Ekaterina did a wonderful job of photographing our wedding…read more For our wedding, we got the City Hall package and couldn't be more happy with it. The photos she took from our wedding were amazing! There wasn't one photo that I disliked from the photos that she gave us. After I posted some of the photos to Facebook, many people were asking me who my photographer was. In addition to being a wonderful photographer, she is very personable. She makes you feel comfortable when you're taking photographs and not awkward at all, which was one of my fears as my husband and I are both very camera shy). We also didn't really have much time to plan and she was willing to to photograph our wedding last minute, which was very helpful. Lastly, her prices are very reasonable! I don't think you'll find a better deal out there (I know I didn't!)

We used Ekaterina's services twice already, and I hope we will have more occasions to be…read morephotographed by her! First of all, me and my husband are not very comfortable in-front of cameras, but somehow Katya made us feel very relaxed and natural. Her outgoing and easy personality was the key for us! Second, she went above and beyond to accommodate both of our photoshoots. She was our photographer for documentary shoot in City Hall, and we absolutely loved working with her, so we invited her to be our wedding ceremony and reception main photographer. I just finished watching 470 GREAT pictures from our wedding, and each frame was a masterpiece! I would recommend Photography by Ekaterina Alyabyeva to anyone who's looking for a great experience most awesome and memorable pictures!!!!

Justin was recommended to us by a good friend who had him as their wedding videographer, and we're…read morereally glad we went with him. He was easy to work with, professional but super chill, and worked seamlessly with our photographer on the day of. If you're debating whether or not to get a videographer, it's totally worth it. My wife teared up watching our Highlight video the first time...and then rewatched it more than 100 times after that (no exaggeration!). Justin did such an amazing job capturing the day without making anything feel forced or overly staged. Justin was also really helpful and flexible with making a few edits after we got the video back, which we really appreciated. Overall, we had a great experience and would definitely recommend him!

You really need to look no further if you're looking for a videographer for your wedding. Justin…read morewas informative, accommodating, and extremely attentive from our initial conversation all the way until the delivery of our wedding video. He provided expectations from the get-go, letting us know of the packages he offered and the style of his shots that he goes for. It was so easy to work with him on day-of my wedding that I honestly even forgot that we hired a videographer! My wife and I originally didn't anticipate wanting a videographer, but we took a chance after hearing other couples say it's worth it since you'll always be able to watch your wedding videos for the rest of your lives together. After seeing our highlight reel and actual video, we were SO shocked by how well it was put together. I could immediately tell how much time and energy he put into making our video and we both could not be any happier with the outcome. He captured everything- from the getting ready shots to the venue, to ceremony, cocktail hour, reception, speeches, everything! We're so happy that we get to have this video to show to our future kids/families to reflect back on our special day. Thanks so much for everything Justin! I 1000% will be recommending you to all my friends, families, and anyone in need of a videographer!

When I first came across Michael L'Heureux Photography, I thought it sounded very artistic and…read moremaybe even a little intimidating. I got the first part wrong but couldn't be more wrong about the second! =) I can't say enough good things about Michael. We hired him as our wedding photographer and, from our first phone interview with him to the actual day of the wedding, he has been the model of great client service and dedication. On top of that, Michael is just a genuinely nice guy. My hubby and I had many great vendors for our wedding, but Michael stood out for always going the extra mile, and we are so so so happy we hired him! I consider myself to be a pretty unphotogenic person, but I was amazed at how many great photos Michael captured. He really has an artistic eye. I wish I knew more about photography so I could better express all the beautiful elements in our pictures, but suffice to say, we got tons of compliments on them. =) But on top of his amazing talent and a calming demeanor that put even a photo-shy subject like me at ease, Michael's dedication really blew me away. Even though our venue in Monterey was hours away from his home, he visited it several times before the actual wedding day just to scout locations and check lighting. He didn't take a single break during the 9+ hour shooting period because he didn't want to miss a single shot. It's been a real pleasure working with Michael and he gets my highest recommendation to any bride who wants to hire a reliable, talented and service-oriented wedding photographer. P.S. He's not just a wedding photographer, he also shoots a lot of non-wedding photos~

There are not enough superlatives I can throw at Michael that can describe my wife and I's…read moreexperience with him for our engagement shoot and wedding. For starters, he took time out of a weekend he was in the area for a personal trip to shoot our engagement shoot. Our wedding was in Santa Barbara and since Michael had come up to San Francisco to visit friends he squeezed in our engagement shoot. Not only did he do that, he went out to the location early to scout for great spots so he could be sure we didn't waste any good light once we started shooting. My wife is beautiful and takes amazing pictures. I am the polar opposite of that. I can manage to look goofy or make a strange face in about 99% of the pictures I take. Michael and the 2nd shooter he brought to our wedding, Anthony somehow managed to even make me look good. At the wedding we didn't spend hours doing weird posed shots or wrangling together distant relatives for pictures we'd probably never look at twice. He knew we wanted things that were beautiful but seemed like candid shots. There are pictures I still look at today that were special intimate moments, and I have no idea how he got a shot of them without me seeing him snap the picture. He was so accommodating and easy to work with, it was just one thing about the wedding that brought no extra stress. I cannot recommend him highly enough. Do yourself a favor and talk to Michael, look through his portfolio and if you see shots that you think are your style, book him before someone else does. It will be one of the best decisions you make during your wedding planning.

Michelle is an incredible photographer, whether you want someone to shoot an event or on a more…read morepersonal basis. As a plus-sized model, it's incredibly important to me to have images that look good- as a fat activist, it's also important to me that they not hide supposed "problem areas". Having made this clear, we had a shoot that did exactly what I wanted it to do! Michelle seems to have a talent for making you look your best, whatever that means not only to her eye, but *to you*. She's professional, on time, fast turnaround on images, and incredibly comfortable to be around. Recommended!

Michelle photographed our wedding. I think she shot over 700 pics and i liked most all of them…read more There are quite a few i absolutely adore! Thank you.

Joey photographed our wedding on September 20, and he also did our engagement photos. We love the…read morephotos. The day of the wedding, Joey was great - he set up great portraits, and then we hardly noticed him the rest of the day, but he was able to capture a lot of great candids, including good action shots on the dance floor. (A lot of the photographers whose portfolios we looked at were not good at the indoor action shots, but Joey did a great job with that.) Joey has done a lot of portrait work, and our posed shots were wonderful. The photos overall really captured the day - not just what happened, but also the emotion. My stepmother said that a couple of the photos made her start to cry, and my step-grandmother, who couldn't be at the wedding, said that the slideshow of Joey's photos made her feel like she was there. Joey was very easy to work with: it was easy to set up meetings with him, he let us choose the things we wanted from him rather than forcing us into a package, and he was flexible on the clauses we wanted in the contract. He was very communicative and responsive via e-mail, from helping us choose our outfits for the engagement photos to confirming the wedding timeline. He came to our rehearsal to help him plan shots for the wedding ceremony. He had the right balance between friendliness and professionalism throughout the process. I have no complaints. The value for the price was great - our wedding photos were far better than those of friends and family that we know paid 2 or 3 times what we paid, and on par with those of people who paid 4 or 5 times what we paid. His prices may go up as get builds his portfolio and gets more good reviews, but he'd still be worth the money at a higher price.

We highly recommend Joey! We hired him for our wedding and were blown away! Great lightening,…read moresymmetry, and detail in each photo. Joey captured moments of our wedding that we had not seen before. He processed our photos and sent two thumb drives of over 1,000 photos about 3 weeks after the wedding. Thank you again Joey!

I met Kurty over 20 years ago when he did my glamour shots (remember those?!!!) that everyone and…read moretheir mother was getting at the time. He did a fantastic shoot of me in black and white (which I still have to this day) and is a true professional and good at his job. He made me look presentable and that's saying a lot! Kurty is very kind and patient; I'm not comfortable in front of the camera but he puts me at ease and makes suggestions for poses and angles. I asked for a makeup artist he suggested this fantastic makeup artist who made me look like a better version of me instead of an unrecognizable version with caked on makeup. His studio is a good size and he has fun music to relax to, so the mood is upbeat and happy and it will show in your pictures. He chooses the best background and lighting for you. After taking the photos he sent them to me within an hour and I was able to pick what I liked right away. If you're thinking about a headshot or a couples portrait Kurty is the person to go to - he is a fantastic and talented photographer and is a pleasure to deal with. Highly recommended!

Kurty is an awesome photographer and at the same time, very professional yet friendly. I would…read moretotally recommend him to anybody who is looking for quality pictures at a very affordable price and an overall great experience. I've never had professional pictures taken before, and decided to come to his studio for a couple of headshots. He was very accommodating to my specific requests and even generously took a few more pictures than he had to while providing very good / clear instructions to help positioning to get the best shots. He is clearly an expert in his field and was at the very time really patient, making the experience feel really easy and fun for a first-timer. After the pictures were taken, he exercised really good judgment in helping me pick the best ones and explaining to me why some photos were better than others, etc. I'd totally work with him again on future photos and am so glad that I found him through Yelp. Thanks again Kurty!

My son, husband, dog, and I recently had our family portrait done by Jamey Thomas. It was a fun and…read morepositive experience for the four of us. We made sure to remember dog treats, which kept our dog focused and on task. We met at Crissy Field so we could have the Golden Gate Bridge in the background of some of our pictures. Jamey has a great personality for getting everyone comfortable and keeping things light. He took lots of pictures as we walked around. I felt like we were famous as we strolled around and had our picture taken almost every step of the way. My son moves fast and isn't the most cooperative subject, so Jamey had his work cut out for him. After about an hour of playing around and getting several candid and some posed shots, Jamey suggested we caravan to a eucalyptus grove that was just 10 minutes away. It was wooded and gorgeous, providing a different look for the photographs. I recommend Jamey highly for portraits, especially if you want photos shot in a outdoor setting with natural light. Wind was a factor for me in blustery SF, so next time I think I'll tie my hair back. If you get a chance, check out Thomas' portfolio online. I didn't post our best photos for privacy reasons - we have 79 images images on a CD, in both color and black and white. Our funniest photo was the "booty shot" directed by my son of all 4 of us sticking out our jean-clad (except the dog, who participated for sure!) booties standing against a log overlooking the forest. Though G-rated, it is a classic for sure. 5 enthusiastic stars.

My husband and I hired Jamey for our October 2012 backyard wedding in Santa Cruz. We found Jamey…read morethrough the vendor list on apracticalwedding.com where each vendor is required to take their Sanity Pledge. When you have a second, I suggest reading it. I interviewed a few photographers over the phone and kept coming back to Jamey. I just found him to be respectful, kind, straight-forward, not pushy, and reasonable. My husband and I met with Jamey in person where we looked at printed copies of his work and talked about our personalities and what we wanted in a photographer. We were sold. He captured movement and light so well. I cannot emphasize the importance of feeling comfortable with your photographer. My husband and I can be hams for the camera, but we can be bit shy when asked to be serious and pose. It was important to us to avoid having a yelling or aggressive photographer. We felt at ease with Jamey and we felt that our guests and family would be at ease as well. For our engagement photos, Jamey came to our home and took photos of us around our favorite places in Santa Cruz (our home w/ our cat, Ocean View Park, our local ice cream shop, the Boardwalk). In preparing for this photo shoot, Jamey just encouraged us to be comfortable, to do our thing. The results were excellent. It was a good warm-up for the big day. We had 130 guests at our wedding. Jamey was awesome and he fit right in with the crowd. Guests were just so impressed with how easily and nicely he moved through the crowd talking with people, asking to take a photo. Jamey's best photos are the photojournalistic shots - the candid photos of us and our guests having a great time. We had a backyard wedding and a lot of time and effort was spent to make that yard look special. He really captured how pretty it was. Jamey is worth it. I look at all the photos now and I find that they really do tell the story of that day. Other pluses: Jamey is responsive to emails and phone calls. He was so patient - I had lots of questions. Agreement for services was also abundantly clear. He provided final photos faster than expected. He was a joy to work with and I kinda miss harassing him with my questions and worries over outfits and makeup. My mother really liked him - that says a lot.

Very communicative, friendly, responsive, transparent, and provided great services. We had…read moreFrancisco as our photographer for our tea ceremony/wedding/banquet. He was very helpful, respectful and accommodating of what we were looking for. We highly recommend him for any special events, proposal and wedding photography. The photos and videos came out looking awesome!

I don't have enough words to describe how talented and thoughtful Francisco is! My fiancé worked…read morewith Francisco for photo/video for our proposal. He was super professional and kind. He made us feel super comfortable and celebrated. The photos and video turned out perfectly and I can't stop looking at them. Thank you for capturing this special moment perfectly and with so much intention!