Experience
We’re getting married!! And we need someone to capture it ALL!
But – we’ve never done this before.
What should we expect?
My Approach
My relaxed, documentary approach allows couples to feel totally comfortable in front of the camera (it’s the number one thing mentioned in our Reviews!). Expect a mix of candid moments and contemporary portraiture, with a lively collection of (occasionally hilarious/embarassing) dance floor photos. I will be your hype girl during portrait time – and just might convince you stop downtown traffic for an epic portrait on film. We’ll get to know each other throughout the process, and it doesn’t stop on wedding day! I want to show up with hugs and handshakes – not as just another vendor.
The Process
- You inquire. Give me all the details! We’ll set up a time to connect and chat all about your day. Fur babies welcome.
- You’ll receive a custom photography proposal based on what’s most important to you. We ask for a signed contract and 50% retainer to reserve your date.
- You’re BOOKED!!! We’ll keep in touch leading up to your wedding to plan your engagement session, schedule our final consult, and if there’s anything I can help with along the way. I’ll work closely with your planner to make sure we create the photos of your dreams, while capturing every moment.
- You get married. We document it all – and somehow you don’t even notice us clicking away during the ceremony. You laugh, you cry. We cry (always during vows!). It’s the BEST. DAY. EVER.
- Enjoy sneak peeks on Instagram and in your inbox within seven days. Final gallery delivery runs 8-10 weeks (but you’ll get yours sooner than expected). Order prints with ease directly through your gallery, or work with Emma to personalize one of our custom heirloom products. Sit back, relax, and relive it all over again.
Feeling nervous about getting in front of the camera? Check out what it’s like behind the scenes!
Reviews
We had the best experience with Emma and her team – she has a true gift and our wedding photos were exactly what we were dreaming of. Beyond her skill, she is an absolute joy to work with. We first met her for our engagement shoot and, in addition to putting up with our crazy dog, she made us feel so comfortable throughout the entire session. We are so grateful to have captured those memories. On our wedding day, Emma and her second shooter did a perfect job at capturing the big and little moments, the details, and the overall energy of the day. We received SO many compliments on her professionalism (and her ability to wrangle large groups of people).
The last thing I’ll share is an anecdote – prior to the wedding, my husband and I had received a permit to take our wedding pictures in the Great Hall at Union Station. However, when we arrived, there were signs that it was closed for a private event and all of the doors were locked. Emma, along with one of our day-of coordinators, disappeared for five minutes. I’m not sure where they went or who they talked to – all I know is that we got into Union Station and were able to take the wedding pictures of our dreams! All that to say, she will go above and beyond for you. We couldn’t recommend this team enough.
Claire W.
If you are getting married in Chicago, you HAVE to book Emma Mullins as your photographer. She is an absolute master at what she does. Not only are her photographs some of the most beautiful pictures I have ever seen, Emma is a true professional and from the beginning made my now HUSBAND and I feel incredibly comfortable. We had our engagement shoot with Emma about a year ago to get to know her and her style. We absolutely loved our engagement shots and were so excited for her to photograph our big day.
Even before our wedding, we had check ins, she asked for shot lists, and was completely involved in every step of the planning process. When it came to our actual wedding day, Emma was amazing and kept my family calm and sane. The weather was a little up in the air so Emma also acted as my meteorologist which I am forever grateful for!! Thank you so much, Emma. We will cherish these pictures forever!!!
Meagan S.
Emma was incredible. The photos are incredible. We can’t thank her enough. We hired Emma for our engagement photos. I was really nervous and feeling self-conscious. Emma was able to make me feel so comfortable and I was so happy with how the photos turned out. We of course hired her for our wedding. We have been in a lot of weddings, and so has our wedding party, and everyone raved at how organized, efficient, and direct Emma was.
We took photos at our favorite record shop — a place I’m usually intimidated to go into as a customer, let alone a bride in a big dress — but Emma was assertive and kind and we got some of the most amazing photos! Emma also literally stopped traffic on Damen Ave to get incredible wedding party shots of us walking down the street. It is hard to wrangle a wedding party, extended family, and tipsy guests, but Emma kept all the photos going and got all of our requests.
I know I am using a lot of superlatives and exclamation points, but this is all authentic. Emma made what could have been an extremely stressful day and night, flow so smoothly. And now we have the pictures to treasure and excellent gifts for family and friends.
Emily H.
We absolutely loved working with Emma. We booked her over 18 months before our wedding, so we had time to conduct very thorough interviews with our would-be photographers. From our initial conversations, she just seemed to understand exactly what we were looking for. We are not Vogue, modelesque folks. We didn’t want wedding pictures that made it look like we were or were trying to be. What we got was a perfect snapshot of the day. You can hear the laughs just looking at the photos.
Operationally, she was also a dream. We took several LARGE photographs (read 26 members in all) and she was a champion with wrangling, directing, and coaching our families. When she was with me and my bridesmaids, it was like we were all just hanging out. It felt effortless, so it was so easy to take photographs.
I’d HIGHLY recommend Emma to any and all Chicago brides.
Eliza B.
Emma was perfect for us. My partner and I were on the fence about having a photographer at all and chose Emma because she was laidback and we liked her work. In particular she was so patient with our ambivalence about being photographed and delightfully encouraged us to enjoy the process. The photos came out gorgeous and exactly how we had hoped (not staged, mostly silly and candid).
If you are looking for a photographer who will listen to you, be patient with you and your family, and respond graciously and promptly to questions, Emma is wonderful. We also found her to be very queer-friendly and thoughtful around all things related to that for us and our guests. All the stars.
Erin C.
Emma and her talented team delivered an exceptional experience that made our special day feel flawless and intimate. From the moment we met, Emma became an integral part of our family, ensuring that every detail was perfect. After being so impressed with her services for another family member’s wedding, we couldn’t wait to work with her again.
Emma’s unique style, especially her incorporation of film photography, truly captured the essence of our celebration, and we were over the moon about it! Her quick responses and willingness to answer all our questions made the planning process seamless and enjoyable. If you’re looking for a wonderful company with a personal touch, Emma and her team are the ones to choose!
Sean M.
To whoever is reading this. Emma Mullins and her team are AMAZING. We were so lucky to have found her. To begin, she is a wonderful person. She was so welcoming from the very beginning, she replied so quickly to e-mails/texts, and any questions we had were welcomed and answered.
My husband and I had no clue where to begin when it came to photos, videography, or timeline. Emma met with us a couple of times and talked/walked us through the whole thing and it turned out PERFECTLY. On our wedding day, her photography and videography team were so prepared and had prepared us so well that we were actually able to enjoy our day because they handled everything as planned.
The pictures and video…. Oh my goodness, these are flawless. Emma and her team captured all of the beautiful moments that we missed on our wedding day. The attention to detail that they put in everything is evident. The pictures are stunning and the video perfectly sums us up as a couple. We could not have asked for a better team to help us capture all of the moments of our wedding day.
Alex G.
I truly cannot say enough good things about Emma and her team!! From our first meeting, to receiving our photo album, Emma was professional, timely, kind, and exceeded all of our expectations. We LOVED doing an engagement shoot with her and had so many amazing photos to use for our invitations, wedding website, and guest book… On the day of our wedding she did such an incredible job herding our large wedding party, taking big group family photos, and keeping the energy and hype up… We got so many comments about how great her team was to work with the day of, and I couldn’t agree more.
Truly she made us feel like absolute models, and captured so many of the intimate, emotional, and touching moments of the day. Sophie did an INCREDIBLE job with film photography – the film photos are some of my favorite from the whole day! If you hire Emma and her team I guarantee you will not be disappointed! We couldn’t have been happier and are so glad to have such amazing photos to remember the best day of our lives.
Caitlin A.
It was an absolute pleasure working with Emma and the Emma Mullins Photography team for our wedding in June 2021. We used Emma Mullins Photography for our photos, video, and photobooth and we are beyond happy with all the results. From the beginning we knew we loved the style of her photography, but we were absolutely blown away with our wedding photos. They truly captured the moment and energy of our wedding. We got so many compliments on how beautiful, candid, and lively our photos were.
Everything about the whole process was great from booking, communication, logistics, to receiving the photos. We are so lucky to have found her! There were a few non traditional moments that Emma and the team captured that I will treasure forever – lots of laughs and happy memories. We also genuinely had a blast with Emma and the team at our wedding, great to have that connection and trust, like a friend was talking our photos 🙂 Any hoo look no further for the perfect wedding photographer and team!!!
Kristal A.
Emma has a wonderful, friendly demeanor about her that puts everyone at ease – our older parents, my young nieces, my dog, and specifically ME – I am photo shy and do not like to be center of attention. As the day went on, she directed us subtly or not so subtly, but never in our face intrusively. We took pics with our dog after the first look, at Wrigley (she is fearless and stood in the middle of the street), at Salvage One (she got us a permit there last minute, the pics are awesome), by some murals, by the El, and at our venue. During the ceremony and reception, she was everywhere but not intrusive. She worked with us to help meet our needs.
Emma is TALENTED. PROFESSIONAL. And she was just FUN to spend our wedding day with. She captured the most magical day of our lives!
Rachel D.
We booked Emma before we were even engaged over a year and a half before our wedding. Spoiler alert: we had absolutely no regrets. While we were in the process of booking for our wedding, Emma worked with my husband and the two of them planned a surprise proposal for me. My husband was so impressed with how good Emma was at keeping up the surprise even when I thought something might be up.
In addition to our proposal shoot, Emma also shot our Engagement pics and our wedding (duh). Emma made us feel comfortable in front of the camera and was always game for any ideas we had. Logistically, Emma had everything under control and came to each meeting prepared. She was able to adapt on the fly making suggestions along the way but also never being pushy. Honestly Emma’s photos speak for themselves. If you like her style, hire Emma now. You will not regret it. She is such a pleasure to work with.
Kevin D.
Emma is THE BEST! If she’s still available for your wedding date, book her now.
Finding the right photographer was very important to my husband and I, and we loved that the pictures in her portfolio were both authentic and gorgeous. Emma is also so knowledgeable and easy to work with – she recommended spots around Chicago for both our engagement and wedding photos, and was happy to try out a new spot that was personal to us as well. She was also extremely flexible with all of our last minute COVID-related changes, and didn’t miss a beat. We absolutely love our engagement and wedding pictures and would recommend her to anyone!
Brigette R.
Emma did a wonderful job in capturing our wedding day! We couldn’t be happier with her work! She was so much fun to work with and made the whole process seamless! She communicated with us throughout the whole process and the day of the wedding. She definitely captured who we are as a couple and I’m so excited that we got this opportunity to work with her.
Emma worked within our budget and made things possible for us. I would 10/10 recommend her for any type of event! We will definitely miss working with her now that our wedding day is over.
Natalie G.
Hiring Emma was hand-down the best money we spent on our Chicago wedding! We had so much fun working with her and Nohemi, and it felt very natural, not (at all) forced. Highly recommended, 10/10 would do again, and this was an easy 5-star rating!
Emma did a great job following our lead and capturing moments that evoked emotions rather than just taking a bunch of posed shots. When she presented Matthew and I with our “first look” following an engagement shoot, we were truly blown away. It was just so nice to go into wedding day knowing that photography was on lock down and now we have beautiful photos to remember our special day. Thank you again, Emma!
Taylor W.
We hired Emma and her team to do photography and videography at our wedding and they were THE BEST! From the very beginning we loved working with Emma. She is positive, flexible, detail oriented, and incredibly talented. We put Emma through the ringer with a tight photography timeline and a long list of shots we wanted. She got to everything and didn’t break a sweat.
Our family and friends loved working with her too. We recently got our photos back and they are perfect. We love all of them and are so happy with the results. Emma’s team also did our wedding videography, which was lead by Amy Lynn. We got a preview, highlight video, and ceremony video. Everything turned out perfect! Amy Lynn did such an amazing job. We have watched the videos over and over again. We are so happy with the services we received and cannot recommend Emma and her team enough! THANKS EMMA!!!
Megan C.
We initially reached out to Emma because her pictures were timeless and captured emotion so well. Additionally, we are a queer couple and it was important to us to work with a photographer who had experience with other same-sex couples. Our entire experience with Emma was positive, inclusive, supportive and the results are stunning. From the very first meeting Emma was easy to talk with, listened to our vision and understood our insecurities about being in front of the camera.
We highly recommend hiring her to photograph both your engagement session and wedding day. During our engagement shoot Emma coached us perfectly while keeping the session light and easy. Because of this, taking pictures on our wedding day was very comfortable and the results are amazing! The pictures we have are incredible, tell a story, capture our love and are everything we hoped for. We are so so glad we worked with Emma and her team and highly recommend them!