Planning / 3 min readThe Union in Frame journal
Register office weddings: photographs that fit a short ceremony
Words by Union in Frame
Yes, you can usually photograph a register office wedding. The question is how to do it well inside a short booked slot, with a registrar's rules to respect and the next couple often arriving as you leave. Here is what to expect in the room, on the steps and afterwards.
Ask the register office what it allows
Rules vary between local authorities, so ask when you book. Most registrars are happy for photographs to be taken during the ceremony, though many ask the photographer to stay in one place and work without flash. Some also ask guests to keep their phones away until it is over.
Find out whether your slot leaves time for photographs in the room or whether it is timed to the minute. Pass the answers to your photographer before the day. A registrar who knows the plan is usually happier to let it happen.
Expect the signing to stay off camera
The moment most registrars will not let you photograph is the legal signing. The marriage schedule is a legal document with personal details on it, and the registrar will usually ask for cameras down while you and your witnesses sign.
Many register offices then offer a posed signing. You sit at the table with the pen, often over a blank page or with the real document covered, and the photograph looks as you would hope. Ask for a moment with your witnesses at the table too. It takes a minute or two.
Use the steps and the street
Many register offices sit in town halls and civic buildings, with steps and a street outside. That is where the day opens up: the exit, the hugs, the first photographs with everyone around you.
Plan it rather than hope for it. Ask about confetti, because some councils allow only biodegradable confetti and others none at all. Agree a spot a few metres from the door, so the next wedding party can arrive without squeezing past. Ten unhurried minutes here can give you more than the ceremony room.
Plan around the size of the room
Ceremony rooms range from a small office with space for you and two witnesses to a hall with rows of seating. The capacity is fixed, so the room you book decides how many guests can come. A small group changes the photographs rather than limiting them.
With twenty guests, every face is close to you. Seat the people you most want in the photographs where they can see you, and tell your photographer who they are. If others cannot fit, ask them to meet you on the steps afterwards.
Do not let the day end at the door
The ceremony can be over in twenty minutes. Without a plan, everyone drifts towards the cars and the photographs stop with them. Decide where you are going next and how you will get there.
A park, a quiet street or the walk to the restaurant all work. Choose somewhere within ten minutes on foot and give your guests a meeting point and a time. Your photographer can walk with you, picking up the unplanned moments on the way. Half an hour is usually enough for relaxed portraits.
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