About this vendor
Based in Schenectady, New York, Danielle Gardner provides honest and artistic photojournalist images for couples in Upstate New York and beyond! After working as a photojournalist for Sun-Times Media in Chicago and documenting over 70 amazing weddings for Chicago wedding studios, I am pursued my dream of opening my own wedding photography studio! While my approach to your wedding is photojournalistic, all my images are informed by an artistic aesthetic. I give my very best to every wedding that I have the honor to document. In addition, I celebrate all love and welcome LGBTQ weddings and events. I also love documenting weddings for couples of diverse cultures and faiths. If you like honest images informed by art send me a message and let's work together!
Details
Business Attributes
- Woman-owned Business
Photo Shoot Types
- Boudoir
- Bridal Portraits
- Day After Session
- Engagement
Photo & Video
- Digital Files
- Film Photography
- Online Proofing
- Photo
- Printed Enlargements
- Printed Proofs
Photo & Video Styles
- Artistic
- Documentary
- Lifestyle
- Modern
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Rehearsals & Parties
- After Party
- Wedding
- After Party
Awards and Affiliations
Reviews
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5
out of 5.021 reviews
If you need a photographer for any special occasion, hire Danielle! She is wonderful both in her manner and talent. Danielle captured my daughter's wedding day in so many wonderful...
ways. Danielle didn't miss a shot and yet she was never intrusive. I could go on and on but I think I will instead re-visit the gallery of photos Danielle provided and re-live the magical wedding.
We cannot recommend Danielle enough. We had our wedding in August of 2021, a year past our delayed 2020 date, so we began working with Danielle in 2019. Throughout the chaos of wed...
ding planning and the extra chaos of pandemic interference, Danielle constantly proved to be a committed and compassionate photographer. She was kind enough to do an engagement shoot with us in 2019 and we immediately fell in love with her photos, several of which still sit framed on our apartment wall. Even through our protracted and troubled planning process, Danielle was in frequent contact to help us with any questions and concerns. She provided us with a very thorough questionnaire and reviewed it with us repeatedly before our wedding day to ensure she captured all the photos we wanted. We discussed everything from specific portraits to capture, to her approach for the day (documentary vs. artistic, candid v. posed), and the names of all the key figures in our wedding. Her organization and communication went above and beyond what we could have hoped for.
Then there’s the magic of her photos. Yes, Danielle’s work is stellar; the examples you can find on her website capture the incisive beauty of her work better than my words ever could. What you won’t see there is her unwavering support behind the camera. Danielle captured the beauty of our wedding so well, and she also made the day so much more fun. My wife and I had a blast posing for her, and she did a masterful job guiding our family, wedding party, and guests through photos efficiently. Looking at her documentary style photos really brings me back to my experience of the day. They say that your wedding day goes so fast that you will barely remember it, but not if you hire Danielle! Working with her was undoubtedly a highlight of our wedding both before and on the day. Thank you, Danielle, for making our wedding so magical. I promise you that if you hire Danielle, you will not regret it.
Danielle was the absolute best to work with! She photographed my sister's wedding in 2018 in the Adirondacks and then made the trip for our wedding in the Finger Lakes this year. S...
he made our wedding day perfect! From capturing beautiful first look and ceremony moments, dealing with my husband and his groomsmen not knowing how to put their boutonnieres on, and seamlessly working around a sudden thunderstorm during family pictures, she was ready for everything! She even brought an umbrella for us to use while we walked around the vineyard :) We cannot recommend Danielle enough.
We have been so lucky to work with Danielle for the past two years throughout our pandemic wedding planning, and are sad that our time working with her on our wedding has come to a...
n end! We first worked with her way back in 2019 for my sister's wedding, and it was such a great experience that when we got engaged, we wanted her for ours! We did our engagement pictures in fall 2019, minimony in July 2020, and larger reception in July 2021 with her, and each experience was so seamless and organized. We each have large families, and Danielle took special care to make sure that each portrait combination was accounted for while it got quite hectic on the day of. The small moments that she captured were so perfect, and ones that we would have never seen if her documentary style photgraphy wasn't there. Each picture is so natural and unforced, and it's hard to choose favorites! We really also cannot thank Danielle enough for how responsive and communicative she is, especially when we had sooooo many emails and changes over the last few years! We highly recommend Danielle for anyone getting married if you want incredible pictures that your entire family will rave about!
I truly cannot say enough wonderful things about Danielle! She was absolutely incredible before, during, and after our very unusual event. She photographed our son’s very small and...
intimate bar mitzvah ceremony. Danielle was completely open and receptive to learning all about our faith, culture, and traditions. She was endlessly flexible as our plans continually evolved, and she answered my many, many questions. I sometimes sent her more than one email a day, and she never seemed to run out of patience. She met with us for a tour of the synagogue months before the event (her idea) so she would be familiar with it, and she then suggested a different location for our preparations which was perfect and a wonderful setting for the photos. Throughout all of the planning process, Danielle was my rock- she was always there, always calm, always supportive, always enthusiastic, always accommodating. I was continually grateful that we’d chosen her as our photographer.
On the day of the event, Danielle was amazing! She was completely unobtrusive, no one noticed her presence, and yet she was everywhere and captured absolutely everything, even moments that we didn’t know had happened. She is an incredibly hard worker, totally focused on her craft. Danielle was also very sensitive and knew when to just remove herself from a situation (like when I completely freaked out because the sanctuary had not been arranged as requested). She was very patient and polite to family members who were umm, rather irritating. Everyone looked good in the formal portraits, which is absolutely incredible! We have family members who just don’t seem to ever be able to look in the direction they’re told without blinking, but somehow, everyone’s eyes were open and they were smiling! Her relaxed demeanor helped everyone else feel calm and look their best. Our gallery of photos is gorgeous and includes such a perfect mix of formal and spontaneous images. The photos she took really bring me so much joy. The photos overflow with emotion, everything we were experiencing comes shining through.
After the bar mitzvah, she shared highlights of the gallery sooner than we had expected, and it was not long after that before all of the photos were available. She provided a wonderful online gallery, easy to share with others and order prints. She continued to answer my many questions and helped me determine what kind of paper to order for the prints- the most difficult decision was figuring out which ones to choose! The images are so gorgeous; it’s now a month later and I still can’t stop looking at them all. Danielle is a true artist, a talented photojournalist, and the ultimate professional.
Danielle was wonderful to work with from the moment we reached out to her. We first met with Danielle in person to discuss our wedding plans back in January 2020 - she asked though...
tful questions to help understand our vision for our wedding day. Danielle had previously photographed two weddings at our venue and was able to offer useful suggestions based on her experience. As our plans became uncertain due to the pandemic, Danielle stayed in touch and was very understanding. Fortunately, we were able to pivot our plans and still hold a safe, joyful celebration on our original date. Leading up to the event, Danielle shared an extensive questionnaire that allowed us to decide on the schedule for the day. She was realistic about timing to ensure she could capture the important moments and provided valuable insight. We were immensely grateful for this planning on our actual wedding day - no aspect felt too rushed or stressful, and we were truly able to take in each moment. Danielle has a calming presence and an eye for creative, beautiful images. After our wedding, Danielle shared the wedding highlights through her password protected online gallery within a few days. A few weeks later the full gallery was available and we truly LOVED the images Danielle photographed. From the small, memorable detail shots to her stunning ceremony images, we could not be happier. In addition to the original engraved wooden box with prints that we had ordered when we signed our contract, we also ordered three large prints for our home. Danielle was again very timely in having them shipped to us and the each arrived carefully packaged. Throughout the whole process, Danielle has communicated clearly, mostly via e-mail, though she also sent a few sweet notes in the mail. We highly recommend Danielle and are looking forward to staying in touch with her in years to come.
We can’t say enough amazing things about Danielle! She is easy to work with, very responsive to emails and questions, and of course incredibly talented. We did two engagement shoot...
s with Danielle, and she photographed our small wedding ceremony. She will also be coming to our wedding celebration next year. She was very flexible as we had to change our dates several times due to the pandemic, and she made everything so easy. During all of our shoots, Danielle made us feel comfortable by giving just enough direction while allowing us to be ourselves. She then sent us the photos so quickly, and we were always blown away by her documentary style. She is able to truly capture the people she photographs, as well as the feelings of the day. We can’t stop looking at the photos, and can’t wait to continue working with Danielle! We can’t recommend her highly enough.
Danielle was AMAZING. We used her for our engagement photos a few weeks ago & she was fantastic!! The pictures are gorgeous & we cannot recommend her enough!
Danielle photographed our wedding last fall; she was amazing to work with! Right from the beginning, she took the time to get to know us, both as individuals and as a couple. Befor...
e the wedding, she was quick to reply to emails and phone calls. She is organized and helped me to think through the day and what photos we wanted. We wanted most of our photos to be natural and less poised - and Danielle is a pro at this! She captured some of my favorite moments without needing any direction. (She is also totally comfortable with dogs! And got lots of great shots of our fur-baby!) She had great ideas for a few poised photos and made us feel completely comfortable. She is great with family while still prioritizing our needs and wants. And the photos came out beautifully! She has a great eye! She also helped me choose the best photos to be printed, recommending sizes and how they should be printed. Having the gallery was so helpful in being able to let family members order photos of their choice. Our wedding was one of my favorite days ever, and not only did Danielle help to capture that fun and joy in her photos, but having her there to talk to and laugh with made the day that much more fun! I cannot thank Danielle enough for her fast friendship and participation in our wedding!
We feel extremely lucky to have found and worked with Danielle for our wedding. We would love to work with her again in the future for any family events and highly recommend her t...
o anyone looking for a candid/journalist-style photographer.
Things we appreciated and wanted to highlight about our experience with her:
- She is tireless and always working hard throughout the shoot. Thanks to her commitment, she captured so many great moments naturally.
- She is flexible and accommodating to creative requests
- Very easy to communicate with and responsive.
- Professional demeanor and well equipped for the shoots.
- Stunning turnaround time (~3 weeks) during the peak wedding season on getting us the studio favorites digital album.
- She provides a nice online gallery for managing photos and requesting prints
Thanks so much, Danielle. Your photos captured some of our best memories and we can't wait to pass them on to our children someday.
Danielle was so amazing before and after our wedding. It’s a stressful time and timelines, vendors, family, places to be can easily crossover. She helped us organize the shot list,...
brought up really great points we had to consider, and then on the day of calmly helped shuffle and direct us to look our best. Her calm energy makes you feel so comfortable and relaxed, and you can see that natural feeling come across in our photos. My (now) husband doesn’t like his picture taken and gets really restless, and Danielle charmed him into taking portraits and some posed pictures! It was magic!
It should be noted that our wedding was over 200 people and Danielle really did a great job of being everywhere, and also having the artistic eye to capture images we would never have thought of. I love our pictures and I loved that Danielle was a part of our day.
Do not hesitate in hiring Danielle, she is the best around. We had so many people recommend photographers from big expensive firms, photographers they know or photographers we know...
but we decided to go with a stranger and it was the best decision we ever made. From our very first meeting Danielle made us feel very comfortable. Our engagement photos were unique and beautiful, we received so many compliments. She communicated with us up until our wedding day and even scheduled a private tour of our venue so she could scout out photo opportunities. It could not be more evident that Danielle is more than a photographer, but an artist and journalist. She doesn't just document, she also captures emotions, connections, vibes, and environments. Her images tell a story and express words in a way few photographers are able to. On our wedding day she was the only photographer for 125 people, yet somehow she seems to have captured every moment. Her photos feel real and never forced. The moments she captured at just the right time, in just the right way take our breath away. She is very kind and lovely to work with. She is an extremely talented photographer and I would recommend her to my closest of friends and family. Hire her and I promise you won't regret it.
Danielle's photos are absolutely spectacular and honestly, speak for themselves. Although the portraits are fantastic, her specialty is capturing those organic moments between peop...
le. She is professional and personable, interacting with so many guests throughout the event. We had an opportunity to fill out a pre-wedding questionnaire as well as meeting with her in person before the big day - we were definitely on the same page and I appreciate her regular communication from beginning to end.
Danielle photographed our October wedding. She was wonderful and easy to work with. She is kept us informed of what to expect and made us feel comfortable in front of the camera. ...
The whole process was painless as she had us fill out a pre-wedding questionnaire making sure we got all the photos we wanted and she scouted the location to find the best spots at the venue. Most importantly the photos came out amazing and the perfect memories from the day. She was able to photograph all aspects of our wedding, from the ceremony to the couple and group portraits to candid party shots during the dancing, each just as beautiful as the last. I would highly recommend her and hope to work with her in the future.
Danielle Gardner was just wonderful for our wedding day. She is very easy to work with and made sure that all the photos we requested we got with people at the wedding. What drew u...
s to Danielle was her style of photography. She loves to capture the natural love and laughter of individuals and does such an amazing job at capturing these moments. She was absolutely wonderful with our parents and family. She was lots of fun during our one on one session and made a normal person look and feel like a model. She is soft, yet firm when needed to get a group of 40 people together for a family portrait. She was very easy to contact and went with all the wedding plan bumps. We would highly recommend Danielle to anyone for weddings, portraits or any other special event. She treats your special day as it is her own and completely understands the importance of your event.
Danielle was amazing. Very professional and easy going. We weren't the most photogenic couple and are a bit camera shy, but she made us feel very comfortable and both our engagemen...
t pictures and wedding pictures are stunning. I love how she puts a blog on her website with a summary of each event, it's a great way to share with friends and family. Thank you!
Danielle was incredibly organized, flexible, and always quick to respond throughout our wedding planning and wedding day! She accommodated our families, helped find the best spots ...
for pictures, and made us feel comfortable. Our pictures are fantastic, especially the candids, which were some of our favorites. We would absolutely recommend her, especially if you want a good mix of professional portraits and artist candids of your day!
Danielle is excellent! There is not a single thing we would've asked her to do differently. She was professional, super organized, a calm and sweet presence, and, of course, an inc...
redible photographer! Her journalistic style produced stunning photos. We are an LGBT couple and she made us feel comfortable from the start, including asking our preferred pronouns. Choosing Danielle was hands-down our best wedding planning decision.
Danielle is the absolutely fantastic! Don't waste another minute looking for anyone else. Danielle is an incredible photographer and a genuinely sweet person. She asks you exactly ...
what you're looking for in photos, and she definitely delivers. She will go above and beyond to make sure that your wedding day is documented exactly how you want it. Not to mention, some of the photos from the wedding I didn't even know she was taking because she is THAT good...she's professional and knows what she is doing. My wedding photos are even more than I could've hoped for, and people cannot stop complimenting me on how well they turned out.
Book her RIGHT NOW.
Book her today! Danielle took our engagement photos back in 2012 on a beach and dock on the Great Sacandaga Lake in the Southern Adirondacks. I vividly remember her professionalism...
and patience. It was easy to see that she had taken similar shots thousands of times before. She made the shoot a unique experience for us by putting my wife and I at ease while creating one of our most important memories of a lifetime.
Danielle Gardner is a brilliant and personable photographer who photographed my now husband and I for our engagement. We loved the photos so much that we used one for our wedding's...
"save the date" card.
Kind, knowledgeable, and easy to work with, Danielle leads the photography session with talent and ease. She recommended a time of day for the shoot that produced pictures in the most beautiful natural light and chose a setting that was both interesting and matched our style. Her style - one of a photojournalist - captured realistic and beautiful exchanges between my husband and I. I highly recommend Danielle as a photographer to anyone that is seeking a comfortable and rewarding shoot that results in timeless photos.
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