Wedding Photographers & Filmmakers at the Iglesia de la Encarnación, Marbella

The old town’s church

If you picture a church wedding in Marbella, this is probably the one. The Iglesia de la Encarnación stands on the Plaza de la Iglesia, in the middle of the whitewashed old town, so your guests walk to the ceremony through its lanes.

Its story starts in 1485, when Castile took Marbella and the main mosque was turned into a church dedicated to the Incarnation. The bell tower dates from 1618 and may stand on the old minaret; a stone plaque with the bishop’s coat of arms still records it.

The church you see today was built between 1750 and 1755 and consecrated in 1767: three naves, a wide central one, and a Rococo doorway in ochre stone. It was badly damaged in 1936 and rebuilt from 1937. Inside, the eye goes straight to the green and gold altarpiece, and above the nave sits the large Órgano del Sol Mayor, built between 1972 and 1976.

Light and space

The photos show a tall white nave with paintings on the walls and the gilded altarpiece at the end, which warms the whole altar. The long red carpet lets us follow the entrance from far back.

With the main doors open, daylight floods in behind you as you walk in, so the entrance becomes a backlit silhouette framed by the guests. Outside, between the wooden doors and the white walls, the petals stand out against the terracotta floor.