Jillian Carruth has had a camera in her hand for as long as she can remember. She has run Jillian Marie Photography in New Orleans since 2011 with her husband, Bruce, who built his first website for a photographer when he was a teenager and now handles the studio's operations and video. A team of photographers and editors works with them. She also photographs big families, and anyone who can get a whole family relaxed enough for real smiles can probably manage one nervous couple.
Jackson Square, with the cathedral behind it, is the obvious place to ask, and it comes with horse-drawn carriages and plenty going on. Exchange Alley is the one to put to her instead. It's a narrow cobblestone passage just off Royal Street, with green-painted fronts, lanterns and iron balconies, and it's on her own list of the best places in the city because it feels private without leaving the French Quarter.
You start with a free call to work out where and when. On the day you share your location with the team, they track you in real time and get into position without tipping anyone off, and once you've asked they stay on for pictures around the city. They can have flowers, champagne and glasses waiting if you'd like.
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