Leading LGBTQ Detroit Photographer capturing all the color & chaos in your celebration
About Kari - Detroit Photographer Specializing in LGBTQ weddings
I’m a Detroit photographer for couples who do not want cookie-cutter wedding photos. I work with artists, analog lovers, and anyone planning a celebration that feels like them. I shoot on 35mm and medium format film (with digital in the mix too), creating images that are alive, imperfect on purpose, and full of color.
Most of the couples I work with are LGBTQ+ or allies, planning weddings and elopements that bend the rules instead of following them. If that sounds like you, we will get along just fine.
If you are dreaming of photos that look vibrant, unscripted, and unapologetically you, let’s make it happen.
Kari’s Approach to Weddings
Kari Paine (she/her) is a photographer in Detroit, Michigan, who works primarily with 35mm film, blending a documentary-style approach with vibrant, editorial flair. With almost a decade in the industry, her work captures both the quiet, fleeting moments and the bold, joy-filled celebrations that make each wedding day truly unique.
Kari is passionate about photographing non-traditional weddings—the ones that break the mold, toss the rulebook, and reflect the couple’s real personalities. She believes that beautiful, artful images don’t require fancy decorations or a perfect timeline. Every love story deserves to be told with honesty, heart, and style.
As a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, Kari creates a safe, inclusive space for all couples in Detroit, Michigan, and beyond. Her photography is rooted in connection and care, with a focus on making everyone feel seen, comfortable, and celebrated.
Documentary Wedding Photography in Detroit, Grand Rapids, Traverse City, and Beyond
Based in Detroit, Michigan, Kari serves Grand Rapids, Traverse City, and is always ready to travel throughout the Midwest, East Coast, and beyond. She has photographed weddings across the US and globe.
If you're looking for wedding photography in Detroit or beyond, that’s authentic, colorful, editorial, and full of soul. Kari brings a fresh, art-forward perspective—documenting your day with both subtlety and intention.
Detroit Photography Services
Full-day wedding coverage
A supportive, affirming presence from morning preparations to final dance, capturing the full story of your day. After we talk, I’ll create a custom proposal based on the number of photographers and duration.
Elopements
Intimate weddings with only a handful of guests in attendance. If you’re LGBTQ+ and eloping because you’re afraid that SCOTUS might take away our right to marry, reach out and I’ll give you a discounted rate.
Destination weddings
I’ll travel anywhere. Tell me your location and I’ll create a custom proposal that includes travel. I consider travel anything over 4 hours from Detroit, MI and work hard to keep prices fair and relevant to the travel required.
Love Notes from Detroit Couples
“Kari is such an incredible and talented photographer. Beyond that, she is a caring and kind and thoughtful human, doing everything she can to make you feel comfortable and seen in your vision of what you want to capture. She has such a great eye for beauty and detail. She also takes the time to get to know the people she is working with, which is such a nice luxury to be able to gain that trust and understanding. A great person and photographer, who goes above and beyond.”
- Lexie & Kayla
