There are few moments in life that are quite as special as your wedding day, and when you’ve splurged on that dream designer dress and fairytale venue, the chances are that you’ll want to capture it all in style, creating memories for you to cherish for years to come.
Choosing the right wedding photographer is one of the most important decisions you’ll have to make about the day – aside from who to actually marry, of course! And to find the very finest out there, the capital is a great place to start. There are a huge number of quality wedding photographers in London, but the real challenge is to find the one who is right for you. With such a wealth of choice and some truly outstanding candidates to pick from, the prospect can seem daunting. So, to help you on the path towards your match made in heaven, we’ve rounded up some of our top picks, who are certain to capture your dream day in style.
Matt Porteous @ Wedding_M
Aside from the name and fame of Wedding_M, Matt Porteous has built his own glowing reputation as a wedding photographer, worldwide. Photographing people’s special days for over ten years, he’s scooped many a prestigious award along the way – but it’s his unique style of photography that has won him such recognition for his work.
Although Matt is a fan of documentation style photography, you will notice immersive emotions in his works. His creative perspective and his sharp eye for the details in a frame makes him one of the best wedding photographers based in London. And, with a professional team behind him at Wedding_M that perfectly complements his skills, he’s a great choice to trust with capturing the moment you walk down the aisle.
Allister Freeman
Allister Freeman’s approach to wedding photography can be defined as a somewhat masterful take on a ‘photojournalistic’ style of wedding photography. What this means to you on the big day is a photographer with a relaxed and unobtrusive approach, and some excellent and timeless freeze-frames of that truly momentous event in your life.
Allister’s images are a true pleasure to view and this is what makes him one of our favourite London wedding photographers. Fresh, artistic, vibrant, crisp, atmosphere-rich – this, in our opinion, represents the peak of wedding documentary photography. Each and every image has its own purpose – these are not merely random swatches of colour and haphazard shapes filling up the pages of an album. There is always so much going on in each photo: laughter, emotion, anxiety, excitement and much more.
York Place Studios
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Headed up by award-winning photographers, Dom and Liam Shaw, York Place Studios is another great choice for documentary style photography. But something else that this brother-sister duo have truly perfected is their storytelling approach with wedding events. As you turn the pages of their wedding albums one by one, you will see both the bigger and smaller stories of that day, just as you would when you read an interesting novel.
Dom and Liam don’t direct the bride and groom or the guests to capture a make-believe story, or stun the guests with bright flashes that interrupt the ceremony. Although they are based in London, you can hire them for weddings anywhere in the UK and even across Europe – so if a countryside occasion in Devon is on the cards, or a romantic day on the Amalfi Coast, these guys are a great pick.
Joanna Bongard Photography
Not a fan of documentary type wedding photo albums? Then Joanna Bongard Photography might interest you. Just take a look at her wedding albums and you’ll see how she captures the most unique moments in vibrant colour. Joanna captures the moments with their raw emotion and surrounding details, taking candid shots throughout the day to create memories of those special moments in their most natural form. It’s clear from her portfolio that she loves her work, and that passion translates beautifully into each shot.
Joanna works mainly in London, but is also available for destination weddings, worldwide.
Gione da Silva Images
Gione Da Silva is very light with his equipment. He doesn’t like to rely on technology – only his personal capabilities with a simple camera and lens. Always seeking out the perfect angle and view to capture those special moments, his artistry and creativity are his biggest assets.
Gione’s creativity is not just limited to photography; he is a master of wedding films, too – and has plenty of awards to back it up. So, if you want a video documentary of your wedding day along with candid and vibrant photos, Gione Da Silva could well be the photographer for you.
The Crawleys
Liam and Bee Crawley’s reportage style photography is slightly different to that of most wedding photographers. Bridging the gap between classical timelessness and trendy cool, their photographic style is best described as “Character Photography”.
On your special day, the room might be filled with hundreds of people, each and every one of whom is an individual character in your life – and The Crawleys will expertly portray their unique characters and roles in their photos. Whether it is your bridesmaid stuffing her cheeks with cake for a gag or the best man carrying the groom on his shoulders, these guys will capture your guests as well as they capture you and your spouse to be.
Luke Hayden Photography
Luke Hayden’s documentary style photography captures the scenes of each wedding day in the natural ambiance – that means using the natural sunlight and the right angles to get that shot, and his photos look and feel authentic because they are. While professionalism is his first concern, Luke will do whatever it takes to capture the moments as they happen. The scenes he photographs are mostly genuine and natural, and the emotions and stories behind each photo are very visible in his work – reawakening those feelings and memories every time you look back at your album and allowing you to truly relive your special day.
Whether you’re looking for documentation style wedding coverage or candid style photos of your big day, you’ll find the perfect wedding photographer based in London on this list. Once you have decided what style of wedding coverage you want and what approach you like, be sure to get them booked up well in advance, because slots with these talented photographers tend to go fast, and remember how important it is to buy a gift for a photographer to thank them for their hard work on the day, after all they shared some pretty intimate moments with you on your finest day.
