Monika Gauthier Photography

ecor... all of it was captured in such a unique and authentic way. I highly recommend Monika to anyone looking for a talented, kind, patient and amazing videographer! Thank you!

lion times over. Truly a joy to work with!!

e around. She captured our wedding day so organically. Our wedding film captures the atmosphere of the day in a completely different way than photos and I know we will cherish it forever. 1000% would recommend Monika to anyone and everyone!!! Thank you so much, we are forever grateful!

os rather than the outdated "Smile at a Camera-Cheesing" types of photos. Monika took time out to meet us via phone call and while we had plenty of questions for her, she made us feel comfortable and was personable as she tried to get to know us. Monika was also very receptive to any suggestions and ideas we had. We loved her personality from the get go! We kept in constant contact from that moment until the day of the wedding. Monika was prompt and came prepared and even had a timeline and "family list" for us to fill out as not to forget any family or portrait shots even though we ran behind (what wedding doesn't?!). Monika kept us constantly moving and was quite punctual and professional, but fun loving and sweet. We felt very natural and comfortable with her and her assistants.

e how the day truly felt. She absolutely nailed it and our gallery is more than I could ever imagine. Monika was also so professional the day of and truly had us feeling relaxed! She also gave us tips leading up to the wedding so we would know what to expect! She's the best!

ke a great timeline and made sure we got all the photos we wanted.

Our engagement photos turned out perfect, and we can't wait to see our wedding photos!! Monika and her partner photographer were easy to work with, were casual and fun, and were "in the background" when we needed them to be, and were able to orchestrate photos and poses for our more formal shots. Thank you, Monika!!

with her and cannot wait to continue working with her for years to come in documenting our special family moments.

tunately due to the pandemic we had to postpone our celebration to 2021. That being said, we still wanted to move forward with our legal marriage in 2020 and had to throw together a small private elopement in a matter of a couple of weeks. Monika was recommended to me by another photographer and I immediately fell in love with her style based on her website. I reached out to her and I was so lucky and grateful to find out that she was able to capture our elopement. She was super flexible during the entire process as I tried to narrow down a date and ceremony location on the fly. When we spoke with her over the phone, she was super warm and we felt like we were having a conversation with a friend. Then on our wedding day she was so sweet to capture all of the details while we rushed around the house to get ready. She was even able to handle our rambunctious pup and include him in a bunch of her shots which was a such an amazing bonus. While she was photographing Charles and I she made us feel so comfortable and this really comes through in our photos. All of her shots are so natural and you can really feel the genuine love and celebration between us. Like I mentioned, our elopement was done on the fly and we actually ended up choosing our backyard for the location, but even though we weren't able to plan a grand affair or select a spot with a "wow" factor, she made our ceremony look beautiful and special. I highly highly highly recommend Monika whether you are planning a small or large affair. Her amazing talent for finding beauty even in the ordinary is something so special and unique to her photography.

forever! There is no one better! Your work is unmatched and simply the best. You captured moments that bring back the best memories from our best night of our lives! You’re the best!! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!! - Gerritt & Kodi

azing bonus that you personally are so much FUN to work with (not to mention a massive help throughout all the planning chaos). From making us feel SO COMFORTABLE in front of the camera to creating the PERFECT wedding day timeline, you thought through every detail. We feel so blessed we found you! Thank you for everything! - Kayla + Zack

and outgoing, which made the process a lot more enjoyable! We are SO excited to see all the pictures! I will definitely be recommending your services to my friends in the future! Thanks for putting up with us all day! :) Chanelle + Keyern

und and choose you to capture such a special day and to have our photos forever. We are thrilled how the pictures came out and just absolutely LOVE them so much! We couldn't of asked for a more perfect wedding! Thank you for being such a huge part of our forever! Love, Megan + Dan

o lucky that you documented our wedding day. Also -- they say a good photographer isn't noticed during the wedding day -- but oh my gosh!! You were such a lovely presence. Thank for your kindness and being by our side throughout the day! You are the best and it was a pleasure getting to know you. :) Jane & Gabe

rhaps mistakenly, expect more photos but they were overall great. I had a major wardrobe malfunction leaving us pressed for time, but I do wish we were either taken to a different spot for group photos or that the background was edited. We had vendors with their loads setting up in the background. Monika was quick to edit the photos more once I mentioned the issue.

years to come. Throughout our engagement, Monika sent us little gifts (the monogramed bag was the cutest!) and guides to put us at ease and help guide us towards getting the pictures we wanted without every having to second guess posing or worrying about angles on the big day. When the gallery arrived, I was blown away at what she had captured. Thank heavens for Monika because our day went by in a blur, but now we have these pictures to hold onto for the rest of our lives and remember it by. Thank you, Monika!

the wedding & reception. She managed to keep my husband and I, my wedding party, and my family looking natural for group photos which is no small feat at a wedding! Monika is organized, easy to work with, communicates promptly, and very knowledgable about her art form. We love her use of natural light in her images, it really helps to improve the quality and mood of the photographs. Thank you Monika for beautifully capturing our wedding day <3

nd her work on Instagram, followed her for a while, and just loved her style. In person she is so lovely, funny and easy to work with. Our photos are beyond anything that I could have hoped for and I honestly recommend her wholeheartedly! Thank you, Monika! We loved working with you!

ka was able to capture timeless photos of us that reflected our personalities as a couple. She is so friendly and really makes the "photo shoots" fun and stress free. I would use her for any event. I have tons of friends that have gotten married, but the photos that Monika was able to shoot was next level AMAZING. Not only is Monika amazing at what she does, but she is also extremely organized and timely. She sends emails that are so thorough and gets back to you so quickly. She was able to cater to all of our needs for the wedding and did a stellar job. She really has an eye for perfection and it shows in all of her photos. I am sure that there is no other photographer like Monika out there and I would highly recommend her for weddings.

talented, patient and amazing photographer!

Monika also did our engagement shoot. She made us feel so comfortable in front of the camera and truly captured our personalities and love we share in every single photo. We could not have imagined our wedding day without her! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! Sending love!

res not only came promptly (approx. 4-6 weeks after our wedding) but they are true works of art - I still look at them and get transported to our special day all the time! I feel so fortunate to have worked with Monika - you will not be disappointed!

ter was intrigued with the photographs that she viewed online, so we decided to book her. All I can say is that the photographs Monika took, have taken my breath away. She successfully captured such special moments and the raw emotion of the day. This was a destination wedding with the bride living in a different state, so the first time the bride and groom met Monika was a couple of hours prior to the ceremony. Monika was eager to get the perfect shots right from the beginning and had the professional ability to gauge the lighting (our venue had some lighting challenges) for success! We couldn't be more pleased with the results! It's like reliving the happiest moments of the day. When you choose your wedding photographer, make sure to read reviews and select a professional who has the proper equipment and experience. After all, you cannot exactly redo your wedding for better photographs. Thank you, Monika for agreeing to document the day, and for doing it so stunningly well!

s throughout our portrait session, and the photos turned out amazing! I look at them every single day!

her second shooter were incredible and their work definitely proves it. We could not be any happier with our experience and the photos from our wedding. I would recommend Monika a million times over. Monika is wonderful!!

, they were calm and incredibly detailed when it came to getting everything. Monika captured every moment perfectly. Our contract said up to 6 weeks to receive the photos but we got them in just 4 weeks! She is clearly talented and genuinely makes you feel like you're a friend rather than just a client. We were so impressed with how our engagement photos turned out, they caught real emotion in the pictures, told a story…and that's the kind of style we love. We love our wedding photos!! We were so thrilled and honored to have Monika as our wedding photographer, she is worth every penny! - Love, Lauren & Rob

nds quickly. All of these are true but what really separates Monika from other photographers is her way of capturing the moment. She is able to time everything perfectly, to capture the love, the light, the angle. Being an artist and having a family full of artists I was terrified of trusting anyone to capture our wedding - I can honestly say I would hire Monika over and over and over. She was professional, kind, easy to work with and her photographs transcend time. They are classic, clean, elegant and timeless. I can't wait to hang these on our walls and share them with our family and friends. When you are praying that you will get 4-5 photos that you like and you end up with hundreds you know you have found a gem. HIRE HER! Do yourself a favor and book a photographer that doesn't need to take 3,000 shots and spend a 100 hours on photoshop to get a good photo. Monika is the real deal and you will be so thankful that you worked with her. She captured our fairytale wedding perfectly and we couldn't be more grateful.

n our wedding day and getting to know Monika beforehand at the portraits was such an added bonus. They are fantastic people and perfect photographers. Monika is hilarious and fun, a perfectionist and caring. Renee was so sweet and mindful and was such a treat on our wedding. The pictures are AMAZING (even though we've only seen a few- I know the rest will be awesome)! Monika is a gem. Book her for your Charleston (and beyond) wedding.

nted, her work is stunning. After we booked, she took time to talk with us to learn about us. Not to find out what shot list we wanted, to hear our story and genuinely learn about the two of us as individuals and a couple which allowed us to connect before we'd ever met in person. Once she arrived to photograph the big day we were completely at ease and she felt like another friend joining our small and intimate celebration. She was fun and a pleasure to be around throughout the day. She was very good at identifying significant moments and things throughout our day to ensure everything was captured beautifully.

we are over the moon in love with them. Her passion for photography shows through her images; she captured every sweet, funny, and spontaneous moment and it's a warming experience to be able to relive those moments through the photos she took. What's more, she was extremely professional throughout the entire experience. Her work speaks for itself, but I'm also here to sing her praises and would highly recommend her to any bride out there!

n her shots. She was a refreshing personality and I loved her direction, sass and humor! Monika does an excellent job in bringing out the natural beauty of the couple and the surroundings -- something we really were looking for. We never felt impeded upon to take pictures yet she captured every moment. I would 100% recommend Monika to any bride who is looking for a very skilled, but FUN photographer!

ade us laugh during our session... we definitely felt comfortable and knew that our photos would be great. On our wedding day, Monika and her second shooter Renee were sure to capture all the little details of the day. They were always there to capture everything as it was happening. It was amazing to relive our wedding day when we saw our gallery. The photos will be cherished forever. You can tell Monika puts her heart into her work and that was so important to us when choosing a wedding photographer! We wanted someone to capture real, raw moments and document the day as it was. Thank you, Monika, for capturing our wedding day as we always visioned it!

ch of an animal lover as we are, (almost kidnapping our precious pup Napoleon) she made everyone including us feel as much at ease as possible, which translates in her beautifully shot photos. Everyone looks so natural and every photo tells our story. Her team was also as accommodating as she was and were on top of every opportunity for a great shot. We had lots of laughs and only wished she lived closer to our home state for more great opportunities!"

great as well!They were able to capture all the special moments, quickly go through the group portraits, the details and the party! And the pictures are stunning - all of the them. I am so impressed with the quality of all the pictures - makes it tough to pick the "favorites." Thank you Monika!!

hrough email or phone. She was awesome to work with! Monika has a great attention to detail and captured everything perfectly! Also, we did an engagement session with Monika that I highly recommend. She was well prepared as regards light, locations and natural poses. We laughed the whole time because Monika made us feel so comfortable. I have to say that we’re not very photogenic, but Monika was very helpful on how to pose, where the best locations were, and the results were incredible. I love our photos! We used these photos to out "Save the Date" card. So many of our family and friends have complimented on the quality, creativity and the quantity of the pictures. Everything happened so quickly during our wedding, but fortunately Monika and her second shooter captured all these great and important moments for us that we'll cherish forever. Moments we did not even know they happened, until we looked through all of our pictures. I've looked at our wedding photo so many times.:) I can't say enough great things about Monika! She was so professional and was the first vendor to make our schedule, even before our day of coordinator. She mapped out the timeline for our day from getting ready, dancing photos to exit. She is master of getting the candid photos, as well as posing the family for group photos, capturing the tender moments, and the all action shots. Our photos are gorgeous and timeless and I look forward to looking at them for years to come. Monika is more than just a photographer. She is our friend and we look forward to working with her again in the future at any opportunity we can. THANK YOU Monika for helping make our dreams come true!

nd a wife, Monika deeply understands the importance of this important time in your life and has the incredible ability to turn your love, excitement and emotion into truly stunning images. We had an engagement shoot, which I would really recommend. She has a great eye for all of these little details and moments and all the candid shots were superb! And best yet we had fun the entire time! Numerous guests in our wedding party commented how great Monika was and everyone was impressed when we shared the photos with them. Monika is absolutely passionate about photography and it showed in the experience and also the finished product. She goes above and beyond. Not only did Monika take the most magnificent pictures but also she made other arrangements for us when the weather wouldn’t cooperate. The pictures Monika took were absolutely amazing! She was also great with our kids and family and everything went so smoothly. She was very professional, yet very fun as well! I definitely recommend her to anyone and everyone! We couldn't be an happier with her services.

of her beautiful photos on her website, I knew we just had to book Monika for our big day! The first thing that impressed us about her is that how fast she responded to my emails and answered every little question I had. Overall, communicating with her was incredibly easy. My husband and I are neither one big on picture taking, but during our engagement shoot and actual wedding she made us feel very relaxed. She will work with you in any way to make your day perfect and make sure that you get exactly what you want. She was very organized and prepared for our family/group shots while also capturing the atmosphere and personality of the day. All the photos came in a beautiful custom made package with a USB drive! We also got a second photographer for the wedding day with our package. Monika, thank you so much for capturing our special day and for the best pictures I could ever have imagined! We will cherish our wedding photos for the rest of our lives and love to relive the experience every time we look through our images. We made a great choice booking Monika, and I would recommend her in a heartbeat! Thanks again for everything!

day. She hadn’t, but would be honored to do so and promised to bring the same energy to our day as she would any other. When we first spoke on the phone, she had mentioned that the lighting would be an issue with a wedding ceremony happening on the beach in the middle of the day. But, in the same conversation, Monika promised me that, as a part of rate, she'd scope out the area for places where we could work with the lighting that we were going to face. On the day of the wedding and from the very beginning of shooting our portraits, the lighting was an issue and there never seemed to be a solution. It had become clear that there was NO plan B for finding better-lit areas and no preparation had been made to do such. Being a beach wedding, I made a request to go to the shoreline to get pictures with water as the backdrop. I thought a shoreline picture for a beach ceremony was a necessity and you can imagine my disappointment when not a single one of these images made it into our gallery. Monika eventually found a shaded area near our reception. Although it smelled like garbage because it was next to a trash compactor, we took some photos there. It was very awkward and hard to feel loving with that smell in the air… and I’m afraid that the photos show that. When I informed Monika that I was afraid the pictures were uncomfortable because of the smell, she responded with "The greenery background was nice with good lighting conditions, but unfortunately in most of your portraits you could not relax and therefore could not show the tender emotion in your photos. I asked you several times to relax and enjoy the moment. I'm not sure if you expected me to create magic, but there is only so much I can do." Because she had not planned ahead for what she originally told us would be a lighting challenge, we are left with a very limited number of acceptable shots from our wedding day. Although it never really felt like Monika connected to our day or took the day as serious as she should have, we feel fortunate to have captured the 6-10 images we did have framed. Once we got a link to our photos and were built up with anticipation and excitement, our photo gallery was nothing but a page full of broken hyperlinks. We were left sitting for hours with no explanation or response. Our friends who had come over to our house to view our pictures with us were turned away as we continued to wait into the evening. It seems strange that our USB seemed to have become more of a hassle than a business transaction. When we received the link to the online gallery, we were simultaneously told to expect our USB card within the week. After two weeks had passed and I had heard absolutely nothing, I e-mailed and asked where it was. I was re-assured that there had been an error in shipping but one would be sent out again. I waited another week before contacting again, only to find out that the USB still hadn’t been shipped. By this time, we were well into December (with a 10/12 wedding date) and we still didn't have access to photos/copyright release so that we could create prints, projects, or canvases as Xmas gifts. By then, many of the personalized and customized items had crossed into holiday cut-off times. Overall, very discouraged with service

t session with Monika and we absolutely loved every photo. On the day of the wedding, Monika was not only professional and well-organized, but she also made everyone feel comfortable and made the photo taking process fun and laid-back. She did an amazing job capturing our wedding and we are so grateful. I could not have asked for a better photographer! You will not be disappointed. She was extremely responsive and made sure everything was perfect! Thank you so much!

otography and didn't think the value was there. So, I contacted Monika and immediately knew she would be perfect. Her photography is absolutely beautiful, and she's so much fun to work with. She kept us and the bridal party laughing all day! It's so important to have vendors that you enjoy working with, since you'll be with them all day. She made the day an absolute joy! I was thrilled when I received the pictures. I'm so happy with how everything turned out and I will treasure them forever!

hat is exactly what Monika gave me! She is sweet, professional, and very helpful! She did everything in her power to make sure I got the shots I wanted. Even when there was some wedding-day drama before our reception, Monika was the one that lightened the mood by making cute jokes. Overall, I was EXTREMELY pleased with her service and my wedding photos! Thank you Monika!!

ow wonderful it was to have them as a part of our special day! Monika and her second shooter were on time, professional, and possibly as excited as we were that our wedding date had arrived! The photos from our wedding came out so beautiful, we've gotten so many compliments and our families LOVE them! Highest recommendation!

eet for our engagement session, right away she made us feel very comfortable and relaxed. She has such a laid back and easy going personality. We were so pleased with our photos and I couldn't wait for the wedding. On our wedding Monika and her second shooter arrived early, we're extremely professional yet personable which made our bridal party and family feel so comfortable in front of the camera. We had a lot of fun working with Monika and love how our pictures turned out. We feel extremely blessed to have found her and will cherish the photos forever!

y first email to inquire about her and her work, I recieved the best reply, she wanted me to call her so we could chat and she could hear from me personally about my wedding and photograph visions! This immediately took me from loving her work to loving her! I'm a people person and all about interactions and capturing personalities. She's always quick to return emails and calls and her work is something to be more than excited about! We had our engagement photos taken on a beautiful fall day in St. Petersburg, FL and with each shot, my fiancé and I felt comfortable and confident that Monika did everything she could to capture the most special moments! I'm 100 percent confident our wedding day and albumn will be perfect and stunning as well!! I will definitely use Monika for all photography needs in the future!