Natural History Museum Wedding Photographer
Alfred Waterhouse's cathedral to nature, and after the doors close to the public, it's yours. Twelve licensed spaces, with Hope the blue whale above Hintze Hall.
There are not many places where you can get married under a 25-metre blue whale.
The Natural History Museum in South Kensington is one of the most spectacular wedding venues in London, and after the doors close to the public, it's yours.
I haven't photographed a wedding inside the museum yet, so this page sticks to what the museum publishes about its wedding spaces, and to what I know of the streets around it, where I have photographed plenty of weddings and pre-wedding shoots. It covers the spaces and their capacities, how an evening wedding at the museum works, how to photograph a hall this size after dark, and where to go for portraits nearby.
Where you can marry at the museum
Capacities are the museum's own figures for weddings and private events.
Hintze Hall and Fossil Way
The great central hall, with Hope the blue whale skeleton suspended from the ceiling and the grand staircase at the far end. Up to 450 for a ceremony or a dinner and dance. It's the reason most couples come to the museum.
Earth Hall
Under the giant Earth sculpture at the entrance to the Earth Galleries, watched over by Sophie the Stegosaurus. Up to 200 for a dinner and dance. Darker and more dramatic than Hintze Hall.
Darwin Centre Atrium and Courtyard
The bright, modern glass atrium and courtyard beside the Darwin Centre's cocoon, for a ceremony or dinner. A very different feel from the Victorian halls.
The Garden Kitchen and gardens
The museum's five acres of gardens reopened in 2024, with a bronze cast of the famous Diplodocus in the Jurassic Garden. Up to 100 for a dinner and dance, best in summer.
The smaller rooms
For an intimate wedding: the Images of Nature Gallery (40 for a ceremony, 80 for dinner), Earth's Treasury Gallery (25 for a ceremony) and the Anning Rooms (20 for a ceremony).
An evening wedding at the museum
The museum is open to the public during the day, so weddings happen in the evening. Setup starts at 6pm and guests arrive from 7pm. Standard hire runs to midnight, with extensions available into the early hours, and anyone in the gardens is asked to move inside after 10pm.
It's a dry-hire venue: you hire the space, and choose catering, décor and production from the museum's approved suppliers. Budget and planning time go further if you have a planner who knows the building.
A common way to do the day is a register office ceremony earlier on, portraits around South Kensington in daylight, and then the museum for the evening. Chelsea Old Town Hall, the Kensington and Chelsea register office, is a short taxi ride away.
Photographing a hall this size after dark
An evening wedding in Hintze Hall is spectacular, and it's a real challenge to photograph. The hall is huge, the ceiling is high, and by the time guests arrive the daylight has gone. How it looks in the photographs depends mostly on the lighting your production company puts in.
- Talk to your lighting team earlyUplighting on the arches and a little light on the whale make the wide shots of the hall. If the room is lit only for the tables, the architecture disappears into the dark.
- Take the wide shots before guests sit downThe whole room, set and lit, with nobody in it yet, is worth ten minutes.
- Use the staircaseThe grand staircase at the end of Hintze Hall is the natural place for a portrait and a group photograph.
- Do the outdoor portraits firstWith a 7pm start, portraits outside need to happen before the evening, or at the end of a summer day.
I work documentary for most of the day, and quietly. I don't stop things to fix the light. The portraits are the one part I direct, fifteen or twenty minutes at a time that suits you.
Where to take portraits nearby
South Kensington is one of the best parts of London for wedding portraits, and I've photographed a lot of weddings and pre-wedding shoots here. Within a short walk of the museum:
- The museum's own frontWaterhouse's terracotta façade on Cromwell Road, with its carved animals and arches.
- The Royal Albert HallUp Exhibition Road, with its wide steps and the Albert Memorial across the road in Kensington Gardens.
- Kensington GardensTrees and open lawns, if you want something green.
- Exhibition Road and the side streetsStucco terraces and mews, quieter than you'd expect.
None of the photographs on this page were taken inside the museum. They're from weddings and shoots close by.
What Natural History Museum wedding photography costs
The same collections I offer for every London wedding. With an evening start at the museum, the longer collections make sense if you want a register office ceremony and portraits earlier in the day.
Ceremony through to the speeches.
- For an evening-only wedding
- Guests arriving from 7pm
- The ceremony in the museum
- Portraits on the grand staircase
- Dinner and speeches
Preparations through to the first dance.
- The standard full London wedding day
- A register office ceremony earlier on
- Portraits around South Kensington in daylight
- The evening at the museum
- The first dance
Preparations through to the last dance.
- For big celebrations where nothing gets missed
- Everything in Classic
- The party into the late evening
- Wide shots of the hall, set and lit
- An unhurried pace all day
The museum doesn't publish wedding prices. As a dry-hire venue, the total depends on the space, the date and your suppliers, so ask the events team for a quote early. A second photographer is £1,250, and for a wedding of several hundred in Hintze Hall it's worth considering. The full breakdown is on my wedding photography prices and packages page, venue details are on the museum's weddings page, and other unusual London venues are in my guide to unique wedding venues. For how I work across the rest of the city, see my London wedding photographer page.
Natural History Museum wedding questions
Can you get married at the Natural History Museum?
Yes. The museum has twelve spaces licensed for weddings and civil partnerships, including Hintze Hall under Hope the blue whale.
How many guests can the museum hold for a wedding?
Hintze Hall and Fossil Way take up to 450 for a ceremony and up to 650 for dinner. Earth Hall takes 200 for a dinner and dance, the Darwin Centre Atrium 150, and the smaller galleries between 20 and 80.
How much does a Natural History Museum wedding cost?
The museum doesn't publish wedding prices. It's a dry-hire venue, so the cost depends on the space, the date and the approved suppliers you choose. Ask the museum's events team for a quote. My own collections are £1,350 for five hours, £1,800 for eight and £2,200 for eleven.
What time do weddings at the museum start?
Weddings are held after the museum closes to the public. Guests arrive from 7pm, and standard hire runs to midnight, with later finishes available.
Where can we take wedding photos near the museum?
The terracotta front of the museum on Cromwell Road, the Royal Albert Hall and Albert Memorial up Exhibition Road, Kensington Gardens, and the streets of South Kensington.
Have you photographed a wedding at the Natural History Museum?
Not inside the museum yet. I've photographed many weddings and pre-wedding shoots in South Kensington and at the other grand London venues nearby.
How quickly do we get our photos?
Weddings of up to five hours within 24 hours, and seven hours or more within a week, in a private online gallery with high-resolution downloads and no watermarks.
Getting married at the Natural History Museum?
Send me your date. I read every enquiry myself and I'll let you know straight away whether I'm free.
Rather use the longer form? Head to the contact page