A winter wedding at Kings Chapel Old Amersham | Buckinghamshire wedding photographer
Definitely one of my favourite winter weddings, Michael and Mary’s winter wedding at Kings Chapel Old Amersham was lovely. Like so much of November, it rained all week in the run-up to their celebrations and then started to rain again the day after. But on the day, it was beautifully sunny and a little bit crisp.
Perhaps someone was looking over them. I was just glad of a break in the weather. Of course, it is possible to photograph weddings in the rain, and create some great photos, but not without challenges for your gear and of course a willingness on the part of the bride and groom to get wet.
The ceremony was held at a picturesque Buckinghamshire church
The day started with a religious ceremony at the picturesque Catholic Church of Our Lady in Chesham Bois. The ceremony took place under the glorious stained-glass window you can see in some of the photos below.
Michael and Mary wanted mostly candid, natural looking photos but they did ask for a few specific portraits at the church and back at Kings Chapel Old Amersham; the photo above with the wedding car was one of those.
Like most couples, Michael and Mary don’t like the idea of being photographed but this is how Mary described the experience in a review she posted in December on Google.
“Alison photographed our wedding in November 2022 at Our Lady’s church, Chesham Bois and King’s Chapel Old Amersham. We could not have been more thrilled with the results! She perfectly captured the joyful tone of the occasion.
The portraits were varied and personal, and she knew lots of different spots at Kings Chapel to get some lovely views of Amersham in the background, yet still with a private overall setting. The candids of the service and reception were also so pretty – she managed to capture many spontaneous moments of pure happiness and emotion between ourselves and our guests, whilst remaining almost invisible herself.
Neither myself nor my new husband especially like being photographed in general, but we felt completely at ease throughout the posed portrait shoots, and are delighted that we will have these beautiful pictures to look back on in years to come. Thank you so much Alison for going above and beyond for us!”
Back at Kings Chapel Old Amersham for the rest of the day| Buckinghamshire wedding photographer
Michael and Mary organised a red double-decker London bus to ferry guests to and from the church to Kings Chapel Old Amersham. And what a great idea that is as it saves people having to worry about parking (or drinking).
The owners of the bus company asked for a photo of the bride and groom with the bus so that was my first pic when we arrived back in Amersham.
Just along from the entrance to Kings Chapel Old Amersham is this beautiful white house that I’ve loved since I first started photographing weddings at the venue. I’ve never photographed a couple in front of it before but it seemed to suit Mary and Michael really well.
For the last few daytime portraits, we headed back into the chapel gardens and to the church yard beyond. In total, we spent around 20 minutes taking portraits.
At this time of year, there’s normally very little colour in the trees and gardens around the chapel so I was extremely lucky that there were so many lovely warm tones still in the leaves.
Something you do need to bear in mind for a winter wedding is keeping warm. If you do want outdoor photos, it’s generally worth bringing a warm shawl or something similar although ideally not a heavy overcoat unless you’re happy to take it off. Mary was amazing and wasn’t feeling the cold at all but it could spoil your enjoyment if you are prone to feeling cold.
The drinks reception and wedding breakfast at Kings Chapel Old Amersham
Mary and Michael hosted their drinks in the ballroom adjoining the chapel. My brief for all guest photos was candid, documentary style photography but of course, people always notice you with a camera. A lot of people also asked me to take their photos and I’ll always oblige.
The last time I did a winter wedding at Kings Chapel Old Amersham, the lighting inside the chapel was very low – so low in fact that older guests were struggling to see their food. This time it was a lot better; lots of ambience without being overly bright.
One of the great things about a winter wedding is that can book a shorter day’s photography and still get sunset and night portraits into your photo album – if that’s what you want.
In spite of their aversion to being photographed, Michael and Mary were enthusiastic about having both sunset and night portraits. They even arranged with the chapel to have the trees to the left of the entrance decorated with fairy lights for that very purpose.
Sadly, on the day, whilst the trees were decorated with fairy lights, the circuit supplying power to them was not working.
Night portraits at Kings Chapel Old Amersham with your Buckinghamshire photographer
If you are having a winter wedding at Kings Chapel Old Amersham, it’s worth knowing that the Christmas lights don’t go up in the High Street until December so if you want a Christmassy looking wedding with lots of fairy light bokeh, December’s the month to host it.
All the same, there are still other places around the chapel for night photos, including the garden behind the chapel, the chapel itself and near the entrance on the High Street.
Just so you know, all of these photos are lit by me so you will need to book a photographer with lighting skills if you want something similar.
For more information on hosting your winter wedding at Kings Chapel Old Amersham, visit the Kings Chapel website.
30 High St, Amersham HP7 0DJ
Tel: 01494 725722
You can find more examples of my wedding photography at Kings Chapel by visiting my Buckinghamshire wedding photographer page or looking at my wedding gallery.
For information on packages and pricing for your winter wedding, check out my pricing page.
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