David is an awesome photographer at A Tale Ahead photography. He is very kind and great at communicating every step of the way. He made it very easy to formulate a plan of attack for my surprise proposal at Half Moon Bay. He was quite knowledgable of that area and after syncing through a call and answering a five minute questionnaire, he made me feel I was in good hands. When my initial proposal date's weather forecast was poor, we were able to navigate successfully through a rainy day forecast and move our proposal date from Sat to Fri. The photos came out great and they also wrote a very heartwarming summary of or proposal that made the day all the more special. Thanks David! read more

David was easy to work with. On time for both the photoshoot and photo delivery dates. Flexible in terms of appointment, and also great communication. read more

Annie and David were AMAZING to work with. From our first meeting where we got to pose in their photo booth to the latest interaction with them when we worked on our photo album together, they have been the best partners! We selected both of them to do our wedding photos (they also had one of their partners take our engagement photos with them editing as they had a baby right at the same time!) and they did a seamless job of capturing the essense of our amazing day, getting a perfect mix of candid and portraits. My family was so impressed with them and they were so easy to work with. They were our favorite vendors that we worked with through the wedding process and were so flexible with our reschedule due to COVID. I couldn't recommend them highly enough - we will be using them for all future photography needs!! read more

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My wife and I worked with Annie during our SF city hall wedding, and with Annie & David both during our larger wedding celebration a few months later. They are both absolutely fantastic people and incredible photographers! They captured so many amazing and emotional moments during both days. Annie was very responsive and helped us figure out the most efficient plan for our photos on the wedding day. She also was able to move us through city hall so smoothly, give us tips on how to pose, and capture some incredibly elegant photos of us. We chose their wedding package that included a wedding album and hard drive of photos, and it took us weeks to look through all 600+ of the beautiful photos and down select to only 20-30 for the album. We highly recommend Annie & David to any of our family and friends who need photography services, they are the best! read more

We loved working with Annie and David of A Tale Ahead! We first reached out to them in 2019 for a 2020 wedding; they both were super communicative and exuberantly kind from the get-go, and we didn't realize how much that would matter until the pandemic hit. They were our first vendors to reach out within a few weeks of March 2020, saying that they would honor any change of date within 2 years and suggestions for how replan the wedding recognizing the global challenges. There was nothing more we could have expected from this all star team, and it really helped ease a lot of worries, in the midst of our caterer going out of business and other vendors being less flexible early on to consider a date change. Not to mention, Annie actually did photograph our Aug 2020 mini-backyard wedding ceremony! I credit her with making my grandparents feel comfortable because she was able to boss them around in Cantonese. :) My husband and I have never been professionally photographed, and they both really made us feel so comfortable and natural! It felt like we were photographed by friends. They helped figure out our timeline, guided us with poses, whisked us away for golden hour shots - and I'm pretty sure they have at least a shot of every person at our wedding, and so many candids! They got us a killer album within 6 weeks (!) of our wedding, and we are so happy with the photos. Needless to say, we are team A Tale Ahead if you want your photography flawless and planning stress free. Yay! read more

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David and Annie photographed my engagement and we couldn't be happier with the photos! They worked with me beforehand to determine the best location for lighting and views. They were inconspicuous and were able to capture the moment without my fiancee noticing them beforehand. They are very professional and great to work with! read more

David and Annie were super helpful with helping me plan the logistics of my proposal. They were able to accommodate me on time and place and also helped position us in order to take great photos! read more

This is a long over-due review for our amazing photographers (and now friends) Annie and David! TLDR version: Annie and David are amazing! If you're thinking of working with them, just do it! After looking through sooo many different photographers websites, we decided to go with A Tale Ahead for our engagement and wedding day! I mean, just check out their website and you'll see why. Aside from their ability to capture beautiful photos, they are so easy and fun to work with. And most importantly, my husband and I felt so comfortable with them during our sessions. They are also very organized and professional, and they will put in the extra work to make sure everything goes smoothly for you. For our engagement photos session, we chose Baker Beach and Annie's infamous Sutro Bath location. Days leading up to it, Annie was super helpful about the logistics of everything; such as what props/outfits/poses would work best for the session. Annie arrived before the session to see if the lighting/location is ideal to get the perfect photos. We had a blast the whole 2 hours and we were so thrilled to have some amazing sunset photos at Sutro Baths; everything I was envisioning! Fast forward 7 months to our wedding day, Annie and David were still just as attentive and amazing to work with. We would keep in touch through email, text messages, and phone calls to plan the wedding day. Weeks prior to the actual wedding day, we came up with a timeline and list of different group photos and that was so helpful. I can go on and on about how amazing everything was, but you probably get the idea at this point. I am so in love with all of the pictures we ended up with! And I love how fast the turn-around time was to get all the photos! We went with the package that included a physical album, and I can't stop staring at it. Annie was so patient in working with me to create the perfect album (I think I asked her to edit the layout and pictures about 7 times ) but it was so worth it and the album arrived so quickly! We also ended up getting a USB of our engagement and wedding day photos and I am so grateful that all of our photos are in one place. Thank you Annie and David for everything! read more

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Annie & David are absolutely amazing! They were one of the first vendors we chose, and we're so glad that we did. Annie was great during our engagement shoot way back in 2019 - we accidentally scheduled it on a day when the building we wanted to shoot at (SF city hall) was closed, but she rolled with the punches and came back the very next week with no complaints. I'm not great with photographs, but she was really kind and told us exactly how to pose to get the best shots possible. They were also so flexible with their time since we had two different events (a tea ceremony and our actual wedding) on different days, and Annie agreed to split her time on both days with no extra charge. Both of them were so patient and understanding when we had not one but TWO date changes due to the pandemic. Each time, David was really quick to send over a new contract to confirm all the details, and we really appreciated their professionalism. They were fantastic on the wedding day itself and captured so many beautiful shots that we're going to treasure forever. And the wedding album they offer as part of their packages is a MUST - it's clearly well-made and comes with a beautiful display box. Annie & David are fantastic, and we highly recommend working with them for your event :) read more

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Before we got engaged, I told my fiancé that my one request was to have a top notch photographer for the proposal and I was so delighted that he chose A Tale Ahead. David and Annie are so sweet and were such a joy to work with! Easy communication, quick turnaround time, and extremely accommodating with the additional poses we wanted to do during our proposal shoot. My fiancé planned an elaborate surprise proposal at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco. Since he had to plan it from across the country, it was a huge relief for him to be able to fully trust David and Annie to capture the moment perfectly. Day of, they saw to every detail, including where we should stand and how we should pose, all while giving us the space to enjoy the moment. It was incredibly sunny and windy that day but they handled it all with ease and found the perfect spot for photos. They sent us a few sneak peak photos within hours of the proposal and we received the rest of the photos + video less than two weeks later. We couldn't be happier with the results. Thank you again, David and Annie! read more

Annie and David are the very best! Would most certainly work with them again without a doubt. I had them capture my proposal and I will forever cherish the photos I received. Best part of working with them is that you can get pictures taken from two separate angles, quite cinematic! David helped me plan the best spot for the proposal by providing a detailed map of where Annie and he would be waiting for us. The whole process was smooth and they were very accommodating and understanding of last minute changes to the plan. It was as if David was a close friend who supported me through the three weeks leading up to the proposal. read more

3 years later- late review! But want to use Annie again! She was great, she did family photos for us of my parents in their 80's with all of the granddaughters at Legion of Honor. She is so sweet, patient and doesn't rush. Highly recommended! read more

A Tale ahead photography was very professional. David and Annie were amazing. My fiancé was able to reserve a session only weeks in advance. He surprised me with a proposal at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco. Annie and David were outstandingly versatile. The weather in the Bay Area that day was foggy, so we diverted to plan B. Annie and David were nothing short of a miracle as they were able to capture our special moment that we will relive forever. Their communication was outstanding, they were extremely patient and their turn around time on editing was quicker than expected. I would definitely recommend them and use them again! read more

I had no idea that my (now fiancé then) bf had been coordinating with Annie and David on a surprise proposal on our short excursion to SF. We were visiting various viewpoints and landmarks around SF. I had no idea the bf was texting with David to let them know where we were and when we were expecting to arrive at Marshall's Beach. David and Annie were already at the beach when we were making our way down the trail. I thought they were just fellow tourists but as soon as the bf got down on one knee I noticed Annie taking pictures of us like paparazzi I didn't notice David until we were done with the proposal and Annie instructed us to do additional shots walking towards David. Thank you, David and Annie, for capturing our magical moment! I love that within a couple hours David sent us 2 pics as sneak peak. Then they shared their blog post in 3 days and we got our fully edited pictures 6 days from the proposal! I'm amazed at their quick turnaround! LOOOVE the photos *** Below is review from fiancé *** David was always quick to respond (usually within a couple hours) and very knowledgeable regarding prime SF locations and times for good photos. I appreciated David's helpfulness in helping with the planning and Annie's enthusiasm and excitement after the proposal. Thanks for documenting our special day! read more

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Annie and David are a super-star duo!! When researching photographers who may fit in to our budget and be available for our wedding & civil ceremony, we ultimately decided on Annie and David, despite prices being more at the top end of our budget (though they weren't the most expensive) given their absolutely personal approach and very fast responses. Aside from that, my husband used to work for a professional photography studio/continues to nerd and geek out about photography, and the photo equipment + editing style really resonated with him. Throughout the whole process, we interfaced with Annie and she was, again, hyper responsive to any questions we had and was great at sharing suggestions for locations--getting as far in to the details as how lighting and weather might look for that particular season/month we were brainstorming! We received our city hall photos in 2 weeks (so much faster than we would have ever thought) and even had a few teasers to review along the way. Once we had access to our full album, she was even sweet enough to make a few edits to suit my husband's color preferences (I guess was he the "groomzilla?" ;) ). All in all, you can't go wrong and I hope you will consider reaching out to find out more directly from Annie and David. We are very excited to work with them in the near future for pre-wedding and wedding day photos! Hi read more

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David and Annie photographed my surprise proposal in San Francisco. They were excellent to work with throughout the process, and we love the pictures! They provided great advice on timing and logistics, were always quick to respond, and delivered everything promptly. read more

Annie and David were great to work with for our engagement photoshoot in December 2020. They were prompt at communicating via email and had great ideas/inspirations for shoot locations. They were also transparent about contract agreement, rescheduling, and impact of COVID-19. Their website blog has a good variety of shoots they do, which made it easy for us to select them as our photographers. The weather forecast for our original date wasn't looking good, but David and Annie were proactive and suggested we reschedule. This turned out to be a great decision and we got some amazing sunset shots at Sutro Baths! On scene, Annie made posing super easy (I personally don't know what looks good!) and was really easy going and fun to work with. For our shoot, David was more in the background/doing shots from further away. I definitely recommend them and would love to work with David and Annie again! read more

Annie and David were amazing to work with! We hired them for our wedding because of how easygoing, organized, and professional they were (and of course, the photos in their portfolio samples were beautiful). Annie took point throughout most of our communications, did our engagement shoot, and helped guide us through the whole process of planning the photography and timeline portions of the wedding. Being the super detailed planners we were, we sent her endless questions and she replied so quickly to each and every one of them. On the day of the wedding, Annie and David got us through getting ready, first look, and portraits without a hitch, working with our coordinator and wedding party to make sure everything was on track. They captured so many beautiful photos of our wedding day that it was hard to pick which photos to put into a wedding album. Overall, we loved working with Annie and David and would highly recommend them to any couple looking for a wedding photographer! With so many out there, you really want to pick one that you can vibe with so you're comfortable on the wedding day and for us, Annie and David hit the mark. read more

Annie and David are the most amazing wedding photographers we could have ever asked for and we feel super lucky to have found them. They are both so talented, organized, quick to respond and personable. They absolutely captured our wedding day perfectly and we had the best experience with them on both our engagement photo session and wedding day. Here are some specific examples of how Annie and David went above and beyond for us: * Their photos are beautiful, well framed, composed and candid. * They went with the flow but also stayed on top of our asks and schedule. We felt super comfortable with them running the show for us. * They were always available to answer our questions and make sure that we were happy with their work. * They went out of their way to capture some of our favorite moments, even when it was inconvenient for them. Definitely get the photo album from them. The album is a piece of art we want to display. It is elegantly crafted and comes with a beautiful case. Annie and David are truly gifted artists, and they are also wonderful people. We are so grateful for them. We will cherish our photos forever. read more

David and Annie did an incredible job with our surprise proposal photos. David was thoughtful, knowledgable, responsive, detail-oriented, and easy to work with. He took me from a vague idea to a minute-by-minute plan with maps and diagrams over the course of a week. Their blog was also handy for drawing inspiration from the hundreds of proposals they've shot previously. Day of, our plan fortunately went off without a hitch: David even disguised himself as a stranger in another rowboat to get the perfect candid shot. My new fiancee absolutely loves how the photos came out. I'm grateful to David and Annie for helping us coordinate and capture such a special moment. They went above and beyond and I can't recommend them enough! read more

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Working with David and Annie for our proposal photography was a great experience! David and I began communicating about month out, and I really appreciated his opinions on location and lighting and timing. Communicating the day of was also great - with pointers on where to stand and position for the big moment. The photos are beautiful and are well worth it! Thank you David and Annie for capturing the moment and allowing a lifetime of memories of that special day. read more

Thank you so much David for capturing our magical and beautiful proposal! I will cherish our photographs forever. My fiance and I are from Texas and we were in California for vacation. Little did I know, my fiance (then boyfriend!) had a whole proposal planned and surprise photographer in hiding! We were staying in Half Moon Bay and my fiance didn't know too much about the area. David helped him find the perfect spot to take our proposal pictures at sunset and wow.. they came out BEAUTIFUL! David instructed my fiance to go down a specific set of stairs and walk along the beach so he could take pictures of us from above as we were walking. Then he had him take us back up the stairs to the cliff where there was a picture-perfect spot. I had NO idea - I thought we were just watching the sunset. David was taking pictures the whole time and I didn't even know. He can hide!! He got us sneak peeks the same day and we received the rest of the photos in a timely manner. So thankful A Tale Ahead Photography was there for our magical moment. read more

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I can't tell you how wonderful David and Annie were with my daughter and her now fiancé. My future SIL set up the perfect surprise proposal at Bakers beach. They really caught the surprise on my daughter Cjs face. Thank you for the beautiful pictures of this special day. We will treasure them always! read more

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Annie & David were so amazing - they did our proposal photos and our wedding photos at SF City Hall. They even came to SF City Hall on the day of our wedding and to our party later in the evening to make sure all of the great moments that day were captured. Their flexibility around our whole day was super appreciated! I am no model and Annie made me so comfortable on the day of the wedding and told me exactly how to pose to make sure the pictures turned out the way I wanted them to! I normally feel very uncomfortable in front of the camera but Annie made me feel soooo comfortable. Another thing I really appreciated is that they are super fast at responding which made the lead up to the wedding very stress-free. We never had to chase them down to get updates, they were always on top of all communication. We also ordered our final wedding album from them and the turn around time was so quick! Just like everything else they do, the quality was amazing! We will definitely be calling them for any future life events we want to have photographed :) read more

Tl;dr Annie and David were easy to work with, know what they're doing, communicate well, and made it easy for our proposal. I would 10/10 book them again. Like many others, COVID had put a wrench in my proposal plans, and so I knew I had to do something locally and safe. After a quick google search, I came across A Tale Ahead Photography and found that they specialize in surprise proposal shoots. After looking through their portfolio on their website, I loved their aesthetic and quickly got in touch. I didn't have any details to provide at the time of connection, but David was very easy to work with in terms of scheduling/timing, possible shoot ideas, etc. In fact, I had to delay my shoot several times due to various issues (county lockdown restrictions, health scares, etc.). Through it all, David was a consummate professional and was extremely accommodating. On the actual day of the proposal, David and Annie were able to blend into the surroundings, completely unbeknownst to my partner. We were able to have a special moment together, which David and Annie were able to capture in the most amazing way. After my partner said "yes," David and Annie helped pose us for a few additional pictures, which was awesome since we don't know what to do when taking pictures. It was so helpful and the pictures came out beautifully. I would definitely use David and Annie again, as well as recommend them to anyone who asks. A couple of logistical items: Of course, you don't get your time slot locked until you pay the upfront deposit. This was tough since I was working with a moving target, and had to adjust dates based on availability that was taken - my own fault. We were able to get a couple of "sneak peek" pictures just a few hours after the shoot, which was great to share with friends and family. The rest of the collection of curated photos was delivered a couple of weeks afterward. read more

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Hiring Annie and David as our wedding photographers was easily one of the greatest decisions we ever made. Aside from being incredibly talented, they are two of the most kind and generous people we've ever met. We had to postpone our 2020 wedding date and they were so understanding and made the process incredibly easy during a very stressful time. Leading up to the wedding, they put up with an incessant amount of annoying questions from me as I struggled to walk through the logistics and timeline of our wedding. Then, a week before our wedding, when the weather forecast turned quite unfavorable, Annie and David were right there to brainstorm ideas with us and reassure us that even with a little rain (or a lot of it), our day (and our photos) would turn out amazing. And they were right. They were extraordinarily responsive and helpful (I seriously don't know how they do it!). On the day of our wedding, they went above and beyond and transcended their roles of photographers. I'm so grateful for Annie - she was right by my side, keeping me and my dress dry, helping me navigate where to go and what to do. Both Annie and David braved the elements for us, standing outside in the pouring rain and wind for hours. At one point, we're pretty sure David backed all the way into a bush just to get the perfect angle during our first look. I could go on and on about how amazing they are and all the ways in which they made our wedding day more special. My husband and I both agree that we are so lucky to have had Annie and David as our photographers and we cannot get over how amazing the photographs came out to be. read more

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TLDR - Annie did a splendid job for our pre wedding photo shoot and every time we look at the pictures we fall in love with them all over again! Now for the detailed review - when we decided to have a pre wedding photo shoot back in Oct 2019, my husband and I were looking for someone to capture our memories in a non cheesy way! Since both of us are little camera shy we wanted more of candid than posed! Therefore when we stumbled upon A tale aheads website we were really excited! We reached out to Annie and David and they explained us everything very well! They also provided us a lot recommendations for places that we can consider for the shoot as well as time/month that would be best for the images considering the lighting weather etc! On the day of the shoot we met Annie and she made us very comfortable during the whole thing! She continuously walked us through the process and made it all seem very natural! Since our wedding was just a month away we requested her to provide few images urgently for our wedding invite and she was kind enough to accommodate the request! She was very punctual in providing us all the other pictures and they were stunning! I would definitely recommend A tale ahead photography! Thank you so much Annie and David for capturing our memories so beautifully! read more

Annie and David are THE BEST photographers we have had the pleasure of meeting and working with! They are so sweet and know exactly what to do to make your shoot come out amazing! They did our engagement photos and our wedding day photos and everything came out so perfect... literally wouldn't change a thing. We now have all the best moments from our wedding captured perfectly forever. read more

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I can't recommend David enough. I wanted to propose on the top of our favorite lookout in Sausalito but struggled finding a photographer to do the hike. From my first call with David, his flexibility, experience, and professionalism were immediately clear. He was very thorough in his preparation and made sure every detail was accounted for. On the day of, he was on time and ready to go at the top of the lookout rain or shine. Finally, the pictures were absolutely amazing. Overall, he was awesome to work with! 10/10 read more

A Tale Ahead is totally AWESOME! I got to know Annie&David at my bestie's wedding and loved the photos they delivered. I started to follow their instagram and have been a big fan ever since. When I decided to have pre-wedding photo taken in the Bay Area, they are without a doubt my top choice. Annie offered so much more than what I expected. She helped me picking the perfect locations, the right dress for sunset scene, provided very detailed tips and adjusted her suggestions due to special weather conditions. Our photo shooting date was the haziest day in San Francisco history due to the horrible Camp Fire, I was extremely worried but Annie calmed me down saying it would turn out to be unique and beautiful. She is absolutely right! We looked FABULOUS and the scenes were just SPECTACULAR in every single one of the 80+ photos she delivered. I was especially blown away this by one. We had no idea birds were lining up in the back, and because there were no winds that day, I had to lift my dress up, released it, and then hold my husband's hand immediately. I could not believe Annie was able to catch such a PERFECT moment when there was only one chance. Simply cannot say enough good things about Annie&David. We are so blessed to have you! read more

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Had a great time working with David for my surprise engagement shoot! David was helpful from the very beginning, ideating with me on the location, details, etc. David was very communicative throughout the process, arrived earlier than our agreed time, and helped iron out final details for the surprise shoot. The shoot went great and the pictures came out even better! David provided way more edited photos than initially outlined in the contract/package, and I could not have been more pleased as a customer. I highly recommend David! read more

Highly recommend! They helped assist with my surprise proposal every step of the way. They are extremely easy to contact and were easy to work with. read more

A Tale Ahead Photography - My proposal photo - Event Photography Near Me

Had a great experience working with David who did our proposal shoot! David was extremely attentive during the initial contact. He really cared about the entire setup by asking for any photos of the spot, the angle it faces, and based on those gave professional advice on what hours of the day he thinks would have the best light. I was blown away by his attention to details. Keep in mind this is all done in the initial consultation (contract not signed)! Long story short, the photos came out great. I highly recommend having A Tale Ahead to shoot your important day. read more

Annie and David are the sweetest ever! I always felt the knew where they other was going to be, which allowed for the best shots and angels through out the entire day. These are pictures that are going to last a life time, move forward with Annie and David if you are on the fence!! read more

Annie & David were amazing to work with! We booked Annie & David to take pictures for our engagement and wedding day. We had fun working with them. Both are very easy to work with and very personable. Annie was also always super responsive to my emails. Definitely recommend! read more

Highly recommend! David was very responsive to me and I felt like I learned so much from him in our introductory phone call and via our email correspondence. He really knows the Bay Area well and I am extremely appreciative of his willingness to share his professional insights with me. When my first idea for a proposal spot fell through, David sent me a comprehensive list of other amazing options in the area, which was really helpful. If you haven't seen photos on their website yet, go check them out! They are amazing! A Tale Ahead should be your first call for wedding/engagement/proposal photography in SF. read more

Annie was wonderful to work with, she was very friendly and fun to work with! Easy to stay in contact with and was on top of everything. Felt like I never had to worry about anything for this photo shoot and she knew exactly what to do for us. The place we went to was beautiful for our maternity photo shoot and she made sure we were kept safe during covid which I thought was very professional of her! She knows her stuff, I would say this is one of the funnest photo shoots Iv ever had. I will definitely be working with her again for other photoshoots! Thank you Annie!!! :) read more

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I cannot emphasize this enough but they made my proposal so amazing! They were really accommodating and helpful with everything. They were patient and understanding. I proposed at Sutro Baths and it was pretty packed that day but they made it work! Annie was able to clear the area for the most perfect shot and everything turned out so beautiful. I talked to other photographers in the Bay Area and they didn't sound as helpful or accommodating as David or Annie. Communication was absolutely amazing! I was texting David updates as we were hiking down and ETA, etc. I am so so grateful that they were able to capture that beautiful moment. Thank you so much! read more

We absolutely LOVED the experience and your pictures captured the memories even more, and permanently. David is not only a professional photographer, but a really good person - he walks and guides you through every step and makes sure you're involved and feels comfortable with the process. And, when it comes to execution and stealthily taking a shot at the moment in time of the proposal, David nails it. I mean, I think this picture says it all, need I say more? read more

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I had an amazing experience with David and Annie! I reached out to David about 3 months before proposing, and he was responsive and helpful, giving me tips about how logistics could work. I picked the 2-photographer package (both David + Annie). The day of the proposal, they helped make sure that everything was all set at the winery in Napa. The photos were incredible, and my fiancee and I absolutely love them. We'll likely reach out to A Tale Ahead again for our wedding photos in the future, and we highly recommend them! read more