#1 Wedding Photojournalist in the Americas in 2025

Written By Cindy Brown
Gold award winner wedding photojournalist association contest

Gold award-winning photo from the WPJA 2025 Q1 contest

I’m really excited (and honestly honored) to share that I found out this week I finished first among photographers in the Americas in the Wedding Photojournalist Association’s year-long contest for 2025.

The WPJA runs contests four times a year, and the photos are judged by a panel of working photojournalists. If all four judges pick a photo, it earns a gold award; three votes earns blue; and two earns purple.

At the end of the year, all the points from each quarter are added up to figure out the top wedding photojournalists in the world. Thanks to some truly amazing couples who trusted me to document their weddings—and to the judges who connected with my work—I ended up at the top of the WPJA list for photographers based in the Americas in 2025.

Wedding photographs by Cindy Brown, top WPJA photographer in the Americas in 2025
Cindy Brown
I'm an Atlanta wedding photographer who takes soulful, quirky and honest photos ...

I'm also an adventurous traveler and all-round nerd. I love to hike with my beagle/cattle dog Roux and best friend/spouse.

I was born in Atlanta, moved around a lot--30 cities and 5 states--and then came back.

After graduating from the Art Institute of Atlanta, I took a job at asmall newspaper in south Georgia, where I photographedhospital teas, pecan farmers, and beauty queens.

I photographed a biker funeral, death penalty protests andTed Bundy while interning with the Associated Press.

While a photographer for two dailies in Florida, I photographed Ronald Reagan, a train derailment and the dedication of a screened-in porch.

An unexpected life turn took me to Vermont where I fell in love with Bernie Sanders and on to Indiana, where I edited photos for a major daily, and nerded out getting a master’s and PhD.

After teaching photojournalism at colleges and universities in Florida, Indiana and Mississippi, I returned to Atlanta to earn myfifth degree--a Master's of Divinity.

My passion for storytelling with my camera and my interest in religious diversity led my to the field of wedding photojournalism.

I have documented weddings large and small, Unitarian and Pagan, indoors and out, Christian and Muslim, in backyards and in churches. The most exotic wedding I have photographed took place in Mexico and was officiated by aMayan shaman.

When I'm not photographing weddings, portraits or corporate events, I work on personal photo projects, visit friends in amemory-care home, and volunteer at a recovery center.

http://www.samesexweddingphotographers.com
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