Last Saturday I joined Anna & Stevan for their wedding photos at the Serbian Orthodox Church of Holy Trinity in Bradford.

What a day it was, packed with wonderful Serbian traditions, lively folk music and a room-filling dance floor that hardly stopped!

While I joined Anna (a former Miss Singapore no less!) and her mum, ‘Mama Yang’, for comparatively sedate hair and makeup at Waterton Park Hotel, my wingman Paul and the groom were descended upon by 70 guests for traditional morning whisky celebrations, complete with flag bearers. Stevan even wore his dads wedding suit from when he married at the same church, 37 years prior!

The ‘Kums’ (who have special responsibilities similar to those of best men best men) have special responsibilities. Stevan’s brother, Kum Peter, took part in the traditional ‘buying of the bride’, negotiating with Mama Yang before escorting Anna to the ceremony. Meanwhile, Kum Milos (Stevan’s uncle) proudly hoisted an enormous Serbian flag and had the job of keeping the vibes going outside the church, where a traditional Serbian folk band played accordions (under a rainbow, no less).

Traditional Serbian Wedding Ceremony at the Church of Holy Trinity in Bradford

While Anna snuck into the church to gown up and don her 6″ heels (!) guests headed inside for the standing ceremony (something I’d not seen before). Ferried under a brolly through some proper autumnal weather, Anna and Stevan were introduced by the priest before passing the icon on their way to the altar. Rings were fitted by the Kum, golden crowns were placed by the priest, and communion was shared from a specially engraved glass. A sea of candles and a wonderful choir added to the atmosphere. I’ve photographed a few Eastern European Orthodox weddings before, and it’s always a lovely ceremony filled with meaningful wedding traditions.

Afterwards, the newlyweds were greeted with confetti, bubbles and more music on the church steps. The Kums threw coins at their feet for good fortune, which the children eagerly collected! Family photos followed before the newlyweds made a grand entrance into the reception hall to rapturous applause, dancing and bubbles!

Serbian Weddings Are Fun to Photograph – Packed with Tradition, Music and Dancing!

Celebrations continued with a meal, speeches and a flower girl stealing the bride’s shoe and publicly auctioning it back to the Kum! After some fun speeches (including an inflatable pig!), the Kums visited each table to raise a glass of Serbian fruit brandy, ‘rakija’, with guests and collect more monetary gifts for the happy couple.

Guests wasted no time diving back into the Kolo dance, circling the tables in a conga line! Before cutting the cake and tossing the bouquet, Anna and Stevan took to the floor for their first dance – starting with Anna (a trained ballerina) performing a little Swan Lake, before Stevan bounded on as a giant swan. Things then dropped into a full-on, brilliant salsa routine!

It was so lovely to capture all the Serbian traditions and the party coming alive with dancing and fancy-dress chaos well into the evening. This was a wedding bursting with energy, culture and joy.

I love shooting weddings in Yorkshire, and even more so when they’re packed with family-focused traditions like this one…

Now grab y’sen a steaming mug of Yorkshire tea (or a shot of Rakija) and hit play on the slideshow below to check out their wedding highlights!