Chiswick House Wedding photography in London

Chiswick House and Gardens Wedding Photography

Chiswick House and gardens wedding photography must be one of the most unique wedding venues in London I have Photographed.

Lord Burlington’s 18th-century villa, inspired by his grand tours of Italy and artists such as Andrea Palladio and Inigo Jones is simply stunning. This spectacular place which can be hired as a wedding venue takes every bride and groom on a very extraordinary journey. Why would you travel all the way to Italy if you can get married in the heart of London and in This Luxury Villa surrounded by 65 acres of Roman gardens?

I have photographed many weddings all around the UK but I have to honestly say Chiswick House as a wedding venue offers one of the most unique experiences.

Elegant London Wedding photography at Chiswick House

I am very fortunate to photograph weddings all over the UK, and often even beyond. On this occasion, I was delighted to work in one of the most dynamic cities in the world, LONDON.

Mariam chose the prestigious Landmark Hotel in Central London as the perfect location for her bridal preparations. As soon as I entered the hotel I was blown away by their majestic Winter Garden Restaurant. When I saw the fantastic view from Mariam’s bridal suite I immediately had a clear vision of the bride’s portrait image I wanted to capture. Although it wasn’t as easy as I had imagined, I was informed that access was not allowed to the balcony but not wanting to be defeated I charmed the security guard to unlock the balcony access, at that point we only had a couple of minutes before we had to shoot off. Without hesitation, I raced down the stairs and then stealthfully secreted myself between the diners within the restaurant and ‘SNAP’ .. my vision of this amazing image was captured. Creatively satisfied we were on our way to Chiswick House and Gardens, Mariam and Josh’s wedding venue.

Without exaggeration Chiswick House and Gardens is one of those places where you can literally lose yourself and forget you are still in central London. The place is truly stunning.

Mariam and Josh planned for a very laid-back informal wedding surrounded by their closest family and friends and that’s exactly what they’ve received and even more. They picked one of the nicest summer days which meant they were able to spend most of the time in the picturesque gardens surrounding the main house.

What made this wedding so special was that Mariam and Josh replaced the usual first dance and party for a super chilled al-fresco garden evening enjoying subtle tones of a string quartet, drinking fine cocktails, roasting marshmallows, and enjoying chatting to their friends and family. It was such a perfect day.

When it comes to planning your wedding I always advise you not to follow anybody else. Make your date exactly as you will enjoy it the best. If you are party animals and love to boogie and all that madness on the dance floor, choose your favorite band or a DJ and start your party as early as possible. If this is not YOU, I think you may consider taking a leaf from Mariam and Josh’s book and swap a loud crazy party for a nice, relaxing evening where you will get to enjoy all your guests with a little bit of background music without any distraction.

It’s your day and only you can make it YOURS !!

Mariam and Josh – OUR STORY:

1) Tell us how you first met? Who what when where why?

Josh and I first met at university, in the Maths library to be precise. We were both doing long days revising for exams and saw each other but never spoke until Josh opened a door for me and a friend to walk through. That became the infamous ‘door moment’ and the rest is history!

2) When did you know he/she was the one?

I think that from our first date it was pretty clear that we were both very interested in one another, we had a lot in common and just chatted freely. We got married 8 years to the anniversary of that date!

3) Tell us about the proposal.

The proposal was incredible. Josh and Roxie (maid of honor) colluded together to plan it. Roxie invited me over to her birthday weekend where the plan was to stay over and have a posh brunch. I packed accordingly and was going to take my case to work on Friday morning when Josh said that he would meet me for lunch and bring it with him then. At lunchtime, he picked me up from my office and he told me we weren’t just going for lunch, but to the airport (he had arranged for me to take the afternoon off with my boss without me knowing and Roxie’s sleepover was just a rouse). He handed me a boarding pass for Naples but told me that it was just the first leg of the journey. I had absolutely no idea where the end destination would be.

We got to Naples and were met by a driver and an assistant who hurried us into a Mercedes and to the port, from there we took a private boat to the island of Capri just as the sun was setting over the bay of Naples.

The next morning Josh took me to a beautiful villa – the Villa San Michele and I was a little confused about why we jumped the queue and were let in early. Josh led me out to the beautiful gardens overseeing the Grand Marina and got down on one knee.

As if that wasn’t incredible enough, the next moment a photographer named Umberto jumped out of a bush where he had been hiding. He had managed to photograph the proposal and had been following us since the hotel!

Josh absolutely had thought of everything: there were 2 things I had asked for when he was going to propose: make sure my nails are done and that there is someone there to capture it on camera! He had checked off both of those and then some!

4) Tell us the one thing you love most about each other.

Oooh so I love how kind and generous Josh is, he has a good heart and will go over and above for me.

Josh says: I think my favourite thing about Mariam is how she encourages me to be a better person, and how honest I can be around her.

5) If you feel comfortable, share with us something silly or quirky the other person does.

Mariam is really superstitious – she refuses to walk over 3 drains and salutes magpies! Josh doesn’t like the back of his knees being touched!

6) What inspired your décor or theme?

We love Italy and wanted a relaxed, Tuscan feel to the wedding. Neither of us is big partiers or drinkers so we wanted a day that suited us, more of a garden party than a disco.

7) What was the best part of your wedding?

Aside from marrying my best friend? I really enjoyed hearing my friend Chrissy singing opera for the first time and the dancing from her daughter was a bonus!

8) What’s one thing you wish you would have known earlier in regards to planning?

I wish we knew that it would be dry before! Having an outdoor wedding means lots of uncertainty and fretting over the weather forecast!

9) Could you give 1 or 2 most important pieces of advice for all the couples who are planning their wedding?

Set a budget and check it is realistic by discussing each element with the venue, there’s nothing worse than unexpected surprises late down the line! Some suppliers quote ex.VAT as well so it’s always good to clear that up early on!

Also, use your suppliers’ knowledge, ask them for advice and suggestions – they are normally happy to help and have so much experience as they have seen countless weddings!

Try not to stress – remember why you are doing this and that the details matter more to you than anyone else.

10/ What was the most important factor in choosing your wedding photographer and why have you chosen Latzo?

We knew we had to have Latzo shoot our wedding from the moment we saw the engagement shoot he did for our friends Laura and Nick. We were prepared and ambushed him at their wedding and have no regrets. Our wedding photos are divine and we get so many compliments on the talent of the photographer! Aside from that Latzo is such a great guy, he was amazing on the day – full of enthusiasm, advice and bubbling with creativity. I would not hesitate to recommend Latzo to anyone getting married or for any other event!

Vendor List :

Florist | Mary Jane Vaughan Designs

Dress Designer | Pronivias White One Collection

Dress Salon | The Bridal Gallery

Make up & Hair / Andrada & Adrianna Rusu

Catering/ Bovingdons

String Quartet/ Nook

Harpist / Tamara Morton

Videographer / Vogue Wedding Films

Dronographer / ByLumiere

Production & Furniture Hire / Event Productions

Cake / Cakes by Robin