Christening Photography at Lancing College Chapel, Sussex

Christening Photography at Lancing College Chapel, Sussex

Back in March, I photographed a christening at Lancing College Chapel. The ceremony took place in the chapel with close family and friends gathered for the service. Afterwards, we stepped outside for a short set of family portraits in front of the building before everyone left for another Sussex venue for food and drinks.

I stayed on for a while longer to photograph the chapel itself. Lancing College Chapel is one of the most striking buildings in Sussex, sitting high above the surrounding area with large Gothic architecture, stained glass windows and a real sense of scale once you’re inside.

From a photography point of view, it’s a very interesting place to work in. The light changes as you move through the building, and there are plenty of different angles that work well for both wide shots and detail images.

During the service I focus on everything happening around the main moments - people arriving, children exploring, conversations before things begin, and the small interactions that naturally happen throughout the day.

Christenings tend to move quite quickly. There’s the ceremony itself, a short window afterwards for family photographs, and then everyone usually heads off to continue the day elsewhere.

Even in a short time frame, it’s usually enough to build a full set of images that show the atmosphere of the day as well as the more formal parts of the ceremony.

About Lancing College Chapel

Lancing College Chapel sits above the Sussex coast and is one of the largest school chapels in the world. It’s known for its Gothic architecture, high vaulted ceilings and stained glass windows, which create a very distinctive space inside.

It’s still an active chapel used for services and ceremonies, and is often chosen for christenings, weddings and other family events because of its scale and setting.

From a photography point of view, it’s a venue with a lot of variation in light and perspective, both inside the chapel and outside on the surrounding grounds.

If you’re planning a christening or baptism in Sussex and are looking for natural, documentary-style photography, feel free to get in touch.