Who: Kelly Benvenuto of Kelly Benvenuto Photography
Why: Because Kelly Benvenuto gets that your wedding is about more than just pretty portraits, and she’s built her whole business philosophy around the idea that your wedding photos should be a reflection of you, your partner, and your people. In fact, Kelly was one of the first APW wedding photographers to say “I am not shooting for Pinterest.” Why? Because she gets what matters about weddings. She says:
As a bride, I wasn’t very good at wedding planning. I knew I wanted to celebrate with our closest family and friends, and I wanted it to be lovely. Overwhelmed by choices, I contemplated options for venue, dress, and decor—without having a clear vision. But when it came to photography, I knew what I wanted: really beautiful portraits. While our photographer delivered dozens, I sometimes look at all our photos and wonder—where are all of our guests? In my memory, our wedding day felt like a big hug, but we don’t have photographs of the people who were hugging us and celebrating with us. If our wedding pictures made a movie, it would have played like a one-woman show and not an ensemble cast.
As a photographer, I want you to know that your wedding day is not a photo shoot. You don’t need an hour for portraits of the two of you—but you may want an extra hour with your guests. You probably won’t regret not having a photograph of your programs—but you may miss not having pictures of your guests’ emotions during the ceremony. I believe that perfect is a myth, and pretty doesn’t hold a candle to authenticity. The images I make for you celebrate not just the love you have for each other, but all the important people with whom you’ve surrounded yourselves on this most momentous day.
And that? That is exactly what you want in your wedding photographer. Well, that and someone who will take cry-at-your-desk emotional images like this:
And this:
And because when she does take portraits they look like this:
Where/How Much: Kelly is based just outside of Boston, and shoots all over New England. Wedding packages begin at $2990 (6 hours of wedding day coverage, engagement photos, edited high-res wedding images, and an online gallery for photo sharing and print ordering) and top out at $5990 (rehearsal dinner coverage, 10 hours of wedding day coverage, and post-wedding brunch photos, plus an engagement session, the high-res edited photos, and an online gallery). Plus Kelly is offering a 10% discount to APWers who book within six weeks of this post!
Kelly Benvenuto loves being a wedding photographer. With Kelly, it’s not about YOU being in her images, it’s about her having the honor of capturing your moments. With that in mind, Kelly told us there are four principles that guide her wedding photography.
1. Your experience is the most important part of the day. Kelly wants to help you figure out how to fit the photography into your vision of the wedding—not the other way around. She’s totally focused on making sure you enjoy your day without having to worry about the photos, and you guys will work together from the time of booking to make this happen. Her bottom line: your decisions and photos feel authentic to you.
2. Being photographed is intimate and personaL—and so is a wedding. It’s important to remember that your photographer is probably going to be with you most of the day. Kelly might see you in your skivvies waiting to put on your dress or suit, she’ll be there when you tearfully exchange vows, and she’ll most certainly be there while you get down on the dance floor. As she says, “That’s why it’s so important that you like your wedding photographer. I love getting to know couples before the wedding (that’s why engagement sessions are included in all packages), so that we are all more comfortable on the wedding day and able to take the risks to make great pictures.”
3.KELLY BENVENUTO wants to make pictures that celebrate your connections. Kelly puts a lot of time and effort into creating photos and capturing moments that honor the relationships you have, and the emotions you experience. The best-case scenario is that your wedding day feels like a big communal hug, and she wants to capture that feeling and turn it into photos you’ll cherish.
4. Great images are made when moment, light, and composition all come together. Different photographers prioritize each of these elements in their own way, but for Kelly, the moment is always the most important. She spends wedding days anticipating the big moments, and chasing the small ones.
But really, you want to hire Kelly because she gets reviews like this:
We have just received back the shots from our daughter’s wedding and the images are stunning. Kelly goes beyond just capturing pictures of friends and relatives to capturing the essence and spirit of these people. It’s art when a picture shows what’s inside as well as what’s outside. As we looked through the photos, over and over again we found ourselves saying, “Wow, what a great picture of so-and-so.” (For those of you more technically inclined, she accomplishes this through masterful use of depth of field, framing, lighting, shutter speed, etc.) We couldn’t have been more pleased with the results. I am not terribly sentimental and rarely go back to look at old pictures of anything. I’m certain I will cherish and return to these images for years. Especially high marks on professionalism too. With thunder rumbling in the background as we were shooting the post-ceremony formals, outdoors with no shelter, Kelly kept her cool, swiftly arranging, rearranging, and shooting the various configurations. As she shot the informals, she was quietly unobtrusive… yet looking back over the results, it seems like she was everywhere. My highest recommendations.
So if you’ve been searching in vain for a New England wedding photographer who gets you while also getting that your wedding is about more than just you, then go email Kelly Benvenuto right now. Because not everyone can take photos like the one above. And the ones that do usually cost twice as much and are half as nice.
HEY APW: you can get 10% off coverage if you BOOK KELLY BENVENUTO PHOTOGRAPHY within 6 weeks of this post running. Click HERE to get in touch with Kelly today!
