I’m really excited to continue this series with you! Over the coming months, I’m sharing more about some of my very favorite wedding vendors in the Raleigh, NC area, mostly focusing on florists and photographers that I regularly have the honor of working with on weddings. These are creative partners (and friends!) that I both know and love, wholeheartedly recommend, and know just how much heart, time, wisdom, and love they put into their business and their clients/couples. Most of these are quite well known already, but I’m excited to get to know them even better, interview them, and share more about these wonderful ladies (and a few gents!) with you all.

Today I’m highlighting the incomparable husband and wife duo of Ally and Bobby Photography! Where do I even begin with my love for Ally and Bobby?! They are dear friends of ours, are such wildly talented film photographers, and they also happened to be the photographers at our own wedding (along with our wedding guests, too!). They captured our engagement and our new house/family photos, and we consider them our life photographers. You know you’re in the very best hands when you’re working with Ally and Bobby; that’s for sure. Their film photography is vivid, joyful, filled with emotion, and is pure magic. There’s just something about their photography work that gets me every single time, and they are both true artists. I can always, always tell when a photograph is taken by Ally and Bobby because of its artistry and color, and working with them – as both a bride and also as a wedding planner – is simply the best. I may or not look at our wedding photos way more than normal because of how smitten we are with the entire gallery and how exquisitely they captured the look and the feel of our favorite day. Not only are they such talented photographers, but they are so much fun to be around: calm, happy, reassuring, confident, and they make every single person feel loved and beautiful. I’ve been on both sides of their camera, so I personally know how stinking amazing they are!! Can you tell just how much I love them, as a former wedding client, as a wedding planner, and also as a friend?! You’ll never, ever regret working with these two to capture a special moment, and each and every film image is more gorgeous than the next. I have had the very great honor and privilege of working with them on many, many weddings over the last five years or so, and I literally squeal out loud whenever I receive the wedding gallery from them… and then hurriedly call or FaceTime Ally so that I can exclaim over every photo with her. I am also so confident that my clients are incredibly well taken care of every moment of their engagement season and wedding day, and we always have so much fun together. You will never regret investing in truly marvelous photographers for your wedding or life milestone, and these two are simply incredible.

Tell us more about your background and how you got started as a wedding photographer. What made you want to become a photographer?

Ally: I loved photography from a young age. I got my first digital camera in middle school and loved taking pictures as I walked around my neighborhood and on family trips. In high school my passion for photography grew and I knew I wanted to study it in college. As I explored many different types of photography while majoring in Commercial Photography I found that I loved photographing people more than anything else. Photographing people on their happiest days, capturing intimate moments and deep emotion between couples and family members makes my heart soar! I started second shooting for other wedding photographers in college and gained such valuable information and was able to start my own wedding photography business right before graduating college.

Bobby:  I was interested in photography in high school and my grandpa gifted me his old film camera; I loved taking pictures with it but my passion didn’t really ignite until I met Ally in college. We started dating and I was intrigued by her creative process and eye for details. Pretty soon she taught me how to shoot and about a year and a half into our marriage I joined the business full time as her partner. Since then my passion has only grown and I love having the privilege of capturing weddings alongside my wife!

Where do you draw inspiration from?

We are so inspired by the love our couples have for one another. That’s what inspires us most on wedding days and in sessions – the love and joy that we get to capture. Any romantic and beautifully shot movie inspires us for our posing. We follow many amazing photographers but tend to draw inspiration from film photographers outside of the wedding world; two of our favorites are the large format photographer Sandy Phimester for his beautiful framing and use of light as well as Rodney Smith for his ability to create a story with such minimal subject matter.

How would you describe your aesthetic?

Our work is bright, romantic, and colorful. We shoot in film, and the way we shoot it provides realistic colors in a dream-like way.

What is something you’re most proud of with your business?  

Working together full-time for the past 6 years has been a privilege and we’re proud we’ve been able to be husband and wife entrepreneurs.

What’s your best advice for a couple planning their wedding?

Hire a planner and don’t sweat the small stuff! Hiring a planner will make the experience of planning your wedding so much more enjoyable! You’ll have a professional in your corner to help you plan and execute the wedding you’ve been dreaming of. Try not to let the small details of the day stress you out; planning an event is challenging, especially planning a wedding, but at the end of the day you’ll be married and that’s all that matters! Plan for your marriage more than your wedding day.

What’s something most people don’t know about you and/or your business?

One thing that we think a lot of people don’t know is that Bobby is usually the one answering our Instagram DMs! We often get people saying “thanks Ally!” when they’ve really been corresponding with Bobby the whole time and it makes us laugh 🙂 We take it as a compliment because after so many years of marriage and business we definitely operate on the same wavelength and often say the exact same things at the same time! We always tell our bride and grooms that you really have two lead photographers with you on your wedding day – it’s truly like having the same person being in two places at once.

this or that with Ally and Bobby:

tented reception or ballroom reception
ceremony exit or reception exit
colorful design or neutral design
large wedding or intimate wedding
film or digital
color photo or black & white photo
coffee or tea
spring or fall
summer or winter

You can find Ally and Bobby on Instagram here for a bevy of gorgeous, inspiring work and film photography. Truly, their photography never ceases to blow me away; it is truly magical. Thank you, Ally and Bobby, for being a part of this series and sharing so much. You two (and sweet V!) are so amazing, both as friends and as photographers, and we adore you!!

stunning photos by Ally and Bobby Photography, of course, all from weddings planned & designed by Stephanie Shaul Events!