From Chicago With Light
From the heart of Chicago, Teri Bocko transforms photography into visual poetry. Her lens finds intimacy in grandeur, tenderness in fleeting gestures, and beauty in the play between shadow and light. Each image is a meditation on love and human connection, inviting us to pause and feel the quiet truths hidden in a glance, a touch, a breath of stillness.
Where Shadows Speak of Forever
South Asian weddings are a special part of my wedding work. Couple reception looks are usually high fashion and chic, it’s the first time the couple is out as husband and wide for their big party with family and friends. These portraits, to me, have always lent themselves to something very rich in mood and a bit editorial in nature. This couple wed at a resort in Santa Barbara and I was taken by the unique shadows in this quiet balcony. I had to hide them from guests and use the space to create something special, I was very pleased with this portrait!
In the Grace of a Glance
Shooting analog for weddings is the best! This cool groom portrait with his groomsmen was hit just at the perfect beginning of the roll to add extra drama into this already very cool Palm Springs Wedding. I am not cool enough to have taken this photo!
In the Glow of Love
I only had a few minutes to capture sunset photos of this couple and a very cramped space to do it in. Their wedding venue was an old substation and I loved the blue glass and old stone, I even got some interesting shadows from an indoor plant next to the wall. I enjoy breaking up my couples and finding unique ways to create photos with their side profiles and the frame lines they cast from the proximities of their natural body shapes and positions. I gasped when I found this frame, it’s a very special one.
Steps Toward Forever
I have a soft spot for historical buildings and this shot from the Chicago cultural center is a very favorite. I don’t love asking my couples to sit on the floor but I had to make an exception for this so their body positions could fit well into the patch of light. This image is on 35mm Kodak Portra 800.
Scarlet Serenity
Shadows are definitely a reoccurring theme in my work and this bride portrait is a forever favorite. This was just before the couples sangeet night, an evening of dancing and music during wedding week. Her pink lehenga and this intense shadow line were meant to be! Captured on Ektar 100.
Through the Garden of Applause
A perfectly captured moment on analog. The couple paraded down through all of their guests as they were showered with rice! A famed wedding tradition that is often banned from wedding venues. Fun fact: though rice probably isn’t fun to clean up, it actually does not cause any harm to birds. This is one of my proudest captures on film. Cinestill 400d.
Sacred Threads of Love
I’m always looking for ways to push the envelope with my couples portraits and one of the more unique methods I use is free-lensing. There tends to be a softness to the image that feels so romantic and whimsy, made this forest scene with harsh midday light feel airy and also a big dramatic.
Neon Reverie
Silhouettes are a big part of my portrait wedding work, I’m obsessed with any opportunity to play with shadows and darkness. This couple wanted to feature their local movie theater into their portraits. I wanted to showcase the gleaming neon in the marquee but also feature them as individuals in the frame. I used a little piece of glass against my lens to create the reflection. I have so many great ones from this series but the framing of this one makes it ultra special to me.
About the Photographer
Teri Bocko, Chicago-based photographer
Teri Bocko is a Chicago and Bay Area–based wedding photographer known for her artful, cinematic approach to storytelling with couples. She has captured weddings across the world, with features in publications such as Brides, Junebug Weddings, and Green Wedding Shoes. Recognized for her distinctive creative portraits that balance intimacy with artistry, Teri works extensively with Leica M cameras, bringing a filmic sensibility to both analog and digital capture to craft photographs that feel timeless yet modern. In addition to her photography, she shares insights, film experiments, and behind-the-scenes perspectives on her YouTube channel, connecting with a community of photographers and couples alike. With accolades from both clients and peers in the wedding industry, her work reflects not just documentation, but a personal vision that elevates portraiture into narrative art.
Website: www.teribphotography.com
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