Half Day Wedding Photography London
Five hours, from the ceremony through to the speeches. It is where most of the photographs couples print and frame come from, and it suits city ceremonies, lunch receptions and smaller weddings.
A half day is the ceremony, the portraits and the speeches, photographed properly, without paying for hours you don't need.
Plenty of London weddings don't run from ten in the morning until midnight. A town hall ceremony and lunch in Mayfair. A hotel wedding that finishes after the speeches. A small wedding where the evening is just close family round a table. Five hours covers all of those.
Shorter days, the same standard
A half day is photographed and edited exactly the way a full day is. You're buying fewer hours, not a lesser version.
I've photographed more than 500 weddings over twenty years, a lot of them in central London, and a good share of those were shorter days. The skill is the same: knowing where to stand at the ceremony, getting the family groups done quickly, and taking the two of you away for fifteen or twenty minutes when the light is right.
Because a five-hour day is compact, your full gallery arrives the next day. Most couples are sharing their photographs before they've unpacked.
BarrieWhat five hours usually looks like
With a 2pm ceremony, five hours takes you from the aisle to the end of the speeches. Your timings will differ, but the shape is roughly this.
The ceremony
I arrive ahead of time, photograph the room and the guests arriving, then work quietly from the sides, well out of the aisle.
Confetti and drinks
Confetti on the steps, then the drinks reception. This is where a lot of the best candid photographs of your guests come from.
Portraits and groups
Fifteen or twenty minutes for the two of you, and family groups from a list you send me beforehand. Keep it to six or seven groups and it takes about twenty minutes.
Breakfast and speeches
The room before guests sit down, the details, then the speeches on a longer lens from a distance, so the reactions are real.
When a half day makes sense
A half day works best when the day itself is compact. These are the weddings where I most often recommend it.
City ceremonies and lunch
Marylebone, Chelsea or Islington, then lunch or an early dinner nearby. Five hours covers the ceremony, the steps, portraits on the walk and the meal.
Old Marylebone Town Hall guide →
Close family round a table
Twenty or thirty guests, a private dining room and speeches over dinner. There's no big evening party to cover, so a full day would mostly be spent waiting.
Micro weddings in London →
Daytime receptions
A ceremony and wedding breakfast in one of the Mayfair hotels, finishing after the speeches. Everything is under one roof, so five hours goes a long way.
Claridge's guide →What you give up with a half day
It's worth being clear about this before you book, so there are no surprises when the gallery arrives.
- The morningGetting ready, the dress going on, the first time your dad sees you. If those photographs matter, start earlier or add hours.
- The first danceUsually falls outside five hours. The eight-hour Classic collection at £1,800 runs through to it.
- The evening partyThe dance floor and the late send-off. That's the eleven-hour Premium collection.
If you're unsure, send me your timings. I'll tell you honestly which collection fits, and if five hours is enough I'll say so.
What half day wedding photography costs
London prices, set by the hours you actually need. The half day is the Essential collection. Hourly coverage and the full day are here so you can compare.
Ceremony, the steps and portraits.
- For register office and town hall ceremonies
- Ceremony and confetti on the steps
- A short set of portraits afterwards
- Edited and sent the next day
Ceremony through to the speeches.
- The half day collection
- Ceremony, confetti and drinks
- Couple portraits and family groups
- Wedding breakfast details and speeches
- Gallery the next day
Preparations through to the first dance.
- The standard full London wedding day
- Morning preparations
- Ceremony, reception and portraits
- Speeches, cake cutting and first dance
Extra hours are £250 each and a second photographer is £1,250. Getting married in Sussex? The five-hour collection there is £1,150, see my Sussex wedding photographer page. Albums, films and everything else are on my London wedding photography prices page. For a smaller day, see micro wedding photography in London or, for just the two of you, elopement photography. Registering at Chelsea Old Town Hall or Old Marylebone Town Hall? Those pages show what a few hours covers.
What couples say
A few words from couples I've photographed, on long days and short ones.
Amazing experience! Barrie knew exactly what to do and was very patient with our family
Barrie was the photographer for our late November wedding at the Old Marylebone Town Hall and we are absolutely delighted with the photographs. He was able to capture all the crucial moments before, d…
We had Barrie come by and photograph our civil ceremony / wedding registration at Old Marylebone Town Hall. We wanted it shot in an elopement style as it was just one of the many pre- weddings events …
Barrie was fab! He knew Old Marylebone Town Hall really well (even the registrars knew him). He made us feel comfortable and took us to really cute places to get some special shots. Would highly recom…
Barrie was the photographer for our civil wedding ceremony at Old Marylebone Town Hall and he was great! Professional, friendly and creative throughout the day. The photos are amazing, stylish and ple…
Half day wedding questions
What is half day wedding photography?
Coverage of the middle of the day rather than all of it. With me that means five hours, which usually runs from the ceremony through to the speeches: the ceremony, confetti, drinks, portraits, family groups, the wedding breakfast and the speeches.
How much does half day wedding photography cost in London?
£1,350 for five hours in London, with every image edited and no travel charge. For a register office or town hall ceremony on its own, hourly coverage is £350 for one hour, £550 for two and £750 for three. In Sussex the five-hour collection is £1,150.
What don't we get with a half day?
Usually the morning preparations and the evening party, including the first dance. If either matters to you, extra hours are £250 each, or the eight-hour Classic collection at £1,800 covers preparations through to the first dance.
Can the five hours start earlier?
Yes. Most couples start at the ceremony, but if getting ready matters more to you than the speeches, we can move the start earlier. We work that out together when we plan the timeline.
When will we get our photos?
For weddings of up to five hours, your full edited gallery arrives the next day, in a private online gallery with high-resolution downloads and no watermarks.
Is a half day enough for a register office wedding?
Often it's more than you need. A register office ceremony with confetti on the steps and a short set of portraits usually takes an hour or two, so hourly coverage from £350 tends to fit better. If you're going on to a lunch or dinner, five hours covers that as well.
Can we add a second photographer?
Yes, for £1,250. With a half day it's rarely needed unless you have a big guest list or two things happening at once.
As featured in
Planning a shorter day?
Send me your date. I read every enquiry myself and I'll let you know straight away whether I'm free. Full-day coverage and more of my work as a London wedding photographer are on the home page.
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We've just got married this morning and received absolutely magnificent photographs the same day ealy afternoon. Barrie is the most professional photographer of the highest order I've ever known. This…