10 October 2019
Kay and James wrote to me a few months before their wedding…they had planned an escape to Italy, just them and their two boys. I met them in London during my escape from Rome; we messaged by chance on Whatsapp and discovered that they too would be in the English capital that weekend and so we agreed to go and have a hot chocolate.
Already from that first meeting I fell in love with this sweet couple and their children who were so lovely and very well behaved! I remember them feeling a little agitated about many things, organising a wedding in a country other than your own, with language barriers and bureaucratic practices to obtain, valid documents to be able to get married abroad. I however slowly managed to answer all their questions and make them imagine how the day would turn out… they cheered up and sighed with relief. The couple had decided to stay at Palazzo Manfredi, a hotel with a breath-taking view of the Colosseum. Dinner would also take place there… just for the four of them.
The civil ceremony had been arranged for 11am in the church Sconsacrata a Caracalla and then we took them to discover the magnificent views of Rome…I speak in the plural because obviously there were a few of us following this wedding: BenniCarol photography for an incredible photoshoot, Fulvio Greco Film for the wonderful video and Andrea Pescetelli who patiently chauffeured us all together in his vintage VW campervan.
Ecco la “short version” di questa incredibile giornata, montata ad arte da Fulvio Greco, regista con cui amo lavorare e che vorrei mi seguisse in tutti i matrimoni che organizzo. Se invece avete qualche minuto in più vi consiglio la “extended version” (parliamo cmq di sei minuti) con una colonna sonora d’eccezione
I organise many weddings where only the couples themselves are present, not only with symbolic ceremonies but also civil ceremonies… and in fact I am the witness for most of them, as in this case; but usually when the photo shoot begins in the heart of the city I never go with the newlyweds, I entrust them in the expert hands of my photographers. But here I wanted to be there because with two children I could allow the couple to give themselves some shots alone in peace.
The suit in which the couple stayed allowed them to remain separate whilst I, the photographers and Fulvio acted as a shuttle to help one and then the other. Kay was perfectly made up and styled by Ruslana Regi while James helped the children get dressed and tried to learn with a tutorial how to tie a Windsor knot…James with the youngest son went first to the Municipality and were later joined by Kay, who was accompanied by her eldest son down the aisle to the officiant.
The rest is history… the YES, the exchange of rings, the pigeons that terrified Caroline outside the town hall and then the tour to discover Rome!!!
The Giardino degli Aranci, the hole in the door from which you can see the Dome of St Peters, the Roman Forum and then an ice cream stop at the Tiberina Island, before going for a stroll with the children along the Tevere below Castel Sant’Angelo. The day ended in front of the Colosseum to allow Bernadette and Carolina to take their last wonderful shots…what a day!
