IT'S AN HONOUR
TO TELL YOUR
LOVE STORY
Candid
Authentic
Effortlessly Romantic
"with a spirit of genuine care and radiant fun.
I’m convinced that her photography is so good because our souls instinctively respond to this spirit. She brings out the best in us ~ and you can feel it in her pictures.”
ME, ZACH AND VINNIE ON OUR WEDDING DAY
Beijing, Cambodia, France, Cinque Terre, UK, Ecuador, Maldives, Amazon Basin,Bangkok, Mt. Kilimanjaro, Tanzania, Germany, Costa Rica, Ireland, Thailand, Morocco, Portugal, Peru, Mt. Everest Basecamp,
2020 Travel Goals
More Ireland
More Africa
Over 10 years experience
Full day coverage, including
engagement session & second photographer begins at $5,900
NOW BOOKING 2023/2024
Looking forward to hearing from you.
"She's the best! If you're looking for a professional, amazing, energetic,
lover-of-life photographer - work with Gina Petersen."
Katie & Matt
"TRULY CANNOT RECOMMEND HER ENOUGH.GINA IS SIMPLY THE BEST"
DR.TRAVIS & PARRIS STORK
"GINA IS EVERY BIT AS AMAZING AS YOU MIGHT EXPECT AND HOPE." ADINA AND JOHN
Whether you need a consultation or just a little chat before your big day. Come into the studio and we will get you taken care of.
"Photos are one of the most important parts of weddings, and Gina created photos that told our story. It was beautiful photos that will help us relive our wedding day for the rest of our lives - she has a talent for taking beautiful candid photos (not those candid photos that we take, because we end up looking awkward and awful). It was a perfect balance of formal photos and candid, and it felt so “us”. My husband generally does not like to take photos, but with Gina, it felt so natural and fun. Our photos were timeless - they are perfect for my IG now but also perfect to show my grandkids one day. The cost is 100% worth it, because these photos last a life-time - do not hesitate to book Gina, I confidently believe there is no other photographer that could have captured our day more perfectly!"
Gina is an insanely talented photographer and we could not recommend her more! She is extremely approachable and has such a relaxed, calming presence that made working with her an absolute joy! While my husband and I both tend to shy away from the camera, she did an amazing job helping us relax and bringing out the best in us and we couldn't be more pleased with how the photos turned out. She is so flexible too, making sure we were capturing all of the shots we wanted to while ensuring we weren't missing out on all of the special moments throughout our big day. In addition to producing the most STUNNING photos, she is very fast! The morning after our wedding, we woke up to the most heartwarming photo previews and spent the day gushing over them. And she delivered the full gallery well within the promised timeframe! What a TREAT it was to work with Gina!
Gina Petersen was by far the best decision I made when planning my wedding. She is so talented, and captured both my rehearsal dinner and wedding day beautifully. I was only married a few weeks ago, so I still haven't seen all the photos, but what I have seen so far has brought tears to my eyes. I had one friend tell me, "Your photographer captured you and your husband's relationship perfectly" - and THAT was exactly what I was looking for. She caught genuinely candid moments that I will cherish for a lifetime and everytime I look at them, I feel like I am re-living the best day of my life over again. Aside from her obvious talent, she was also so fun and easy to work with. I didn't really realize how much you time you end up spending with your photographer on your wedding day and how important it is that you get along with them. Gina made both my husband and I feel so comfortable and we felt like we had known her forever. We even had other guests and vendors comment on how easy she was to be around and work with. I look forward to having Gina capture other momentous occasions for us in the future! Look no further for your wedding photographer. Gina is the BEST there is!
"Gina was an absolute joy to work with from beginning to end. She grasped the intent and inspiration behind our small, intimate wedding with such ease and complimentary input; we felt taken care of through the whole process. Her methodical yet fun approach to the actual day was so welcomed by our group and we were so happy to have her there capturing every special moment. We all felt like she implicitly understand the careful balance between the necessary time for photos and also letting the candid moments flow naturally. We loved working with Gina and hope to work with her again asap!"
Gina has been a blessing since day one, and I owe her for so much more than just capturing memories! One of my favorite things about Gina is just how personable, kind and relaxed she is while being very thorough every step of the way.
She is one of those people that can make an instant connection and make you feel like you've been friends for years.
On our wedding day Gina was simply flawless… We laughed, cried, danced, smiled and had so much fun! On the happiest day of our lives, surrounded by our most treasured family and friends, Gina moved with ease somehow barley noticed as she captured it all, every detail, elegantly and respectfully.
We would live our wedding day all over again if we could and an enormous part of this would be to work with Gina again. We owe her so much for truly “seeing us” and telling our unique and beautiful story through her lenses.
Gina was a pleasure to work with! From the first meeting to emails throughout our engagement to post-wedding communication, she was always responsive and professional. More importantly, she is a genuine artist and her style is everything I could have wanted in a wedding photographer. I'm so fortunate she has given us incredible images which we will treasure forever.
WHAT STYLE OF PHOTOGRAPHER ARE YOU?
Personally speaking, my favorite images that make my heart swoon are the ones that capture my subjects in an organic, unposed way. Capturing raw, unfiltered emotions are what feeds my passion for wedding photography.
Here’s the “but...” but on your wedding day, there will be times where I will need to work in a contemporary/progressive style; and other times, I will need to work in a photojournalism style...and even sometimes (gasp) in a more traditional nature. We both know grandma will think I’ve done a lousy job if I don’t get at least a few more traditional images of the two of you looking at the camera and (I’ll say it) posing. I consider myself an experienced photographer, which means I can adapt to what kind of style needs to be done at that given moment.
WHAT IS YOUR TURN-AROUND TIME FOR WEDDING PHOTOS?
Wedding photos normally take 4-6 weeks and Engagement shoots take 1-2 weeks
MY FIANCE HATES BEING IN PHOTOS & POSING. CAN YOU HELP MAKE HIM COMFORTABLE?
Absolutely. I get asked this question a lot. I shoot quickly, keep things rolling and try to make your experience more like hanging out with a friend, that happens to have a camera, rather than posing for a photoshoot.
I often hear how much fun the shoot was from clients who would have preferred to go to the dentist than be in front of the camera.
I understand the anxiety because I fall in the “don’t want to be in front of the lens,” group. This is one of the reasons why I make my engagement sessions complimentary. I believe that every couple should have an engagement session, whether you need the images or not. It’s a great way to practice being in front of the camera and working with me. This way, your wedding photos are much more natural.
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ARE YOU THE RIGHT PHOTOGRAPHER FOR ME?
I do feel like it’s important to do your research, and at the risk of sounding like a dating website, when it comes to choosing your photographer, chemistry is important. Regardless of budget, quality and how incredible a photographer looks with a camera around their neck, do not book them if you don’t feel you have a good connection.
Your photographer is someone that you’ll be around just as much as your fiance on the day of your wedding. Your photographer will be there with you on the intimate moments, so you'll want to be sure it's someone that you can be your true self with and are ver comfortable in their presence.
Be sure you find the correct fit when choosing your photographer. It's one of the biggest decisions that you'll be making when it comes to cherishing the memories and photographs for decades to come.
WHERE WILL THE ENGAGEMENT SESSION TAKE PLACE?
There are so many beautiful venues all around this incredible Wine Country/SF area. Where your engagement session takes place will depend your personality as a couple. I will have some recommendations once I get to know you a bit and get a feel for the vision that you want.
Looking through my blog postings of past engagement shoots will also help you get a good feel for the venue and backdrop that you’d like for your session. Typically, I begin shooting 60 minutes before sunset, and the session lasts about 90 minutes; Sometimes this is a bit longer or shorter, depending on how long it takes everyone to get comfortable. There is no travel fee for engagement sessions within Sonoma and Napa Counties.
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WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU BECOME ILL OR CAN’T BE AT THE WEDDING?
I have an incredible group of experienced colleagues I can call upon; Heaven forbid this ever have to happen, but if it does, I’ll get it covered with a quality photographer, not just a warm body. Knock on wood, but in all my years as a wedding photographer, this has never happened.
SHOULD OUR WEDDING BE UNPLUGGED?
This is your choice... My only job is to educate you on possible scenarios that can happen if we have an additional 200 I-phone photographers taking images at your ceremony. I know that sounds a bit sarcastic but in all honesty, I’m okay with it, if you’re okay with it. I put together a great PDF that will talk about the pros and cons with an unplugged wedding, and you can make your decision from there, and I’ll fully support it.
I FEEL LIKE YOUR PRICE POINT IS TOO HIGH.
“You get what you pay for,” comes to mind here. Over the last decade, I've been able to learn from some of the very best in the industry, and still to this day, I pour every single bit of myself into my clients and making their wedding day as special as it can be. I can’t stress enough how you cannot have a do-over for this day. If photos are important to you, please do not hand the responsibility of documenting this incredible life event over to someone who isn’t an experienced wedding photographer ~
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DO I NEED TO PROVIDE A MEAL & BREAK TIME FOR YOU?
Uhm, yes, please. There’s photographer humor that states something like, “How do you look good in your wedding photographs? Feed your photographer.”
This doesn’t mean I need a $150 catered plate, but a vendor meal will do just fine. I always request to take my meal break at the same time that you eat, as I don’t want to miss anything.
WHY CAN'T WE HAVE ALL THE PHOTOS YOU TAKE?
On a typical wedding day, I will take about 2500 photos, but the majority of those photos are taken in big bursts. Anytime I have a group of people in front of me, I will hit that camera shutter anywhere from 5-15 times. Seems easy to get that one fabulous family picture, but with 8 people standing there, chances are as much as I count to 3, someone’s eyes will be closed or looking in the wrong direction. I don’t have time to look at the back of my camera all the time during the wedding day, so I will overshoot just to be sure that I captured that important photo. In the post-processing of your wedding, I’ll cull through your 2500+ images and pull the best, leaving behind the ones of shut eyes, open mouths, awkward moments and unflattering moments.
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