Dallas Petroleum Club Wedding 2024

Cate and Zander were married at the new home of The Petroleum Club in Dallas which, if you haven’t seen it, is such a beautiful and impressive space to have your wedding reception. If you want to feel like you’re on top of the city and enjoy endless panoramic views that come with it then the 14th floor of the JP Morgan Chase building just off of Klyde Warren Park might be your ticket. The wedding ceremony was held at Perkins Chapel (SMU) which will always be on the most picturesque churches in the city. Thank you to H+H Weddings for coordinating this fantastic day!

What makes a great documentary wedding photograph?

Look, if we’re being honest a majority of good wedding photography is just normal, well-composed, informational images that work to tell a part of the story. An image of a floral arrangement or an altar photo of your family isn’t likely to win awards but nonetheless, they’re a necessary part of documenting the day. Follow me? That being said, this article is about the portfolio-grade images that make a documentary photographer's work unique, define their style, and demonstrate how they see creatively. To make work that rises above what is normal and expected we have to learn to evaluate images and this article is about how we do that. What defines a great documentary image?

One caveat I want to mention here is that wedding photographers generally (99.9%) aren’t one sided in their appoach to a complete wedding portfolio. All wedding photographers create a mix of work that is documentary, posed/creative/fine art based and traditional. That being said how a photographer approaches the parts of the day where posing and directing people is optional can vary a lot and greatly influence the story and meaning behind images. It’s one thing to catch a beautiful moment at a wedding which transports the viewer back to that moment and emotion as it happened vs. viewing an image where they were posed to look like it was something real.

I’m going to restrict this article to documentary photography because while the same principles exist in great portraiture the methods to do change (adding/creating light, prompting responses, etc.). If you want a primer on the analysis of portraits let me know and I’d be happy to write one.

To begin are three pillars to how I learned to grade images: light, timing, and composition. My mentor/editor, from my days as a newspaper photojournalist, used to say a good image needs to have at least two and a great image has to have all three. That is how I know if I’ve made something that rises above what I hope is good/successful standard work. So let’s dive into those pillars and look at the approach to using them.

Light -

Whenever I walk into a space with my camera I’m looking for two things: First I look at the direction of the main light source (sun) and where the space is giving us soft and beautiful light meaning where will people look flattering. The second is where can I see more interesting/directional/dramatic light. As I work the room I keep those ideas in mind as I position myself and hunt for moments and composition, many world-class images are made in the more interesting light but are accompanied by both great composition and timing.

This image of Molly and Bobby is one of my all-time favorites when it comes to extraordinary light. They had just finished their first look and were headed downstairs when someone told them to wait on the staircase resulting in the moment above. This is such a quintessential mix of being ready (timing), beautiful and interesting light, and the wonderful composition provided by the circular winding staircase. Take away the moment between them, the light or the location and you’d have maybe something good but not as good as this image for me. In this case, I saw the light first, then the composition and I just waited for something to happen, and that’s how it usually goes. The light by the way was from a window above them and it was curved due to the round walls.

Here’s another moment where the light is just gorgeous, I’ve worked the scene to find a more interesting composition and I’ve waited for a composition where their faces and expressions help tell the story of this amazing reception. Again ask does this image have all three elements light, composition and timing? Just as a note, I think the blue/pink light is what sings in this image, Yes I could have made something similar with flashes etc. but preserving the ambiance is how I feel it transports you to what it felt like to be there. My thought is that this is maybe 2.5/3 but I can’t manufacture an incredible moment and truth be told it was their first dance that stole the show that night.

Timing -

The best images that showcase moments are fleeting which is definitely what makes capturing them so rewarding. You have to be present and ready to make an image so your concentration has to be “on” all the time, true moment driven photography is one part anticipation and one part quick reaction. The cardinal sin for any moment-driven photography, however, is putting the camera down when you thought you had it in the bag, it always pays to be ready for what happens right after what you thought was the peak of the action as often those are the real winners.

OK here is an image that I just love for two reasons: first is what we emphasize here, timing. Would this image be as good if they weren’t reacting to one another? I think the laugh shared by the bride and groom is key to the story of the image. The second part of what I love is this compositional layering. I positioned myself so that I could see the bride, groom, and the wedding party in the window while I focused on the bride and I was ready when the nervous energy between them came out. By contrast, if I had chosen to focus on the groom the expression of the bride might not have been visible and if I had cropped out the wedding party it would have left a great part of the story out.

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This moment happened late into the night and it lasted for only 1/2 a second never to be repeated (he completely surprised her). Timing is about never giving up and always being ready for something great to happen. After hours of dancing, it can be hard to stay motivated by the action but these kinds of images keep me going because you never know what a great memory will happen.

I want to also mention that many documentary moments at weddings do come as the result of a coordinated/staged actions. First dance images, exit images at the end of the night, even ressional images of a couple exiting thier ceremony are at the heart of it, coordinated. Does that matter? Maybe, maybe not to you but when you’re evaluating an image I think it’s important to ask how easy was this image to anticipate? Did the photographer do anything to elevate the image by approaching the moment creatively? Or did somethign spontaneous happen that elevated the image to world class that he/she caught with perfect timing? Keep in mind also the risk of doing something unconventional during a big moment is real and that is why we normally work as a team so we have the ability to get a standard and a more risky image.

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Composition

Composition is a photographic device that gets a lot of attention and it’s probably the easiest skill of the three to learn. Compositional tools are also often what we can most easily control to take an image from standard to good. In this image, I could have chosen to spend a few moments in the room with the bride and her dad right before they walked down the aisle but instead, I saw this frame in the sanctuary door and knew that I could strengthen the composition by adding cues about the where they were in the church and add intimacy to their moment.

Right after the ceremony the bride and groom were waiting on this staircase outside the sanctuary and I knew just from the contrast of the light that there was the opportunity for something beautiful.

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Summary

Well, that’s my best attempt at a summary on objectively knowing what makes a documentary wedding image rise above the rest. As you look at work, think about what you love in an image and how many of the three boxes it ticks. Light, Composition, and Timing. A skilled photographer can create consistent work that has at least one of the three elements in most images but looking for those that have two or more will give you insight into how they see, what they find valuable, and aligning that with your style is should give you the best wedding images possible.

If you want to learn more about our approach please get in touch via the contact form above or just click here.

Understanding how photographic style applies to weddings

First, let’s just list the major styles in wedding photography which are generally known as 1. Commercial/Lifestyle 2. Documentary/Photojournalistic 3. Fine Art 4. Traditional Sometimes people will mistakenly lump editing or color into this discussion too but that’s not style although it can play a part in how you feel about an image so we’ll look at that in this article too. First, it should be understood that every photographer no matter their preferences, experience, or cost has to practice all four major styles to complete any wedding. We all take family group photos (traditional), ceremony photos (photojournalistic), and creative portraits of the bride and groom (artistic) just to give an example of each where the style is dictated but that doesn’t mean that we aren’t approaching each event in our own way. To understand a photographer’s complete approach rather you must look at each part of the day and know how those images were made to understand what your experience will be. And experience is key because it will dictate how you remember your wedding as much as what it looked like.

Part 1 - Commerical/lifestyle vs. Documentary Photojournalistic

Some photographers and videographers prefer to see the wedding day more as a script where the visuals they need can be written or memorized on a list while others see the beauty of life in what happens organically and believe that recording real, unscripted, moments will give the most memorable images. Both approaches create beautiful images but they differ radically in the experience of being the subject. For example, a scripted lifestyle image of a bride and her mom holding hands, maybe even with tears in their eyes can be made in both styles but in one the memory of the moment is of being prompted, a sort of tiny performance while the other could be a photograph you don’t even remember being taken until you see your gallery. Neither approach is empirically better than another but how that image is made is what separates one style from another and it’s not something you can tell from just looking at a gallery.

Side note: The commercial/lifestyle approach has been the dominant style for the last few years, I think because it’s easier and safer for the photographer. There is simply more control and less risk in making images and crossing them off the list than there is in waiting for real moments to happen. That being said I’ve met many couples who are willing to risk the shot list approach for something more real and personal. Be careful though as you read a photographer’s marketing copy just because they’re describing themselves as candid, documentary, or photojournalistic doesn’t make it true.

Part 2 Fine Art vs. Traditional Portraits

First, the family group photos everyone takes at their weddings are nearly always in the traditional genre so I’m going to ignore those images when it comes to a discussion of style but I do think you should take a look at those images in a portfolio because the lighting and posing of those images is critical. Truth be told they’re some, if not the most, of the most frequently printed and shared images we take.

Now back to the crux of fine art vs. traditional portraiture, you need to look at a photographer’s portrait work (images of the bride and groom alone, the wedding party not at the altar) and ask yourself do I enjoy this work? Is what I see posed in a more traditional style? Is the lighting soft and unremarkable? Are many of the faces looking at the camera? Or do you see a lot of creative license on how the couple is posed, how dramatic the lighting is or is the background bold and dramatic? Are the majority of the images of the couple doing something where it looks more ‘camera unaware’ and natural or is it posed so perfectly that it looks like great care went into the composition? Here I do think it is safe to evaluate the work you see on a photographer’s website BUT sometimes the portraits a photographer makes at any one wedding are dictated by the environment, schedule, and time of day so do take care to think about what your wedding day will be like and how that matches to something similar in a portfolio.

Part 3 Everyone is unique and everyone is also the same

Now with those comparisons on the table let’s also acknowledge that almost no one fits 100% into any one category and 99% of wedding photographers can adapt to locations, light, and a couple’s preferences. So in one sense, every photographer’s approach will vary based on their choice of approach, their eye for light, moment, and composition but we’re also in the business of making it work and should know how to adapt just in case that’s what’s needed.

In our business, we have drawn a line where we do the minimum amount of prompting to give a couple the best chance of clean backgrounds and beautiful light. This means that I will help a bride choose, for example, where to get dressed but I won’t tell her how to do it because we want to leave space or real moments. This approach leads to images where real moments can happen and the memory of the moment will not be of us.

When it comes to portraits we can customize our approach to fit a wedding day for example if I’m on a ranch shooting in the middle of the day I gravitate to a light and airy feel and a more candid feeling to the poses but if I’m working at night in a luxury hotel I’m going to generally use more dramatic lighting and precise poses to work with the low light environment. All that being said what I love most is when we can give a variety of portraits by working with our couple’s locations throughout the day in different spaces in with different light. As you look at portraits ask yourself if the environment is similar to what you’ll have at your wedding, do you gravitate to images with a bit more drama or do you prefer portraits that feel more casual? And if you see both in a photographer’s work then communicate your preferences with them and work to create the environment and lighting you love.

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Examples showing several ‘styles’ all from the same wedding.

Traditional altar photos are a key part of most weddings and here professional strobe light helps us keep things perfectly lit. Every wedding photographer makes traditional images but check to make sure you see skill and consistency.

Many documentary moments aren’t staged or created from a shot list, they have to happen naturally and a photograher has to be watching and moving constantly to be ready.

A fine art ‘bright and airy’ portrait taken only moments before the second image at right. We love the look of both, so why shoot only one?

Sometimes beautiful moments are a part of mini events at a wedding like a private last dance. It’s a bit of a performance but we must also be ready for the perfect moment.

A more fine art, cinematic, creative image is something almost all photographers love to do and the mix between traditional images and these makes wedding photography interesting and fun.

These moments are slightly staged in the sense that we’ll help you pick a clean and beauiful background but we won’t micro-manage so that it still feels natural and real. We want to memory to be of you and your dad, not of us.

• If the photographer is experienced they can be both light/bright/airy and warm/cinematic/moody and adapt either look to their client’s needs and/or the schedule/venue/available light.

Perpetuating the myth that an accomplished photographer who knows how to control and manipulate light can or will only make one type of choice in creating and toning every image is a misnomer becuase most of the time we’re more likely responding to the light/conditions/venue/client to make those descisoins. It’s also terrible in my mind that we believe that to be artistic and have a strong brand we can only do or be one thing. Once a photographer is really in control of their skills they can absolutely adapt to what the day/light and even couples preferences are to create a wide variety of beautiful work. Yes, personally we love to create strong documentary work but we’re also passionate about portraits and the variety of images we create is part of what fuels us. Honestly, it would be boring to do the same thing every weekend and often it would be forcing a round peg into a square hole. To my mind, it’s so much better if we collaborate and create art that you love while working with your wedding day’s best assets in terms of light/location/weather.

The way we control and capture the light can be tailored to the image we want to create and we’re not tied to just one look. Again here is a real world example of two different moods/sytles within one wedding.

A bright and airy image that really suits the light and the enviornment

Same wedding, this would have to be classified as dark/cinematic but it was somethign the couple really wanted to do and the stars have become something we have become known more with many of our couples.

• Being able to work with and creatively use flash and other lighting tools makes any photographer better. Great wedding photographers are able to overcome challenges and create beautiful images even when some part of the day is compromised by time/light or location.

If there is anyone out there reporting to be an ‘available light’ wedding photographer there are only two or three possible explanations: 1. They have no desire or training on how to use flash or added light and you should probably think twice because honestly they’re simply unprepared for all the responsibilities of wedding photography. 2. It’s a marketing description to attract couples who like the bright and airy style of images. This is fine but just know that your day/venue/weather and schedule can/will still play vital roles in then in how your images will look. Also, it’s important to note and discuss how this photographer’s work could be compromised if things aren’t optimal for that style. Many experienced ‘bright and airy’ photographers will still be able to adapt and will be prepared to work in other ways as needed like using a strobe to mimic natural light but some won’t.

On the other side of the coin if you take an experienced photographer who favors controlling light for some of their advertised look I would almost guarantee that if your days lends itself to a more bright and airy style that they would be able to work with it. The reason is that if they frequently need to create different looks by modifying light with strobes/LEDs/reflectors then they already know how to work with existing light. So if you fancy a variety of images taken at different parts of the day or if you’d like to tailor your wedding images to your style then just work with them to achieve that goal.

Now I think you see where I’m going here on why would I want a photographer that I knew was capable of creative work using modified light…I think over the hundreds of weddings we’ve photographed that it’s a skill we’ve had to refine because: sometimes the weather keeps you inside all day, sometimes you run out of natural light before you’re finished with photography or the sunlight is just nasty, because sometimes we use modified light to create what looks like beautiful sunlight. Wedding days are always a balancing act of creating a great experience for you and your guests and part of that for us is being adaptable so no matter what happens we’re prepared to work. What I love about loving both available and modified light is that I’m ready to make images anywhere at any time. So please choose a photographer you trust, who will direct you when you want, and will give you space for real moments when that’s what you need. Our 2 cents.

In the end, 99.99% of all wedding photographers are working hard to make their clients happy and we’ll do almost anything in our power to give you photos that you’re over the moon about.

• A note about toning and post-processing -

I really believe that an image with balanced and natural color which has been graded to subtlely enhance the tones is the best way a wedding photographer can deliver your images. The reason for this is that over the years we’ve seen a lot of popular filters come and go and eventually all of them lose their lustre and appeal. By sticking with natural and true-to-life tones we remain timeless. That being said we’re far from against the use of Photoshop to finish our work as we intended at the time of capture or to fix what was impossible to do on the day. After every wedding, we break out the best images and use our skills to enhance them. This can include removing distracting elements from backgrounds, combining images into panoramics, and changing the color/tone. When we start from our natural edit there are lots of ways we can take an image and we love that. In the end, what you get is our vision and our dedication to giving you the best we can make. We deliver that to you in a slide show presentation and as a downloadable gallery where you can share/print and use the images any way you like.

4 Different looks in post-processing from the same image

Natual colors and processing, always our staring point for wedding images

Light and bright toning, which generally falls closely in line with film and can work really well in bright environments.

Cinematic toning - I do love the richness of the tonality and it’s ability to transform an image into something you cannot see with your eyes. Cinematic looking images work really well at night when we can controll all of the light in a scene.

Black and white - never underestimage how a black white image will always draw your attention to what matters and how it will forever have a timeless look

I hope you find this useful in your discussions with photographers and that it moves you forward in making sure you have a wonderful wedding photography experience! If you’d like to speak with us we’d love to know you just use the contact button above or click here. Also if you’d love to learn more about documentary photography check out this article.

The Crescent Club Dallas Wedding

What a beautiful winter wedding for Catherine and Tucker at The Crescent Club in Dallas. Outstanding floral by The Garden Gate and impeccable planning by KBD Events. We loved seeing this family for a second time in almost as many years for a second spectacular day!

Stonebriar Country Club Wedding & Reception

Emily and Alex were married at the beautiful Stonebriar Country Club with the wedding ceremony on the terrace overlooking the golf course. We loved this high-energy day full of gorgeous light, laughter, and beautiful moments.

Vendor team:

Planning: A Stylish Soriee

Venue: Stonebriar Country Club

Beauty: Maitee Miles

Floral: Pick a Daisy Floral Design

Photo: Joseph Mark Photography

Video: Reverent Wedding Films

DJ: Platinum Events Company

Cake: Grace’s Tiers Bakery

Ice Cream: Melt

5 Tips On How To Crush Your Wedding Photos

Ok here are my top five tips for how you can really help make your wedding photographs great.

1. Tell us what is most important to you

In one sense I really do try to be a mind reader, I think one of the most important skills a photographer can have is the ability to anticipate what is going to happen next so they can be ready for something great. That skill aside when it comes to what moments you’ve been dreaming of since you were a little girl or photos you’ve had pinned for years and want as a part of your collection I do need your help.

We always try to have a phone call or face-to-face meeting with our couples shortly before the wedding and we try to go over anything and everything that they want to communicate about their wishes and we try every time to make sure those things happen. Just a side note we don’t guarantee any specific photo only because weddings are live events and we can’t predict what will and will not be possible but we really do try to get 100% of your vision.

Bottom line, it’s better to over-communicate, especially before the wedding so your photographer is ready to make your vision happen.

2. Give yourself the gift of having enough time

1. Portrait photography is the primary part of your day that will always get squeezed if you’re running short on time so build in a cushion so that little delays never really affect what we’re able to capture. It’s not that we need hours of time just for photography but if you only have 10 minutes it will limit where we can go and how many variations we can get.

2. You want time for things to happen at a comfortable pace, if you over-schedule it can feel like the day is just a long checklist of to-dos jumping from one thing to the next. Make sure there is time for getting from place to place, breathing, sitting, drinking water and just hanging out, especially in the time right before you walk down the aisle. You want time with your parents, to get hugs from your bridesmaids, and a second to breathe.

3. Run your schedule by your photographer as early as you can so they can give feedback on ideas for how to make the best use of the time that day. Often for example there are moments when we can make use of a little pocket of time to get evening portraits during the reception. We also know how to pace the group portraits to make sure you have the downtime you need before the ceremony.

3. Be real, let your emotions show, and trust us to capture you in a beautiful way

You know that there are going to be some private moments on your wedding day when it gets a little emotional and I want you to let us be a part of that. If you can give us your trust we take those times very seriously because that emotion is the result of love that you have with the people closest to you. Family is at the center of what makes us wedding photographers and these moments are at the heart of your family. Documenting those moments is so important because it will give you the feels for your husband/dad/mom/sister/brother etc. every time you view that image even decades from now. In the end, 10,20,30 years from now it will be the images you can tell stories about that will be the most important to you.

4. Let go of worry and allow us to guide/pose you

I know this one is hard, you’ve got so much invested in getting the visuals just right.. the perfect dress/hair/makeup etc. and it’s hard not to stress. The thing is that if you allow us to guide you without setting any anxiousness away you’re images will feel more organic and you’ll have much better memories of making them. Again if you trust us we will look after you, and keep you/dress safe and gorgeous throughout the process because we really care about giving you the best day possible. Lean on your photographer to get you through the various portraits and trust they have your back while also executing their vision.

5. Spend time with the ones you love most

We can’t photograph what we don’t see so make sure you spend time with the people you love most on your wedding day.

• Have Dad with you right before you go down the aisle

• Have mom/sisters with you to get dressed

• Take a portrait with your siblings

• Get your mom out on the dance floor

• Make sure your husband is with you, a lot, at the reception

You get the idea, don’t let the crazy of the day keep you from being with the ones you love, keep them close and we’ll be with you to document it.

Candid vs. Directed Wedding Photography

Why is photojournalism (documentary, candid) photography so important at weddings?

Every wedding photographer I know practices both directed and documentary photography during a wedding day but how and when they choose to apply these techniques can have a massive impact on both the meaning and look of your photography.

Directed/posed photography has a bunch of huge advantages, simply put: you will almost always be in great light, in a good location, everyone will know when and where to stand, look, and even smile. Additionally, when directing photography every image you want can be checked off a list and the portfolio of work that is created can be incredibly consistent so it’s really easier for both your photographer and you. If you can pre-visualize the images you want you can even create work that looks candid (very popular right now) and captures the relationships and progression of the wedding day.

What’s not to love?

Let’s say you have two seemingly identical images: Image one was created when I told you to hold hands with your mom, to look and one another, hug, and cry. You’re standing by a huge bay window, your dress has been laid out perfectly and I’ve angled you both to look amazing. Snap, snap, snap we’re done and we cross that image off the list and move on to the next in a series of photos laid out in a list with your photographer to get everything captured on the day.

Now let’s imagine a similar moment just before the ceremony when your mom grabs your hands, kisses you with just a few happy tears in her eyes, and whispers in your ear how proud and happy she is to be your mother. At this moment your photographer hasn’t asked for anything but catches those images in real time with both of you not even knowing. When you get your photographs after the wedding you happen upon that image and the tears come flooding back because you are transported right back to that moment (and it has nothing to do with a list of must-haves or the photographer).

The difference in the way you feel about those two photographs is the difference between directed and documentary photography.

Just to be clear I define documentary/photojournalistic photography as unscripted, spontaneous, and reactive. This approach differs from directed photography in that you and your family/friends are never advised what to do, the photographer lets things happen naturally, and spontaneously and never asks you to repeat or change what you are doing. Your wedding day is recorded as it happened. Scary to some extent right? But is that risk worth the difference in how you feel when reliving your wedding day? Up to you to decide.

Now I know what you might be thinking, why can’t it be both? Can we get some directed images and some photojournalism?

Well over the years of photographing weddings, I do think it can/must be both but we can’t forget that everything we do has an opportunity cost. If you’re busy being directed then natural moments can’t happen so the details of when/how each approach is used are key.

Our solution is to be as light-handed with direction as possible while still giving you the best opportunity to get beautiful images. In the example of you and your mom putting on your dress, we would do things like remind you when you’re supposed to get dressed, make sure there is a space and that the light looks good, and also make sure that your mom/sister/MOH are there if you want them. But beyond that, we would rather not tell you how to put the dress on, who should hold your hands, or when to smile. By drawing that line in terms of direction and leaving you that space the images we create will hopefully preserve the power of photojournalism and you will feel in the moment and not like you’re the center of a day-long photo shoot and an endless list of images.

When you meet/talk with a photographer ask about the approach and what their goals are for your images. Look at their portfolio and try to get a feel for what type of work they love. If you see every bridesmaid perfectly positioned while adjusting the dress in a styled space and everyone’s expressions are smiling looking directly at the action you can guess that was directed. If you see some of the chaos, the tears, a laugh or a cry that isn’t 100 camera ready that’s more likely photojournalism. See what makes them light up and what they love to talk about, then you’ll know if you are aligned in the goals for your own wedding.

Every photographer shoots portraits, 100% directed work that is a huge part of the wedding day. Those images may even have authentic laughter and be slightly “real” (at least that’s part of my goal). Conversely, every photographer also shoots ceremonies where nothing is under their control and those moments are by definition documentary. What I’m talking about here is the in-between, the hours before the wedding, the walk from the bride’s suite to the ceremony, the moments with dad while you wait for the doors to open, a stolen kiss during dinner or the moment you pop out of the getaway car halfway down the block. Those are the moments when we, as photographers, can choose our approach and represent one way we can differentiate our work.

To sum up there is no right answer here, some couples prefer the straightforward forward consistent nature of mostly directed work but others will be drawn to more of a mix between those portraits and true moments captured that show what is real and could never be found on a list. As always, ‘you do you’ but know what you’re signing up for before you miss out on what you really want.

P.S. One more really important thought, the images you see on social media might never have a lot of true documentary work. The truth is that powerful emotional moments don’t always work well for public life, people feel like they can’t like those images when they’re so intimate and personal. It can feel intrusive even though we might love them. So judge lightly on that front but do a deep dive on real weddings and websites where hopefully you can get a good feeling for style and passion.

P.P.S. Also consider the mistake of hiring a video team that is highly directed and hands-on to pair with a documentary photographer and vice versa because both cannot be done at the same time. A documentary videographer will simply have to roll with all the setup directions of a directive photographer and conversely, a photojournalistic photographer will be stuck with all the setup scenes of a highly directed video. Opportunity cost.

Thanks for reading! Have questions we’re here for you.

Wedding at Perkins Chapel | Room On Main

Planner: Significant Events Of Texas

Hair and Makeup - Jones Beauty Co.

Video: Take 4 Films

Reception : The Room on Main

Catering: CN Catering

Band: IDT Band

Flowers Petals Couture

Limo : DFW Vintage Cars

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Five Classic Locations For Your Dallas Engagement

Here are five classic ideas and one bonus idea for where to take your engagement portraits in the Dallas Fort Worth area. When planning engagement portraits we always encourage our clients to pick two locations for their sessions so they can get a wide variety of looks. These classic locations always have tons of great space, light, and backgrounds which make them ideal for your engagements.

1. The Dallas Arboretum:

The arboretum is just spectacular, I often joke about the army of gardeners that must come out at night to maintain this outstanding park. Each part of the year has it’s own look and there is almost always something in bloom. The only caveats to using The Arboretum is that it’s often crowded on weekends and it closes at 5pm every day of the year.

2. Downtown Dallas:

Downtown Dallas has such a wide variety of spaces from Klyde Warren Park to The Winspear Opera house that there is always something new to shoot. One of the best views of the city comes from the other side of the Margaret Hunt Bridge and my personal favorite is probably just shooting right down on Main Street among the high rise buildings. Time of day can play a big role in the way these images can look but if you’re a fan of sexy light this should be on your short list.

3. Turtle Creek:

This series of parks all along the Turtle Creek Blvd. through Highland Park area have a ton of great light and during the spring and fall, there is an amazing array of things in bloom. One of our favorite places has to be Lakeside Park where the sun sets over the lake and under the bridges at Davis park just around the corner from Lakeside.

4. White Rock Lake:

If you like a more rustic setting but want to stay right in the heart of the city this is a perfect option. From many angles, you can enjoy tall grasses and views of White Rock without any distractions of traffic or the city, making it an oasis from the city.

5. Deep Ellum: This artistic part of downtown is full of eclectic walls, storefronts, and beautiful doorways and always has a bright urban vibe. If you’re looking for a wide variety of urban backdrops that doesn’t include a lot of skyscrapers or park backgrounds this might be the ticket.

Bonus: Destination Portraits:

OK, so this one is a bit of a cheat but we’ve actually been all over the country for engagement sessions from NYC to Seattle, Malibu to Rocky Mountain National Park and if you have an idea we’re definitely game. If you met, love, or fell in love somewhere outside of Dallas having the memory of that time captured in your engagement portraits is a perfect way to preserve that place in your story. We love exploring new places while we make a day of loving your favorite city or wild space.

Dallas Wedding at Hall On Dragon

Madison and Luke were married at The Hall On Dragon in the Design District of downtown Dallas. We really enjoyed both of these fantastic families and this gorgeous wedding party. My favorite highlight from the day had to have been the surprise confetti drop during the last dance. Enjoy!

Wedding Coordinator | Shenanigans Events

Floral | The Garden Gate Floral

DJ | LeForce Entertainment

Cake | Creme de La Creme

Getaway Car | DFW Vintage Cars

Venue | The Hall On Dragon