileged to have been able to capture all the memories from their special day.

Here are a few of my favourites from their Ned Hotel London Wedding

“Hi Ollie,

Thank you so much for sending through our beautiful photos - we absolutely love them and cannot wait to share them with friends & family.

Best wishes,
Rich and Jen xx”

— Rich and Jen

Why I Photograph Weddings

The million dollar question, why weddings? Why not cars, live music or travel hot spots. I often find myself asking this question and of course the easy answer is because I love photographing weddings but what does that actually mean. Well it means from the moment I arrive to photograph a happy and sometimes nervous bride I am emotionally involved in capturing your beautiful day and all the little moments that unfold. These are images that will literally last a lifetime, they will be cherished by your children if and when they arrive, reflected upon by your parents and enjoyed possibly laughed at by your friends.

So for me I feel honoured to photograph any wedding and whilst I do have a very relaxed approach to my work I place a huge importance on capturing the moments that matter throughout the day. As a wedding photographer you invite me in to your inner circle of family and friends and for the short amount of time I spend with you all I do my best to get to know you and capture the natural and honest photography that I am known for. The more relaxed you feel around me and indeed the cameras pointing at you the less I will capture people cowering away and being shy but in fact being more aware that I am just like them, another guest, although I don’t get to enjoy the food and drinks.

However there is one more very, very important reason why I find so so much love and compassion for being a wedding photographer, a sad and poignant reason. Life is too short. Sometimes the fairytales can end too soon and loved ones have to live on in the images that I have created. This happened to me earlier on during lockdown and honestly really affected me, as I said I like to really get to know my couples and their families and to see my images being used to keep a memory alive that’s powerful stuff.

So that’s why I decided to photograph weddings because I love my job and life is too short.

Here are a few of my favourite of my favourite images that I have captured predominantly last year because let’s face it, 2020 hasn’t exactly gone to plan!

London Wedding Photography - Mia and Khan- Devonshire Terrace

Honestly I don’t know where to begin when I think about these two beautiful people, Mia and Khan are absolutely meant to be together and the love that they have for each other was so clear to see it was a pleasure to have captured it.

The day started in the sublime Andaz hotel where Mia, her bridesmaids and her parents spent the morning casually getting ready before the boys arrived to have a swift half, put the finishing touches to their outfits and then we all made our way to St Peters Church in Clerkenwell to witness one of the most emotional ceremonies I have photographed all year. I always say to my couples you don’t know how you are going to feel until you are right there in that instant and this was clearly the case with Khan, the moment he knew Mia was at the church and in a matter of minutes they would be husband and wife he was overcome and just went with the feelings he so clearly felt. One very happy married couple made their way to Devonshire terrace where they celebrated in style with a fabulous menu of yummy food and as the speeches began it wasn’t just Khan this time who was unable to control his emotions, some of the most beautiful speeches were shared amongst their friends and family and the tears started to flow. All that was left for these guys to do was share a first dance in front of everyone and sip on the limoncello that had been left on the table… might have been more than a sip!

My absolute faves from this day are just below.

“Oli, the photos are unbelievable and captured the day better than I could have hoped for. You’re an absolute star mate. We’re sitting in a michelin star restaurant in Bath not eating because we are looking at the photos like is this actually real
”

— Mia and Khan