Drew is an amazing photographer, a true professional and a genuine spirit.   We wanted to work with an artist that could get our sense of style, humor, a little adventure and culture, our shared love of music and travel. And really, a photographer that can capture how much fun we have together on any given day anywhere. After researching hundreds of photographers on Yelp, and I mean hundreds especially in the SF Bay Area, I knew we found the right photographer in Drew. He immediately grabbed our interest with his website and portfolio of great stories and beautiful moments from so many events and all walks of life at different viewpoints.  When we made contact and I shared what I had envisioned, Drew responded with genuine interest and excitement.     Our photo adventure aimed to capture the uncommon, but beautiful urban spaces in San Francisco that you would never think of for wedding photos, but totally for ours.  And with Drew, we were able to steer away from the typical wedding poses, but still have quality keepsakes to treasure.  Our goal was to shoot these at these locations before our actual civil ceremony at City Hall. To prep for our photo shoot, Drew helped us prioritize the locations we scouted (my husband had 10 to start with)!  He was so patient and professional in advising on where, when and which locations would have the best photo outcome and logistically what would work within our timeframe.  We shot 5-6 spaces and City Hall all within 6 hours and the results were nearly 300 amazing vibrant photos.   To see some of the candid moments he captured with us, family and friends was such a nice and touching surprise. Throughout our day, Drew's demeanor was always cool, collected, flexible, smiling the whole time, snapping away and navigated our ambitious schedule with ease.  And even at the close of our day, each location already shot with success (my feet crying to quit!), my husband wanting to maximize our time, Drew managed to come up with a few more creative unexpected shots which ended up being some of our favorite pictures.   Drew's enthusiasm about our project, working with us and capturing our story made the day fun and less stressful. With his incredibly busy calendar and between travels, we appreciate that he never made us feel rushed or less of a priority.  Drew also expedited some photos to us early so we were able to print and display at our reception 2 weeks later!   His work is creative and intuitive filled with different perspectives and authentic memories. He is easy to work with and very accommodating. We highly recommend Drew for your next adventure!   Thank you, Drew! We are eternally grateful for this unforgettable experience and will treasure these beautiful photos forever. read more

We could not be happier that we hired Drew to be our photographer! Drew is extremely warm, kind, calming, patient, honest, knowledgeable, talented, and professional--basically, he is just the type of person with whom you want to share one of the most important (yet potentially stressful) days of your life! Throughout the wedding planning process, Drew was an absolute pleasure to work with. A couple of weeks before the wedding, we set up a call to discuss wedding details and what we hoped for in our photographs. Drew was completely open to all of our ideas, but he was upfront about where there might be limitations based on timing, lighting, etc. He also gave us some good tips about how to move through portraits as quickly as possible and how best to schedule the day. The phone call left us feeling like we had a good sense of what to expect the day of the wedding and how to prepare to make things move along most efficiently. On the day of our DIY wedding, however, we ended up getting an hour behind schedule. We were supposed to do all the portraits before the ceremony, and even though my intention was to be laid back about everything, things started to feel stressful. Drew assured us, however, that we shouldn't worry and that we would still be able to get most of the shots we wanted. While he waited for us to get ready, he found some wonderful backgrounds for our portraits and shot lots of great candid photos of friends and family setting up the site, including some of our very favorite photographs of the day. When we finally started doing portraits of our families and wedding party, Drew moved us through the various configurations so efficiently that we were still able to get to the shots we thought we might have to skip. His calming demeanor also helped me chill out and start having fun again! Drew caught tons of priceless, candid moments during the ceremony and reception, while managing to remain completely unobtrusive. After the ceremony, he was able to pull off an amazing overhead group portrait of my husband and me with all of our wedding guests, which was no easy feat given the number of guests, topography, and harsh sunlight at our mid-day outdoor wedding. We are so pleased with that portrait and all of the other portraits, but the candid shots Drew took were probably the greatest treat for us to comb through after the wedding. Drew was able to capture in photos exactly how our wedding felt to us, and we could not be happier with the beautiful photographs we have to commemorate the day. We could not recommend Drew more highly! read more

Each time that we look at our wedding photos, they are a stunning reminder of a precious day, capturing our emotions as well as the feelings of those who surrounded us. My husband and I highly recommend Drew Bird as the person who took these fantastic photos. We first came across Drew's work while looking through a photojournalism website before our wedding, and immediately fell in love with his beautiful, honest and vibrant pictures. Drew's artistic talent shines through all his work, not just his wedding photography but also his journalistic and travel photographs. He has an incredible ability to capture rare moments of emotion and expression. Working with Drew was fun and joyful throughout the wedding planning stages - he is relaxed but professional and helped guide us through photographic subtleties that we would otherwise not have considered such as lighting and crowd dynamics. The photos that he created for our wedding bring us so much joy every time we look at them. Drew is both social and observant. He became a welcome member of our wedding party and all our guests couldn't stop talking about how interesting and fun he was to talk to. We would have invited him as a friend, even if he wasn't taking photos! However he also remained "on the job" the whole time. He put everyone at ease, and became so much "part of the scene" that people stopped posing for pictures and he was able to capture all the varied moments of conversation, laughter, tears and joy. He was able to plan and complete all the photographs needed independently, requiring almost no input from us on the day of the wedding. He also has an incredible eye for picking out unique and creative backdrops, for example suggesting that we scramble up a little rocky hill, so that we would have the background of the Sierra trees and mountains behind us. He guided us to be relaxed and ourselves, and the resulting photos are simply amazing. We wish we could get married again, just so that we could get more pictures taken by Drew! We would recommend him again and again. read more

My husband and I first met Drew when he photographed my sister's semi-traditional wedding in 2009 (no white dress, no walking down the aisle, etc). He was great to work with then, and we loved the moments he captured. When looking for a wedding photographer two years later, our goals were to find a photographer who 1) had a photojournalistic style, 2) was easy to work with, 3) was professional and knew what they were doing, and 4) took great photos. We thought of Drew immediately because after being in a few weddings and having engagement photos taken ourselves, we realized that not all photographers are like Drew Bird Photography (even when prices seem comparable). Drew is extremely personable, easy going, and nice, while at the same time very professional, artistic, and confident in his work. He is very talented and captured great moments for us, and when we were taking portraits he knew exactly what he wanted to see. I even brought some props along (Mr. & Mrs. plaques and an umbrella) and he worked them into a few shots, no problem. Drew was also extremely helpful in the planning process, even from 3,000 miles away. We happened to be visiting my sister and brother in law and Drew was able to meet with us while we were there to determine a timeline for photos that ended up helping us plan our wedding day. About a year after our wedding, we decided that we wanted an archival quality album of our favorite moments that we had removed from our original photo package. Drew was just as easy to work with as ever, and designed a beautiful album for us from photos that we had chosen. We couldn't be happier with the memories that Drew captured and provided us, and I know that they are such happy memories in part because he helped make our day stress-free. read more

Planning a wedding is an extremely stressful experience and my husband and I chose each vendor carefully. We were extremely lucky to come across Drew and were thoroughly impressed with his portfolio. Drew met with us multiple times prior to the wedding to discuss our style, the event and what our expectations were for the day and the wedding. On the day of, Drew kept us calm and collected as he constructed a beautiful "first look" utilizing our ceremony space and decorations. When Drew took pictures of the two of us, we relied on Drew to create natural pictures using the landscape. They turned out beautifully and don't look like cheesy wedding pictures. During the ceremony and reception Drew captured memories of not just the two of us, but all of our guests and the atmosphere and thoughtfully portray a story with his pictures. Since both of our families are large, I was shocked and impressed that Drew took charge to take the family pictures efficiently and beautifully. Our guests loved the pictures and said it allowed them to see moments that they missed, which was exactly how we felt. I would recommend Drew to anyone looking for a creative, professional and talented photographer! read more

While planning our wedding in Portland, OR, choosing Drew as our photographer was one of the easiest choices we made; we had already seen the great work he had done for our friend's wedding in Portland. We appreciated his photo-journalistic approach to the wedding and his pictures turned out great! We were not sure what to expect from a wedding photographer, but Drew was able to capture all the great moments with very little direction from us. Drew was also the photographer for another wedding in our family, and those pictures were also amazing as well. Since our wedding, we've been lucky enough to live once again in the same city as Drew. Last year, he was our first choice to do a family photo shoot with our daughter. He understood that we were not interested in staged family portraits and instead captured some great moments as we enjoyed a ferry ride across the Potomac and he had some interesting and creative ideas as we rode on a local carousel. Drew has always been very personable and professional and we have always been amazed at his photographs, which always feel very natural and unobtrusive. We would recommend him to anyone planning a wedding or special event. read more

We chose Drew for our wedding photography because because he was easy to talk to and easy to work with, but mostly because his style of photography was exactly what we were looking for. We wanted someone who could capture our event in a way that didn't feel forced or staged; Drew did everything we expected and more. His style was a perfect match for us: he emphasized candid, natural photos that would not seem forced (something that requires experience since every couple is different), and he was easy-going and a breeze to work with. We wanted our photos to capture us as a couple, and we really think Drew did that perfectly. Drew had great suggestions for locations that would not only work into our plans for the day, but also captured our personalities. He really got a feel for us as a couple in short order and we felt completely comfortable working with him all day. We did a few posed photos for the family, but otherwise Drew emphasized capturing the natural progression of our wedding, and we are thrilled with the candid shots he got. Drew accurately captured the emotions of our day, and we could not be happier to have worked with him. read more

There is only one opportunity to capture the importance of an event like a wedding. Thankfully, Drew dashed our anxieties by quickly delivering an amazing set of photos from our San Francisco City Hall wedding. Initially, we were drawn to Drew's photojournalism style and after reviewing the photos, we could not be more pleased with the results. He masterfully juxtaposed our ceremony with the amazing light and architecture of the SF City Hall building. Prior to event, communication and planning went very smoothly. Despite neither party being based in SF, he had no issues meeting us there and even did some preliminary scouting the day before. With all the preparation, our photo session went very efficiently. We never felt rushed, and it left us plenty of time to enjoy our day. After the event, Drew kept us up to date with the status of the pictures, and delivered them exactly when he promised (and for a very reasonable price). Overall, we were extremely happy with Drew's professionalism and most importantly the results. He delivered an amazing set of photos we will cherish forever. read more

We hired Drew to take candid shots of a non-wedding event for our organization. I looked at his portfolio to see the kind of photos he takes, communicated our vision and primary use of the photographs, showed him some mock ups of a web redesign, and then got out of his way. By the way, this is a best practice for hiring professionals: vet them before, communicate what you are after, and then let them do their job. Very pleased with the images, especially for this, our first foray into having a photojournalist document our work. As a start-up organization, we are still developing a way to present and document ourselves to a wider audience. I know from speaking with Drew that he will be able to deliver photographs in the future that match our evolving needs. Drew was exactly what I wanted from a professional of this nature: a terrific first shoot, and someone who will continue to meet our needs even as those needs change. I am looking forward to developing a longer term relationship with him. Plus, he's a just pretty cool guy. read more

Drew was an amazing partner to work with during our wedding. He's knowledgeable, flexible, and fun to have around. He is also kind and incredibly helpful. We had to plan our Berkeley wedding from Asia and he was available for a number of video calls despite the time difference. He showed up when it mattered (touring the venue with him was such a revelation as he knew the the space inside and out) and made himself invisible when necessary (very important because my husband and I are both camera shy). Most importantly, the man knows how to visually tell a story: he captured all of the emotions and stolen moments we missed the first time around. People told us our wedding day would be a blur and they were of course right, but we got to experience everything again, and somehow anew, when we saw his output. Thanks for the beautiful memories, Drew!! read more

Planning a wedding in the area is expensive. We found a list of photographers at the WPJA and made a list of our top 6 choices. We gave our list to the best man and told him to narrow down the list. The best man is an amateur photographer and listed Drew as his top choice with the words "creative framing, nice story, great at capturing emotions of people and good retouch skills. Very well done." Drew was professional at the meeting and all correspondence before the wedding. At the wedding, he was like a ninja. I never saw him, but seeing his product, it was obvious he was everywhere. Pricing wise, I budgeted the photographer for X amount of dollars. Drew's "Monet" package was $300 over for what I planned, but after seeing the product and comparing to other photographers' pricing, Drew Bird Photography is an excellent value. read more

I have worked with Drew more than a dozen times during high-level visits of U.S. and foreign diplomats in the past 2 years. During these very stressful engagements, often with only 48-hours notice, Drew (and his additional team members when necessary) maintained the upmost professionalism and flexibility. The quality of his work and attention paid to my specific and often changing requests is only surpassed by his ability to improvise and always somehow be in the right place at the right time for the perfect picture in a room of hundreds. I endorse Drew for small and large events equally as he has time and again shown an enormous capability to provide fantastic results in a timely manner for every specific request that may have been necessary for each occasion. read more

Drew has an unbelievable eye for photojournalism, which is shown through his story of photos. After looking through his online portfolio, I knew he was exactly what we wanted for our wedding. We wanted photos with depth, with meaning, that would resonate an emotion with us even 50 years later. Drew was able to capture that, plus more. Drew has a very laidback composure but is very serious and professional when it comes to his business and clients. We sincerely appreciated his thoroughness in planning and detailing the day. He was also great in recommending other vendors-- which like Drew, were a dream to work with. We highly recommend him-- we still can't pick out our favorite photo from the 800+ he sent us. There are just too many good ones! read more

I have been in the creative agency world for nearly three decades and I can only remember a handful of times when I have been this happy and satisfied with the final creative output from a project. The team at DCP is very hard to please and Drew Bird Photography really captured the essence of our school community. The best thing that came out of the entire month of December for me was hearing the reaction from our staff about the photo story. It was a true joy for me to have worked with Drew Bird Photography on this project. The DBP studio manager, Kate, was also extremely helpful with emails and planning. Know that I will recommend Drew Bird Photography to anyone and everyone. Katie Zazueta, Director of Advancement, Downtown College Prep read more

My wife and I first hired Drew to shoot our engagement photos with our daughter in Old Town Alexandria VA. Having taken several photography classes in high school, my wife has very high standards. Drew was incredible: he had the perfect mix of staged photos and impromptu shots taken at multiple locations. He also included our daughter by taking several pictures of her. We were so impressed we hired him to photograph our wedding in Chicago. Once again, Drew impressed: shots with the two of us, shots with the groom side, bride side, families, friends, he covered it all from pre-wedding to reception. His eye for catching the perfect picture knows no bounds. Trust us, look no further; there is no one better. read more

Absolutely amazing wedding photos and what a pleasure to work with! Drew and his team captured the joy of our wedding and made every step of the process easy and fun. From the planning stages to getting our albums printed, we have been impressed with the level of professionalism, planning, and patience. Drew's style of capturing authentic moments and still making every detail of the day shine in its best light is truly wonderful. We are not naturals in front of the camera and yet Drew's photos made us and our families and friends feel at ease and look fantastic, and captured the happiness of the day. We will treasure these beautiful memories forever. read more

Drew will delight you with his visual story-telling and with his easy-going, yet always professional style. As a Creative Director I'm particular about both the final output and the experience of working on production with someone who is co-producing ideas with me. Drew is masterful at working with groups of people to draw them out or as a photo-ninja capturing magic while no one is looking. Our first project was for The City of San Francisco and our most recent one for Apple. I look forward to working with Drew and his capable team again. Oh, and did I mention he is a super-amazing human being? Congratulations, you found the right talent. read more

We had a fantastic experience with Drew and Drew Bird Photography, and we couldn't be happier with how the photos of our destination wedding in Puerto Rico turned out. Drew was a positive and calming presence on our wedding day, and was extremely easy to work with during the planning process (which was done remotely since we were in different cities). Everyone is raving about the photos, which truly capture the feeling of our wedding day. Drew managed to capture everything from the sweeping setting to the tiniest details, and I hardly knew he was there. We will treasure the beautiful photos he created for years to come. Highly recommended! read more

Drew is a true professional. He was very non-intrusive and I could tell he was capturing some really cool moments on our wedding day. Drew was very organized, creative, and responsive to all of our questions, no matter how minor. He really worked well with us to make sure we got the types of shots we wanted, and gave some great insight and ideas during the planning process. We are so happyand grateful we had the opportunity to work with him in Virginia. We really love all of our photos (and so do everyone we share them with)! If you're looking for the perfect photographer for your special day, don't look anywhere else. Drew is it! read more