Lancing College Wedding Photography

Lancing College — what it actually is

The basic context. Lancing College is a public school founded in 1848, set on 550 acres on top of the South Downs at Lancing, just inland from Shoreham-by-Sea and about ten minutes from Brighton. The whole estate is licensed for weddings. The Chapel is the headline space, but the school’s halls, courtyards and grounds give you a complete venue once the term ends.

The Chapel itself was started in 1868 to a design by R H Carpenter, finished progressively over the next 150 years, and consecrated as a chapel-cathedral. The vault rises to 90 feet — the second-tallest in any Gothic Revival building in England, after Truro Cathedral. The west window is a 32-foot rose, the largest of its kind in the country. None of this is over-stated when you’re standing inside it.

How I Shoot Lancing Weddings

Quietly. I’m not the photographer barking instructions across the Chapel or stopping the day for a forty-minute group-shot list. The plan is simple — cover the day as it actually happens, pull the two of you away for fifteen or twenty minutes of portraits when the light is right, and the rest of the time you’ll forget I’m there.

For Lancing weddings specifically, that usually means: prep coverage in your accommodation (most couples stay in Brighton or Hove the night before), ceremony coverage in the Chapel with two cameras and a long lens for ceremony reactions, group shots in the Quadrangle, twenty minutes of couple portraits on the Sanctuary Lawn or up at the sports fields if the weather’s good, then back into one of the reception rooms for the breakfast and dancing.

Group shots are kept tight. Send me a list of family combinations beforehand and we’ll knock the formal groups out in twenty minutes flat in the Quadrangle.

A few practical things

Some things worth knowing if you’re planning a Lancing wedding.

Term dates. The Chapel is the school’s daily chapel, so weddings are typically held during school holidays — Easter, summer, half-terms, Christmas. Worth aligning your date with this from the start.

Ceremony timing. If you want the rose-window light effect, ask the venue for guidance on the best time of year and time of day for your specific ceremony slot. Late-afternoon winter ceremonies are particularly striking.

Weather. Lancing is exposed and high — the wind on the hilltop can be bracing. The Chapel and indoor rooms are fine in any weather; outdoor portraits and the lawn drinks need a bit more flexibility.

Access. The school is at the top of a private drive off the A27. There’s plenty of parking on site, and Lancing railway station is at the foot of the hill — though most guests arrive by car.

Address. Lancing College, North Lancing, West Sussex, BN15 0RW.

Have a chat

If you’re planning a wedding at Lancing College — Chapel ceremony, school estate reception, or both — drop me a line with your date. Happy to come up to Lancing, walk through it with you, and bring along a couple of recent Lancing albums so you can see how I work.

— Barrie