Emotional and badass wedding photography for all

May 2021

“Melissa is the best. I don't even know where to begin with writing this. Melissa is phenomenal. Full stop. The first time we met her we knew we wanted her to capture our wedding photos. She was so friendly, approachable, and professional. We wanted our photos to capture our personalities, and we knew Melissa could do that. We also knew we could trust her fully to take great photos so that we could relax and enjoy our day. On our wedding day, she made the whole process so seamless, and we really were able to relax and enjoy the day. It was the best. The photos Melissa captured from our wedding day are something we will treasure forever. When the first few showed up online the day after our wedding, our whole family gasped, and there were quite a few tears. The photos are literally perfect. Absolutely better than anything I could have imagined or wanted, and each one feels so unique. When we look at them, it's like we are right back at OUR wedding day, not just any wedding day. There are two more things I have to mention here. 1) Our engagement session was amazing. Melissa spent the day with us up in Madison (where we live) and absolutely captured us and our favorite places in such a heartfelt way. She also made that day so FUN. I was certainly nervous about being photographed so much, but after awhile, it felt like it was just Simon and I there, having fun, together. The photos are a true reflection of that. 2) We had to reschedule our original wedding due to the pandemic. Melissa was super understanding and made our new date work for us. Overall, Melissa is an artist. She is someone I would trust completely again and again to capture the most important moments in my life and the lives of those I love. Thank you!!”

July 2021

“We could not be more grateful to Melissa for her stunning work - hiring her was the single most important decision made in our wedding planning process. She is an incredibly talented artist, and has a way of capturing the magic inside of moments. We worked with her over 3 years, from engagement to wedding - through having to reschedule due to the pandemic. We loved her from the moment we met! She so was so communicative, so professional- and has such a good heart. We consider her a friend! From the start, she made us feel absolutely at ease. Through the stress of re-planning, she helped us navigate our changing plans- which involved her traveling to Colorado not once as planned, but twice! On the day of our wedding, she and her assistant braved many hours of an unexpectedly rainy day in the mountains- plans had to change yet again and they moved through the day with such ease (all while cold and drenched)! She didn't skip a beat. She saw opportunity in the rain! If you're looking for a photographer who can uniquely see you and your love through a lens- and capture those ephemeral moments in images you can cherish for a lifetime - look no further.”

April 2022

“Melissa Cervantes is so incredibly talented. She went above and beyond with both our engagement and wedding photos. She has an uncanny ability to capture the most meaningful moments and make you feel like you are there again when you look at the photos. She has a gifted eye and captured the most special moments from our wedding in unique ways that aren't like all the rest on Pinterest! She was also able to capture the traditional shots that were must haves! She is so fun, creative, and professional. Working with her was an absolute dream. Mel immediately put me at ease and helped me to relax and enjoy every moment of my day. She is somehow able to be in 35 places at once and I'm pretty sure she didn't stop moving our entire wedding day in order to get the perfect shots!

Mel worked with me as I struggled to choose a location for our engagement photos. She was flexible and gave great advice about where would work best. She communicated well and often prior to our wedding and worked with us to create a timeline that would fit it all in!

If you're looking for a photographer who will not only give you the gift of the most special memories and beautiful photographs, but also effortlessly work with you and your wedding party. Mel is your girl. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, Mel! You have given us memories that will last a lifetime!”

October 2021

“Mel was hands down the best decision we made about our wedding. Right from the beginning, she made us feel very comfortable and at ease with her. This is someone who you’re going to want to be friends with.

My husband and I are not comfortable in front of the camera, but Mel was so reassuring. She gave us direction, but in a way that felt fun and playful.

On our wedding day, Mel was ON IT. She was running all around our Airbnb getting the pre-ceremony pics. When we did our wedding party pictures she kept it very fun and easy for all of us. At our reception, we had a few issues with other vendors and Mel was right there to ease our worries and have our backs.

All of these amazing things, and THEN the pictures! The photos Mel took of us were incredible. She has such a beautiful style, and we really felt seen through her lens. She knows how to find your angles and take a picture that is of your very best you.

I can’t thank Mel enough for the timeless art she has given us. Trust me, book the consultation and you won’t look back. She is simply the best.”

JUNE 2018

“There are not good enough words to describe how amazing Melissa is. She was kind and professional and just wonderful throughout our whole wedding process. But she was so much more than that. She really took the time to get to know who we were and what our relationship was like, and the photos she takes reflect that. She perfectly captures who we are and what we are feeling at that moment. She truly is a storyteller. And that is just the quality of her photos!”

JUNE 2018

“Melissa perfectly captured the immense love between my husband and me and showed it to the world in a way I never imagined possible. Melissa is professional, kind, organized, and all the good qualities that an excellent business owner possesses. She is also exciting, fun, witty, and makes being in front of the camera effortlessly wonderful. Thank you, Melissa, for capturing our engagement and wedding day! You are sure to LOVE your photos and cherish them forever if you have Melissa as your photographer! She is the BEST!”

AUGUST 2020

“Melissa was the absolute best to work with. Not only is she crazy talented, but she makes you feel so comfortable, even your dude has some fun! She came up with the coolest poses and ideas for us. We didn’t have to stand awkwardly waiting to think of something else to do! I recommend her to EVERYONE, and if you don’t believe me, take a look at our engagement and wedding photos, they’re breath taking! ”

AUGUST 2018

“Melissa makes magic out of anything! If you have a special event you want captured - you absolutely will not regret choosing Melissa to be the one to do it. I could ramble on and on about just how easy she made our experience - right down to helping time the wedding that we planned 100% on our own - being patient when we were running late for engagement photos - and being certain to capture all of our farm babies - but really all you need to take from this review is that Melissa IS YOUR GIRL - but only if you want magic”

OCTOBER 2018

“We loved working with Melissa for our engagement and wedding photography! I love that Melissa comes with ideas and plenty of inspiration for each individual session, the images she develops are unique to each couple. I love that! Melissa also played a huge role in making sure our big day ran smoothly, keeping us on time for the ceremony and reception.”

June 2021

“I don’t even know where to begin.. Mel is amazing. Her pictures, her creativeness, her personality.. She’s professional, real, and will treat you as one of your friends. Honestly, Looking back she went above and beyond for us. She made sure we were on time for everything on the big day, communicated with us frequently, helped organize our big family during pictures, and she made sure my dress/me and the groom were well taken care of. Everyone gave compliments to us on how amazing she was and we get compliments frequently on our pictures..we always make sure to tell them it was all Mel. 💗 Thank you for everything, Mel. We will highly recommend her to everyone!!”

October 2020

“She got my vision. I had an alternative Halloween wedding and she really got my vision. All my friends and family couldn't comprehend my style, even those closest to me, but all I had to do with Melissa was share my pintrest and have a Skype conference with her and I felt completely in good hands.”

June 2021

“Are you ready to make magic with Mel?

Melissa is amazing, from start to finish she makes everything so easy. Pictures of my wedding were the most important to me, to be able to remember that day. She has given us so many beautiful pictures/memories that we can keep forever. Not only does she capture the traditional moments, but she creates art out of ordinary moments. She’s truly unique and worth every penny.”

July 2020

“11/10 would recommend!

In reality, its an infinity/10 for this lady. We found her via social media and our first introduction was by far the most wonderful vendor experience we had. Melissa is most obviously GOOD. Just take a look at her work and you'll fall in love. What sold us was her expertise and passion for her work!! My now husband and I are a mixed race couple. During our initial conversation, Melissa educated us on the importance of light and exposure needs for making us both shine in photos. A concept that I would have otherwise not have known! She is 100% talent. Melissa is an incredibly calming force amongst the chaos of the day. She is professional, poised, an EXCELLENT problem-solver, and an overall joy to work with. We can't sing her accolades enough.”

November 2021

“My favorite vender.

As soon as Melissa arrived at my suite, the day was instantly better. She calmed my nerves and directed me where we needed to be, when we needed to be getting dressed and so on.

About thirty minutes before first look - she asked me where in the venue did I want it. And my reply was - I don’t know. You pick! And she nailed it.

Her photos are amazing but I feel like I don’t even need to say that because you can see all that from her social accounts.

Mel is made to be a wedding photographer. You can tell she loves her couples and her career and weddings. She over delivers during every step.

If you have the honor of working with her - enjoy it and be thankful. She is one of the greats.”

June 2019

“Kind, Fun, Professional and Great Product!

We booked Melissa for our wedding and our engagement photos. We found her by browsing her Instagram; she was previously hired to photograph a wedding at our venue. We absolutely loved her product but we didn't know the type of person Melissa was...until we met her for our engagement photo shoot about nine months prior to our wedding. Turns out she was the perfect match for us - she was fun, endearing, motivational, and was able to get us out of our comfort zone quickly and with ease. She was able to work in muggy and unbelievably buggy conditions without complaint. Our engagement photos turned out absolutely adorable, one's that we are proud to share with friends, family, and social media.

Fast forward to our wedding and she was able and, more importantly, willing to accommodate some unforeseen changes in our timeline. I would not hesitate to book Melissa for your wedding. She was extremely driven, down-to-earth, and, what impressed me most, was her ability to manage the many different personalities of our 170 guests. An absolute rockstar.”

April 2019

“Ahhh-mazing!

From the very first minute I got engaged I knew I NEEDED to have Melissa capture my wedding day. I had never met her before I just saw her work and LOVED it! We set up a meet and greet and she was very professional and so down to earth which I loved! So I booked her! Our engagement sessions was what I call a sauna on over drive but she was amazing and made both my husband and I feel so comfortable and not awkward. Fast forward to our wedding April 27, the last weekend in April and it was a blizzard...30 degrees cold, rainy, snowy, windy. All the worst possible winter weather you could think of we had. Instead of saying sorry I’m not shooting anything outside she was like I’m game of your game! So we did it and I don’t regret a single thing because I trusted her 1000% and looking at our pictures, she did above and beyond what I expected! Melissa was the very first thing I booked when I got engaged! She is an amazing person inside and out! So much fun to work with! 10/10 I would do it all over again!”

March 2017

“I'll start by saying Melissa is a wonderful person, on top of that she has amazing talent. Right away it was easy for my husband and I to know we had chosen the right photographer for us. She was so intrigued to know we were open to being more adventurous (which lead her to this idea of rooftop shots, they turned out beautifully). She recommended some great photo ideas that turned out absolutely stunning but she also made sure to capture what was most important to my husband and I. She really can handle any situation that comes her way, seeing that our wedding party couldn't resist singing and dancing during our group photos. Let's just say, she turned that situation into some of the best photos I've ever seen. She captured genuine love and laughter between us and the ones we love most. Our photos truly take us back to those moments as if we were there all over again.

I highly recommend Melissa Cervantes Photography to anyone that is looking to capture special moments that they want to last forever.”