Michael Monar Photo

We are so delightful to have Michael in our 3÷24÷11 wedding. He is a fascinating photographer and a great guy. The unique thing about him is that you never feel someone is taking a photo of you. You just have to live your wedding day and you might not even notice him at some points but he is somewhere special and taking special photos.
While we were planning our wedding, we looked for a good and reliable photographer for more than 2 months. When we first saw his website, we were impressed with the amazing photos. I called him to set a meeting to see his works. From the very first moment that we saw him, we were both impressed. He never stopped smiling and he was so positive. He even helped us plan our wedding day.
He was supper flexible as well. We changed the wedding plans just a week before the wedding and he didn’t even complain. On the wedding day, he was on-​time and very well organized. He was with us from early in the morning to late at night. He had no intention of leaving and I finally asked him to leave because he looked so tired after 12 hours of continuous working. He was wonderful.
We would definitely recommend Michael not only because of his great photos, but also because of his great personality.

We’ve had the opportunity to work with Michael and his team for both our wedding and engagement session and following that positive experience, some corporate photography. I initially received a referral for Michael from a friend who is a wedding planner, and I have since thanked her many times for the recommendation.
On our wedding day Michael and his team were friendly, unobtrusive, flexible, creative, and above all extremely efficient in getting the shots we wanted. In reviewing the finished product, I am amazed that the quality of work that we received came with so little distraction and set-​up time on the day.
The finished photos show a skill with storytelling, creativity in composure, and an eye for detail and «big moments», along with a subtle and welcome sense of humor. I can’t recommend him enough based on our experience. Thank you Michael!

We hired Michael for our Mach wedding this year. Right off the bat, he was easy to talk to on the phone– and quick to respond to my messages (A big plus when you are in the middle of wedding planning). We did not meet face to face before the wedding, but that is only because I felt confident enough in our over the phone conversation that I felt I knew enough to feel comfortable with him.
Day of the wedding: Michael arrived exactly on time and ready to begin shooting (Our flowers arrived at the same time and he instantly had his camera out and began shooting). He needed little direction (which was good because I didn’t know what kind of direction to provide) and was quick to respond when I did have an idea or a shot I wanted. We didn’t spend a lot of time fussing over posing or anything. which to be honest scared me at first. I have been at other friends pre-​wedding shoots and been «bossed» around for 15 minutes before the photographer started to even shoot anything. So, when we got our photographs last weekend, I quickly went through looking to see if my dress was right or if I looked good– EVERY SINGLE PICTURE WAS PERFECT! I am amazed at what my friends paid to have a «big brand» photographer move them, adjust, boss, and sometimes demean them into the photographer’s perfect position. Michael automatically adjusted for light, my best «face». everything. I can’t repeat enough how stunned we were with the pictures, and grateful to Michael for getting the best shot the first time allowing us other time to do other things. Instead of posing.
As to the ceremony– again– Michael how do you do it? I didn’t even know he was in the ceremony. He moved so quietly and respectfully throughout the ENTIRE sanctuary (Which is LARGE) that I didn’t notice him. He wasn’t in my face or tripping over my dress– he got every shot, ever quick glance between my husband and I and ever since moment. His candid shots are truly amazing– non had me half squinting or half smiling. no one looked «not their best» he truly has a talented eye. And it didn’t matter that he was moving all around the church or in the back because we have zoomed in pictures with different lenses that look like he was standing next to us.
If you think this is too much positive– let me say I spent 3 months interviewing photographers and was very picky. I have a sister-​in-​law in the wedding business and was clear on what to expect from your photographer. We got everything we expected. We were very pleased.
The only «I wish» (and the only reason it is not a 5) comment would be that we would have asked for a few more posed husband and wife shots. more artistic. We had told Michael to do exactly what we got– and they are great– but if we could have added more styles– a few artsy posed ones would have been great. But I have every bit of confidence that if we just would have known that we wanted that, Michael would have done it. And perfectly.
We wouldn’t have hired anyone else if we had it to do all over again. Great personality. Excellent eye. So quick and undetectable during the whole day which made it, at all times, feel like my day.

Michael is a fantastic photographer!
This July, my family met-​up in Chicago (from all parts of the country) for a vacation together. We decided to do a family photo session as a gift to our parents for their 60^th birthdays. Because Michael had done such a great job on the photos for my brother and sister-in-law’s wedding, as well as an informal shoot for their son’s first birthday, I decided he was definitely the guy to work with.
Although I live in San Francisco, communication and planning was very easy and convenient. Michael had great suggestions about shoot locations, times of day, and even clothing colors and patterns that photograph best. Because he and his assistant were extremely professional, polite, and unobtrusively helpful, the day of the shoot was such a fun experience.
And the resulting photos were even better! Michael was able to capture both structured poses and candid moments of our family so well.
We all were extremely happy with the entire experience, and now have some amazing photographs to last a lifetime. We cannot thank him enough!

Of all the wedding photographers I considered, I was most impressed with Michael Monar. I liked the photos I saw on his website, but took the extra step to meet with him. Friends had told me to ask to see full wedding albums (as opposed to just the best ones that photographers hand pick and put on their websites). He met with me and showed me several full albums on his Mac — and there wasn’t a single photo I didn’t like. If you are looking for a natural but polished photos of your wedding, you found your match. Michael is reasonably priced, he blends in with the wedding guests, needing little to no direction, and like his photos — is natural and relaxed. No cheese! Michael is terrific.

We were so happy to have Michael as our wedding photographer. He did an outstanding job and was so easy to work with. The pictures came out beautiful! We have gotten so many complements on how great the pictures are. We couldn’t have asked for anything more!

We absolutely love working with Michael. Talented, laid back and reasonably priced.

Michael did both our engagement session and wedding. The engagement session was included in the price of our wedding package, and was a great time for us all to get to know each other. Here is a sample of the engagement pictures:
. I think his style is very laid back, definite bent towards the artistic /​photojournalistic, and his eye for composing shots is really stunning.
shows some of the pictures from the wedding, and I am so, so pleased. On the day of the wedding, he was a really calming presence — I feel like he (or his second shooter) was always there capturing the shots, but he did not add to any of the chaos (and believe me, there was some chaos.) Michael started his own studio not too long ago, so his portfolio on his website is only a small portion of his capabilities. (He used to be with a larger, very well known studio, and as such cannot use the weddings he shot for that studio on his current site.) I really enjoyed working with both Michael and his assistant, and believe I got a great value for our investment. Michael was recommended to me by Lori (my wedding planner at Lola) and I would recommend him highly.

Like most of the vendors I hired for my wedding day (florist, make-​up artist, dj, etc), I was VERY lucky to find Michael Monar through a referral. When I talked to Michael on the phone, I had already viewed his work on-​line (
) & loved the way he «captures the moment». After talking with him on the phone, I was even more sure that he would be the one. On top of Michael Monar’s fabulous photography skills, he has a great deal of passion for his work. He is a very laid back person, cheerful, and overall… just a joy to work with. He is very unobtrusive & we had no idea of the great shots he got, because he was not in our way at all.
Michael shot well over a 1000+ pictures on our wedding day & they are better than we could have ever hoped. He captured every aspect of my wedding day. I have uploaded some of the pictures with this review & I would be happy to share more if you message me.