• About
  • Find a Vendor
  • Submit
  • Advertise
  • Brides Club
  • Your Jewish Life
  • Contact

Smashing the Glass | Jewish Wedding Blog

Inspired Jewish Weddings

  • Real Jewish Weddings
    • City Chic
    • Fashion Forward
    • Outdoor
    • Destination
      • Israel
      • Italy
      • Spain
      • France
      • Beach Weddings
    • Super Luxe
    • Budget
    • DIY
    • Same Sex
  • Jew-ish Weddings
    • Real Jew-ish Weddings
    • Jewish-Catholic Weddings
    • Jewish-Chinese Weddings
    • Jewish-Christian Weddings
    • Jewish-Greek Weddings
    • Jewish-Hindu Weddings
    • Jewish-Humanist Weddings
    • Jewish-Irish Weddings
    • Jewish Japanese Weddings
    • Jewish-Muslim Weddings
    • Same Sex Jew-ish Weddings
  • Inspiration + Guidance
    • Engaged? Start Here
    • Ceremony
      • Chuppah ideas
      • Jewish ceremony music
      • Jewish wedding ceremony 101
      • Jewish ceremony traditions
      • Ketubah Ideas
      • Jewish wedding legalities
      • Jew-ish ceremony ideas
    • Reception
      • Music
      • Speeches
      • Entertainment
      • Venues
    • Food & Drink
      • Kosher catering
      • Wedding cakes
      • Drinks
    • Decor
      • Decorations
      • Favours
      • Floristry
      • Guestbooks
      • Stationery
    • Style
      • Brides dresses
      • Shoes & accessories
      • Grooms
      • Bridesmaids
    • Advice
      • Converting to Judaism
      • Real blogging brides
      • Dear Karen…
    • Honeymoons
    • STG Live
    • Five Minutes With
    • Wedding Must-Haves
    • Wedding Consultancy
  • Jewish Brides Club
  • Find a Wedding Vendor
Home > Advice + Planning > Wedding Photography

Breaking the Mold: How Jewish Wedding Photography Has Gone from Classic to Cutting-Edge

12/03/2025 by Karen Cinnamon

This is a guest post by award-winning wedding photographer Claudine Hartzel. Based in London, Claudine has photographed tons of gorgeous Smashing The Glass weddings over the years, and the fact that she’s Jewish herself means she’s got special insight into all the things that make a Jewish wedding so special. With 15 years’ experience capturing Jewish weddings, no one’s got a better read of how Jewish wedding photography has evolved in recent years – and that’s exactly what she’s chatting about with us today. 


Focus on Authenticity and Emotion

Then: Jewish wedding photography used to emphasize formal group portraits and documentary-style images, capturing every table and guest. The lighting was often poor, and the images could feel stiff, lacking the warmth and personality of the event itself.

Now: There’s a major shift towards candid, authentic storytelling. Today’s couples want their wedding captured as a true love story – complete with raw, emotional moments that could easily grace the pages of a high-end magazine or Instagram feed. While family and group photos are still important, the focus has shifted to the in-between moments, where emotions are at their purest. These real, fleeting connections between family members and guests are often the most treasured memories. I will also bring a second photographer to capture the rooms shots, back shots and reception so I’m not taken away from the main events.


Blending Tradition with Modernity

Then: Jewish wedding photography was often highly traditional, focusing on ceremonial moments like capturing every part of the hora, and ensuring formal group shots were meticulously documented. The emphasis was on structure rather than creativity.

Now: Couples want to honour tradition while still expressing their personalities. Formal photographs are still expected, but they are fewer, more relaxed, and feel natural. When I capture moments in between the formals, it adds an expressive, authentic touch. Couples can opt to take their formal portraits before the ceremony rather than after, more in line with the Israeli style, allowing them to be fully present at their reception. Timings can be adjusted to suit their vision, not taking them away from the day. The goal is to document real emotions in a way that feels timeless, avoiding overly stylized or dated trends. And of course, a beautifully composed formal portrait always stands the test of time.


Finding the Right Balance

Then: Parents often took the reins in planning the wedding, booking vendors and managing the timeline, which sometimes left the couple with little say in their own day.

Now: The best weddings happen when couples and parents collaborate. Today’s couples take an active role in shaping their celebration, but they still involve their families in meaningful ways, whether by seeking input on traditions or guest lists. As a photographer, I facilitate this harmony by ensuring everyone’s on the same page when it comes to the timeline and key moments. Clear communication is key, and I always meet with both the couple and their parents to iron out the details—whether it’s when to capture the first look or when to help the bride into her dress. The result is a celebration that’s true to both the couple and their families.


Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Share this post:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest

The Top 10 Must-Have Jewish Wedding Photos

10/01/2024 by Karen Cinnamon

Jewish weddings are so full of memorable moments. The emotion, the tradition, the energy, and above all, the love – there’s just so much Jewish joy in the air. And your wedding photos are the thing that allows you to preserve all that joy for a lifetime. But with so much going on, how do you make sure all the most essential bits get captured for posterity?

I sat down with Liam and Stam from Liam Collard Photography, the international award-winning London-based wedding photographers behind some truly unforgettable STG weddings, to pick out the top 10 must-have shots for your Jewish wedding album – the bare-bones basic ones you absolutely, 100% don’t want to be without. 

Liam and Stam have photographed Jewish weddings around the world in their trademark creative documentary style, and their years of experience mean they’re perfectly primed to share their expertise on how to make sure all those individual moments come together to form a carefully crafted narrative of your day in a way that’s compelling, emotional, and totally you. So without further ado, let’s get to the photos!


                

The Tisch

The tisch is where the groom’s party gathers to celebrate before the ceremony. It’s a time of joy, tradition, and often lively singing and dancing. Liam and Stam love capturing candid, documentary-style shots of the heartfelt speeches, camaraderie, and powerful emotions.


The Ketubah

The moment when the couple (or in some instances just the groom) signs the traditional Jewish marriage contract is such a powerful testament to the sacred commitment you’re making to each other. Liam and Stam note that this moment lends itself to gorgeous images with soft, intimate lighting and thoughtful composition.


The Badeken

We hear time and time again that this is one of THE most emotional Jewish wedding moments, and it’s easy to see why. There’s nothing like the moment when the groom covers his bride’s face with a veil – especially if the couple have spent the past 24 hours, or even longer, apart per Jewish tradition – and you want to make sure you choose a photographer who’s equipped to capture the narrative of this moving ritual. 


The Chuppah

Naturally you’ll want photos of the two of you standing under the chuppah – the focal point of the Jewish wedding ceremony. The beautiful symbolism of the chuppah as the new home you and your love are building together, the emotional connection, and the beauty of the chuppah structure itself all lend themselves to stunning images that beautifully encapsulate the essence of your ceremony.


Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Share this post:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest

The Crawleys: Fab Photographers for Your Destination Jewish Wedding

13/06/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

Your destination wedding is a once-in-a lifetime experience. And you want to make sure you find just the right team to capture every exhilarating moment. Enter The Crawleys.

The Crawleys are a husband-and-wife team, consisting of Liam and Bee – and they’re the masterminds behind some truly fantastic real Jewish weddings here on STG.

From the wonky little cottage they call home in the Delamere Forest in the north of England, they’ve been shooting weddings all over the world since 2002 – that’s 600 and counting! 

They were voted 2019 UK Wedding Photographer of the Year by The Wedding Industry Awards.

They are true travelers at heart, and they’ve got tons of experience working in Spain, France, and Italy. They especially love working in Spain, where they’ve been shooting since 2012 – the sea, the sun, and the quaint villages have totally stolen their hearts.

But they’re also always down for branching out somewhere a bit more exotic – they’ve shot in Thailand, Kenya, and Malaysia, to name just a few.

Destination weddings are a huge part of their business, and they’re willing to go wherever you need them!

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Share this post:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest

Big News: Rockstar Israeli Photographers LUZ in London, 18-22 January

03/01/2019 by Karen Cinnamon

If you’ve been following STG for a while, you might have noticed I’m just a little bit obsessed with LUZ Weddings.

LUZ is one of the hottest photographers working in Israel today, and they’re behind some of the most innovative wedding photography around – many of which have been featured on Smashing The Glass (we LOVE their real weddings!). 

Jewish-Wedding-Bayaar-in-Hadera-Israel

They’ve got a super cool, ultra-stylish urban aesthetic down that’s all their own. They’re definitely not your average wedding photographers — and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Earlier this year, I was lucky enough to meet with Shay, one of the amazing photographers from LUZ. We met up in Holborn, central London, and we had a fabulous time going for coffee and talking all things weddings. And then we did a little photo shoot, all around the streets of London! Shay was absolutely a joy to work with, and  I’m so delighted with the results.

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Share this post:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest

Why York Place Studios’ Street Photography Style Might Be Perfect for Your Wedding

13/12/2018 by Smashing The Glass

This is a guest post by Dom & Liam Shaw of York Place Studios 

It’s Time To Stop Saying Cheese

As kids we’re all taught that when someone has a camera we should stop what we’re doing and smile sweetly into the lens. It’s an approach that’s really helpful for group shots but outside of that more formal setting having photographs of people sharing the same fixed smile tells us nothing about who they were or what was really happening.

We all have albums full of friends and family pulling that same pose through the landmark trips and occasions of our lives and we love them: they remind us of happy times and the places we’ve been and show the ways that we and the world around us have changed over time. The thing is though that a photograph has the potential to be so much more powerful than that.

For us a wedding isn’t really about tradition, elaborate settings or decoration (although all those things are wonderful additions!), it’s about sharing something very special with all the people you know and love from all the different phases of your lives so far. In fact it’s probably the only time all of these people will be in the same room at the same time, brought together from all walks of life by one common denominator: their affection for you.

So when we look at a photograph we don’t just want to see practiced smiles and unnatural poses, we want to see the gestures, expressions, private jokes and little personality quirks that remind you who all of these people really were, the dynamic of your relationship with them and what they meant to you.

Continue ReadingContinue Reading

Share this post:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • …
  • 13
  • Next Page »

Jewish Weddings by Country

Vendors We Love

Weddings by Colour


Awesome Jewish Gifts

Vendors We Love

Get posts directly into your inbox

Enter your email address below and get the latest posts delivered straight to your inbox.

Monica Vinader
Liberty London
Kate Spade UK Limited
Mr And Mrs Smith Honeymoons

Today’s Top Posts

  • A Sareh Nouri Bride for an Elegant Jewish Wedding at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers, NYC, New York, USA
    A Sareh Nouri Bride for an Elegant Jewish Wedding at The Lighthouse at Chelsea Piers, NYC, New York, USA
  • A guide to the Jewish Wedding Ceremony and Order of Service under the chuppah
    A guide to the Jewish Wedding Ceremony and Order of Service under the chuppah
  • Jewish Wedding Traditions Explained - Breaking The Glass
    Jewish Wedding Traditions Explained - Breaking The Glass
  • Dates in 2025, 2026 and 2027 to avoid for a Jewish wedding plus a 12 Month Wedding Planning Monthly Checklist
    Dates in 2025, 2026 and 2027 to avoid for a Jewish wedding plus a 12 Month Wedding Planning Monthly Checklist
  • The Tisch – Jewish Wedding Traditions Explained #3
    The Tisch – Jewish Wedding Traditions Explained #3

Subscribe by Email

Enter your email address below and get the latest posts delivered straight to your inbox.

closeJoin our members-only community for Jewish brides!

All content © Smashing The Glass 2025