Hoami was a delight to work with. She was so personable about the surprise proposal I was planning and helped me set up how things would go and when the day came, she was very communicative about all the details. Throughout our planning of the surprise proposal, my gf (now fiancé) threw many curveballs at me so I had to work with Hoami to keep her up to date on the ever changing scenario. She was understanding of the many changes that came about and made all the adjustments to ensure a great experience, which we did have! After the proposal, she posed us for a couple of shots but let us do our thing as well to capture our moment. Then gave us our photos 2 days later! Thank you Dear Darling Photography for capturing the moment for us! read more

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I love Hoami! She is a great photographer! I followed her on Instagram @deardarlingphoto and entered in an Instagram contest she hosted for a free photoshoot and won. I knew immediately I wanted a couple's photo shoot with my boyfriend and some headshots done of me, but I was super nervous. I have never had a professional photographer take my picture and I always end up looking super awkward and derpy in photos. Hoami was super professorial and offered to be as hands-on as we needed (we needed it haha) and she had many different poses to suggest for us. She was super on time to the photoshoot and quick to edit the photos, within 2.5 weeks. I would definitely want to use Hoami again for any photography needs! read more

Dear Darling Photography - Session Photography Near Me

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If you are looking for an experience with a professional photographer beyond your Wildest expectations then you need to book a session with HOAMI! We were incredibly impressed with how much time and compassion she took with us and especially our son. Hoami made us feel completely at ease and the finish product was nothing short of AMAZING! We look forward to working with Hoami as our family photographer of choice for many years to come! Thank you for being so talented. read more

Dear Darling Photography - Session Photography Near Me

Hoami is AWESOME. My fiancee and I were extremely happy with the way everything turned out. Everything from the planning to the actual photos was perfect, I couldn't have asked for a better photographer. She shows that she cares about you and the event she's shooting for. I worked with Hoami for a surprise proposal photoshoot. I was going to propose in San Diego but had a lot of open questions. She gave me suggestions for beautiful places in San Diego to propose, gave me ideas for how to do the proposal itself, and talked me through all of my other worries (What if it's crowded? What if I can't find you? How do I know when to propose? What do I wear? ... Yeah... I was nervous :) For the actual proposal, she got to the location plenty early (we went to Sunset cliffs) and helped find the ideal spot for the proposal where there was little people. She posed as a tourist and had us take a picture of her, then took a photo for us. This way, she could frame the photo for me (one less thing for me to worry about). After the big question, she followed up and helped us take some engagement photos. Hoami has a special eye for photos because both my fiancee and I were surprised on how well they turned out. During the whole photoshoot, we couldn't help but keep laughing that we were convinced that every photo she took was going to be of us guffawing. The whole album turned out great. You couldn't even tell we spent the whole photoshoot laughing. After the photoshoot, she sent us an album of our photos within a few days. I was surprised on how fast she got us our photos. Thank you Hoami for everything you did. For anyone reading this review, I can't recommend her enough. read more

Hoami has been beyond amazing!! I was so busy but I finally had time to look through the pictures and wow, I am so delighted and happy with it. The pictures were delivered not long after the wedding and were very well organized. She worked closely with my wedding planner and on my wedding day I did not have to worry at all. Hoami is so sweet and I'm so glad I chose her! Those who are still thinking... book her now!! read more

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Hoami is so sweet and so sneaky! I had no idea what was going on! She made me and my fiancé so comfortable in front of the camera when typically I always feel very shy. She knows exactly what poses look amazing in photos even if they feel weird in real life. Plus she bought her dog along! read more

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Hoami is awesome! I hired her for a proposal shoot, and she made the process very easy. She was a pleasure to work with and the photos turned out absolutely stunning! Could not be happier with how everything turned out. read more

My now fiancé hired Hoami for our surprise proposal. She did such an incredible job!! The photos turned out amazing and she captured our happiness perfectly!! I couldn't have asked for a better day or better pictures. I'm so happy with her. She was great communicating and helped my fiancé plan out the evening. Our photos came very quick. I would easily recommend anyone hire Hoami! read more

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Hoami is amazing! I hired her to photograph our proposal and the pictures are better than we could have ever imagined. She helped iron out all the details to make sure that the angles and lighting were perfect at the proposal spot. Thanks, Hoami! read more

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I was looking for a photographer to capture my family picture. my friend had posted her pictures that was taken by Hoami and I was impressed. I contacted Hoami and she quickly responded. I told her about my kids and how it may take a while before they warm up to others. She was very understanding and was willing to give them time to warm up to her could capture their characters. Our overall experience at the photoshoot was AMAZING! We enjoyed it and we felt real relaxed. Hoami is great with kids. She did many things to make our kids smile. She is also very knowledgeable about the places that we could take our pictures. The turnaround time was quick! The photos were beautiful! We are in love with all of them. We have gotten so many compliments about the pictures. Thank you Hoami for capturing pictures of my family! I highly recommend booking a photoshoot with Hoami! She is AWESOME! We will definitely book another family photo shoot with her again. read more

Hoami has such a gift! She was so amazing with my little family!! She truly has such a heart of Gold, she was so sweet, patient, kind. We had such a great time. She caught so much wonderful laughs and smiles and you could see the magic, spark and love our family shares through her work!! She captured it all and it's my favorite family shoot we have ever done. So thankful for her capturing beautiful pictures for our family!!! read more

Dear Darling Photography - Session Photography Near Me

Update: Hoami is still awesome! We absolutely love our photos! Hoami and her colleague, Nicolette, were such a pleasure to work with during our special day. I would definitely recommend her to anyone looking for a friendly, personable photographer to capture your wedding! read more

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My fiancé hired Hoami for the surprise proposal that he planned. I could not have asked for a better person or photographer to capture the moment! Hoami was so sweet and she is beyond talented. The photos turned out amazing!! We received the photos quickly and communication was outstanding. We are so thankful that Hoami was there to capture the moment! read more

Dear Darling Photography - Session Photography Near Me

The absolute best! Thank you Hoami! We will treasure our engagement photos forever! read more

Dear Darling Photography - Session Photography Near Me

Hoami made my surprise proposal a dream come true! This was the first time my fiancé and I had ever taken professional photos and she was SO sweet, patient and kind. She was in on the surprise proposal and it turned out perfect. She was able to transform our moments into beautiful memories we'll look back on for a lifetime. She was able to get us our photos the next day and I could never be more happy and amazed of how they turned out. Thank you SO much Hoami for capturing our day and being my best friend in the moment when I needed to hug someone! I couldn't recommend her more. Would love for her to take my wedding photos one day read more

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Hoami is the absolute best with photography! We have done a few different family photo shoots from Halloween to Christmas and even on the beach with our three toddlers. Hoami is very patient and professional and super easy to work with. We have three 4yr olds (practically triplets) and we always get amazingly beautiful and meaningful family photos, even when the kids are tough to handle. She takes her time and has great ideas for photos. I really like the different vantage points and overall hue of the pictures. I highly recommend Hoami! read more

I reached out to Hoami for help with a surprise proposal during our time in San Diego. She took beautiful pictures and made the entire process smooth and stress free. She also turned around our pictures the next day! I was not too familiar with San Diego and she was extremely helpful in finding a great location and also coming up with a backup plan in case it rained. The rain held off, and now my fiance and I have amazing photos to remember such a great moment! I would highly recommend hiring Hoami! read more

Hoami is just an amazing photographer from start to finish! The location was perfect, our family pictures turned out just beautiful. She captured it all so well despite having a 3mos old baby that doesn't want to cooperate. We were even able to get our photos in span of 2 days, which is just incredible! Definitely priceless! Thanks Hoami, until our next photoshoot. read more

Fantastic service at a great price. My fiancee and I couldn't be happier. I contacted Hoami to set up a surprise proposal shoot, and she really put a ton of work into making sure everything went off perfectly. She helped me select the site (Windansea Beach in my case), arrived early to prepare, covertly tailed us to one of the potential spots, noticed that a fisherman had taken one of our spots and ran ahead and politely cleared him off, posed as a tourist taking photos when we got there, asked us if we wanted our picture taken, and then finally (and most importantly) captured some absolutely perfect, professional photos capturing all of the emotion of the actual proposal because she was able to be just a few feet away as it happened. Oh and then she did basically an entire engagement shoot for us immediately after as the sun was setting where we got some really beautiful, scenic shots. Then she worked quickly in post to get all the of the full quality photos available to us in only a few days so we could download and share the moment. I think afterwards she was nearly as excited about the engagement as my fiancee, and I could tell she genuinely enjoyed doing this work and getting to be a part of this experience for us. I did quite a bit of research before selecting Dear Darling, and I can't say enough good things about the whole experience or recommend her enough to anyone looking for engagement photography or a surprise proposal shoot in particular. Really great work from a genuinely nice person. read more

Dear Darling Photography doesn't just photograph weddings, they are absolutely great at lifestyle photography as well. My husband and I expected our first child in June 2013. Hoami provided us with a maternity shoot in Encinitas, CA on the beach (Apr 2013). Our photographs turned out beautiful!!!! We photographed on a cold and windy day, and honestly, I was afraid that my hair in my face may ruin the photographs or the cold weather show up on my face. NOPE! Hoami captured the moment beautifully. My husband, like many men, does not love taking photographs or modeling for the camera. We had a short and sweet session (about 30 minutes), and this was enough time for Hoami to capture some amazing photographs in the short amount of time. Anyway - I used the photographs and showcased them at my Baby Shower, and they are also on my mantle in my living room. It is now Dec 2013, and our baby is 6 months old! We wanted a family photo shoot to use for our Holiday Greeting cards. We knew that we had to hire Hoami to capture our photos because she is just so talented! She has a happy, carefree, easy going personality. My husband appreciates Hoami's positive attitude, and she makes the process fun. Hoami of Dear Darling Photography is professional, prepared, prompt, and polite. Both sessions, I received my edited photos very quickly. If you hire Hoami to capture your moments, you won't be disappointed. You get quality photographs for a reasonable price with great turn-around time. The results are fabulous!! Photographs are creative and beautiful, and they will be cherished for a lifetime! Literally! I know I will use their services again for my upcoming parties and annual family photos. read more

My husband and I just got married on September 28th. We had our wedding reception at the El Cortez venue in downtown and did an engagement shoot on the navy base in Coronado. We had a 1940's themed wedding and Mad men themed engagement shoot. Of all of our vendors, Dear Darling was a unanimous favorite between my husband and I. They did a fantastic job from start to finish. From creativity to punctuality, photo turn-around time, correspondence, preparedness, and just the overall great personalities and talent. We were so at ease with our choice to work with Dear Darling and had no doubt our pictures would turn out as amazing as they did. Fellow bride yelpers, I know how important this day is and capturing every moment perfectly is the most crucial part of it. Have no hesitations with Dear Darling...they do their best and are the best! read more

Looking for an awesome photographer to capture an important event in your life? Look no farther...Dear Darling Photography is the best around! Seriously, photo shoots can be such an awkward thing to do, but my dearest Darling is amazing at what she does! She is professional, yet makes you feel comfortable and really captures some truly beautiful pictures. I would recommend Dear Darling Photography in a heartbeat. Thank you Hoami, for capturing such an important part of my life through gorgeous photographs. read more

Hoami was a true professional start to finish! Very communicative and clear, and she captured some amazing shots during our surprise proposal shoot. Highly recommend Hoami! read more

We are extremely lucky to have Hoami capture our engagement shoot, she is amazing. She is a talented photographer who has a remarkable eye for capturing those great moments. Her passion for photography and capturing emotion comes out in every picture she takes. Her relaxed causal style is perfect for someone like me who tends to get nervous when taking pictures. She makes you feel very comfortable and makes the whole process fun. I don't consider myself photogenic at all, so I was very nervous about the pictures. I was just hoping to get a few good ones for our save the date invitations and guest sign in book. I was so happy when I received my photos, Eric and I love...love...love all the pictures. They are so beautiful, they came out perfect. I can't thank Hoami enough, I highly recommend her for any special occasion. Once again thank you Hoami, you are the best!!!!! read more

Choosing Dear Darling as our wedding photographer was such a great decision. We did a lot of searching before we came across DDP. We were sold on her great style and editing of photography and above all she was able to keep it within our budget. Although DDP did not do our engagement shoot, meeting her and her assistant on the day of the wedding was not awkward at all. They were so nice and easy going and I thank them for putting up with all of us in the middle of the heat wave we got stuck with! Our photos are perfect and are exactly what we wanted. Thanks again DDP for your wonderful work! read more

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Great work, passion, and timeliness. Hoami is in tune with her clients. She loves what she does, and it's obvious in her work. Also, her turnaround time was awesome! Check her out if you are looking for a great photographer. read more

Dear Darling Photography - May 21, 2016 - Session Photography Near Me

Hoami took absolutely gorgeous photos for our surprise engagement. She is a true pleasure to work with, and she executed the surprise (and coordinating the lead up to it) flawlessly and better than I could have imagined. She is thoughtful, genuinely kind, and really great to have around in a time of joy (e.g. engagement or wedding). I could not have asked for a better photographer for our special day. She was so sneaky, dressing up as a tourist and actually standing in the spot I was planning to propose. She told me she'd move as soon as we got closer, and I think this was super great because my fiancé was then desensitized to her presence as a result. Man! I'm so happy with Hoami, and I cannot recommend her enough. Don't look any further!! We are so pleased to have these photos as life long treasures (people have even asked if our photos were reenactments because they were so good)! read more

We got married in a small ceremony just three days ago, and we've already gotten the link to our album. Hoami at Dear Darling Photography is so sweet and professional. She scouted out nice spots for photos and guided us through the shoot. Our ceremony was intimate and she captured it beautifully. We definitely recommend her services. read more

[This is a two-part review. First part is a letter to the photographer. Second part is a letter to fellow yelpers.] Dear Darling, Thank you for sharing your talent and love of photography with me and my husband. For the first shoot you spent hours combing through a Seal Beach neighborhood for "hot spots" for our photog session. Your diligence paid off. I still can't believe the variety of backgrounds you found: brick wall in an alley way, stairwell in some random building (lol), a red caboose, some ginormous tree that looked sort of heart-shaped, a city building with a beautiful iron gate, another alley way that had beautiful purple flowers draping along a wall (took some of my fave pics against this background), the beach (okay, that wasn't too hard to find but still.. hehe), under the boardwalk and more! It was so much fun shooting with you and Ash that day. You put the both of us at ease and made us laugh but best of all you made us feel like you really wanted to capture our love story. You did just that with natural lighting and by incorporating the beauty of our surroundings --- characteristics that I fondly associate with your photography. :) Because you are highly skilled in your craft (and LOVE it) and genuinely invest yourself in your clients there is no other photographer I trust with capturing some of the most important moments and people in my life. We look forward to working again with you.... You still need to shoot our kids! :) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Yelpers, Looking for a talented photographer who is easy-going, professional, funny and can relate to people of all ages? Look no further! Dear Darling Photography is all that and a bag of chips! Seriously - check out her website. You will see that she is amazing at what she does and her love of her craft is evident in all of her photos. Having someone take pics of you or your loved ones can be intimidating. Ever been to one of those stiff indoor studios with the bland backgrounds that make you pose in the most uncomfortable positions and the photographers are uninspired? I have -- and so not fun (not to mention a waste of money). With Hoami (Dear Darling Photography owner), your photography session will be an experience filled with fun, laughter and lots of great photos. Hoami has a personality that's part fairy (like Tinkerbell), part butterfly (a social one) and 100% sunbeam -- \(^-^)/ -- that can put clients at ease and make for a great photog session. All of her photos are unique because she uses natural light (we live in natural light not under studio ones!), a variety of (mostly) outdoor locations (she can canvas the heck out of these places) and the clients themselves are unique. Have rambunctious kids who can't sit still in the studio? Call Dear Darling Photography! She's great with kids. Have a man - err spouse - who is hesistant about a shoot? Call Dear Darling Photography! My husband was very resistant about the first shoot we did and Hoami had him in stitches... He ended up being more of a ham than I realized. :) Prices are reasonable, the photographer is talented and the end-product will be one-of-a-kind. What are you waiting for? Schedule a shoot! :) read more

Hoami did our engagement and wedding pictures. They all came out wonderfully beautiful!!! She was such a joy to work with she had us laughing and comfortable the entire time. We can't wait to use her again for other special events and yearly pictures. read more

We just received our engagement photos and OMG are we happy! IN FACT happy doesn't even begin to describe it. Hoami is an amazing Photographer. To put it simply, she captured us. We are so confident in our choice. From the first communication with Hoami, we knew we made the right choice. She is personable, friendly, professional and talented. Choose her!! You will not regret it!! read more

My fiance and I recently got our engagement photos done by Dear Darling Photography in San Diego. I must say we are very pleased with the photo shoot and the engagement photos taken by Dear Darling for a number of reasons. Hoami had a way making us feel very comfortable with the shoot. We did not have many ideas of exactly what we wanted but she was creative and got a lot of cute shots and poses for us. She also made us feel very comfortable during the shoot while making it fun for us as well. Lastly, the turnaround time on getting the photos back was faster than I even had asked. Overall, we are very pleased with Dear Darling Photography with the level of ease and professionalism we received in working with the team. Looking forward to using them for our wedding day as we are confident she will capture this special day for us. read more

Hoami was everything we expected and more. She perfectly captured our surprise proposal. Her effort and passion to produce the highest quality photos of our moment definitely showed throughout the entire process. read more

Absolutely recommend for proposal/engagement photography! Hoami was fantastic to work with, and was even super helpful with finalizing some details of the plan to make the proposal perfect. The pictures are amazing and captured the moment perfectly, even better than I had hoped for! I can already tell we are going to treasure them forever (plus the turnaround time was amazing!). I would highly recommend her and would most certainly work with her again! read more

Hoami was super professional, punctual, and very welcoming. We hired him for our wedding and my wife couldn't be happier

We used Dear Darling Photography for our maternity photos. Hoami is creative, warm and friendly. Her energy allowed my husband and I to be very comfortable during the shoot. She genuinely cared about our story and listened to all our ideas and we welcomed hers. Great experience! read more

She is amazing! We loved our first set of maternity pictures from my first pregnancy and decided to go again for another shoot for my second pregnancy. My family just loves her! She is not only driven, she is artistic, and does amazing work. Would definitely recommend her! read more

Hoami was great to work with and so responsive. There was a quick turn around for the pictures and we are SO happy with them. She is so friendly and easy to work with. Thank you Hoami for working with us with short notice. read more

I am in love with the pictures Hoami took for my fiance and me. They were absolutely beautiful! She went out of her way to scout out a nice beach for us since we were not from the area, and she gave us three times the number of pictures that were included in our package! She was also very fun to work with and very laid-back. read more

Hoami was an absolute delight to work with! She is a true professional and went "above and beyond" in capturing amazing shots of my son's wedding proposal! Just like the name of her company, Hoami is a DARLING!! I highly recommend her! read more