Behind the Scenes 2019

Behind the Scenes


2019 was an unforgettable year both personally and professionally! The beginning of the season started with the birth of our daughter, Everly Anne. It was a long road to bring her into the world, and she has been the most precious and beautiful gift. She is full of joy and has shown us God’s faithfulness in countless ways this year. We are so thankful for her and can’t believe she’s ours!


The fabulous Lauren Peterson Photography came to photograph a lifestyle newborn session for us when Evy was a few weeks old, and these will forever be some of my favorite images of our little family.

After a few months of maternity leave and soaking in all the newborn snuggles, wedding season officially began in June! I was so excited to partner with Tara Nicole Weddings for our first wedding together, as well as the incredibly talented Autumn of Isibeal Studio!


Katie and Ravi had an Indian fusion wedding, which included two ceremonies and 12 hours of photography coverage! So thankful for an awesome associate team who helped me cover all the events of the day at the Ambassador House!




Didn’t Autumn do an amazing job with the florals?! So magical!!


Only my husband could capture such flattering photos of me deep in concentration!


Does something look different?! That’s right – we had an outfit change! After the Hindu ceremony everyone changed for the Christian ceremony, so we got DOUBLE the portraits which made this photographers heart overjoyed!


Then I was back in full swing for Jack and Anna’s wedding in July! This one was extra special to me since I had photographed her older sister Katie’s wedding a few years ago, and was so excited to see one of my favorite families again 🙂


Haley the magnificent assisted me again this year at the majority of my weddings, and I don’t know where I’d be without her! Catching her in the act of styling details – one of her specialties.


Also on her resume – professional dog whisperer…


dress carrier…


and bouquet holder!


Michelle is my other MVP – she travels from Ohio to second shoot with me, and she shot almost every wedding with me this year as well!! I don’t know how I got so lucky to have these girls by my side, but they are the best of the best and CLP is better because of them 🙂


And clearly I’m not the only one who loves them 😉


LOVED this group of ladies – seriously the sweetest and kindest group of girls! It was so fun to spend the day with them!


My two CLP brides/sisters <3 Couldn’t love these girls more! Such an honor to be the Stark wedding family photographer 🙂


Creating a wind tunnel on one of the hottest days of the summer! Nothing but the best for our brides!


Perfecting my grand exit pose!


How I think I look when directing bridal parties v. reality


And this bridal party was no joke!! Probably the biggest one I’ve had since her sister’s a few years ago 😉 Jack and Anna are so loved!


Ever graceful in all that I do!


Got all the bridal party portraits done right before it down-poured rain!! Success!


Back out after the storm for some vineyard portraits!


Who needs a workout program when you can fluff dresses all day?!


Haley rocking the American flag accessories – so chic for the Fourth of July wedding weekend!


Michelle making the sweltering heat look gooood!


Strongly considering sneaking a bite of cake…


Ready for those first dances!


Someone is always ready for the camera…


and some of us are not…


JK – we’re ready for the camera…most of the time 😉


Been working on my balancing acts this year!


Love getting to reconnect with past CLP couples – these two are such gems. Their wedding day was amazing and it was so fun to see them again <3


LOVE this girl. We never ever get photos together on wedding days, so even though these are blurry iphone pictures, they still count! Couldn’t imagine doing weddings without her!


Then we were off for our destination wedding of the year – my brother in law Chase, and his fiance Carley, who got married in Montana! And this time we brought a special little addition with us 😉 It was her first time traveling and she did amazing!


Rehearsal dinner with the cousins, and coffee with the bride and groom!!


Chase and Carley’s wedding day brought some intense storms – including hail, torrential rain and wind and everything in between! By a miracle we were able to get all the bridal party shots beforehand, and the ceremony was moved indoors during the storm. After the ceremony, the clouds parted and we had some amazing light for just married portraits in the beautiful Montana scenery! So amazing!


After the crazy storm we freshened up for some family photos 😉



Love these Luka ladies <3


The weather cleared and the dance party moved outside! Evy rocked her noise cancelling headphones 😉


And loved dancing with her cousins!


Then it was back to Indy with the best lighting model there ever was!


Pretty pleased with our dress-hanging skills!


And in our element – styling details!!! Seriously one of the best parts of the day!



First time shooting in this church, and it was beautiful!


Haley stepping in as professional dress holder…


dress fluffer…


swing tester…


and equipment transporter! She can do it all ladies and gents!


Forever and always loving these gardens to shoot in..so dreamy!


Michelle always gets my good side!


We kicked off September with the beautiful Talkington wedding, and Haley was back at it again with her detail styling!


Everyone got a good arm workout in with Courtney’s bouquet – it was the floral masterpiece of my dreams!


Haley making sure Drew and Courtney aren’t “lost in the woods”….any Frozen 2 fans? 😉



This bouquet obviously deserves its own future blog post.


Brought out my film camera for some beautiful golden bride and groom portraits!


Brides with cathedral veils..you are my favorite!!


Drew clearly had all of us laughing the whole day…



Haley stealing my moment in the spotlight…can you find my feet?


Nothing like that golden hour glow! And a bride who treks in 4 inch heels…Courtney you are superwoman!


I always love seeing my past #clpcouples, and these two are some of my favorites!!


The next weekend we traveled to Ohio and got to work with a very helpful videographer and a super sweet couple 🙂


Michelle sacrificing her dress to wipe all the bouquets…such an MVP.


Can you tell we’re all about those just married sunset shots? Love that my couples are up for anything!


Loved having Melissa along to assist us! She’s organized, sweet and serves my couples and me so well! Thankful for you friend 🙂


This handsome guy showed up for our last wedding of September, and I didn’t mind using him as my lighting test model 😉


This bridal suite was incredible! Loved using the ornate mirror and all the window light and white walls! A photographer’s dream!



Haley’s backkkk!


Had to sneak in another shot of my boo…rocking the serious look 😉




Haley received her Masters in dress holding this year!


A very rare opportunity for us to grab a quick snack before the ceremony…and it was AMAZING. One of the perks of a 12 hour day 😉


Someone is more excited for the ceremony than the other…


This girl never hesitates to jump in and serve my clients and their families – this was such a sweet moment of helping grandma during family formals and really encapsulates Haley’s sweet spirit and servant heart.


She may be sweet but she also keeps us laughing throughout the day …


and in the last moments of the night!


Had a blast shooting with two of my favorites at this wedding. These two keep me grounded, inspired and hydrated 😉 so that I can serve my clients from a full heart and to the best of my ability.

And also have to give a big shout out to my mom (not pictured) who drove the 4 hours round trip with us so she could hang out with Evy all day while we shot the wedding. So blessed to have the community that has surrounded and supported us in this new stage of life – couldn’t do it without them!


In October we only had 1 wedding, but did a lot of traveling for shoots and personal life! The first week we were in Colorado to visit family, and the second weekend we traveled to Chicago for an engagement shoot. Loved introducing our girl to so many fun, new places – even though traveling with a baby makes us those crazy people with all of our baggage 😉


These two were the sweetest! Loved getting to shoot here for the first time, and they even treated us to dinner afterwards! So excited to celebrate with them in April this year 🙂


The next weekend we were off to Ohio to shoot a special senior portrait session. Brandon is the one who married Tim and I 7 years ago, and we met Kira when we were just babies in college! It was so fun to shoot her portraits and to introduce Evy to the Waltz family whom we love so dearly.


We ended October with one of the most beautiful and rainy weddings we’ve ever shot! It torrentially down-poured all day, but Taylor and Trey had amazing attitudes and we created some of my most favorite work to date in spite of the weather!




Wasn’t kidding about the rain. haha Thankfully we always bring clear umbrellas, rain jackets, coats and boots to all our weddings just to be prepared, and in this case we used them ALL!


Michelle making the down pour look good 😉


Still kind of amazed that our shots were in focus with that much rain coming down!


Everyone had such a great attitude which is why I think the day went off so well, despite all the curve balls that were thrown our way! Look at those two – so cute snuggling under their umbrella!


Haley testing out her bouquet carrying skills again 😉


Even though we typically never shoot around red brick, we found this corner that allowed the natural light to come through and made it look like these two were standing in the middle of the garden instead of under an overhang! This day definitely stretched our creativity!


My coat clearly took the brunt of the weather that day haha


You’ve got to have a good sense of humor and learn to roll with the punches, no matter what the day brings 😉 Also, I take staying hydrated very seriously, as you can tell by the water bottles sticking out of both of my pockets – so classy haha




Technically this is a 2020 wedding, but it happened on January 4th, so we’re going to call it the end of the 2019 CLP season 😉 This day was just too good – I can’t wait a whole year to share the behind the scenes of all the magic!!


I had my A-team with me as always 😉 Haley did some incredible styling work on this one – probably her best to date! So proud of how much she’s grown and all that she brings to a wedding day.


Yes brides, these are all the goodies we bring with us to style your personal and sentimental details! This is a complimentary service we offer and honestly one of my favorite parts of the day!


We had a whole hour uninterrupted at the beginning of the day to shoot details in a separate room filled with window light. We showed up and the incredible wedding planner (Bridget Davis Events) had already styled several detail scenes for us and set up the wedding dress in a beautiful silhouette. I can’t tell you what a great start to day this was! We had so much time to get warmed up creatively and we were able to capture some amazing heirloom images for the bride and groom.



Cutest lighting test model around!


Another gorgeous bouquet that we loved to photograph!


Contemplating how many times I can wear this dress for weddings until I need to give in and buy a new one haha


Working on my conducting skills!


Apparently there was something very interesting outside!


Walking Corin to the first look…and what an amazing backdrop!!!


Clearly I was just a little excited about it 😉


I love how well Bridget Davis Events serves her brides – we had so much fun working together on this wedding!



Don’t be fooled – it was a super cold day in January! But our bride and groom were troopers for the shot!



Have I mentioned my love affair with cathedral veils?



Just photo bombing Corin and Zack being so cute!


Another reason Laurel Hall will remain one of my favorite Indianapolis venues…look at that staircase!! So elegant and European. I love it!


I’ve been practicing my balancing act for moments like these!


Haley’s always got my back 😉


The amazing Bridget in action! Brides, if you need a wedding planner, Bridget is your girl! This wedding was one of the most beautiful, intimate and organized that I’ve ever shot all due to her hard work and planning. She’s the best at what she does!


And can we talk about all these floral masterpieces?! Pomp and Bloom made all our romantic, whimsical dreams come true!


Cannot think of a better way to end 2019/welcome 2020 than with these ladies right here. It was an honor and a joy to work alongside Bridget and get a glimpse into the passion and detail she pours into on a wedding day for her brides.

And I could not be more thankful for Haley and Michelle – these girls have encouraged, supported and served alongside me for countless hours, and I know that CLP wouldn’t be where it is today without their investment. They are my dream team and I am so blessed by their friendship and support.

To each bride and groom that entrusted your wedding day to us – thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’m still blown away that this is my career, and that I am invited into these intimate, once in a lifetime moments. The amount of times we have felt welcomed as friends and family to your weddings has been especially meaningful. I know I say it every year, but we truly work with the best couples in the world and I don’t take that for granted.

Thank you all for your support for Chloe Luka Photography and for the love that we’ve felt as we welcomed our daughter this year as well. Looking forward to sharing with you all the fun and exciting things in store for CLP this year both personally and professionally. Cheers to 2020!

@chloeluka

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The blog is where I share stories - recent wedding celebrations, travels and even some of my own personal adventures! I hope you find inspiration and enjoyment here, as well as a vision for how I'd love to tell your story! 

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