Dark Roux

Wedding | Last Updated: April 4, 2024

Hey everyone! We’re Jamie and Heather of Dark Roux Photography. We’re a husband and wife team based out of New Orleans Louisiana.

So here’s our story, In 2007 we secretly eloped after being engaged for 2 years and ended up getting married in the basement of a pawn shop just out side of Washington DC. In 2010 a close friend asked us to shoot her elopement on Mardi Gras day here in New Orleans and that was when we realized what we missed out on by not having any photos of our own wedding. That single event became the catalyst that moved us towards specializing in wedding photography full time.

For the first couple of years we shot every wedding together, but we’ve since split up taking on weddings of our own. When we first started shooting weddings we only had 2 bodies, the Nikon D70s and Nikon D90 along with a couple of cheap Tamron 24-70mm lenses. But we rocked what we had and invested back into our business with every wedding we shot until we had the gear we wanted.

Even though we shoot separately our kits are identical so without further ado.

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Camera Bodies

Nikon D750 – This camera just blew us away. It does everything we need and it weighs no where near what the Nikon D4 weighs which was the biggest selling point for us.

The wedding culture in New Orleans is vastly different from anywhere else. Our weddings end with a’Second Line’ which is a private parade through the streets lead by a brass band for the couple and all of their guests. So after shooting for 8 hours, lugging your equipment through the French Quarter and being able to get the shot you need is crucial. The ‘Second Line’ is no time to have back pain from holding a heavy camera all night.

Nikon D4 – This was our work horse and is a fantastic camera body but since we’ve purchased the Nikon D750 it’s become our secondary camera body. This comes out during ceremonies when we might want to walk around with a different lens option.

Nikon D700 – These bodies have become our backups. We always have to make sure if the ‘you know what’ hits the fan, we’re prepared and are still able to carry on with coverage.

Lenses

Sigma Art 35mm f/1.4 – This thing is a beast! We love this lens, it has become essential for our bridal prep and reception shots. It’s also our lens of choice for our end of the night Second Lines.

Sigma 50mm f/1.4 – Again another lens that’s essential for our bridal prep and ceremonies. We used to use the Nikon 50mm f/1.4 but found it to be a much slower at focusing compared to the Sigma. We haven’t had the chance to play with the Art series 50mm, but we’re sure once we do that’ll be next on our list of upgrades.

Sigma 85mm f/1.4 – This guy has been our number one lens during ceremonies and portrait shots.

Nikon 60mm f/2.8 Macro – We use this lens predominantly for jewelry shots (we might also add on an extension tube for kicks). Although we’ve thrown it on for some interesting portraits.

Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8 – Even though we shoot prime 90% of the time, this lens has it moments where it shines for us. We find it particularly useful during group formals because we never need to shoot wide open anyway. When we’re going in and out of different size spaces quickly and don’t have time to change out lenses and need those different focal lengths this lens can really save us in a pinch.

Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8 VR1 – This is probably our least used lens. We know it’s a favorite for most photographers, but it just doesn’t find itself on our cameras often. Normally the only time we use it is when we’re shooting at very large churches and need to get closer to the action but have restrictions.

Flashes

Nikon SB910 (x2) for on camera flash, and Yongnuo YN510EX (x2) for off camera if needed during receptions.

Video Lights

Neewer CN-160 – We’ve started to use these on a couple of tripods during the reception in place of off camera flashes in smaller venues. Sometimes off camera flashes can over power a scene when we want to keep the lighting intimate. That’s when these come in handy. Plus they’re incredibly affordable.

Batteries

We bring lots of extra batteries because almost all of the weddings we shoot are at night and we burn through some AA’s

Triggers

PocketWizard Plus III – Just to make sure all of our flashes are talking with our cameras.

Camera Straps

We love the Holdfast Money Maker. It’s an amazing product. But we’ve recently switched to the Hold Fast ‘Ruck Strap’. They’re so comfortable, and after an all day shoot comfort is a must for us.

Our Bag

We’ve use the Think Tank Airport Security V2 for the past few years and we’ve put these guys through hell. The streets here in New Orleans are in rough shape, and they put a working on our bags. It’s so bad we’ve lost entire wheels to the streets, and Think Tank sent us new wheels free of charge. It’s that kind of service and warranty that’ll keep a customer for life!

www.darkroux.com