Rainy Day Weddings – What if it rains on YOUR wedding day?

A black and white image of a bride and groom kissing under a white umbrella.
What to do if it rains on your wedding day in London? The same as you usually would! Throw confetti as they normally would on the steps of Chelsea Old Town Hall - just with umbrellas.I’m sitting here getting ready to photograph my next wedding at Chelsea Register Office and having looked at the weather forecast, I’m clearly prepping for another one of my rainy day weddings. Disaster!!! Or is it?

Let’s face it, this is England.What to do if it rains on your wedding day - advice from an experienced wedding photographer in London No matter the season, there is always a chance of rain. So let’s talk about it! I’ve had brides tell me, with complete, unshakeable confidence, “it will not rain on my wedding day”, only to have torrential downpour all day long. That’s just how it goes sometimes. Obviously we very much hope that it will NOT rain on your wedding day, but if it does, it’s not the end of the world. Far from it! I am a great believer in embracing rainy day weddings for what they are, going with the flow, and letting your wedding photographs reflect that.

The important thing is to be prepared! Especially if you are having a short-coverage or intimate wedding at a local register office it’s important to appreciate how this will affect the photography on your wedding day. There is a big difference between encountering rain during a full day wedding, or when you’re are just having a couple of hours of photographic coverage.Rain on your wedding day is good luck in Italy. It's also a great opportunity to play with a white umbrella throwing soft light onto your face - great for portraits!

When you have only a few hours of photographic coverage at your local register office, you simply don’t have the luxury to look out of the window and hope for the rain to pass. 15 minutes on an 8 hour wedding is nothing. 15 minutes during 1.5 hour coverage is a great deal. So you have to get on with it. Also, very few register offices have spare space for you to wait around in, or have your group photographs in. Chances are, you will be asked to leave the ceremony room shortly after your wedding as another wedding party will be coming through. And any public areas will likely be full of the next wedding waiting to go in. Even more so on a rainy day. An umbrella big enough for two on this rainy wedding day at Chelsea Register Office on the Kings Road. Rainy day weddings are nothing to worry about! Also, in London, there are few public spaces that provide any cover from the rain. So this is the reality. What can I do about that? Not much, really. I can’t change the location, the timeline OR the weather. But what we CAN control is how prepared we are to get the best shots possible for you. So my top tip of things to think about are:

1.) Attitude: The single most important thing here is your attitude. If you had your heart set on sunshine, but you wake up on your wedding day to raindrops on your bedroom window, try not to get down-hearted about it. It’s still your wedding day! You’re still going to have a wonderful day! How to handle a rainy London wedding - take advice from this pigeon and get out into it! You’re still going to marry the love of your life! We’re still going to get some great photographs! So think of all the good things that are going to happen today. Plus rain on your wedding day is supposed to be good luck!

2.) Umbrella: It’s worth investing in a clear, white or cream umbrella to lift your photographs on day that will look a little glum otherwise. Bright colours can be good too to add some fun, but keep in mind that just like clothing, the colour of the umbrella will reflect on your skin. So a red and green golf umbrella may lead to you looking red and green underneath! Definitely avoid anything with company logos on it. This is not the time for that freebie umbrella from your last corporate golf day! And it needs to be BIG. We want both of you to fit under it comfortably to stay nice and dry.Handling rain on their wedding day, this couple grabbed a transparent umbrella for their ceremony at Chelsea Register office on the Kings Road.

3.) Shoes: this is for the ladies (mostly!): Whilst I’m all for getting out in the rain and snuggling up romantically under your umbrella, I completely understand if you’re not ready to sacrifice your satin Jimmy Choos to the nearest puddle. So if you ARE wearing particularly delicate shoes, I recommend bringing along a spare pare of something less sensitive! Or really go for fun and get a pair of white wellies or plimsoles to peek out under your dress.

4.) Flexibility: If it really is raining heavily, we will need to be flexible about where we shoot, so be prepared to go with the flow on the day and keep an open mind.A little rain didn't stop this couple and their wedding guests having a group photo on the steps of Chelsea Old Town Hall on the Kings Road after their registry office wedding ceremony.

If you’re all set with the points above, then we’re still going to get some lovely portraits for you, no matter what the weather is doing. And quite often, once you’re all prepared, it doesn’t even rain!

And if you’re still not convinced, here’s a link to some blog featuring Rainy Day Weddings.