What wedding photographer doesn’t dream of shooting in a totally original setting with endless possibilities? For Heather Shuker of Eclection Photography (who has a real love for shooting in urban spaces and is a 2016 Rf Rising Star), that’s exactly what it was like covering Kate and Sam’s wedding in this car park in Peckham (in southeast London). “It was amazing to have a venue with so much space and one of the best views in London,” says Shuker. “Kate and Sam had the most joyous humanist ceremony that was full of energy and after a few gin and tonics, we made the longest confetti run in London. I loved shooting in this location and finding the beauty amid the concrete!”

Photos © Eclection Photography

Shot on floors 8 and 9 of Peckham Levels, the space, says Shuker, has been “regenerated by an arts group—Bold Tendencies—and there is a lovely pink staircase that was installed by artist Simon Whybray that added some nice color to the stark surroundings.”
 The joyous ceremony was conducted in the round by a humanist officiant and there was a choir and lots of singing with everyone joining in…”there is even a famous actor as a guest,” adds Shuker. “See if you can spot him!”

Challenges came up mainly with the lights in the ceremony. “I didn’t know that fluorescent lights flicker on and off at a different frequency, and are unseen by the human eye,” says Shuker. “And this frequency is different all over the world. I knew I was exposing correctly so I was perplexed that there was the occasional odd image  coming out totally black or with a black stripe. It was bit of a panic as I tried different shutter and exposure combinations but there was no time to experiment. I’m glad I had two camera bodies with me, and my flash as well. I just decided to totally shoot, shoot, shoot and mix in a bit of flash on a high ISO.”

GEAR OF THE DAY:

Cameras: Canon 5 D Mark III, Canon 5D Mark IV

Lenses: Sigma 35mm and 50mm, Canon 24-70mm and Canon 85mm (with a few shots during the speeches taken with a 70-200mm

Lighting: Canon flash for dancing shots

To read more on how to find the beauty in urban landscapes and turn grit into glamour the way Shuker does, click here.

Submit your wedding to Rf editor-in-chief Jacqueline Tobin for a chance to get featured here.