An iPhone and Instagram only wedding
Monday, August 20, 2012 at 3:20PM 
Last Friday I photographed a wedding for a lovely couple, Jonathan and Brandi. This wedding was the most unique and fun wedding I've ever photographed. Why? Not only was the couple amazing, I photographed the wedding with my iPhone, and iPhone only (by their request).
I've heard of iPhone weddings before, but I've only heard of 1 (maybe 2, according to Google), and so when Jonathan told me he was looking for a photographer to photograph their wedding with only an iPhone, I was esctastic. While I love my 5D, I'm a huge Instagram user and take more photos with my iPhone than any other camera I have. It's the camera, er, phone, I always have on me, and it's what has documented some of my best memories.
The wedding took place at San Francisco City Hall, a beautiful old building with the biggest dome I've ever seen. SF City Hall is filled with history; Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio were married there, and Harvey Milk was assisinated there. The building has survived earthquakes and continues to host the marriages of people every day. I'd never photographed a city hall wedding before, and so the entire day felt brand new. To be completely honest, though, the wedding felt more romantic and intimate than any one I've photographed. It had that magical, thrilling feeling of a couple who just may elope.
I photographed the wedding with my iPhone 4s, along with a backup iPhone 4, an SLR Mount and my 50mm f1.4, the Glif Plus and an Olloclip (all from Photojojo). I brought my tripod along for stabilization in what would possibly be a poorly lit City Hall, and I also brought along my phone charger (not pictured). To my surprise, the light in City Hall was perfect.
And now, the couple and their family. The couple met and fell in love in San Francisco, and for them, it was only fitting to fill their wedding day with things that make this city so wonderful. An iPhone only wedding with equipment from Photojojo, Instagram as the editing tool for their pictures, Betabrand to provide the bride's gorgeous cocktail dress, and Uber as their transportation (all companies started in the heart of San Francisco). Here are some of my favorite photos from the day.
I'm so thankful to have had this opportunity. It was an incredible experience photographing a wedding with just my iPhone. I took a little over 550 photos (mind you, a lot of those were duplicates from having my phone in HDR mode for some of it) and was able to deliver just over 120 photos. All photos were edited in Instagram, the majority being edited with the Rise filter, a few with Amaro, and 2-3 with Hudson and Valencia. I also used PhotoForge2 for straightening and enhancing a few photos, and VSCO cam for a handful of other photos.
Thanks so much to Michael O'Neal for referring me for this wedding. And huge thank you to Cole Rise for helping assist me that day and providing the couple with more beautiful photos.
Reader Comments (112)
So awesome Kim!!
this may be my first time complimenting, but anyways your photographs are AMAZING! i always enjoy looking at your work whenever i get the chance to get in my blog reading for the day. thank you for yet another wonderful post.
These are STUNNING, Kim. I'm totally floored. I can't believe these were done with just an iPhone!
Unique. Lovely. Inspirational... makes you realise the things you can achieve with an iPhone are limitless. Thanks for sharing.
So cool!! You did such a fantastic job!
These came out great Kim! SF City Hall is super photogenic and an excellent place to photograph a wedding. :) Congrats on your first iPhone only wedding!
Kim, these pictures are just amazing! I'm really impressed, not just with the quality you got from your iPhone, but also at how well you captured what a lovely day it was for these two. These are all wonderful photos regardless of equipment, and some of the best shots of City Hall I've seen! Nice going.
I know that many photographers would cringe but if that's what the client wants...and I LOVE IT!!! It's not about the camera, it's the photographer's eye, instinct and talent.
They're good but you can tell they are done with an iPhone and not a professional camera, if this was intentional or not i'm not sure.
Awesome work, Congrats!!!!!!
The images are great, except I can't get beyond the fact that many of them, with very dramatic lines, are crooked.
Awesome job, Kim! My favorite is the kiss on the stairs.
Is there a barrel distortion factor that you use to correct for the iPhone's or Photojojo's barrel distortion in Photoshop?
hese are all wonderful photos regardless of equipment, and some of the best shots of City Hall I've seen! Nice going.
It blew me. This is very amazing photos.
Awesome work and brillant idea, congrats.
Coooooooooooooooooooool
Great photos and also an inspirining way to shoot affordable images creatively with capturing some timeless moments.
Качество фото - ужасное
So nice and sweet!!!! :) Greate job! Congrats!
Nothing new. If you used just IPhone it doesn't mean that the photos are great. Good installations, great pair, and just little work in professional software. Well, I don't think that these photos are great, or even good. They are regular.