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Traditional Weddings

Traditions are not a thing of the past, many couples I have worked with have chosen to have an additional ‘cultural’ or ‘traditional’ wedding alongside a legal wedding. These traditional ceremonies are colourful and are full of fun but also contain a whole lot of traditions that you won’t see anywhere else. In Essex and London, couples usually have guests of various cultures/backgrounds attending their wedding, which gives them a great opportunity to share and embrace their culture.

Cultural ceremonies have a deep connection to the families of the couple, tribal/cultural ceremonies have been held to this structure for generations, and often are connected closely to a religion, which comforts the family knowing that the marriage is blessed by their God.

Nigerian Weddings

Always full of sparkles, colour and music; I have shot a range of traditional Nigerian ceremonies, often the groom and his groomsmen lay in begging the bride’s family, this originates from the original engagement request.

Itsekiri Traditional Wedding

Steve and Dede had a traditional ceremony before their wedding party, the ceremony was full of reds and golds. In Itsekiri culture weddings, it’s quite interesting to take photos of the ‘fake brides’ that walk down the raise before the bride where the groom’s family waves off to make sure they get the correct bride for the wedding!

Bride under a gold lace veil among women holding a purple feather fan

Groomsmen in blue lying face down on the floor in front of the elders during the ceremony

Veiled bride arriving with a woman in red traditional dress

Bride in a gold gele dancing as guests spray her with money

Older woman in a red head tie and coral beads smiling

Bride and groom laughing together in traditional Itsekiri dress

Hands reaching for a tray of sweets during the mehndi ceremony

Bride and groom dancing in the street beneath a gold canopy at their mehndi in Tooting

Guest filming on his phone as the bride dances

Dhol drummer leading the mehndi procession along the street

Black and white photo of the bride-to-be walking under a canopy held up by her guests

Guests dancing together, one in an orange sari

Guests in pastel lehengas laughing together

Indian Mehndi

Traditional in Sihk and Hindu culture, the Mehndi celebration is for the bride to have henna or ‘mendi’ marks artistically applied to her skin. Neil and Parna held a Mehndi a couple of days before their wedding, where the couple celebrated with their family and friends.

A cool element of this traditional celebration is when the couple are fed sweets by the bride’s side of the family, this often ends up with someone stitching up the couple with massive mouthfuls spooned into their mouths. There’s a whole load of dancing to loud music with tabla drums setting the beat and without question an abundance of really good food.

get your lightbulbs ready!!!