5 out of 5 stars and 32 reviews
5
(32)Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, and beyond
About this vendor
New Beginnings Photography is a photo-centric elopement and micro-wedding specialist based in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, serving couples who feel an emotional connection to the Smoky Mountains and want a simple, beautiful, and meaningful wedding day.
Founded by Eric Gebhart, a seasoned wedding photographer with over 30 years of experience, NBP was born from a passion for capturing real human connection. Eric isn’t just a photographer, he’s a calming guide, a local expert, and a trusted partner from first inquiry to final photo delivery.
We specialize in all-inclusive elopement packages that include stunning photography, heartfelt ceremonies, location guidance, and logistical support. All designed for out-of-town couples who want an easy, low-stress experience without sacrificing quality. Whether it’s your first wedding or your second chance at love, our packages help you celebrate what really matters: each other.
What sets us apart isn’t just our images (though they’re timeless, true-to-life, and expertly composed). It’s the way we treat our couples, with respect, honesty, and personal care. When you book with NBP, you're not passed off to a stranger. Eric is the one who responds to your emails, helps you select your ceremony spot, and shows up to photograph your wedding with calm professionalism and artistic vision.
We’re proud to be local to the Smoky Mountains, not a national chain or remote booking service. That means we know where the leaves turn first, where the quiet overlooks are, and how to avoid the crowds. Our deep local knowledge allows us to create experiences that are not only scenic but genuinely personal.
Our photography style is natural and guided, never stiff or overly posed. We gently direct you into flattering, relaxed poses so your photos feel like you: connected, joyful, and fully present. From misty mountain mornings to golden-hour creekside ceremonies, we use professional lighting and intentional editing to ensure your images are beautiful in any conditions and still look timeless decades from now.
Who We Serve:
Our couples typically come from nearby states like Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Georgia, often planning second marriages or intimate ceremonies with close family. They’re emotionally drawn to the Smokies and want a wedding that’s calm, real, and unforgettable. Many feel overwhelmed by choices and need someone they can trust. Not to sell them something, but to walk them through it all with care.
Our Promise:
You’ll never be just another booking. You’ll be seen, heard, and supported every step of the way. From picking your location to guiding your vows and capturing your story in photos that bring the day rushing back, we’re here to make your elopement not only easy—but extraordinary.
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
- Wedding Albums
Photo & Video Styles
- Artistic
- Classic
- Lifestyle
- Modern
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Wedding
- After Party
Awards and Affiliations
Reviews
Your trust is our goal. Our community relies on honest reviews to help you make those big decisions with ease.
5
out of 5.032 reviews
Eric was amazing for my sunrise wedding. friendly, funny and very good at getting our friends/families in line to get the photos we wanted.
He also captured our wedding perfectly - all the angles and a perfect balance between us and the people attending
I would 100000% recommend!!! Photos intimidated me, but he made the process so smooth.
Thank you again, Eric!!
Eric was outstanding to work with on my engagement photos. Not only was the engagement a complete surprise to my fiancée, I also had 12 of our family members come down to Pigeon Forge, TN from Michigan to surprise her. Eric was very careful about communicating with me while my soon-to-be fiancée was around, and helped plan the perfect engagement. Afterwards, we took several photos and he had to navigate our one-year-old niece, grandparents, and other factors with our family. The whole time, he had a big smile, was humorous and a joy to work with. Of course, the photos turned out great as well. I’d highly recommend him!
The photographer was wonderful! He made us feel comfortable, even though we were stressed because we were late. Beautiful location. Perfect for wedding photos. Some people have commented that the background in our photos looks too beautiful to be real!
Eric with New Beginnings Photography was the best! We had our ceremony on the back deck of our cabin so we could enjoy the mountain views. He did an excellent job getting the kids (7 mo, 3 yr and 5 yr) to look at the camera and took beautiful photos. He was very responsive to questions and helpful when trying to plan this from another state.
Taylor was our officiant and he made it sound like he knew us the whole time! He did an excellent job.
Thank you to both, We highly recommend them!
Eric was absolutely wonderful to work with for our daughter's wedding. He captured amazing images on the Foothills Parkway on June 3, 2022. The turn around time was less than 2 weeks to view on the website and extra orders arrived quickly. I know my daughter Madelyn and her husband, Dawson, were very happy with the pictures as well.
Eric the photographer is a very easy going photographer that seems to have a lot of experience with the wedding services that he provides. He was professional, timely, courteous, and responsive to all of our questions and concerns. He did a great job capturing our moments, he dealt with oncomers professionally, and guarantees a "permit" with the national park for your special day, which I highly recommend to not have conflicted interest in your chosen location.
Jim the minister was a personable, patient, likeable gentleman, that was very comfortable to be in attendance of.... We loved the ceremony he provides, the vows were spot on, and I would definitely recommend to a friend or to other New Beginnings customers when choosing which minister to use. Keep up the good work, thanks again for your services...
Can't express enough how impressed we were with everything. I consider the preacher and photographer lifelong friends now. Hope to see them both in ten years when renew our vows.
We are from Wisconsin so being from out of state and only able to communicate via phone or email we were nervous, but we were totally put as ease once we met in person and everything went great. Very professional and friendly, great communication. Went above and beyond what we could ask for.
Everything was kind of last minute planned on my end and they made it so easy to get everything put together ❤ Price wasn't outrageous like some companies we looked at which eased our minds and pockets. I honestly couldn't be happier with how everything went! The minister was such a very sweet man! We were so comfortable with him...we could tell that he genuinely cared and was happy to be there on our special day. We had so much fun with our photos and our photographer! He even captured a surprise "guest" in a few of our photos to make them just that much more special.
Eric was very easy to work with. He was outstanding working with all the children in our wedding party. He uses excellent equipment and the results were beautiful.
I can't say enough good things about Eric and New Beginnings Photography. Eric is professional and talented, yet warm and personable, making everyone comfortable. We had six children in the ceremony, ranging from 18 mos. to 6 yrs. He was amazing with them. He took such care with every shot and our photos are beyond beautiful. I absolutely recommend Eric.
Everything from the first email to receiving the pictures was perfect !! Highly recommend !!
The Minister was very easy to get along with. He made us feel comfortable as if we had known him forever. Our wedding photos turned out better than I could have imagined! The photographer was professional and knew exactly how to get the best pictures.
Our experience exceeded all of my expectations. I would, without a doubt, recommend Eric and New Beginnings Photography to anyone that asks.
Our minister was very kind, friendly and professional. The photographer was willing to take any photos we requested and seemed very conscientious about his work. The creekside location we chose for our wedding was a beautiful, serene, private location perfect for eloping couples!
We are so grateful for the wonderful minister and service we experienced while celebrating our wedding. Our ceremony was perfect, well written and well spoken. We truly appreciate his thoughts and guidance. Our photographer was also perfect! The shots were amazing. His sense of humor and demeanor were so warm and welcoming. Our final proofs were spectacular. Our wedding photo book just arrived and it's so well laid out. Thank you both so much!
Eric was great and made everything go smoothly! Our pictures turned out amazing and even though it rained and we had to move the ceremony to the church we still were able to get some amazing pictures outside. We had such a great experience all around, it was completely worth every penny spent. The minister was great as well!
Eric is a phenomenal photographer! We wanted our wedding pictures with our hyper dog, the mountains in the background, on Christmas eve. Eric happily accommodated all of our requests. He captured extremely sharp pictures despite the dog moving non stop. I am impressed by how crisp the pictures came out. He also captured the mountain view in detail. The pictures of our special day are everything we were hoping for.
If we had to do it over again 100% would use New Beginnings! Thank you so much for making it so easy and care free and fun! You took the worry out of the entire event!
We would highly recommend to anyone! The minister, photographer and location all made our day amazing! The minister was wonderful! Very helpful and friendly to everyone. His scripture and other readings for our vows was perfect! It was like he knew us. He did great! Our photographer was fabulous!!! He did an amazing job and made our day perfect. He worked with us so good and made sure to get all the pictures we needed. Our pictures and our entire wedding was perfect thanks to him! And the location was the most beautiful place ever. It was everything we expected and more!
Really didn't know what to expect booking wedding online but it was wonderful and stress free. My husband and I just went down with our maid of honor and best man. We got married at the creek location. The minister Jim Easton and photographer Eric were both very friendly and professional. The creek is an absolutely beautiful location, in pictures it almost doesn't look real.
The photographer and Minister were great. While the actual ceremony was only 10-15 minutes anything and everything you would want covered during your vows was said. His anecdotes, choice of verses, and selections we were to repeat to one another fit us wonderfully. Eric was kindly patient with us both. We are not picture people. Selfies aren't part of our vocabulary and the predictable couple's photo at family functions usually ends up with us making faces at each other and goofing off. Eric talked us through the shots and soon the three of us were getting along like old friends. I honestly wasn't expecting much from our photos, not due to his skill but because of our not so photogenic ways. I was ecstatic when they came in. He managed to capture our joy in each photo.
They were amazing. Answered all of my questions, were very easy to work with, and very easy to get a hold of. Professional, patient, fun! Very satisfied. We had a 3 month old son and everyone was so patient with us and him!
Perfect 💞 Eric and New Beginnings Photography are perfect for your special day! I had this vision of what I wanted for our wedding and scheduling a wedding out of town is not easy!! Eric answered all my questions and was very helpful. When we arrived the beautiful day with sunshine was not meant to be....it rained the whole evening. Eric assured me everything would be beautiful and it was!! The pictures we took outside you can't even tell it's raining! Eric didn't rush us and even though we were all soaked by the end it was PERFECT!!!
Cade’s Cove is an amazing ceremony site. Choosing an Elopement package from New Beginnings was the best wedding decision we made! It was an intimate, meaningful, magical experience. And the photos turned out amazing. We will cherish the memories for the rest of our lives!
I understand the chaos of working with large numbers of people and getting them round up to do a picture. It’s a pain. I feel he was very patient, and seemed very polite and down to earth. I think he was great with the children and the entire family. The location was absolutely beautiful, and we couldn’t ask for a better place to be married
It was a great overall experience and more than we could have hoped for. Thanks to New Beginnings for a experience and the outstanding photos. We loved the album, in addition to the professional photo's, you can see the extra thought put into placement of the photos. I certainly recommend New Beginnings in Gatlinburg for your wedding or any special occasion.
The Minister was Absolutely wonderful! The photographer was so nice and great! We love our photos!!!
We made the right choice having Eric be our photographer. He was on time, professional, came directly to our cabin and then went with us to a mountain view site - at each place his photographs captured everything we wanted. The picture quality is amazing, and the photo album that he put together for us is top notch. My wife and I are happy with every aspect of the services Eric provided, we cannot recommend him enough to anyone looking for a wedding photographer in the Smokies!
We didn't know what to expect with buying a wedding package, but it was great. Really easy and a couple weeks before our wedding, we received reminders of things we needed to do for our big day. Our pictures turned out wonderfully. Eric was so great with everyone and took the time to capture our very special moments.
We used Eric and New Beginnings Photography to take our wedding pictures of our wedding. Great pictures, good package and easy to work with. Eric did everything for our small wedding ceremony (only 14 people total including him and minister). He took the pictures, found the minister, and got the permit to get married in the national park. It was nice having everything included so we didn't need to worry about anything, especially since we were not from the area. Only bad part was the temperature outside-which was our fault for getting married in the winter :)
I choose Eric with New Beginnings Photography due to fact he did wedding pictures in Cades Cove, TN. He was so easy to work with over the phone and even easier on my wedding day. Also making sure my dress looked right, the sun was right,that everything was great. I could not believe when we got our pictures how wonderful they were. We have received many compliments. GREAT PHOTOGRAPHER!!!!!!!!!
Contact
Gatlinburg, Pigeon Forge, Sevierville, and beyond
- Wedding Vendors/
- Wedding Photographers/
- Tennessee Wedding Photographers/
- Gatlinburg Wedding Photographers/