Elena Bazini Photography

Working with Elena was a dream! We were initially drawn to her work we found online and on her IG, and came to find that she is wonderful to work with as well. We found her packages to be fair and she was willing to work with us to customize so that we got everything we were looking for to capture and preserve our wedding season memories. Elena made us feel comfortable during all of our shoots, she made the whole process feel easy, and all deliverables were sent in a timely manner. We are thrilled with how everything turned out and couldn't recommend her enough. Thank you Elena!

Elena Bazini for our wedding? ... Let's start with this Fun Fact ... one of our family friends (who is a photographer) picked Elena to be our wedding photographer! ... I bring this up, because what better review to give someone, than having another photographer pick another photographer to capture their family friend's wedding? It didn't take us long to realize why Elena was so good. And to see why "inside industry" people would admire her, without even knowing her. (our family friend had never met her) Elena's social media is a great landing spot ... after our friend's suggestion, it's where we first noticed her "nuance photography." She subtly captures the moments ... the glances, the smiles, the brushes of love. Elena is a top-notch organizer and communicator. An example? she took the time to call us, take notes, and make sure she understood the timeline of the day, as well as noting "our" details that would be important to capture. Elena is real, and fun, and cool. We barely noticed her and her wonderful assistant, Lynn, all night. They both had the gift of being pleasant and engaging throughout, while simultaneously "disappearing" from the moment....to be able to capture the moments. They were seamless. And real. And Awesome. Elena came with her own ideas about "location shots" beforehand. You could tell she had brainstormed and done her research on the venue and neighborhood. We walked away with some great snapshots to help us remember "the where" of our night. Her rates are extremely competitive for the market these days, and especially for the packages, and the "personal treatment" of what her team offers. Elena was constantly open to adjusting her style, social media sharing, and editing based on requests we had made. She caters to the couple. And finally, that leads us to this ... we just felt like Elena really cared. This wasn't just a "job" or a paycheck for her. Elena (and Lynn's) energy were beautiful. Think about that for a second ... your wedding photographer is not just the one who captures your special day, but also puts energy back into that day. What kind of energy do you want for that? Elena Bazini. Real. Genuine. Talented. The perfect person to capture your perfect day.

Where do I begin?! Elena and I have been best friends for over a decade. When planning my wedding it was so clear I only wanted Elena to capture my day. Even if you just meet her she will treat you the same as a friend and her warmth and generosity are contagious. The combination of her authenticity and approach make her clients feel at ease in front of the lens and allows her to capture honest and beautiful portraits. Her ability to seamlessly blend into your background as a guest is truly a testament to her personality and a skill that I appreciated as hosting a small wedding. We received our sneak peek and were blown away! Not only are they incredible but we had a limited time for portraits and she totally nailed it! We couldn't be happier.

Elena and here team were INCREDIBLE. We decided early on our photographer was one of the things we wanted to prioritize to capture our day forever so we were quite picky in our search. When we saw her work, we really loved how she captured the light and the raw emotions of the day. But she blew our expectations out of the water! When we saw the pictures of our own day, it was absolute art. Her work is unparalleled, and we would book Elena a million times over again. She was also an absolute joy to work with before wedding day and on the day. She was kind, patient, and so organized. She did a great job making sure she got the pictures we requested while still getting sweet candid moments. She also had a lovely, calm energy on wedding day, which really made us feel comfortable in front of the lens and helped us slow down the day. It was very easy to communicate with her leading up to the wedding, which I really appreciated because we booked early and had a lot of time for us to think of questions! She always answered promptly, thoroughly and in a way that made us feel confident about our wedding day. We HIGHLY recommend Elena. She is the best of the best. We are so grateful to Elena for turning our day into such beautifully documented moments we will have forever.

We are so fortunate to have worked with Elena for our May wedding. When we first met Elena, we felt we immediately connected with her warmth and kindness. She shared with us her style and how she wants to capture our natural interactions and encompass who we are as a couple. This attitude spoke to us and made us confident that we wanted to work with her. As the wedding came closer, we felt like collaborators with Elena as she planned out all the shots we wanted and made every effort for us to have everything planned before our bid day. And of course, on our wedding, everything progressed without a hitch. Her shots are magnificent and take us back to our wedding. We feel truly lucky to have worked with Elena and would recommend her to everyone! -Ethan and Liza

We had the pleasure of working with Elena for our wedding, and it was an absolute joy from start to finish. From our first interactions, Elena's kindness and thoughtfulness were evident. Her ability to direct us for posed shots was understated and effortless, and her true magic shone through in capturing candid and hidden moments. The life and emotion in her photos are simply unbelievable—priceless keepsakes of our special day. A special shout-out goes to her assistant, Katie, who not only helped with photography but also came to the rescue when my sister's dress zipper broke off while we were getting ready! Katie, who is also a seamstress, saved the day by sewing my sister into her dress. We couldn't have asked for better support. We opted for just a photographer instead of a videographer as well, and with Elena's photos, we have no regrets. She documented every moment, start to finish. What sets Elena apart is her talent for making everyone feel instantly comfortable in front of the camera. As a couple we'd never had professional photos taken, but Elena's guidance was clear and comforting. Her direction for us, our wedding party, and our families was succinct and calming during what could have been a very hectic day. With Elena you will have the privilege of working with a real person who genuinely cares about her clients. After a long day of shooting, she went above and beyond, staying extra time to capture some moments of our after-party. Her commitment and care truly shine through. Elena exceeded our expectations in every way, and we can't recommend her highly enough. If you want a photographer who not only captures stunning images but also makes your day feel effortless and special, Elena is the one to choose. Thank you, Elena, for creating lasting memories we'll cherish forever.

My husband and I got married on July 14th at Greenhouse Loft. Elena and her assistant Lynn were our dream photographers! We were so pleased with how comfortable our whole experience was. My husband and I really wanted someone who could take great candid photos as neither of us really wanted to spend a ton of time posing for photos. We were so pleased with our photos and really had so much fun reliving our day when our photos were ready! Our happiness and joy was totally captured :) We did spend some time posing for photos of course, Elena and Lynn made us feel so comfortable and at ease. It felt so natural and comfortable even with two cameras on us. They were patient and helpful with giving us direction. My family, friends, and the venue staff all went out of their way to tell us just how great our photographers were! I recommend Elena Bazini Photography to everyone who wants a positive, calming presence with such a great eye for capturing candid, unique shots. Thank you!

Elena was absolutely amazing! From the first conversation we had with her my husband and I knew that she was who we wanted for our wedding photographer. She was great at working around our schedule for our virtual meetings and always answered our questions promptly. And day of I cannot speak highly enough about her. She was right on time (actually getting to the venue before any of the wedding party!) and immediately made everyone feel comfortable. Even when things got stressful, Elena remained calm and just had this great calming presence on everyone around her, something that is desperately needed at weddings. She did an excellent job wrangling all of my family members (not an easy feat) and had the perfect balance of kindness and professionalism. She got everyone into position and in the right place quickly but without making anyone feel like they were being nagged. My dad actually commented multiple times in the days following about how great Elena and Katie were. I cannot wait to see the photos she took of the wedding but just couldn't wait to post my review. If you are considering hiring Elena for your wedding or any other photo needs you should not hesitate! Hands down one of the best decisions I made concerning the wedding.

My husband and I felt so comfortable working with Elena and we can’t express how grateful we are for her work and calming presence before and on our wedding day. She captured every moment beautifully, and our final edited gallery is stunning.

We hired Elena for our wedding day, and she was incredible! She was incredibly professional and patient with our large wedding party. Additionally, we had a catholic mass and she captured it beautifully. I love her style of photography- to me, it is very candid! As we reviewed her portfolio, it was a no-brainer, and the end result totally lived up to our expectations. Elena will give you photos that you will treasure for a lifetime! I cannot recommend her enough!

My husband and I are so glad that we chose Elena as our wedding photographer. She is so easy to work with and did a great job at guiding us for photos during our engagement shoot and for our wedding photos. She had great ideas about where the best spots were for photos, was communicative through every stage of the planning, and she was fully active and engaged throughout the wedding day. We just got our photos back and love every one of them! Elena is a fantastic photographer, and I would recommend her to anyone.

I hired Elena as my photographer for my engagement photos and my October 2022 Chicago wedding and it was one of the best wedding decisions I made. Elena is incredibly talented – her work is STUNNING. When choosing a photographer, I was immediately drawn to Elena’s portfolio. I love her artistic use of light and ability to capture such warm, natural, heartfelt moments. In addition to her creative talents – Elena was such a joy to be around. Elena was very responsive throughout the entire wedding planning process and was so easy to work with. She is such a fun, warm, calming presence on your wedding day – my entire family loved her. I cannot recommend Elena enough – she really is the “calm amidst the wedding storm." Hire her!

We loved working with Elena for our wedding! We had a traditional 3-day Hindu Wedding . Elena was able to capture all the colorful outfits, details and religious aspects of all of our events and multiple venues including our home, a hotel and the Chicago Botanic Garden. The photos are beyond spectacular! We also did a engagement photo shoot with Elena a few months earlier which made my husband and I even more comfortable the wedding weekend. We loved working with Elena and would highly recommend her as your wedding photographer!

Elena is the absolute best. She was such a joy to work with and also took the most amazing pictures of our wedding day. She perfectly captured our happiness and how much fun we had. I am so glad to have these amazing pictures to look back on. She also is such a calm force and seamlessly managed our big families while taking our family photos. I cannot recommend Elena strongly enough! She is absolutely fantastic.

When looking at photographers, Elena came recommended with the venue we selected. What drew me to her is that her style of photography is very warm, and she has a knack for brining out the romance in a day that can be very eventful and hectic. Working with Elena was easy. She was always pleasant, presented information clearly, and listened to us when we had questions or concerns. Overall, it was a joy to work with her. The photos were available about 5 weeks after our wedding, and they look fantastic! Everyone has complimented us on them, and my husband and I absolutely love them.

We initially chose Elena because we saw her portfolio, which was very impressive, so we came into this with extremely high hopes for exceptional wedding photos. What we ended up with exceeded our expectations. Not only are Elena and her team fantastic photographers, they really understand the dynamics of a wedding and know how to keep the bride, groom, and wedding party directed and focused while appearing calm the whole time. We had a number of locations which involved high traffic, parking challenges, etc. but the impression coming from Elena and team was that they had it all planned and figured out, which is very helpful on a day with so much going on. Most importantly, the end product is stunning photos which you will always treasure. Thank you so much to Elena and her assistant!

My fiancé, Trevor, hired Elena to capture our proposal while we were visiting Chicago. Not only is Elena a wonderful photographer, but she is also the easiest person to be around. Creatively, her work is nothing short of amazing. She captured our emotions and the moment in a genuine way. Her editing skills are perfection, full color and timeless. Logistically, Trevor said that hiring her and working with her was so simple. She made him feel comfortable and walked him through everything in a helpful way. I am beyond thankful that Trev found Elena to capture the proposal! We get to relive this moment every time we look at our pictures, which is truly special. We love Elena's work and cannot recommend her enough!

My husband, Mickey, and I were recommended to Elena and we couldn’t have been happier. Elena made us feel so comfortable in our engagement session and we couldn’t wait to put her work in our home forever. Our wedding day photos captured all the love, fun and excitement. Elena does such a beautiful job capturing moments.

Elena is a photography genius! We booked Elena for an engagement photoshoot and our wedding day. Our engagement photos turned out amazing and Elena knew exactly the vision we had and the locations to shoot in. The wedding day was spectacular. Elena makes you feel so comfortable, laugh, and keeps things light. Elena helps guide what to do for the photos while keeping it looking natural and fun. Elena was so responsive and even helped with day of timeline. She also was a trooper with a rather long family photo list. We had planned two stops for bridal photos and Elena added on an additional spot because we had enough time, which I think will be our favorite photos! We can't wait to see all our final wedding photos. We highly recommend hiring Elena!

Elena was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. She made us feel comfortable through the entire process and really listened to the style we were looking for. Her photos are BEAUTIFUL. She truly captured the light in everyone’s eyes at the reception… not sure how else to describe it. We now have some of the best photos we’ve ever seen of family and friends. Don’t trust anyone else with this important moment.

Elena is an absolute dream wedding photographer! From the moment we first spoke on the phone her calming, reassuring approach made us feel confident that we would be in the hands of a highly professional and knowledgeable photographer. Communicating ideas of location and ways to personalise our shoot was a breeze as she was very responsive and helpful. On the day of our elopement/court ceremony despite both our camera shyness she made us feel so relaxed and we just had so much fun- felt like we had known her for so much longer! Needless to say the photos turned out beautiful!!! We look forward to Elena being a part of all our future photography and wedding festivities. Thank you so much, Elena :)

Punctuality, personality, and professionalism—Elena has all of these and more! We spent countless hours researching different wedding photographers and chatted with five or six on the phone, but once we spoke to Elena we knew she was the photographer for us. During the initial conversation, she was receptive to everything we were throwing at her and she was kind enough to send us links to shoots she had recently done so we could get a better sense of what to expect. Booking her for the date couldn't have been easier. Between the time we first spoke to Elena and our wedding day, she was quick to respond to any questions, so we felt really good about the photos going into our big day. We had a very small wedding (less than 10 guests) that kind of came together at the last minute, but Elena was patient and rolled with the punches. The morning of our wedding day, she arrived at our hotel early and, for the next few hours, she made shooting at various different locations around Chicago as easy as could be. We immediately felt comfortable with her and confident with her abilities, and she played a huge role in making our wedding day a success. One of the things we really liked about Elena even before we spoke to her was her portfolio, and we were absolutely thrilled when she sent us our photos! She made us look better than we could have ever imagined! Overall, we can't recommend Elena highly enough. She was a dream to work with and we'll always be grateful for the gorgeous photo she captured on our wedding day.

We couldn't be happier with choosing Elena for our wedding and engagement photos! She is such a sweet and calming presence, made us feel super comfortable, and took the most creative and breathtaking photos of us and our day. We had so much fun with her and we are truly obsessed with our photos. She was also really flexible with us when we had to postpone our date. I would definitely recommend her to anyone and plan to reach out to her to capture our future milestones!!

Elena was incredible! She captured our day perfectly, was flexible when our entire day of schedule changed, and was so fun to work with. I was worried about booking a photographer that we wouldn’t be comfortable around that might end up with stiff photos, but working with Elena came so naturally and made both our engagement photo shoot and the day of our wedding breezy and fun! I would recommend her to anyone getting married in Chicagoland!!

Cannot say enough good things about Elena. She shot both our engagement photos in 2019 and our wedding photos in July 21 - we were THRILLED with how the photos turned out - she truly captured every special moment. Not to mention she is awesome to work with, really listening and understanding what her client is looking for, handling all wedding reschedules with grace and kindness. I would recommend Elena to anyone looking for an amazing photographer in Chicago.

We couldn't be happier with our experience with Elena! She shot our engagement photos and wedding and captured the emotions better than we could even remember. Elena made us feel so comfortable while working with her. We have the best photos to look back on and relive our special day! THANK YOU Elena for being so amazing!

Elena is the best!! I was in search of a female photographer for a boudoir style shoot & I was searching through IG & her work stood out to me. I didn't question what she can do because I can clearly see she has an artist eye and is talented. This is also my first 'real' photo shoot, so I wanted to come correct for a project I was working on & she went above my expectations! She made me look like a star!!🤩 The pics she took looks like they belong in a magazine!!💕 So many compliments, even other photographers are checking out her work. I also wanted to add, I'm a person who is camera shy when it comes to showing skin & she made it fun, comfortable & showed me how to pose. Very professional & she definitely knows her craft. So lucky to have run across her. I will definitely book with her again. I cannot ask for a better photographer. 📸💕

Elena shot my wedding in Feb 2020. Photography was a top 3 priority for my partner and I. Loved working with Elena! She was a dream vendor leading up to it, answering emails prompting and clearly, and really understanding what we liked and wanted to get out of photography for the big day. She was fun to hang out with day of, she kept us on task, and made sure we got all the posed photos we wanted done. But most importantly - I am OBSESSED with our photos!! I could not have dreamt of them coming out better!!! I look at them every single day. I'm not typically this sentimental, but I really can relive every single moment of the day through these shots. I knew Elena was talented when I first looked at her portfolio, but holy moly some of the shots take my breath away, every time I look at them, no matter how much I look at them. And I think that reflects not only Elena's dedication to her craft but also her skill as a photographer that sets her apart from others in the field. She is really really excellent at this and it shows. I will cherish these pictures forever. I cannot thank Elena enough for capturing our day perfectly.

Cannot say enough amazing things about Elena! She did both our engagement photos and our wedding photos! She was extremely communicative when you needed her and truly delivered final products that were what we discussed and what we hoped for. She also is so kind, but gets the job done especially with our HUGE wedding party (23 bridesmaids and groomsmen)! As someone who has been a bridesmaid many times, this isn't a quality that most wedding photographers have! The photographer was probably the most important vendor to us as photos last way beyond the wedding so I researched a lot of photographers in Chicago. Elena's work speaks for itself and I also think she is one of the more reasonably priced Chicago-based wedding photographers! What more can I say, but HIRE ELENA!

We could not have been more lucky to have Elena be a part of our day. We had to move our wedding and find a new photographer quickly amid all the Covid craziness and we found the absolute BEST photographer with Elena. She was incredibly responsive and made the process of working together so easy. On the day of our wedding, Elena was SO professional, so kind and was so respectful. Our families kept saying how easy it was to work with her! She moved through all of the shots incredibly quickly and smoothly and knew how to organize the groups efficiently. She took all of the shots that we asked for and more that we hadn't even thought of that turned out beautifully. When we got our pictures back, our jaws DROPPED! They were the most STUNNING pictures! The colors popped so beautifully. When shooting the pictures, she made us feel so comfortable and we were able to relax and just be ourselves - nothing felt forced! I could not recommend Elena more. She's beyond easy to work with, so kind and professional and most importantly - her work speaks for herself! All my girlfriends want to hire her for their weddings after seeing my pictures :)

Elena and David were absolutely wonderful to work with on our wedding day! From the very beginning we were impressed with her kindness and calm approach, which perfectly reflected what we wanted for our wedding. I thought I would get tired of taking pictures or self-conscious with all of the attention, but with Elena I (and my bridal party) were completely comfortable and had so much fun! My husband said the exact same thing about the second shooter, David. When we got the pictures back we immediately became obsessed. Her style and ability to capture little moments of joy was exactly what we were hoping for. Anyone looking for a wedding photographer who will capture the spirit of your wedding day, Elena is the perfect choice!

We consider ourselves lucky to have had Elena with us on our wedding day! Not only is she a calm and reassuring presence, she captured the essence of who we are as a couple and all of the unique little moments throughout our wedding day, versus just the usual staged shots that you see at so many weddings (I've been a bridesmaid 9 times so I would know). Elena takes both an artistic and photojournalism approach that is just exceptional; you will be wowed by her images and they will also help you relive memories from the day. Cannot recommend her highly enough!

Elena is such a talented, kind, creative, calming photographer who I was truly lucky enough to hear about and have for my wedding day. She is so easy to work with and was excellent about communicating throughout wedding planning. The photos are beyond beautiful, and genuinely capture the emotions and story of your day. She has a way of capturing all of the beautiful feelings. Each photo brings back so many amazing memories that we will cherish forever. The day of, she was awesome to be around and handled all of the logistics of family photos seamlessly. She's also super fun to hang out with and I loved having here there! I cannot recommend her enough.

I did a super fun boudoir shoot with Elena this summer! We did the shoot in the comfort of my apartment and Elena made the whole experience comfortable and fun. Elena has a way of directing the shoot that made everything feel so breathless and easy, and the photos came out AMAZING!

Elena Bazini is an AMAZING talent. She is everything anyone would want in a wedding photographer-easy to work with, her team was fantastic, her style is easy going/capture-don’t create-the moment, flowing with the celebration-not interrupting it, and most of all, putting you at ease on one of the most important days of your life. Not only did the photographs exceed our expectations but the whole experience of working with Elena and her team was just a dream. Her website is very professional and well maintained and serves as a testimony to her expertise and vision. We enjoyed our time with her and highly recommend Elena and her team.

Elena (and Cathy) were absolutely fantastic. Not only is Elena a great photographer with an impeccable and creative eye, but she emanates warmth and makes everyone around her feel comfortable in front of the camera. She was such a joy to work with and we're looking forward to seeing her photos (we love what we've seen so far)! Would recommend to anyone lucky enough to book her.

We got married in March in Chicago. Knowing that there was a real risk of snow, we wanted a photographer who would embrace that if it happened, and Elena's blog completely sold me. Well, we didn't get snow, but we also didn't get a pleasant day - it stormed like crazy, which meant that a lot of the photos we hoped to get weren't possible, and our venue, the Lincoln Park Conservatory, leaked like crazy! Elena was completely upbeat and helpful throughout the less-than-ideal situation, even bringing a bunch of clear umbrellas for our friends to use, and she worked fast to get images in the limited amount of time the rain left us for pictures. Many friends commented to us that Elena was completely sweet and very relaxed and how much they liked her. The venue was so cold and wet, and my dress so filthy by the end, that I had an image in my head after the wedding that we all looked like miserable drowned rats...but when we got the pictures, I was thrilled to see that in the limited amount of time we had, she got so many lovely images, with the beautiful colors of the flowers in the conservatory, and she captured the happy spirit of the evening. She also got a lot of really lovely images of my son, which was so important to me, and she figured out how to get a group picture, which I really wanted. Also, we only needed a photographer for a couple of hours, not the usual all-day affair, and Elena was completely happy to accommodate that. She was completely wonderful to work with and I would recommend her to absolutely everyone! As a funny side note, Elena posted an image of my son on her blog, and one of my colleagues saw it - it turned out Elena had been her photographer too, a couple years earlier! I'd been looking at pictures Elena took at my friend's wedding, framed on her desk, for a year and had no idea!

Elena was the photographer at my brother's wedding and after seeing her photos, I knew I wanted her to photograph my wedding as well. She is so nice and easy to work with and she has a way of capturing beautiful moments without being intrusive into the wedding at all. I would definitely recommend her and hope I get to work with her again!

There are not enough wonderful things to say about Elena! We met her at our friends' wedding, took one look at their photos, and we were hooked. It was an added bonus working with her husband, David, as well. Elena has an incredible eye, and an outstanding ability to capture even the subtlest of moments. Our wedding photos were fantastic and her work speaks for itself. We really enjoyed spending the day with her and David, and feel so fortunate to have worked with them. She's the best!

Elena is amazing! She is so incredibly talented, our photographs turned out beautiful. I am absolutely thrilled with them and we have received so many compliments. She does a fantastic job of capturing the small moments and emotions throughout the day which stood out to us when selecting her as our wedding photographer. She was also really helpful throughout the entire process. She always responded promptly to our e-mails and was very organized. She had good ideas for photo locations that worked with our schedule for the day as well as back up locations in case of rain. Elena was such a pleasure to spend our day with, very easy going and enjoyable to be around making us feel so comfortable. I am so glad she was our wedding photographer!

I haven't seen the pictures yet, but I can say that having Elena and her staff photograph our wedding was an honor. She fit into the group naturally, offered candid advice when appropriate, and has a great sense of humor. Looking at her previous work, I know the photographs will be beautiful too! Thank you, Elena!

Having Elena capture of our wedding was hands down one of the best decisions we made for our day. She was such a pleasure to work with and the moments she captured were simply incredible. My husband and I had a blast spending the day with her. She made us feel comfortable and ensured all of our photoshoots throughout the day went smoothly. Her photos melted my heart instantly and immediately reminded me of the countless special moments of the day. She is simply amazing!

Elena has the unique ability to capture not only the "big" pictures that you think that you want, but all of the small moments that will really speak to you later about your day. I am not a "photo person" and I was actually nervous at the idea of having my photo taken all day long, but Elena made me feel at ease and beautiful the entire time. She was creative in her approaches and made sure she covered everything that we asked...and more. Her style is warm and approachable. She helped make our day even more fun! Our photos were edited and delivered quickly. Our friends and family could not stop complimenting her and her gift of noticing the details and her ability to tell the story of the day through images. Our pictures are truly a gift to us as they now will forever record all of the beauty and emotions of a very special day. Elena and David are an amazing team. They are both extremely professional and show their passion for photography in every thing that they do.

Elena is simply amazing. We knew the wedding photos were the most important part of preserving our wonderful wedding memories and Elena did not disappoint. She captured every moment of the wedding perfectly. Elena is also so incredibly kind and welcoming. She makes everyone feel so comfortable, which is so important for a photographer. You can tell she really feels honored to be part of your special day. The day of the wedding I couldn't believe the lengths she was willing to go to so that we could get the perfect shot. She literally climbed up on a high median in the middle of a busy street to capture us. It was phenomenal. You simply can't go wrong with Elena and her team!!

I cannot overstate Elena's contribution to our wedding experience. If you're fortunate enough to book her, you've already made the best and most important decision about your big day! Elena is immensely talented as a photographer; she is in a class of her own and clearly stood out to us as we sifted through the portfolios of dozens of wedding photographers. But it's not just her skill that makes her amazing. She's the person you want to have around for such an important (and long) day. She was professional and efficient but also fun and at ease. She captured every moment perfectly, and we were able to enjoy those moments without feeling like we were posing for a photo every second. We enjoyed her presence almost - ALMOST - as much as the exquisite collection of photos we now have to enjoy for the rest of our lives. Thank you Elena!

To put it simply: Elena and her team are THE BEST! Not only that, but picking her was easy. After reaching out to her initially, we spoke on the phone and my husband and I both knew she was the photographer for us. She is amazingly talented, and getting to work with her on our wedding day made everything so much easier. She's an expert at making the stress melt away with how easy-going she is. Her and her team really are the "Dream Team." We loved her portfolio, and the images she captures are worth more than just 1,000 words. The value in her work is truly priceless, and I am still reeling that THE Elana Bazini was my wedding photographer! She really is one of the best, if not THE BEST wedding photographers in Chicago. We would hire Elena again in a heartbeat after the experience we had with her on our wedding day. She knew exactly where to take the perfect shots and how to pose us, even if we initially felt we were awkward photo-takers. By the end, we felt like seasoned models thanks to her. I would give Elena more than 5 stars if possible. If you are looking for an amazingly smart, professional, dedicated and talented photographer, look no further than Elena Bazini! <3 <3 <3

One of the best decisions I made for my wedding was hiring Elena! Her laid-back and confident personality was exactly what I was looking for and meshed perfectly with our family full of women who like to take charge! She turned every setting into an opportunity from parking lots to stone brick walls and I could not have been happier! She completely captures the day in ways I would have never imagined. My husband is not the world's biggest fan of taking pictures and she managed to capture all of our natural moments of smile and laughter throughout the day which is exactly what I was hoping for! Elena was extremely professional throughout the entire process but also super friendly and easy to approach! Beyond happy with my choice!! Thank you!!

If you are looking for an incredible wedding photographer… look no further! Elena is THE BEST. I stumbled upon some of Elena’s work when scrolling through Facebook. One of my sorority sisters used Elena for her wedding and the pictures were absolutely stunning. I knew that my fiancé and I had to meet her and see her availability for our wedding date. Our first meeting with Elena was great. We were able to see her portfolio and just loved how all her shots looked natural vs. staged. Elena is very professional and knows exactly what she is doing. We ended up booking for her for our wedding date and also scheduling a time to do an engagement photo-shoot prior to wedding. The engagement photo-shoot was so fun! We laughed a lot and Elena made us feel so comfortable. It was also very beneficial to have photos taken before the wedding because we could see what we liked and what we didn’t prefer. Elena was super quick in getting us the engagement photos- it was just a couple days later that she delivered them to us via email!! Fast forward to our wedding date… literally I cannot express what a wonderful job Elena did. October 28, 2017 was a cold and cloudy day in Chicago, but I still wanted to get some photos outside. Elena had no problem with that… she found the perfect location on the River Walk and even let me wear her coat while we were in between shots! So nice!!! Elena captured every moment: from getting ready, to my first look with my parents, to seeing my husband for the first time, wedding party photos, the ceremony, toasts, first dances and of course candid’s on the dance floor! Everything turned out SO WELL. Elena also delivered out wedding photos very promptly—at least 2 weeks before we expected them. All in all, I cannot stress how great Elena is… she was such a joy to work with- I highly recommend her!

Elena did my engagement photos and a boudoir photo shoot and I could NOT be happier how both turned out! During the boudoir she made me feel comfortable and confident in my own skin while also being professional. Elena has this calming energy that you automatically feel in her presence. She gave me amazing poses and I can't wait for my fiance to get the book on our wedding day! 10/10 would recommend her and do another shoot with Elena!

There are not enough good things to say about Elena. As someone who used to work with a wedding photographer, I knew that photography would be an important part of our wedding. From the moment I saw Elena’s work, I knew I wanted to work with her. Her photographs emote joy, love, and a zest for life…which also pretty much describes Elena! She is incredibly easy to work with, and makes you feel like you are in the best hands. This was really important to us, as we found wedding planning to be pretty overwhelming! Shooting with Elena is like hanging out with a friend during one of your best days. She never makes you feel “posed” or “cheesy” …which was a major concern of my husband’s. We had the best time during both our engagement photos and during the wedding. Elena was incredibly patient, answering all of our questions and emails, and helping us to solidify our day-of-timeline. Even my dad made sure to tell us how much he loved working with Elena, and how much he loved her smile! The experience would have been enough, but the memories and photographs she has left us with are priceless. Elena, I cannot thank you enough!!

Elena is an incredibly skilled photographer, can't recommend her more. Not only that, but she's just an amazing person to work with and took our vision into something tangible and added her own unique artistic touch. Her eye for the moment elevated our wedding into something that we can continue to enjoy for years to come!

Elena and her team did a phenomenal job capturing our wedding day in Chicago on one of the rainiest days of the year! She captured everything from small moments to big moments from our day in such a special and creative way. Elena was great about getting us setup for off site photos that still stayed true to getting exactly what we wanted even during a downpour! She was easy to work with and very flexible to day of changes. Her photos are beyond exquisite and we couldn't be happier reviewing our photos and starting to work on designing our album with her! My husband and I live out of town in Washington, DC, and planned everything with her remotely for our wedding day in Chicago. She is incredibly responsive and turns things around very quickly. We highly recommend working with Elena and her team to capture all the moments you will always want to remember from your special day!

BEST PHOTOGRAPHER EVER!! We hired Elena Bazini to do our daughter's and (now) son-in-law's engagement shoot and wedding photography after checking out Elena's website and blog, (which illustrate her very impressive portfolio—be sure to go to her website to see for yourself. They are her best recommendation, for sure!), and then meeting with her. The couple did a really early, summer morning engagement shoot, (Elena actually suggested it to be able to get the prettiest summer light), and the photos turned out sooo GREAT! Some people have described them as "simply stunning." (We agree!!) Most importantly, the couple had a lot of FUN with Elena, and they knew immediately they had chosen the right person to shoot their wedding. Elena (and Liz) did not disappoint! There were multiple indoor and outdoor locations for wedding photos, a large wedding party (including four little ones who were flower girls and a ring-bearer), and lotsss of family; and even with all those "moving parts" and though the weather wasn't ideal at times, none of that affected the outcome of the pictures she took. Our guests have told us the wedding was gorgeous, and the celebration was unforgettable and so much fun, (we agree!!), and the moments Elena (and Liz) captured were truly wonderful and have made lasting, beautiful memories for us all. And, people who have seen the wedding photos have described those pictures as “STUNNING,” too! (We totally agree!!) Elena is so talented and her direction was spot on. She is very creative and really skilled, and so she knew just what to do with the lighting and how to use the elements to her advantage to take AMAZING photos. She was so organized, before (she and the couple discussed ahead of time locations and which special photos they wanted to have, if possible), and then during the wedding day and into the evening; she made really good suggestions but also knew what specific photos the bride and groom had in mind, as well, and Elena and Liz delivered! Everyone enjoyed working with Elena because she is so enthusiastic and a true pro! Not only will we highly recommend Elena Bazini, but we can't wait till our next celebration because we will gladly hire her to be a part of it, and to record those events, too. What a wonderful, lasting gift she gives to others with her artful photography! Thank you, Elena!

Elena was wonderful. When we first met her, we quickly agreed to work with her simply because of her sweet and comforting personality. She made us feel at ease in front of a camera, which can easily be awkward if you aren’t used to being photographed all day (most of us aren’t!). Our first shoot with her was for our engagement photos, which was just so much fun. We got lucky and had snowy weather, which Elena captured perfectly. And the wedding photos are off the charts. I never imagined having memories captured so beautifully. I honestly feel like I’m reliving my wedding day in an even better version when I look through the photos from Elena! In addition to being exceptionally talented, Elena is professional, responsive, and truly loves what she does. She is wonderful to work with and will give you the best photos for your wedding!

​There are not enough words to describe how perfectly Elena captured our wedding day. I am in love with every single photo she took.​ We've already gotten so many compliments on our photos. She was amazing about staying organized and making wonderful suggestions. She was also very professional and easy to get in touch with prior to the wedding. Elena took such fun candid photos throughout the day. Most of the time, I wasn't even aware that she was capturing the moment! I would highly recommend Elena! She is absolutely wonderful!!

You have found your dream photographer! Elena Bazini is truly beyond compare . Her photos are simply stunning. She makes you feel at ease and SO comfortable on your biggest day. Her laid back personality is what every bride needs on a day that nerves can be high. She made us feel like the day really belonged to us and brought out the FUN and JOY. It was because of her that I was able to pause and really relish the present moment. Without saying it, she somehow reminds you to take in every second and realize the reason you there (love!). She radiates pure love! You don't realize you are having your picture taken because you are smiling and laughing along with her the entire day. She knows exactly what shots to take and what is most flattering! She captures EVERYTHING. Not only you, but the surroundings and every detail. She brings out the beauty in environment around you and reminds you of all the love that surrounded you. Her eye for detail is impeccable. It was through her pictures I was truly able to appreciate the beauty and the (sometimes gruling) year of hard work and endless decisions that went into the the dresses, suits, flowers, venue, food, cake, lighting, every detail that you don't get to fully appreciate because the day becomes a bit of a blur. She reminds you that all that exhaustion of planning was truly worth it!!! Through Elena's photos, that blur becomes a beautiful memory that she has meticulously captured for eternity. Thank you Elena! You are a perfectly phenomenal photographer! Love, Stephanie and Jared

Elena is awesome! She was the photographer for my wedding. She has such a great, easy going personality, and she makes you feel so comfortable. The photos she takes are stunning. I will definitely recommend her to all of my friends.

Why aren't there more stars?!? Elena far exceeded every expectation we had. From our first meeting, she exudes creativity and kindness and was such a joy to work with. We got to know Elena quite well, as we did an engagement shoot prior. I highly recommend doing this, as we learned her style and she made us feel comfortable and confident in front of the camera, and had a blast while doing so. I even reached out to Elena to do a boudoir photo shoot as a gift to my husband. I was unsure of the idea but knew I wanted to do it and Elena made all of my worries go away. She made me feel beautiful and sexy and the photos were classy and artistic and so much more than I ever could have imagined. If it's on your mind - don't shop anywhere else! Leading up to the wedding, Elena was timely with all of her correspondence and took the time to come to our walk through. The day of the wedding, our wedding party, friends, and family kept saying how much they loved Elena - she is professional, kind, creative, and makes you feel amazing in front of the camera. Every image she captured perfectly encapsulates our day. Her candids are so raw and the way she plays with lighting is so classic looking. I could go on and on about this lovely lady, but if you're looking for a 5+ all-star photographer, Elena is a must book!!!

We couldn't have asked for a better photographer! We LOVED working with Elena and her husband David. Both our engagement and wedding photos were stunning! We've already received a ton of compliments and we have yet to share our whole wedding album on social media. Elena captured all the key moments and then some. She was more than willing to accommodate our special requests, added to the energy of the day, and her final product exceeded our high expectations! Elena and David helped make our wedding day so special! I would HIGHLY recommend Elena!!!! Best decision we made!

Elena is incredibly talented. She did such an incredible job not only capturing all the moments, but also by capturing all the emotions and everyone's personality! My husband and I felt like we lived the day all over again looking through our wedding photos. Elena is highly professional, creative, and totally exceeded our expectations.

Five minutes into our meeting with Elena we knew we were going to hire her! During the initial consultation, we were blown away with how incredibly talented she is. We immediately knew that we wanted her to be the one to capture the story of our wedding day. When we saw our wedding photos we literally cried tears of joy…she’s that amazing! She is professional and FUN; the perfect combination. Our wedding day was full of countless jokes and laughs thanks to her and her amazing assistant :) (Special shout out to Olu !!) Elena and Olu must be part ninja. They were able to capture so many incredibly intimate shots of us and our guests and we don’t even remember seeing them around. Throughout the wedding planning process Elena patiently and promptly answered our numerous and detailed questions. There was never a time when we weren’t able to get a hold of her. She always wanted to know what we were thinking or how we wanted things done. We didn’t have a strong preference as to where we wanted to go for our day of photos. Elena is so creative and an expert in her field that we told her to go ahead and run with it! She came up with amazing locations that fit our wedding theme perfectly. Hands down, she was our favorite vendor to work with. I wish I could give her more than 5 stars!

Elena and her team photographed our wedding at The Drake Hotel in October and we are beyond thrilled with their work of art. I found Elena on a CBS article with a list of the top wedding photographers in Chicago. When we looked at her portfolio, we were absolutely blown away. From the moment we hired her, we hit it off and immediately felt as ease knowing that she understood our vision. Her talented ability to create photos and capture memories that will last a lifetime is unlike any other. We thoroughly enjoyed having her around with us the entire day because she fit right in, was professional and creative, and fun to be around. She is an expert photographer and knows all the right angles. Elena is accommodating, professional, outgoing, and passionate. Her love for photography and being behind a lens shines through in her work, and her eye for creativity is impeccable. She had a bright attitude the entire day, and it made me feel comfortable knowing I had one less thing to worry about on my wedding day. No matter who it was, Elena made them feel comfortable to be in front of the camera to be photographed. She is a phenomenal photographer, creator, artist, and editor. I find myself continuing to look at all of our pictures and sit there with a constant grin on. I’m still in awe that Elena was able to capture all the personalities of not only the wedding party, but the guests, and all the love that filled the room at our wedding. If we could, we would love to relive that day over and over again, and with Elena’s photos, we can. We are incredibly grateful that we have her photos to look back on because the entire day went by so quickly. Our wedding photos came out beautifully, and I didn’t even know we could look at good! She did not miss a beat and truly captured every single moment. The colors, framing, and feel of all our pictures were astounding - Elena is without a doubt an experienced, professional photographer who knows what she is doing! I would highly recommend reaching out to book her for your wedding. It was hands down the best decision I made, and we are forever grateful and blessed she was a part of our wedding. Countless guests from our wedding are still telling us how they’ve never seen more beautiful wedding pictures, and I couldn’t agree more. We will definitely be finding another reason to see and work with her again in the future because she is a true artist and a beautiful person inside and out. Hands down worth every penny and I would rate her 10 stars if I could! (See her blog post of our wedding here http://elenabaziniphotography.com/drake-hotel-wedding-photography-chicago/.)

One of the best decisions that my husband and I made in 2016 was hiring Elena Bazini as our wedding photographer. Definitely check out her blog to see the range of work she has. (Here’s the posting for our wedding! http://elenabaziniphotography.com/art-institute-of-chicago-wedding-photography-kelly-ryan/) From the start, we were so appreciative of how quickly Elena responded to all of our emails with questions that we had—which is awesome when you are trying to get so many things figured out for such a big event. On the day of our wedding, Elena was early with her second shooter (husband, David—also amazing!!!) and was immediately a calming influence (much needed on a wedding day). Elena captured the most beautiful pictures of our families, knowing that my father is ill and that any photo captured with him would really be something I would cherish forever. I am so grateful that I will have these beautiful pictures forever. She also got tons of “beauty shots” of our dog Penny, a little diva—who was an honorary bridesmaid. ☺ Elena was also incredible at finding the best locations for the most dramatic shots. She suggested a bunch of places in the Art Institute (our reception venue) that we never would have thought of—but turned out absolutely beautiful. She was excellent at catching the most candid perfect moments—like when a World Series Champions bus pulled to the curb on Michigan Avenue (the weekend after the Cubs won the World Series) and we got a shot of my husband and I, with our dog, celebrating the win. Or the expression on my face when my husband admitted during his speech that I was right about hiring a wedding planner (duh)… We wanted a good mix of staged shots and “in the moment shots” and we were so impressed with the variety of shots we received. This truly does not even begin to describe how happy we were with Elena’s work. She truly captured moments that we will cherish for our lifetime.

We couldn't have been more happy or more luckily to have Elena and her assistant cover our wedding. From the moment we met Elena during our initial consultation, we found it a breeze to work with her. She was able to relate to us and take the time to collaborate on the look and feel we wanted for our engagement and wedding photos. It felt like we were working with a true professional and friend, rather than just another vendor. You'd be hard pressed to find someone else that would put the time, care, and talent more than Elena.

Five stars is not enough for Elena Bazini Photography. Yes, Elena is a talented technical professional, but my husband and I have found that her artistry is immeasurably enhanced by her kindness, her thoughtful and curious nature, and her love and zeal for people and story. We cannot thank her and David enough for capturing so many incredible moments from our wedding day (and the time we spent together in 2015 during our engagement shoot! So much fun!). Truly, five stars is not enough. And speaking of stars, Elena is absolutely a rising star in the industry; we highly recommend that you book with this talented young woman while you can still get in at the ground floor!