Top 15 Photographers in New York

New York doesn't have one wedding photography scene; it has fifteen running in parallel, each with its own rules. Some photographers here trained in photojournalism, some came up through fashion editorials and one used to work in national security before ever picking up a camera. Film sits alongside drone photography, quiet observation alongside full creative direction, and yet all of it reads as unmistakably New York: fast, layered and a little unpredictable. These fifteen photographers transform that chaos into some of the most sought-after wedding photo galleries in the country.

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Liron Erel & Co

Liron Erel has spent two decades photographing weddings around the world, developing a style that he sums up in three words: "Documentary-editorial blend". His work focuses on emotionally rich, effortlessly elegant imagery, and he provides full weekend coverage. He treats every part of the celebration, not just the ceremony, as part of one continuous story, using a curatorial approach.

The defining feature of his approach is intentionality: photographs that appear unposed and lived-in on the surface, but are carefully considered underneath. His advice to couples starting to plan is to trust the people around them and choose a team whose expertise, vision and devotion they trust, so that on the wedding day itself, they can be fully present.

Rafal Ostrowski

Since 2010, Rafal Ostrowski has been photographing weddings across the New York City and tri-state area, bringing his experience of shooting streetwear and lookbooks for fashion labels to every gallery he delivers. He describes his style as "clean, true to colour, dreamy and editorial", a combination that reflects both his fashion roots and his years of experience in wedding photography.

He limits the number of weddings he takes on each year so that he can maintain a hands-on approach with every client, prioritising transparency about logistics and expectations over vague promises. His advice for couples preparing for their big day is refreshingly simple: "Feel good, look good and I've got the rest!"

BH Weddings

Betiana Hurtado founded BH Weddings on a passion for storytelling, art and human connection that predates her use of a camera. Ten years on, her work sits at the intersection of editorial polish and honest documentary moments. She shoots on both digital and film because, as she says, "each medium brings its own unique character and depth to a love story".

Drawing inspiration from cinema, vintage fashion, and fine art, she approaches every wedding with the aim of creating something that could be featured in a magazine, while still capturing the day's genuine emotions. She says her ultimate aim is "to create a visual legacy that will become more meaningful with every passing year", and she counts Italy, the south of France and the English countryside among the destinations that keep pulling her back for their timeless architecture and light.

Eden Xuân

Eden Xuân has spent over eight years photographing multi-day celebrations across the US and Europe. Working with a combination of digital, film and drone imagery, she creates galleries that have a timeless quality rather than being trend-driven. "My style is documentary mixed with editorial," she says, adding that her approach is shaped as much by curiosity as by technique.

She believes that the most memorable images only occur when people stop performing for the camera. "I think the most memorable moments happen when people are fully present," she explains, and her process reflects this. It involves extensive conversations before the wedding, followed by a combination of quiet observation and gentle direction on the day itself. Her work has been recognised by Vogue, Tatler, and Carats & Cake, among others.

Joel and Justyna Bedford

Both Joel and Justyna came up through fashion, meeting on a styling set before ever picking up a camera together. Joel comes from a family of photographers, his father was once the official portrait photographer to Queen Elizabeth II in Canada, and the two now blend fine art history, an editorial edge and classic portraiture to create a distinctive style that they simply describe as "cinematic, sentimental, nostalgic".

For them, the job runs deeper than mere documentation. "Photographing weddings is truly a healing process," they say, describing the privilege of witnessing so many families at their most vulnerable and joyful moments. Having worked almost exclusively on destination weddings since 2008, they have travelled as far as New Zealand, though they still prefer to shoot on private estates in New York's Hudson Valley.

Roey Yohai Studios

Before discovering what he calls "the beautiful puzzle" of weddings, Roey Yohai started out in photojournalism. He eventually grew his New York City-based studio into a team of six photographers working on celebrations around the world, alongside creative partner Zoe Pappas. He describes his personal style as "emotionally surprising", a phrase that encapsulates the elegance and unpredictability that clients seek from him.

For Roey, the appeal of the work comes down to permanence. "Turning meaningful moments into art" is how he describes the responsibility of shaping a family's memories and lore for generations. Weddings on the Mediterranean coast hold a particular allure for Roey and his team, especially when, as he says after a recent celebration in Skiathos, "the Greek sun is a dream".

Kindred

Elle Wildhagen, the principal photographer behind Kindred, has spent over thirteen years documenting love stories, drawing on her background in both photojournalism and fine art. She works almost entirely in analogue formats, favouring 35mm alongside 120 and Polaroid to give every gallery a texture that digital alone rarely achieves.

She blends photojournalism and fine art with what she calls an "editorial twist", based on the idea that a wedding day deserves more than one visual language. The reason she is drawn to the work is simple and direct: "I love that I have such permission to capture the most intimate and meaningful days of people's lives". Kindred frequently shoots multi-day celebrations, and Paris remains a favourite destination for the team.

Anna Panutsa

Anna Panutsa spent her teenage years in a photography studio, long before she imagined building a life around a camera, let alone on another continent. Now based between New York City and Los Angeles, she describes her style as "editorial, timeless and emotionally driven", shaped by her background in fashion and art, but always chasing "the quiet glance, the laughter between friends and the feeling of being fully present".

Blake Nelson

Blake Nelson works with both analogue film and digital, guided by a "moment first" philosophy rather than a "medium first" one. He lets instinct decide the format rather than the other way around. Influenced by his background in fashion and theatre, his images strike a balance between modern elegance and candid photojournalism, capturing both a fine art aesthetic and a genuine, spontaneous feel.

Rather than quietly observing weddings from the sidelines, he sees them as a collaboration, choosing to experience the day alongside his clients so that the photographs capture what it felt like to be in the room, not just what it looked like. His advice to photographers just starting out doubles as a kind of mission statement: "There are clients out there looking for you," he says. "They may not know it yet."

Samm Blake

Originally from Australia, Samm Blake has spent the past two decades photographing weddings from her base in New York City. Her background in photojournalism still shapes the way she works today. "My approach sits somewhere between documentary and editorial," she says. Her instinct for capturing the small, overlooked moments speaks volumes about her journalistic background as well as her creative talent.

She uses a combination of film and digital photography, prioritising images that will still feel true and beautiful decades after the wedding itself. Travel remains one of her favourite aspects of the job. "Travel is one of my favorite parts of being a photographer," she says, pointing to Italy in particular as a destination she always finds herself returning to.

Danielle Simone & Co.

Danielle Simone has been photographing weddings for two decades. She started out as a studio assistant while still at school, before going on to complete a Master's degree in Art and Photography. Her galleries blend a documentary approach with what she describes as a "whimsical, editorial twist", a combination that has taken her around the world and into the pages of Vogue multiple times throughout her career.

She considers chemistry with a couple to be an essential part of the process. "I interview all clients before I agree to work with anyone," she says, describing the fit between photographer and couple as essential to the work. Despite having photographed weddings everywhere from Spain to Thailand, she says that New York City is her favourite place to shoot, hands down.

Lauren Alatriste Photography

Lauren Alatriste established herself in Miami before moving the brand to New York, where she now photographs cutting-edge weddings that have appeared in Vogue Weddings, British Vogue and PEOPLE, to name a few. She realised that her work had reached a turning point when she stopped simply documenting and started directing. "I realized I wasn't just documenting weddings. I was taking a different approach: directing visual stories," she says of the shift that reshaped her entire brand.

For Lauren, editing is where the final vision comes together. "I'm obsessed with editing. I find it's the final piece of the puzzle," she says, describing a process that involves selecting specific storylines and using Lightroom to edit them to match the mood of each wedding. Destination work has taken her to Kauai, Jamaica and Italy. However, she's quick to point out that it's not the scenery that's the real draw: "the couples are what make the destinations, not the other way around."

Kelly Mour

Before she ever picked up a professional camera, Kelly Mour spent years working in the fields of humanitarianism and national security, including a period as a CIA officer. She didn't buy her first camera until the age of 27, a fact that she now considers less to be a late start and more to be proof of the philosophy that she lives by: "it's never too late to begin again."

Her wedding photography blends photojournalism, editorial direction and heirloom-style portraiture because, as she says, "wedding days call for a dynamic storytelling approach". She uses a hybrid approach, favouring the Mamiya 7 for film, and believes that the best images come from couples who are simply enjoying themselves. "The most beautiful couples to photograph are the ones having the most fun," she says.

Allan Zepeda

With close to two decades of experience photographing weddings and private events around the world, Allan Zepeda has developed a style that is often described as timeless, natural and romantic, with an understated sense of elegance. He approaches every wedding as a unique visual challenge, capturing the emotional details that couples don't usually request and which other photographers often overlook.

His editorial instincts have earned him a place in publications such as Vogue, People and The New York Times, as well as recognition from Harper's Bazaar, Brides and Martha Stewart Weddings. Clients consistently praise his presence on the day itself, describing him as calm, personable and unobtrusive enough to put even camera-shy guests at ease.

Nicole Plett

Nicole Plett describes her work in five words: "Photographs for humans in love." Working primarily with analogue formats, she approaches photography as an act of observation, capturing fleeting details and subtle textures rather than staging anything for effect.

Ten years into her career, she relies on intuition, stepping back until she captures the unique energy of each wedding. Based in New York City, she frequently travels to the Canadian Prairies with her partner, Dev, a multidisciplinary artist who often joins her on projects as a creative collaborator and second pair of eyes.

What's clear after all fifteen is that none of them are chasing the same shot. Each one has picked a lane, film over digital, quiet observation over full direction, editorial polish over undone documentary, and built an entire career around defending that choice. Whichever style speaks to you, full portfolios and contact details for all fifteen are just a click away on Wezoree, ready whenever you're ready to reach out.