Why Every Wedding Needs an Emergency Kit — A St Ermin's Story

Weddings are joyful, emotional, and — let's be honest — a little unpredictable. I learned that again at Joshua and Julia's wedding at St Ermin's Hotel in London, in a moment that's stuck with me ever since: the best man, mid-reception, with a glass of red wine down the front of his shirt.

It's the kind of moment that could derail an evening — group photos coming up, speeches not far off, and a very visible stain on a very white shirt. Instead, it was sorted in minutes. A stain remover pen and a spare white shirt, packed exactly for moments like this, meant he was back in the room — laughing about it, not hiding from a camera — before most people had noticed anything had happened.

That's what a wedding day emergency kit is really for. Not the dramatic disasters, but the small, very human moments that happen at every wedding, to someone, usually when you least expect it.

What's actually in the kit

After years of weddings, the kit has narrowed down to the things that get used again and again:

• Stain remover pen — for exactly the situation above

• Safety pins, fashion tape, a small sewing kit — for the wardrobe moments no one plans for

• Spare white shirt — because sometimes a stain remover pen isn't quite enough

• Plasters, painkillers, mints — the quiet essentials

• A mini umbrella — London weather doesn't ask permission

Why it matters for the photographs

The reason this kind of thing matters to me as a photographer isn't really about the kit itself — it's about what happens next. A best man who's spent twenty minutes worrying about a stain on his shirt isn't present for the toast, the first dance, the moment the room goes quiet for the speeches. Sort the problem fast, and he's back in the room — relaxed, laughing, part of the day again. Those are the photographs that matter.

Joshua and Julia's wedding at St Ermin's was full of those moments — guests fully present, because nothing small was allowed to become a big distraction. That's the difference being prepared makes, and it's why the kit goes everywhere with me.

If you're looking for wedding photography that's as considered about the small things as the big ones — fine art editorial work, made to be passed down — I'd love to hear from you.

Get in touch to talk about your wedding →