This gorgeous Asylum Chapel wedding and AMP Studios reception full of fun games goes down as one of my absolute favourite weddings to have had the opportunity to photograph. And not just because the venues are around the corner from my flat. The flowers were as colourful as could be and the main decoration of the day! They were plentiful! The cakes were homemade, as were the games, including Jenga where the guests were encouraged to leave a message instead of a guest book! So let’s start with the details of the day!
Here are the Wedding Details
As I said above the flower decor was phenomenal, so shout out to Rust Bloom!! Lindsay and Josh met during a surfing class at University in Cornwall. So named their tables after the hills they’ve hiked. The cakes were homemade by a friend of the family, and they were delicious! As was the food provided by Events by Camberwell Arms. You’ll find a list of the rest of the wedding vendors at the bottom of the blog.
Wedding Prep Photos
I started my day photographing Lindsay, her family and her I do crew getting ready in a nearby Air Bnb with the most gorgeous art all over the walls! That you can hardly see in any of the photos so you’ll just have to trust me on that one! Even Lindsay’s Dad got involved! There were toasts, hugs and at one point a bridesmaid on each of Lindsay’s ears .
While you’re getting ready, I like to be a fly on the wall but with hands. I’ll not only capture the moments but I’m also a spare pair of hands to look for things, hold things and help you with those pesky little buttons on most wedding outfits! The morning of your wedding is so exciting and fun I love to capture the little moments between you and your closest loved ones!
Wedding Ceremony at the Asylum Chapel
The couple had a lovely short, heartfelt ceremony surrounded by their nearest and dearest in the Asylum Chapel. The wedding venue has the most beautiful stained glass windows accompanied by rustic blue and grey walls! The guests arrived and the bridal party walked down the aisle to music played by a string quartet. Which was such a lovely personal touch!
Asylum Chapel is one of my favourite ceremony venues as it’s big enough that I can move around throughout your ceremony capturing moments from different angles without getting in anyones way. Meaning there’s more variety in your photos. And it’s such a beautiful venue that you (and I) want to capture it from allllll of the angles you can possibly think of!
Time for some confetti!
I love confetti photos at the Asylum Chalpel because there’s enough room for the guests to spread out while making sure they still cover the couple. For confetti you want to ensure it’s environmentally friendly, I recommend either dried flower petals or biodegradable big colourful circles and absolute buckets of it. I also recommend having some of your I-do crews hand it out from a bucket or a basket so your guests can grab handfuls. The other thing is, walk slowly and enjoy it! You only get to do it once! And if you’d like a really bing confetti moment I am happy to count your guests down so they all throw it at the same time!
Group Photos at the Asylum Chapel
During April and May you have two options for where to have your group photos: you can have them on the steps or in front of the lovely cherry blossom tree! The stairs in front of the building are perfect for that group photo of everyone, however, your smaller groups can be in front of the cherry blossom.
I like to get group photos sorted as soon after your confetti as possible. It ensures no one has wandered off to find the loo, spilt something on their outfit or gone to change their shoes. I get you to put your group photos list together in your questionnaire and then we go through it during our pre-wedding consultation. I’ll have the list saved on my phone and then I or a handy I-do crew member with a loud voice can get everyone together as quickly as possible, so you can get back to celebrating!
Wedding Couple Portraits
Most of my couples tell me they don’t like having their photo taken, they feel awkward and don’t know what to do. This is where I step in, your friendly candid wedding photographer. I’ve got an absolute abundance of tips and tricks up my sleeve, but mostly I want you to do you. Be around each other the way you always are. Hold hands, kiss on command, high-five, twirl, and have a chat. I’ll guide you through them all and you won’t even remember I’m taking photos. I’ll quote Lindsay here ‘I hate people taking my photo but for some reason, I feel relaxed in front of your camera Lottie!’ It was like music to my ears!
If that hasn’t calmed your nerves on the matter then I have two blogs just for this! Six fun ways to upgrade your couple photos (whilst keeping you in the moment) or How to get the natural, fun wedding photos you want (without awkwardly posing!)
Asylum Chapel is gorgeous in itself, so both inside and outside are perfect for your photos! Also sometimes the sun plays ball and you can get the most perfect sun beams through the windows! On top of that Caroline Gardens also has a plethora of perfect wedding portrait spots! As well as the local area, including some graffiti backdrops! These two were absolute naturals at being themselves in front of the camera, you want your wedding photos to scream you! And they nailed it!
Walking to AMP Studios
Asylum Chapel and AMP Studios are both owned by Maverick Projects, and they are just a nine-minute walk away from one another. A perfect (and cheap!) way of transporting your guests! There’s nothing better than seeing a wedding party walking down the road together, just make sure you have someone who knows where we’re all going at the back and the front! Add in a boom box and you’re all sorted!
Wedding Reception at AMP Studios
AMP Studios is made up of two railway arches, one as a plain room and the other with a bar already set up. They are joined together by a covered and heated awning, with plants and benches for your guests to sit. I always recommend having two rooms at your venue, it makes switching them over so much easier or means your full wedding is already set up. Less time spent scooting your guests about and soo much better for your wedding schedule!
These guys had games all set up for their guests, such as: toss the pigs, bean bag toss, homemade giant jenga the guests could write on instead of a guest book and a Polaroid camera for guests to take their own photos. As you can see their guests loved it!
Wedding Speeches
Lindsay and Josh split their wedding speeches into two sections that allowed two different backdrops to their speech photos and a variety of photos of their guests’ reactions. Before the wedding breakfast, the Bride and Groom shared a thank you speech alongside sections dedicated to one another. Followed by four speeches post breakfast, by the Bride’s father who ensured everyone was involved in the cheering, the Groom’s father, the Maid of Honour and the Best Man. Who brought along the Groom’s first love… his teddy bear.
First Dance
Lindsay and Josh had choreographed a minute of their first dance! It worked beautifully for their photos and got their guests all amped up and eager to join them on the dancefloor!
Let’s get this party started!
The band kept the dancefloor busy while the alcohol made the Jenga games more intense! Lindsay changed into a short dress for the evening and donned some feather bowers with her bridesmaids. While Josh gained a shirt covered in photos of his own face
London Wedding Photography
I think you can tell why this has been one of my favourite weddings to photograph to date! Lindsay and Josh were so relaxed and fun, as were their guests! I absolutely love it when my couple asks me to capture their entire day from start to almost finish! I hope this blog has filled you with inspiration for your own wedding whether it’s at these two fabulous venues or not!
Here’s a little review from the couple themselves: Thank you so much Lottie for capturing our wedding, you were absolutely incredible and the photos are truly stunning. You were such a positive and helpful presence on the day and made us feel so relaxed in front of the camera. We cannot thank you or recommend you highly enough. – Lindsay and Josh
If you’re still looking for a candid wedding photographer then hiyaa, I’m Lottie! A candid, London-based wedding photographer who’s more like an enthusiastic guest with a camera! I’m a bookworm who loves to party, a pinot grigio groupie and chances are, I’m probably training for a marathon.
So If I sound like I’d be a good fit for your wedding day, why not get in touch to check my availability for your wedding date?
Dream team of wedding vendors:
Photography by Me
Ceremony venue: Asylum Chapel
Reception venue: AMP Studios
Flowers: Rust Bloom
Hair and Make-up: Izabella Bordignon
Dress: Stewart Parvin
Suit: Jack Bunneys
Food: Events by Camberwell Arms
Rings: Jacqueline and Edward
