I’ve photographed weddings for years, and every single time I pick up my camera, my heartbeat quickens. There’s something magical about standing in the middle of so much joy, anticipation, and connection. The flowers are beautiful, the dresses and suits are incredible, and the details you spent months picking out matter so much. But if you ask me what I’m really looking for on your wedding day, it’s the emotion.
Real moments matter most
When I look back at my own wedding photos, the ones that mean the most aren’t necessarily the perfectly posed portraits or the epic shots with dramatic scenery. They’re the quiet tear that slipped down my husband’s cheek during our vows. The way my mom clasped her hands at her heart as I walked down the aisle. The laughter that erupted on the dance floor when my best friend tried to show off their dance moves.
Those are the photos I cherish. Those are the ones that bring me back to exactly how I felt in that moment. That’s exactly what I hope to give every couple I photograph.
Your wedding day goes by in a blur
I hear it all the time from couples. You spend months planning and thinking about every little detail, and then suddenly, the day arrives and it moves so quickly you can barely keep up. That’s why having someone there to notice the in-between moments is so important.
The glances you share when you think no one is watching. The joyful tears you try to dab away quickly. The burst of laughter from your wedding party when someone cracks a joke. The way your parents look at you when you aren’t looking.
These tiny moments, these flickers of feeling, are what you hold onto when the day is over. They’re the stories you will tell for years. The ones you can show your kids and grandkids, and say this is how it felt to love each other so much that the whole world felt brighter for a day.
Why I focus on emotion first
Of course I’ll make sure you have beautiful portraits to hang on your wall. Those images are important too, and they’re part of what makes the story complete. But my first priority is always to pay attention to what’s happening in the moment, to be ready to catch the tiniest flicker of emotion. Because that is what makes your wedding unique. That is what makes the story truly yours.
No two weddings are the same because no two couples are the same. Your love story is yours alone, and the emotions you feel on your wedding day are unlike any other day in your life. That’s why they deserve to be honored and remembered.
The power of photographs to bring you back
Sometimes when I deliver a gallery, couples tell me they didn’t even remember a certain moment until they saw it in a photo. Maybe it was the way their grandmother wiped away a tear during the ceremony or the way their new spouse looked at them during the first dance. Photos have this magical ability to remind us of feelings we thought we might have forgotten. They transport us back to the day, the smells, the music, the warmth of everyone around us.
When you see those photos, you don’t just see what happened. You feel it again.
My promise to you
When you invite me to be your photographer, you’re trusting me with some of the most intimate, personal moments of your life. I take that seriously. I will do everything I can to be in the right place at the right time, to watch with empathy and curiosity, and to capture moments both big and small.
I’m not just showing up to take pretty photos. I’m showing up to create something meaningful that you’ll hold onto for the rest of your life.
Your wedding day deserves more than a checklist of poses and staged smiles. It deserves someone who notices how you reach for each other’s hands, how your loved ones look at you, how the energy in the room changes when you say I do. Those are the moments that matter. Those are the moments I love most.
xo, Critsey