We recently connected with Rachel Wakefield and have shared our conversation below.

Rachel, appreciate you joining us today. To kick things off, we’d love to hear about things you or your brand do that diverge from the industry standard.

Yes—and I think this is where people often misunderstand what I actually do. I’m not just a wedding photographer. I approach each wedding or engagement session like I would a fashion editorial. I step into the role of creative director.

That means we’re not just scouting pretty locations—we’re considering texture, color palettes, architecture, and light the same way you would if you were shooting a luxury brand campaign.

Rachel, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Well, I’m Rachel Wakefield—I’m a photographer based in Santa Barbara, California. My niche is in editorial wedding photography for people who place a high value on art, intention, and connection. My work blends digital and 35mm film.

Photography found me early. I was in junior high when I started organizing photoshoots with my friends—using a white sheet as a backdrop and a fan for movement. We weren’t trying to make anything perfect—we were just making. And I fell in love with that.

After high school, I started pursuing photography more seriously—but I got married at 19 and became a mom at 21. I found myself asking: Can I actually do this? Can I be a present mom and also build something like a business? That tension shaped it for me. Eventually, we made a big leap: my husband and I moved our family of four from Nebraska to California to chase that dream. Two days after we arrived, I landed a fashion shoot in Malibu—and that turned into a career in fashion, which now deeply influences my editorial approach to wedding photography.

Today, my work combines the emotional depth of weddings with the visual language of high-end editorial. I bring creative direction into the process—scouting locations with architectural interest, thinking like a stylist when it comes to movement and fabric, and shaping the client experience with intention from start to finish. My goal is for clients to feel the images—not just like them. I want them to look back and remember how it really felt to be there.

My approach is both emotional and editorial—I build off their relationship story first, then create from there. I’m deeply people-centered. Love is my why. But I also approach every shoot & wedding with a strong sense of creative intuition—one that’s shaped by fashion, a sense of story for who the couple is, and around 15 years of shooting full time.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

I was running a growing photography business in Nebraska that was just beginning to gain traction… then we decided to move 1500 miles from Nebraska to California. At that point, we had two little kids—ages 6 and 3. But I had this pull toward something more creatively expansive, something that felt bigger.

Imagine having no jobs lined up & making that decision. Eek! We didn’t have a safety net. But we had a deep sense that we were supposed to go.

Two days after we landed in LA, I drove up to Malibu to do a trial shoot with Carly Jean Los Angeles—a women’s fashion-lifestyle brand. That shoot turned into a five-year creative relationship and opened the door for me to blend fashion and wedding photography in a way that felt like the most honest expression of my photographic voice.

That move changed everything. It taught me to say yes to the intuition I felt called toward, even when it doesn’t make complete sense yet.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As I shared earlier I started my family young and became a mom at 21. I knew I still wanted to build a creative business. But I also didn’t know how to do both—be fully present for my family and grow a business from nothing.

At the very start, I said yes to weddings before I had all the gear. I took on weddings while nursing a baby (hello pumping in a bathroom stall in between wedding events). I learned the business side in real time—often the hard way. There wasn’t a blueprint. There was just the question: Can I make this work, and thrive?

The truth is, there were plenty of times I thought about stopping what I’m doing. But I always came back to why I started—my love for people, for sharing a visual feeling, for creating. That kept me grounded through seasons of burnout, doubt, and transition.

Resilience, for me, has never been about pushing harder. It’s about keeping true to my intuitive pull—and building a life and business that keeps I our family thriving.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.rachelwakefieldphoto.com
• Instagram: @rachelwakefield
• Other: TikTok: @rachelwakefield_

Image Credits

Images by Rachel Wakefield