Samantha James Photography

Samantha is the absolute best photographer and wedding vendor you could choose. She helped me with the entire process. I had not ever thought about what I wanted for my wedding, and with her helpful hints and direction my day was so special. She made us both so at ease and dealt with the inevitable family drama (especially COVID) with such grace; while also capturing the sweet moments we now look back and wish we could have hired Samantha to do everything for our wedding she is just so perfect. She makes you pause during the stressful planning/ day-of and appreciate the special moment. But, what is absolutely amazing is her talent and the breathtaking photos she captured, she is a true talent and I will always reach out to her for photography of our family and future. She is the best, do not even hesitate to reach out as she books up quick!

Hiring Samantha was the best decision! She and I connected as soon as we had our initial phone call, and she continued to exceed my expectations from start to finish. She is so easy and pleasant to work with - she is truly so genuine and kind, always willing to help, and was a calm presence throughout our entire wedding planning experience. She has a heart for others and is so passionate about her work. She always made sure we felt comfortable and confident in front of the camera, and captured our wedding and engagement session in such a timeless and romantic way that we will forever cherish!

I had a very specific type of photo that I wanted for our engagement and wedding photos and Sam did not disappoint! Everything was light and airy and exactly what I was looking for. Tyler and I had never had our photos taken together and were a little nervous going into our engagement session but from the beginning Sam made everything so much fun and enjoyable. Leading up to our wedding day, Sam and I spoke on the phone a couple of different times just for my piece of mind on how the day would run overall and for photos. She helped keep us all on track the day of and Tyler and I still got to have fun. I cannot say enough good things about Sam and we are looking forward to her shooting more for us in the future!

From the first moment I spoke with Sam to schedule our engagement session (which was tough because we live outside the state where the wedding was), I knew we'd made the right choice- she is wonderful. Not only did she come HIGHLY recommended from our wedding planner (Every Little Detail) but her work has been featured in tons of bridal magazines! Her website and blog are an exact example of her passion and dedication to her work - she has a way with words and also photos, of course. During our engagement session, she made us feel comfortable, relaxed and offered lots of suggestions so we could get the best pictures possible. We got our full wedding album back last weekend and I can't stop looking at the photos - I highly recommend Sam to anyone who loves natural light photos and to have someone who is SO passionate about what they do, to me, is a huge perk!

I fell in love with Sam's soft, romantic, timeless style. But beyond her photography she was a pleasure to work with. She answered questions and made recommendations throughout the planning process that helped put me at ease along the way. The day of the wedding we had heavy fog that prevented us from shooting in the location we had planned. Sam was quick to suggest another location for our first look and the images were absolutely stunning. We also took some shots out by Lake Michigan. Sam was climbing up mini sand dunes and throwing branches out of the way just to get the perfect shot. I can't recommend Sam enough! We will cherish our photographs and the memories captured forever.

When I found Samantha's portfolio online, I knew she had be our wedding photographer. Her photographs capture a light, and a feeling that many photographers only hope to accomplish. Samantha met with us 13 months before our wedding to plan our engagement session, and our wedding. In the months to come, she willingly walked us through every detail of what a typical wedding day looks like from start to finish. We knew we were in great hands with Samantha. She was so friendly, full of grace, and was very professional. Her suggestions and ideas showed us that she knew what she was doing, but also showed us that she really understood us as a couple. Our engagement photos were displayed throughout our wedding reception, and guests loved them. We now have our wedding photos displayed in our home, and we are able to remember that special day so vividly thanks to Samantha's beautiful talent. We are thrilled to know she will be there to capture the next chapter in our lives. Thank you Samantha, you are the very best.

Samantha's style was exactly what I was looking for! She has a softness about her photographs that makes them look timeless and elegant. A photographer can either make or break your wedding photos and Sam certainly outdid herself with ours! We booked Sam for both our engagement photos as well as our wedding, and we could not be happier! Neither my husband, nor myself would label ourselves as ones who do well with having our pictures taken and Sam was able to make us BOTH feel comfortable and at ease throughout the engagement and wedding photos. Her attention to detail is amazing! Working with Sam for the past year was nothing short of exceptional - she worked with us to create a timeline for our wedding that that was feasible and realistic. She was always readily available to answer our many questions. Sam was a pleasure to work with, as she is one of the sweetest and kind people I have encountered in life. We cannot rave about her enough - I would HIGHLY recommend her!

It was pure joy working with Samantha James and her husband Brad at our rehearsal dinner & wedding day. The way she captures the light, details and emotions in every photo is magic. My husband and I really feel like we are reliving the day every time we look at our photos. As every married couple can attest, the wedding day can get a little crazy with a tight timeline, but rest assured if you’re working with Sam, she will keep you calm and on time throughout the day. There were times throughout the day where we both literally said, “We couldn’t have done this without her.” While I could write on and on about Sam, I have to mention, one of my favorite parts about working with her, was hearing from my wedding party, family and friends, how sweet Sam was. It was a quick 24hrs, but so many really felt like they had known her for much longer. While we live in California, we really hope to be able to have many more moments captured by Sam.

Samantha is one of the best decisions we made when planning our wedding. Not only is she the nicest and most caring person you'll ever meet, but she truly loves her job and wants to make everything perfect. She went out of her way since day one to make sure we were getting the best images. During our wedding week she came to our final walk through to get an idea of shots and family photos and the layout once more since we weren't doing a first look. She was already very familiar with the venue so for her to go out of her way because she knew we were a little concerned about getting all of the family photos done after the ceremony was very helpful and made us relaxed about not doing a first look. We just love Sam, and she was very professional and extremely nice to everyone in our family and our guests. The best part is her images are beautiful. She took our engagement photos and right when we got them back, we fell in love with them. Our wedding photos were AMAZING and she captured every special moment. She is the sweetest and best photographer we have used, and we will continue to use her for other monumental events. When you are picking a wedding photographer you want to make sure you are getting the best, and I truly believe Sam's images are some of the best I've ever seen. I've included some photos of her work. Book Samantha because it will be one of the best wedding decisions you make.

If there’s one thing I wasn’t willing to settle on for my wedding, it was the photography. That being said, I can assure you that Sam exceeded all expectations that I had and was an absolute dream to work with! Our first time meeting her was for our engagement session but her energy and sweet personality made us feel completely comfortable in front of her camera. I did not hire a wedding planner so during my planning, I turned to her for help with the timeline and other miscellaneous details. She was always quick to respond and very helpful with realistic ideas of how much time certain parts of the day would take to photograph. Because of this, the wedding day went extremely smooth and we ended up ahead of schedule, making for a fun and relaxing day. I can’t say enough good things about our experience with Sam and would recommend her to anyone!

Samantha is the unicorn photographer you've been looking for. Her vision, gorgeous photography quality, and creativity captures the wedding pictures you've always dreamed of. And not just of you, but of everyone you love too! She isn't afraid to get in there & capture those fleeting moments that someone inevitably says, "did you get that on camera?!" For me, the way Samantha photographed weddings was the way I wanted to remember mine. & that's exactly what she delivered! Matthew and I will cherish our photo collection forever, thank you Sam and Brad!! <3

Samantha was a joy to work with, and we highly recommend her to any Grand Rapids couple! During the planning process, Samantha was organized, responsive, gave us wonderful suggestions and was super supportive. Samantha took both our engagement photos and wedding photos, and she made us feel super comfortable during both. She was relaxed, warm and professional. She really made us feel at ease. She is also super talented! She knows how to use the environment and light to her advantage, and she takes stunning photos. We loved our engagement photos and can’t wait to view the wedding photos! Overall, we had a wonderful experience with Samantha, and , we couldn’t recommend her more highly!!!

Fantastic and amazing do not even begin to describe Sam and her work! She is such a talented photographer. Her style brought such uniqueness to our wedding! From the get-go we felt so comfortable with her, and her excitement to share in our day made us even more thrilled to have her there! She was super helpful through the planning process. Early on she put together a timeline for us which really helped to structure the rest of the day. She communicated very well, we knew exactly what to expect from her on the big day. And, she was super accommodating to our needs. She had no problem directing everyone on wedding day to keep us on schedule. This put us at ease and allowed us to really enjoy the day because we feel very comfortable in her ability to capture all the special moments of the day. We cannot thank you enough Sam! I've said it before and I'll say it again: we were the luckiest to have you capture our special day!

We cannot say enough great things about Sam! From the first phone call with her, we clicked. As we spoke, her warm personality was comforting. Then as she shared her story as a photographer, I knew she was for us! My husband Ben & I had a very short engagement, and planned our wedding in just 3 weeks. We were so lucky that Sam was not only available, but also for how accommodating she was since we only had the venue for 3 hours. Sam crafted a timeline of events for us. She balanced blending in and taking charge when needed. We had a very intimate ceremony, that was full of purpose and meaning. And she captured our love story beautifully! Honestly, our pictures look like a magazine editorial. It's everything we envisioned and more! We can't wait to work her again.

I cannot say enough good things about Samantha James Photography! When we first connected with Sam she was very professional, but also let her personality come through which was a huge plus for us because it instantly made us comfortable with her. She answered all of our questions thoroughly and honestly before we even booked her, and never once did we feel pressured or as if she was trying to “sell” us. We sort of threw Sam for a loop when we had to move up our wedding date due to a terminal family illness. I will never forget how kind she was when I called to spill the news and ask if she would be available for our new date. She immediately calmed me down and reassured me that she was there to help. I felt as if she was a lifelong friend. Not only did she help us get our photography needs together in our time crunch, but she offered assistance in other areas as well, which showcased what an industry expert she truly is. We were thrilled when she said that her husband Brad would be her second shooter for our wedding, because we had seen the magical photos they had produced as a team! The day of the wedding, Sam and Brad were there when we needed them, but also seemingly invisible while capturing candid and intimate photos throughout the day. Sam gave us good direction when need be during our photos which helped a TON because sometimes admittedly we look like awkward ducks when posing together haha. Needless to say, our photos turned out PHENOMINAL. They exceeded my expectations and they are truly breathtaking. I still get goosebumps and tear up when I looked through them because Sam and Brad did such an amazing job of capturing the feelings of each moment. I get SO many compliments and comments on how incredible our photos are and one of my bridesmaids even reached out to Sam for a quote for her upcoming wedding! I also just have to mention that we got our photos back so quickly, and there was no limit so we literally got them ALL (a huge plus as some make you pick and choose to fit a photo max)! The box we received with our flash drive was even stunning! Her presentation and those extra little touches just really set her apart from other photographers. The entire process from start to finish with Samantha James Photography was absolutely magnificent. She is truly one of a kind from her services to her images and I would HIGHLY recommend her to all. Trust me, you will NOT be disappointed!

Sam took our wedding photos and we are so very happy with them. She was easy to work with from the planning thru the photo delivery. She was careful to capture the photos we requested and was sweet in encouraging me not to skip a specific pose that we had included. It is one of my favorite photos, and I am so thankful! Unnoticed, she captured great candid shots before, during and after the formal shots. You won’t be disappointed working with Sam.

As the sister of a wedding photographer my bar was set VERY high when it came to choosing the perfect person to capture our day. Sam exceeded all my expectations. She was wonderful to work with – from making us feel so comfortable during our engagement session (even though that was the first time we met her!) to helping pull twigs and bugs out of my veil on the day of the wedding – she made us feel like she truly cared about US and our day. I had a very specific vision for our wedding, with a lot of tiny special details – Sam made sure that she had the time needed to capture everything perfectly for us, even catching the un-planned moments that are some of our favorite memories. I am constantly getting praise from my friends and family about the photos – even from other brides and brides-to-be who gush about how gorgeous our pictures are and wish that theirs were that good. Thank you Sam!!!

Sam was our photographer for our engagement photos and wedding and she did a phenomenal job. She was always responsive to emails and phone calls and answered all of our questions. She gave insight to every detail of our photos and even helped us pick out our engagement session outfits! She took our inspiration and desires into consideration and wanted us to have the most special wedding day possible. She does a great job of capturing natural light and we are so happy to have such quality photos that captured our special day. I highly recommend Sam. She will not only take beautiful photos that you will cherish, but will help you through the planning process from start to finish.

Sam was a dream to work with. She was responsive, helpful, and thoughtful from our very first interaction. She was our photographer for our engagement session and wedding. We had a small, afternoon wedding (75 people) at The English Inn in Eaton Rapids, MI. Our vision was romantic, vintage, and simple. Sam captured our special day perfectly. She is kind and sentimental, and that's the type of lens you want to see your day through. Her images obviously speak for themselves but if you love bright light, soft color, and natural you will not regret your decision to work with her. One of the things we love most about Sam is her commitment to doing what she does best by finding the perfect little spots to shoot. These are the images you will have to remember one of the biggest days in your life. You will be so happy you picked Sam to take this journey with you. We have found someone we trust to capture our biggest moments in life and we can't wait to work with her again and again! Thank you for everything, Sam! xoxo - The Johnsons

We used Bradley James for our engagement and wedding photos. She visited Plymouth for the engagement photos and Novi for the wedding. We worked with Sam. Sam was wonderful to work with. Her attention to detail showcases through every photo. The engagement photos she created a fun and relaxed environment. The wedding she took care of all of our friends and families requests. The photos get me emotional every time I see them. Bradley James was referred to us through a friend and I couldn't have been happier with this recommendation. I recommend Bradley James to every couple!

Brad and Sam were such a great couple to work with! My husband and I felt so natural in all of the pictures-nothing felt forced. Both were very good at listening to my crazy day of request such as dragging a canoe into a pond and getting in it in my wedding dress hours before my wedding! I had some pictures I really wanted and they made all of them turn out so great! They work phenomenally with lighting, captured all of my wedding day details that every bride puts so much time in but the day goes so fast that I couldn't appreciate it all and they captured it for us to always remember. I would HIGHLY HIGHLY recommend this husband and wife couple

Brad and Sam at Bradley James were, by far, my favorite vendor I worked with. They are such a friendly, easy-going couple, and they really put me at ease for my wedding. I contacted them about a year before the wedding, and I had a good hour-long talk with Brad on the phone, where he answered a lot of my questions. I was looking for a specific photographic style and feel, and they seemed to really meet those needs. In January, we booked our engagement shots, which came with our package. I was so glad we did this! It gave my husband and I an opportunity to learn the style and techniques of the photographers. The shots came out beautifully (I think we had one of the only snowy days that winter!), and we were so excited for them to shoot our wedding! One thing I really liked – I collected inspiration images from blogs and pinterest, and sent them over to Brad and Sam so they could see the look I was going for before the wedding day or engagement shoot. They tried to recreate or do similar shots, so that was nice that they could incorporate those. I also brought props for both shoots, and we were able to work with those as well. I haven't seen our final shots yet, but I expect that they will be amazing!