About this vendor
CJ Varela is a wedding photographer based in South Lake Tahoe, CA. CJ Varela captures breathtaking photos of wedding ceremonies, receptions, and engagements. He makes use of stunning landscapes and natural light to create compelling images that you’ll treasure for a lifetime.
CJ’s love of photography began with the birth of his first child. Capturing images of a baby crawling and eventually chasing after his little girl who was constantly on the move helped to hone his craft. He fell in love with photographing life’s milestones which is what eventually lead him to weddings. With a relaxed style and a bit of humor, he makes couples feel at ease in front of the lense. This talented photographer brings a timeless aesthetic to his photos which capture priceless memories.
CJ Varela Photography offers customizable wedding photography packages that can include anywhere from 2 hours to all-day coverage of your special event. You can expect to receive fully-edited digital files of your wedding collection and some packages also include hardcover albums. CJ will happily provide additions such as thank-you cards and a curated grouping of canvas prints. He can add an additional photographer to cover your wedding from every angle. His flexible packages meet the needs of those planning elopements, destination weddings, or larger celebrations.
Details
Destination Weddings
- Destination Wedding Packages
Photo Shoot Types
- Bridal Portraits
- Day After Session
- Engagement
- Trash The Dress
Photo & Video
- Digital Files
- Online Proofing
- Photo
- Printed Enlargements
- Second Shooter Available
- Social Media Sharing
Photo & Video Styles
- Classic
- Documentary
- Dramatic
- Lifestyle
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Wedding
- After Party
Reviews
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5
out of 5.011 reviews
Review photos
Showing slide number 1 out of 9
CJ was amazing to work with and I highly recommend his work!
We got married back on July 26, 2025 and CJ was able to take such beautiful photos of us without much direction. I am...
someone that did not have a specific vision of what kinds of pictures I wanted from the day - but didn’t want a lot of staged pictures and more candid shots of the day.
I appreciate his talents so much for knowing what areas of the Tahoe Ridge had the best opportunities for great pictures and the perfect lighting as the sun sets. Overall amazing photography and we are so happy with everything!!
CJ was absolutely incredible. We cant say enough about how wonderful he was. He communicated very well with us from the very beginning of the process. The photos he got were absolu...
tely stunning. He made everyone feel very comfortable and his sense of humor was great. He and our DJ worked together flawlessly to make sure our wedding flowed smoothly. He also got our photos to us very quickly which was very much appreciated.
CJ did a great job and we have some incredibly stunning photos. He was very aware of the surroundings and lighting. Worked well with telling our family where to be. He was very kin...
d and did a beautiful job. We would highly recommend him.
CJ was wonderful from start to finish. He totally went above and beyond. My husband enjoys photography as a hobby and was hyper critical of any photographers I suggested, but he ag...
reed that CJ was wonderful from all aspects- professionalism, technical skill, personable… the list goes on. Highly recommend!
CJ was fantastic. We are not people who normally take a lot of pictures, especially of ourselves, but CJ made us comfortable and knew what to say to get us to laugh for the perfect...
photos. He knew some great spots to go to get sights of Tahoe in the pictures even though we had a very limited time slot on our wedding day. Highly recommend his services, you wont regret it!
CJ and his wife were the absolute best to work with for our special day. They made us laugh so much, allowing them to get some amazing candids throughout the whole day. They made s...
ure we would get the best lighting for our sunset pictures which turned out even better than we could have imagined. They also worked so well with our videographer whom they have never worked with before. Definitely a photographer I would recommend to any of my family or friends to not pass up what so ever. Also, we got our pictures pretty fast which is always a huge plus when everyone wants to start seeing the photos. Photos to me was on the top of my list on where I wanted to spend the money for our wedding and I wouldn't have changed that for anything because these will be the memories you can have for lifetime. Amazing people who do amazing work :)
CJ was an amazing photographer for our wedding. The day before our wedding we decided that we wanted to do a few pictures before the ceremony. He had no problem with this and was a...
ble to come early even though we asked last minute.
CJ is also super personable and funny, which helps you relax while taking photos. Even though he’s funny and jokes, he’s also very professional and you can tell he knows exactly what he’s doing. I can’t wait to get all of my photos from our wedding!!
I highly recommend you book CJ for your wedding!
CJ did an awesome job with our engagement shoot and the wedding. He was professional, communicative, easy to work with, and takes great photos!
My fiancé hired CJ to hide in the trees at the top of ski mountain and take photos of our engagement and CJ absolutely killed it! He took great quality photos and made it super ea...
sy to be ourselves in front of the camera, even amongst all of the emotion and excitement of the proposal. CJ was amazing to work with and we would most certainly hire him again!!
C.J. was amazing! I could not have asked for a better photographer. He took time for all the locations we wanted pictures at and really involved my wedding party and guests. He mad...
e the photos available online for my friends and family to view and purchase. I strongly recommend him for your wedding!
CJ Varella was absolutely amazing! His knowledge and skill made our wedding photos picture perfect (pun intended).
We are very happy we decided to go with him. He made our special...
day unforgettable.
We highly recommend him :)
Contact
Lake Tahoe Region, Sacramento, Bay Area, San Diego, Reno
Wedding vendors in South Lake Tahoe
C J Varela Photography's photos