Every experienced Bedfordshire wedding photographer will have seen and photographed some unusual things at weddings; it could be unorthodox outfits, the bride arriving on a motorbike, or themes based on Sci-fi favourites like Star Trek or Doctor Who.

Part of this is due to the wider variety of places in which people can get married. Where once it was the church or registry office, now people can choose castles, hotels and other licensed venues. From last month, a temporary law change permitting outdoor ceremonies in England and Wales during the pandemic has been made permanent.

All this means your wedding pictures might look distinctly different to those with a traditional ceremony, where a bride in a white dress with a long train poses with a suited groom outside the church or town hall. It could provide a very unusual backdrop of trees or distant hills, or the funky interior of an unusual or very grand building.

There are many grand wedding venues in Bedfordshire and also some distinctly unorthodox ones. For example, the Wedding Secret list of venues includes the Safari Lodge at Woburn Safari Park, which means posing with elephants and swans, or enjoying the Lakeside scenery of the Forest Centre at Marston Moretaine.

Alternatively, Hitched.com lists places like Mill Farm, a venue with Indian style tipi tents, for a half-indoors, half-outdoors hybrid.

With all these curious combinations of different venues or even an outdoors space, plus a range of different outfits or even novel touches like a bird of prey or owl flying the rings into the venue, there are so many ways to make a wedding different from the norm. 

Most importantly, with a skilled photographer all these quirks can be captured to create a beautiful treasure trove of memories, alongside the joy and excitement that will be common to any kind of wedding. 

Outdoor civil weddings and civil partnerships made permanent – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Wedding Venues in Bedfordshire (theweddingsecret.co.uk)

Mill Farm Wedding Venue Gamlingay, Bedfordshire | hitched.co.uk