the client experience
We’re gonna laugh together. I’m going to be over the moon excited for you.
I’ll hang back and let you be present with your family and friends while capturing those moments for you. I’ll step in when necessary and needed to keep things moving. I’m going to gush over how amazing you look (cause you will) and I’ll make sure that you look your absolute best in your pictures.
I’m going to blink back tears behind my camera when you walk down the aisle. I’m going to check in with you throughout the day to see if you need anything. I’m going to remind you to take a breath and soak everything in.
What is it like to have Melissa as your photographer on your wedding day?
By getting to know what’s important to you both and creating a relationship of trust between us.
You’re not going to always see me, but I’m there, getting all the different perspectives of your day.
By sticking to the timeline and building in a cushion for you to be able to stop and take a breath.
By moving quickly, but thoughtfully during portraits to make sure you get incredible pictures and are able to get back to your friends and family as quick as possible.
By giving you and your hunny a few moments alone after the first look or couples portraits are done, to let you connect, alone.
By ensuring that the hors d’oeuvres and a good drink make their way over to you.
By carrying an emergency supply of safety pins, tide sticks, breath mints and bandaids with me at all times.
By being calm, and go-with-the-flow even if it starts pouring and hailing during portraits (true story) and then being able to produce incredible pictures in an unexpected, unfamiliar location because I’m confident in my technical and artistic skills and quick on my feet.
By taking control when needed to make sure that things get done.
How will I do that?
• They are in love. And not afraid to show it in their own way.
My couples are all wonderfully unique, but they have these things in common:
• They are laid back and easy going
• They want to have fun
• Their focus on their wedding day is on being together with the ones they love
• Photography is important to them and they prioritize it on their wedding day
• They trust my vision and are willing to go along with my suggestions
When these things line up, it makes for an amazing collaboration and experience for everyone. When I show up for my couple’s weddings, it truly feels like I’m attending the wedding of a friend.
You spend a LOT of time with your photographer on your wedding day. You want to feel comfortable with whoever you choose. I don’t mean that we have to be besties, but this whole thing will work better if we like each other.
It does mean that you’ve allowed me into your love story, to see an inside look at your relationship, at who the two of you are. What makes you tick and what’s important to you.
If you’re just wanting a photographer to show up and focus only on the typical, posed, smiling “perfect looking” shots, we might not be the best fit.
I want us both to be super pumped about working together. If I don’t think we’re going to be a good fit, I’m going to let you know. Likewise, if I’m not the photographer for you, that’s not a problem, let’s just be honest about it okay?
And that’s okay, because whoever you end up working with needs to be the right fit for you, what you want and what you need.
It means that we feel comfortable with each other.
It means that I am humbled to be asked to not just capture your day, but share in your joy.
It means that you get me and what I’m about.
It means that I got you.
love notes from clients...
I was one of the first to get married out of my friends and really hadn't attended many weddings myself, so I felt completely lost into what I wanted/needed in a photographer. I knew I needed a photographer who was willing to take charge and would prompt me to help figure out what I wanted
You could tell Melissa had incredible intentionality, was detail oriented, and allowed the natural beauty of the couple/the surroundings to speak for themselves with just the right amount of enhancement. We had been considering other photographers for a long time, and what stood out about Melissa was her organization and willingness to lead with our wants and needs
I was so worried that I was ill-prepared, and making the process more difficult for you. You reassured me that you were perfectly capable and that you could be adaptable with what we needed. While I was very heightened with anxiety, you were cool, calm and encouraging. You rolled with the punches as they came and were kind and considerate while still focusing on getting the perfect shot. It was truly amazing to watch.
My favorite thing about our photos is the way you captured the natural love for my husband and I. We had the perfect combo of curated poses that look wonderful, but also you captured our natural selves and adoration for one another. The pictures felt truly individualized and just for us!
You won't regret booking with Melissa- you can guarantee you will get the exact shots you want for your wedding and get the natural essence of your joy on your special day!
love note 01 of 08
Emma & Ryan
When we were looking for a photographer, your work stood out to us. Your photos told a story, it kept all the warmth and joy and didn’t feel forced or over staged.
Your approach and perspective on your photography, what you do, was evident during our consult call, and aligned with what we were hoping for. We could just tell the vibe was right, paired with accessing even more of your beautiful photos in the galleries, it just came together.
You integrated with the wedding day seamlessly, capturing more photos than I could’ve hoped for! You were so helpful during getting ready shots, so creative and adventurous with us taking pictures through downtown Northampton and sneaking us out for some night photos during the reception.
My favorite thing is that while we do have all the classic photos, we have a lot of really cool and unique portraits as well. They feel a little different and true to us and who we are as a couple!
love note 02 of 08
Ashley & Evan
"When I say that my husband and I gasped audibly at the sight of our wedding gallery, I am not exaggerating. We were truly blown away by the photos that Melissa had been able to capture. As much as I don’t want to focus on the negative context of our situation, I feel it’s important for you to know that we were a “covid wedding”; our wedding scheduled for 2021 was cancelled by our venue so we decided to have a micro-wedding in October instead. A highlight of our new date and venue meant that we were going to be able to have gorgeous sunset photos overlooking a scenic fall foliage landscape.
As this was 2020, it’s no surprise to anyone that our wedding day was actually a stormy day that turned to a dark blue fog and drizzle around the time of our sunset ceremony. The fog was so thick you couldn’t see any of the scenic skyline we had been looking forward to. Melissa, however, was confident that it was worth it to get outside even for 10 minutes. I have to be honest, I didn’t totally see the point but we were having so much fun taking photos with her that we agreed.
I honestly do not have the words to describe how much I love those photos in particular. They are the most genuine, intimate photos I have ever seen. I have literally never seen anyone share wedding photos like that before. I didn’t really understand initially how Melissa’s background as a lifestyle photographer was going to work with a wedding but I realize now that it meant we were able to get gorgeous, authentic photos of us just being us and being genuinely happy.
Melissa handled complex and even uncomfortable family dynamics with ease and produced family portraits that we all cherish. She’s one of the few people that I felt were 100% in my corner the entire day. She was a rock for me when I was feeling anxious, and not afraid to shoo the venue staff away for me after I had asked for a couple of minutes alone with my dad.
When we found out our 2021 wedding was being cancelled, Melissa was the second person I told and her compassion and empathy was the support we needed in that moment to help my husband and I make the best decisions for us. I could go on and on about how wonderful our experience with Melissa was (I didn’t even mention our awesome engagement session!). We are incredibly grateful and lucky to have met Melissa and to have had the honor of working with her for our wedding. We cannot recommend her enough!"
love note 03 of 08
Tony & Kaci
"The photos on your site initially drew me to you. Your work had so much feeling - I knew that's how I wanted our day captured. The fact that you insisted on a phone discussion before setting up the proposals sealed the deal. I thought "This is someone who genuinely cares about my wedding as much as I do! And it's like talking to an old friend!
You worked around our schedule, multiple locations and dark night photos. You made everything easy, comfortable and took some of my wedding day anxiety away... at least all of the anxiety about capturing the day. I also had many, many comments from guests about how you were never in their view of the ceremony or dances.
Our images showed our day exactly as I remember and I got to see the men's portion too and their time, pre-wedding, socializing! It captured the best moments (basically all of the moments) of our special day and made us feel like one in a million!
It is so EASY to work with you - communication (pre-wedding and day of - you make amazing suggestions but also let us make them too - ie: dramatic dip haha), final gallery showing the true feeling and emotions of our day, turn around time of a few weeks for the photos is perfect (it allows time to come down from the wedding "high" and then get to relive it again!) and so, so, so many compliments from guests about your presence, professionalism and attitude."
love note 04 of 08
Hannah and Shawn
"After meeting with you, we felt confident that you would be the perfect fit for our wedding. For starters, we really loved your portfolio which we felt was superior to others we had reviewed. We were also very impressed by your professionalism. The fact that your family is so important to you in your career as a photographer increased our comfort that you would capture our wedding as a joining of families. You also were extremely personable and we could see you blending seamlessly into our day!
The experience was what we expected and better! Our families commented on your ability to be part of the day and your high level of professionalism. It was amazing. We didn't have to worry about anything with photography which was exactly what we were looking for when we hired you. With that professionalism, you somehow managed to balance it with "I've been here, I've done this with my family" and just seemed like a friend taking spectacular photos of our day.
We again, were amazed (not surprised) by the quality of the photos in the gallery! Every photo we asked for was there. More than that, you captured the emotions of the day - happiness, tears, change, etc. We could not be happier with the end results!
We would recommend you as a photographer for all the reasons above and you're simply awesome as a person and in your work. You came and took charge and that's the coordination we needed. Additionally, you helped me (Kelly) and my step-daughter (Megan) in helping Megan with her makeup. We cannot thank you enough and hope to hire you for future family photos."
love note 05 of 08
Ken and Kelly
"You were recommended to us by a fellow photographer and after our first phone call we instantly knew we wanted to work with you. The connection about what we wanted was instantly there and you were just as excited about our wedding as we were.
As far as working with you on our wedding day it was so easy. You were so welcoming and made us feel so comfortable (which is not easy when it’s your wedding day and your high strung!). You also made me feel beautiful and made us laugh to be able to genuinely catch the best shots.
WE LOVE OUR PHOTOS. our gallery is more than we could have asked for and you got so many shots in a short period of time. (We only booked for 4 hours)
100% RECOMMEND - seriously book her.
If we ever live closer in the future and we decide to expand our family we would love for you to capture it. "
love note 06 of 08
Libby and Eli
"Melissa is such a gem! When I saw her portfolio I was blown away. Every photo in her wedding gallery was joyful and genuine, unpretentious and elegant. She seemed to capture her subjects' sincere emotions. Andrew and I knew that we wanted to see ourselves that way in our wedding photos. From the first e-mail exchange, every interaction with Melissa was straight-forward and pleasant.
The day of the wedding, she was professional, sweet, and easy to talk to. She fit in so well that one guest thought she was also a guest. Every time we look at the final images is like re-living the wedding day through Melissa's lens. We look happy, we look like we're in love, we don't look tired from having to fake smile for a bunch of over-orchestrated photos.
She captured us as we were on our wedding day, and we're so grateful to have those memories forever. We can't recommend Melissa enough!"
love note 07 of 08
Jane and Andrew
"My fiancé (at the time) and I were so unsure of what type of photographer to select. I did my research and kept searching and searching. Then I found Melissa. I don’t really know exactly how I found her but boy were we happy we did! I picked Melissa as my photographer because of her work. I felt that she was so genuine with her work and that’s what I wanted for my wedding day. She communicated with me very frequently throughout the few months leading up to the big day. We even had a lengthy phone call, she asked me what I expected on my wedding day and what my biggest fears were. I felt connected to her ever since!
My experience working with Melissa on my wedding day was phenomenal, and my husband says the same. He was very weary about having a photographer from out of town shoot our wedding. He was worried...”will she show up?” “What if she’s not on time” and none of those worries were real life. On our wedding day, Melissa was not only on time, but she was EARLY. She came to speak to me about how the day was going to go and what her plan was to get everything accomplished. She was extremely sweet and accommodating! We received so many compliments on how involved she was with shooting photos, but to be completely honest, most of the time I didn’t even know where she was! I was too busy enjoying myself and I fully trusted that she was fulfilling her duty as our photographer.
I don’t exactly have words to put to how I feel about all of our incredible wedding pictures. It’s been over 3 months and I still find myself looking at my gallery (probably once a week, maybe I’m crazy idk!) just because I am SO in love with every single picture. Not only because of what the pictures mean to me but also because of how beautifully edited they are. (Wish I could look that good on a daily basis) Melissa captured moments that I hoped she would, she did an amazing job. She is so genuine and I could not have asked for anyone better to capture the moments of the best day of our life!
"
love note 08 of 08
Ryan and Shelby
What does that mean? It means that I’m skilled in the art of observation, of anticipating moments, of focusing on emotion and capturing it in a way that will make your heart swell.
The moments that you want to remember. The way he makes you laugh. The way she brushes the hair off your face. Your friends and family watching you walk down the aisle. Both of your expressions the second they announce that you’re married. Everyone getting down on the dance floor. All of it.
Love is love. I’m interested in capturing love stories, whatever shape they take, whoever they feature in those leading roles. I support all kinds of love and all kinds of couples. Diversity and inclusion are vitally important to me. I am an ally of the LGBTQ+ community and I welcome the opportunity to showcase your love story, and I am inclusive of all shapes, sizes, genders, colors and sexualities.
If this sounds like the type of experience that you want to have
then, I’d love to work with you.
click here to inquire
