Top 30 Creative United States Wedding Portrait Photographers for 2024
Page Updated: January 31st, 2024
Wouldn’t you just love to hire a top creative United States wedding photographer to create artistic portraits on your big day? The Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association is here to help! Wedding photojournalists are, first and foremost, photographers — creative artists, in other words. In the AG contests, WPJA members exhibit their skills at digitally enhanced United States couple portraits.
Four Artistic Guild contests for United States wedding portraits are held annually, entered and judged separately from the regular WPJA competitions of moments. After each creative photo contest, we add another collection of award-winning portraits to our member profile galleries.
Want to have a top United States creative wedding photographer take some unique and artistic portraits? In a portrait (for these purposes), the photographer has staged the couple, the bridal party, or other participants or groups — such as family, friends, or children — on the day of the wedding. One distinguishing feature of portraits is that the subjects are aware of the camera and are maintaining their positions for the sake of the photograph.
Trent Gillespie is a Colorado wedding photographer with a Journalism degree from the University of Northern Colorado and experience in photojournalism. He specializes in creative portraits of couples, often taking advantage of natural mountain and rustic barn settings. Trent is skilled in off-camera lighting techniques, capturing beautiful shots at dusk and in low-light situations. He also has a talent for using flash in...
Lexus Marquise Reynolds, a seasoned photographer specializing in couples' portraits, weddings, and boudoir photography, boasts 12 years of experience. An esteemed memory maker and educator, Reynolds has collaborated with notable artists and publications while promoting confidence through their work.
Bryan Aleman is a wedding photographer known for his romantic and natural style, specializing in wedding, engagement, and elopement photography. His symmetrical, balanced, and artistic shots showcase his timeless love for black and white photography.
Cindy Brown is a well-educated wedding photographer who travels across the globe to capture weddings with a keen eye for detail and a focus on portraying emotion and sensitivity. Her unconventional approach to photography results in energetic and emotive images, with a creative vision that embraces balanced and symmetrical framing. She particularly enjoys working in black and white, adding a timeless touch to her images.
Joshua Grasso is a professional wedding photographer, as well as a loving husband and father. He has a unique eye for capturing stunning and artistic portraits during weddings, using techniques like silhouette, contrast, backlighting, and shadow to create beautiful shapes and contours. He especially loves shooting during the golden hour, when the sun is setting and casting a romantic light. Joshua also has expertise in using...
Dennis Crider is an artistic wedding photographer who specializes in capturing authentic moments that reflect the unique personalities and styles of each couple. He has a talent for using light and composition to create striking and emotive images that evoke a dreamlike quality. His close-up shots and clever use of shadows and contrast add a touch of mystery and excitement to his work, resulting in captivating and dramatic...
Penny McCoy is a wedding photographer from Minneapolis who loves capturing genuine moments with her southern charm. She has a passion for creating artistic portraits of couples, using bright and bold colors, as well as playing with graphic designs and lines. Penny also excels at capturing stunning night shots and favors using the beautiful lighting at dusk. She brings her expertise in off-camera lighting to create creatively...
Erica Dietz is a wedding photographer who captures candid and heartfelt moments using her artistic eye and mastery of light. Having previously worked as an intern for Valley News Dispatch, she has honed her skills in creating stunning portraits that make couples look and feel relaxed and beautiful on their special day. Erica's passion for photography extends to capturing intimate and romantic shots, as well as...
Paolo Blocar, a seasoned wedding photographer hailing from a family of artists, is drawn to technology, cinema, and wanderlust. His lens effortlessly captures the golden hour's ethereal glow, unveiling love stories in every frame.
Nicolas Bastien, a 30-year-old from Quimper, is a travel enthusiast turned photographer specializing in artistic adventure portraits for daring couples. Inspired by values of sharing and humility, he captures unique moments in weddings and landscapes.
Kate Crabtree is a wedding photographer from Maine who captures beautiful photos of couples on their special day against the backdrop of stunning landscapes. She specializes in creating unique portraits near water, such as the ocean or docks, and loves working with the soft, warm light of the sunset and golden hour. Kate is known for her symmetrical framing and creating balanced images.
Chris Werner is a highly experienced artistic wedding photographer with a career spanning over 25 years. He has a remarkable ability to capture the love and individuality of engaged couples using his distinct and creative style. Chris began his photography journey with black and white film in 1994, which has since evolved into a fine art approach.
Corey Butler, a wedding photographer from New England, is inspired by nostalgia and his background in photojournalism. He aims to capture genuine and authentic moments for couples on their wedding day. Corey especially enjoys shooting in the trees and creating artistic and captivating portraits. He also has a knack for capturing the romance and passion between couples, as well as playful and fun bridal party portraits.
Justin Edmonds is a seasoned photojournalist with 14 years of experience. He has worked with renowned clients such as Getty Images, The New York Times, and Sports Illustrated. Justin specializes in unique wedding couple portraits, using off-camera lighting techniques to capture stunning shots at night or during the enchanting lighting at dusk. He also enjoys using off-camera flash to fill in subjects during daylight,...
Andrew Morrell is a professional wedding photographer who sees things in a different way. He combines his love for music with art and technology, bringing a unique touch to the weddings and elopements he captures. His clients are playful, cheerful, and love bright and bold colors.
Sean Lara, a Rocky Mountains wedding photographer, has a unique style of capturing love stories against stunning landscapes. His expertise in off-camera lighting elevates his creative and storytelling portraits.
John Ryan is the owner of J&J Studios in Philadelphia and has been documenting weddings around the world since 2011. He offers a range of services including photography, video, aerial, and live streaming. John excels in capturing breathtaking wedding portraits, often utilizing off-camera lighting to create stunning images in picturesque garden settings.
Andy Madea, a New England wedding photographer, combines his passion for adventure and the outdoors with his creative vision. Drawing inspiration from his experiences exploring mountains in coastal Maine and New Hampshire, he captures stunning wedding day portraits. With a knack for off-camera lighting and a preference for dusk lighting, Andy excels at capturing memorable night shots.
Song Johns, a professional wedding photographer and founder of Blooming Dreams Photo, has been capturing couples' special moments for over 10 years. Known for her creative approach, she excels at capturing tight shots that focus on the faces, hands, and details of each wedding day.
Alex Gordias is a well-known wedding photographer on the East Coast. With his creative vision, he captures unique and beautiful landscapes during weddings. He particularly enjoys taking night shots and loves working with the natural dusk lighting outside of the wedding venue.
Joyce Perlman, a US-based wedding photographer, stands out for her unique approach to capturing weddings through a combination of contemporary and documentary-style photography. With a background in fine art and visual design, Joyce's artistic eye shines through in her portrait sessions, often taking advantage of natural settings like trees, the wilderness, and the golden hour to create stunning images.
Bonnie Sizer is a wedding photographer with a background in art and a passion for creating beautiful portraits. She studied art at Colorado State University and specializes in capturing unique landscapes and beautiful natural places. With her creative vision and expertise in off-camera lighting, Bonnie excels in crafting stunning wedding day portraits, including spectacular night shots.
Mark Creery is a wedding photographer based in the Rocky Mountains with two decades of experience. With an easy-going personality, he excels at capturing romantic and intimate artistic portrait sessions. He is particularly drawn to unique green landscapes and beautiful environments and loves incorporating colorful dramatic skies into his photographs.
Eliza Slobodzian is a wedding photographer who specializes in capturing authentic feeling portraits. She loves creating artful and eye-catching imagery, especially in unique and beautiful landscapes. Eliza is particularly drawn to photographing portraits at the lake and in scenic natural environments.
Lucy Schultz, an artistic wedding photographer with a penchant for eye-catching imagery and off-camera lighting techniques, excels in capturing the essence of weddings with a touch of artistry that her clients cherish.
Seattle-based Marla Manes specializes in creating artistic detail shots and scenic images for adventurous couples. With a focus on environmental sustainability and a passion for wedding photojournalism, she ensures a comfortable client experience. Additionally, she is a proud dog parent and cat enthusiast.
Brittany Diliberto, an East Coast USA-based photographer, specializes in unique and inspiring wedding couple portraits. With a background in professional lighting design, Brittany expertly uses off-camera lighting to create striking and bold images. She excels in capturing the beauty of dusk, silhouettes, and contrasting light, and is known for her creative and well-lit portraits.
WPJA contest judges have been recognized by their industry peers, winning top awards as staff picture editors, staff photojournalists, and newsroom mentors while working for these and other leading publications and journalism organizations.
