50th Wedding Anniversary

A wedding with a difference!

This amazing day was 12 hours after I returned back from my family holiday in Madeira. A couple who had gotten to know my brother had asked him if he knew a wedding photographer who would photograph their 50th wedding anniversary. Unfortunately it was all the way over near Chelmsford, so a heck of a drive after travelling back from Madeira. Look at this Church though! This was where Stan and Maggie got married 50 years ago…

Stan and Maggie

I’d not met Stan before, so it was a bit of a surprise when he turned up with a blue beard! And then Maggie turned up with bright red hair, and it all made more sense! This was a couple who were very much still young at heart.

The Ceremony

After the usual mingling of guests outside it was time for the ceremony. I was asked to limit the photography to certain areas and to avoid photos during the ceremony. Of course I complied with this, but still got some lovely images before and after the wedding vow renewal.

After the ceremony…

Well, it was all a bit emotional actually. I could see that there were a lot of old friends who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. For a documentary wedding photographer, having an event like these filled with these moments is amazing. I just tried to capture as many of these moments as I could.

The Wedding Reception

The reception venue is on the coast, and on a sunny day it’s a gorgeous place for people to mingle. The kids were playing around, there were some lovely nibbles, it was all really rather perfect.

The Wedding Breakfast

I know it was really a Wedding Vow Renewal Breakfast, but that’s just too much of a mouthful. It was that time of day when everyone goes inside for food and people make speeches. The speeches were certainly some of the rudest I’d heard in a long time, but very funny. A lot of these people had known each other for decades, so there was plenty of material for funny stories. After that it was time for the dance floor!

Lastly, it was a blood moon, which is very rare. Some of the guests wanted a picture so I obliged! Please bear in mind it was very dark at this point!

Conclusion

It was a real privilege to be part of an event like this. 50th wedding anniversaries don’t come around very often. I’m now approaching my own 20th wedding anniversary, so only 30 years to go! Thanks for reading.