Emily Gualdoni Photography

I cannot recommend Emily enough! I was looking for a photographer that was willing to work with me for a surprise proposal that I had planned. I researched other photographers and spoke to a handful, but from the start Emily was professional but also fun and extremely easy to work with. I shared my ideas with her and as the day drew closer she realized that due to the season or time of the day, some of the shots would probably not work out. She had a ton of great suggestions that were even better than what I had planned.
Emily got some great candid shots of me proposing to my girlfriend, and then we went on a photo shoot around Chicago. After the proposal Emily was great at making sure that we stuck to our schedule, checking and giving us suggestions to make sure the photos looked well, and capturing great light and backgrounds across the city.
Emily got us our photos really quickly, and we were blown away by how great they ALL were. We’ve been very happy and proud to show off our proposal photos, and everyone has loved them.
I can honestly say that my proposal would not have turned out as great as it did without Emily! Thanks Emily!

Emily is simply the best. I have high expectations and standards and Emily continues to meet them. She has a wonderful attention to detail and a wonderful work ethic. She is humble even though her work is so exceptional and is always ready to meet her clients needs. I have worked with Emily on 4 shoots now and will continue to use her in the future. In my experience I have not found another photographer on her level and i have worked with many photographers as I modeled for 10 years. I highly recommend her.

Emily is exceptional, and I couldn’t be happier that we hired her for our wedding on July 25^th. We spent a TON of time researching a photographer, and she was by far our favorite option — we’re so lucky she was available! She was easy to get in touch with, and responded quickly with a way to work within our budget. Leading up to the wedding she was so helpful, and she asked all the right questions so that she knew what we were looking for in our photos.
And then she was PERFECT the day of the wedding. My mom mentioned that she felt like she barely saw her, which meant she wasn’t obnoxiously standing in the middle of the dance floor, or standing in front of guests. She got the most amazing pictures without inserting herself into the middle of the party. She also knew the best lighting for sunset photos, and chose a perfect time to get those (while people were still eating, but when we had finished). You could tell she’s an incredibly creative and talented photographer by the way she saw potential pictures, and worked quickly to get them.
I was ready to burst into happy tears when we received our wedding photos — a short month after the wedding! They captured the joy and love of the day, and she had a nice variety of photos, without overwhelming us. We’re an interracial couple, and Emily did such a nice job with the lighting so that we both looked great! You will not regret hiring Emily — she was the BEST!!!

My experience with Emily was absolutely amazing. I had boudoir pictures taken with her as a gift for my fiancé. I had never done anything like this before — she was so fun and easy to work with. She is extremely professional and so talented. Her work is amazing, my fiancé absolutely loved the pictures. I would highly recommend her!

Emily is amazing. She was referred to me by another photographer for a boudoir session for my husband. I also did bridal shots. Everything turned out perfectly. She made me so at ease and the pictures turned out better than can be expected. I was blown away. From there we had her edit our wedding pictures (done by another photographer). Which again turned out amazingly. She also created us a slideshow we could share with everyone. My only regret is that I did NOT find her before our own wedding as I would have loved her to capture that! I recommend Emily to anyone looking for a photographer, her work is truly incredible.

I was referred to Emily for my boudoir photo shoot by a friend who had great reviews. Sure enough, she was spot on. Emily was personable and easy going from the moment I made contact. She was focused on making my boudoir shoot a comfortable, fun and sexy occasion. She was super generous with her time when we met for photos and also very creative with our shots. She was great for guiding me with my faces and body positioning. The final product is wonderful and I’m sure that my husband will agree !

If I could give Emily 10 stars, I would. She and her 2^nd photographer, Vanessa, shot our wedding in Santa Monica, CA this past November. They were both amazing! Emily and I had talked a couple times before the wedding about what the most important things that we wanted captured from the day were, what kind of feeling were we going for, etc. and she definitely delivered.
Beautiful photos of our wedding day were one of our top priorities for our wedding. We wanted photos of the day that captured the fun, excitement, all our guests who came from afar, the beautiful scenery and the whole feeling of the day. Emily and Vanessa gave us exactly what we asked for. They gracefully handled our families and guests’ many requests for a picture of this or that group of people, while balancing capturing all the candid moments and love of our wedding day. They were awesome the whole day and all our wedding guests loved both of them and couldn’t stop raving about how wonderful Emily was and how they were sure the photos were going to turn out amazingly.
And they did turn out aaaamazing! Emily created a slideshow for us of so many of our pictures as a preview and I still watch at least once a week! (I linked it here for anyone who wants to see more of her amazing work:
). I really just can’t say enough about how wonderful it was working with Emily and how happy we are with our photos! Hiring Emily as our wedding photographer was the best choice ever and we couldn’t be happier!

I have known Emily for several years. She initially did my head-​shots as well as my husbands, and her talent is truly astounding. She shot our engagement photos as well as our wedding photos, and we have received non-​stop compliments! Her eye for catching beautiful moments and her true hopes to capture the most precious memories is unbelievable. She is BEYOND accommodating, talented, and generous with her time. She takes serious pride in her craft and we were SO blessed to have her partake in such important parts of our lives. THANK YOU EMILY!!! Your gift is absolutely breathtaking!

Emily is just fantastic. I did a boudoir photography shoot with her as a surprise gift for my fiancée and the entire experience was amazing. Emily worked closely with me to figure out which of her photography packages was the right fit for me. Before the shoot she gave really helpful tips on what to wear, how to pose and which poses to practice, and so on.
The day of the shoot was amazing. The hair/​make-​up person (Paula Heckenast with City Lights Makeup) Emily selected was wonderful and did a great job on both of my looks. I was worried that the three hours we’d set aside for shooting wouldn’t be enough, but Emily worked so efficiently and well to make sure she captured all of the outfits I brought in all sort of different poses. She was extremely professional the whole time but also friendly and made me feel quite at ease.
Emily’s creativity and artistry shine through her work. The photos I received from the shoot were breathtaking — I had no idea I could look like that. She gave me a lot of great advice when I was choosing which photos I wanted for the book, and she was very open to my feedback as we decided together how to lay them out. I gave my boudoir book to my fiancée the night before our wedding and he was blown away.
I have to say that, going into this whole experience, I was excited about the gift-​giving part of it and surprising my soon-​to-​be-​husband. But after the shoot I felt amazing, and I’m convinced boudoir sessions are something all women should do. It is such a wonderful feeling not only to be pampered but the rush of confidence I felt both during the shoot and once I saw the amazing photos was priceless. I am so glad that I’ll have these uniquely personal and beautiful images for the rest of my life, and I’ll definitely consider doing this again in a few years (another special occasion gift for the hubby perhaps?)
THANK YOU, EMILY!!!

I had an excellent boudoir session with Emily! She responds quickly to email and answered all my questions before the shoot in a timely manner. She made sure to make me feel comfortable the whole time (provided me a glass of champagne, made sure I was warm enough, made sure I liked the music, etc). The best part is she was able to complete my finished/​edited photos in time for my fiancé’s birthday, even though it was quicker than the turnaround time she has in the contract. She’s passionate about what she does and made it really fun to work with her. The photos are perfectly processed and not overly-​retouched. They look amazing and my fiancé loves them too!

Just got back my photos from a Boudoir Shoot I did with Emily Gualdoni. I did these as a wedding gift for my soon to be husband. I’m no Victoria Secret model, so the idea of the whole experience was a little nerve-​racking. Emily went out of her way to make me super comfortable, and not embarrassed prancing around in my underwear.
She really took her time and it was obvious she knew exactly what she was doing. From the way she told me how to pose, and even demonstrated it, to telling me exactly what direction to look in the whole experience was an awesome one. It was nice to have a bunch of different setting options, and she really listened to the «style» of vintage looking photos I wanted.
Boudoir photos can be tricky, and I looked at other companies before deciding to go with Emily. A bad photographer could totally ruin what is supposed to be a beautiful and empowering experience! Choosing Emily was by far the best choice. I even traveled from out of state!
She got my photos back to me very quickly, and after I picked out my favs Emily got the edited versions back to me even quicker. They were SOOO beautiful! While I like to think I’m in shape there are still some things NO woman wants captured on film. The photo editing was done just right. Sometimes photographers get carried away and over edit (or don’t edit at all!), but the photos just looked like a better version of me :)
As a fellow creative person, I would highly recommend Emily for ANY type of photos. Lots of people claim to be «photographers», but Emily is a true professional who has a real talent for her craft. If you don’t get photos taken by her at least once in your lifetime you are missing out!

Emily Gualdoni is one of a kind. My husband and I had the privilege of having Emily photograph our engagement session and our wedding. All of our photos were absolutely beautiful, truly high end magazine style, & vibrant.
Emily is very kind, talented, flexible, professional, and prompt with communication. I would recommend Emily to any of my friends or relatives getting married. You will be in good hands!

I have worked with Emily a few times now and she is without a doubt the best of the best. Her shots are classic, elegant and unique. She recently shot our wedding reception and I was blown away at how beautiful EVERY picture was.
*Plus she has a great personality and attitude! Simply amazing.

Emily is absolutely amazing! I was completely blown away by my experience and results. I was on a budget, and searching for a photographer to take some boudoir photos for me to give to my husband for his wedding gift. I contacted countless photographers, many of whom just failed to respond, then I found Emily. Not only did she charge a fraction of what others did, she is tremendously talented. I booked a 1.5 hour package with her, that included the rights to 20 edited photos with the option to purchase more. This is a fantastic deal. She mentioned that she didn’t mind going over to get the right shots. Not only did she nearly double the photo shoot time because she was having such a good time, she threw in many additional edits completely free of charge. What?! Amazing! I wanted to compile the photos into a large hardcover book for my husband. The fact that I was able to get the rights to the photos and get a book made on my own, saved me so much money. She did offer getting the book through her as well, which I have no doubt would have been amazing, but being on a budget I opted for the cheaper option. The fact that I had options in the first place made me very happy. When I saw my photos, even before the editing, I couldn’t believe it. I was planning on not showing anyone the photos save for my husband, but I ended up showing several friends because I couldn’t believe it! Especially my butt. She made my butt look real good. I was very nervous as I have never been photographed or nearly nude in front of anyone before, and she made me feel at ease and gave excellent feedback and direction. I just gave my husband the book last week, and the look on his face was priceless. He just kept screaming «what?!» and «this belongs in a magazine!» Among others. He said it was the best gift I could ever give him. Thanks to Emily we can both look back on this amazing book when we are old and wrinkly and remember how great my butt looked :)

Emily is an incredibly talented artist photographer who can capture the essence of so many styles of shooting… whatever your vision is for your wedding day photography. She captures photojournalistic, artsy, fashiony and romance all in the same day. She is young and stylish and a whiz at retouching and edits due to her fashion and beauty– work experience. She has many published works and her talent continues to grow. I would encourage any discriminating bride to hire Emily– who seeks an emphasis on her pictures… To me the images are the most important aspect of a wedding day.
You won’t be sorry about this decision…

Just got my first boudoir session done with Emily. She’s a great photographer, she knows how to angle her camera to hide your weak spots. A+ and since it was my first time, she make sure I was comfortable and help me with posing. Would recommend her to everyone:)

Emily shot our wedding on 7÷20÷12 and did a stunning job. She has a truly incredible eye and the photos were fantastic. While taking photos in different locations, Emily would find these little undiscovered places and I’m so happy we stopped where she recommended because the photos were absolutely outstanding. Some of the backgrounds she found on the fly were so gorgeous. She really has a beautiful eye. We have been getting so many compliments on the photos for weeks now. It is so important to have an excellent photographer for your wedding and I would recommend Emily highly to any soon to be bride! The team that Emily brought with her was also really fantastic, super talented, and very professional.

Some brides splurge on the dress. Others, on the flowers or the cake. For me (and for my husband) the photographer was the most important part of the day. We’d heard horror stories from other couples about how their photographers missed this moment or that or in some cases even got blurry pictures. That’s why we spent hours upon hours, day after day, combing the internet and calling people’s referrals until we found Emily Gualdoni.
Emily Gualdoni is hands down the best lead photographer I could have asked for. She and (my good friend and stellar photographer in his own right) second-​shooter Phil Nwafor, were the only people we trusted to get the day right. With more than 450 guests, we knew that it was a big job and that the team we hired would have to be up for it. Shooting weddings is not easy to begin with, especially with guests attempting to pull you from place to place to get this shot and that, but both Emily and Phil handled it with the utmost professionalism.
We described the feel we wanted for the wedding photos: romantic, not cheesy (i.e. no simultaneous jumps in the air by members of the wedding party). What we got from her was even more: t was truly magical. You could SEE the love between us. How she and Phil captured that, I will never know, but I am so thankful that they both did.
On top of that, Emily got a lot of the shots while under the gun! We only allotted about an hour and a half for all of the traditional/​formal shots of the bridal party and for the «wedding couple only» shots. Since we were shooting in between the wedding ceremony and the reception, we didn’t want to keep our guests waiting at the reception site too long and Emily was mindful of that, working as quickly as she could, but also as efficiently as she could WITHOUT cutting corners.
What we got back several weeks later was breathtaking! As any bride knows, even with a wedding coordinator, you feel very much rushed (and flushed) that day trying to make sure everything goes according to schedule. I was honestly a bit worried that I would look tired or drained. Emily and Phil made me look like an angel (and no, I am not bragging… if anything I am bragging about them! LOL!) and my husband looked absolutely amazing… more so than he usually does ;) We couldn’t be happier with the end product!
Her prices are more than fair. She’s kind and professional. She’s great at communicating. And — she is calm under pressure. Our only problem with Emily is that she took so many great photos, it was hard to decide which ones to put in the album! However, I think that’s one complaint that she wouldn’t mind hearing. She is exactly what you want out of a wedding photographer. Emily Guladoni Photography is indeed, perfect. 5 stars all around!
P. S. Emily and Phil were also willing to travel (our wedding was in Milwaukee).

We got our pictures back from Emily a while back… just haven’t gotten a chance to update! The picture turn around was awesome (about a week or so) and we totally love what we got! So price awesome, accommodation awesome, absolutely talented, and wonderful pictures. Hopefully next time we’re in back in Chicago, we’ll book another appointment with her. If you voice what you want, you’ll get what you want. Totally recommend her.

I cannot wait for my June 11^th wedding because, duh, I’m getting married to the man I love, but also because I have an fabulous photographer, Emily Gualdoni, who will be capturing the event! You may be asking, «How do I know she awesome if my wedding hasn’t happened yet?’ Well, we just got our engagement photos back, and they rock! Exactly what we hoped for, in that they capture my finace and I, our love and silliness and such, in a real way that is also artistic and interesting.
Emily took the time to show a variety of her photographs to us when we met her, so we could talk about what things we liked and how we hoped our photos look. She was utterly open to taking engagement photos for us at The Map Room (Bucktown beer bar/​café), where we all joked around and drank beer. She even managed to get priceless pictures of Paul and I iceskating downtown, from her position off the ice, with dozens of people around.
Emily has proved to be extremely professional and friendly from the beginning, and offers packages that include far more than most other photographers we looked into, at a reasonable rate. She is so sweet and easy to contact, very fast as well. Our enagement pics were posted online a week later! Stay tuned for more, I will absolutely follow up with how our wedding pictures go, until then, consider hiring Emily for your wedding or other photography needed, she’s awesome!