The demand for a particular type of scenic backdrop for pre-wedding photographs is driving Chinese couples to get up very early in the morning, writes Ed Prendeville.
Central London at 06:00 on an August morning can seem a very different city.
While its iconic skyline lies bathed in soft light, rubbish trucks and delivery vans have a free run of the usually heavily congested roads. The pavements, which will later be thronged with tourists, are empty, save for the odd shift worker or lone pigeon.
In a city which has yet to rouse itself from slumber, the sight of a couple in full wedding attire - posing for dramatically-staged photographs on Westminster Bridge - is charmingly incongruous.
Zhiwen Zhao and Yixuan Liu met in Beijing before moving to London a few years ago to study. They're engaged and will soon return to China to be married. Before they go they've decided to have their pre-wedding photographs taken in London.
It's a Chinese custom for couples to have their wedding photos taken before they are married, rather than on the day of the nuptials. "We wanted to take some sweet moments to share with the guests," says Yixuan. On the wedding day, the photos will be shown to the guests on cards, via big screens and perhaps on video.
In China, pre-wedding photography is a huge - and lucrative - industry. Zhiwen and Yixuan are part of a small but rapidly growing number of young couples who are choosing to have their photographs taken overseas, often in front of famous landmarks. More on this story - BBC News
