How To Pick Your Jewish Wedding Photographer In Austin

Are you looking for a wedding photographer for your upcoming Jewish wedding? Mazel Tov! What an exciting time in your life!

Personally, I love Jewish weddings. The traditions; the culture; the dancing! As an award-winning photographer, I’ve photographed a few Jewish couples on their wedding day and today, I’d love to share a bit about what you should look for when hiring your Jewish wedding photographer.

After all, this is a once-in-a-lifetime event and it deserves someone who peers into your important moments with an experienced eye.

Decide On Your Favorite Photography Style

The first, and decidedly hardest, part of picking your wedding photographer is figuring out what you want your memories to reflect. Do you want the most spontaneous moments without a lot of posing? Maybe you prefer a more structured experience?

Here are the top four types of wedding photography to get you started.

Candid Wedding Photography

Candid photography is an updated evolution from the documentary style that does allow some direction and interference to get the more curated look. Portraits have movement and authentic expressions and the style captures all of the smiles and fleeting glances of emotion. Couples want their photographer to blend into the crowd without a lot of hoopla.

Traditional Wedding Photography

An everlasting style of photography is one that focuses on the photographer taking charge and giving plenty of direction to achieve a flawless collection of images. Traditional wedding photography is often inspired by timeless images passed through generations.

Documentary-style Wedding Photography

Documentary-style photography is more akin to photojournalism, where photographers bring in their passion for capturing an emotion exactly as it is. Think reportage imagery. Nothing is changed. Nothing is posed. The photographer will shoot moments with no focus on perfection.

Light and Airy Wedding Photography

A more modern take lately, the light and airy style of photography is more about the processing and the lighting that is prioritized to create a certain look of images. These images have paler exposure/coloring and sometimes can look a bit blown, pastel, or pale. Delivering a consistent look in the entire gallery is important and a photographer will guide you to ways during the day to achieve this look.

Ask About Their Experience With The Jewish Culture

No Jewish wedding is complete without two families coming together with traditions. Choosing a photographer experienced with everything a Jewish wedding entails will only ensure they know exactly what to photograph.

After all, if they don’t even know what a chuppah is, how can you be sure they’ll capture each wedding tradition the way they deserve?

Request Full Wedding Galleries

This is a necessary request! You probably know by now that it’s common for a business to put their best foot forward in a portfolio, showing the best of the best. But there are moments in weddings that don’t always facilitate perfection—you want to be sure your wedding photographer can handle whatever the wedding day might throw at them.

Can they capture quick hugs? Do the photos reflect different angles? How do they capture the wedding ceremony? Each wedding day is unique and your photographers should be able to handle even the bigger hiccups with a commitment to quality photos.

Check Out Their Reviews

While it’s common for the occasional bride or groom to be unhappy with just about anything involving their wedding day, most reviews for a photographer should be able to prove they are a pleasure to work with. Are they dedicated to their client’s happiness? Have they photographed lots of events?

While not all clients spend the time to leave reviews, it’s still good to see if anyone has shared their thoughts.

Meet To Make Sure You Vibe

This is probably the second most important facet, aside from vetting their professionalism. Your wedding photographers are the ones who spend the most time with you, even more than your wedding planner. Some of the greatest photos are made with personal connections.

So invite a potential wedding photographer out for a coffee or a glass of wine. See if your energy jives. Plan an engagement photo session with them. I promise some of the greatest joy can only be captured by a photographer that’s equally invested in you!

My Style Of Wedding Photography

I’d describe my style of wedding photography to lean more into a candid or documentary-style while delivering a well rounded gallery full of every aspect to the day. While I’ll always focus on capturing the fun of your event, it’s also important to me to document even the smallest details that create the magic of your wedding day. Each moment of your story is so important and I take that seriously! I will direct you as much or as little as needed when it comes to portraits while ensuring you stay present in the thrill of the day. 

When I deliver your gallery, you’ll find images of your flowers and dress (that is, if you have one!). Photos of your guests dancing. Of course, there will be pictures of you and your partner getting married under the chuppah. Group photos with your parents.

Basically, everything that made up the details of your celebration!

Planning Your Jewish Wedding In Austin, TX

Great wedding story is made with an experienced team and not just the ones with a camera in their hands. While there are lots of wedding vendors I can recommend to help cultivate the kind of magic you’re looking for, here’s a quick run down of my recommendations.

Austin Wedding Venues For A Jewish Wedding

Not every wedding venue is a good idea for a Jewish wedding, so here are my top recommendations. They bring stylish vibes, plenty of space for dancing, and will always deliver a more personal service to each couple.

Commodore Perry Estate

The Four Seasons

Omni Barton Creek Resort

The Driskill

Austin Country Club

The Arlo

Laguna Gloria

The Proper

Wedding Planners

Picking the right wedding planner for your Jewish wedding, whether you have a large or small guest count, is a vital piece to bringing the whole story together. The best weddings have a wedding planner at the helm, making sure you and your partner get married with the most peace possible. After all, it takes an enormous amount of energy to make that happiness come to life!

Pearl Events

Whitt Ross 

Verve Events

Hawthorn and Poppy

Belle Events 

Wedding Entertainment 

There are a lot of talented wedding DJs and wedding bands in the city, but only some of the best can help your wedding reception use music to get your parents to the middle of the dance floor. Thanks to some of the best DJs in Austin, I’ve documented great photos that even made some clients cry!

Wedding Florists

Your photos are best punctuated with stunning flowers, even a smaller ceremony. A quality florist will add bits of color into your wedding pictures. Here are some of my favorites!

David Kurio Designs

Remi and Gold 

West Bank Flower Market

Stems

Botanical No. 9

Blumen

Flora Fetish

Bouquets of Austin

Wedding Caterers

Austin is a city known for fabulous food, some of the best in the world, and there are plenty of catering teams that will leave your family and friends raving. Whether you’re looking for more modern menu or a menu more fitting for a traditional Jewish wedding, here are some of my favorites.

Contigo

Crave

Word of Mouth

SoHo Catering

Jewish Wedding Officiants

No Jewish wedding is complete without an officiant well-versed in Jewish traditions. They can help keep your guests engaged in the ceremony while also guiding you in signing the ketubah (one of my favorite things to shoot!).

Wrapping Up

Me and my team of talented photographers are ready to photograph your Jewish wedding. We can’t wait to meet your guests! Even those “dreaded” family photos can be some of my favorite parts of the event. It would be my pleasure to meet up over drinks and begin planning your wedding photography!

As I mentioned before, it’s important to look at Jewish wedding day photos from past weddings, so here are some of my previous events. When you’re ready, feel free to email me and we can begin to plan your engagement session!