Bride and Groom Photobombed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX Rocket Launch

A wedding photographer captured the extraordinary moment a bride and groom found themselves photobombed by a space rocket belonging to Elon Musk.

Jennifer Juniper of Daytona Beach, Florida, told Newsweek she first began to specialize in wedding photography after finding herself drawn to “the drama of it all.”

“I love my job, and creating dramatic wedding imagery,” she said. So she was the perfect person to have on hand when a photo shoot with newlyweds Amy Vargo and Kevin Cohen took a dramatic turn.

Amy Vargo and Kevin Cohen watch on. The couple were photobombed by a space rocket belonging to Elon Musk.
Jennifer Juniper Photography

When it comes to the most important elements of a good wedding, finding the right photographer ranks pretty highly. In a 2021 survey of 2,000 recently married Americans commissioned by online marketplace Minted, finding a photographer or videographer ranked as the fourth-most important element of the big day.

That puts it behind only selecting the venue, choosing the wedding dress and deciding who makes up the wedding party. Given how things turned out, this happy couple are likely to have been glad to have had Juniper on hand, although it wasn’t quite how they had originally planned it.

Juniper had been hired to take photographs at a small wedding at Castle Otttis in St. Augustine. However, the couple ended up eloping in North Carolina, so the shoot took on a different meaning, with Vargo and Cohen posing for pictures there in the same attire they wore on their wedding day.

“Castle Otttis is an incredible hidden gem in St. Augustine, and then we shot at Magnolia Street outside of the Fountain of Youth, and finally the Castillo de San Marcos, the St. Augustine Fort,” Juniper recalled. That was where they captured the money shot of the bride and groom standing together watching as SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket launched.

Juniper, who had her sister alongside her, serving as a lighting assistant, said they were aware of what was about to come when she started snapping.

“We knew there was a scheduled launch at 5:27, which was right at sunset, and I knew we were finishing our session at the Fort,” she said. “I HOPED that if we timed it right, and got the right angle, and that the launch wasn’t postponed, that there was a chance we could get it in the frame.”

“I wasn’t sure what the visibility would be that far north, and I knew the couple was getting tired of pictures. But they were great sports, and we positioned ourselves so that if the launch happened, and IF we could see it from up there, it could be in the shot.”

Amy Vargo, Kevin Cohen and the rocket.
Amy Vargo, Kevin Cohen and the rocket.
Jennifer Juniper Photography

Juniper said her sister quite literally counted down the launch as they waited to see if they could get it into frame. After a few tense moments, to borrow NASA parlance, it was mission accomplished.

“Sure enough, it was in the frame and we got the shot,” she said. “I wish I could have frozen time to really play with the lighting a bit, but given the circumstances, I’m happy with how everything turned out.”

Amy Vargo and Kevin Cohen happy together.
Amy Vargo and Kevin Cohen look on as the rocket heads into orbit.
Jennifer Juniper Photography

While the image is spectacular to say the least, Juniper isn’t resting on her laurels and reckons she has taken plenty of similarly eye-catching images in her work as a wedding photographer.

“I’ve had the amazing opportunity to get some really fun pictures in my career. I’ve had dolphins jumping over my couples, wrangled gators, and had a couple pose with a giant boa constrictor,” she said. “The fact that every wedding is different is what makes it so exciting and is a huge part of why I love doing weddings.”

While Juniper admits she isn’t all that active on Twitter and is therefore oblivious to much of the online discussion around Musk, she does have a message for the SpaceX owner.

“If Elon ever does see this, I REALLY want a Tesla truck!!” she said. ” I definitely think it matches my ‘over the top’ and unique aesthetic! The Jennifer Juniper-mobile is due for an upgrade. And that if he ever needs pictures to give me a call.”