ACE HOTEL WEDDING
I’m huge fan of Tom and Al’s choice of wedding venues. The elegant faded grandeur of The Asylum in Peckham followed by the super slick modern concrete walls of The Ace Hotel in Shoreditch. What a great combination for a wedding. Tom and Al wanted a very intimate day culminating with a huge party by sunset. They cleverly achieved this by having a very low key micro ceremony during the day with their extended guest list joining them at The Ace Hotel for food and dancing under a giant disco ball into the early hours.
Pre wedding shoot in Shoreditch
I’d met Tom and Al before the wedding for a pre wedding shoot. Personally I think that one of the most practical things you can do before your wedding is to have a pre wedding shoot (or engagement shoot as they’re sometimes called). I’m sure most of us have never had the experience of hiring a photographer to take their portrait (I’ve not even done that!). This seems scary enough as it is but to do this for the first time ON your wedding day! It seems madness really doesn't it… Why wait until one of the biggest days of your life to try it out? As a camera shy person the thought of this makes me break out into a cold sweat!
What I love about pre wedding shoots is that quite simply - it’s a practice run. You get to know how I work and I understand a bit more about you and how you feel in front of the camera. Not only that, we get to know each other which is always going to make the experience easier and more comfortable! Whenever I’ve shot a pre wedding session for a couple the photos I take on their wedding day are always a breeze. Especially if you’re sensible enough to follow in Al and Tom’s footsteps and use this opportunity to have your portraits taken around the wedding venue itself! What could be more practical than an exact rehearsal in the locations you’ll be shooting on your wedding day? The wedding portraits below are pretty much a replica of everything we tried on the pre wedding shoot.
Micro Wedding Ceremony at The Asylum in Peckham
Tom and Al felt that they wanted to keep their wedding ceremony very intimate with just their close family and their two dogs who made an appearance for the confetti shot. The Asylum is not the first wedding venue you’d think of for a micro ceremony. However after shooting many small weddings there I’ve seen first hand that it really is quite magical for something a bit more low key. I’ve even photographed an elopement at The Asylum with just the couple, the registrar and myself. There is something about the subdued candle lit space covered in festoon lighting that makes any wedding feel very special. After a lively cocktail hour at the Asylum we piled onto a red route master bus. Always a practical and stylish solution to transporting your guests between wedding venues!
Wedding Reception at The Ace Hotel in Shoreditch
The Rooftop at The Ace Hotel is the perfect minimal and contemporary wedding venue. With an incredible roof terrace showcasing amazing views across London and a bar flooded with light from windows on one side the whole space is a dream to shoot. The real show stopper is the main corner ceremony room with its industrial concrete walls, parquet flooring and double height windows overlooking Shoreditch. I couldn’t imagine a more epic backdrop to a wedding. Al and Tom chose to decorate with simple green foliage which contrasted beautifully with the black mid century tables and chairs.
Couple portraits at The Ace Hotel
The beauty of hosting your wedding party at the Ace Hotel is that Tom and Al along with their guests were able to pop back to their room whenever they felt the need. This added to the laid back feel of the day. After speeches guests were able to head back to the bar and out onto the roof terrace for some fresh air and more drinks while the main room was set up for the evening party. Seeing the sun go down and the lights of Shoreditch emerge from the roof terrace was an event in itself for the guests.
I took advantage of this downtime by creating some portraits of Tom and Al in their wedding suite. It was a great way to get some more intimate portraits to contrast with those I had shot earlier out and about on the streets of Shoreditch.
