From St Paul's to Tower Bridge, to Mayfair to Chancery Lane and Soho, this is the story of two lovely Aussie guys, one same-sex wedding, and more taxi-rides than most people fit into a year!
I was delighted when Steve and Peter asked me to shoot their London wedding, not just because the locations were so cool, but also because I've known them for over a decade, having worked together in various TV broadcasting and production companies. So I knew they were great guys, and that we would have a great day out in London.
Instead of the traditional morning 'bride and groom prep' stuff, the guys preferred instead to meet up, already suited, to grab some informal and romantic shots of them chilling in some of London's most iconic spots, partly so they could send pics to the 'folks back home', both being Australian, and partly because, hey, London is a cool city, right?
Kicking off with a few fun shots around the Tate Modern and Millennium Bridge, with the classic view of St Paul's behind us, we moved on down towards London Bridge.
Soon it was time for the short Uber-ride down to Mayfair, to the public library in South Audley Street.
Where things got a little held up when Pete's Mum, who was supposed to be giving him away and walking him up the aisle, got held up, ironically by a taxi strike.
In the end, Steve had to lead Pete up the aisle, though thankfully Pete's Mum and Dad did make it in time for most of the ceremony.
As you can see, it was a small and intimate wedding, and again, Steve and Pete were keen to dispense with formal group shots, opting for just one simple, and touchingly close family gathering on the staircase.
.... and just one quick posed shot outside the library itself. Many couples who marry at Mayfair Public Library like to get some romantic shots in the park next to it. But again Pete and Steve wanted to buck convention and do something a little more interesting. And here was their plan; while family and friends would decamp to London's trendy Bounce club in Chancery Lane to play table tennis...
... Pete and Steve wanted some more romantic shots around Tower Bridge.
The boys were hoping for a romantic London sunset at Tower Bridge, and as luck would have it, mother nature chose that particular evening to dish up the most incredible glowing red sky as the sun dropped behind The Shard.
One of those rare cases where you don't need to ask the couple to gaze off into the sunset with a look of joy and wonderment on their faces...
With only a few minutes left before we had to jump in a taxi to catch up with the rest of the bridal party at Bounce, the boys granted me a couple of minutes to do a quick cool long exposure shot on Tower Bridge. I had wanted to capture a passing red London Bus, to make the shot truly iconic, but with time against us, of course, there were no buses to be seen...
We got the shot, though, and then it was back in another taxi, and back to Chancery Lane, to re-join the table tennis fun in EC4.
And then it was back in a taxi yet again for the intimate wedding reception at London's Kettner's restaurant off Old Compton Street in Soho
Though once again, some people were late... :)