Westminster Abbey Photos: Inside, Outside and the Rules

Short answer: Westminster Abbey is a Gothic church with two square towers on its west front, a very tall vaulted nave inside, a Tudor chapel with a lace-like fan-vaulted ceiling, and medieval cloisters round a lawn. You can take your own photos in most of the building, without flash, but not during services and never in the Shrine of St Edward, St Faith’s Chapel or the Galleries.

The west front and towers

The west front is the face most photos show: two matching towers above the Great West Door. Wikipedia says the towers were built in the 1740s by Nicholas Hawksmoor and John James, more than two centuries after work on them began. Wikipedia describes their style as Gothic–Baroque.

Look above the Great West Door for a row of ten statues, which the Abbey lists among its highlights. The west front faces Broad Sanctuary, and the visitor exit and shop are at the West Towers.

The nave

The nave is the long main body of the church, and its height is what most visitors photograph first. Wikipedia says it is the highest nave of any Gothic church in England, with a vault 102 feet (31 metres) high.

In the nave you also find the Grave of the Unknown Warrior, the Coronation Chair and Scientists’ Corner. Walking east through the quire screen, look up: the Abbey’s trail notes that the whole church was once painted in bright colours like the gilded screen. Light changes through the day, because the Abbey is lit mainly by its large windows; the north ambulatory and parts of the cloisters stay dim.

The Lady Chapel vault

The Henry VII Lady Chapel has a fan-vaulted ceiling that the Abbey’s visit page describes as “the wonder of the world”. Carved stone pendants hang from the fan vault, and the banners of the Knights of the Order of the Bath hang below it.

For a sharp shot without flash, brace your phone on a pillar and point straight up. The chapel is narrow and can be crowded, so arrive early. Read more in our Lady Chapel guide.

The cloisters

The cloisters are the calmer place for pictures: four covered stone walks around an open lawn, the garth. They date mainly from the 13th to the 15th centuries. Gas lamps light them, a fountain memorial to Capability Brown stands in the garth, and the floors are lined with memorial stones. Off the east walk are the octagonal Chapter House and its medieval tile floor. See the cloisters guide.

The best outside viewpoints

You can photograph the outside of the Abbey for free from the public streets around it. Three spots work well:

• Broad Sanctuary, in front of the west front, for the two towers and the Great West Door.
• Parliament Square, on the north side, where the visitor entrance is. From here you see the north side of the church, with St Margaret’s Church beside it.
• Dean’s Yard, the square to the south-west, which leads to the step-free cloister entrance.

Inside, the Abbey says the quietest time is a weekday morning just after the 9:30am opening, especially Tuesday to Thursday. For crowd patterns, see the best time to visit Westminster Abbey.

Photography rules inside

Personal photography is allowed in most areas of Westminster Abbey. The Abbey’s rules:

• Not allowed anywhere: flash, video recording, extra lighting, selfie sticks, tripods, monopods and drones.
• Not allowed at certain times: any photography during services, concerts or rehearsals.
• Not allowed in three places: the Shrine of St Edward the Confessor, St Faith’s Chapel and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Galleries.
• Children: photographing them needs consent from the adult with them.
• Professional photography: needs Press Office approval.

Photos are free once you are inside. The Abbey’s adult ticket is £32 on its own site (about $43). The Westminster Abbey entrance ticket we list is the same ticket at $43 with free cancellation up to 24 hours before. For the short version of the rules, see can you take photos in Westminster Abbey.