Central Illinois Wedding
& Elopement Photographer
documenting authentic, cinematic, & romantic moments
39.7979963°N -89.6480741°W
documenting authentic, cinematic, & romantic moments
All love is welcome & celebrated here.
Rachael Marie Photography values inclusivity and will never discriminate against your gender identity, sexual orientation, race, religion, body type, or abilities. You are wonderful, beautiful, and loved here.
Heyooo, I'm Rachael! (she/her) Born and raised in Springfield, embracing the underrated beauty of the midwest, and finding joy in the mundane.
Whether you're getting married in a courthouse, a family member's backyard, or at a wedding venue, my ultimate priority is giving you photographs you’ll enjoy for the rest of your lives - the only tangible things that will outlive your day and your florals.
I’m here to visually narrate the day you've been looking forward to since your first date.
heyoooo!!
- Chat whenever 24/7 access
- Personalize playlist creation
- Location scouting for photos
- Forms to learn about you, your vision, your guests
I've experienced over 65 weddings and I know how to hold your hand through this process. This is going to be fun!
Day-Of: A go-to confidant who includes everyone and makes photos feel fun
Pre-Wedding: A personal guide helping plan the day YOU want
Behind the scenes, your friends, family, and vendors are hugged and photographed as if they were my own loved ones. You will have photos of those moments you missed out on and relive them as if you were there.
The photos in the making will be a mix of documentary style, posed, and directed. For those posed photos, you + boo be given laid-back directions so you find your natural, goofy rhythm in front of the camera quickly.
TL:DR
- No stress in sight
- photos are a mix of candids and directed poses
- I’m here as your #1 advocate, hypewoman, & chacha-slide teacher
hire ya girl
Whether you have 10 or 100 folks witnessing your vows, are planning the big shebang or a small backyard party, or just want to celebrate getting through life with your best friend. What story do you want me to tell?
elopements & courthouse
lifestyle
weddings
Kelly + Seth
"Rachael is as incredible a human as she is a photographer. She was so easy to talk to throughout the planning process. She is thoughtful, attentive, and makes you feel so at ease during photo sessions. My husband traditionally does not like photographs, and even he had a lovely time. Her photos are raw, full of emotion, and edited beautifully. Truly, our photos feel as though I am looking at snapshots from a film.
If you are looking for someone to connect with, to capture every special emotion of your big day, to be the best hype-woman, and to make your day even more special, look no further. You can trust Rachael to be all of that and more."
"A confidant who made our day so stress-free."
taylor + tyler
"Rachael is amazing! She wore many different hats for our tiny wedding—DJ, hairdresser, and family wrangler for photos. The consultations we had with her before our wedding were detailed and helped us consider how we wanted our day to feel.
She has such a great personality, helped us relax, and made us laugh. I feel like our wedding was photographed by our best friend; that's how much care she put into our day. Our pictures are full of light and laughter, and truly capture our day and how it felt. I told my husband afterwards that her personality and presence feels like a warm hug, that's the best way I can describe working with Rachael!"
"I feel like our wedding was photographed by our best friend."
jamie + manny
"There is a zero percent chance we could've found a better photographer than Rachael for our wedding day. She is talented, enthusiastic, organized, and makes everyone comfortable. She was helpful to me on the day of and prior beyond her job as photographer and I am forever grateful. Manny and I are quiet people and she was someone we quickly felt comfortable around and when she chose our second photographer she kept our personalities in mind. Manny and I adore our wedding photos as much as our engagement ones. We love that we have traditional shots as well as ones with a bit more personality."
"Talented, enthusiastic, and organized."
See more GooglE reviews here
love notes
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resources & real love stories on the blog
Vintage Horror Inspired Engagement Session
Must Have Vendors for Your Backyard Wedding
resources & real love stories on the blog
Let's start writing your story.
Step 1: Fill out the contact form
Step 2: Pick your fave personalized, custom package
Step 3: Plan the day you want with me as your guide
Step 4: Have the best day ever and walk away with memories turned into art
start here
