Wedding Photos of Celebration

The following “Celebration” images were created by documentary wedding photographers from the WPJA, who regularly submit their best candid moments, artistic portraits, details, and scene setters for review by our WPJA competition judges.

WEDDINGS + ELOPEMENTS + ARTISTIC PORTRAITS & DETAILS + ENGAGEMENT SESSIONS

Some of the “Celebration” marriage photography samples below may have come from the getting ready events, the actual wedding ceremony, the reception after-party, an engagement session with the couple, or possibly be artistic portraits or detail shots.

FINE ART WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY: Our Artistic Guild award winners take a more creative approach to wedding day Portraits and use their innovative skills to capture the Details of each couple’s special day. The Artistic Guild’s Scene Setters are some of the most notable and breathtaking from within the artistic WPJA contest categories. Playing with light and shadow, special effects, and post-production editing, these images embrace the artistic component of wedding photography.

PRE-WEDDING ENGAGEMENT PHOTOGRAPHY: The story of every couple starts long before the wedding day, and the engagement marks one of the most important milestones in their story. Engaged couples often want to celebrate the occasion and announce their upcoming wedding with a photoshoot. Pre-wedding portraits of an engaged couple can be just as moving and compelling as the images taken on the wedding day. Engagement portraits can win a Diamond Award, an exclusive WPJA award whose winner is selected from the best engagement photography in the world.

In front of Chateau Bourguignon in Ile de France, France, a joyful bride and her family cheerfully raise their glasses in celebration, captured from a low camera angle

Cheers of Joy: A Heartwarming Moment at Chateau Bourguignon

A whimsical cake topper steals the show as it mirrors the joyous celebration of the bride and groom on their special day in Trieste, Italy

Whimsical Cake Topper Steals the Show at Joyous Bride and Groom Celebration in Trieste, Italy

sunset sky celebration whimsical cake cake topper Trieste Trieste wedding photography

Wedding reception at Proud Caberet in Brighton, Sussex, England. Guests enjoy the fiery performance during the celebration.

Fiery Delight: A Spectacular Wedding Reception at Proud Cabaret, Brighton

celebration Brighton and Hove East Sussex England Brighton Wedding Photography Proud Caberet fiery performance

After a heartwarming ceremony at the Church Hérault in the south of France, the newly married couple joyfully exit as their guests cheer on, hands raised in celebration

Love Wins: Capturing the Unforgettable Moment of Bliss at Church Hérault as Newlyweds Embrace amidst a Sea of Cheering Guests

hands raised joyful exit celebration newly married Herault Documentary Wedding Photography guests cheer Church Hérault

A bride in Edison, New Jersey is pleasantly surprised as her sisters and best friends playfully apply turmeric paste on her during a spirited celebration

Sisters and Friends Embrace Joy in Colorful Wedding Festivities!

Sisters celebration New Jersey Documentary Wedding Photography New Jersey Best friends turmeric ritual Edison NJ

In Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, a joyful reception party captures the bride gracefully dancing amidst a circle of women, symbolizing unity and celebration

Unveiling Unity: A Captivating Shot of Melbourne's Joyful Wedding Reception

celebration Melbourne Documentary Wedding Photography Melbourne Australia circle of women reception party Bride dancing

The married couple and their guests celebrate on the cobblestones outside Eglise de Compiègne in France's Oise region, blowing bubbles to mark the joyous occasion

Bubbles of Joy: A Whimsical Wedding Celebration in France's Oise

celebration black and white cobblestone road guests Eglise de Compiègne bubbles Oise

Guests enjoy a lavish dinner during a wedding reception at Longstowe Hall in Cambridge, capturing the elegant ambiance of the venue and the joyous celebration

Capturing the Elegance: A Joyous Celebration at Longstowe Hall

celebration Cambridgeshire Longstowe Hall Cambridge Cambridgeshire wedding photography dinner United Kingdom

Ceremony concludes as confetti is thrown over a couple outside a church in Ardeche, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, marking the beginning of their joyful celebration

Ardèche's Enchanting Nuptials: Breathtaking Documentary Captures Unforgettable Joyful Celebration

celebration Ardeche Church confetti ceremony exit Ardeche Ardeche Documentary Wedding Photography

At Salones Mayestic in Arjona, Jaén, the groom is sent soaring through the air as he is playfully tossed by fellow dancers on the wedding dance floor

Unforgettable Wedding Moment: Groom Takes Flight Amidst Joyful Wedding Revelry

Salones Mayestic Jaén celebration Arjona tossing groom dance floor Jaén wedding photography

The couple celebrates their love with champagne in this engagement portrait in Sugiez

Celebrating Love: Champagne Engagement Portrait in Sugiez

lakeside engagement lake beach Bas Vully champagne Suigiez Engagement Photography Sugiez Fribourg

Bride and groom on their special day at Giardini La Pergola, Alessandria, Italy, as they joyfully celebrate amid a shower of balloons, surrounded by delighted guests

Love in the Air: Newlyweds in Italy's Giardini La Pergola

window Italy Alessandria Documentary Wedding Photography Piedmont guests Giardini La Pergola Alessandria

Chateau de Farcheville, France - A close-up photograph showcases champagne glasses coming together in a toast against a striking black background

Chateau de Farcheville, France: A Toast with Champagne Glasses on a Striking Black Background

exclusive festive historic location France European special occasion black and white

In a charming Fujian home, the wedding detail captures the essence of celebration as many hands eagerly pour drinks into cups for a wedding game

Wedding Detail in Charming Fujian Home: Many Hands Eagerly Pour Drinks for the Celebration

pouring drinks wedding game Fujian Wedding Detail celebration Fujian wedding photography charming Fujian home hands pouring

The bride and groom were recently married in Gary, Indiana, and exited the church to their guests joyfully throwing rice in celebration

The bride and groom wed in Gary, Indiana, joyfully exited to rice-filled cheers

Rice Filled Cheers celebration bride and groom marriage rice throwing Gary Indiana exit church

At Crazy Diamond Campground in Ventucopa, CA, the bride and groom were joyfully "netted" in a festive celebration by guests wearing bright costumes

The bride and groom were joyfully netted in a festive celebration at Crazy Diamond Campground, Ventucopa, CA

California - Central festive groom vibrant bridal joyfully netted bright

At Oaks Farm wedding venue in Croydon, Surrey, England, the newlyweds were elated with joy during the reception speeches

The couple were delighted during the speeches at Oaks Farm, Croydon, Surrey, England

Croydon wedding celebration newlyweds reception groom friends marry

The bride and groom celebrated their love with a kiss as they stood on a deck in the Italian coastal town of Lerici Ca Borghese, Liguria, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea with her veil over them

The bride and groom shared a romantic kiss overlooking the sea from a deck in a coastal town

La Spezia weddings bride and groom kiss love wedding Liguria wedding portrait deck view mediterranean

The groom showed off his impressive dance moves at his wedding calenda celebration in the streets of Oaxaca City

In Oaxaca City, the groom displayed his impressive dance moves at his wedding celebration

Calenda Oaxaca Groom dance moves celebration Oaxaca street dancing Oaxaca wedding photography

The bride and groom in traditional dress at their wedding in Lyon, France, was a moment captured forever in the wedding reportage picture

In Lyon, France, the couple's traditional wedding attire was captured in a wedding reportage picture

Lyon wedding photography Lyon smiles celebration napkins waving traditional dress

At Hacienda La Masía in Linares, Jaén, Spain, the groom was joyfully tossed in the air by his friends on the wedding dancefloor

At Hacienda La Masía in Linares, Jaén, the groom was joyfully lifted up in celebration

celebration tossing groom Jaén Jaen family and friends Linares Hacienda La Masía Jaén wedding photography

A picture captured the joyous moment of the couple arriving to their wedding reception at Kinloss, London, under a shower of confetti

At Kinloss, London, the couple arrived to their wedding reception under a shower of confetti

joyous moment Kinloss shower of confetti London confetti London wedding photography reception entrance

The groom showered the guests on the dance floor in Isere with champagne before toasting at the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes reception venue

The groom spread joy by showering the enthusiastic guests with champagne as they danced, before raising a toast of celebration at the reception

toast Auvergne Rhône Alpes dance floor Isere Photographer celebration spraying champagne Isere

The two women playfully and aggressively tore off the groom's bow tie in Montlouis sur Loire, signaling it was time to party

Laughing and jostling, the two women tugged at the groom's bow tie, signifying that the celebration had begun

Central France laughing Montlouis sur Loire Indre et Loire France celebration Central France Photographer

Outdoor image from a wedding in Noord Brabant, the bride and groom are celebrated by family and guests under the trees

Amidst the canopy of leaves, family and friends rejoiced in the beauty of the outdoor wedding,

celebration Noord Brabant Netherlands outdoor wedding Freek Nagtzaam North Brabant Photographer

A Colorado wedding photographer in Estes Park created this image of A bride and groom leaving their wedding ceremony as their family and friends celebrate

A newly married couple were showered with confetti by their loved ones outside their wedding ceremony, captured by a documentary wedding photographer

Estes Park photographer Colorado celebration exit outdoor ceremony Estes Park

Chicago contest award winning documentary wedding photography of the bride and groom cheers with their guests during their reception

Illinois Chicago Chicago photographer wedding table celebration

A top Hebron, Connecticut wedding photographer captured this picture at Easterseals of Oak Hill Camp Hemlocks as the groom and a flower girl smile and embrace others in celebration just following the wedding ceremony

camp celebration flower girl groom Hebron CT smile Easterseals of Oak Hill Camp Hemlocks

Chiesa di San Lucchese - Poggibonsi marriage ceremony award-winning image showing The explosive exit of the bride

Chiesa di San Lucchese shower confetti rice celebration bride Poggibonsi photographer

Castello Formentini, San Floriano del Collio, Gorizia nuptial day award-winning image of the Confetti moment during outdoor departure

Castello Formentini departure Aria di Foto celebration castle bride and groom Gorizia

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WPJA contest judges have been recognized by their industry peers, winning top awards as staff picture editors, staff photojournalists, and newsroom mentors while working for these and other leading publications and journalism organizations.