Marika and Sean’s Micro Stephens House & Gardens Wedding in Finchley, North London
Can you believe that Marika and Sean’s Micro Stephens House & Gardens Wedding was my first wedding of 2020? It’s pretty much unheard of that I’d get to September without shooting a single wedding but these are strange times, and we’re still in the middle of the Covid19 global pandemic as I write this. I was very, very excited to get shooting again but I didn’t account for how emotional I’d actually find it.
As I wrote on my Instagram, on the day “It’s so nice to be shooting a wedding today. I stopped for a pre wedding coffee as I usually do and I am quite emotional at the comfort of returning to an old routine. Something I know. Familiar and purposeful. So much of this year has been hard and uncertain and new. I moved into my own place, having never lived alone, just as lockdown started. There’s been the stress of finding new work to stay afloat financially. There is so much uncertainty around my business and the wedding industry. And, you know, living through a global pandemic. But here I am drinking a coffee in a little cafe in North London, just about to get back to work.
Pre-ceremony portraits and vows at Stephens House
I met Marika and Sean at the front of Stephens House and we headed out into the beautiful gardens. Covid restrictions meant that they weren’t allowed to vary from the standard the ceremony. Marika and Sean decided to exchang personal vows, just the two of them, under a tree. This was a really beautiful way of doing things. It’s not traditional to spend time together before the ceremony but I think it’sa wonderful thing to do. You get to see each other for the first time away from everyone else, which really helps with nerves, and you get to spend some precious moments alone before you head off to get married.
A short but sweet ceremony, drinks on the terrace and dinner
After taking some portraits around the grounds of Stephens House and Gardens, we headed inside so Marika and Sean could exchange their legal vows. They had just 11 guests so it was relaxed, intimate and lovely. When the cerermony was finished everyone headed outside where Marika and Sean said a few words. After a glass of fizz and a few informal group shots, Marika and Sean and their guests headed inside for dinner.
It was so lovely to be a part of Marika and Sean’s Stephens House & Gardens Wedding. I’ve always loved intimate weddings and elopements just as much as bigger celebrations and I’m so glad couples are now able to get married again, after months of uncertianty. As you’ll see from these pictures, smaller weddings don’t have to be any less beautiful or meaningful.
Marika’s beautiful flowers below are by The Urban Flower Farmer.
You’ll find a slideshow of images from Marika and Sean’s wedding highlights below. Keep scrolling to check out more pictures from their Stephens House & Gardens wedding in North London. If you’d like to chat about your wedding photography, get in touch!
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