Francis Marie Photography captured my wedding day in amazing detail, and told the story of our big day just beautifully. I originally found Francis Marie through yelp. I didn't have a photographer in mind when I set out looking for my Sept. 2014 wedding. I had written a stock letter stating my date, my budget, my preferred photographic style, etc. and sent it out to the top photographers on Yelp, whose work I liked after checking out their websites and their portfolios. Francis Marie replied in the most timely and favorable manner of all the replies I received. My mom and I met Chris (his business partner Becky was unable to meet us) at Starbucks to go over what we had in mind. I have a preference for photo-journalistic style photography, while my mom prefers a more traditional, posed style of wedding photography. Chris was incredibly flexible about what he was able to accomplish, and very candid about what could and could not be achieved. Additionally, we were able to negotiate an engagement shoot not included in our package, which was a perfect trial run to see how we meshed with Chris and Becky. The pictures, taken at Chicago's Christkindlmarket, were magical and exactly what we had in mind. Fast forward to our wedding day. Chris and Becky kept us up to date with their arrival time, which was punctual. Chris left with my husband to take groomsmen pictures, and allow me time to finish getting ready, so my husband would still be granted a first look at our pre-arranged location. Becky took some shots of myself in my home, with my maid-of-honor, cousin, and grandma. Grandma drove us all to the first location. Chris kept my husband's attention while I walked up behind him, and they captured our first-look in breath-taking beauty. There isn't a hint of forced emotion in the pictures, our joy at seeing each other is captured as accurately as it was felt. Following the first-look, we met up with the bridesmaids and groomsmen for traditional photos. Chris and Becky are both incredibly flexible with the shots they choose, listening to suggestions from us and offering suggetions. I'll keep this part short - I was pleased how organic and candid we look in these photos. Our ceremony was very short (one minute, fifty five seconds!) so the few photos captured of this event were highly treasured. Our guests kept complimenting how it seemed our photographers captured everything but were "never there." They know how to blend in to the background while never being obtrusive to the guests. If we ever have need of professional photography again, they will be the first I will call! Long story short: -Beautiful work -Great visual storytellers -Collaborated on engagement shots -Timely -Willing to do both suggested shots and will suggest shots -Great at both photojournalistic and posed styles -Excellent eye for natural light -Flexible read more

I found Francis & Marie Photography (Chris and Becky) on yelp last fall when I was in a search for wedding photographers in the city. Based upon what I saw on their website they seemed to fit our style which I would say is pretty relaxed and natural - I'm not personally into a lot of staged poses and props. Chris and Becky met up with us at a coffee shop in our neighborhood and took us through the pricing (very competitive for the city compared to some of the quotes I received), and the different options they have for prints and albums. We did not want an engagement session which a lot of photographers required in their set "package deals". My husband and I also decided that we did not want to see each other before the ceremony and some photographers I talked to were very negative about that and pressured us to take all the group shots before the ceremony or said they would charge extra. Not Chris and Becky - they were flexible and did not pressure us into anything we did not want. They are just very easy, nice people and we signed the contract to secure our date after that first meeting. A couple weeks before our June wedding we exchanged emails to plan where we would meet up and I shared a pinterest board of wedding pictures that I liked so they had an idea of shots we wanted. Becky came to the hotel room where I got ready for pre-ceremony pictures and Chris took pictures of the groom and his guys at a separate location. We did all of our wedding party shots after the ceremony while the cocktail hour was going on. They took pictures of all the speeches, first dances, and then continued to stay well into the night. We did not have a hard-stop time with them and when they felt like they had captured everything they checked in with us to make sure that we got all the pictures we wanted before they left. Post wedding our friends and family commented on how great they were, very friendly but not intrusive or distracting. And the pictures turned out so wonderful! We got the perfect mix of candid moments and posed shots. They got all of the family shots we requested and more. They were also super fast, less than a month after our ceremony we had a link to their website where we could look at all of the pictures (over 400) and order prints directly (great for our family) and a cd that had all of the high resolution images. I feel like I struck the photography jackpot with these two, they are the BEST. read more

We hired Francis Marie Photography for our November wedding at the Bridgeport Art Center. I was living out of town when we began the planning process, but after a quick conversation with Becky over the phone I could already tell they were going to be great to work with. Chris and Becky were always responsive by email, and worked around my schedule for planning phone calls ahead of the wedding day. They split up for the first part of the day so both my husband and I could be photographed getting ready. When we came together at the venue, they quickly scoped out spots for great individual and group photos. Photo shoots can get pretty tiring, but Chris and Becky made sure we were moving efficiently, and they kept the mood light and fun throughout. They also gave us just the right amount of direction about how we should stand/smile/look. I love Chris and Becky's style. The photos are not overly artsy or stylized -- they are beautiful but we still look like ourselves in them. They also captured some amazing candids. The price is incredibly reasonable - about half the cost of a lot of other Chicago photographers. They also don't have surprise fees or tack on extra charges if you go over the expected time. This made the day a lot less stressful for me. Best of all, Chris and Becky truly captured the spirit of our wedding in the photos. I cannot recommend them enough! read more

My husband and I contracted Francis Marie Photography to shoot our wedding in June 2015. They were available on short notice (due to an unexpected change with our original photographer) and made the time to meet with us and discuss everything. Once we signed the contract Chris and Becky communicated with us all the way up to the day of the wedding, and they got every photo that we could have hoped for. We had a lot of large group photos that we wanted, and the two of them were able to get through all of them in a very timely and well-organized fashion. My husband and I were very comfortable working with them, and they were so professional and adaptable that we honestly did not even notice the shots they got throughout the night. Chris and Becky used the venue to their advantage and got some remarkable photographs using natural lighting and the backgrounds of the venue. Again, these two were amazing to work with. The photographs were beautiful, their demeanor was kind, and we truly cannot recommend them highly enough. You will not be disappointed! read more

My husband and I live in California, but were planning to get married in Chicago. Planning a long-distance wedding had it's challenges, but working with Chris and Becky of Francis Marie Photography made the planning process much easier! Chris and Becky, were very accommodating, and were willing to talk with us over the phone and Skype to set up the details of our engagement shoot and wedding details. They were extremely attentive and flexible as we discussed the vision of our wedding day. On our wedding day, Chris and Becky were awesome to work with! They provided excellent suggestions for our photos and they all turned out to be beautiful! We also opted for the option to have wedding albums made for us and both set us parents. I highly recommend this, the albums are awesome! I'm so glad we went with Francis Marie Photography for our wedding day. They went above and beyond to make sure every detail was perfect in our photos, and it showed! Thank you Chris and Becky for doing such an amazing job!!! Sami & Phil 4.12.14 read more

As one who loves photography and doesn't know much of anything about it, finding the perfect wedding photographer, who I could trust, was the most important part of my planning. If all else failed, at least we'd have great photos. Chris and Becky of Francis Marie Photography are the best around - none better. In addition to be supremely talented, they are awesome people who you should probably invite to your wedding (event) anyways. They are so good at hiding themselves away that when I first saw my photos I was amazed that they captured so many unexpected, wonderful shots without us even noticing. They are ready to make suggestions and help you get the best shots, but they listen and are able to understand what you want - the perfect combination and it means you will not be disappointed, on the contrary. I wish I could get married again to just get more of their time! I highly recommend you check out their website and blog - and give them a call! read more

Becky and Chris were wonderful to work with! After seeing the amazing photos they had taken at several of our friend's weddings, we were looking forward to having them capture our big day. What we received exceeded our expectations. They are so easy-going and experienced that they make a stressful day much easier. It rained the entire day of our wedding, and of course, I was worried about how we were going to be able to take photos. Becky called a local bar and convinced them to open up their covered rooftop patio for us to take photos. On top of that, Chris stood in the pouring rain to take pictures of us outside. Despite all of the weather challenges, our pictures came out amazing! They have the great ability to really capture the emotions from the day. We love looking through the photos and reliving our wonderful day and we loved seeing how much fun everyone had at the reception. You can't go wrong hiring with FrancisMarie. read more

It was such a pleasure to work with Chris and Becky - from the planning process to the day of the wedding to receiving the final portfolio! This was an incredibly stress-free part of the wedding planning process. They were very responsive and straight-forward as we made plans for them to travel to Ohio to shoot our farm wedding. On the day of, they were a pleasure to have around and made us feel relaxed and comfortable. And the photos are amazing!! We particularly loved the candids from the getting ready and the reception. They really captured the vibe of our entire day. I appreciated how quickly they put up an (extensive) "sneak peak" as we were dying to see some pictures! All in all, we highly recommend working with Chris and Becky. read more

Chris and Becky are amazing. Completely professional and at the same time very easy going and fun to have with us through out the day. They commanded the day and kept us on task but didn't take over the day, it really was a remarkable combination. Beyond the wedding day the pictures are amazing, so many shots we had no idea they were even getting. Great service and easy to communicate with throughout the whole process. They did my sister-in-law's wedding in the fall(also an amazing job with their wedding) and we knew this would be one area that we wouldn't have to worry about. We couldn't be happier as they truly captured the essence of our day. Thank you Chris and Becky you guys are the best. read more

Picking a wedding photographer can be a daunting task, luckily a friend recommended Chris and Becky. After talking to them I knew they were the right photographers for us. They were very professional and highly organized and I appreciated how quickly the answered all my questions. They made the process of planning our wedding photos so easy. The day of the wedding they were so calm and collected. I really appreciated how they helped guide the shots and make sure we were getting all the pictures we had wanted. I loved every picture from the wedding and can not thank them enough. They truly captured all the memories from that day and I will cherish the pictures forever! Thank you Chris and Becky! read more

Stop looking. You have found the perfect photographers for your special day! They are hands down the best vendors we had at our wedding. We could not be happier! From day one, they have been a dream! They are super creative and are willing to do whatever it takes to make everything as easy as possible. They were very flexible and quick to respond to any concerns or questions we had. Both my husband and I do not like taking pictures so we were very nervous about seeing the outcome. We were blown away. They came out amazingly. Chris and Becky were able to capture the perfect moments from our wedding. We cannot thank them enough for all their hard work. read more

Becky and Chris are a dream to work with. We used them to photograph our wedding in October and the pictures were STUNNING. Not only are they professional and talented, but they're also so fun, flexible, and creative...and will give your celebration the care and attention it deserves. I had the pleasure of working with both Becky and Chris in corporate life and I have to say, they are just good, genuine people. All in all, they're the dream team. If you're looking for a no-hassel, budget-friendly photographer who will help document the moments you will cherish for the rest of your life, look no further than Francis Marie Photography. read more

What can I say about Chris and Becky but they are absolutely amazing!!!!!! I'm so happy that I found them. We used them for our engagement photos and they came out absolutely amazing. They just did our wedding photos last Friday on the 20th and I can't wait until they come back. These two are so easy to work with and just make you feel so comfortable. The fact that Becky had no problem working around the rainy day on the day of the engagement photo shoot made me love them so much more. I plan on using them again for something else just because I know the photos will come out so good! read more

We had the pleasure of working with two amazing photographers for our wedding, Chris and Becky. They are very nice to work with, flexible, understanding, they made my husband and I feel so comfortable, but most of all they were not pushing at all. Their prices reasonable and their quality of work is outstanding. When we viewed our photos we were so happy to see the moments we missed, and the moments we never want to forget. We highly recommend them to anyone who needs a photographer, they will not disappoint you!! I plan on using their service in the future! read more

Loved working with Francis Marie Photography! They were so easy to work with and really suited our wedding party, even after traveling nearly 2 hours to get to our wedding. They worked with the individual needs of the wedding party, including a flower girl who was only a year and a half. They were professional and got great posed photos even when my husband's family is not usually enthusiastic about photos. The book they compiled for us at the end was just beautiful. We could not have been happier with having them as our photographers. read more

Chris and Becky from Francis Marie Photography can't be beat. To say that we are thrilled with our wedding pictures is putting it mildly. They are such a pleasure to work with - professional, knowledgeable, and have a fantastic eye for beautiful pictures. Chris and Becky are not only great people but also talented wedding photographers. They caught shots of people I would have never thought of and captured the random shots of the day that make pictures special. I can't say enough great things! They are a delight to work with. read more

You can trust Chris and Becky to give you stress free service and awesome beautiful quality photos. They pay attention to detail and they really make you look better than you look in real life. They shot my wedding photos. At a wedding you've got a weird mix of people all in one place. They were able to catch the harmony and all the best moments..and you forget they're even there. Do yourself a favor and hire them. read more

Chris shot my wedding and he did an amazing job. I was so impressed with how great the photos came out. He really caught the happiness and excitement of the day. It was also nice how he caught so many personal moments. I'm able to look at the photos and relive the most wonderful experience of my life. :-) read more

Chris and Becky were wonderful to work with. They were patient, kind, and personable, which helped put my wife and I and all of our guests at ease. The pictures they took were an excellent combination of posed and natural shots in both indoor and outdoor settings. We can't recommend them enough! read more