This was one EPIC wedding day, pretty much using all modes of transport other than a plane! A few of my favourites from Flora and Rory’s stunning wedding at St Margaret’s Church Westminster (opposite the Houses of Parliament), followed by a walk to Westminster pier, a trip down the Thames and then a reception at Westminster Boating Base. To keep the blog size down, there’ll be a few photos of my absolute favourite moments, but please take a few minutes to watch and listen to their slideshow for a much more comprehensive take on their simply amazing wedding day!
As you’ll see, there was a lovely family-feel with plenty of artistic involvement from both sides, and a heavy Scottish feel to proceedings as well (which I loved!!!)
Bridal Prep
I Know my various modes of transport may not be relevant, but it does hopefully show the planning and effort that goes into a London wedding, even more so when I had two back-to-back London weddings, with Helen and Alex’s wedding at Forty Hall Farm the next day. So to start Flora and Rory’s day, I drove from my hotel, parked at Westminster Boating Base, then got the Tube and an Uber to Flora’s parent’s amazing house in London to join the bride to be, bridesmaids and (understandably excited) flower girls for prep! Soon hair and makeup was in full swing but with a lovely relaxed buzz as I set about photographing the morning’s proceedings.
Once the bridesmaids and then bride were in their dresses, it was time to get going via another Uber to join Neil (who was second shooting for me) at St Margaret’s Church Westminster.
The Service
Neil had been shooting Rory at the pub with the boys and then documenting their walk across to St Margaret’s, where I joined them prior to the service. I LOVE shooting at this huge church for a couple of reasons – it’s in such an iconic location, it’s beautiful and light inside, and also there’s always an amazing buzz of excitement around with all the tourists eagerly waiting to see the bride (last time I shot there I may have told some eager American tourists it was Prince Harry’s wedding – ahem!).
The service was conducted beautifully by The Reverend Jane Sinclair, assisted by Flora’s uncle, which was a lovely touch. Also adding to the family feel, Rory’s father was on the bagpipes and Flora’s sister sang an amazing musical interlude.
Boat Trip
Straight after the service and a few group shots outside Westminster Abbey, we all hot-footed it down to Westminster pier – with me mostly walking backwards to capture the moments (my legs felt it the next day I can assure you) to make sure we all got on the boat as it was leaving promptly!!
Once safely aboard we photographed the happy couple and guests enjoying the hour-long boat trip, taking in all the sights of London, before mooring up at Westminster Boating Base. Once everyone was off the boat, Flora and Rory were welcomed through an absolute deluge of confetti!
Reception
The wedding party enjoyed drinks and canapes on the lawn while we captured the amazing setting of the reception room and the details. I photographed the last few group shots while Neil captured some candids. Everyone made their way through to take their seats whilst I then quickly photographed some bride and groom portraits before Flora and Rory were piped into their wedding breakfast!
After the meal it was time for the speeches, including one from the bride – some great touching moments to photograph – then quickly onto the cake (an absolutely stunning Oxford University themed cake, including the Bridge of Sighs!) and then through for a Ceildh! As usual after quite a bit of confusion, once everyone got going they all picked it up surprisingly well so these are always fun to photograph!
The photography rounded off with an acoustic session from Rory’s brother on guitar, after which I made my way to the car, got to the hotel and charged everything up for the next days wedding, which will be coming to you shortly!
Congratulations to Flora & Rory!
All content copyright David Burke Photography 2019