weddings
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WORKING TOGETHER ON YOUR WEDDING DAY
Welcome to Ellison Smith Creative, where we specialize in turning your cherished moments into timeless memories through our exceptional wedding photography services. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, our team of skilled photographers is committed to capturing the essence of your unique love story. From candid moments to breathtaking portraits, I take pride in providing you with stunning images that will be treasured for generations to come.
I understand that each couple’s journey is one-of-a-kind. Our approach to wedding photography timeline is tailored to reflect your day. We take the time to get to know you, your love story, and your vision for the big day. Our goal is to capture authentic moments to tell the story of your day.
Don’t just take my word for it; hear from the couples whose cherished memories we’ve captured. My clients rave about our attention to detail, professionalism, and ability to capture the essence of their love. At Ellison Smith Creative, our team strives to build a strong rapport with our couples and their families, allowing me to tell their unique love stories through my lens.
BROWSE OUR
SIGNATURE
WEDDINGS
THE WEDDING experience
I – Consultation & Custom Proposal
Your wedding photography experience begins with your consultation. We’ll get to know each other and learn about your dreams for your wedding. We will also walk you through your experience with Ellison Smith Creative as well as answer any photography questions you may have for us! Once your consultation is over, I will have all the information I need to curate your custom proposal tailored to your wants and needs!
II – Booking & Welcome
To secure your date on our calendar all I need is a signed contract and $1000 retainer. Your balance is due 30 days prior to your wedding and may be paid at any time in any amount via our secure online invoicing. Once we’re official, I love welcoming our new couples with an online announcement and a gift that includes a handwritten thank you note and some delicious cookies from our favorite local baker!
III – Engagement & Bridal Sessions
Once you’ve been welcomed as an official #ESCCouple, the next step is planning for your pre-wedding sessions (if you chose to include any in your collection). When it’s time for your engagement and bridal portraits, I’ll curate a collection of images that reflect who you are as a couple as well as complement your personal style and home decor. I help you prepare for your session with our Engagement Session Guide that walks you through choosing the perfect time, location, outfit and more!
IV – Timelines & Vendors
As a type-a professional, we make sure that your wedding day is ORGANIZED! I’ll touch base throughout the planning process, making your experience effortless! I am happy to serve as a resource for couples, connecting you to the best vendors, providing them with engagement session prep, and more!
8 weeks from the wedding date I’ll begin to discuss the timeline for your day and the family formals list. I make sure that no detail or portrait gets missed. I have these finalized 4 weeks from the wedding day so that you can check it off your list!
V- Your BIG DAY!
This is the easy part! Your job is to enjoy the day.
My team will be by your side to capture all the moments and memories that you’ll share together as a bride and groom and with your family and friends.
For the couple, the day is such a blur. This is why I approach the wedding with a goal of telling the story of the day. I believe in preserving your love!
VI – Gallery & Album
If you order an album and once your wedding gallery is finally ready, we’ll schedule your Design Session, the Gallery Viewing and Album Design Celebration at the studio in Daphne, AL. I pre-design your album spreads for you! We really make the occasion a celebration and pop a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and enjoy a charcuterie board! We’ll have a viewing party with your wedding gallery slideshow! I’ll walk you through how to use your online gallery to the fullest. Next, you’ll select your album enhancements so that your heirloom album is truly custom. Finally, you’ll leave with your custom engraved USB and excited to share your favorite images with your family & friends!
VII – Album & Wall Art Delivery
Relive your BEST DAY! Telling your story with your album and wall art in your home is so meaningful! We believe in documenting your wedding authentically and artistically. When you invest in a professional artist your images deserve to be re-lived time and time again!
Our heirloom albums and custom wall art are handcrafted in the United States and built to be timeless!
Full Day Coverage
Full day continuous coverage – from details to send off!
On your wedding day, once we arrive we’re all yours! We capture every moment of your day: from details to send off! While no two weddings are the same, there’s one thing we know to be true – we love serving our couples by documenting the full day. For most couples full day means somewhere around 8-11 hours. I’ll create a custom photography timeline for your coverage (more about this below) and you can rest assured that we’ll capture your wedding day with the images your legacy deserves.
Engagement Session
Engagement sessions are our absolute FAVORITE!
I love when a couple chooses to include an engagement session with their wedding coverage. I believe that they are a VITAL part of the entire process. It is an opportunity for us to get to know each other and for you to experience my posing style. I make posing effortless, capturing an elegant combination of natural and refined portraits.
These are best shot at least 4-6 months before your wedding. We will choose a date first, then location, followed by the time so that we can get the absolute best light. I love it when couples choose a location that is special or sentimental to them. But, if you don’t have a specific place in mind, I can offer a few ideas based on the look you would like to achieve for the session.
The engagement session will make huge impact on how your wedding day flows. I will arrive on your wedding day with a good understanding of how you two interact and how to photograph you in a way that looks genuine and natural. The best part of the engagement session is that you will have had practice with our core poses so that you are a pro on your wedding day.
Wedding Day Timeline
We craft the perfect timeline for photographing your day!
I am all about processes and efficiency! I craft and use a detailed plan to photograph your day so that you’ll know exactly what to expect for wedding day experience. I work hand-in-hand with your planner. While we aren’t wedding planners ourselves, I am a professional at building timelines for the flow of your day where photos are involved. Efficient family portraits leave plenty of time for gorgeous bride and groom portraits. I know that getting your bridal party on a trolly and traveling to the church takes some time and that’s ok! I plan for that and any other details of your day that make your wedding photography timeline customized to you!
Design Session
Gallery Viewing & Album Design Celebration at the studio in Daphne, AL
After the wedding is over, you’re home from your honeymoon and your wedding gallery is finally ready, if you pre-purchased an heirloom album, we schedule your Design Session. I make preserving your beautiful images a fun experience with our Design Sessions – the perfect way to create your custom heirloom wedding album. I know that choosing the best images, how to display them, and where to feature them in your album or home can be an overwhelming task. I have a system to make this process fun for our couples.
- I pre-design your album spreads for you!
- Pop a bottle of Veuve Clicquot and enjoy a charcuterie board!
- Have a viewing party with your wedding gallery slideshow!
- I’ll walk you through how to use your online gallery to the fullest!
- You’ll select your album enhancements!
- You’ll leave with your custom engraved USB and excited to share your favorite images with your family & friends!
In addition to heirloom albums, I offer classic and modern wall art and other quality print products! Ellison Smith Creative albums are handcrafted in the United States and designed to be timeless!
investment
we cant wait to serve you
Full day coverage begins at $5500. Every wedding is unique, so we custom tailor our offerings to suit your needs.
THEY HAVE THE KINDEST THINGS TO SAY
“I cannot express how happy and pleased that Jessica photographed our wedding in October 2021”
I cannot express how happy and pleased that Jessica from Ellison Smith Creative photographed our wedding in October 2021 at St. James Episcopal Church followed by reception at The Grand. From the surprise welcome package on our front porch, to the detailed itinerary of the actual wedding day, the professionalism, the kindness, the above-and-beyond coordination of my bridal party and family on the day of, the absolutely stunning photographs and then final wedding book that was perfection… I am positive we have found our family photographers for life! What a blessing the entire team was – thank you Ellison Smith Creative!
– Kaci & Michael | The Grand Hotel
“You book your wedding photographers hoping for beautiful pictures of the day, and while you definitely get that, with ESC you get so much more.”
Ellison Smith Creative should be at the top of your guest list! Where do I even start…You book your wedding photographers hoping for beautiful pictures of the day, and while you definitely get that, with ESC you get so much more. From my first conversation with them, to editing my album and everything in between, they were such a big help, always going above and beyond. They are amazing at what they do, but even more amazing people!
– Melissa & Ric – The Grand Hotel
“Stop! Look no further! They are the best in the business and will make YOUR day something far beyond special”
Her attention to detail and flexibility had the entire process so fun and exciting for my wife and myself. One of the most special moments was the First Look. She found the perfect location and arranged everything so when I first saw my wife it was something I will remember for the rest of my life. It was so intimate and unique I didn’t even know Jessica and her assistant where there til I was embracing my soon to be wife and wiping away tears.
– Cady & Andrew | Christ the King
AWARDS & publications
Mobile Bay Magazine
