Your wedding day is of course something you would want to preserve forever, and whilst you can keep things like your dress and a cake topper, treasured photographs is something that is not only easy to share but captures you and all your guests on your very special day.
It’s no surprise that wedding photography has a very long history, once photography developed into a portable art form, wedding photographers have been a crucial part of documenting the big day. Quite often, we also see wedding photographs from previous generations displayed at the Bodleian, bringing together ancestors and celebrating decades of tradition in a beautiful presentation.
For this journal post, we’re here to talk about what it’s like capturing those candid moments with one of our recommended photographers, Nicola & Glen. This dynamic photography duo discuss how they met, their favourite spots to photograph at the Bodleian, and what to do if you’re a bit camera-shy. So please do read on below!
Welcome! First of all, please do introduce yourselves to our lovely readers
We’re Nicola & Glen, a couple, a creative partnership, and an international photography duo based in the Cotswolds. We photograph meaningful, intentional events for people who deeply value their memories. Our work is instinctive and quietly observant. Less about posing, more about presence, but with an eye for detail. We’ve had the honour of photographing weddings at the Bodleian Library for over a decade, and being a recommended photographer for this iconic Oxford venue continues to mean a great deal to us.
Clients often tell us how calm we make them feel. We combine that ease with a carefully honed artistic eye to create honest, elegant images that feel like memories already. Discreet in style, we capture everything joyful and moving on a wedding day as it naturally unfolds.
Oxford will always hold a special place in our hearts. It’s where we met, and where we fell in love – somewhere between the darkroom and the pub, with a long-distance love affair that spanned hemispheres before eventually bringing us home to England.
Over the past decade, we’ve photographed weddings in historic estates, palaces, and city rooftops. Our clients have ranged from rockstars to royalty, scholars to CEOs. What draws them to our work is a desire to remember their day the way it truly felt! As photographers we’re utterly captivated by atmosphere, architecture, emotion, and the genuine moments in between.
For both of you, what was it about photography that really captured your imaginations, and made you want to choose photography for a career?
When we met 20 years ago, our initial connection took root in a shared love of photography. When Nicola went travelling, Glen loaned her his film camera and lenses and we always joke it was his way of making sure we’d end up back together after that first gap year adventure came to an end.
The real question is why we chose weddings and why we ended up working together. The answer is hard to put into words, but the truth is: it was instinctive.
Much of our work is shaped by place, and by creating images that carry feeling. Many of our clients choose locations with deep personal meaning, a university where they met, a childhood home, a place that feels like theirs. We aim to capture not just how your wedding looked, but how it felt to be there. How you were moved by the promises made, the words spoken and unspoken, and how everyone lost themselves in the music as the night unfolded in celebration.
We’re always conscious of the people present. Photographs often become more significant with time, especially of loved ones who won’t always be in the frame.
Ultimately, we’re here to make something lasting. A thoughtful, beautiful record of the day, and everything it meant.
How far in advance would you recommend couples to start looking and booking their photographer for their big day?
If photography is a priority, we recommend beginning your search as soon as your venue and date are confirmed. Unlike many other suppliers, photographers can only commit to one event per day, meaning once the date is booked, it’s gone. The earlier you reach out, the more choice you’ll have, and the more time you’ll have to build a meaningful connection with whoever you choose to document your day.
Booking early also means we can support you with recommendations for other trusted suppliers, especially videographers we work closely with, whose style and approach complement ours. When there’s trust and creative alignment, everything flows more effortlessly on the day.
If a prospective couple was interested in booking you, what might the timeline be from that initial enquiry right up to the day of the wedding?
We open our diaries around 18 months in advance, with some couples joining a waitlist to secure their date early. That said, we also happily take on last-minute commissions, subject to availability. Once an enquiry comes in, we usually start with a conversation to learn more about the couple, their plans, and how we might support them.
Around 3 to 4 months before the wedding, we’ll hold a pre-wedding consultation to go through the finer details, covering timings, logistics, and how to make the most of the photographic opportunities. It’s also a chance to tailor our approach to what matters most to you, and to ensure everything is organised well in advance so you can feel fully present on the day. We’ll offer any guidance that can help your day flow more smoothly and feel more enjoyable. We have a vested interest in you having the most relaxed, joy-filled experience as that’s what translates beautifully in front of our lens!
Some clients choose to include pre-wedding coverage, such as an engagement session or rehearsal dinner, which can be a lovely way to ease into being photographed and capture more of the celebration story.
Quite a lot of people sadly consider themselves camera-shy or not very photogenic, what guidance do you provide for couples who want to commemorate their wedding day, but are nervous in front of the camera?
We want our clients to feel completely at ease, like they’re in the hands of professionals they can trust, but also people who genuinely care. We bring calm, clarity, and kindness to everything we do. For many, it feels like working with old friends, the kind who quietly notice everything and make sure your memories are in safe hands.
In truth, most of our couples would say they’re not especially comfortable in front of the camera, which isn’t what you’d assume from looking at our portfolio. So much of our expertise is in helping people feel relaxed and themselves. It’s something we’ve become known for.
If you’re camera-shy, the most important thing is choosing photographers you feel comfortable with, people you can trust to guide you gently, offer light direction when needed, and capture you in a way that feels natural and effortless. That combination of professionalism and ease makes all the difference. A pre-wedding shoot can also be a lovely way to ease into the experience and build your confidence ahead of the big day.
We are starting to get a lot more couples enquire about proposals at the Bodleian, outside of just the wedding day, what other adjacent photography do you both offer?
We love being part of the build-up so proposals and engagement sessions are something we’re always delighted to photograph. There’s something special about documenting the moments that lead into a wedding day, especially in a place as atmospheric as the Bodleian!
And because we often feel like part of the family by the time the wedding’s over, many of our clients invite us back to capture other milestones, from christenings to anniversaries, birthdays to relaxed family shoots. It’s a joy to continue telling their story as it unfolds over time.
We’ve seen plenty of different photography styles, what else can you offer couples for the wedding day away from just the standard colour digital photograph?
Alongside classic colour digital imagery, what we really offer is perspective – two, in fact!
We’ve each developed our own way of seeing. From the lenses we choose to the moments we’re drawn to, our work unfolds in creative symbiosis shaped by years of experience. It’s what makes our coverage so complete. A layered, considered documentation of the day that no single photographer could achieve alone. With us, you don’t get a lead photographer and an assistant, you get two photographers, both fully present, responding to the day in real time, capturing the story from different angles with a shared artistic eye.
We also have a deep affinity for black and white photography, its emotional clarity, its timelessness, the way it draws your attention to gesture, feeling, form. For couples who want to preserve their images in a tactile way, we offer exquisitely hand-crafted albums. Our albums are heirloom pieces, made to last and be lived with.
If you could go back in time to when you shot your first wedding, what advice would you give to your past selves?
Trust your eye, trust your pace, and don’t overthink the moment. The most meaningful images rarely come from chasing perfection, they come from presence. From being attuned to the atmosphere, the people, the emotion.
We’d also remind ourselves that cultivating a sense of calm is part of the work. The energy you bring behind the camera shapes the energy in front of it. Mindfulness – in how you move, observe, respond – allows you to hold space for the day as it unfolds. Over time, that’s become one of the most valuable tools we carry with us.
And perhaps most importantly, enjoy it. Stay light. Let yourself be moved. There’s joy in the honour of documenting love, and it’s meant to be felt as well as framed.
Admittedly a bit biased with this question, but what are your favourite places to photograph couples at the Bodleian Libraries?
We know Oxford, not just the map, but the feeling. The rhythm of its seasons, the quiet corners, the way light falls through cloisters and onto stone. We’ve photographed weddings in many of the city’s most iconic colleges and historic buildings, and bring both local knowledge and a deep appreciation for its architecture and atmosphere. For many of our couples, Oxford holds personal meaning, it’s where their story began. For us, it’s the city that shaped our own. There’s something timeless about photographing love in a place with so much history and we never take that for granted.
The Bodleian Libraries offer some of the most spectacular locations for photography, and it’s a privilege to work in such storied surroundings. There’s an abundance of choice, and we always use discernment based on the light and conditions of the day to create something unique for each couple.
Duke Humfrey’s Library is a favourite. It always feels like stepping into another world. Time slows. The air changes. You’re surrounded by ancient tomes and centuries of silence. It’s the kind of space that makes you feel something, before a single image is even taken. It’s one of Oxford’s most magical places.
And for my final question, which is each of your favourite parts of the wedding day?
There’s so much joy in the creative process, the intention we bring to each wedding, reading the light, and responding to what’s unique to each celebration as it unfolds. But it’s the relationships that stay with us. Building the connection with our couples, being invited into such an intimate moment in their lives is a privilege.
There’s so much joy in the creative process, the intention we bring to each wedding, reading the light, and responding to what’s unique to each celebration as it unfolds. But it’s the relationships that stay with us. Building the connection with our couples, being invited into such an intimate moment in their lives is a privilege.
Thank you both Nicola & Glen for giving such detailed and personal answers, it really does speak to how passionate you both are in capturing the most perfect day for your couples. Please do also visit our recommended suppliers page to see who else we are proud to work with at the Bodleian.
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