The Top Wedding Photographers in St. Louis, Missouri

Photographs are memories in bits and pieces. The Polaroid Land camera was the camera of choice for my family back in the day. My parents had the big gray one with the accordion-like apparatus in the front that adjusted the image. All of us kids got the new Polaroid Swinger, so named because it came with a strap that allowed you to swing the camera from your wrist instead of hanging it around your neck. It was also smaller and had a fixed lens. Both of them had a little yellow paper tab that you had to pull on to get the film in place inside the camera.

There were also stainless steel rollers inside of the thing that you had to clean after every use. If they got dirty, you had long white streaks across the picture. In a worst case scenario the tab would break and you couldn’t get the picture out at all. Then there was that awful smelling preservative goo that you had to coat the photograph with, or it would fade. Once that stuff got on your clothing, goodbye shirt. The Polaroid worked pretty well for ever day use, when you could afford the film, but for that special occasion like a wedding or graduation, there was only one noteworthy photographer in St. Louis: Vincent Price. No, not the horror film star, who was also from St. Louis, not even related to him, but Vincent #2 was the best photographer in town. The Hollywood movie star knew him, once remarking in an interview that he was Vincent Price the actor, not the photographer.

Now we go around zapping pictures with our digital cameras and cellphones and send them all over the country with just a press on the computer mouse. But if you still want to do it up lavish, here are a few of the best wedding and portrait photographers in St. Louis:

Trotter Photography has two metro locations: 14231 Manchester (636) 394-7689 and 431 Dunn Road (314) 921-9494. They have been in business in St. Louis for 35 years. Trotter’s specializes in weddings, portraits, bar mitzvahs, and sports events. Wedding packages start at $799.00 with your choice of traditional, candid, or photojournalistic photography. They will also do family and business portraits in any medium: traditional film, digital, and black and white.

Lauri Baker (314) 922-6515 lauri@lauribakerphotography.com specializes in maternity, newborn, baby, and child portraits. She is also a well-respected artistic photographer who has fine art prints for sale that are mounted, matted, and signed. Notecards featuring her work are also available. Her landscape photography of the desert southwest is particularly stunning. Hint: If you are interested in maternity or baby photos, make your appointment early, as the waiting list is long.

Artisan Photography 601 Burwick Terrace (636) 207-7883. Timothy Pastor is one of the most sought after wedding photographers in the St. Louis area. Artisan Photography uses the latest state-of-the-art equipment. They specialize in wedding, illustrative photography, and fine portraiture.

Creve Coeur Camera And Video (multiple locations around St. Louis) The best camera and video store in the area now does wedding and event photography at prices that are very reasonable. And, if you should decide to save even more money and do it yourself, the experts here can help you avoid a lot of pitfalls.