With over 16 billion photos shared on Instagram so far (a number that is growing each day by 55 million), it can be a trying task to sift through the social media site and find the best people to follow. Wedding photographers in particular have begun to take over this new photo-sharing sphere in great stride, meaning that the 55 million number is potentially filled with breathtaking, innovative nuptial moments. Looking for some great inspiration to follow? We found 10 wedding photographers to follow on Instagram today.
1. Inked Fingers (Carli Kiene)
Followers: 240,548
Location: Texas
Favorite Instagram shot: “It’s a photo I created in Image Blender,” Kiene says. “Both photos are shot on the iPhone, of my piano and Town Lake, where I run.”
Device of choice: iPhone 4GS
Favorite filter: “I don’t like IG filters,” Kiene says. “If I had to use one I’d use Valencia, but mostly I enjoy editing in Snapseed.”
2. Jose Villa
Followers: 393,000
Location: Solvang, CA
Favorite Instagram shot: “I don’t have an exact image in mind I love,” says Villa. “But I tend to love images that show landscapes that are hard to get to, ones where not so many people have ever been.”
Device of choice: iPhone 5
Favorite filter: Rise
3. Zach Rose
Followers: 70,000
Location: Toronto
Favorite Instagram shot: “Recently on an engagement shoot, I took a photo from behind the couple’s dog’s head that I really love,” Rose says.
Device of choice: iPhone 5
Favorite filter: VSCO filters, “but I will also hold a special place for Valencia,” Rose says.
4. Nazar Melconian
Followers: 32,091
Location: Toronto, New York City, Los Angeles and Virginia
Favorite Instagram shot: “I took this in Japan,” Melconian says. “I was hired to shoot a wedding there for a Japanese couple and this is the bridge overlooking Meoto Iwa [or ‘the wedded rocks’], which has an interesting history and significance to newlyweds from all over who walk this path. Visually, I love the muted palette of this place, and with her ceremonial wedding gown, I set her up to reflect on the ceremony that was about to take place minutes from this bridge.”
Device of choice: iPhone 5
Favorite filter: “I use Snapseed to individually color-correct and grade my image and then usually finish the photo in VSCO,” Melconian says.
5. Alex Rapada
Followers: 22,950
Location: Los Angeles, CA
Favorite Instagram shot: “This was my cousin’s wedding, and after the ceremony heading to the reception, an ice cream truck pulled up right outside of the gates,” Rapada says. “It was perfect timing for the couple, since this day was a record heatwave for Los Angeles.”
Device of choice: iPhone 4
Favorite filter: Rise
6. Tec Petaja
Followers: 8,164
Location: Nashville, TN
Favorite Instagram shot: “I recently took a picture while in Dingle, Ireland,” says Petaja. “I was shooting this beautiful model at sunrise on a cliff overlooking the ocean and decided to have her hold a cloth because the wind was so intense. I thought about shooting it in video mode because I loved the flow of everything in the image, but I decided to keep it consistent and take a picture.”
Device of choice: “I shoot with the [iPhone] 4 only because I’m waiting for the new phone to be released,” Petaja says. “I envy those with a 5!”
Favorite filter: “I try to be a purist and keep things clean and simple,” Petaja says. “I edit all my images in VSCO and use no filters.”
7. Katie Stoops
Followers: 3,986
Location: Richmond, VA
Favorite Instagram shot: “The moment itself was completely unplanned,” Stoops recalls. “It had been down-pouring at this wedding, and when the rain finally let up, I still had to do portraits with the couple. Unfortunately, it started to sprinkle again, so they hid under the giant palms, and this shot naturally happened.”
Device of choice: “While a lot of my Instagram posts are film, when I post a phone-based shot I’m using an iPhone 5,” Stoops says. “I’ll then edit it in Afterlight and directly into VSCO.”
Favorite filter: “I am a big fan of the black-and-white filters that VSCO has created, but I tend to lean toward using their F2 filter for any color photos with vibrant green tones,” Stoops says.
8. Bryce Covey
Followers: 3,983
Location: New York City and Los Angeles
Favorite Instagram shot: “Sunset is my favorite time to shoot,” Covey says. “This couple was amazing, and we were in one of the most beautiful locations in California. A sunset kiss not only captured the moment but the couple, setting and colors of the sky.”
Device of choice: iPhone 5
Favorite filter: “I prefer no filter, keeping it organic in a similar way to the film photography I do.”
9. Eric Kelley
Followers: 26,000
Location: Charlottesville, VA
Favorite Instagram shot: “Grandmas are my favorite.”
Device of choice: iPhone 5, occasionally PhotoForge2 “to tweak if something is a little too dark,” Kelley says.
Favorite filter: “As of late, I have been digging straight up images with no filter,” Kelley says, “but I use Sierra for color and Willow for black-and-white.”
10. Tomfoolery SF (Jared and Edyta)
Followers: 860
Location: San Francisco
Favorite Instagram shot: “I think the main reason why we use Instagram is that there’s such a huge wave of creativity to see—there’s really no one image we find so appealing as to call it our favorite,” Jared explains. They employ hashtags, such as #behindthescenes or #soandsoswedding to promote their business.
Device of choice: “Edyta has an iPhone 4s, and I’m still in the dark ages with the iPhone 4,” Jared says. “Our curated Instagram feed focuses on singular filters. We love the 70s, polaroid-type filters, low contrast, clean and simple. I am a big fan of VSCO filters and the fact that they seek creative entities like Street Etiquette to reinvent filters based upon their stylistic scope.”
Favorite filter: Walden