Melissa Atle

Melissa was fantastic! She captured every moment perfectly while making everyone feel comfortable and relaxed. I can’t wait to have an excuse to work with her again in the near future. 10/10 would recommend!

Melissa is truly a gem. Not only is she a talented photographer, she’s kind and laid back - which is so important when it’s for such intimate life moments. We had to change our wedding plans multiple times due to COVID, and not only was she understanding and flexible, she was one of the few vendors to keep in touch throughout the process. The photos are gorgeous (not an easy feet on a bright, hot day with a 6-month old in a suit 🤣) - it’s hard to decide which to frame! We would 100% recommend her and are looking forward to working with her again!

If you're looking for the perfect person to photograph your wedding day, look no further and book Melissa Atle immediately! From the moment I found Melissa's website, I knew she was the one we wanted to capture our special day. We had a zoom call with Melissa and not only was she so kind, genuine and sweet... I felt like we had known each other for years. She made us feel so comfortable from the very beginning and she really wanted to work with us on a package that made sense for us and our wedding day. I really appreciated the curated packages she came up with and how beautifully she presented each option. Melissa was so organized and stayed in great communication prior to the wedding. I don't love being photographed and I told Melissa I really didn't want the wedding day photography to seem like a whole production with forced shots and poses. She assured me this wasn't her style and I could not have been happier with how the day went! I have never seen a photographer with such grace and calm energy like Melissa. She just flies under the radar while capturing the most beautiful, special and real moments from our big day. Every single photo she took was stunning and so perfectly natural! I will always remember the moment right before our first look, Melissa told me "this moment is about you and Brian, no one else... just you two... remember that!" It made me feel so comfortable and confident and I totally forgot about that awkward feeling I get when I am behind a camera. Our family photo session was smooth, enjoyable and easy! After that, I never felt like we had to stop enjoying the day, step away and/or awkwardly pose. We just got to enjoy every minute, every moment... all while Melissa captured the most beautiful photos! Our wedding day photos are pure magic thanks to Melissa! We are so grateful for you Melissa! Thank you for everything! Big hugs :) - Mackenzie and Brian

Oh what can I say about Melissa? She has been the greatest photographer to work with. She was kind enough to shoot our engagement photos AND our wedding day. She thought of everything, she was kind, reassuring since we are not generally all glammed up and she kept things so calm. I cannot recommend her enough, especially if you are a bit overwhelmed about your special day. She walked us through everything, zoomed us whenever we needed her and answered each and every question . She is extremely professional but had so much fun with us. 10/10 would recommend Melissa! <3

We first hired Melissa for our maternity photos. It was the middle of covid and she was taking on more than her typical wedding photography because of how weddings were effected by the pandemic. We loved our photos and her so much that we hired her again for our newborn/family shoot and then again for our wedding! She is an absolute delight to work with—she brings music, directs you to pose in a way that feels natural and fun, is laidback and easy going, listens to what you’re looking for, gives great advice, and most of all takes stunning photographs. She truly goes a above an beyond—at one point she was shooting photos at our wedding while also holding our 1 year old who wasn’t having it with anyone but me or her. We will continue to hire her and love knowing her.

My fiancé and I are from Hong Kong. We had a trip to San Francisco in June, in the meantime we wanted to have an engagement shoot there, my friend then referred Melissa to me. I contacted Melissa through email, she’s very responsive, helped us to brainstorm about the vibe and backdrop, gave us suggestions and guideline for the session. On that day, we were very nervous as that was our first photoshoot session ever. Luckily we had Melissa, she was very nice and kind. She chatted with us, lead us to many lovely locations that we exactly wanted, gave us many directions during the shoot, made us feel very comfortable. We had a wonderful time in the session and really enjoy it. We received a sneak peek gallery in the next day and final album in a week after. The photos are so beautiful and amazing! We love them so such! Thank you again for her outstanding work. Highly recommend!

We had the pleasure of working with Melissa this past year and it was the greatest experience! Melissa and Chris are incredibly talented, and they captured the most extraordinary photos of our wedding in March. All of Melissa’s photos have a unique style and really capture the full moment of whatever was going on at the time. Not only are Melissa and Chris amazing photographers, but they are also seriously awesome people. Melissa’s kindness, flexibility, and humor made the planning process and wedding day so much fun. You’ll spend a lot of time with your photographer on wedding day, so it’s important to choose someone you enjoy being around. That said, we are SO glad we got to work with Melissa and Chris for ours. THANK YOU!

I needed a photographer for my proposal to my now fiancè and I found Melissa via an online search. I was initially apprehensive (you really only got one shot at this) but Melissa made me feel very comfortable with the process. She was kind, upbeat and super friendly. It felt like we'd known each other for a while and she even helped with picking spots and making sure the surprise was intact. Prior to the day she kept in touch to make sure everything was on track. She and Chris (her partner in life and work) handled the proposal photography wonderfully, my fiancè and I felt very comfortable during the session and really enjoyed Chris's background music :). The entire process was perfect. The pictures were beyond our expectations, I'm not a crier but I almost did when I saw them. I would definitely recommend Melissa in a heartbeat.

Hands down, Melissa (and her husband Chris) are the best wedding photographers out there. It would be one thing if Melissa was just an expert photographer. But she's way, way more than that. She's a fantastic human being. During the entire planning phase of our wedding, Melissa offered advice and experience, but never demanded we do things her way. During the wedding itself, she put us at ease, treated us like close friends, and helped the whole day go smoothly. She somehow made me look photogenic, and took AMAZING photos the whole night. I don't use that word lightly. We gasped when looking at them. On the execution side of the wedding experience, during the planning and the wedding itself, Melissa was easily the best part. She is professional, kind, funny, and talented, and my wife and I are so grateful that she was a part of our day.

Working with Melissa was one of the best decisions we made for our San Francisco wedding. Not only did Melissa capture the day perfectly, she was always there for us throughout the planning process and was a calming presence through it all. We ended up changing our plans several times due to COVID and Melissa was always there to talk through options with us; the week of our outdoor wedding, we saw lots of rain in the forecast and Melissa went above and beyond to be flexible on timing for the day of the wedding to avoid the downpour. I knew that hiring a photographer meant we'd get photos to last a lifetime, but we got more than amazingly captured moments - Melissa was the perfect person to have by our side and make us feel relaxed throughout planning and the day of the wedding!! As a bonus, she also far exceeded our timing expectations for when we would get the final gallery. I would 100% recommend Melissa for anyone looking for a photographer!

Working with Melissa was so fun! We first hired her for our engagement photoshoot and immediately after that shoot, we hired her for our wedding as well (easiest decision we made with our pandemic wedding). My husband and I are both very shy people so we were a little worried the shoot would be uncomfortable and our nerves would show in our photos, but from the second we met Melissa, it felt as if we were just meeting up with a long-time friend. She is so kind, easy-going, and funny! Our engagement photos turned out so great, absolutely no nerves in sight. After the engagement shoot, we dove head first into wedding planning. Planning this thing was ROUGH. But through it all, we knew we had one solid rock we could rely on - Melissa. She stuck by us throughout all of the venue and date changes, stress emails, and just complete insanity of it all and she did so with grace. I cannot explain the relief I felt when she walked into the bridal room the day of the wedding. Her presence has a way of calming and brightening the room - something every bride can appreciate. The moments she captured on our wedding day are truly beautiful. They are minute moments in time full of love and laughter that we didn't even notice, but somehow she and her camera did. Our photos play out as if our wedding was a real life fairy tale and that is all thanks to her. She gave us a gift not only will we cherish for the rest of our lives, but our loved ones will as well. If you aren't sure who to pick as your photographer, pick Melissa. Without a doubt, she is the absolute best.

My fiancé and I had a really hard time finding an engagement photographer that fit our budget and offered services a la carte in the Bay Area. We spent hours googling and instagram searching and we were SO relieved to find Melissa. She was responsive and accommodating given the super unpredictable weather in SF. She even rescheduled with no extra charge when the weather went south on the day of our shoot. We felt she really cared more about us, our experience, and the lifetime value of our photos rather than just being another client. Before the shoot, my fiancé and I were super nervous since we’d never been professionally photographed before, but Melissa made the entire experience so fun. Seriously. We actually left wanting to do it again! Plus, the end product was amazing, we had over a hundred photos to choose from for our save the dates and gifts for family members. We would highly recommend hiring Melissa for all of your wedding photography related needs!

Melissa was amazing. We were feeling really overwhelmed by everything wedding-related, especially with the uncertainty caused by COVID, but knew that we wanted engagement photos done in SF, and Melissa made that process so seamless and easy.  Melissa's portfolio stood out to me in the sea of options because her shots felt so real (no unnatural poses) and her finishing was warm and natural (I don't love the bright and washed-out look that seems to be in vogue). I also had grand ideas about the number of locations and outfit changes I wanted, and Melissa's offerings were a lot more flexible than many other photographers'.  I can rave all day about Melissa, but the following really exceeded my expectations: -She was unbelievably flexible and understanding. Our shoot was going to be entirely outdoors, so I knew there was a chance that SF would deliver unideal weather on our shooting day. That's exactly what happened. A few days before our original date, Melissa got in touch, asked if I wanted to move forward with the cloudy forecast on the horizon, and was so understanding and flexible when I asked if we could reschedule for a sunnier day. I am so appreciative!  -She has all the pro-tips from all her experience shooting in SF! We had some locations in mind and asked if she knew of any unique "earthier" places to round out our sets. She really came through! She also knew the best day of the week and time of day to get the golden hour shots we wanted.  Needless to say, we were super pleased with the final product and are SO glad we found Melissa. She was so professional and personable and just overall a delight to work with. Melissa also includes a slideshow that's fun to watch with family and friends. We would love love to work with Melissa again!

Melissa was so helpful throughout the entire planning and re-planning (hello, COVID) process. She was very responsive and provided us with great resources, tips, and ideas. It's important to have good vibes with someone you are going to spend a lot of time with on your wedding day and Melissa was just that - she made us feel really comfortable and as such got really great photos. The pictures turned out beautifully and the light, style, look was exactly want we wanted. She sent over a sneak peek right away and the full gallery just a few weeks later. Would work with again in a heartbeat - highly recommend.

Melissa was amazing to work with from start to finish. When we had to postpone our larger wedding due to COVID, we needed to find new vendors for a smaller wedding in Sonoma County in short order. Melissa was very responsive and flexible. She not only recommended venues since we weren’t local, but also was willing to accommodate our requests for flexibility around length of service and payments due to the uncertainty of COVID restrictions tightening again. When we had to replan our wedding a second time due to mandatory evacuations in Guerneville, Melissa was very willing to travel to San Francisco and meet our needs. She executed beautifully on the surprise first look with the t-rex and all the subsequent photos. She was able to capture the candid moments (especially the ones with our pup) perfectly! We were so pleased with how quickly Melissa was able to get us back the edited photos. We love the photos and are so happy we were able to get such an amazing photographer on such short notice.

I could write a dang novel about Melissa. The most kind hearted, supportive, positive, wonderful person and I don't know that I would have gotten through our pandemic wedding planning without her. When we first met via facetime, I felt an instant connection to her warm personality, and I knew that she was the person I needed to photograph my wedding. When the pandemic hit, I was distraught, 2 months away from our wedding. Melissa was a support system to get through not just rescheduling once, but TWICE, and then ultimately cancelling in favor of a small elopement in Minnesota. When I emailed Melissa about our cancellation, I expressed how sad I would be that I wouldn't get to wear my dress. Melissa suggested a wedding portrait session. We'd get all dressed up and just go for it. She sent me 6 locations in Sonoma County and we ended up shooting at Bodega Head. HOLY COW, DID MELISSA F**KING DELIVER. She brought the JAMS on a little speaker, she was totally on board with my antics of needing a champagne popping photo, she was jumping over rocks on cliffs to get the perfect shot, I mean this woman went above and beyond anything I could have ever imagined. She even helped me in and out of my massive ballgown in a parking lot. I am a very insecure person, and uncomfortable in front of the camera, but Melissa has a way of shooting where you absolutely feel like a super star. I have seriously never had the type of confidence I had during that portrait shoot. NOW, THE PHOTOS. Melissa is a true artist. These photos are INSANE. She captured the utter happiness between me and my husband perfectly. She made me feel like the bride I wanted to be in 2020. I don't care where you live in the world, you need to hire Melissa for your wedding. You will have fine art photos to hang in your house, and portraits that will stand the test of time. I just can't wait to stare at these photos forever. Thank you thank you Melissa, you made our YEAR and we are eternally grateful to have met and worked with you.

There was something in my gut that drew me to choose Melissa when my fiancé (now husband) and I were looking for a photographer for our engagement shoot. We knew she was special after reading her reviews and seeing her past work, but we really had no idea how incredible she was until we met her in person. Melissa is truly a gem. She is warm, witty, and has a joyous presence and fun energy which could make anyone feel completely at ease. My husband and I had the most incredible time during our photoshoot—Melissa managed to create a space where we felt like we were in our own world. When we got the photos back, there were many tears of happiness shed, both from Michael and I, and our families. Everyone commented on how beautifully the photos captured our love in a way that felt natural and candid. When it came time to choose our wedding photographer, returning to Melissa was a no-brainer. We were so delighted that she was able to travel out of state to accommodate our wedding in Sedona, AZ within our budget. Even before wedding day, Melissa was so helpful in helping us plan details of our wedding that even our wedding planner hadn’t thought of. She is exceptionally organized and detail-oriented. We were lucky to have both Melissa and her amazing husband Chris shoot for us on wedding day. From the moment they arrived, they both had such a positive and joyous energy that our wedding party and guests all appreciated. Melissa was a godsend on multiple occasions on wedding day: from being the only one capable of figuring out how to pin my bustle, to feeding me granola bars before the ceremony. Michael and his groomsmen had a blast getting ready with Chris—the pictures he captured of Michael with his groomsmen are some of our favorite shots from the wedding. Most importantly, we could not be happier with the photos that Melissa and Chris shot on wedding day. We were completely blown away when we first received our album – the photos were idyllic. Each shot beautifully captured the emotions we felt that day while also highlighting the natural beauty of the Sedona landscape. Every time we scroll through the photos, we are transported back to that perfect day. We are so excited to have the prints of these photos forever hanging in our home, serving as a timeless reminder of our love. If you have gotten this far into the review, trust your gut and go with Melissa. You won’t regret it.

Where to even begin. We are from Northwest Indiana, and we first contacted Melissa for engagement photos to take place while on vacation in the Santa Rosa area. Neither of us knew the area or good locations to have photos taken. Melissa responded to us almost immediately, and she was so helpful in pinpointing the perfect location for our engagement photo session. When we met her she was just as awesome in person as on the phone. She made us feel comfortable, set the mood with music, and made us feel like it was one of our friends that we had known for years doing our photo session. Shortly after our session, she even posted some sneak peeks of our photos on instagram which got us very excited for the finished product. Once she sent us our engagement photo album we were so in love with them that we could not stop looking at them for MONTHS...we actually still look at them and talk about how dreamy they are. My husband and I decided to have an intimate wedding ceremony in Sonoma county with our family and closest friends. Without any question we decided to hire Melissa as our wedding photographer. She was amazing to work with through this process as well, because a lot of the planning was via email and phone calls since we live across the country. When our wedding day arrived Melissa met us at our venue and she DEFINITELY captured the beauty of our wedding day. She was extremely flexible and understanding considering some unforeseen circumstances that happened. She made our entire family and friends fall in love with her with her because of her cheerfulness and awesome sense of humor. Everyone talked about her for weeks after the wedding and how amazing she was. Once again, she surprised us the same day with a few sneak peek pictures from our wedding. They were STUNNING, and we once again went into the mode where we could not stop staring and drooling over the photos...to this day, actually. So if you are looking for an AMAZING photographer that goes above and beyond out of the kindness of her heart then Melissa Atle should without a doubt be your choice.

Melissa and Northfern are not to be matched! She was amazing to work with from our first correspondence. Melissa makes a point of getting to know her clients and her personal touches and immaculate planning put us so at ease on our wedding day. Melissa not only has the best communication style but is such an incredibly talented photographer. Her enthusiasm and passion for photography are so apparent - she guided us perfectly and we are not used to being the focus of the camera. Melissa and Chris captured such gorgeous shots of our groups getting ready separately and also complemented each other perfectly when shooting together. With a form to collect tons of details ahead of time and a few video calls to ensure we were both confident about our schedule and venue details, hopes and dreams! She just fostered a great partnership! You want Melissa at your wedding! In delivery she worked quickly with editing, shared breathtaking sneak peeks as we were chilling on our honeymoon and sent the final usb in a gorgeous box. Every picture is more perfect than the last and we both can’t wipe huge smiles off our faces when looking at each picture from our wedding.

Melissa was absolutely AMAZING!! No words can truly express my gratitude for her work! From the very start of meeting her (via FaceTime) she was so sweet & informative. Throughout the whole process leading up to our wedding, she made us feel so comfortable & stress free! I’m beyond grateful for the beautiful photos she took of our wedding day & I couldn’t be happier!! Im still blown away with our gallery! They are beyond what I could have ever expected. I’m so happy we choose her to capture our day! ❤️

When we were looking for our photographer, we were referred to Melissa from a friend of a friend. I reached out to Melissa and we quickly setup a Facetime to talk through the packages, details, etc. During that call, like others have said, I felt instantly comfortable with her, almost like I had known her for years. We flew out to NCAL for the engagement photos first and the weather ended up being a shit show. It was freezing, rainy, and muddy, but Melissa took it like a champ and took the most beautiful photos. I honestly thought my hair was going to be a hot mess with the rain, but you could not tell from the photos she took. She also sent us around 5 sneak peek photos from our shoot that same night! I had a coworker who happened to have his engagement session the weekend prior to mine and after comparing notes, it took him several weeks to even see 1 photo from his shoot, so I’m guessing this isn’t the norm! Moving on to the wedding day. We decided to write our own vows which was probably the most nerve-racking thing I’ve ever done to myself. I was terrified all day leading up to the ceremony because of this and could not relax. Not only did this girl take amazing pictures, but Melissa helped me to keep my shit together while I was in this state of panic. She brought me snacks and a drink before the ceremony when she realized I had barely eaten anything and needed a drink to calm down. She kicked family out of my bridal suite when I was losing it. And when it came time for me to recite my vows and I was still freaking out, Melissa took charge to get the microphone moved away from me so I could get through them. SHE IS SOOOOO MUCH MORE THAN A PHOTOGRAPHER. My mom and bridesmaids were even telling her she should be a wedding planner since she was basically running the show. All that said, if you need someone to make you look fantastic, even when you’re not comfortable in front of a camera or photogenic, and you also need someone to keep the show running smoothly, Melissa is your gal! She also brought her husband along who shot the guys while they were getting ready and he got amazing photos too. They were fun to be around, great people, and so good at what they do. I could not recommend her more!

Melissa was outstanding, and exceeded our expectations in every way! I would absolutely recommend her to anyone and everyone looking for someone to naturally capture the unique bond shared between partners. She has a very unique way of making you feel at ease- my partner and I felt like we were in our own world during the entire photo shoot. The photos came back stunning- we are obsessed with how beautifully they capture us.

Melissa was phenomenal and captured both our wedding day and our engagement shoot beautifully! I get nervous about having my photo taken and being the center of attention, but Melissa put me at ease from the first time we chatted over Facetime. She flew up to Seattle to do our engagement shoot, and rolled with it when we found out our first chosen site didn't allow photography. On our wedding day, she was efficient, professional, and fun, chatting it up with my bridal party and taking amazing golden-hour photos of my husband and I while not keeping us away from the party too long! She delivered our photos in a super timely manner, and we were delighted a few weeks later to get a surprise package with a flash drive and some choice prints. I highly recommend hiring Melissa - working with her feels like working with an old friend.

Melissa was absolutely the best! I could not recommend her and her crew highly enough. From the very start she gets to know you personally with video calls on top of lots of written communication. This really set her apart from most of the people we worked with, as we felt like we really got to know her over the course of the year before our big day. On our wedding day Melissa couldn't have been more amazing. She was so happy and reassuring, it felt like having an extra friend with us on the day. She always had us where we needed to be, and managed to be ever present without once feeling intrusive or invasive. She adapted to things on the fly to work with the light and the ebb and flow of the day, and took care of everything so we never had to feel stressed. Honestly I couldn't imagine someone doing a better job day of. The obvious cherry on top, when we got the pictures back they were gorgeous! She caught so many beautiful moments in a way that candidly showed the tone of the day! Once again we couldn't recommend her enough. Melissa also works with a team, Northfern, they do video and DJ as well. While they often do events individually we booked all three of them (Donald for Video, and Randy for DJ) They are so close knit and work amazingly well together as a team, booking all three was one of the best choices we made for our wedding day, if you can get them, do it!

Melissa is AH-MAZING! I fell in love with her work on Instagram... I love the way she captures that golden light and takes candid photos of her couples. So dreamy. Our first meeting was via FaceTime. I felt like we clicked right away. She was very patient and happy to answer any questions we had in the booking process. We chose the adventure engagement session/wedding photography package. My fiancé is not normally used to taking photos so I made sure to practice a bit before hand. The day of our shoot Melissa made us feel incredibly comfortable. I'd describe it like having your BFF photograph you. Robert had fun and enjoyed the shoot with Melissa - YAY! Then we got the photos (within a week!) and we couldn't believe how perfectly she captured us. She communicated with us frequently leading up to our big day. I 100% know it was because of her that we were both able to relax on our big day and be in the moment knowing Melissa had our backs. I still don't know how she did it but she was even able to send us a few preview pictures that night. We are both so happy with the way the photos turned out. Thank you Melissa!!! We can't wait to make excuses for many more reasons to book you in the future!

Wow wow wow - we are absolutely blown away by Melissa's work! We got a sneak peek the night we had the shoot, then a week later we got a slideshow, which I thought contained all the photos we were going to get. Melissa then told me that was still a teaser! Then we got our full gallery and I am amazed by how beautifully she captured the day. We had a fantastic time shooting with her, and she made us feel comfortable and at ease. While the weather was good, it was incredibly windy, so I was worried my hair blowing everywhere would decrease our chances for good photos; so we walked away from the shoot thinking well if they don't turn out how we imagined or we don't look good in them, we still had a blast - however, she's managed to make two un-photogenic people, photogenic! Melissa is fun and talented, she really is the whole package and we couldn't have asked for more. For anyone on the edge of if you go for it or not, DO IT! You won't regret it. Recommend, recommend, recommend!

Hands-down the best engagement photography experience possible! It's not possible to recommend her enough! I cannot imagine how our engagement photos could have come out any better. She made us feel super comfortable immediately from the first phone call and upon meeting her the day of the shoot, she helped calm our nerves. Everything was so comfortable with her that we were able to relax, be ourselves and get our best photos possible. Not only is she an excellent photographer, her use of light and composition makes for incredibly compelling photos that initially drew us to her, but we laughed the entire session with her, and had so much fun. Melissa was not only incredibly talented and knowledgeable about shooting in the Bay Area, but also very accommodating with our busier than average travel schedule. She helped us pick a day and place that worked perfectly. Absolutely hire Melissa!

Melissa is one of our favorite vendors from our wedding. Let’s go back to the very beginning. I reached out to Melissa inquiring about her availability to photograph our wedding. After a few emails back and forth we scheduled a time to meet for coffee one morning. When we met, it felt like everything instantly clicked. I seriously thought to myself “did we just become best friends”. After that meeting I knew she was the one! Her photography was amazing, her personality was amazing, it was a dream come true. Melissa captured our engagement photos and to be honest I was extremely nervous about them being that we have never had professional photos taken. I thought it was going to feel extremely staged and awkward and in fact it was the complete opposite. Melissa made us feel very comfortable, we laughed the entire time and our photos turned out amazing. After receiving our engagement photos we couldn’t wait for her to photograph our wedding day. Well ladies and gentlemen, the wait was totally worth it. Melissa showed up on our wedding day ready to rock and boy did she rock it. The day was fun and it moved fast but she was able to capture everything. We received our wedding day photos and we love every single one of them! Melissa captured the day, our emotions, and our guests perfectly. Three words to sum everything up: we love her!

I can't talk Melissa up enough; the other reviews that mention her feeling like an old friend are 1) true and 2) make me slightly jealous because I THOUGHT I WAS SPECIAL AND YOU LOVED ONLY ME, MELISSA. Kidding. Mostly. She shot our engagement photos and our wedding day and both sessions did not disappoint. She goes above and beyond as a wedding photographer; she went from taking photos and safety pinning my dress to giving me breathing exercises and coaching me through some of the biggest moments of our wedding day. She is hilarious, kind, and an all around wonderful human being. I absolutely love her and cannot recommend her any more highly.

Melissa and Chris... what a dream team! She did such a fantastic job with our engagement shoot and wedding - even with the rain! When we look through our wedding photos, it truly feels like we're reliving that perfect day over and over again. What more could you ask for? She was so fun to work with and she was stern with the groomsmen, which I loved!! Trying to organize a group of 26 year old (tipsy) men is NOT easy, she got it done. I loved working with her and have already recommended her to MANY brides-to-be. THANK YOU MELISSA!

Melissa was absolutely wonderful. I felt comfortable, relaxed and not too nervous for my photo shoot. She did nothing but accommodate me. She brought out the best through her lens and was phenomenal when it came to designing my album. She is an absolute Artist. I highly recommend booking with her! She was an absolute gem!

Melissa is everything we could have dreamed of in a wedding photographer. She was flexible, laid back yet precise, easy to work with, professional...all the things! She worked with us on our small wedding to get exactly what we wanted in our photos. When it came to the big day, it rained. ALL. DAY. LONG. Melissa worked with us to capture the most fabulous moments while making the best of the rain. She even chatted with me at length a few days out when I was freaking out, and provided a calm and empathetic voice right when I needed it. Technically, she has a talent to capture the shot and personalities, and she made everyone comfortable with the camera. She dealt with family dynamics with ease and grace. After the big day, she delivered the photos before the timeline promised and they were GORGEOUS. She captured things I missed as the bride! Additionally, we got married in late November and she gave me a photo early to use for our family holiday card. I can't say enough about how pleased we were to work with Melissa.

I am NOT a person who is comfortable in front of a camera... but, what can I say, Melissa was an absolute delight to work with and made me and my now husband (how fun is it to say that?) very comfortable. She was always “on the shot”, taking pictures from the prep to dinner, to cake, to dancing... I turned around and there she was capturing the moment, which was amazing because we can really relive that wonderful day through the gorgeously composed pictures. She worked with us to see what we wanted our of the pictures and the schedule for our day. She was very reliable, from with our facetime meetings to our actual meet and greet and walk of the site. The pictures arrived not long after our wedding (about 1 month which is totally normal, even fast) and looked beautifully treated. We were very happy! We knew we didn’t want to compromise on the quality and experience of our photographer and Melissa was the perfect choice for us! 5 out of 5 stars! Thank you, Melissa!

Melissa is amazing! From our very first interaction, she was truly wonderful to work with and everything you’d want in a photographer on your wedding day. (Or honestly any other day that you want awesome pictures.) Friendly, knowledgeable, professional, and oh-so-talented. She has a way of putting you immediately at ease, which I have to imagine helps to keep the moments she captures pure and authentic. Everyone wants to be surrounded by their closest friends and family on their wedding day, and even though you may have only recently met and spent little time together, her warmth makes her feel like one of the family. The photos caught so many small moments that provide an opportunity to not just see what was happening that day, but actually feel it all over again as well. I would never hesitate for a moment to recommend Melissa to anyone in need of a photographer, and she’ll be the first we call the next time we’re looking for someone to help us capture some memories.

Wow... where do we even begin?! We are absolutely speechless with how amazing our wedding day photos turned out. We were so worried about the rainy weather and not getting to be able to get as many photos in as we had hoped, but Melissa exceeded all of our expectations! Melissa went above and beyond to make us feel comfortable even when everything around us wasn't very comfortable :) She got so many more photos than we had thought and for this we are so thankful. Thank you for being such a trooper during the whole day and letting me take the cutest photos ever with your umbrella! We can't wait to look at these over and over to remember such a special day. We can't wait to work with her in the future!!!! Thanks again Melissa!

Melissa was awesome at our wedding and totally captured the feeling of the day! She has a great authenticity and documentary feel to her photos. Totally appreciated her super laid back attitude on such a crazy day and she was so great to work with. My friends and family were all super comfortable with her and she felt like a friend hanging out with us! Thank you Melissa for the beautiful photos!!!

Melissa shot our wedding in late September. She is super laid back, friendly and easy to work with. We didn't do engagement photos and had only talked to her over skype before the wedding but as soon as she showed up I felt like we were old friends. I am the least photogenic person I know so I didn't have high hopes about how the photos would turn out but I could not be more pleased with the results and I think a lot of that has to do with Melissa's personality, her natural ability to make us feel comfortable in front of the camera, as well as just her sheer talent. The day ended up being a bit of a blur (I think I blacked out from the adrenaline rush) but when we got the photos back all the memories and feelings and emotion of the day came rushing back. She perfectly captured the essence of the day. I really can't recommend her enough!

We hired Melissa and her team for photography and videography at our Napa wedding. I cannot recommend them enough! First, we held an engagement shoot to learn how to be comfortable in front of the camera. My husband and I are not very natural taking photos and Melissa made the whole experience so fun. Plus, we got amazing photos from the engagement shoot that we will treasure forever! As for the wedding...there were so many unexpected twists and turns that Melissa had to navigate (fires nearby, big fat Greek & Irish family to photograph and 48 father of the bride speech!) Melissa not only managed all of these obstacles but was my saving grace in keeping me calm. The wedding photos turned out so fantastic and arrive in a very easy gallery to share with family & friends and to print for gifts, etc. I would 100% recommend Melissa for your wedding (or any event for that matter!) -Kristen G

How do I even start with Melissa? Melissa is SO awesome. Melissa is a beautiful person inside and out! She is very professional and also so much fun to be around. I met her when she was the photographer for my sister's wedding, before I was even engaged. And I was thinking to myself, "I definitely NEED Melissa to shoot for my future wedding." Once I got engaged, I told my husband (fiancé at the time) that we need Melissa for our wedding. He trusted my word and we had Melissa for our engagement shoot and for our wedding! Hanging with Melissa for our engagement shoot was great. My husband and I aren't the most photogenic couple but Melissa made it easy for us. Also, It was so cold and windy and I was thinking that I would look crazy in all of the photos but they came out PERFECT. Fast forward to our wedding day, Melissa was great and literally everyone in our bridal party loved her. At times where Melissa would take photos, she made it so much fun. Once my husband and I returned from our honeymoon, we received the pictures from our wedding and we absolutely LOVED them!!! They seriously came out perfect! We showed our wedding party and family the photos and they were in awe of how amazing they were. It was so nice to look back at our wedding through the photos and remember how much of an amazing/perfect time we had that night. Melissa captured it all! It was really so great being able to work with her. We can't thank Melissa enough. We will cherish the photos from the engagement shoot AND wedding day forever!

We did an adventure engagement shoot with Melissa, and I cannot possibly recommend her highly enough. If you are anything like me, you might be a little worried about having a whole professional photo shoot without being a professional model. How does it work? What do you do? How do you not look like you do in all of the couple selfies you delete? Melissa is an absolute pro, and has the ability to put your mind at ease and make the process so much fun. Within minutes, my fiance and I were laughing, being playful and being ourselves in front of the camera. Melissa does not do forced poses, but instead knows how to cue you to get the most amazing, heartfelt, honest images. It felt like a really fun night out running around in beautiful places where we happened to be photographed. The proof is in the images- my fiance and I are so, so happy with every photo in our gallery. They are so beautiful, so real and so US. Melissa completely captured our spirit and our love for each other- you really can't ask for more than that!

All I can say is, “YAASSS!!” *insert praise hands emojis* What you see is what you get, folks! When I first started the daunting task of looking for a photographer who had that magical combination of an artful eye, understanding of composition/color, and (most importantly, to me) an aesthetic that I LOVED paired with the ability to capture special details in a meaningful way, I was overwhelmed to say the least... Once I came across Melissa’s work, my search ended. If you’re reading this, no need to look any further!! I’ve done the legwork for you, Melissa is the ultimate combination of everything you could ask for! Do yourself a favor and book her NOW!!! You will get everything you want and more! Melissa’s quality of work and talent speak through her photographs. I could gush about what a talented photographer she is forever... Beyond her visual talents, Melissa has an amazing skill of being able to integrate and meld with people that puts everyone at ease, and in turn, she captures truly magical moments that are honest and beautiful. You will cherish her images and your memories FOREVER! My family couldn’t stop talking about how much they enjoyed Melissa, she kept us laughing and felt like one of the family! I will always treasure the memory of running through dreamy fields by the ocean and laughing our butts off, while Melissa worked her magic. Thank you for making our photo shoot a magical adventure!

Melissa was fantastic and the perfect choice for our little woodland elopement! Besides having a keen eye for capturing our most unstaged, silly selves, she is a gem of a human to work with. The collection she put together for us (and quite quickly I might add) was a beautiful record of every moment we wanted to capture, and most importantly, the spontaneous ones we didn’t plan. We’re so grateful to her for making the long winding drive into the woods for us at a fantastic rate, and for such beautiful photos of our love. Trust in Melissa’s dependability, skill, and sweet spirit. Highly recommend!

Melissa was so easy to work with and our pictures came out absolutely gorgeous. Great experience.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND Melissa and her team!!! The TLDR; is that Melissa is one of the most TALENTED photographers on the West Coast, but also the best-priced, most fun, and easy to work with. In summary, she’s the TOTAL PACKAGE! Look no further! Seriously!!! Melissa is a truly gifted photographer. As a photographer myself I knew that I was going to be very selective about the photography for our wedding. After looking at over 50 different photographers, Melissa’s work POPPED off the page and I instantly knew I loved her style. Most other wedding photographers have a tendency to overexpose their wedding work, which is usually intended to give the subjects a “glow”, but often takes away from the naturally beautiful color and contrast of the photography. Melissa’s work is crisp, properly exposed, and truly tells the story of the moment being captured. We live in Santa Clara, but our wedding venue was in Santa Rosa so we met Melissa at Aroma Roasters (great coffee!) in Santa Rosa. From the moment we sat down we knew we loved her, and wanted her to be a part of our big day. Choosing a photographer was one of the most critical decisions for us so we wanted to take some time and think about it, but in the 60 second walk to our car, my wife and I had already made up our minds with zero hesitation; Melissa was the one we wanted! We decided to book our engagement shoot with her as a “trial run”. We wanted the classic “fall look” for our engagement shoot, but due to the California drought it was pretty difficult to find a time and place where the tree leaves would be turning autumn colors. Because of this we had to reschedule a time or two, and Melissa was completely flexible and accommodating. On the day of the shoot, Melissa was happy to walk around the Davis Arboretum with us to shoot a couple of different locations, and she made us feel very comfortable in an otherwise typically awkward situation. Despite the 90° heat and sweating like pigs, our engagement photos turned out amazing! Booking the Big Day was then a no-brainer. Melissa and her second-shooter Sarah had an awesome energy together that easily translated to the wedding party. Both Melissa and Sarah are the nicest people you’ll ever meet, but had no problem “herding” our families and guests to ensure that we got all of the photos we wanted. Exactly 5 weeks after our wedding we received an email with a link to our wedding photo gallery on Pixieset. Just the simple fact that Melissa chooses to host her photo galleries on Pixiset is a testament to the level-of-detail that she puts into all of her work! The gallery was stunning, and we definitely had a hard time choosing our favorite “selects”. Melissa was very generous and provided a large number of extra photos at no additional cost. We live 2 hours from Santa Rosa but we will absolutely be using Melissa for our baby photos, family photos, and more! Crossing our fingers that she continues professional photography for many, many years to come. Thank you Melissa, Sarah, Chris, and the rest of her team for carefully ensuring that our once-in-a-lifetime day was captured in the most beautiful way possible!

When it finally came time to choose a photographer for our wedding, I already knew exactly who I wanted. I had known Melissa for some time, and I was very familiar with her immense talent and fun approach. I saw that she was a versatile photographer with a creative style, and I dreamed of finally getting to work with her. For a host of personal reasons, our overall wedding planning process had some twists and hiccups, and I'll admit I became rather overwhelmed at times. But every step of the process with Melissa was effortless, from the photography pre-planning, to the wedding day and post-wedding communication. Her wedding expertise even helped us smooth out some of our non-photography issues! The day of the wedding, she captured amazing and genuine moments with loved ones and created intimate and artistic settings for the two of us to explore. Melissa put us at ease and had us laughing the whole day. She rolled with the punches of my crazy family (love you guys) and ultimately her photography exceeded all expectations. I highly recommend Melissa as a wedding photographer and overall wedding guru!

Melissa was the most wonderful photographer - we couldn’t have asked for anyone better! She was personable, fun and really made us so comfortable during our engagement and wedding shoots. After looking online at photographers, we saw her work and knew instantly we wanted to meet with her. After sitting down with her for 5 minutes we knew we had found the perfect person to capture our special day. She went above and beyond to make sure she captured all of the most meaningful moments and we were thrilled with the end results. Look no further, Melissa is the best you will find!

Honestly one of the best vendors to work with! Melissa did an amazing job on our wedding day! She was professional, friendly, and just all around awesome. To this day, we still get compliments on our pictures. The best advice I ever received was to hire a quality photographer, because after the party and the wedding, the only thing you have to look back on is the photos. I’m so glad we took this advice and as a result we ended up meeting with a couple photographers and nothing compared to Melissa’s talent and sweet nature! Book Melissa you won’t regret it, she exceeded our expectations!

My time with Melissa felt easy and natural from the beginning. Through looking at her website, I knew she had the style of photography I was looking for: intimate, casual, not too staged, and not too much kissing :). Melissa was responsive to my request and set up a time right away to discuss my needs. Fast forward to our wedding day, we had 10 adults and 6 kids in attendance, all direct family. Melissa was on time and ready to go. She vibed really well with the videographer that we had chosen which was really nice too. Once we got through the ceremony and had to do more of the "staged" couples photos, she told us how beautiful we were and made us laugh the whole time. I think that's really why her photos come out so well. She puts you at ease. I will also say that she fit in so well with our small crowd that I was just having fun and enjoying the day and didn't even notice some of the awesome shots she was capturing. Finally, she posted some fabulous teasers less than a couple days after our wedding, and then had the full offering available a few weeks after that. Highly recommend Melissa!

Melissa is fantastic! We hired her for our wedding in August of 2016 and absolutely LOVE our photos. When I saw her photos, I instantly fell in love with her style; the way she captures light is incredible. I reached out, and she responded promptly and professionally. I wanted to be sure my fiancé and I would be comfortable with our photographer for our wedding so that I could be relaxed in our pictures, and Melissa went above and beyond to make this happen. There was no pushy sales pitch; she genuinely wanted us to be happy with our decision. We chatted on the phone and in person before hiring her, but once we met her, hiring her was a no-brainer! She is easygoing, but I could tell she would be assertive enough to corral our family and large wedding party for photos. We did our engagement photos with her, and she was so easy to work with. We joked and laughed with her the whole time. We didn't know how to stand or pose, and she gave the perfect amount of direction so that our pictures looked great but not forced or unnatural. This was a great warmup for our wedding photos and definitely made taking those easier. On our big day she was WONDERFUL! Our wedding party and family adored her and her second shooter, Leigh; they raved for months about what a good time they had taking pictures (who knew tons and tons of pictures could be fun!?!?!). She got every picture we had discussed ahead of time and then some, all while keeping to our timeline. She also did a great job of catching candid moments too! Almost 5 weeks to the day after our wedding we had our photos and a short slideshow of some of the highlights. I cried when I watched the slideshow. That's how good her photos are; she perfectly captured the love and magic of our wedding day. I hope she continues to take professional photos for a long time because we hope to be able to use her for other milestones in our lives in the future.

If you're debating right now, let me help you. WORK WITH MELISSA! What I love about her is how easy she is to be around. I was completely comfortable inviting her into my private gathering with just my closest friends as we got ready for my wedding. She blended right in and got some amazing shots that I love without being disruptive at all. From the planning stages, to an early delivery of the final product, Melissa was a pleasure to work with. She's a total pro with a great down-to-earth energy that puts you at ease in front of her lens.

We hired Melissa from Weddings By Sunnyside for photography. Melissa was fabulous and incredibly fun/easy to work with. Important things first - the photos are incredible. Everyone loves them and loves the way they look in all of them. The colors are warm and she did a wonderful job of taking candid and special shots that are both unique and gorgeous. From our first meeting, a site tour and the day-of, Melissa and team were always professional, but as if we had known her for years. Throughout the wedding, Melissa made the photo experience feel natural and special at the same time. I love that the photos capture our actual dance moves, laughs and emotions, they aren't just a bunch of family shots.

Melissa took absolutely amazing photos and was incredibly easy to work with. From day 1 we felt that Melissa was honest, kind, professional, and easy going - everything you hope for in a photographer at your wedding. She met with us twice before the wedding to get to know us and the venue. She listened to what we wanted, subtly helped guide us into the best poses and places, and she caught incredible moments that no cookie-cutter photographer would be able to capture. What I really appreciated was that she focused on making the photos natural and personal instead of the posed group shots or forced cheesy poses that some people tend to have. Really amazing - we highly recommend Melissa and her team!

We hired Melissa after a lot of research for wedding photographers. My now husband and I really wanted a style that suited our fall themed wedding and as soon as I came across Melissa in our search, I knew I had to reach out. We're totally in love with the moody, warm tones of her photographs, it just suited our needs so well. Melissa was prompt, professional and super friendly. Our first call was on FaceTime and I was so caught off guard. I was in my pajamas, bare faced, just got off work but Melissa and I laughed it off and we clicked instantly. We finally met her in person on our engagement shoot a few months before our wedding. My husband and I had never done a professional photo shoot before and we're both a little on the shy side, but Melissa made it so easy and fun! It was a cold, foggy day but our engagement photos turned out amazing! On our wedding day, Melissa came with Kristen who was her 2nd shooter and they were both amazing! They didn't just capture our wedding photos, they captured moments and emotion that will forever be still for us as we look through our photographs now and in years to come. As soon as she sent us the previews post wedding, I cried lol. Mind you, i was on my honeymoon eating breakfast in a busy restaurant, but that's just what looking at our wedding photos did to me. I remembered every single moment and emotion as if i was re-living it all over again. Melissa isn't just our photographer, she has become our friend throughout the process and I'm so excited for what's to come for her. Highly recommend her! My younger sister is getting married summer 2018 and hired her as well. I can't wait to see her again!