The Experience
How do we get started?
Planning your wedding is a journey and I am here to help you along the way! We’ll start off with scheduling a video call consult. It’s important we get to know each other a little and make sure we are a good match! I love to hear about how you envision your wedding day, what is important to you, and any other details you have to share. We will also go over my photography services in my packages. Feeling like you might want a second photographer on your wedding day? I include a second in most of my packages, but I also recommend a second photographer with certain criteria that we can discuss in your consult. Want to make sure you have full day coverage? Weekend wedding photography packages start at eight hours, and weekday civil weddings start at two hours. Once we have found a wedding photography package that’s a good fit, I’ll send a digital contract for both of you to sign. The retainer payment to hold your date is $2,500.00 for weekend wedding packages, and $500.00 for weekday elopements. After we have all signed the contract, your wedding date will be locked into my calendar, and then we will schedule your engagement session next.
“We LOVED working with Sonya for our wedding and engagement photos. She’s a true professional in both her photography skills and the way she communicates. I knew that the photos would be one of the most important parts of our day (I was right!) so having someone I could trust with quality was essential.”
The Engagement Session
Your engagement session is a chance to celebrate this time of being engaged! And those photos are super useful for your wedding website, maybe Save the Dates, or looking beautifully framed on your wedding welcome table. I recommend picking a location that is meaningful to you, or that you just love! I’ll send you my guide to my top 10 Engagement Locations if you’d like help with brainstorming. Another suggestion is that sometimes my couples choose a location that is different from their wedding venue. For example, if they’re having their wedding at the beach in Half Moon Bay, then they might pick the redwoods for their engagement session location.
In what can feel like a busy time planning your wedding, I understand that the engagement session might not feel super important. But I think it is a fantastic way for me to get to know you, and vice versa. And it might be your first time being professionally photographed together, so it’s invaluable practice before your wedding day. I like to make them fun and I will keep you moving and feeling as natural as possible. I love to see your personalities and I want you to enjoy the experience! If you are feeling nervous or awkward about being photographed on your wedding day, here is a great time to get some practice and build your confidence. I focus on your connection together and movement over standard posing prompts. Also, pups are always welcome too! I love dogs and if you want to have them along for all or part of your session, let’s make it happen.
I’m a big fan of engagement sessions, so here’s my blog post about why to have one and my FAQ’s, like what to wear. After your session, your engagement photos will be ready in 2-3 weeks, and I will share them with you via a downloadable photo gallery.
“Sonya is wonderful at what she does! If you’re reading these reviews you probably already appreciate her artistic capabilities, but she also has the underrated skill of making you feel at ease during your sessions. She has a very relaxed demeanor.
She captured the loveliest photos at each of the spots we picked out for our engagement shoot. She strikes a great balance in giving direction for posed photos as well as capturing candids/action shots. We’re so happy we now have photos at many of our favorite and most meaningful locations throughout the city.”
Guidance as you plan your wedding
Couples often book me about 9 months to a year out from their wedding weekend. For City Hall civil ceremonies and weekday elopements, I will get booked 2-3 months out from your date. So in that time I want you to know I’m here for guidance along the way! My couples receive a comprehensive Welcome Guide, chock full of goodies and insitghts to help you make decisions for your wedding. That guide includes a sample wedding day timeline that highlights key photographic moments, a sample family portrait list for those “must have” family group photos, my top rated Bay Area wedding vendor recommendations (such as planners, florists, and videographers), and tips for making your wedding photos better! My door is always open and my couples are welcome to reach out to me at anytime with questions. A month prior to your wedding, I will reconnect with you and your planner. We’ll confirm your final timeline, portrait list, and review any questions you may have. My goal is to iron out all the details prior to your wedding, so that on your day you can be fully present and enjoy it, knowing you’re taken care of by your experienced vendor team. And here is the big secret: your wedding photos are better when you are relaxed and fully present in the moment!
“During the wedding itself, she captured every important moment without being obtrusive, letting us focus on each other and everything else instead of having to pose for the camera. She also worked well and coordinated with the separate videographer who we’d hired, and even helped give us pointers when we were finalizing our day-of schedule.
Our wedding photos turned out absolutely stunning.”
Your Wedding Weekend Arrives!
Welcome Reception: Included in some of my weekend photography packages is your Welcome Reception or Rehearsal Dinner coverage the day before your wedding. So this is often the first place you’ll see me on your wedding weekend. These more casual affairs are full of wonderful candid moments with your guests, many of which have just arrived. Having just an hour or two of this welcome party documented really sets the stage for your wedding. This is a once-in-a-lifetime weekend with all your most favorite people gathered together to celebrate you two. And often the welcome reception includes your VIP list of your guests. So consider including some photography coverage of this important part of your wedding weekend.
Wedding Day: The BIG day is finally here!! Photography coverage usually begins with some getting ready photos, maybe a First Look, some photos with the wedding party and/or family, and then the ceremony arrives! After the ceremony might be time to take some more family and wedding party photos. I always recommend saving some time in your day to take your couple photos at sunset for the most gorgeous light. Then it’s off to cocktail hour. If my couple wants to enjoy their cocktail hour, then we make a plan for getting their family photos done in time for them to join the party. This leads into the dinner reception and dancing the night away! Photography might conclude at some point in the dancing, or you might have me at your After Party, documenting all the epic dance moves!
My photography style is a mostly candid and documentary, but I will be giving you guidance throughout the day, especially when taking your portraits. Since we have worked out your timeline and “must have” portrait list well ahead of time, you don’t need to worry about anything and it’s now all about enjoying your day! Let it soak in that you’re getting married to your best friend, and all your favorite people in the world are there to witness it and celebrate with you.
A wedding day can bring jitters. But I strive to remain a calming presence throughout your wedding journey; I’m here to make your day a success!
“She is a consummate artist with vision and experience, and our wedding photos are gorgeous. Sonya’s warm personality and presence made us feel relaxed during our wedding day. Sonya has an amazing ability to blend into her environment, often taking photos unnoticed.”
Your Gorgeous Wedding Photos!
The moment you’ve been waiting for! After your wedding, you’ll receive some sneak peek photos, and a “what’s next” email. Then I’ll be hard at work on editing the thousands of images between myself and the second photographer. Once your edited, final set of photos are ready, you’ll get an exciting email with your full wedding weekend photo gallery, and a slideshow of highlights for fun! For a weekend wedding, your photos will be ready in 8-10 weeks, and weekday elopements are 5-7 weeks. For weekend wedding couples, you’ll receive a special package in the mail that includes a USB drive that’s loaded with all your engagement and wedding photos in print quality jpeg files. The online gallery has print-ordering options, but you’re also welcome to print your photos at any professional print lab that you like, and I’m happy to make suggestions about photo printing if you need.
If your package includes an album and/or parent albums, that will be our next step when you’re ready. I’ll walk you through that process and we can create a beautiful heirloom album. My goal is that your photos will bring back all the wonderful memories of your wedding, but also you might see some special moments from the photos that you didn’t get a chance to see on your day! When you look at your photos, they should feel how your wedding felt; joyful, tearful, fun, excited, loved, and all the many emotions that come with your wedding. I hope you will enjoy seeing your photos for all the years to come.
“We had the best experience with Sonya as our wedding photographer. She made us feel comfortable and natural, and our photos were gorgeous and really felt like us. She also designed our album afterwards and was fantastic to work with. Her creative eye, attention to detail, and genuine warmth and care are everything we could have hoped for.”