Meet Rachel! Chattanooga Wedding & Elopement Photographer

Hi, I'm Rachel the face (and camera) behind R Photos, a documentary-style wedding, elopement, and portrait photographer now proudly based in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

I grew up in Maryville, right at the base of the Smoky Mountains, and for years I built my business photographing weddings and elopements across Knoxville, the Smokies, and East Tennessee. My husband Andrew and I recently made the move to Chattanooga, and honestly? We're smitten. Between the river, the mountains, and this incredible community of makers and dreamers, it already feels like home and I can't wait to fall even more in love with this city through my camera lens.

Rachel Kosky, Tennessee wedding photographer, laughing and dancing in a golden hour field with camera in hand and arms outstretched — R Photos, Chattanooga TN
A decorative Christmas ornament with a large white letter 'R' on a dark green background, topped with a brown bow.
Soft editorial portrait of a blonde woman in a mustard dress standing in a Tennessee field at golden hour, low-angle perspective with open sky

How I Got Here

I've had a camera in my hands since high school. What started as a hobby turned into a career when I studied Graphic Design and Photography in college, and I've now been working in the wedding industry for over a decade. In 2024, I took the leap to go full-time with R Photos and I have been so incredibly blessed by the amazing clients and couples who've trusted me with their most meaningful days since.

I'm so excited for what's ahead as I continue growing R Photos here in Chattanooga and the surrounding Tennessee area and I'd love for you to be part of that story.

2011 called, it wants its Canon T3i back. (Absolutely not, this thing started everything.) ifykyk

Illustration of a log cabin surrounded by trees and flowers, framed within an oval border.
A woman with long hair is taking a photograph outdoors with a camera, standing near a tree trunk with a blurry natural background.
An illustration of a man and woman dancing, with the man wearing glasses, a hat, and a striped shirt, and the woman in a black dress with flowing hair, inside a decorative frame.

Reading romance novels faster than I can buy bookshelves

Two women smiling and posing together in front of a backdrop with the text 'The Wiz' repeated across it. They are dressed casually, one in a green top and the other in a light-colored cardigan, both wearing jeans and platform shoes.

Rachel, Unfiltered

A woman with blonde hair smiling widely, lying down with a child on her back. The child, with light brown hair, is smiling and leaning forward. The background shows a white wall and a window.
Rachel Kosky, Tennessee photographer, walking outside Neighborly Books with a book and water bottle on a sunny day — personal brand photo for R Photos in Maryville TN
R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky and her husband embracing and smiling in a Tennessee woodland during fall, warm tones and soft natural light — documentary wedding photographer in Chattanooga, TN
Candid portrait of R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky seated in a dry winter meadow at golden hour, smiling down at her camera — documentary wedding and elopement photographer in Chattanooga, TN

Ocean swims are my therapy

My husband Andrew and I met in college while singing in our concert choir.

Warm golden hour portrait of R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky in a mustard dress enjoying a watermelon slice in a Tennessee meadow — approachable, joyful wedding photographer based in Chattanooga, TN

DINKs at home, favorite auntie & uncle everywhere else

Ice cream is essential after every meal

Candid and playful photo of R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky enjoying an ice cream cone on a sunny pier, tote bag over her shoulder and sunglasses in hand — the real person behind the camera
R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky standing on volcanic coastal rocks with arms wide open, ocean stretching to the horizon — adventure-loving wedding and elopement photographer available for destination shoots

Mom and I are big thespians. Traveling to Nashville Tennessee to see all our favorite shows

Candid mirror selfie of a blonde woman in sunglasses and a black fleece jacket in a colorful mural bathroom — Tennessee wedding photographer with personality
R Photos photographer Rachel Kosky exploring a dramatic misty volcanic hillside, green grass and rolling fog stretching to the horizon — available for destination elopements and adventure sessions worldwide

I want a hotdog almost all the time

I’m a soft soul in a hard world and that’s my super power

I love to travel

My Approach & Values — Chattanooga & Nashville Wedding Photographer

  • Document First, Curate Second

    When you hire me as your Chattanooga wedding photographer, here's what you're really getting: a quiet witness to your day.

    My approach is simple: document first, curate second. Most of your day, I'm watching, waiting, and capturing life as it unfolds, completely unposed. Real moments, exactly as they happen.

    But I'm also there when you want the classics: the formal family portraits, the posed shots with your wedding party, the timeless images you'll frame and pass down. I step in, get everyone set, work my expertise, then fade right back into the background to keep documenting. You get both: the polished shots and the real ones.

    My specialty is capturing the moments you don't even know are happening.

    • Grandma's tears as you walk down the aisle

    • The veil, forgotten on a stump in the forest

    • The exact second the light catches your eyes right before your first look

    These are the photographs you can't ask for and can't recreate. They only exist because someone was watching closely enough to catch them. As a Chattanooga wedding photographer who blends documentary storytelling with intentional, posed portraiture, I give you the full picture of your day: candid and curated, real and refined.

  • R Photos was built on one thing from the very beginning, all are welcome.

    I believe in the beauty of a diverse community, full of people who are uniquely, wonderfully different. I know what it feels like to be different, to sit in a room and feel like not all tables are willing to be gentle with your differences, like not all chairs are made for you.

    So no matter who you are, or where in Tennessee you're celebrating, I want you to feel welcome in front of my camera. Welcome to be different. Welcome to be happy, sad, joyful, silly, or all of it at once. Welcome to feel safe enough to fill the frame with goofy faces and real laughter. Welcome to kiss the person you love and know that moment will be remembered too exactly as it happened, exactly as you are.

    This is what you can expect when you work with R Photos as your wedding or elopement photographer in Chattanooga, Nashville, the Smoky Mountains, and across Tennessee: a space where you don't have to perform. You can show up as yourself.

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