Queer wedding in Soho - Poppy and Marcela
Ooof, this is going to be an important one! An LGBTQ+ wedding isn’t just a wedding - it’s a celebration of what the community have fought for for decades. Decades! It’s a celebration of the fact that love is finally being accepted, recognised and valid.
It’s even more important for me - a Polish person living in London. Gay weddings are still not recognised or allowed in the country I come from. It really breaks my heart (and mind, as I cannot understand it!) and many, many of my friends there cannot be married, even though they have been in loving relationships for years. Some come to UK to get married, some refuse to do it, unless their country officially recognises their union. It’s so wrong, it’s so unfair, its so infuriating!
And because of that I absolutely love photographing LGBTQ+ weddings, I love documenting how beautiful and ‘normal’ same sex love is. I cry at the speeches, I cry at ‘I do’s’, I cry at the first dance, when I spot the dad’s humble tear.. A marriage is an outward sign that the love is accepted and celebrated, which is huge when you think that being gay was only legalised in England and Wales in 1967. Mindblowing!!
two beautiful brides in Soho
But let’s come back to Soho. Poppy and Marcela planned their wedding in a speedy manner - they booked me a month before their wedding (luckily I was available!) and bought their wedding rings two weeks before the Big Day! And it all worked just stunningly. They stayed in the Tree House Hotel in Soho, London where I met them to document the getting ready moments. It was very calm and relaxing, just the brides and their mums. We then took a cab and went straight to the elegant Chelsea Town Hall. The ceremony was sweet and short, as the brides decided to exchange their wedding rings and say their personal vows afterwards, alone, in a quiet corner of Soho. This gave the whole affair an intimate elopement vibe, even though we were all joined later by a lot of enthusiastic friends!
I was there with Poppy and Marcela on the streets of Soho, documenting their rings and vows exchange. It was a very touching and joy-filled moment. Have a look:
Beautiful elopement, isn’t it?
From the very moment Poppy emailed me, I knew it would be a very special wedding. But I was wrong, it was way more than that! Not only Poppy and Marcela ooze love and devotion (which is star powder to make all wedding photos so good), but they also know how to party! Marcela is Brasilian and she brought her favourite cocktail to the whole wedding mix. Yes, you guessed well - caipirinhas for everyone! And Poppy’s love for pizza made the venue an obvious one - the awesome Soho pizzeria Mozza! (and they are amazing, the fed me so well, that couldn’t believe it!) And it turns out pizza + caipirinhas make a very successful wedding reception.
I simply cannot do justice to how amazingly wonderful Poppy and Marcela are, or how magnificently brilliant their Soho wedding was, it doesn’t matter how many compound adjectives I use, you are just going to have to take my word for it!!!
It was a pretty damn good day, which made it an amazing day to be a wedding photographer!! (I mean - I like my job anyway, but some weddings are a tad more special than others. This one was banging!)
I photograph weddings nationwide and internationally, based in the very middle of it all - London. I’ve shot weddings in Brighton (hello more LGBTQ+ weddings to come in Brighton!), Cornwall, Marrakesh and Italy, Wales, Sicily, Spain, Argentina and Poland, to name a few. If you’re interested in working with me/hiring me, please feel free to get in touch, follow me on insta, or email me (marta@martailardophotography.com) You can also go straight to my contact me page :-)
love is love!