Documentary Wedding Photographer
Hello! I’m Nathan, and I provide documentary wedding photography across the UK for couples who want their wedding photos to be jam-packed with ‘real’ moments.
If my photos make you smile, I could be the perfect documentary wedding photographer for you!
Documentary wedding photography is NOT a style
Documentary photography is also called reportage photography, wedding photo-journalism, candid photography and fly-on-the-wall.
It’s a consistent approach to photographing the whole wedding day from prep to party in a hands-off, non-staged and non-directed way. The goal is to tell wedding stories are they truly were.
Documentary wedding photographers have different styles, owing to how they see the world (lens choice, colours they are drawn to, the types of moments that gravitate towards photographing, etc).
The most important thing is that documentary wedding photographers seek to authentically tell the story of the wedding through careful observation alone.
Not every photographer has the confidence and skill to be a documentary wedding photographer; that’s why many fall back on chiming in all day by giving little directions.
Why couples love my approach to documentary wedding photography
My approach to documentary wedding photography leaves you free to relax and enjoy your day knowing that your photography is being taken care of in the background.
It maximises your time with your precious friends and family and you won’t ever be pulled out from what you’re doing for the sake of photos.
I want you to remember your wedding for what it was, rather than it being a 10-hour photoshoot at the hands of a photographer. You won’t ever hear me ask you to look at the camera and smile.
My goal is to capture the joy of your wedding without interrupting the flow of your day. This requires me to use my skills of anticipation and visualisation to capture natural/real expressions.
I believe that your wedding is unique, and your photos should be too. So, I don’t work to a shot list.
I concentrate on creating photos that are all about telling your wedding story through careful observation and by tuning into the people who make your wedding everything that it is.
Besides the big and expected set pieces of your day, I want to show you genuine moments that you didn’t expect to see, quirky ones that will surprise you and make you smile and joyous moments that they missed – it’s one of the things my couples love the most that when they receive their wedding gallery from me, and it’s one of the biggest reasons couples book me.
My couples appreciate that documentary wedding photography is not about having pretty photos all day, it’s about being able to see the wider wedding in all its glory and not just the scripted events.
I provide documentary wedding photography coverage in Leicestershire, Nottingham, Derbyshire and across the whole of the UK.
Why should you book a documentary wedding photographer?
My approach is perfect if:
1) You want original, story-driven photos
2) You want to see loads of unscripted, in-between moments
3) You don’t want to remember your day as a 10-hour photoshoot
4) You don’t want to be told to ‘look at the camera’
On Your wedding, you’ll never hear me say
- Could you just repeat that action again
- Could you move over there where the light is better
- Could you look at me for a second
Documentary wedding photography accolades and awards
I am honoured to be regarded as one of the best documentary wedding photographers in the world by This is Reportage (TiR).
TiR, whose strapline is ‘nothing staged, nothing posted’, is the most highly regarded documentary wedding photography competition in the industry. It is incredibly difficult to pick up a single award, with only the top 2% of photos being awarded by the judges in each round out of over 10,000 entries each time.
In 2024, I made the top 10 wedding photographers in the world with 9 awards for outstanding documentary wedding photography. I have also been in their top 10 storytellers in the world for the last 2 years.
Some more of my accolades are below and I also run a documentary wedding photography workshop to help photographers become better at storytelling.
IS MY DATE STILL AVAILABLE?
Planning a seriously FUN wedding with maximum good times? I would LOVE to hear from you! Just shoot me a quick HELLO and I’ll let you know about my availabily.
Check Availability“TRULY CAPTURED THE HAPPINESS OF US & OUR GUESTS”
Nathan is one of a kind. We could not recommend him enough to anyone wanting relaxed, non staged photos.
Charlie + Tom
HELLO! I’m Nathan
I shoot weddings for fun-loving couples who want to feel relaxed around the camera! I’m based in Nottingham and I provide documentary wedding photography throughout the UK.