Stephanie has been our photographer and honestly just our person for over 10 years. She's shot our wedding in San Francisco (we live in Truckee), maternity photos, annual family portraits, and professional headshots and photoshoots. She remembers when we're due for photos before we do and just reaches out and that's just who she is. She literally talked me out of skipping a photographer at our City Hall wedding. I'm so glad she did. Those photos are everything to us. As an interracial same-sex couple, finding someone we truly felt safe and celebrated with was huge. Stephanie has always been that without question. Our family wouldn't trust anyone else. Working with her is easy as she is always on top of everything from scheduling to communication to edits. She doesn't skip a beat if the wind picks up, snow turns to rain or the alpenglow never appears as we experienced this last year in our family shoot! She rolls with it and makes everyone around her feel calm and I would never give another name or question the recommendation! read more

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We've been lucky enough to have Steph photograph both our engagement and our wedding, and we can honestly say she is something special. For our engagement shoot, she made magic out of the space we were in. When the weather shifted mid-session, she didn't miss a beat--she helped us lean in, and the result was some of the most spectacular photos we've ever seen. She even went above and beyond to include our old (and rather temperamental) dog, creating the sweetest memories that we'll hold onto forever. For our wedding, Steph was incredible. She has this beautiful presence--she's fully there, warm, grounded, yet somehow moves so effortlessly and quietly that she captures moments no one else would have noticed. She is as creative and artistic as she is kind and easy to be around. For us, she became immediate family. The photos from our day are filled with so much heart, soul, and beauty. Both Steph and her work are true treasures. read more

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My husband and I feel so incredibly lucky to have had Steph as a part of our wedding day! Even though we only booked her a few months before the big day, it felt like we had known her for years. Before the wedding, I did a Fempowerment shoot with her, and from that moment, I knew she was the real deal. Steph has this amazing ability to make you feel completely at ease, even if you're not someone who loves being in front of the camera. On our wedding day at Tannenbaum, she worked absolute magic with the outdoor scenery. Her eye for light, angles, and posing was everything we had hoped for and more. Even when one of my bridesmaids was significantly late, Steph remained calm and professional. Multiple guests commented on how stunning her photos were and how beautifully she captured the natural light. Since my Fempowerment session, several of my bridesmaids are now seriously considering flying in from Connecticut just to shoot with her, that's how incredible she is! Steph made our day so special and captured moments we'll cherish for a lifetime. I got married on June 26th, and not a few days go by without me looking at our photos; they bring me so much happiness every time I look at them. Beyond her incredible talent behind the camera, Steph is also incredibly thoughtful throughout the process. She sent sneak peeks along the way, kept us excited, and even delivered our full album ahead of schedule. With Steph, you'll never have to worry about when your photos are coming. Booking Steph was one of the best decisions we made! read more

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Steph was awesome to work with. She makes you feel comfortable and really lets your personality and relationship shine through in her photos. She was very responsive and really helped our wedding day go smoothly. Our photos turned out incredibly beautiful and we couldn't ask for a better experience. read more

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Steph is incredible! From the start she was quick with communication and made everything seamless. We never take photos so we didn't really know what to do but she made it fun & very easy, we laughed all day long with her! Our photos came back faster than we'd ever imagined & were everything we'd imagined. Were so grateful to have found her & couldn't be happier with our decision to book her for our wedding. We couldn't recommend her more! read more

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We worked with Steph for both our engagement photos and wedding photos and had such a good experience! She is so talented and her photos were so beautiful. We had no idea how to pose for photos, but she gives great guidance and makes you feel comfortable, and we had so much fun shooting with her! She scouted out each location ahead of time and sent us photos for what she was thinking to get our feedback, which we really appreciated. And she sent us sneak peaks and got our photos back to us so quickly! For our wedding photos, she had so many amazing shots-- she's really great at capturing candid moments so nicely along with beautiful posed shots. We had a great experience, would highly recommend working with her! read more

Steph photographed our engagement photos, and we couldn't have been more pleased with the entire experience. From the clear and swift communication, to her warmth and energy on the day of the shoot, and of course the amazing photos that we received were all above and beyond. She really spent time to get to know us, and I feel that allowed us to feel so comfortable in front of the camera. We shot outdoors, and she has a talent for capturing the beauty of the surroundings while keeping the subject (the couple!) thoughtfully composed within the shot. Furthermore, Steph went the extra mile to find an amazing second location for us, and spent extra time with us there. In the end, her turnaround for edited photos was so much faster than expected, and we absolutely love the results. Thank you so, so much Steph! We look forward to having you capture more moments in our lives in the future! read more

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Steph is the absolute best! She shot our engagement photos and wedding photos and she did an incredible job! She was very communicative during the whole process and was very easy to work with. I'm normally pretty uncomfortable in front of the camera, but Steph is extremely warm and accomodating; she made us feel very comfortable and natural in the pictures. I think the best part about Step's work is her adventurous spirit and unique artful eye. Our wedding had a few hiccups because of the massive amount of snow, but Steph not only made it work, but she created some special and epic memories! She wasn't afraid to try some very unique shots and we actually had so much fun during the photo shoots. Steph has a way of capturing living moments in an artful way, while still being truly authentic. That's exactly what we wanted out of our wedding pictures and she went above and beyond. I highly recommend Steph! read more

Shines Photography - Event Photography Near Me

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From the first time we connected with Steph over the phone, she was incredibly kind, helpful, and assuring. We had a destination wedding so we didn't have an opportunity to meet in-person, or do engagement photos beforehand. If we would have had the opportunity, we also would have used her for those. The day of, Steph went above and beyond. She helped us with a couple pre-ceremony hiccups, and didn't skip a beat in the process. I can't tell you how many compliments we've received about her service at our wedding, and for the picture quality after. If you're looking for a photographer that is an excellent communicator, incredible picture taker, and will put in maximum effort for whatever service you hire her for, than Steph and Shines is for you. read more

Steph is amazing! We were looking for someone who had a great eye for capturing both the intimacy between the couple and the natural beauty around them. We chose to work with Shines for both our engagement photo shoot and on wedding day and we could not have been happier. It felt like we had been friends forever and we had total trust in her to capture our special moments. She's easygoing yet efficient (we had large wedding parties and were able to finish all the shots before the wedding so we could enjoy the party without getting pulled away), super professional, and will do anything for you to get the perfect shot (including climbing and standing at awkward angles on uneven rocks... she really is incredible). If you have the chance to work with her, DO IT! You won't regret it. read more

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Steph is absolutely the best photographer I've ever known (and I have multiple friends in the business... shh...) Not only did she save the day at my own wedding 4 years ago (believe it or not, I had contracts with 3 other photographers that all fell through for various reasons) but she has continued to provide all sorts of photography for friends' weddings, charity events and businesses I've been involved in. She's a true professional in all senses of the word, but also somehow makes the whole experience fun and comfortable. Even for those of us who loathe having our pictures taken. Highly recommend! read more

Shines Photography - Event Photography Near Me

I cannot say enough wonderful things about Steph. She is an awesome, fun and down to earth person and the most AMAZING photographer. You won't feel awkward or rushed with her. She is caring and attentive, not overbearing, and discreetly captures the most beautiful moments. She photographed my husband and my wedding and caught every happy moment perfectly. Just book her, you won't be disappointed! read more

Shines Photography - Event Photography Near Me

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To begin, I just have to say.. if you are having any doubts on hiring Steph to shoot your special day, HIRE HER!! She is AMAZING!! After a lot of searching for a photographer I finally came across Stephanie on wedding wire! We messaged back and forth and finally were able to have a phone conversation. I knew that she was the one that was going to capture our special day right after that call!! She was so down to earth and easy to talk to. She listened to exactly what we wanted. My husband has a car that he loves and we wanted that to be in some of our photos. She was so down to capture pics with the car! The afternoon of our wedding, Stephanie arrived right on time and she immediately jumped into action! She coordinated with my DJ and made the whole day go so smoothly! When schedules changed, she went with the flow! It has been one week since we have been married and Steph has already sent us so many amazing sneaks!! They are beautiful! Our wedding was a destination wedding but we will definitely be traveling to Stephanie for maternity shoot, etc! read more

From the first conversation through the final photos & hugs on our wedding day, Steph has been an amazing support/photographer/resource/friend every step of the way. The photos she took are exquisitely framed, edited, and promptly shared, and her energy and enthusiasm for the work that she does radiates from her. It is clear that she loves her work, and that made us feel comfortable and confident in having her be a part of our big day. As someone who tends to take awkward photos, I was concerned about having my picture taken throughout the day. Steph has a relaxed, comfortable, "chill" demeanor that helped us feel at ease, while at the same time remaining professional. Watching Stephanie at work, it is clear that she has a broad understanding and appreciation of the art of photography, and her experience shines through her confidence. Steph came in with a plan of what she thought would work best, but at the same time allowed us the flexibility to personalize the experience. After the first time we met Stephanie, we were confident that we had found our photographer. She is warm, passionate, and heartfelt about the work that she does. Take a gander at some of her photos, talk with her on the phone, and you will quickly realize you're in good hands. From the engagement photo shoot to the wedding day, she stayed in touch with us and helped us feel at ease. I can't speak highly enough of her, and so look forward to doing another photo shoot together some day! PS her elopement photo shoots in Yosemite & Tahoe are absolutely STUNNING. Do yourself a favor and reach out to her! You will not regret it. Thanks for everything Steph. A year later and we are still grateful we made the decision to call you!! read more

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Steph handled both our engagement photos and wedding photos and did an amazing job. I had concerns about feeling comfortable in front of the camera and her low-key demeanor really put us at ease. She helped with some posing and framing of shots but overall kept things feeling really genuine and the photos reflect that - real smiles, real expressions. The pictures are gorgeous and capture things as they are which is exactly what we wanted. Communication was quick and easy, we even had to reschedule our engagement shoot to an entirely new location after all the smoke in Tahoe last year and Steph made it work no problem. Can't recommend enough! read more

Stephanie is the best!!!! She captured every beautiful moment of our 10 year vowel renewal. I can't recommend her enough!!! read more

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This woman is a brilliant visionary, a highly talented artist, and a spectacular asset to any occasion you want to remember. My husband and I hired her for just a couple of hours to photograph our recent elopement, although we both feared we'd be self-conscious and awkward just moving around and panning to the camera as she found her shots. I spoke to her about our hesitation, which she understood completely, and said was a common concern. Then she said, "Trust me." I am SO glad I did! To our amazement, Steph's energy, empathy and spirit melted our nervousness in a moment, and created a mood in which we felt completely natural, unguarded and relaxed. She was able to capture not merely what we looked like, but how astonishingly happy we felt. Rather than stiff, traditional wedding photos, Steph delivered hundreds of living moments, with stunning natural light and lovely composition. Each one seems to breathe our joy. Hiring Steph was among the very, very best decisions we made for our wedding day. read more

Steph was so perfect for us. She captured absolutely everything about our beautiful wedding. The weather and sunset were so awesome for our wedding day, and she definitely took advantage of it. My wife and I were enjoying cocktail hour and she pulled us away, to our surprise, for a few pictures at sunset. She told us that we wouldn't regret it. We're so glad that she did because we have some amazing sunset pictures thanks to her. All of the other pictures are great too, and she is super cool and very easy to work with. Very professional as well. She will be a household name in no time! read more

Shines Photography - Event Photography Near Me

Love Steph!!! Not only is she professional but so she is so personable ! Love her ideas and how she gets excited about her work!! She takes beautiful shots and makes the pictures look surreal. She makes it fun and encourages you to have fun while taking the pics !! Just love her !! read more

We couldn't be happier with our wedding photos! Steph made us feel so comfortable and captured some really beautiful moments. She also gave us some sweet luggage tags that are now a nice little reminder of our wedding and honeymoon. read more

Steph did a business photo session for me during a work trip in Indianapolis - she made me feel so comfortable, asked for my input and my vision for the photos, helped guide and direct my posing, and was SO easy to work with. I have already seen my sneak peeks, and I am in LOVE! read more

We couldn't be happier with Stephanie and the photos she took of our family. She was beyond professional, encouraging, and flexible (with our five small children) throughout our photo shoot. The photos were just what I was looking for with bright, natural light that captured our family having fun together. We will treasure these beautiful photos forever, Stephanie. Thank you!! read more