What happens at a Greek Orthodox wedding in Corfu, and how I film it

A Greek Orthodox wedding in Corfu is a sung, candlelit service in which the couple are blessed with rings, crowned with the stefana, share a common cup and take their first steps as a married couple in the Dance of Isaiah. The couple don’t exchange spoken vows as in many Western ceremonies; the meaning lives in the symbols, which is exactly why it is so beautiful to film.

This guide is for couples marrying into a Greek family, and for anyone who wants to know what they are watching. I also explain how I film inside a church without disturbing the service.

The two parts of the service

The service has two parts. First comes the betrothal, when the priest blesses the rings and the koumbaros exchanges them between the couple’s fingers three times. In Greece the wedding ring is traditionally worn on the right hand.

Then comes the crowning, the heart of the ceremony. Everything that follows (the stefana, the cup, the dance) happens in front of a small table set before the iconostasis, holding the Gospel, the crowns, the cup and a tray of koufeta. The whole service usually takes well under an hour, but your priest can tell you what to expect.

The koumbaros or koumbara

The koumbaros (or koumbara, if she is a woman) is your wedding sponsor: usually a close friend or relative, and a much bigger role than a best man. They stand behind you, exchange the rings and the crowns, and by tradition often go on to baptise your first child. Ask your priest early about any requirements for the person you choose.

For the film, the koumbaros matters because their hands are in almost every key moment. I always place one camera where it can see them clearly.

The stefana

The stefana are two thin crowns joined by a ribbon, a symbol of the couple’s union and of the home they will build together. The priest blesses them and places them on your heads, and the koumbaros swaps them over three times. After the wedding, many couples keep them in a glass case, the stefanothiki, often above the bed.

The common cup

The priest blesses a cup of wine and the couple drink from it three times. It stands for the life they will now share, the sweet and the bitter. It is a quiet, close moment, and one of my favourite shots in the whole service.

The Dance of Isaiah, rice and koufeta

The priest then leads the couple three times around the table, holding the Gospel, while the koumbaros follows holding the ribbon of the stefana and the hymn of Isaiah is sung. These are your first steps as a married couple.

This is when guests throw rice, so that the marriage will put down roots, and sometimes rose petals too. It is the loudest, happiest minute of the ceremony.

The koufeta are sugared almonds, the bitter almond and the sweet coating together standing for married life. They are wrapped in an odd number in tulle or small boxes and handed to guests as they leave. By tradition, unmarried guests put them under their pillow to dream of the person they will marry.

The lambades

The lambades are two tall candles, decorated to match the wedding with ribbons and flowers. They burn beside the couple for the whole service, set in stands or held by children or relatives, as a sign of the light of faith. In a dim church they are also the most beautiful light I could ask for.

Filming a Greek Orthodox wedding in Corfu with respect

A church is a place of worship first and a location second. These are the rules I work by.

Ask the priest beforehand. Every priest and every church has its own preferences, so I don’t assume. Before the day, we ask where I may stand and move, and I follow that exactly.

Know where to stand. One camera stays fixed at the back of the nave for the wide shot. I move quietly along the side aisle, a step behind the couple’s line. I never walk between the couple and the priest, and I never step into the sanctuary behind the iconostasis. During the Dance of Isaiah I stay at the edge and let the circle come to me.

No flash, no lights. Churches are dim and candlelit, and that light is part of the story. I use fast lenses and silent settings, so the only light in the film is the one that was really there.

Record the sound properly. The chanting is half of an Orthodox wedding. A small audio recorder, placed where the priest is happy with it, catches the hymns cleanly for the edit.

Be invisible. Dark clothes, a silent phone, slow movements. Many island churches are small, so I choose my spot before the guests arrive.

Because there are no spoken vows, some couples write each other a letter and read it in a quiet moment before or after the church. In the film, those words can run over the images of the crowning, and that often becomes the emotional centre of the edit.

If you’re still choosing who will film your day, my guide on how to choose a wedding videographer in Corfu is a good place to start, and you can see my wedding work on the Corfu wedding videographer page.

Updated: 8 November 2026