Destination Wedding Photographer
I’m Lyndsey Goddard, an award-winning UK-based destination wedding photographer specialising in honest, documentary wedding photography across Europe and the rest of the world.
My approach is unobtrusive and hands-off and the resulting photographs are honest and personal. Couples book me to document their weddings because they want an authentic representation of their day, and don’t want to spend all day performing for the camera or away from their guests. I specialise in candid photographs which look perfectly composed. The people most important to you, just being themselves, without the need for direction or performance. I’m an expert at capturing the atmosphere, laughter, chaos and fleeting moments which make your day uniquely yours, without ever imposing on the day.
I’ve photographed destination weddings in France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Poland, India and the USA, from intimate weddings with just a handful of guests to multi-day celebrations. If you love documentary wedding photography and want your destination wedding captured with honesty, humour and feeling, have a look through the weddings below.
17+ years photographing weddings
500+ weddings documented
13 countries photographed
Europe from £5,000
Rest of world from £7,000
Documentary Destination Wedding Photographer
The couples who book me want unobtrusive coverage of their wedding. Photos which show what the day really looked and felt like. I’ve been winning awards for my documentary photography for over 17 years and bring this knowledge and expertise to every wedding I photograph. Storytelling is at the heart of what I do, and wherever in the world your wedding is taking place, I’d love to tell your story.
Utterly obsessed. Your talent and the way you tell stories is absolutely amazing. THANK YOU!
Lawrence & Adam, married at Villa Eva in Ravello, August 2025
Where I photograph destination weddings
I’m based in the UK but photograph destination weddings throughout Europe and further afield. I’ve photographed weddings in Italian villas, French châteaus, ancient Greek churches, and Polish wineries. Weddings in Portuguese monasteries, Louisiana Creole houses, even a hotel made out of sand in the desert of Rajasthan. The locations might be wildly different, but the thing my couples have in common is that they want their wedding photographs to feel real, not manufactured. Take a look at some of my favourite destination weddings below.
South of France Wedding Photographer
Victoria & Alex spent 3 days celebrating their wedding in the south of France, starting with a welcome dinner and music, a relaxed pool party at the chateau, followed by dusk wedding ceremony.
Ravello Wedding Photographer / Villa Eva
Loz & Adam’s destination wedding at Villa Eva in Ravello had everything: spectacular Amalfi Coast views, beautiful Italian architecture and their favourite people all in one place. From the garden ceremony to dinner, dancing against the stunning backdrop, I photographed it all as it unfolded.
See more of Loz & Adam’s wedding at Villa Eva in Ravello, Italy
New Orleans Destination Wedding Photographer
Bec & Luke travelled to their favourite city – New Orleans – for their destination wedding, embracing the city’s energy and character. I photographed their day unobtrusively, capturing the emotion, atmosphere and unexpected moments as they unfolded
Santorini Wedding Photographer
Ellie & Niko’s intimate Santorini wedding was full of Aegean views, happy tears, good food and swimming! A pre wedding boat cruise around the island was followed by a religious ceremony in a Greek chapel on the mountain top, and dinner overlooking the sea.
Portugal Destination Wedding Photographer
Portugal has some incredible wedding venues and none more so than this old monastery, with amazing views of lush green landscape. The laid back atmosphere at this wedding allowed me to document the real moments against the backdrop of beautiful architecture and soft light.
Château de Cazenac Wedding Photographer
Liv & Cal got married at Château de Cazenac in France, surrounded by their friends and family. With a welcome pizza party and an outdoor ceremony it was a relaxed weekend, not to mention the impromptu midnight swimming in the rain…
Domaine de Vieux-Mareuil Wedding Photographer
Kirsty & Elliott chose Domaine de Vieux-Mareuil in France for a relaxed destination wedding.The day started slowly with a pool party, followed by an outdoor ceremony and raucous party, all captured in my discreet documentary style.
India Destination Wedding Photographer
Kish & Kush’s wedding in India was a vibrant, emotional celebration filled with colour, tradition and energy. Multi-day weddings like this offer the chance to tell a much bigger story, capturing not just the ceremony but the people, preparations and celebrations surrounding it.
See more from Kish & Kush’s wedding at House of Rohet and Mihir Garh.
Castello Monaci Wedding Photographer / Puglia / Italy
Sharmin & Leon celebrated their destination wedding at Castello Monaci in Puglia, surrounded by family and friends in the beautiful setting of this historic Italian castle. My unobtrusive approach enabled me to document the day as it happened.
Poland Destination Wedding Photographer
An incredibly fun wedding with a beautiful ceremony, lots of dancing and lots of vodka! My documentary approach allowed me to document all the emotions of this day, as well as the amazing location.
Porto Wedding Photographer
Claire & Sam’s three-day destination wedding in Porto was a great example of why I love photographing weddings over several days. Having that extra time allowed me to document the relationships, personalities and atmosphere of the whole wedding experience in a natural and unobtrusive way
Florence Wedding Photographer / Italy
Patti & Rick celebrated their destination wedding in Florence, surrounded by the architecture, history and atmosphere of one of Italy’s most beautiful cities.
This is me, hard at work, believe it or not. This photo was taken by the videographer at Ellie & Niko’s destination wedding in Santorini. Their pre-wedding party was a boat cruise around the island, with a BBQ, beers, and plenty of opportunities to swim. A keen water baby, I will never say no to a swim in the sea, and if I can take photos whilst I’m there, even better. Underwater photos of the couple are always so cool and are a great alternative to a posed couple shoot!
Uncomplicated, honest, and emotive storytelling of your day
“A destination wedding photographer who documents your day with honesty, artistry, and without cliché. “
I’ve always loved to travel and spent a good portion of my youth doing just that. In my late teens and early twenties, I lived on a kibbutz in Israel, before backpacking around the rest of the country and the Sinai Peninsula, then travelled around South Africa, Australia, NZ, and the Cook Islands. This was back in the day where phones with cameras didn’t exist, nor did digital cameras, so I photographed my travels on film cameras, both the point and shoot variety and old SLRs. After a brief pit stop in London to save some pennies, I travelled around Cuba with my camera and two pals from my photography course, dodging hurricane Ivan whilst we were there. Although I’m now well and truly settled in the UK, I love the opportunity to travel to new places with my camera.
When photographing a destination wedding, I like to arrive a couple of days early, and never leave the day straight after the wedding. This gives me the flexibility to document any pre wedding and post wedding drinks parties, pool parties, or brunches you may be planning. I have plenty of experience in photographing destination weddings so can advise you on all aspects of the day, should you want advice, to get the best from your photographs, such as timings for the ceremony to get the best from the light.
Destination Wedding Photographer FAQ
Do we need a destination wedding photographer?
Whilst you can book a local photographer in the country you’re getting married in, finding someone whose work you really like might prove hard. All the couples who have booked me in the past said that having a documentary photographer who really understood them and what they wanted was key. For this reason, you might consider looking at a UK photographer who can travel.
How much does destination wedding photography cost?
This depends on where in the world you are marrying and what you require in terms of coverage. Destination wedding photography packages start from £5000 within Europe and £7000 for the rest of the world. I offer single day coverage and multi day packages. The final price depends on the destination, how many days you’d like covered and what you need from your photography package.
How far will you travel for a destination wedding?
Wherever your wedding is taking place, I’d love to join you! I’ve photographed weddings in many European destinations, and as far afield as India and America. If you like my documentary style and want to chat about me covering your destination wedding, please do get in touch.
Do you offer film photography for destination weddings?
Absolutely. I can shoot a couple of rolls of 35mm film alongside the digital coverage if you’d like. I particularly love using film during destination wedding weekends because it adds another layer of atmosphere and unpredictability to the final gallery. You can see some 35mm film photography at weddings here.
Do you photograph welcome dinners and other events before the wedding?
I certainly do. Whether it’s for a welcome pizza or pool party the day before the wedding, or any post wedding celebrations. I can also quote for multi day destination weddings, as each quote is bespoke based on your individual wedding. I have a lot of experience of multi-day weddings and they really suit my documentary style, allowing me to tell a much bigger story than a single day event allows.
What happens if it rains at our destination wedding?
We roll with it! In all seriousness, weddings aren’t about the weather, they are about coming together with the people you love and having a good old party. Your friends and family will rally round and make sure you have the best day imaginable regardless of what the weather does. Check out two of the destination weddings in France further up the page. Both had loads of rain, one during the ceremony and one during the alfresco dinner. It didn’t matter a bit and both couples had an incredible day, despite the weather not being what they had planned for. I am always able to offer advice and solutions for dealing with inclement weather so it doesn’t impact your enjoyment of the day.
Do you take group photographs and family portraits?
At almost all weddings, yes. Only a handful of my couples opt to have no family group photos. Most of the couples who book me want to focus on the real moments of the day and so the list of group photos is kept short and sweet to allow them to enjoy the day without spending a good portion of it away from their guests.
Can we have beautiful portraits as well as candid photographs?
I’m very happy to give you a little time away from the wedding taking a few relaxed portraits. I can advise on the best time of day to do this, based on my experience of destination weddings and the light at your venue. It needn’t take too long and I promise you won’t miss too much of your wedding, but you will receive some beautiful and natural pictures of the two of you that you will love. Some couples opt for a purely documentary approach, preferring the photos of the two of them to be caught in the moment rather than at a designated ‘couple time’. If you’re not sure which approach is best for you, we can decide together what you’ll be most comfortable with and what feels most authentic to you.
How do you photograph people who don’t like having their picture taken?
Most of my couples feel nervous about having a photographer around them, and yet if you read my Google reviews, you’ll see that everyone mentions how discreet I am and how at ease I put them. I have been doing this job a long time and have mastered the art of “being there but not there”; you’ll never feel that you have a camera in your face all day, and yet be amazed at the moments I captured. Even the most camera shy couple won’t feel my presence.
How far in advance should we book a destination wedding photographer?
Peak dates can book up early so as soon as you have your venue and date locked in, it’s worth making a shortlist of your favourite photographers and booking in a call with them. You can contact me here.
Do you photograph weddings across Europe?
Yes, I have photographed weddings all over France, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Poland, Greece. My passport is up to date and ready for another adventure!
Destination Wedding Photography for lovers of real moments.
More narrative, less cliché.
Life’s not perfect (and neither are weddings), but it’s easy to fall into the algorithm-driven trap of wanting your wedding photos to project an image of perfection, rather than reflect who you truly are. We adore our photos because they are authentic rather than engineered, and personal rather than performative. Each image is inspired by real life which is precisely what we wanted. They’re all timeless, yet cliche-free; interesting and unique, yet classic and beyond all trends. They have soul.
Ellie & Niko – married in Santorini
Life isn’t perfect, and neither are weddings.
I think that’s a good thing.
It’s easy to get caught up in the idea that your wedding photographs need to look perfect, polished and Pinterest-ready. But the photographs you’ll treasure in 20 or 30 years are often the ones that remind you exactly who was there, what happened and how it felt.
My job is to document that honestly.
More narrative. Less cliché.
If you’re planning a destination wedding and want photographs that feel like you rather than a performance for the camera, I’d love to hear about it.