Wedding photography:
from getting ready to after dark

My wedding photography has taken me all over the world, but these days I’m settled in St Leonards-on-Sea with my little family, photographing weddings across Hastings and East Sussex. Here are some of my favourite moments from across the day, from getting ready through to the party. I’d love you to look all the way through to the end, then click into a few of my galleries to see a whole day.

“The photos she took were joyous and tasteful – so often hard to pull off, but Rachel has that ability in spades.”

Thomas
The couple walk away hand in hand down a gravel drive between white fences and tall trees.

Getting ready

I love arriving early, while everyone’s still in their dressing gowns and the room is full of nerves, laughter and hairspray. It’s such a privilege to be there while you get ready with the people you love. My other life as a commercial and fashion photographer means I genuinely get excited about the details too: the dress on its hanger, the cufflinks, the shoes. And grooms, I promise you’re getting photographed too!

“Her attention to detail was incredible.”

Andy
A bride does her own eye make-up in a floral robe, in black and white.
A bride in her robe laughs as she puts on a large drop earring, in black and white.
A wedding dress hanging in a dark window, soft light falling across the fabric.
A bride lifts her veil beside a mirror while getting ready, in black and white.
A bride seen from behind in a backless gown and veil at a tall wooden mirror by stained glass.
A wedding dress hanging against an old stone wall before the bride gets ready.
Three people help the bride into her wedding dress, in black and white.
Bridesmaids in green dresses do up the buttons down the back of the bride’s dress.
The bride’s mum does up the back of her dress, in black and white.
A laughing groom in a check waistcoat is helped into his jacket by two groomsmen.
A groom in a white shirt and bow tie fastens his cuff, his watch on his wrist, in black and white.
Five groomsmen in suits clink beer bottles outside a marquee under festoon lights.
A groom laughs as his bow tie is put on before the wedding.
A wedding dress and long lace-edged veil hang in an attic window at sunset, rooftops beyond.
The bride’s pearl-beaded bag, perfume, pearl earrings and ivory bow heels laid out on white.
A pair of bridal shoes held up over a pouffe while the bride gets ready.
The bride stands alone in her finished wedding dress, in black and white.
A wedding bouquet tied with ribbon, resting on a chair.
A bride standing in a field, the ribbons of her bouquet blowing in the wind.
A bride holding her bouquet at her waist, the flowers close up.
A bride standing on a balcony lined with columns.
A bride in her wedding dress standing inside a glasshouse.
Bridesmaids and flower girls in white gather round the bride by a tall window, in black and white.

Ceremony

This is what everything leads to. All the planning, the lists and the late-night spreadsheets, and then suddenly it’s just the two of you, saying the words. Whether it’s a town hall, a walled garden or a field full of friends, I’ll be there quietly getting all of it, so you can be completely present and enjoy every second. You’re in good hands, I promise.

“She was completely unobtrusive during the intimate moments, and generally a joy to have there.”

Emily
An order of service lit by slatted light before the ceremony begins.
A groom reads his vows to a bride wearing a flower headdress.
Two brides say their vows beside a fireplace filled with flowers.
A bride laughs during her ceremony in a walled garden.
Two chunky gold wedding rings resting in a pool of light.
A wedding ring going onto the bride’s finger, in black and white.
A pair of slender wedding rings resting on linen.
Two hands held close together against a dark background, in black and white.
Two brides in white dresses kiss in the aisle, in black and white.
The couple kiss as they walk back down the aisle, guests clapping behind, in black and white.
Newlyweds raise their arms among the ceremony chairs, red brick behind them.
The newlyweds walk out through their guests indoors, bouquet raised, in black and white.
The couple kiss on the venue steps as the first confetti starts to fall.
Newlyweds walk out of a stone barn under a timber roof as guests clap, glasses in hand.
The couple laugh under string lights as confetti falls, in black and white.
The couple kiss in a blizzard of confetti under a porch.
The couple hold hands through falling petals in a gravel yard, a lamp post and barn behind.
Newlyweds kiss outside an oak-framed barn.
Newlyweds kiss in thick confetti with a tower behind them, in black and white.
Children throw petals over the newlyweds in a walled garden.
Two brides walk together through a shower of confetti.

Travel

I love a wedding on the move! A bus carrying the whole party between Hastings venues, a vintage car, a steam train, a rowing boat, a Vespa with a little puff of smoke out the back... Tell me how you’re getting from A to B and I’ll plan the best spots to catch you on the way.

Newlyweds in a rowing boat on a calm green river.
The couple kiss on the leather back seat of a vintage car, the interior glowing warm.
Newlyweds standing on the railway tracks beside a steam train.
Newlyweds on a quad bike on a road high above a fjord.
A laughing bride rides in the back of the wedding car between her father and a friend.
A grinning groom on a packed vintage bus, guests laughing all around him, in black and white.
Guests raise beer cans in a toast inside a yellow vintage bus, a pink bouquet in the middle.
The couple take a selfie in the back of their wedding car.
The couple kiss on the back seat of a car against a bright window, in black and white.
The couple laugh together on a motorbike in long grass.
A convertible seen from behind, the couple kissing in it, open countryside ahead.
The couple laugh in a convertible with cream seats, both wearing sunglasses.
A couple ride a scooter down a winding country road, a lake and hills behind them.

The two of you

Lots of couples tell me they’re dreading this bit, and nearly all of them end up loving it. Before the day, we’ll work out how much time you’d like for photos of just the two of you. Some couples like a short wander after the ceremony and another at golden hour; others prefer to stay flexible. Either way it’s never stiff, and there’s usually a lot of laughing (mostly at me).

“Neither of us feel particularly comfortable in front of the camera but Rachel is so good at almost making you forget that you’re being photographed by making us laugh and really connect with each other.”

Katie
The couple on a stepped hillside path, a town spread out below them.
A close-up of the couple laughing together, the groom in glasses.
The couple hug in long grass, one in a rainbow headdress, one in a patterned shirt.
Two brides with their foreheads together, in black and white.
A kiss on the cheek against dark rock, a sunflower buttonhole on the lapel.
The couple embrace, a hand on his face, hills and cactus behind, in black and white.
The couple stand tiny on a road winding through a valley of palm trees.
The couple in a white columned doorway, the words in and out on the pillars.
A bride on a colonnaded balcony, her long veil and train behind her, in black and white.
The couple beneath a stone arch lit by candles.
The couple shelter under an umbrella in the rain at Somerset House, London.
The couple kiss under an umbrella on a rainy street, in black and white.
The couple walk hand in hand through an olive grove.
The couple walk away across a field towards a mountain.
A bride on stone steps outside a house with shutters.
The couple stand hand in hand outside a yellow house.
The couple in the woods, the groom in a hat and waistcoat.
The couple in a close embrace among ferns in the woods.
A forehead kiss with mountains behind, in black and white.
The couple stand tiny at the foot of a huge rock cliff on a beach.
The couple kiss beside a column, the bouquet raised, in black and white.
The couple stand in the middle of a road, one in a leather jacket.
A bride looks back over her shoulder in a brick alley, in black and white.
The couple embrace in a russet field, the bride in a flower crown and long lace train.
The couple stand small in a pool of light at night beneath a dark building.
A silhouetted kiss under a double rainbow, the town lights below.
The couple with their toddler on a shingle beach lined with wooden groynes.

Tables

Someone has spent months on the flowers, the place cards and the seating plan, so I always try to sneak into the room before anyone sits down. Then come the speeches, the happy tears and the inevitable embarrassing story, and I’ll be quietly ready for all of it.

“I have never worked with a photographer who manages to make everyone feel so comfortable and relaxed.”

Katie
Candles and pink flowers on a table by a window, a garland hanging above.
A place setting with a menu tied with ribbon.
A long table laid in a dining room, a flower garland over the doorway.
A long table laid with pink flowers and tall candles.
Sunlight streams through a barn roof onto tables laid for the wedding breakfast.
The groom speaks into a microphone as the bride laughs behind him in a flower crown.
A groom gives his speech in a glasshouse as the bride laughs.
The couple kiss as guests raise their glasses in the foreground, in black and white.

Golden hour

If there’s one thing I’ll gently nag you about, it’s golden hour! Just before sunset the light goes soft and warm and everything looks beautiful. I’ll keep an eye on the time and pinch you away for ten minutes or so, and I promise they’ll be some of your favourite photos of the whole day.

“Her use of light and editing style give her pictures an almost cinematic feel.”

Rik, wedding photographer and client
The couple stand tiny at the edge of an infinity pool, mountains and low sun beyond.
The couple among cactus and hills in hazy evening light.
The couple about to kiss, one in an embroidered jacket, one in a red patterned dress.
A bride in a flower crown in profile, the sun flaring behind her.
The couple with foreheads together in long golden grass, the bride in a floral dress.
The couple kiss as the sun bursts between them, hills behind, in black and white.
The couple kiss on a sunlit slope, a long veil trailing behind.
The couple kiss on a lane beside a fence in the low sun.
The couple kiss in a sunlit brick lane, the groom in a flat cap.
A soft-focus silhouette of the couple kissing above a valley.
The couple in a kilt and a slip dress, the sun bursting between them above water and wooded hills.
The couple embrace on a hilltop against the sky and rolling hills.
The couple walk hand in hand through golden grass.
A bride walks away towards a barn, her dress swinging, the sun flaring.

After dark

This is when everyone lets their hair down, and I’ll be right there on the dancefloor with you (in sensible shoes). First dances, sparklers, grandparents throwing shapes, the moment your best mate’s tie comes off... I love staying late enough to get it all.

Two brides rest their foreheads together during their first dance as guests look on.
A groom lifts his bride into a kiss on a dark dance floor while guests cheer.
Two brides dance and laugh among cheering guests with their arms in the air.
Guests shout and dance on a barn dance floor, one woman in green with her arm raised.
A boy breakdances on the dance floor while the wedding guests gather round to watch.
A crowded dance floor at night, a guest in a Union Jack hat beside a woman laughing in heart sunglasses.
A woman in a black sombrero and a man in heart sunglasses dance and laugh under pink light.
A smiling woman in a pink sombrero and denim jacket dances with a glass of wine.
An older couple hug on the dance floor at night, light trails swirling around them.
A couple laugh as they walk down a city street at night, in black and white.
A couple cross a street at night holding hands, the bride looking back, in black and white.
Two grooms laugh in a street at night, holding smoke flares and glasses of fizz, in black and white.

Scroll through these whole day galleries to get a feel for a full wedding.

The groom carrying a toddler on the beach as the bride smilesJenny and DannyHastings Town HallThe groom kissing the bride’s cheek in the long grassWill and RosieLimekiln, Crowborough
The couple running through a tunnel of sparklers outside the tipiAnt and KatSpirit Lake, tipi weddingThe couple standing between the rails in front of a steam engineM and RThe Bluebell RailwayLooking up at The Crown House against blue sky and cloud, with the couple small on the first-floor balcony.Sarah and SanchiaThe Crown House, St Leonards-on-Sea
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