Cassie Valente Photography: 10 Questions with Cassie Valente

Photographer - Cassie Valente

Business: Cassie Valente Photography
Location: San Francisco, California CA
Experience: 11 Years
Photography Types: Engagements, Family, Weddings
Profile: Cassie Valente Photography
Website: cassievalente.com

1. Introduction: What's your story?

I'm a native Georgia peach, currently residing in the colorful Mission District of San Francisco. Most of my childhood was spent in Atlanta, surrounded by my beloved Georgia Tech campus and an endless plethora of smoked brisket. I met Michael, my college sweetheart, shortly after freshman year and in 2012, added our sweet pitbull Rusty to the family. My poor car hasn't known what it's like to be clean since.

In 2015, we decided to start a new adventure out on the west (best?) coast. Two years later, we got married in the city we now call home. These days, I live life surrounded by olive trees, Mission-style burritos, and Karl the Fog, but continue to answer the constant call of travel in order to document weddings and love stories all across the world. With all my experiences in planning weddings from either side of the equation, I feel like I have so much to share with my clients in terms of both structure and tireless creativity. In addition to capturing the precious moments of your wedding day, I offer custom timeline planning, trusted vendor recommendations, strong attention to detail, and an incredibly personal experience from inquiry to delivery. The relationships I have with my brides and grooms are of utmost importance to me.

In between the jetsetting adventures, I love nothing more than curling up on the sofa with my dog and a good Agatha Christie mystery. I prefer hot tea over coffee. My favorite scents are amber, honeysuckle, and lavender, growing wild and free. I shoot both film and digital. As a recent bride myself, I'm fascinated by the human story, and the parts of the story that are shared among all weddings, regardless of background, tradition, or age. From the bride’s first glimpse of her reflection in the mirror, to a proud mother’s last adjustment of her grown-up son’s tie, each picture captures a tiny memory that is poignant, significant, and entirely individual to you. It is my greatest goal that by providing couples with these picture memories, they will look into their own story of love and life, over and over again, for many years to come.

2. How long have you been shooting weddings? How many weddings have you photographed?

I've been photographing weddings since 2010 (11+ years). I have lost track of the number of weddings I've photographed since, but it's definitely in the several hundreds by now!

3. How would you describe your photography style?

My honest, romantic, and artful style of photography is driven by my reason for photographing–to tell the human story, and the parts of the story that are shared among all weddings, regardless of background, tradition, or age. I consider myself both a wedding photographer and storyteller. Behind everything I do is the simple, pure love of storytelling and creation. I think there’s something intensely compelling and something very real about witnessing the beginning of a marriage. My aim is to create art that moves people, that people want to hang on the walls of their home.

4. How well in advance should couples book their wedding photographer?

It totally depends! I receive inquiries for weddings sometimes over a year in advance, and other times, I have just a few days of notice before a destination elopement. It all depends on my availability so I welcome any inquiry - it never hurts to check! I do tend to be busiest on weekend dates in the fall.

5. What are the different packages that you offer and which one is your most popular package?

My offered packages are based on hours of coverage. Currently, my most popular package includes 8 hours of wedding day coverage, two photographers, and a separate engagement session for $7850. Additional hours can be added at $900/hour.

6. Are you the wedding photographer who will be shooting on the wedding day? Who else is there in your team?

I'm the lead photographer on the wedding day. Depending on the needs of my clients, there are sometimes additional photographers and/or non-photographing assistants on my team as well. I photograph on a mix of both digital and analog film formats.

7. Do you charge a travel fee? For what distance? What does that cover?

I'm happy to share that I photograph weddings all over the country! I greatly enjoy traveling and documenting these love stories for my couples, wherever they occur. Travel fees typically include overnight accommodation for myself and my team, as well as air and ground transportation.