Michael Stephens Photography

ery first conversation, Michael and his team were incredibly professional, responsive, and attentive to every detail. They worked seamlessly with our videographer, ensuring the day flowed effortlessly and allowing us to truly enjoy every moment without stress. Mike’s artistic vision and attention to detail are unmatched. Every image was beautifully composed and thoughtfully edited, capturing the emotions of the day in the most stunning way. His team blended so naturally into the celebration that we barely noticed the cameras, yet we now have the most incredible candid shots to relive every special moment. Our guests couldn’t stop raving about how wonderful they were! A special thank you to Laura, whose warmth and calming presence made such a difference throughout the day. She was an absolute joy to have by our side. We are beyond grateful for the beautiful memories that Michael Stephens Photography has given us, and we will treasure them forever. Thank you, Mike and Laura, for making our wedding day so incredible! If you’re looking for a photographer who delivers both exceptional service and breathtaking photos, look no further—book them now!

- Rehearsal dinner - The wedding day itself and I couldn't be more pleased with everything. He uses charm to disarm any nerves and makes you feel incredibly comfortable and he has an amazing eye for lighting and angles. He really does the most to ensure you're happy with the shots during the photoshoot and also that you're happy with the edit. I cannot recommend him enough. Thank you for everything!

hotographer who would be the right fit for us. Beyond our venue, photographer was one of the most important wedding vendors for us so I interviewed NUMEROUS photographers before making a decision on who to hire. From our very first initial phone interview he gave me the gut feeling that he was going to be the perfect fit. He was responsive and detailed leading up to our wedding day but the real reason for the 5 star review is just how seamlessly he fit within our wedding. I had multiple guests approach me during our reception saying how much they enjoyed Mike and how well he fit in with our wedding. My husband and I are not comfortable in front of the camera and he made it feel so natural and never awkward whatsoever. The gallery we received back was beyond stunning. Our favorite thing was that the photos had a classic elegance where the photos still looked like us rather than being overly edited and "done-up" looking. We were so beyond happy working with Mike that my husband and I have said that we will trek up to SLO for any future milestone photography moments in order to work with Mike again.

beginning, he went above and beyond to ensure every moment of our special day was captured beautifully. Mike was not only professional but also incredibly kind and attentive to our needs. He made us feel comfortable and at ease in front of the camera, which is no small feat! His warm personality and genuine enthusiasm were infectious, and it truly felt like having a close friend there to share in our joy. The attention to detail in every shot was remarkable. Mike managed to capture the essence and emotion of our wedding day perfectly. Each photograph is a stunning piece of art that we will cherish forever. The candid moments, the beautiful portraits, and the intricate details of our decorations were all captured with such skill and creativity. Not only did Mike deliver extraordinary photos, but he also provided exceptional service throughout the entire process. Communication was always prompt and clear, and he was incredibly flexible and accommodating to our requests. We are endlessly grateful to Mike for his hard work, dedication, and talent. Our wedding photos are everything we dreamed of and more, and we owe it all to him. If you are looking for a photographer who is not only highly skilled but also a true pleasure to work with, look no further than Mike. We wholeheartedly recommend him to anyone in need of capturing their special moments. Thank you, Mike, for making our wedding day so memorable and giving us beautiful memories to look back on for years to come.

gether. His work took our breath away and we are so happy to have had this opportunity to work with him.

led at capturing amazing candids. I knew before we hired him the photos would be good, but little did I know he's worth his weight in gold. Michael if you're reading this, thank you for capturing the magic.

ng day! Mike has the collective experience and insight of his years photographing and it is very evident! Not only were our photos great, but so will our memories be of taking them!! Mike did a great job of communicating, his website and gallery are user-friendly, and his character overall is excellent!

anner. He also bought his photobooth to Hawaii which was a hit during our reception. We also had Mike’s wife Laura as a second shooter, I highly recommend adding her on especially if you are planning to do newlywed portraits during your cocktail hour

ery step of the process he was proactive in his communications. On the big day, he guided us from one step to the next in the busy schedule and we felt so taken care of. His presence is very warm and low-pressure, so it's easy to be comfortable taking photos with him. The whole experience was just perfectly seamless and positive, and we'll treasure the photos and memories for years to come!

captured so many beautiful candid moments. I could not have asked for a better experience and would highly recommend Michael!

l as the bridal party and our enormous family. He was so patient, fun, and he even knew the best places to catch sunset photos of our daughter and son in law. We are so thankful we found Michael. He added such a special touch to their wedding day and memories!!

edding. We love our photos and would highly recommend him to other couples.

grapher, per our request, and they captured some unforgettable moments for us. We are so grateful! Thank you, Mike (and Lindsay)!

ictures of yourself and your family that you've ever seen; even if you're not a person that likes being in front of the camera. But wait, there's more! On top of being an amazing photographer, he's super personable and easy to work with. Dealt with the pandemic rescheduling and changes, no problem. Also, our guests loved him - when you have a photographer that people like, you get genuine smiles! Not something that you should overlook. He also knows a ton about local places to take pictures - over here and around the corner for greenery without wind, over there for sunset photos with a spectacular background - he is a true professional. I have zero reservations about giving Michael my full endorsement.

ble and understanding of the constant changes caused by the pandemic. We highly recommend using Michael for any of your photography needs! -Nick and Sarah

orking with him was a 10/10 experience. He was super responsive, very flexible and made my now husband & I feel comfortable during our wedding pics. We had a ton of fun and the pics reflect it. Can't recommend him enough!

like our pictures so much. We did an engagement session with mike at Monte de Oro and he went over time, taking pictures with so many backdrops. We felt like we had gotten six photos sessions in one. As I mentioned, we are not very good at taking pictures but mike made us feel very comfortable with candid laughs and tips on how to “pose” in a way that was flattering yet natural. He turned the photos quickly and WOW they were freaking fantastic. His photos aren’t just pictures with a fancy camera, mike has a special eye to capture unique beautiful photos that span close ups to landscape views (again, check out his gallery!) In prep for wedding day, Mike had us fill out a questionnaire to ensure we got all the photo variations we wanted and followed the timeline to a tee. Again, super natural and made everyone crack up for candid photos. Every time we had a call with mike, we jived and ended up shooting the sht. Just a genuine guy. Mike was a bit pricier than others but well worth it and to be honest, worth much more than what we paid. We feel lucky he was available for our wedding date and that we decided to splurge to book him vs another basic photographer. Mike has converted us and we will be coming back for more! BOOK MIKE!

ur wedding even better and we are so grateful he was part of our big day. He has an incredible sense of humor and an amazing eye for beautiful shots. He is the only photographer I would recommend to any of my friends. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for app your help Michael. May God bless you always.

really helped break the ice if anyone felt awkward having their photo taken. He also helped guide us in how we should pose to maiximize the perfect shots! I can't express how much we love the photos, they truly captured how special that day was for everyone. Would absolutely recommend him!

for sure but he was outstanding. Michael was professional and helpful in so many detailed ways - bringing calm, charm, and laughter to us all. All of our guests asked me where I found him and expressed how much they appreciated him. With Michael as your photographer, you cannot go wrong. Michael - thank you for making our day so magnificent and memorable. You are very talented.

o share our experience, as he's been better than I could have hoped for. We've communicated so many times and have rescheduled and been forced to post-pone... twice! Without skipping a beat, Mike confirmed his entire schedule for 2021, and was so understanding and compassionate. His personality and love for his job shines through each conversation and I'm so thankful that we chose him from the start. He has been on quite a ride with us and I look forward to him shooting our wedding in 2021. If we get even 1/2 of the level of professionalism he's shown us thus far, i'll be blown out of the water. I can't wait for our wedding, and for him to shoot it!! THANK YOU Mike, for being wonderful! You're a breath of fresh air :)

better- His personality and the experience you have working with Mike, makes it that much more special. He makes you feel comfortable and confident, also while having fun. He allows you to be you and does not make you feel too posed or awkward at all during your time together. Also, Mike was able to wrangle our rowdy group and make it easy to get the pictures done efficiently. Something I found truly special was that he made sure to pull me and my husband aside and reminded us and allowed us a moment to enjoy those first few moments as a newly married couple away from the chaos. This was very special and could have been easily missed for a busy day. My husband is one who does not enjoy getting his photos taken and Mike made this an easy task for Jeremy. We have enjoyed working with Mike and will be referring him to everyone we know for professional photography! THANK YOU MIKE!!

lot with the flow of the day and took BEAUTIFUL pictures. Of all of our vendors, Mike was our favorite to work with.

able during our sessions. He was also extremely helpful on our wedding day! He went above and beyond in making the process as easy as possible. Our photos turned out so beautiful and wonderful thanks to him!

ding work at both, from preparation to end results. The first wedding was thrown together 11 days in advance due to an illness in the family. My mom found him, and I couldn't be more grateful for that find and his availability. Mike was there for an intimate ceremony and he was sensitive to the situation yet relaxed and comfortable. He made us laugh and despite the harsh August morning lighting, managed to get incredible photographs in front of City Hall in Atascadero. We hired him again for his attitude, professionalism and quality of work. He didn't push a second sale on us, because he didn't need to - his work spoke for itself. At our Sept 2019 celebration, he was again outstanding. Leading up to the day of, he called when he said he would, was responsive and easy to review contracts with. He also gave us smart advice without sounding like an I-know-better-than-you relative. The day of, he just was a pro in terms of demeanor and responsibility. He even stepped in and helped guide a few other vendors when the need arose. Mike's also creative, and had shoot ideas that were original and easy to execute. He seems like he enjoys his job, as did his assistant photographer. Last but certainly not least, the quality of Mike's work is unreal. Without being an intrusive photographer day-of, he captured the emotions of us and our guests and the natural beautiful of the venue. The range of his talent is incredible, and we will enjoy looking at his work for decades to come. Mike is more than an outstanding photographer, he's a pleasure to work with and an all around great guy. If we could hire Mike a third time, we would, but we also don't want to plan a third wedding ;-)

ions and ensured we got the best pictures possible. Michael photographed our wedding in October, however, we are so happy that we also did our engagement photos with Michael as it was in essence the warm up to the big day! All of our photos turned out beautiful and he captured so many of the special moments during our big day. Not only did he take amazing pictures the day of the wedding but he was also instrumental in helping the day run smoothly. He helped make sure we stayed on time and he even bustled my wedding dress (he is amazing!). Michale is a great photographer and a true professional.

ntion the photos he took are incredible! If we ever need photos in the future we will definitely be using him!

even tried to help with bustling the train on my dress when we couldn't find one of the buttons. His photos are incredible, I fell in love with them as soon as I saw them. He always captured the perfect moment and every picture brought a huge smile to my face.

granted all of our wishes on any special pictures we wanted taken and even went further in capturing other special moments throughout the day. We received our pictures back and OMG!!!!! I cried at how stunning they were and can't stop looking at them. He has made it hard to pick a main one to go on our wall. Its no joke when they say the day will go by fast because it does. And Mike did such an amazing job catching pictures for us of our guests and venue. Thank you Mike. You were the best part of our wedding day and we love our pictures.

is calm and cool demeanor. His responsiveness, attentiveness, positivity, and calm attitude alone are worth his price. My wedding day was stress free largely in part to Mike being such a chill guy! Now the quality of the photos are incredible, he captured the exact vibe my husband and I were going for. Mike made me look like a beautiful fairytale bohemian princess because he knew exactly how to capture it! He never made us feel rushed, and even did a great job getting everyone to smile and cooperate in our big family photos. I’m so so so grateful for Mike, and I highly recommend him!

n front of the camera (which is no easy task). We could not be happier with the preview of the photos he has sent us. Definitely would recommend him to others!

w he'd recommend we do things but was also very accommodating if we wanted to do something differently. He's the best!

ng! We didn't have a day-of coordinator, and Michael happily guided us through the parts of the reception we hadn't thought about (i.e. "Wait. What are we supposed to do when we cut the cake??"). We really felt like he had our backs, and it helped us relax and enjoy the wedding that much more. He got along great with our families, and he put everyone at ease during photos with his dad jokes and his calm, personable demeanor. Communication leading up to the wedding was flawless--he replies to emails and texts quickly, and there was never a time when I wanted to reach him but couldn't. Honestly, we left our wedding knowing we'd made a lifelong friend. We could not have asked for a better wedding photographer--we still talk about what a good choice it was to book him!

whole time. Our pictures turned out great and we will forever treasure them.

g. Michael is the best!

hought is that Michael is SO KIND, calm, patient, and professional. He was instantly like a friend that we wanted around! He has a great sense of humor that makes you feel at ease from the second he walks in, yet he still manages the shoot. This results in beautiful and creative pictues that perfectly document those special moments. Michael was very respectful of our wedding day timeline and knew that we wanted to hang with our guests. He accomplished all the specific shots that we wanted and captured many more that we hadn't even thought about. He captured shots while blending into the background and we even forgot he was around since he wasn't too much in our face which made for very natural yet incredible shots. To our surprise, we received a preview within two days that just stole our hearts. The pictures were so crisp and creative and completely captured the emotions of the day. Whenever we share our pictures, others can't help but say how beautiful our photos are! We look forward to using Michael for future opportunities. In the meantime, so many others have asked for his info for their own events. The photographer is THE key documenter of the day. We couldn't be any happier with how he has forever captured our special moments.