We had the absolute best experience with Ben as our engagement session photographer at Filoli! From the very beginning, he was warm, friendly, and made us feel completely at ease in front of the camera. Neither of us is used to being professionally photographed, but Ben gave such clear and helpful direction throughout the shoot--it made everything feel natural and fun. The photos turned out amazing. Seriously, we were blown away by how beautifully he captured the moments. The lighting, the angles, the emotions--everything felt so genuine and us. On top of that, he got the final edited photos back to us incredibly quickly, which we really appreciated. We're so happy we chose Ben for this special milestone, we'll definitely be contacting him in the future for more lifestyle photoshoots. If you're looking for someone talented, kind, and professional, we highly recommend him! Thank you, Ben! read more

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let me make this clear, if we could give Ben 20/10 we would!! I don't even know where to start. I first reached out to Ben prior to the holidays starting to book time for a family photo shoot (which we havent not done in easily 15-20 years). he was so easy and understanding when it came to coordination and very responsive over text. his flexibility was what made it easy to schedule with him to as we did have to change the date. we met him at Villa Montalvo on a COLD COLD morning in January during a long weekend, he came with such a positive attitude and just woke all of us up and got us very excited for the next hour we were going to spend with him there was 4 of us, plus our 9 year old yet very mind of his own dog. he was beyond patient with him and loving towards him which went a long way as he wasn't always willing to cooperate for the pictures. not only did we get multiple AMAZING family photos, the solo and duo photos we got turned out so so amazing i think amazing is truly the word to describe our experience with Ben. If you are looking for an experienced, patient, understanding, creative, and fun individual to take photos for your family/event, Ben is your guy! We can't wait to book more sessions with him in the future (: read more

LOVED WORKING WITH BEN! He did my maternity shoot and made sure we had such a fun time! He was professional and made us feel so comfortable. The pictures came out amazing! Will definitely be coming back. read more

Ben made us feel extremely comfortable during our session, and got some amazing pictures- natural, well framed, and fun. I hearted almost every picture in our album. Thank you Ben for capturing our family in such a beautiful way :) read more

Our maternity photos turned out absolutely amazing! Ben is a true professional; he guided us on posing, found the perfect lighting, and gave us a fantastic photoshootinng experience. read more

Hellstrom Photography - Event Photography Near Me

We recently had our family photos taken at Eagleridge by Ben. He is easy to work with, friendly, patient, flexible, professional and did a wonderful job working with the 8 of us. Above all, we are extremely happy with our pictures. We highly recommend Ben for your next photo shoot!! read more

If you're looking for a photographer, Ben's your guy! I feel incredibly grateful to have found Ben! He is an awesome human and wonderful photographer. My fiancé and I went into our engagement photo session with Ben, having had no experience getting professional photos taken of us before. To add to that, it was unexpectedly rainy and we were initially a bit bummed out about the weather. As soon as we met Ben though, the mood completely changed thanks to his positivity and enthusiastic spirit. We had requested our shoot to be at Filoli and Ben took the extra step of arriving early to check it out so he knew exactly where we should take our photos, making the shooting time as efficient as possible. At the beginning of the shoot, he assured us we'd get some awesome shots despite the rain and he helped us get comfortable in front of the camera right away by bringing us to a less crowded area, walking us through the basic poses and providing lots of encouraging feedback. We walked through the whole garden and took photos in different locations. Ben directed us at each step but was also open to any input we wanted to provide. We also got to chat a bit and could tell Ben is just a great guy with a really cool photography background! Once the shoot ended, Ben let us know we would receive a "sneak peak" that evening, which we did...and less than a week later we received the full, edited gallery. We are in love with the photos and had the absolute best experience. Thank you, Ben! read more

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Ben was a gem. Communicative, helpful pre-shoot tips via email. He arrived early for the shoot (driving several hours to us) and was so positive and encouraging with our large family group. He was extremely patient with fussing, energetic children (ages 2-13), open to our ideas and had great suggestions for backgrounds as well. Helpful posing suggestions/directions for us, as we are generally a relatively inexperienced photo subjects. My youngest kiddo was squirming and fussy almost the entire time but Ben still managed to capture sweet photos where you wouldn't know the kid was pre-tantrum the entire time. Our sneak peek photos are already back a day later and we love how he captured us! Would work with him again for sure and recommend him to anyone looking for an outdoor family shoot. read more

Hellstrom Photography - Just a small breakout grouping from our 20+ large family photo shoot with Ben. - Event Photography Near Me

Ben is really good at having you relax when he's working. The pictures turned out great--I needed professional pictures and he made it seamless and really easy! read more

We couldn't be happier with how our family pictures turned out. We have received so many compliments on how comfortable and happy we all looked in our pictures. I have an Autistic son who I knew wouldn't smile or pose for pictures but Ben was still able to get amazing shots of him. Thank you for capturing our best sides, Ben! And sorry your shoes got wet with our fun ocean pics read more

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We are so glad we had the chance to work with Ben for our wedding photography. From the engagement shoot to the wedding he did a magnificent job capturing all the special moments. The engagement shoot was our first time in front of a camera for professional photography so we were a little anxious and thought it would be awkward. Ben made us feel so comfortable and taught us poses so when the wedding came around we were able to feel more relaxed and ready for pictures. He had great suggestions and we trusted his judgement when it came to photography locations and we are glad we did! Ben did a wonderful job of capturing our Catholic Church ceremony and was able to capture so many little details in pictures that we didn't even think of but really added that special touch. read more

I do not photograph well and I hate photos in general (I usually begin grimacing when I know a photo is being taken). Ben was really great to work with. He has an easy-going vibe, which put us at ease. He showed us a few very basic poses and went with whatever actions were naturally making us laugh. He showed up extra early at our venue (Foothills Park) and scoped out an itinerary where we followed the sun for optimal lighting (starting in the valley and moving up to the top of the hill). The lighting in the photos came out incredibly well (no small feat in the receding sun and with my skin being brown and his being white). I'd happily recommend him for all your engagement and wedding needs. read more

Hellstrom Photography - Event Photography Near Me

I have to preface this review by saying that I normally dread taking photos and feel incredibly awkward while taking them! But for graduation, I knew that I wanted to commemorate the occasion by getting professional photos done. On the day of our photoshoot, I was blown away by how much fun I had and how much Ben made us feel comfortable. With his fun demeanor, great direction, while being incredibly professional - we had a wonderful time. Then when Ben sent me our photos, I was delighted to see how good they looked. Thank you to Ben for helping us make great memories to remember our graduation. I will definitely be hiring him again for any future photography needs. read more

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We are so happy to have selected Hellstrom Photography for family photos. Ben was very professional, helpful and certainly fun to work with. There were 17 of us coming from all points of the Bay Area. Ben helped choose a beautiful spot in Golden Gate Park, that resulted in photos we all happy with. I had come with a list of photos we had to have, and he shot more to satisfy us all. We are truly excited about the results! read more

I recently had the opportunity to work with Ben for a family session and we are so happy with the photos he captured! Ben is very personable, professional, and efficient. We really appreciated his patience throughout the entire session as we had little ones including two newborns and not once did we feel rushed. It was a pleasure working with him from start to finish! Thank you so much, Ben! read more

Ben made us feel comfortable and at ease. He was on time, professional, and attended to the details of our marriage ceremony. We were very happy with the service we received and LOVE the photos. Would hire again! read more

This was our first shoot as a family of four and our entire experience with Ben was freakin amazing from the second we got off the car to the moment we drove away. My pups loved Ben and his calm directions (he's also a dog dad) of having them look at the camera. My fiancé and I are very awkward and never know how to pose but Ben provided clear direction on our body position, where to place our hands and when to look at each other. He's a photographer that truly cares and is extremely passionate with what he does!!! The entire photo shoot was so freakin fun and we are extremely excited to schedule another shoot soon! Two thumbs up and 10 stars to Ben! THANK YOU SO MUCH BEN for taking our photos! We love them so so much, we printed / framed them for my bridal shower this past Saturday and we loved our experience with you! If you're looking for a photographer of any sort, Ben is your guy!!!!! read more

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I needed to book a last-minute photographer for my graduation photos, and Ben did a fantastic job! He was extremely friendly, great to work with, had a fast turnaround time, and the pictures turned out gorgeous! Would recommend to anyone. read more

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Amazing photographer! We took some senior grad photos at Stanford and he was able to handle the chaos starting with 8 of us and ending with 16 of us! Gave great suggestions and was really encouraging. Highly recommend Ben! read more

Ben did an amazing job of covering our son's birthday party. He captured memories for a lifetime for us. It was super seamless working with him right from the start. Extremely professional, easy to communicate, understands your needs, and in the end delivers you memories filled with smiles. Will look forward to working with him again read more

Quick Summary: We had a great experience working with Ben! He's super friendly, he's a strong communicator, and a great photographer who helps you feel comfortable in front of a camera. We found Ben on a Facebook SF Bay Area Wedding group offering free photoshoots to some couples to get more engagement photo practice. We emailed him to learn more and sign up for an hour-long session and found that he was so easy to communicate with from beginning to end, through arranging a session, choosing a location, sending us information to prep for our photoshoot from outfits to posing, and sending us the final gallery. On the day of the photoshoot, Ben met us at the location and walked us through 4 basic poses in the beginning to get us started. He gave great guidance throughout the whole shoot, adjusting our positioning when needed and giving us lots of encouragement along the way. We really appreciated that his personality and guidance helped us feel at ease even though it was our first time working with a photographer. That same night, he sent us a small sneak peek gallery which we were already so happy with, followed by the full gallery a week later. We were so excited to look through all the photos! He really helped us look great and not awkward the way we often feel in photos. Ben's photos also aren't overly edited like some other photographer's are. We have a few dozen favorites from the full gallery and definitely plan on printing some out to frame around our place. Big thanks to Ben for a great experience! He has a bright career ahead of him. read more

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We are so happy to have had the opportunity to work with Ben! He was lovely from start to finish. My fiancé and I get a bit awkward taking professional photos, but Ben made it super easy for us. We appreciated the direction and quick tutorial of poses before we started so we knew what we were doing lol. Our pictures came out beautiful and arrived quickly! We already started recommending Ben to friends and family, that's how satisfied we are! read more

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Ben had a very positive attitude during the entire shoot and really helped my little one (4 months old) smile for the camera. My entire family loooooooved the photos. I hope Ben will be able to help us again at the next milestone shoot! read more

Wow, very positive energy & great service took some pictures of my car for Turo. Excellent work high-quality professional pictures.

Ben was the perfect photographer. He was extremely professional, and when things ran late or didn't go according to plan he was flexible and able to just go with it. His shots were all top quality, and he was able quickly discern which were good candid moments that should be captured and remembered. Ben was extremely easy to communicate with, worked well with our Wedding Coordinator, and knows the Bay Area (and it's lighting) well. He also provided Sneak Peak photos in timely manner and kept us up to date on when to expect the final product. The final product was organized into different categories to help us better view and sort the photos as well as showing us his own personal favorites. Ben is reasonably priced, hard working, quick without sacrificing quality, personable, and communitive. We highly recommend Ben Hellstrom. read more

We enlisted Ben's services for our holiday toy drive event (photos with Santa), and it was a smashing success. Ben was on time, professional and clearly had experience working with kids (even had an attached plushy animal to his camera for the kids to focus on). He also offered us creative solutions for our needs, and was just an overall pleasure to work with. Would highly recommend and would use Hellstrom Photography again with no hesitation! read more

Ben was awesome to work with and made the whole process super easy and enjoyable. He definitely has a knack for capturing the moment which is evident in the engagement photos he did for us. Ben was super friendly and communicated to us in a way that really allowed both my fiancé and I feel at ease right off the bat. He arrived an hour early to scope out the location and by the time we got there, knew exactly where to shoot. His easy going approach and thoroughness attributed to our photos looking fantastic and that is truly to his credit as a professional. We have already used the photos for our save the dates! read more

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Pleasantly surprised! I haven't worked with any photographers before but I expected it to be a chore. However, I needed professional headshots taken as my last headshots were from about 8 years ago. Ben gave clear and easy directions and also made this experience fun and enjoyable. After looking at the pictures that were taken, I was impressed as they were just what I needed! Definitely recommend him to everyone who needs pictures taken, especially those who have not worked with a photographer before or are nervous about being in front of a camera. read more

I highly recommend Ben as your photographer we loved the way the photos turned out and how well Ben communicates with us. read more

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I don't write reviews often, unless it's for an incredible experience! My husband and I recently did maternity photos with Ben and I am so impressed! My husband and I aren't picture people, but Ben made us feel so comfortable during our entire session. He suggested a couple of locations with weather in mind that fit our vibe, he also did a great job at giving us pose ideas and adjustments. Overall, it was a really fun experience! Ben also was able to provide our photo gallery early. If you have any type of family photos coming up, I highly recommend Hellstrom Photography!! read more

Hellstrom Photography - Event Photography Near Me

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I hired Ben to do our very first family photo shoot. I was a little nervous at first because we have an 11 month old, and I didn't know how she would react to taking tons of pictures. To my surprise, my daughter was smiling and laughing the whole shoot!!! Ben was absolutely great with her and got her attention behind the camera. Our pictures came out better than I could have ever imagined. We have found our forever photographer read more

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It was awesome working with Ben!!! He made us feel super comfortable and was on time for the event. After that within 48 hrs we had our pictures in hand and they are just lovely. He has captured beautiful memories that we will cherish forever! Will highly recommend him and look forward to work with him again read more

Ben was a great find! He did our maternity shoot and was able to accommodate us having our fur baby with us for those pictures. He is very professional and punctual. We had a great experience with him and loved how the pictures turned out. read more

It was a pleasure working with Ben from start to finish. We did our first family photoshoot for my daughter's first birthday. Ben suggested the location which was beautiful, scoped it out so he knew exactly where to take us for each change of scenery, kept ensuring us to take our time to not stress since my daughter was a little fussy, and kept her smiling and engaged throughout the shoot (which isn't easy lol). He was also great at direction of how to pose in each photo. The turnaround for final photos was quicker than I expected, and turned out so beautiful. He told us to let him know if there was anything we weren't happy with and he can adjust - which is huge since I've had an issue with that in a previous shoot with a different photographer. Long story short, I will definitely be booking Ben in the future and suggesting to anyone in need of a photographer. read more

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My daughter gave me the best Mother's Day Gift this year. She made arrangements for a family photoshoot with Ben and all my husband and I had to do was, show up, dressed in, the decided upon, color scheme! We chose a local park for our date with Ben. As many reviewers reported, he showed up early and scouted out the best locations for the shoot, so he had a plan when we arrived. We were very comfortable with Ben from beginning to end because of his open and friendly personality. He had good posing ideas and guided us with easy to follow directions. He was very accommodating to any special groupings we wanted or suggestions. We had our one year old granddaughter with us and he was incredibly patient and determined to get as many good shots of her and us as he could. I loved watching him work, because he was so positive and would get excited when he knew he had a great shot! He worked efficiently, but didn't make us feel rushed. He genuinely seemed to love what he was doing. We were very surprise when my daughter received the edited photos the following day. Apparently he had a cancellation, the day of our shoot, and we were impressed that instead of using the rest of his Sunday, doing something for himself, he chose to edit our photos! Thank you, Ben. All in all, our first experience with Ben was lovely. We would highly recommend him and would call on him again. read more

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Worked with Ben on two occasions and both shoots centered around my daughter's graduation. His communication from beginning to end was prompt and professional. In both situations I found him to be extremely accommodating and open to our ideas, both on poses and locations. Turnaround time for photos was within a couple of days and access to them was easy. Prices are reasonable and I would work with him again (if I lived in the Bay area). read more

Book him... like right now!!! Highly educated and professional. Ben was such a joy to shoot with !He was patient and calm, just an all around good energy to be around. He made the awkwardness of photos in public disappear. Absolutely love how my son and mommy shoot went , and the outcome of the photos truly capture the love and joy I have being a new Mom. I can't wait to book another family photo session with him. read more

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Ben was an amazing photographer, and we are so grateful we came across him. He made us feel super comfortable during our engagement shoot. We showed up a bit nervous but ended up having a lot of fun and walking away with pictures we really love. Ben was willing to try out a new location with us and spent the whole hour committed to finding the best spots with the best light. He even waded in the river with us to get the perfect shot. We really appreciated his skill in natural outdoor lighting, and thought his posing tips were very helpful without feeling too rigid. We highly recommend him! read more

Fanstasic service, amazing experience, and incredible results. I highly recommend this business for all your photography needs. read more

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Ben was amazing to work with, he was on time and friendly to work. Our son's birthday party pictures were outstanding. Price was also reasonable. read more