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Derbyshire Wedding Photographer

Unstaged wedding photography for unconventional couples who want to relax and enjoy their big day.

Whether you’re getting married in a cinema, art gallery, or your back garden; my photography is all about telling your unique story and recreating the atmosphere of your wedding day so you can relive it again and again.

I’m here to take offbeat, multi-layered wedding photographs that come alive when you look at them and stand alone as great pieces of art.

Unconventional, unstaged and unobtrusive wedding photography so the only thing you need to focus on is enjoying your day with your family and friends.

From the electricity of the morning preparations to the energy of the wedding dancefloor and all the beats inbetween.

Wedding At Joseph Wright Gallery Derby Museum

Authentic, Artistic & Uniquely You

As well as all the real stories and moments you’ll often want to steal away for some couple portraits (totally optional!).

I’m not usually one for stage managing and complicated lighting set-ups - I want to create portraits that reflect the real you and your relationship, not ones that win awards for their technical brilliance. This means we’ll just go for a walk, find some nice light and have some quiet time before getting you back to the party & your guests.

You’ll often see the words reportage, documentary photography, and photojournalism used interchangeably throughout the wedding photography industry.

Bride putting on her veil

But all you really need to know is that it’s my aim to create a visual narrative of your wedding day as it unfolds before me. To watch the story that’s taking place and retell it through the medium of photography.

Ultimately, the goal of a documentary wedding photographer is to transport you back to the authentic, beating heart of your wedding day whenever you look through the images.

Bride walks down the aisle at Derby Museum Wedding Ceremony

It’s about more than just documenting; it’s about preserving the living, breathing, joy-filled story that each wedding day inherently becomes.

I cannot begin to tell you how much I love your photos. You've honestly left us with the best gift ever. You capture moments, movements and most importantly, emotions. And then, you wrap them all up into gorgeous photos which tell story after story at every turn.

ClaireArnott Hill Park 2022
Bride and Groom first dance at nasty Hall Wedding

Reportage & Documentary Derbyshire Wedding Photographer

Imagine not being pulled away by your wedding photographer from the people you really want to spend the day with.

And instead, being part of all those adrenaline-fuelled and love-buoyed interactions that are truly worth remembering.

Instead of trying to orchestrate a feeling of wedding serenity and calm just for the photos, imagine choosing to embrace the nerves, the build-up, the tension in the room, the chaos, the ugly cry, and the toddler who won’t stand still and smile.

Your wedding day will be a riotous, rousing, and rollicking affair – shall we tell it like it is?

Let’s get the picture-perfect moments and the almost unnoticed bits in between.

Well, I honestly don’t know where to start. Thank you so much for our absolutely incredible photos ♥️ You have, without doubt, captured the essence of our day. We’ve cried & laughed so much this evening. My hearts bursting! I’m so incredibly happy we found you.

AmandaSt John’s Mexborough, 2022
Bride with Bridesmaids and Flowergirls

Hello, I’m Simon.  I’ve been shooting candid, unstaged, documentary-style wedding photos around Derbyshire and the East Midlands for well over a decade.

When I’m not being a wedding photographer or looking after the children I’m into music, cinema and street photography. I can often be found playing guitar or tinkering with ancient analogue cameras.

Simon Dewey wedding photographer

That’s a matter of opinion - but if your definition of best wedding photographer is about documentary, spontaneous creative imagery I’m probably the photographer for you.

Folio Album on Table

If your definition of best wedding photographer is about dresses hanging from trees and people posed like mannequins in a shop window, you may want to swipe left. (The words you want to google are ‘Fashion-Forward’ and ‘Editorial Wedding Photography’).

But don’t take my word for it – I have about 40 5 star google reviews ,  (although, yes, one is written by my mum) 14 years experience photographing weddings and am currently ranking number one photographer in Derbyshire on the Wedding Photojournalist Association website.

See some real wedding stories

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Contact Me

Simon Dewey Photography
4 Embankment Close
Derby
DE22 4HF