St Luke’s Church, Chelsea Christening Photography
“Oh my goodness, these are my favourite photos ever. Thank you SO much; they are unbelievably perfect. ”
When I am photographing a church Christening or wedding (or even a funeral), there is nothing more settling or better to get me into a calm and focused creative zone, than to arrive early and spend some time in the quiet of a holy place. I was not brought up on religion, but I was brought up on churches, and somehow the reluctance of being dragged from church to church in my childhood and teenage years has in adulthood translated to a desire to step into almost every one I pass. Lucky then that I ended up as a family event photographer.
I have always hoped to be asked to photograph in the grand Neo-Gothic church of St Luke’s Chelsea and my time came this month with this little boy’s christening. Charles Dickens was married here two days after publication of the first part of “The Pickwick Papers”; John Goss, who wrote the hymn “Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven” and the carol “See Amid the Winter Snow”, was organist here. The author of ‘The Water Babies’, Charles Kingsley’s father, was rector here. I love all these little bits of history - it’s comforting to know in a world where things seems to be changing at a rapid rate, there are some things that continue just the same… people falling in love and getting married, having children, making music, conducting services and carrying out the same rituals through the centuries.
A Sunday morning and the start of one of these super hot days we are having this summer - and family, godparents, friends, and children aplenty gathered to mark the arrival of a fourth addition to the family. What was especially lovely was the active participation of the children during the service - each craning their heads to read from above the pulpit, pouring the holy water into the font, lighting the candle and being free to be themselves and enjoy the church as God’s playground before and after the ceremony.
Afterwards we returned to the family home for a celebration party in the garden. A pianist played old popular classics on a grand piano with requests delivered by Post-it notes. And as the adults sipped cocktails, the children were taken for games in the park by children’s entertainers “Sharkey and George”, followed by the best Christening party treat ever “Next Generation Gaming” where a huge van parked up outside the house, the interior of which was decked out with computers and screens and seating for some serious gaming action.
A beautiful and fun Christening to observe and photograph, with lots of opportunities to capture candid moments and spontaneous portraits of baby with parents, siblings, godparents and grandparents. The pictures below will show you how I quietly move around in the background of things to accumulate frames that will form a photo story - not just of the key moments but the fleeting, quirky, humorous ones too.
At the church and christening service, the images are showcased here in black and white and the reception in colour, but you will receive all the images in both if you decide to have me as your christening photographer. Here are my pictures of B’s special day.
London Christening Photography: June 2026
Ceremony: St Luke’s Church, Chelsea, London
Reception: At home in the garden
Looking for a Chelsea Christening Photographer? I would love to hear about your plans for the day. Please get in touch for an initial chat using my wedding form or email me at anna@annamccarthy.com 07811 242266.
