I have had the amazing fortune of having some of the most bad-ass and unique humans hire me as their wedding photographer. And what comes with all that bad-assery, you ask? EPIC FASHION CHOICES.

I have a deep, deep appreciation for dramatic flair, ostentatious accessories and GIVING ZERO F#&%@!!!  Boring, stuffy weddings are absolutely a thing of the past and I just love that people are using their weddings as a chance to flaunt some serious style. Here is a round up of my Top 8 favorite looks from the weddings I've shot over the years!

8. Lucera and Roman

Lucera worked so hard on designing every element of her wedding to Roman. She's also an amazing artist and we bonded over the fact that we both have been greatly influenced by Catholic art. She was totally channeling some saint-vibes with her veil and her choice to put her gorgeous bridesmaids in fitted, black rompers was nothing short of spectacular. Paired with bright, bold florals and vintage-inspired red heels, this look absolutely rocked. Roman and his groomsman were just as stylish in their gray suits and and black shades!

7. Tuling

Tuling is a hilarious, playful and skateboard loving badass! She didn't want to take her wedding too seriously and opted to go full-blown flapper for her look! Sh wore a pink dress, white wig and a feather boa at her wedding to Dmitry. Tuling literally jumped up and down for joy during her vows and seeing all her fringe shimmy and shake was totally wonderful to watch.

6. Mariah

Mariah had an absolutely stunning, classic wedding dress and she elevated her look to rock-star status with a stunning faux hawk updo and a pair of Converse All Stars. She looked both elegant and punk rock all at once and her footwear ensured that she could spend the night cutting it up on the dance floor!

5. Katie and Kelly

Katie and Kelly are lovers of all things Tiki and their wedding was infused with tropical details. Kelly opted for a classic blue tux which delightfully complimented Katie's Sea Queen vibes. Her hair piece from Nancy's Fancy Fruits illuminated with twinkling lights when she hit the dance floor. Katie put her bridesmaids in bright, festive dresses and the most gorgeous, vibrant florals rounded out the terrific Tiki-ness!

4. Rebecca and Chris

Rebecca and Chris embody the word dapper and they took their love of all things vintage to new heights at their wedding! Rebecca opted for a 40's inspired pinup look and Chris' incredible mustache was groomed to handlebar perfection. Their reverent and classic church wedding gave way to a raucous reception filled with Star Wars details. Vintage + Nerd = Very Happy Photographer.

3. Jessica and Kevin

I just LOVE me a black wedding dress!! Jessica and Kevin's American Horror Story/Carnival of Animals wedding was WILD and they made sure their style reflected that. Jessica embraced her Indian heritage with some stunning henna on her hands and her fairy princess dress was given a gothic twist with its midnight tones. Kevin rocked an orange velvet jacket and they both carried gothic style parasols to help beat the July heat!

2. Megan

Megan channeled Old Hollywood when choosing her stunning wedding look! Megan and James got married on a chilly, January day and her faux-fur kept her warm and cozy! I love that she opted for a side hair piece rather than a traditional veil. It looked adorable with her wavy bob and red lips!

1. Danika and Monique

This wedding will probably always be impossible to beat. Black wedding dress? Check. Gnarly head-piece featuring animal skulls and horns? Check. Two Brides? Check and Check! Danika is a costume designer and she went straight to the very best to help her create this one of a kind look- Dark Garden Unique Corsetry. Monique opted for knee-high lace up boots, and a matching leather jacket and vest. I shot this wedding over three years ago and I swear, I'm still swooning over the damn thing.

Well, that just about wraps it up... But what the hell, why not one more! Here is an extra-special bonus look from a wedding I shot with the ever inspiring Casey Brodley. I've always said that the best second photographer is a lead photographer who knows how to check their ego and I absolutely LOVED getting to second shoot for this queen. It totally helped that this wedding was lousy with style and it recently was featured on Green Wedding Shoes!

Bonus- Kate and Mike

I mean... they killed it. They murdered their wedding style and all other weddings bow before them.

Let's face it, wedding planning can be EXHAUSTING. When planning my own wedding, I found it to be so exhausting that we ran away and eloped. There are so many options out there and knowing what to look for is key! Here are 4 simple steps to finding the perfect photographer for you.

Tell me everything, dahling!

STEP 1: Check out that sweet, sweet website. A great photographer's website will tell you most of what you need to know. You can see the quality of their work and to see if their rates align with your budget. It is also helpful (but not required) to have a basic idea of the style of photography you like before checking out photographers. There are a ton of different styles out there: light and airy, dark and moody, documentary etc... Having a basic idea can certainly help you narrow it down but you can also use your website exploring time to figure out what kind of style speaks to you! I consider my style to be "Vibrant and Moody" as I love bright colors but I also love capturing dramatic, emotive moments. Every photographer has a different style though, so it is important to get a photographer who already shoots in the style you're looking for. You should never hire a "Light and Airy" photographer but expect your pictures to be dark and moody, I promise you'll be disappointed. Instead, hire a dark and moody photographer.

Pro Tip: Check out your photographer's business Instagram and Facebook page too! These sites are typically updated more frequently than websites.

 Once you've found a photographer who shoots in the style you like, it's time to do a little research.

STEP 2: Check out their reviews/Get some referrals. This is an important step. Don't skip it. Again, a photographer's website is going to have MOST of the info you need but unfortunately, there are some really unscrupulous jerks out there who will put photos that do not belong to them on their websites and others who have been known to "take the money and run". It sucks, but doing your due diligence and researching your photographer is a great way to protect yourself.  Read all their reviews and decide for yourself if you would like to proceed to the next step. A referral from someone you know and trust is also considered a review! First hand accounts of how your photographer works, communicates and performs is great information to have!

Pro Tip: Yelp, Facebook, Google and wedding websites are all great places to check out reviews.

Get really... familiar with your photographer

STEP 3: Meet them in person! This is also SUPER important. You and your photographer should totally dig each other's vibe. Your wedding day is so important and your photographer will see you in some really intimate and vulnerable moments. I mean, do you have any idea how many of my bride's bare butts and boobies I've seen? Like, a LOT. Your photographer's personality should put you at ease, make you feel confident and protected all at once! If you are getting the feeling AT ALL that your photographer doesn't respect you or care about you, they are not the photographer for you! Now, sometimes meeting your photographer isn't possible. I had a destination elopement and I wasn't able to meet my amazing photographer ahead of time. You know what I did do though? I checked out her social media (Love ya, Jaz!). From her social media I learned that she has a bunch of tattoos (like me!), has a gorgeous pitbull (like me!) and can swear like a sailor (holy shitballs, just like me!!). From what I gathered from her online presence I had a sneaking suspicion that we would get along famously and from her website, rates and reviews that she would be the perfect photographer for me. 

AND SHE WAS.

There is a massive "wedding photographer's questionnaire" floating around the internet and I've had a few couples bring it in tow to our meet and greet. Years ago one of my prospective brides was going through the list and about halfway thru she got to the question "Can you please list all of the gear you will be using at my wedding?" I rattled off my list of camera bodies, lenses, strobes and power packs as she stared at me. When I paused she looked at me and chuckled "I'm really not sure what any of that stuff is or why I'm supposed to care!?!" We had a good laugh about it but here's the thing.... you don't have to know or care about every single piece of your photographer's gear. That question was designed to help couples weed out the pros from the amateurs. Ya know, to make sure that we aren't attempting to shoot a wedding on our cell phones. I am not at all saying that you shouldn't have questions prepared. You should! Ask as many questions as you want but in my opinion, here are the two questions that REALLY matter.

Are you a licensed business?

Do you have business insurance?

If those answers aren't "yes" and "hell yes", this is not the photographer you're looking for.

We're almost to the finish line! Just one more VERY important step!

STEP 4: Read your contract, read your contract, read your contract. Once more in case you missed it, READ YOUR FREAKING CONTRACT. Seriously. Read it like, 10 times before you sign it. Ask questions! Don't be shy! I love it when my couples ask questions because it means that they READ THEIR CONTRACT! Your contract serves to protect both you and your photographer. Your contract should cover everything from the hours your photographer will be working, to how many pictures you can expect to how and where your photographs will be shared. I've heard some horror stories of brides who paid out the wazoo for their photographer and then only received 100 photos from a full day of shooting. I've also heard of brides waiting months and months and months to see their pictures. To both of those things I ask, what does your contract say? If for some reason that information isn't in your contract, ask for it to be! Any photographer worth their salt knows about how many pictures they can produce and how long it will take them to get edited. If they don't know, don't sign and keep looking. If everything looks great and you feel awesome about it, congratulations. You've found what you're looking for!!!

A few times a year I am asked by my clients if they can see or have every single photo I took during their session. "It doesn't even have to be edited! I'll just take it RAW!" My answer to this is always the same. 

                                                           

Why not? Well, read on!

First off,  you actually need special software to view a RAW file. They aren't something you can just open on your phone or casually view on your computer. Not to mention that they are HUGE files. Like.... FREAKING ENORMOUS. Depending on the kind of image I'm capturing, a singe file can take up anywhere between 50-200 mega bites! I can easily shoot up to 250gb during an 8 hour wedding (roughly the same amount of storage on your average laptop). They are just way too large to be easily shared or viewed.

There is also a common misconception that because I shoot on an amazing camera that all my pictures are just automatically amazing and perfect.

Yes,  my camera IS amazing.... but guess what? The pictures I take don't just automatically look amazing because of the camera. It certainly helps but those images need a little Jenn Spain MAGIC for them to truly be appreciated. The truth is, lots of unedited pictures look like total butthole until they're edited. 

Well, maybe not butthole exactly but certainly not amazing! Unedited photos can seem unremarkable to the untrained eye but with a little of the aforementioned magic, the image blossoms into something spectacular.

 I often tell my clients to think of the unedited photo as an ingredient. You all know how I feel about cake, right? Say you hire the most reputable baker in town to bake you a delicious cake with chocolate ganache. You would be pretty disappointed if the baker plopped a sack of flour in front of you. I mean, the front window is filled with gorgeous cakes and the baker's instagram is just flooded with cake after beautiful cake. How come yours just looks like flour? The edited photo is the cake. The unedited photo is the flour. Don't ask to see the ingredient... wait for the cake, dammit. (It's worth it, I PROMISE.)

                                                                                                                         Ingredient  vs.  Cake                               

 Also, NOT EVERY IMAGE IS WORTH SEEING. If an image is blurry, or if someone is blinking or it's basically the same as another image but not quite as good, there is no point in keeping it! Unflattering pictures also get the boot because this never should have happened to Beyonce. I deliver only the VERY BEST images to my clients. Sure, you may "think" you want every single image from your wedding but as someone who actually has seen every single picture from your wedding- trust me when I say you don't. I very carefully cull and select only the very best photos for you. Not just because I want you to have only the best pictures (which I do!) but also because I have my pride! This is work that my name is attached too and its important to me that it is reflective of the quality my clients have come to expect. 

Still not convinced? Here are a few more.

What a difference, right?!! 

From meh to brilliant!

Cropping and color correction help make Cass and Caleb really pop in this photo. 

You feel me? I don't show you your unedited pictures because they aren't ready! They (like the cake) are being baked to absolute perfection. 

xoxo

-j