Arika Mendenhall Photography
About This Vendor
Photos that are as golden as your memories
Based in Pawling, NY, Arika Mendenhall Photography snaps special moments to create a one-of-a-kind wedding album of your big day. Bring this enthusiastic artist along for the ride on your wedding journey and you will be left with a collection of photos that take you right back to the day. Wherever your celebration takes you, Arika will be there to document it. A California native, this photographer has a love of all things nature and travel. Seeing the beauty in even the smallest of details, Arika strives to capture not only the planned moments but also the spontaneous exchanges of your big day. With several years of experience in the industry, Arika has a passion for meeting new people and developing new skills along the way. You and your partner can have all of your wedding events captured by this skilled creative. Arika serves engagements, weddings, day-after shoots, and trash-the-dress sessions, as well as other events throughout life. Wherever in the world, your milestone day takes you, Arika is happy to travel to catch it through their lens.
Details
Business Attributes
Woman-owned Business
Destination Weddings
Destination Wedding Packages
Photo Shoot Types
Bridal Portraits, Day After Session, Engagement, Trash The Dress
Photo & Video
Digital Files, Second Shooter Available, Social Media Sharing, Wedding Albums
Photo & Video Styles
Artistic, Documentary
Wedding Activities
Getting Engaged, Rehearsals & Parties, After Party, Wedding
Awards and Affiliations
Arika Mendenhall Photography Reviews
Share your thoughts with other couples
First and foremost, Arika is one of the kindest people I’ve ever EVER met! She made my husband and I feel so comfortable and confident while photographing us on our wedding day. It’s a stressful day to begin with, so having someone so kind, ca...
lm, and reassuring is essential on your big day.
Upon receiving our wedding photos, my mouth quite literally hit the floor. I had reviewed her profile ahead of booking with her but was blown away on how luxe, warm, and personal the photos felt. Once I posted our sneak peak photos my inbox filled with friends and family commenting on how stunning the photos were. Don’t get me wrong, my husband and I looked great - but Arika’s direction and skill took our photos to the next level. I will forever be grateful for Arika and hope anyone on the fence booking with her sees this!
Arika took our engagement and wedding photos. The photos turned out beautifully! She made us feel so comfortable in front of the camera so we were able to open up and get th emost beautiful photos. It took a bit of time to get our wedding photo...
s back but they were gorgeous! We had a set list of photos we wanted from the wedding and Arika made sure to get all of those for us.
Arika was absolutely lovely and EXTREMELY helpful from start to finish. She did our elopement pictures and made both me and my husband feel so at ease. We had to do a last minute elopement instead of our original wedding date due to a family il...
lness and Arika was so accommodating in shooting our elopement. The pictures were STUNNING and she is SO kind. Arika, thank you so much for your talented work and adaptability.
Arika did an AMAZING job with our wedding photos! They were everything I dreamed of! She was so sweet and kind and made us feel very comfortable in front of the camera. She’s so talented, I would highly recommend her!
Arika is so amazing to work with - kind, down to earth, easy to connect with, helped us feel comfortable in front of camera, and of course produces amazing photos!! Her expertise shone through not just in photography but also in helping us mana...
ge our wedding day's timeline and ensuring we got photos we wanted, and more! She was always there for any questions or concerns along the way and was so accessible on our day. Absolutely would work with her again in a heartbeat- giving the highest recommendation!!!
I highly recommend Arika! Her approach is comforting, making bringing out the best in those who are camera shy. Her expertise is obvious, and her results speak for themselves. She is easily approachable and very professional.
Arika was so great to work with, highly professional and friendly. She said as very receptive to our vision and has a fantastic eye. She is a natural talent and our photos really captured the day and were more beautiful than expected. Would ...
highly recommend!
We absolutely adore Arika! In addition to being super talented, she is so kind, communicative, professional and patient. We have been going through our wedding photos, and continue to be blown away by her talent, and the ability to capture such...
genuine moments of our day. Her photos are very artistic, unique, and thoughtful. We have so many favorites, and are extremely happy with them all (and the online gallery is so organized and easy to use!) From our initial inquiry, Arika was always very responsive, answering any and all questions. We originally hired Arika for our wedding day only, but then decided a few months prior to do a micro engagement session. We thought it would be a good idea to meet Arika prior, and get a bit more comfortable in front of the camera. We knew the type of setting we wanted, and Arika picked the perfect spot. Not only did the photos all turn out beautiful, but we had a great time in the process, and she made us feel at ease. On our wedding day, Arika and Nick arrived early, set up all the detail shots we wanted, captured so many beautiful moments that we weren’t even aware of, got that golden hour just right, and truly fit right in with our family and friends. We highly recommend Arika to anyone and everyone. We cannot thank her enough!
From the moment I first spoke with Arika on the phone, I felt at ease. She has such a comfortable and calming demeanor. This was so important to us in that we wanted to feel comfortable with the photographer, and know that our family and friend...
s would be as well. Arika quickly understood the approach we wanted, she was flexible, and also very helpful with her suggestions. She captured so many amazing moments on out wedding day and her photos are beautiful. Thank you Arika for taking care of everything so flawlessly that day!
Arika was absolutely amazing to work with! She did our engagement and wedding photos with us in January 2021 and October 2021. Arika helped us think about what photos would look nice in specific settings and always ensured we had every photo we...
wanted before wrapping up. She is very personable and makes the setting very comfortable to give us pictures that are better than I could have imagined!
All I can say is, do not hesitate to book Arika for your wedding. She is so awesome to work with!! Arika kept me calm and stayed calm herself while my well meaning mom tried to take over and be the photographer the day of the wedding! The pict...
ures from our engagement shoot and wedding are fantastic. My fiance and I spoke with so many photographers and we are so happy we chose Arika. If you book her, you will not regret it!!
It was a pleasure working with Arika. She was very sweet and thoughtful on the wedding day. She captured unique wedding moments. We are happy with the weddings photos, she did an awesome job!
Thank you Arika for making our wedding photos better then we could ever imagine. Arika is professional and truly loves what she does. Her passion is reflected beautifully in her amazing work. By nature I am camera shy which made engagement/wed...
ding photos a little scary. Within moments of meeting Arika I felt comfortable being myself in front of a camera thanks to her bubbly personality. She gives direction to her clients while giving them enough space to express themselves. She executes her artistic vision with precision and it was exciting to see her get inspired during the whole process. It was an absolute pleasure working with Arika. Thank you x1000 for capturing our wedding day in the most magnificent way possible! I could not be happier!
Finding and working with Arika was one of the best parts of our wedding. Not only is she an amazing individual, but she’s also one of the best wedding photographers out there. She has the perfect eye, gives great direction, and is extremely pat...
ient. She made us feel so at peace on the day and helped out where she could (way to more than she needed to). I am a photographer and was very uptight about who would photograph our wedding; however, Arika was the perfect selection. If we could give her 10 stars instead of 5, we would. Our photos are absolutely amazing and will age beautifully. We are completely blown away. Look no further, Arika is the right person for the job!
Arika is an absolute gem! She was able to capture the essence of our love so well in these beautifully composed vignettes. There was just instant chemistry and she understood exactly what we wanted.
She also made the shoot SO FUN! We happily ...
took her suggestion by playing some of our favorite songs and having an endless flow of champagne.
She is the best decision we made! We already have her booked for all of our future milestones.
Arika is a pleasure to work with. She has great ideas to capture the perfect shots. I would highly recommend her as a photographer
Arika truly haves a talent in capturing the PERFECT moments and making each shot memorable , she was extremely professional and truly kind. She shot our engagement and wedding photos and it was worth every single penny and more. She went above ...
and beyond and I couldn’t imagine asking anyone else to have done them. Highly highly recommend her
Over the past few years I’ve had the privilege of having Arika take my photo countless times. She creates an effortless and comfortable environment while shooting, even playing the perfect music to set the mood.
With Arika I have always walk...
ed away with photos and an experience that make me feel beautiful and confident in a way nothing and no one else can.
Whether this is your first experience hiring a photographer, or your 50th, I can guarantee you it will be your best.
Arika was a gem front start to finish!
She did our engagement photos and we couldn’t be happier. Despite deciding we were going to do them on a peak with a hard hike involved, she took the challenge and blew us out of the water with the photog...
raphs. On our Wedding day, she captured all the important moments stunningly. She was always reliable, sweet, supportive, knew how to direct us and had a great eye! Your photographer follows you throughout the whole day and we felt like we were with one of our best friends. When covid and weddings in general can be difficult terrain choose someone who will help make it effortless! Totally recommend Arika!✨
Oh my goodness!! There is not enough time in the day to list all of the wonderful things about Arika! She was very punctual and on top of getting all of the detail shots done, and that was just the start to our day! She took all of the suggesti...
ons I wanted to cover (most of them from my Pinterest board) and remembered to get every single shot I had interest in even though I didn't remember anything in the midst of my bustling wedding day! She kept me sane and was very patient and took time to make sure she captured every detail of my day! She was able to get shots that I didn't even remember happened that I will be able to cherish for the rest of my life! She was so welcoming and friendly but still was able to keep my husband and I, and my whole crazy wedding party on track the whole time! I cannot thank her enough for everything she has done for us and the invaluable memories that she has been able to preserve for years to come! She was able to capture everything even while blending into the crowd, rather than some photographers that block guests' important views, especially during the ceremony. There is a not another photographer that I could think of that would be better for anyone's wedding! She is simply the best! Highly recommend!
Amazing doesn't even begin to describe Arika. Our COVID wedding changed location and time about 2394802 times. Arika rolled with every punch. She was not only professional but caring and thoughtful. She would check in on how we were dealing wit...
h all the changes and accommodated all of the strange requests we had, even until the day of. She was such a HUGE part of our wedding day and experience. I'm honestly upset that there aren't any pictures with her IN them because in my mind, she was drinking mimosas that day with the rest of us. She is beyond kind and understood that my husband and I are NOT models and need to be directed extensively to look human and she DID HER THING. We looked AMAZING. I couldn't stop staring at us. She also captured all these behind the scenes moments that we had with the few people who could attend. It was incredible. Anytime I'm marrying my husband again, I'm calling Arika. And getting a picture with her this time.
Arika was amazing to work with. Highly recommended. Our photo session evolved from a couples shoot to an elopement and Arika was easy to communicate. The pictures came out beautiful, we received so many compliments on our pictures when shari...
ng them friends and family. She has such an artist eye when taking photographs, I love the how she was able to capture the moments
Arika was an absolutely delight to work with - from engagement photos to Wedding photos. Of course with COVID, our June wedding was cancelled and we ended up eloping. It was a fairly last minute ordeal and we are so happy she was available for ...
our Elopement. She was kind, patient, and flexible through it all. We didn't have many details with the elopement, truly just the essentials really, but she captured what we did have so well and made them shine. As for her photography - absolutely BEAUTIFUL. We will cherish our engagement and wedding photos forever. Highly recommend Arika. You won't regret having her "by your side" on your special day(s)!
Arika Mendenall was amazing. My husband and I got married September 18, 2020 at Mills Mansion in Staatsburg, New York after a few postponements due to COVID19. Arika was wonderful and flexible and was willing to work with us during this crazy a...
nd exciting time. She came with an assistant and their photos are beyond amazing. We were lucky to have a gorgeous day, but her photos are above and beyond what I could have ever expected. She was so patient with us and so kind. We would highly recommend her !
Arika was an absolute gem! She captured every detail of our outdoor wedding this year, in gorgeous, flawless photos that will help us to remember this special day with so much joy. Arika has been so pleasant and patient throughout every step of...
the process, especially considering the unique stresses caused by the current pandemic. Arika's kindness and gentle presence allowed us to just relax and be ourselves, resulting in photos that are both flattering and truly us. She captured so many quiet, beautiful moments during our special day that we weren't even aware of! I know we will treasure these photos forever. We are so grateful for Arika's hard work, attention to detail, and kindness and would recommend her to absolutely anyone, without hesitation.
Planning a wedding was a unique experience in itself, but when COVID-19 hit the process took its twists and turns. Arika completely went above and beyond accommodating us, and being flexible with our needs leading into the big day. Arika was ex...
tremely punctual, and never let up in making me feel comfortable and calm the entire day. There needs to be a bigger word than talented to describe how phenomenal she is! Her and her husband completely captured the mood we were looking for and understood our vision completely. They embody exactly what wedding photography should be in every way! I would work with them a thousand times over! Complete gems through and through!
Arika is simply amazing! We had the privilege of having her shoot our wedding. Arika is professional and personable, and helps keep you at ease on what can be a very stressful day! I was extremely impressed when I saw the photographs that she t...
ook of our day. Arika managed to capture every moment & emotion, ...these are memories that I will always cherish. I highly recommend Arika!!!
I was nervous about our wedding photos because I generally don’t like photos of myself. But who doesn’t want beautiful wedding pictures? When we got our photos back from Arika I couldn’t stop looking at them for 3 hours. Me and my husband had s...
uch an absolute blast at our wedding with our family and friends and she really captured that. Not only did the pictures come out beautiful, she and her sister worked as a great team in making our tight schedule go exactly as we had hoped. Our wedding day was a dream and Arika made sure we can relive that whenever we look at our photos. I can’t thank her enough.
Arika and her second shooter (her sister Alissa) were so amazing that we couldn’t wait until we got our pictures back to write a review!
We got married on a military base, meaning that there were extra layers of security and formalities to go ...
through. While I was out if my depths trying to figure it all out, Arika was so understanding, and quickly got back to me whenever a new rule or request was given to me that affected her. From getting a pass to get on post (the morning of!) to answering all of my questions to offering to help find vendors, Arika always got back to me quickly and left me feeling calmer than before I called.
She and her sister worked well with everyone, from a vivacious flower girl to shy groomsmen to a very nervous bride.
When my mom and I couldn’t figure out how to put up my bustle, they knew. In between snapping pictures, they were constantly asking what they could do to help and how I was feeling, or making a joke to ease our nerves.
My only regret is that I couldn’t have hired to be our wedding planner as well!
If we were still living in the area, we would definitely be using Arika for every other occasion that arises, but because we can’t, we hope you do!
WE LOVE HER! We booked her for our wedding and engagement photos, haven't had the wedding yet but we just finished our engagement photos and I couldn't wait til the wedding to review her. she and her sister were amazing! we were pretty nervous ...
(we've never had our photos taken) but they put us at ease even before the engagement shoot. she and her sister are so kind and we had so much fun with them. AND we received our engagement shoot album so quickly! excited to see what she has in store for us on wedding day :) highly recommend.
Where do we start, first off the photos were amazing, and delivered to us in a timely manner, in addition to that Arika is very flexible and always works within your schedule. Her and her sister truly made our wedding extra special, and we are ...
forever grateful for their contribution to our day. We can honestly say that if you are considering getting married and need a photographer, without a doubt Arika is first choice, you will not regret it.
Having Arika as my wedding photographer was the most stress-free part of my wedding! (She also did my engagement photos.) She was professional and really understood my aesthetic. My photos totally exceeded my expectations! She captured so man...
y candid moments that I can cherish forever. I highly recommend Arika and hope to work with her again!
Arika’s photos of our wedding turned out better than I could imagine. She is very professional and was so easy to work with. I am a person who doesn’t always feel comfortable taking photos and I was really stressed going into it but Arika made ...
the experience so easy and comfortable and I didn’t feel awkward at all, I actually enjoyed it very much. People have told me they are some of the most beautiful wedding photos they have ever seen. Highly recommend Arika.
Hiring Arika as our wedding photographer was one of, if not the best decision we made for our wedding! She was quick to get back to us with any questions we had, we got both our engagement and wedding photos back super fast and we loved every s...
ingle shot she took and edited [& our families did too :)]! Besides all that, Arika and her sister make a great team. They're fun to work with and make you feel relaxed which made taking photos an easy experience for us :) The day of our wedding ended up being one of the rainiest days of the year and all our pictures were originally supposed to be taken outside. While I was freaking out all morning, Arika wasn't fazed at all and instead she and Alissa came early to start setting up and do some searching and they found the most perfect indoor photo spot close by. The pictures turned out even better than if we had stuck to our original plan and we are forever grateful to have found such a hardworking professional for our wedding who genuinely had our best interests in mind. I would without a doubt recommend Arika to anyone looking for a wedding photographer!
Fantastic photographer, I love our photos, we get lots of compliments on our pictures and everyone wants to know who took them! We got our pictures very quickly, great quality! A pleasure to work with, would highly recommend!!
Arika is amazing! She has such an eye to capture people at their best! She really captures both quiet moments, and candid moments beautifully. She's also the sweetest person you will ever meet, so you can't go wrong choosing her for your day!!!
If you want HIGH quality pictures with a photographer super easy to work with then look no further. We hired Arika and it was the best decision we could have made. She has such a creative eye for getting great shots and will get you incredible ...
pictures for your special day. It was so easy to convey our needs and what we wanted the feel for our pictures to be and she delivered on every aspect. 100% recommend!
Arika’s quality and professionalism in her photography contributed to our joy not only on our wedding day, but long after. She truly has an eye for unique and beautiful shots that we hadn’t seen done anywhere else. She and her sister are a grea...
t team that we recommend to everyone.
One of the best decisions of the wedding was hiring Arika. She delivers everything you want to want to remember forever and finds moments you don't notice. Her professionalism and asethetic also blended in with our event, which can only go in g...
etting those perfect shots. Her delivery of our photos was also exceeded our expectations. From beginning to end, we only feel delight and gratitude for having Arika.
First of all, Arika is such a doll to work with. Because of her relaxed nature, she puts you at ease immediately. As for her talent with a camera, Arika captures the essence of a moment with rare intimacy most photographers can't begin to fatho...
m. There are so many self-proclaimed photographers out there, but Arika truly has an eye for editing, posing, light, color, and mood that are so far above the rest. In my opinion, Arika produces photos that should be featured in top wedding magazines. She has done multiple shoots for me, including an anniversary session with my husband and a business session to update the pictures on my blog. Every time Arika's pictures blow me away and perfectly capture the feel I'm going for. Arika also edits and sends final pictures in a timely fashion. She's reliable, professional, friendly, and a gifted young photographer. Hire Arika-- you absolutely won't be sorry!
Where do I even begin?! These two are AMAZING! Their teamwork is on point, they work so well together. And let’s not forget the pictures are fabulous! They are great at communicating too, any questions or concerns and they were on it! If you ar...
e looking for a great photographer these are your ladies. From beginning to end... one of the best parts of the day!
Arika is truly one of the THE BEST! I’ve worked with Arika on several occasions and she is always focused, hard working and dedicated to her clients. She has one of the sharpest eyes for detail I have ever seen in this industry. Her photography...
has amazing energy and youth.
I’ve also been a groomsman in a wedding that she shot and was constantly impressed at her interactions with the bride and groom, giving them kind and affirming direction. Arika often shoots with Alissa Morabito - they are an amazing team - and they are going to pour their hearts and souls into your wedding photos.
I’m also a professional photographer and she is exactly who I want taking my photos. She quickly puts her clients at ease and makes them feel comfortable. Her zeal for photography is contagious and I can’t wait until the next time we get to work together!
I would recommend Arika for any of your photo needs. Not only is she extremely talented, she is also very professional. Arika's friendly personality makes her skilled at making her subjects feel comfortable in front of the camera. Some of my al...
l-time favorite photographs were taken by her, and I cannot say enough good things about her!
Looking back through my photos I remember all the good memories, they're in all my photos. I loved working with Arika and I would recommend her in a heartbeat. She was professional, sweet and incredibly good at her job.
Contact Info for Arika Mendenhall Photography
NY, CT, NJ, RI, MA, and anywhere else!
Meet the Team
Arika Mendenhall
Owner
My name is Arika, I have been working professionally as a wedding photographer for the past 5 years. I fell in love unexpectedly with all the little moments of shooting a wedding and the privilege of documenting one of the happiest and most important days of a person's life. I believe that the photos I deliver should be as magical as you remember the moments to be, this means editing out transient details like acne, stray hairs or any other blemishes that disappear as quickly as the cake at your wedding.
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Arika Mendenhall Photography