Burgh Island Wedding Photographer

What a Burgh Island wedding photographer is working with

Burgh Island is a tidal island off Bigbury-on-Sea, with an Art Deco hotel and an old smugglers’ inn. At low tide you walk across the sand; at high tide the island is cut off, and guests cross on the hotel’s sea tractor.

For a wedding you take the whole hotel: up to 25 rooms and 50 staying guests, with space in the ballroom for a few more. Ceremonies can be outside with the sea behind you, and the day runs to the tides.

A whole island, the tide going out, and nobody else there.

Photographing a Burgh Island wedding

The island gives you two very different looks: the glamour of the Art Deco interiors, and the wild coast outside. I like to move between the two through the day so the photos feel like the place.

With 50 staying guests the whole wedding feels like a house party, which is perfect for documentary photos. Everyone relaxes once the tide comes in.

How I photograph a Burgh Island wedding

Burgh Island is a weekend on an island, with an Art Deco hotel, a smugglers’ inn and the tide deciding the timings. A Burgh Island wedding photographer has to plan around the sea as much as the schedule.

As your Burgh Island wedding photographer I photograph the glamour indoors and the wild coast outside, and make sure we catch the sea tractor or the walk across the sand, whichever the tide gives us.

Planning your Burgh Island wedding photography

Your timings will depend on the tide, so plan the day with the hotel first and then share the timeline with me. A short walk across the sand at low tide makes a lovely portrait break.

Allow for the weather on an exposed island and bring a warm layer for the evening. There is more on Devon weddings on my Devon wedding photographer page.