An alternative wedding in Five Four Studios, Manchester

Disco, rock and Viva Magenta

Manchester is quite possibly the best city in England to have an alternative wedding. From the epic archways of Castlefield, to the bougie clubs of Spinningfields, to the hipster bars of Ancoats – you can’t swing a bouquet in Manchester without hitting an awesome place to get married. And just across the river Irwell, you’ve got a Mecca of Manchester wedding photography: Five Four Studios wedding venue.

I went to an editorial shoot at Five Four Studios last year. And it was fucking bonkers in the best possible way. Styled with a fusion of rock and disco influences from the 80’s and 90’s, and with the Pantone colour of the year 2023, Viva Magenta, as the palette. This was one seriously kickass shoot, at one helluva wedding venue.

Looking for an alternative wedding venue in Manchester? I’ve got you covered. Want some Viva Magenta styling inspiration? Oh, I’ve definitely got you covered! Here’s 5 reasons to have your alternative wedding in Five Four Studios, with a whole heap of magenta thrown in!

1. You can have your whole wedding day in Five Four Studios

Alright, lemme start with a quick Five Four rundown. Five Four Studios is a fully-licensed wedding venue. And if you want a chilled-out day, this is one huge fucking tick in the win column. Because once you’re there, that’s it. You’re there.

You can spend the day marrying the love of your life, chatting with friends and family, eating like slobs, drinking like sailors, and dancing like madmen. And you’re not worrying about traffic, timeline fuck-ups, or parking problems. It may not sound like much, but trust me. This is a game changer.

You can get 120 guests for your ceremony/meal in the main Studio One, or 60 in The Loft. So whether you’re after an intimate wedding or a much larger one, this place has you covered. And once the ‘sensible’ part of the day’s over, the studio can take up to 240 guests for one wild-ass party at the end of the night.

So yeah, on paper this place is awesome. And that’s just the start.

2. Your Five Four Studios wedding can be whatever the hell you want it to be

Five Four Studios is a pure-white, completely blank canvas. So no matter how subtle, sophisticated, or batshit crazy your vision, the only limit is your imagination. And holy shit, Rock the Dancefloor’s imagination was something else! The shoot was an absolute explosion of pink and magenta, with a bucketload of nostalgia thrown in.

They had pink neon lights, and epic 80’s-style disco banners. There were strip lights with glitter tassels, disco mirror balls, giant headbands and sequin dancers in roller skates!

And then they took all that kitschy awesomeness and threw in some 90’s vibes to really kick it up a notch. Black Doc Martens, space buns. And some seriously badass rock and roll makeup, with accents of magenta in the eyeshadow and lips. This whole shoot was just genius levels of wildly-colourful cool.
And this is one thing that makes Five Four Studios the perfect alternative wedding venue. Because it doesn’t matter how big, how nuts, or how ridiculously out-there you wanna go, you have all the space and freedom you need to create a wedding day that’s uniquely yours.

3. Cocktails in the bar, chill in the courtyard, have a crazy party (or all of the above!)

Another great thing about having a wedding in Five Four Studios is you’ve got a backdrop for every kind of photo, and an area for every kinda vibe.

You wanna chill out on a leather sofa, sipping cocktails, and getting all sexy in a dark corner? There’s a super-comfy, super-stylish bar on the first floor – also perfect for pizzas as a cool alternative to a formal sit down meal! You wanna stand outside, chat away and drink in the sunshine? The double doors of the barn downstairs open up to a private tree-lined courtyard. You wanna have the world’s most ridiculous, wildest, craziest party?! Well they got that covered, an’ then some.

Lemme tell you from personal experience, a party in that studio is something else! We were only there for a photoshoot, and it was frickin’ wild. If you have your wedding there, prepare yourselves for things to get very out of hand. Oh, and if you have the option to get an avalanche of balloons?! Even better.

4. Manchester wedding photography

I’m not gonna lie, I love an outdoor adventure around a city on a wedding day. There’s something about black shutters, grey skies and cracked pavements that gets my camera singing like Freddie on his best day.

Which takes me to reason number four. As soon as you step outside Five Four Studios, you can go exploring, and get some epic couple’s shots with the Manchester skyline as a backdrop.

And on the day of the shoot, Rebecca and Esme made for the perfect partners in crime. We ran through the deserted streets, stopped at every cool little photo spot we found, and basically just had fun getting creative together. Esme’s dress danced as she ran, Rebecca’s sequin jumpsuit sparkled in the sun. And their stunning bouquets popped magenta and pink against the gunmetal walls.

Honestly, if you’re gonna go for a photography adventure on your wedding day, this is the way to do it. Go in with complete abandon, drain every last drop of fun out of the experience. And come away with some awesome photos you can get blown up to the max and framed.

Alternative wedding photographer in Manchester

5. Your wedding photography in Five Four Studios will be epic

Some venues are naturally awesome for wedding photography. And some are dark little hovels, where we just have to strap on our flash and deal with it!

So as a wedding photographer, a venue that’s actually been designed by a photographer is the holy grail of venues. You see where I’m going with this…

Five Four Studios was renovated and restored by acclaimed fashion photographer, David Oldham. And this guy nailed it. The white walls, the skylights, the angles, the flawless quality and quantity of light, the minimalist, industrial chic. It’s literally the perfect place for wedding photography.

And the fact you’ve got all that gritty urban goodness on your doorstep? Well that’s just the icing on the exceptionally photogenic cake.

Looking for a Five Four Studios wedding photographer?

From the awesome light, to the creative freedom, to that indescribable atmosphere that just makes you wanna party, Five Four Studios is the perfect place to have an alternative wedding. And if you’re looking for someone to photograph it, I’m dying to go back!