Cars and weddings have always gone together. From the fairy tale version of making a grand entrance at the church in a horse-drawn carriage to a more modern day version of arriving in a convertible sports car or a Rolls Royce limousine, couples have always enjoyed having a special vehicle to use on their wedding day. We asked our ISPWP members to send in some of their favorite images featuring cars and here is the result!
Use the gallery above to view the images in a slideshow, or scroll down to see the story behind each image.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Florent Cattelain, Florent Cattelain, http://www.florentcattelain.com, Toulouse, France wedding photographer
I waited for the bride and groom to arrive at the cocktail hour. When they arrived in a red Triumph with the sunset creating a lens-flare, it made the picture even more beautiful.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Dmytro Sobokar, Sobokar Dmytro Photography, http://sobokar.com, France wedding photographer
I love couples who are willing to go outside the box when choosing a wedding dress. A red dress in my opinion is absolutely the right decision for a wedding in retro style. I often say that spontaneous decisions always work, and this image is no exception. We went to the restaurant with the newlyweds after the ceremony. Driving through the green meadow, I asked to stay for a couple of minutes, and this image is the result. Beauty in simplicity - a green carpet of grass, red dress and a kiss.
PHOTOGRAPHER: David Zhang, Bayphoto Net Photography, http://www.bayphoto.net, San Jose, CA, USA wedding photographer
After taking many wedding photos, photographers want to get something different and exciting. This cute bride got the gorgeous red vintage car as a gift on her wedding day. She was checking everything inside the car. Then somebody else wanted to try this car, she did something funny and said, "No, this is my day!". Certainly, the bride was just kidding. But what a cute car!
PHOTOGRAPHER: Shay Azulay, LUZ, http://luz-weddings.com, Tel-Aviv, Israel wedding photographer
A friend of the family is a 'car collector' who insisted to escort them on their big day.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Victor Lax, Victor Lax Photography, http://www.victorlax.net/en, Barcelona, Spain wedding photographer
Adrian, the groom, is driving the car of his grandfather. A few years before the wedding, when the grandfather died, Adrian decided to restore the old car of his grandfather over two years. This car not only was really special for the couple, but also for their family because everybody remembers the owner of the car. I decided to take this photo when the bride and the groom went to their wedding venue where family and friends were waiting for them.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Riccardo Cigno, Riccardo Cigno Wedding Photography, http://www.riccardocigno.com, Sulmona, Italy wedding photographer
Photographing weddings on a rainy day is often difficult, especially if wedding plans do not offer great scenarios and you do not have a lot of time to shoot portraits. Inspired by "drive-in movie theater" atmospheres, I took this picture in the parking area of a movie theater not far from the wedding venue. The couple was illuminated by a triggered flash into the car (BMW X3).
PHOTOGRAPHER: Antoine Monfajon, antoine photo, http://www.antoine-photo.com, France wedding photographer
This picture is one of my favorites because it contains everything: love, children, and time flying so fast. When the couple left the church they decided to get into their car (an old 30's yellow Citroën). They are accompanied by 5 children. The Citroen has 3 rows. I'm standing near the driver. Behind me two children are sitting, and in the last row are two other children surrounding the lovely couple. While the driver drives slowly, their hair is blown by the wind. Behind, alone in the world, the newlyweds share one kiss, while a kid watches the scene. This moment was furtive, but deeply touching.
PHOTOGRAPHER: jose ignacio ruiz, fotoinstantes, http://www.fotoinstantes.es, leganes, madrid, spain wedding photographer
When we finished the ceremony we had to go to the place of the celebration over a dirt road. It was already getting dark and we loved the sky and the light at that moment. We stopped the cars and took this photograph of the couple in that landscape.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Andy Stenz, Andy Stenz Photography, http://andystenz.com, Honolulu, Hawaii wedding photographer
There's something romantic about older cars; they exude the nostalgia of a bygone era of gentlemen and ladies. We had just a minute to capture these two in the car before they were whisked away inside to a busy celebration. So we paused and let them enjoy a moment together.
PHOTOGRAPHER: MATEOS jacques, Mateos wedding, http://www.mateoswedding.com, Vincennes, France wedding photographer
This a is a French wedding, we were stopped on the road to wait for the family to make a "procession" to go to the Chateau. The area is an industrial place with a lot of warehouses and plants, not really romantic but I saw something interesting with these trees and a very deep ditch allowing to create something different. I walked down inside the ditch, and I asked the family to move along to let the couple have some time alone (it’s not visible on the picture but there are a lot of people on the left and right). They were asking: “But what are you photographing, there is nothing..." looking at me with a little mocking smile. This the result of what I had in my mind, exactly that. The bride chose it as profile picture on Facebook.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Enrique Gil Pérez, Arteextremeño, http://www.xn--arteextremeo-khb.es, Badajoz, Spain wedding photographer
This photograph was shot minutes before sunset just a few meters from a busy road leading to the hotel. A flash in the interior and an underexposure of ambient light was responsible for creating the magic of this photograph.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Kirill Brusilovsky, Kirill Brusilovsky Photodesign, http://www.unvergessliche-augenblicke.com/en, Hamburg, Germany wedding photographer
I like photographing couples in old-timer cars and luckily some of them can be rented. There are always two challenges: the technical one and the creative one. Technically it is challenging to get a balance within the dark car inside and outside. The creative, the bigger challenge, is to create a mood and a moment within a static and posed situation.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Erica Ferrone, Erica Ferrone Photography, http://www.ericaferrone.com, Boston, Massachusetts wedding photographer
It was so fun traveling with these two in this fantastic car to their ceremony! We had the driver speed up a bit so I could get some motion blur on the trees as we passed.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Danilo Coluccio, Danilo Coluccio Photo, http://www.danilocoluccio.com, Calabria, Italy wedding photographer
After the throwing of the rice the couple had to hurry because they wanted to take some portrait pictures in a castle so as not to miss the sunset. With this car, they made it in time!
PHOTOGRAPHER: Florence Dujarric, Florence Dujarric Photography, http://www.florencedujarric.com, Paris, France wedding photographer
It was a small, intimate wedding in a French manor called l’Abbaye de Vauluisant. A friend of the groom lent his beautiful 1960s Chevrolet Corvette to the couple for them to drive from the town house of a place called Cerisiers (Cherry Trees) to the venue. The groom had warned me: "I don't particularly like cars, but this car is something entirely different." When I saw it, I could only agree with him. Once the car was parked in front of the manor house, I gathered everyone around it and took a group picture from the first floor. Then, the couple and I went inside for some photos, while the guests spent some time marveling at the car. The flower girl and the page boy, who were cousins, tried out the seats and played at driving. I found them there as I came out, and snapped the picture.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Vladimir Kastyl, f/MAXSTUDIO, http://www.fmaxstudio.com, Prague, Czech Republic wedding photographer
Cars can be very attractive objects that will draw attention in a photograph. When you combine a rare vintage car with a beautiful couple, you can create a very attractive image. Unfortunately it is never so simple. In this image, I wanted to use the car’s headlights as a foreground that will draw attention and then the couple will be spot-lighted inside the car. To light up couple’s faces, I intended to use the inside lighting from the car. But it wasn’t strong enough, so I used a flashlight with a modifier (to soften the light) and positioned it from the front left side of the car. Shooting this image at night, I was able to add some drama – using the car’s headlamps as well as interior lights.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Micha Sodderland, Trouw Trendy, http://www.trouwtrendy.nl, Zwaag, the Netherlands wedding photographer
This groom was ready to pick up his bride in this lovely old red Fiat. Dutch men are among the world's tallest, so it was no surprise that it was hard to fit in the small Italian car. Good thing it had a sunroof!!
PHOTOGRAPHER: Andrea Bagnasco, Andrea Bagnasco Fotografie, http://www.andreabagnasco.it, Varazze, Italy wedding photographer
The Fiat 500 is one of the most iconic cars: it's instantly associated with Italy and to a romantic 'dolce vita' style that works so well for weddings. In fact, it's not unusual to find couples that don't mind squeezing into a tiny vintage Fiat 500 to drive to the ceremony and reception venues. When I spotted this cool yellow car parked outside of the bride's house I knew I wanted to capture something special with it. The bride and groom were a young and energetic couple so the yellow 500 and the bright, sunny summer day were a perfect complement to their personality. Shooting something still just wouldn't have cut it, so I asked one of the guests to drive my car while the couple was heading to the reception venue after the ceremony. I shot this picture while leaning out of the window of my car and kept the shutter speed as slow as I could to get some motion into the photograph. This couple zipping down the road on their yellow Fiat 500 is a simple shot that just makes you smile.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Luis Efigénio, Luis Efigénio, http://www.luisefigenio.com, Porto, Portugal wedding photographer
Joana and Ricardo traveled in a vintage WV Van to their Wedding. They mounted a special chair for their chid in the back seat. At the time of this photograph, the special chair was the place for the bouquet during this lovely moment between them.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Ciprian Biclineru, Ciprian Biclineru, https://www.ciprianbiclineru.de, Frankfurt, Germany wedding photographer
The whole wedding day was cloudy and rainy. After arriving at the party location, the bride and groom finally managed to sit down and start to eat something. I had a terrible headache and because it was quiet inside I went to my car to get a pill. As I stepped outside I saw an amazing light coming from the end of the street and it was strange because it was raining. So I got into my car and rushed to the end of the street hoping that it would be a field or some place I can use for my photo. Luckily it was a field and I saw an amazing sunset. I snapped a photo with my cellphone, rushed back to my couple, I showed them the sunset (They were eating) and i told them that we have maximum 5 minutes to get this light until the sundown. They agreed and hurried to the car. Unfortunately when we arrived the sun was already set but still there was a beautiful sky left. Here is the result.
PHOTOGRAPHER: michel macedo, estúdio Michel Macedo, http://www.estudiomichelmacedo.com, Brasil wedding photographer
Photo made in my Colatina codade in Brazil, the car was restored by the groom, a family heirloom, a Maverik V8.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Fábio & Maria Azanha, Fabio Azanha Photography, http://www.fabioazanha.com, Lisbon, Portugal wedding photographer
The car is one of the most overlooked yet very important aspects of a wedding, usually noticed only when breaks! The getting ready part of a wedding plays an important role, and some amazing pictures can be taken during this time. We always try to accompany the bride even during her journey from the hotel to the wedding ceremony venue, and we always look to capture some of those moments in the most creative way possible. This bride had chosen a Rolls Royce from the 60’s. It was a real pleasure to ride along with the bride to be, and the elegant chauffeur. We had some happy buzzing from by passing cars along the ride.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Byron Roe, Byron Roe Photography, http://studio-br.com, Bend, Oregon USA wedding photographer
Considering the back "seat", if you want to call it that, of a 1961 Austin-Healey 3000 is quite non-existent it's a good thing I practice yoga and pride myself on the ability to fit into really really small areas with a camera. So I jumped at the chance to sit behind my wedding couple, (I still remember him doing a burn out in his driveway) and enjoy a short, wild ride to the reception. The photo was taken right after the couples ceremony so for me, I love this image because the grooms look at his new bride is so honest and raw. You assume it's just a quick glance since you feel the speed in the image and part of you goes, "quick, look back at the road!" but his look has such power!
PHOTOGRAPHER: David Bacher, David Bacher photography, http://www.davidbacher.com, Paris, France wedding photographer
I photographed this couple's elopement in Paris last year. They rented an old Citroen which we used as a photo prop while taking pictures at various spots in the city. One of my favorite streets in Paris is this one in the neighborhood of Saint Germain des Pres. There was not much traffic so it was easy to stop in the middle of the road.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Vlad Lodoaba, ByVlad, http://byvlad.com, Bucharest, Romania wedding photographer
After the ceremony, six Citroen 2CVs were waiting to take the bridal party to the venue. The ceremony took place in an Anglican church in Monaco and the vintage cars blended perfectly with the Belle Epoque architecture of the city. Don't be fooled though - it's incredibly difficult to find a parking spot in the city centre.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Marcelo Damiani, D+A, http://www.damianianon.com, Montevideo, Uruguay wedding photographer
I asked them if I could get them in the car and they said "yes, of course". I accompanied them from the church to a nearby forest where we did the portrait session.
It was a pleasure to have a few moments alone with the couple, where we could calm all of our nerves from the ceremony. Every time they stopped feeling my presence there, I began to take pictures with the silent mode of my activated camera. My wide angle Tokina 16mm lens was my great ally at the time.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Francesco Survara, Framelines Wedding Photographers, http://www.framelines.it, San Galgano, Tuscany wedding photographer
It was a sunny and hot August day when Anastasia and Alexey tied the knot in the Beautiful San Galgano Abbey. The intimate wedding had no more than 30 guests that arrived at the ceremony on board of these five Volkswagen Vans. While surf music played in the colored cars, inside the abbey a lovely couple said "I do " for life.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Mārcis Baltskars, Baltskars, http://baltskars.com, Riga, Latvia wedding photographer
Here in Latvia, we have a very popular wedding tradition called "stealing the bride". Usually it happens in the evening, when the groom is not along and someone just uses the situation and subtly lures the bride away. If the "thieves" succeed, the groom has to figure out some way to get her back. But in this wedding guests had been very creative and really surprised everyone by their thievery plan. Dressed like thieves they stopped the newlyweds’ car on its way to the guest house, and in the mist made of smoke candles, they forced them to get into another car. Luckily it was a luxury, retro Volga that become their wedding car for the rest of the day. So it was very untraditional "stealing the bride", but it proved that sometimes we can make the most fun out of well-known things, just have to let our imagination fly. And it was really one of the funniest and most memorable moments of the day, and I mean it, because it is not that easy to surprise a professional wedding photographer. I was surprised!
PHOTOGRAPHER: Izabella Gorska, Gorscy Fotografia, http://gorscy-fotografia.pl, Wadowice, Poland wedding photographer
The bride is sitting in an old orange Volkswagen Beetle talking to her mum about how long she should wait for her groom. In the background, the groom, who has forgotten to take flowers, is running with the bouquet to hand it to his bride.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Laetitia Wasko, Tres Jolie Photo, http://www.tresjoliephoto.com/love, Milwaukee, Wisconsin wedding photographer
The bride was riding with her future husband driving in this white Dodge car. Her veil was out. And the picture is just simple, but beautiful.
PHOTOGRAPHER: Duncan McCall, Duncan McCall Photography, http://duncanmccallphotography.com, Newcastle, UK wedding photographer
The bride's uncle was the driver for this 1950s Jag and it was at the venue all day. This gave us a chance to get out and do some portraits later in the day. I used some off-camera flash to light the couple and the result had a real classic feel, like it was taken from an old classic movie. I managed to capture a real moment between the couple as I was moving around looking for the angle, just letting them chat and have a moment to reflect on the day. You can really feel the connection between them.
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