About this vendor
“One common thread looping all of photographer Maile Lani’s clients together is their wish for wedding photographs that are far from the run-of-the-mill, prototypical images they’ve seen all too many times. While this free-spirited artist produces timeless, romantic photos, she without a doubt brings her creative and imaginative voice to every shoot, guaranteeing uniqueness to every shot. Maile’s warm, engaging personality is comforting in those pre-ceremony moments and essential to her pursuit in delivering the true images you’ve always wanted. For less posed, more natural wedding photos with a dreamy, vintage feel -- Maile’s your gal.” -Junebug Weddings
Details
Destination Weddings
- Destination Wedding Packages
Photo Shoot Types
- Bridal Portraits
- Day After Session
- Engagement
- Trash The Dress
Photo & Video
- Digital Files
- Film Photography
- Online Proofing
- Photo
- Second Shooter Available
- Social Media Sharing
Photo & Video Styles
- Artistic
- Classic
- Documentary
- Vintage
Wedding Activities
- Getting Engaged
- Rehearsals & Parties
- Wedding
Reviews
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4.8
out of 5.022 reviews
Maile is such a skilled and talented photographer! We knew we wanted a wedding photographer who would capture all of the genuine moments of our wedding, while also understanding th...
e spirit and energy of New Orleans - and Maile and her team did not miss a beat! Not only is Maile such a joy to work with (her enthusiasm and animated personality is contagious!), but she and Mike seamlessly blended into the evening and were able to capture everything. Not to mention, for two people who don't love being in front of a camera, Maile had my husband and me at ease and having a blast in minutes. We're so grateful we worked with Maile and could not recommend Maile Lani Photography more!
Having travelled from the UK to New Orleans to elope as a same sex couple we were worried about coming so far and not knowing anyone. Maile definitely changed that for us. She's an...
amazing photographer who helped capture our special day and immortalise this into wonderful pictures.
Maile is incredibly friendly and professional. For two people who are a bit camera shy she put us completely at ease and feel like we've made a friend. She has an amazing ability to create natural and beautiful pictures.
We chose the absolute perfect photographer for our day and would highly recommend her to anyone planning a wedding in NOLA. Maile was knowledgeable on the best locations for pictures and we could not be happier with the results.
Special thanks to Maile and her assistant Mike for also being our witnesses on the day too...without you we couldn't have got married!
Maile is an amazing photographer and all-around amazing human. Early on in wedding planning we flew from SF to Nola to take engagement pictures with Maile. Our original planner (Th...
ree Little Words) that we ended up firing, never booked the session with Maile. I was in tears but Maile said dont sweat it and made it work. We had a great engagement shoot with her and, having recently gotten married herself, provided a lot of invaluable advice to us early on.
She's so easy to work with and clearly loves her job. She puts you at ease being in front of the camera and on our wedding day itself, she's able to quickly think on the fly and she captured some amazing shots.
Her style is colorful and timeless and she's an expert at capturing emotion in pictures. I absolutely loved working with her and highly recommend her!
Maile Lani Photography is absolutely incredible! Maile photographed our wedding and every single picture was beautiful! Maile payed attention to all the minor details and captured ...
every beautiful moment of our wedding without causing a distraction during the ceremony or reception. Maile made us feel very comfortable as we took our couple’s portraits, instead of feeling awkward or uncomfortable. Maile really captured our night perfectly! Every time I look at our photos, I have a huge smile on my face because she captured everything and more! I can I highly recommend Maile Lani Photography!!
Wonderful to work with and gorgeous photos. I really loved all of the close ups on the jewelry and dresses. ITtwas so fun getting to re-live the wedding through Maile's great work....
Thank you!!
Maile was amazing! We booked her in February for our engagement photos as well as for our wedding in November. She was so fun to work with and put us at ease. I love the style of h...
er photos too, they are so beautiful. Thank you Maile!
Maile is the BEST! We booked Maile before even meeting in person as we live in Cleveland, Ohio and we were having a destination wedding in New Orleans. Maile worked with us to bui...
ld a perfect package for us including an engagement photo shoot and a full 7 hours of coverage for our wedding. We were thrilled with the result of our engagement pictures that we even made those into an album to use as our guest book for the wedding! Maile was so easy to work with, easy to communicate with and very professional. I have received so many compliments since receiving our pictures back, comments like "This should be in a magazine!" or "This looks like a fairytale!" I can't thank Maile enough for all of her hard work along with her assistant for our wedding. We now have these beautiful memories of the best day of our life. Thank you Maile!
Maile did our elopement photography in April and I couldn’t have been more pleased. She is so kind and very easy to talk to. The courthouse was running late for our appointment and...
she was so understanding and stayed a bit longer than our one hour session. She is also quick to reply back to e-mails and messages. We got all of our photos back a few weeks after our wedding and they were stunning! She captured the day beautifully and I would highly recommend her!
My husband had a specific artistic style that he wanted for the wedding photography and Maile’s artistry was the perfect match. She got all the shots that we wanted, those traditio...
nal ones our parents wanted as well as a few that we didn’t think we needed but now are in love with. She’s simply amazing!
Maile's a gem! If you're looking for someone who's indoor photography is just as beautiful as their airy light-filled outdoor work ( which seems to be everywhere) Maile is your gir...
l. Latrobe's is a tricky venue to light and shoot without being to invasive and everyone looking over-exposed. But out dance- filled, sweat-soaked end of the night photos look just a gorgeous as our golden hour portraits. Everyone on team Lani was personable, professional, and efficient and we basically got every shot asked for ( besides the ones we completely forgot to put on the list in the first place) plus a wealth of gorgeous candids. Do yourself a favor and hire Maile before you can't afford too anymore.
Maile is really amazing! With less than 28 hours notice, I had to shift my wedding 24 hours, and Maile made it work. She was in Nashville when I called her from
New Orleans, and s...
he just told me to let her know when I make the call to move the wedding, and she would hop in the car. Maile also helped me think through rain plans and even reached out to her wedding planning friend for ideas. Maile is so considerate and talented. She also took our engagement photos, and they are so beautiful, and we got them back within like a week and a half! I'm not sure what kind of expectations the people had on here that wrote the negative reviews, but I'm here to tell you as a type A bride who had to switch a wedding in 28 hours that Maile was super responsive, professional, and went above and beyond her role as a photographer.
I literally cannot say enough thank you's to Maile for being such a huge part of our day! I could not have imagined anyone else photographing our big day, she captured every moment...
so beautifully! If you want a photographer who is a true professional, knows her shit, makes you feel super at ease in front of the camera, and will deliver a finished product that will knock your socks off, get this woman to photograph your day! Love!!
Can I get 20 stars? I was in love with her photos on line and was extremely excited to have her capture our day.
She was super sweet to work with; so friendly, reassuring and yet t...
he best form of professionalism. Her work is amazing, please check it out.
Did I mention my dress boutique didn't sew in a bustle and Maile took the time to even create a bustle on spot for my dress (because I didn't take to time to go through this to my dismay). Who does that?!? A savior photographer!
She is amazing and talented and my ONLY reservation is that I didn't use her talents and for a longer period of time. The BEST decision we made throughout the whole process!!!
Maile was fun, energetic and completely on top of things. She was neither intrusive nor did she miss a single moment. On the morning, she even helped get me into my dress, side ste...
pping a stressful moment caused by a lace up bodice! Her photos are spectacular!
Maile is warm and genuine and an amazing photographer and all-around human. I was freaking about having my picture taken, it really was the thing I was most nervous about. She put ...
me totally at ease, came out of her way to do an engagement session with us, and took the best pictures I've ever seen. As a bonus, she is absolutely lovely. Planning a wedding was hard work, but she made the photography part so easy. We now have an album full of the most gorgeous memories!
For my wedding I chose a beautiful historic location and I required someone who would be able to capture the romantic vintage feel of my wedding. After looking at Maile's portfoli...
o I knew she would capture my wedding's vision and beauty of the location, and I was not wrong. All the pictures I obtained were incredibly artistic displaying emotion with the perfect setting/placement to capture the history of the wedding. Maile took all the pictures I wanted and even more that I didn't expect: shots of every single arrangement at the venue, bridal shots, party shots, venue outdoor shots, bouquets, shoes, bridal jewelry and I could keep on naming all the other unique shots.
The most impressive part of Maile's services at the wedding was her quick and efficient leadership at family shots. Even though our family wasn't that large (close to 20) she managed to get every set of important family pictures in record time. To some her mannerism at that time might seem "stern" albeit always respectful, but seeing the chaos of the day (and how our family can be as challenging as herding cats), this was really the only efficient way to getting the pictures taken quickly. This was also confirmed as one of our own guests, a professional photographer, agreed that her leadership in handling the chaos was fantastic and beyond reproach. This was great because it allowed us more time to take personal shots.
In terms of delivery, within a week I had sneak peek shots of the wedding. When I required photos for Thank you cards she allowed us to select which ones we wanted edited first so she can provide those to us on time. The wait was worth it, every guest commented how delightful our pictures were. We were lax with obtaining the final set of images, so although it did take some time, their perfect editing was worth it.
Overall, Maile was a pleasure to work with and I would recommend her to anyone who wants a creative and imaginative dreamy vintage feel photography, while allowing her some freedom to capture your day.
Working with her has been an extremely frustrating and unenjoyable experience. Her mid-range prices may be enticing, as well as her display of past work on her blog, however I wou...
ld have rather paid a bit more to work with someone more responsive, and if you notice until the last week of February, her most recent post is from October ’13 and the last full blog was from July '13. I rarely write reviews, but feel very strongly that no one else should have to experience the frustration I have, uninformed that is. My primary concerns have been 1) her lack of professionalism, 2) lack of communication, 3) not following through with promises made, and 4) extreme delay in being able to view or receive photos. The process of wedding planning is stressful enough without having to deal with issues such as this. Working with her has been so frustrating, the pure joy of seeing our photos was compromised and the memories of the frustration will always be tied to these images. It appears to me that she is either not really interested in or unable to handle the demands of wedding photography, so do yourself a favor and choose a photographer who is. I am including more specific details below if you are interested in reading more...
Once receiving our deposit, numerous attempts were required to receive a response from her and she was always reluctant to speak on the phone. She never remembered from one conversation to the next, email or phone, regarding the details we had discussed. This continued and worsened after the wedding.
On the day of the wedding, I had asked that she capture several shots of me alone, to use for a bridal portrait. She did not get a bridal, there were not nearly enough of me and my husband during the reception, and the photos of the details of the wedding were not great. Several times throughout the evening we had to search for her. At one point she was found upstairs, eating with her assistant. She was only hired to be at the reception for 2 hours as it was, so I did not expect for her to take a break. I would have gladly offered to have her stay and eat/drink after she was done shooting for the time we had agreed upon. In addition, some of my guests who asked her to take posed photos found her to be very rude and put out by their request.
Our wedding date was in early November and I asked her for ONE photo to use for a party we held in our home town at the end of November. Though she wrote to me that she would send one, I never received it, and it took her over two weeks to finally respond. At that point the party had passed, and when she finally responded, she said this, “As you know it does take 8 weeks to get wedding photographs back, and I do edit everything in the order that I shoot it. I'll try my best though.” After this incident, I asked for ONE photo to use for Christmas cards. After 3 weeks of her telling me she might be able to send one to me, I gave up. I didn’t hear from her again until I contacted her again after the 8 week mark, inquiring about when I could expect to see ANY of the photos. She sent the online gallery 10 weeks post-wedding, and I did not receive the digital copy until almost 16 weeks after the wedding, twice the time she stated it would take in her contract.
I could go on and on; these are just a few examples. You will likely not get what you ask for or what she promises. You may receive some nice photos, but they will not be worth it!
I have not received my pictures yet but did get a sneak peek a week after the wedding and am very pleased. I think that she will have a lot of great candid shots that will let me s...
ee a lot of things that I missed during the day. My only concern is that I feel like I lacked guidance about what pictures I should take that day. She sends you a list of typical pictures that brides take and then asks if there are others you would add to the list and the list is pretty exhaustive in terms of family, etc but there are some that were not listed that I would have expected to have but didn't realize until after that day. For example, I did not take any posed pictures by myself that day. That was not something I thought ahead of time I would want, just something I assumed would be standard. But again I am sure she got some great candids of me. My suggestion would be that if you choose her you think through any possible pictures you might want and add that to the list she offers.
Maile is absolutely adorable! She's young, chatty, and so spunky which makes her really easy to work with. She certainly knows how to make you feel comfortably in what can be an aw...
kward thing for most people.
Her photos are creative and beautiful. One of the best compliments we received from multiple people was 'This looks like it could be in a magazine!'
Her style is less posed, more natural and has a vintage classic feel to it. I swear she could make anything look beautiful!
Maile was fantastic! I couldn't have asked for a better photographer. I knew from the moment I found her website that she was the one for me. She has a photo-journalistic style tha...
t I adore. She is so easy to work with - the first time we met we ended up talking for 3 hours!
She has a film package in addition to digital and uses some pretty incredible old cameras. If you are in to non-traditional artsy photographers this is the girl for you!
I really can't say enough good things about her!
Maile photographed my 9/30/11 wedding in New Orleans. We became interested in her after visiting her site and reading overwhelmingly positive reviews about her work. I loved the vi...
ntage vibe of her photos and the original poses and angles she captured. When I set up a meeting with her, I was sold right away. I already knew that I loved her aesthetic and the quality of her work, but her warm and enthusiastic personality gave me that gut "this is right" feeling that guided the rest of my wedding decisions.
I booked Maile about 8 months in advance of the wedding, and she maintained great contact the entire time. As time drew closer to the wedding, she helped me structure my thinking about photography by asking for specific shots that I would like and asked about the flow of the ceremony and reception. She had a great balance of working independently and professionally while always asking about our needs/wants in such a personal way that I felt like I'd made a new friend. This aspect in particular was important to me as I knew she'd be with me right before the wedding in my most anxious time and throughout this intimate occasion.
Throughout the ceremony and reception, I hardly knew Maile was there. She was a photographic ninja and managed to capture all our favorite moments and more. She worked awesomely with the day of coordinator, and the very next day, she had a sneak peek photograph to get us all excited. I was impressed with the turn around time for the photos, and everyone was SO impressed, pleased, and surprised by all the wonderfully creative and special shots she took. One of the best parts for us was receiving the DVD of our photos which were shipped in a personalized case with our names and a few photographs printed on it. Another great part- we have great photographs to give family and friends.
I can't think of any drawbacks or regrets about working with Maile, and from what I see and hear, I don't think other brides/grooms have any complaints either! I will empathize with brides and grooms who may be shocked by the price of photography (as I was), but Maile offers competitive packages, and after it is all said and done, I wouldn't change a thing and think we actually got a steal for the collection of 600ish professional photos of our closest family and friends.
How does Maile have no reviews yet, I ask myself??? Please check her out. She has a PASSION for photography in general, which means she's not one of the many trying to get a buck o...
ut of the booming wedding industry. She will shoot digital and film if you want. Her pictures are dreamy and they just ooze emotion. Seriously, visit her website and you will see what I'm talking about. Also, I really enjoyed her company. I'm a young bride, she's young as well, so maybe that had something to do with it, but she is just really easy to talk to. I found this especially helpful on my wedding day because she just blended in like she'd known all of us for ages. It didn't feel forced or stuffy, which helped me relax for photos. Maile's very efficient with time, too. She wasn't afraid to tell my chatty family members to focus while taking pics after the ceremony. She kept us in line and got the pictures done fast! You won't be sorry if you choose to work with Maile!!!
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