There's a particular kind of joy when I see couples who've already been through one wedding photographer and come out the other side wanting something different, something more them. Ramona and Simon had their civil ceremony documented by someone else first. By the time they found me, they knew exactly what they didn't want: rigid poses and forced smiles. Or the sense of being arranged rather than witnessed. What they wanted was natural with an artistic edge; photography that felt like it belonged to them rather than to a formula. That's the conversation that brought me to capture their Fitzrovia Chapel wedding.
Ten years together and this was the wedding that mattered to Ramona, more than the civil ceremony. She's Orthodox and a religious ceremony wasn't a nice-to-have for her, it was the whole point. Simon converted for her and that's the kind of detail that tells you a lot about their relationship.
### Getting ready at the Bloomsbury Hotel
The day started at The Bloomsbury Hotel, where I picked up coverage early. The quieter moments before anyone's "on". This is usually the intro of a wedding day: the nerves, the jokes and all the feelings in between.
### A Detour to the British Museum
From the hotel, it's a four-minute walk to the British Museum so my artistic soul suggested it for a short couple's session before the ceremony. What I didn't expect was the queue. A line of tourists waiting to get in clocked what was happening, started congratulating the couple, then waved us straight to the front. A queue full of strangers deciding to celebrate with you is so heart-warming. Small acts of kindness like these amplify the joy already felt on such a special day.
We didn't linger, less than 10 mins, just enough time to get what we needed before a cab took us on to Fitzrovia Chapel, where the guests were already waiting.
### A Fitzrovia Chapel wedding
This is where the day became something I hadn't photographed before. Fitzrovia Chapel is a striking, intimate space where I've been many times but it was the Orthodox traditions that really made this ceremony stand apart. The crowning of the newlyweds and the three ceremonial turns around the table were a custom most of the room, myself included, had never seen in person.
Documenting a tradition you don't have personal history with means paying closer attention and watching for what the ceremony actually asks of the couple, rather than reaching for the shots I already know how to take. That's usually where the more interesting frames come from anyway.
### Lunch back at the Bloomsbury Hotel
The celebrations closed the way they opened, back at The Bloomsbury Hotel, where Ramona and Simon hosted their guests for lunch. After such a ceremony, ending the celebration at a table, surrounded by the people who'd just watched ten years of commitment made formal was certainly beautiful.
As a wedding photographer who works regularly at Fitzrovia Chapel, days like this are the reason I keep coming back to documentary coverage over anything more staged. Ramona and Simon didn't need me to construct moments for them, they needed someone willing to stay out of the way.
If you're planning a Fitzrovia Chapel wedding and want it photographed as it actually unfolds, I'd love to hear about your day.
