Lisa Whalen Photography

I can’t speak more highly of Lisa than to say she’s fabulous! I own an Interior Design business, and though I’ve attempted to take my own «after» photos, I finally accepted that I needed a professional. I wanted to photograph a room that had unique lighting, and Lisa understood that I really needed to capture the richness of color in the room, and she did just that! The photos were gorgeous, and Lisa was really great to work with as well. She has a fun and enthusiastic personality, and made the whole experience such a pleasure. She was prompt, professional, and very concerned that I get exactly what I wanted. Lisa listens, then delivers! I won’t hesitate to work with her again and again, for both my professional and personal photography needs. Thanks, Lisa!

Lisa did a photo shoot for us, primarily to get a picture for my daughter to use in her yearbook for her senior portrait. She wanted a photo that was taken out in nature instead of the more traditional senior portrait. Lisa took many fabulous shots of her, as well as priceless pictures of my two daughters together. She is a natural with teenagers, she connected with my daughters instantly and they were happy to smile for her, pose for her, do whatever she asked — to my great amazement and relief!
Lisa captures the spirit of the person, not simply their photograph. I have never been as pleased or excited about other photos as I have been about these. I can’t wait until the next opportunity to have Lisa shoot photos of my family. I cannot recommend her highly enough.

Lisa did a spectacular job on our engagement and wedding day photos. She is such an easygoing yet detailed, calm yet «on top of it», amazing photographer.
You have to LIKE the person behind the camera, and I am happy to say that Lisa and I have become great friends throughout this process.
As everyone warned us, our wedding day was a blur. Lisa captured photos of of our wedding guests (portrait and candid) and of all the small details that brought our wedding together, so that every time I look at them, I feel like I’m back in the moment again. Words cannot express how much appreciation I have for Lisa’s talent and services. I recommend her without any reservation. Thanks Lisa!

I hired Lisa to do a new headshot for me, and I expected the traditional poses and lighting in a studio. I was so pleasantly surprised to see that Lisa really had some great ideas about how I would come through the best on film. we even got to shoot outside which makes headshots so much more interesting. She is very creative, easy and fun to work with and you will definitely not get the run of the mill photographs with Lisa. Family portraits are next! I can’t wait to see what she comes up with!

What a joy Lisa is to work with! My husband and I did two photo shoots with Lisa — one where I was 37 weeks pregnant, and another with our newborn son (one week after delivery!)… and boy did we have fun! Lisa has a natural way about her that made us feel so comfortable in front of the camera. She helped set the mood and inspired fun, romantic and cute scenes. We felt like we were having our own little date in the park! She got us in our «element», really captured the moment, and brought our personalities to life.
Lisa’s husband, Andy, joined for the pregnancy shoot and captured some candid shots in the background. It was great to work with both of them, as their skills and visions complement one another, and they both made us laugh and really let loose. They are quite the dynamic duo!
It’s evident Lisa loves being behind the camera and working with people. It was great to see Lisa get excited about a particular setting or scene, and how she would work with different lenses and lighting to get the «perfect» shot. Her passion shines through not only while taking the photos, but in the meticulous work and time she puts into going through and editing all the shots she takes after the shoot.
There’s a shot of us standing on a trail beneath some beautifully arched trees, with my big pregnant bump perfectly profiled, and the lighting is perfect. This is one of our most cherished pictures as the emotions we were feeling really shine through and help to remind us of that spectacular moment in our lives. I remember Lisa’s excitement when she captured that shot.
Her pictures exude so much feeling and they truly come to life. I relive the moments she captured every time I look at them. She has such an eye for backgrounds/​settings, colors, lighting, camera angles and what to focus on. Lisa and Andy put us at ease and made our love for each other and our baby boy shine through. We can’t wait to work with Lisa and Andy again!

Yep… five stars! Really! Here’s why… in the vast sea of would-​be photographers, Lisa actually cut her teeth shooting on film, she studied formally and has the technical chops in spades and she readily shares her wonderfully artistic point of view with her clients. Rather than imposing a particular style or agenda, Lisa has a knack at really capturing the essence of people and allowing who THEY are to shine through in each shot. Composition, lighting and shooting on instinct come as naturally as breathing to Lisa and when entrusting a once-​in-​a-​lifetime event to a photographer, that’s the foundation I want! Lisa’s perspective is fresh and she tailors each shoot to the personality of her subject. One final thing is her eye for exceptional details and locations… she is always on the lookout and somehow manages to find that amazing angle, close-​up element, candid expression or momentary interplay of light that embodies the moment. That and she is so much fun to work with… and is great with kids! What a combination. What do they say about a picture being worth 1000 words???
Check it out for yourself.

Lisa Whalen is a San Francisco Bay Area photographer who specializes in Portrait, Wedding, Kids and Commercial photography.
Lisa combines photo-​journalistic and creative photography styles with commercial training to achieve the unique look of her wedding and special events photographs.
She works in San Francisco Bay Area, Carmel, Monterey Peninsula, Santa Cruz County, Napa valley and lake Tahoe region.