We were interested in Melissa's style of photography and use of lighting and hired her for our newborn photo shoot. From the moment Melissa entered our home, she made us feel at ease with her warm presence and friendly demeanor. She immediately connected and played with our toddler, making her feel very comfortable. This resulted in our toddler being cooperative with the whole shoot and getting many special shots showcasing her fun loving personality. Melissa was so flexible and accommodating when I had to nurse or when our toddler wanted to repeatedly jump around. She was very prepared, professional, and helped direct us without feeling unnatural or staged. Melissa was able to catch sweet family moments and generate creative images. We wholeheartedly recommend Melissa! read more

We did a family photo session with Melissa and our infant son, and are so happy with the results! Melissa was so wonderful to work with and made all of us feel at ease. You can get a sense of her style from her website -- we really liked the documentary / photojournalism style. Our baby is growing so quickly and our goal was to capture this exact moment in time and all the little memories... baby babbles, his personality, his funny expressions, the way we interact as a family, etc. One note that while it's the style we were looking for (and similar to the type of photographs we chose from our wedding), our session didn't focus on the types of posed photos that I think of for holiday cards (or that more traditional grandparents may have in mind). We did everyday activities and the session took place in and around our house. We've personally found that while we like posed family photos in beautiful scenery (and might want some of those too!) we tend to have more emotional memories and more of our personalities captured by a style like Melissa's. (Also for what it's worth the photos we got look great on holiday cards and the grandparents approve!) Melissa was on the higher budget end of photographers we looked at but particularly for this style of photo, her sense of lighting, composition, and professionalism felt well worth it to us. Melissa will take the time to communicate with you on a detailed plan, so definitely share any ideas or concerns ahead of time! read more

Melissa did our newborn family photos nearly a year ago, and we loved them so much that we came back to her again this year! We were able to do the photos in our home this time, and it was great to see how easy it was for her to get the best out of our 4 year old and nearly 1 year old. She engages with them in a way that leads to pictures that feel natural and fun instead of posed. They both loved her, and she came prepared to make sure that we got photos that captured the most important parts of our day-to-day lives, including the little details. Her eye for light and angles is also amazing. We hope to work with her yet again someday! read more

Melissa was so amazing to work with! I can't remember the last time I laughed and smiled so much! Granted it was our engagement photo's and exactly a year before our wedding date this year, so I am sure that helped a little as the photo session was making it all real. However, my fiancé was a bit nervous over the whole thing, he isn't much into pictures, and Melissa helped put him at ease and quickly had us laughing and feeling the love! It felt so effortless to work with her. Her directions were clear but very natural! On top of that Melissa's ability to take in her surrounding is absolutly amazing! Our engagement session was at the Aeolian Yacht Club in Alameda, a place she hadn't been to and yet she captured it beautifully! Melissa is also very flexible, she totally got on a dingy for us to take pictures from the water. Which just goes to show Melissa will do anything in her power to make her clients happy! We also ordered our save the dates through Melissa and I have to say the prints are so outstanding! She uses a great quality printing company, which is so very important! I can hardly wait to have my future guests receive them. read more

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When we looked for a photographer to shoot our newborn, we wanted someone who was more interested in capturing real, rich human moments, rather than the typical (cheesy), hyper-processed, unnaturally posed baby photos. Melissa's work struck a chord with us. Her style, aesthetic, color, taste in subject matter, raw human interaction and REALNESS was just what we were looking for. She is lovely to speak with on the phone and even better in person. She's super flexible, a great communicator and an easy-to-love human. When you spend time with her you can tell she genuinely loves families, children and capturing moments unique to each set of people. Her positive attitude made our Fresh 48 session so easy and natural, it was a pleasure to work with her. What she sent us after our shoot was beyond expectation. The images are just so amazing. They're warm, tender, rich, have depth and soul. We are so in love with her work and how she captured the essence of our stay at the hospital, and the love and wonder we had in that room. Really, truly, special moments that she captured perfectly. read more

Melissa is a fantastic photographer who is wonderful with babies and camera-shy adults alike! We asked Melissa to take pictures of our rambunctious six-month-old and she charmed him immediately--the photos are filled with his wonderful, natural smile. Melissa walked us through what colors we should wear given our home's palette, helped us decide which rooms and activities to document, and (we think) even sent us a gift to commemorate the session. We were so impressed by how quickly she was able to move through so many different scenes and how flexible she was--our six-month-old's nap schedule was still really unpredictable at the time, and she worked with us day of to figure out what would work best. We've seen the pictures and we love Melissa's eye for detail and her ability to capture us looking natural instead of forced. We will definitely hire her again! read more

Melissa is amazing, I couldn't recommend her more! We have now done 3 photo sessions with Melissa (2 maternity, and 1 newborn). First, she is kind, thoughtful, warm, genuine, professional, and extremely organized which all make her wonderful to work with. This is especially important with family photos (and even more so when kids) as you are welcoming someone into your home & life. Second, she captures incredibly beautiful life moments through her photography (not staged) that we will forever cherish. Thank you, Melissa. read more

We are extremely satisfied with Melissa's work! Melissa is super-friendly to work with and she makes you feel very comfortable in front of the camera! We did the photo shooting in our own house and didn't think it would turn out to be such great memory! After receiving our photos, we had additional requests which Melissa welcomed and did her best to comply with them! We arre super happy to have found her and we will definitely do more photo shooting with her. Her work is extraordinary; you can never be disappointed with what you get! Our one year old loved her and Melissa made it super comfortable for her to pose as she pleased! Melissa even brought a super funny book for our baby girl as a gift! Thank you Melissa! read more

Melissa has a passion for photography and every step of our session was another opportunity to capture a photograph in changing light conditions or with an interesting shadow. We hired Icarian Photography for our bump to baby sessions because we were looking for someone that photographed lifestyle images as opposed to posed images. We wanted to capture the moments not just the images and Melissa provided this opportunity and did not disappoint. We provided an address that got Melissa turned around and even with a minor mishap she arrived with enthusiasm and positive energy. Melissa quickly assed the location we selected and recommended the direction for the pictures based on light and the setting sun. We stopped several times to move and allow her to get a better angle. We received the photographs, and it was obvious why she moved us during the session. She was able to capture light and darkness in the images and provide pictures that we will enjoy for a lifetime. The B/W images are equally enjoyable. We enjoyed the session as she made us feel we were the only thing that mattered. We will enjoy the photos for a lifetime. read more

Melissa was amazing: a pleasure to work with, great with our son AND dog, willing to make adjustments to the plan as appropriate. She gave us great guidance and the end result has been awesome. She was very organized, gave us a detailed plan several days in advance, extremely positive energy...I can't say enough about the experience, I highly recommend hiring her for your photography needs. She was able to perfectly capture such a wonderful time in our lives. read more

Melissa was truly a pleasure to work with! She was friendly, great with our son, and her eye for a terrific shot is uncanny. We genuinely appreciated her style of not feeling forced like we are taking awkward family photos, and instead doing things we enjoy and Melissa capturing perfect moments as a family. with ease. My wife took her photography class as well, and came out of it with new skills and knowledge of photography that she has used to take excellent shots as well. read more

Melissa is a gem and a natural at capturing raw candid moments. I really love her photo journalist style which is why I chose her to photograph my family. I highly recommend her for any family, newborn or maternity sessions. She offers a 40 min session which I felt was a bit too short. It's hard to warm up in front of the camera and before you're just getting comfy, it's already over. My only feedback would be to offer 2 hour sessions for her current 40 min rate, which is already quite expensive! read more

Hiring Melissa for our newborn photoshoot was one of the easiest decisions to make ! She was flexible with dates if I needed it (didn't know how I would feel after our first born child) and was easy to connect with. I considered another photographer that was a little cheaper but ultimately chose her because of her documentary photo style, skills, and her personality. I wanted to find someone I could feel comfortable with so the photos would look more authentic and not forced. This was very important to me since I wasn't back to my pre baby weight and somewhat camera shy. She was very professional, organized, and easy going from the initial contact and throughout the photoshoot. She also did very well with our skittish dog! I would definitely hire her again for other sessions and can see that she will be able to make kids feel like themselves and get great shots. read more

Icarian Photography - Session Photography Near Me

We've been very pleased with Melissa. She manages to capture special moments in our family pictures, and has the ability to put everyone at ease which makes for a comfortable and smooth photo session. Our whole family warms up to her instantly. We had an hour session and the time flew by so fast! This was our 2nd time to use Melissa, and again, the experience went well. As always, we appreciate the helpful tips to prepare for the shoot. The sneak peek photos were a great glimpse of how the session went. We're looking forward to displaying some of these on our walls at home and showcasing some for our holiday cards. read more

We're such big fans of Melissa's photography and the beautiful way she captures the joy, love and tender moments of our growing family. She knows how to put everyone at ease, and especially gets the best out of little children who aren't always the most cooperative models in a photo shoot. She works with each family to understand their lifestyle and what's important to them, and provides useful tips to help prepare for the shoot beforehand. She's photographed our family twice now, and we absolutely intend to use her again. The pictures Melissa has taken have a special place in our hearts, and are some of our most treasured possessions. read more

If you're looking for a family photographer, just stop what you're doing and hire Melissa. She has done family photos for us several times and they are just a treasure. She's able to capture natural connection without being forced or staged and I just love how she's been able to really document our family and what this phase is like to us. Our sessions with her are anything but stressful and the end result is just stunning. 5/5, will use Melissa again. read more

I simply love working with Melissa. First, her pictures are beautiful, natural-looking and capture our family in our most relaxed state. Second, Melissa is a joy to work with. She has a spectacular attitude, is game to try anything & I think that actually makes our pictures better - she puts us at ease, and helps diffuse the stress that can come with most shoots. Nobody I'd rather include in, or have produce, the moments our family will hold onto for decades. Jake read more

We booked a mini-session with Melissa. I knew we were taking a bit of a risk hoping our 4-week old would cooperate on a schedule, but Melissa is so great at working with newborns (and tired new parents!) that we ended up with a wonderful set of photos. She was able to calm our daughter down and then worked quickly to get a variety of shots. While she guided us through the shoot, it felt very natural and she caught some sweet moments, like my husband sweeping my bangs out of my face. As we were getting ready to leave she even took a few extra shots to take advantage of how calm our daughter still was. Melissa is a joy to work with and the photos ended up being beyond what we could have hoped for--gorgeous in an authentic way. She really captured us at this time of our life, and the beauty of our sweet little newborn. read more

Melissa made our photoshoot for our 1st baby such an easy, stress-free, and calm experience! I highly recommend her for newborn shoots!! Especially as first time parents, those early days can be pretty hectic, but Melissa's style is to capture you and your family in your natural element so we were able to go along our typical routine, and Melissa captured those precious moments which we will cherish for years to come!! In addition, I really appreciate her flexibility! We originally were planning for a Fresh48 shoot, but due to COVID visitor restrictions, I had to change this to a newborn shoot last minute and Melissa was very flexible so it wasn't a problem! Thanks so much!! Would hire again for future photoshoots!! read more

Melissa did a fantastic job capturing the essence of our family as it currently is. She was very skilled at helping our children feel comfortable and safe around her and was able to create beautiful images of them in their element. We had asked Melissa to do her best to convey through photos the love we have for our children and their overall smallness during this fleeting stage of life and we has done just that. And she was super fun to work with! read more

We recently hired Melissa to come to our home to take photos of our growing family for the second time. I had a lot of anxiety about her coming into our home- our kiddos have a lot going on- but she was so conscientious, listening to all of my concerns and being very flexible. Melissa brings such a positive energy with her- she had my big kid acting silly and captured him perfectly. The session flew by. The photos, as always, are absolutely gorgeous. Melissa is such a professional and really captures beautiful moments. I still regularly look at the photos from our first session with her. It's so special to capture a moment in time: We have worked with several photographers since the birth of our first child but none have captured our family in the same way that she does... tender, silly, sad and happy. I'm so glad we had her come back! read more

Melissa came to do a newborn family photo session for our second and third babies - loved her so much we called her again :) We loved her energy during the session and how she was able to get the best out of toddlers which isn't an easy fit. She blended seamlessly with the chaos of our family and we love how theepicures look exactly how our life is right now and will give us something to look fondly at for many many years read more

Melissa was AMAZING to work with!! We had a big group of 9 and handled it so well! She was able to capture true candid moments for my family. We highly recommended her and hope to work with her again in the future! :) read more

Melissa did an AMAZING job with professional photos for my business! The meeting we had in advance of the shoot was really helpful - I knew exactly what to expect and she took detailed information to create an amazing shoot that fit perfectly with my personal brand. I highly recommend working with Melissa for your photos, you'll get a very personalized experience that exactly meets your needs! read more

Melissa has done it again! Our family has worked with Melissa every year for the last 3 years and each year, she is able to capture perfectly where my kids are in their childhood. Her photography is beautiful and authentic --and she also happens to be the sweetest person. Highly highly recommend. read more

Melissa was amazing to work with! She was so warm and made us all relaxed during the session. She was a true sport dealing with our 65lb dog, who I think loves her more than us. The pictures she took are beautiful and I know we'll cherish them. Highly recommend Melissa! We'll be calling her for family photoshoots in the future and referring our friends! read more

We were thrilled by our family photo session with Melissa! From planning through execution, her attention to detail was excellent. Melissa was easy to work with and made all feel comfortable, even two dogs! The finished photos were exactly what we were looking for - both photojournalism and modern portrait style photography, a mix of color and black/white photos, as well as a combination of individual and group shots. She tailored the session to our needs and we love the results. Thank you Melissa! read more

This is way overdue! Amidst all the craziness of the newborn days, having Melissa over to capture the moment is something we look back on fondly and are so grateful for the moments she captured. Apart from the beautiful photos, having her in our space at that time was fun and comfortable. Thank you so much Melissa! I would highly recommend welcoming Melissa into the special time that is the newborn phase - and you will be so thankful to have the memories! read more

Melissa did an awesome job with our family photos! It was our first session with our baby and the entire experience was relaxed and comfortable. And the images- amazing! Really captured our family and the quality is superb. Definitely recommend Melissa to anyone looking to have their family's natural moments captured in a comfortable and natural way! read more

What an amazing experience. We asked Melissa Schmidt to do our engagement photos and what an amazing experience it was! First of we had a conversation on what theme and places we were looking to do the photos at. We certainly didn't want the same worn out themes that everyone else uses. Instead we had a two way conversation with Melissa actually listening to what we wanted. The expert advice was great and original. The photo-shoot it self was a great... It was playful, intimate, fun and very touching at the same time. As weird as it sounds, it was almost like therapy. I was very stiff at first, but became comfortable immediately. I don't feel that I am an attractive person (I'm funny as heck though), but the photos made me look awesome! I recommend at the very least, giving Melissa (Icarian) a call and discussing with her what your ideas are. I think you will find yourself immediately taken in by the amount of passion she has. Thanks for reading! read more

I should start saying that I'm not the type of person that reviews businesses, nor give 5 stars ratings. However, Melissa totally exceeded my expectations in every way, so I would like to share my experience. She also had a few details with my family that definitely showed the passion for her work. After looking at several photographers and speaking with them, I decided to hire Melissa because her style seemed very natural/unique and thought her portfolio captured real life moments without making them look too fake. From the moment I reached out to her, the communication was very clear, she is very pleasant/easy to work with as well as being flexible on time/date and location. She did a Fresh48 and a maternity session; both photo shoots turned out fantastic, every photo was amazing! I know the price point might be a little high, but believe me, the results will be worth every penny and you won't be disappointed. I will continue to work with her and I hope you make the right decision if you want AMAZING photographs!!! Thank you Melissa for a great experience and for reading to Lukas his first book. :) read more

We had such a positive experience working with Melissa! She came to our home to photograph my husband, our 2 year old son, newborn daughter and myself. She worked so well with everyone in the family and did an excellent job of making us all feel comfortable and relaxed. She was so great with the kids that my son kept asking if she could come back to play! Her photographs captured the true personality of our family during this time in our lives. We are so grateful to have this sweet time captured so beautifully. We would be quick to recommend her to anyone! read more

We had a wonderful newborn photo session with Melissa (actually, two - we liked her so much we booked her for a second with different grandparents visiting!). Both her photographic talent and her kindness are spectacular. Thank you Melissa!! read more

We got a newborn package with Melissa. I really wanted some photos to capture our new family member. The session was very relaxed and we ended up having some very special moments. Melissa really listened to what we wanted and was so professional and yet personable throughout. You can tell immediately she loves what she does. Already the sneak peak photos have shown us how amazing Melissa was at capturing our family. I love that the photos are relaxed and that our own personalities and style shine through. I can't wait to see the whole package! read more

I've worked with a few different photographers to capture our family, and our experience with Melissa was one of the best I've ever had. The communication leading up to the home session was EXTREMELY organized and professional. She was responsive and friendly and put a lot of thought into how we would spend our hour together well before she arrived. Her idea of creating a session plan, basically mapping out the rooms where we would shoot in what order, was brilliant, as it allowed me to prepare my kids and took A LOT of awkwardness out of the day of the shoot. On the day of, she brought a ton of energy and positivity and flexibility to our session-- since my kids are little, I especially appreciated how quickly she put everyone at ease AND how willing she was to go with the flow. She was great about sticking to the session plan but also being fine with veering from it where needed. She climbed onto counters and made funny noises or was totally silent-- whatever she needed to do to get the best shots! The pictures are gorgeous. Neither my husband nor my kids typically love photo shoots, but everyone had a blast at this one. We will definitely be using Icarian Photography again! read more

Melissa has got some serious talent! She knows how to catch the right light, the perfect moment and capture the essence of an experience. On top of it all, she is super fun to work with. No awkward poses or over directing. You get to have fun and play while she captures it all. If you are looking to get some truly unique and fun photos taken, she is your girl! read more

Melissa was a joy to work with & she made the experience of taking photos with my 1.5 yr old so easy. She works very well with young children and has an eye for capturing the sweetest moments. read more

We had such a fun & easy family photography session with Melissa. Professional photography sessions intimidate me but I knew I wanted to capture some precious moments of our young family before moving away from the Bay area. Melissa made this whole experience so relaxed & fun. She was so lovely to work with, professional, experienced & great with kids. My sentiments were only enhanced when we got a few photos back later the same day - such special memories captured forever! This was such a wonderful investment & wish we were staying in the area to continue to work with her - she's converted me into family photos! Thank you so much Melissa read more

Sorry if I am preaching to the choir, but this girl is an amazing photographer! She has an innate talent- an eye for beauty and detail. Some added bonuses, she really cares about her clients. It shows through her time to really understand you through how she communicates with you and her desire to make sure you are satisfied. Its rare to see a photographer be that detailed in her work as well as her passion to discuss your goals and establish a relationship with you. I definitely recommend her for candid photos, engagements, weddings and family photos. Anyone that uses her is lucky to have her- her prices are very reasonable for her talent. I won't be surprised once she is more well known, you will have trouble booking her...so definitely try her now. read more