Does Joseph West travel to Marfa for weddings?

Yes. Joseph has photographed in Marfa since 2012 and takes a small number of far West Texas commissions each year, by appointment.

Does he photograph on film?

Yes — medium-format film alongside digital. The West Texas night sky is part of why; it doesn't read on digital the way it does on film.

Which Marfa venues has he photographed?

The Capri, Hotel Saint George, The Sentinel, and Corte del Norte, along with ceremonies in the open desert outside the Chinati Foundation.

Far West Texas · By appointment

Marfa Wedding Photographer

Joseph West is a film wedding photographer who has been photographing in Marfa since 2012 — from the courtyard at the Capri to ceremonies in the open desert outside the Chinati Foundation. He works in medium-format film and digital, by appointment, taking a small number of commissions a year. The Marfa light, and the West Texas night that doesn't read on digital, is exactly what this practice was built to hold.

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Marfa has my heart

The first time I came to Marfa it wasn't for a wedding. It was 2012 — a few friends, a few rolls of film, no real plan. I've been coming back ever since. Most photographers visit Marfa once; I've spent more than a decade learning how it photographs across the seasons, and it has become the place I'd point any couple toward who wants their wedding to feel like nowhere else in Texas.

What I've learned shooting here: the desert outside the Chinati Foundation gives you a ceremony with nothing behind it but light and distance — guests squinting into the low November sun, a veil caught in the wind for the whole processional. The Capri courtyard turns over to string lights after dark. Hotel Saint George, the Sentinel, and Corte del Norte each hold a wedding differently. And the part nobody can fake: the stars over West Texas at one in the morning. They simply don't read on digital. That is what the film is for.

How I work here

Marfa is small, remote, and worth planning around. The light moves fast and the town runs on its own clock — so a Marfa wedding rewards couples who give the days room to breathe: a welcome dinner the night before, an unhurried ceremony timed to the desert light, a reception that lets the sky take over. I photograph a small number of weddings a year so I can give each one that kind of attention, on film and digital both, and I travel for roughly half of the weddings I commission.

Selected Marfa work

More across Texas and beyond in the full archive, or read about Joseph. For the open desert, the Hill Country is close kin — see Round Top.

Questions couples ask

Does Joseph West travel to Marfa for weddings?: Yes. Joseph has photographed in Marfa since 2012 and takes a small number of far West Texas commissions each year, by appointment.
Does he photograph on film?: Yes — medium-format film alongside digital. The West Texas night sky is part of why; it doesn't read on digital the way it does on film.
Which Marfa venues has he photographed?: The Capri, Hotel Saint George, The Sentinel, and Corte del Norte, along with ceremonies in the open desert outside the Chinati Foundation.

A Marfa wedding is a commission, not a package — a small number each year, by appointment.

Begin a commission →