Two hearts, twin talents, dual perspectives, but one mindset: preserving the enchanted moments of pure bliss that can only be shared by people in love. These husband and wife teams elevate wedding photography to a level of unsurpassed collaborative artistry. Each alone is a master image maker. Together, they are even better.
PHILIPPE AND SOOJIN LEE - Jade Studio Productions
Each wedding is “a world made of colors, of lights, of joy,” says Philippe Lee, who learned photojournalistic and cinematic style in France. His wife, Soojin, honed her fashion and fine art photography skills in New York. Since co-founding their state-of-the-art San Francisco studio, they’ve learned from each other and from their multicultural team of image makers. “It’s endless what we can do,” says Philippe of their still and video imaging capabilities, especially when couples open “their feelings and hearts to us".
JERRY AND TAMMI SWANSON - Swanson Photographs
“In Vegas, anything can happen. I’ve got my bag put together; we can get going at a moment’s notice,” says Jerry Swanson. He and his photo stylist wife, Tammi, “come from the fashion world,” Jerry says, so their style is spontaneous, yet their mostly black and white images are timeless, not trendy. Albums feature magazine-style spreads. As she’s shooting, Tammi says she’s “always envisioning telling a story” while also watching for “glimpse in time” moments that “just capture your heart.”
ARDEN WARD AND BRETT MOORE - Arden Photography
An antique camera was Arden Ward’s reward for cleaning her father’s attic and her ticket out of classes at her mother’s ballet school. Photographing dancers trained her to “anticipate movement.” Swimsuit shoots taught her to coax confidence from brides. “Anytime you feel good about yourself, it’s conveyed through the lens,” she says. Ward and husband Brett Moore blend fashion, commercial and editorial experience. After weddings, there’s playful one-upmanship in their Alabama office. “I’ll bet you couldn’t have gotten that shot,” they’ll tease.
ME RA KOH AND BRIAN TAUSEND - Me Ra Koh Photography
Writer and speaker Me Ra Koh embraced a new storytelling tool after a devastating miscarriage. As she photographed her daughter, a gift for capturing life’s precious, joyful moments and the beauty and spirit of individuals emerged. At weddings, she and husband Brian Tausend cry, quibble, mostly laugh; their extraordinary openness earns couples’ trust. They photograph just twelve weddings annually and become incredibly close to clients. “This isn’t just a job for us,” says Koh. “Life is not to be taken for granted,” they’ve learned.
CHRISTIAAN PHLEGER AND LEXI MACKENZIE - Fine Art Wedding Photographers
Christiaan Phleger admits he’s “an anomaly,” and it’s not just because he surfs with most grooms. The Hawaii-based photographer shoots only film and uses his own chemical formulation to achieve complete artistic control of each hand-printed image. The former newspaper photojournalist and his wife, Lexi Mackenzie, each shoot multiple cameras. Their deliberately low-tech approach allows them to stay “in the flow of what’s happening in front of the camera,” Phleger says. The resulting imagery is “real and right and true.”
