— About—

Hello! I’m Val. I am a dark and moody wedding and boudoir photographer based in rural Maine, where I live on my farm with my husband, two feral teenage boys, and a couple of dogs. A former punk and metalhead turned rural-life enthusiast, I thrive on capturing raw emotions and true-to-life tones, using both natural light and strobes to craft stunning, cinematic images.

I know you probably expect some heartwarming tale about how I was born with a camera in my tiny baby hands, destined to become a photographer. Yeah, no. That didn’t happen. But I did fall in love with art in high school, took a photography class, and learned how to use my little Pentax film camera. I even developed some of my own rolls of film—back when that was still a thing.

But let’s get to the real reason you should hire me. It’s definitely because I once worked for a company that did Glamour Shots in the ‘90s. And, for reasons unknown, they let me do the makeup. Big mistake. If you think regular Glamour Shots were questionable, imagine them with full-on ‘90s hooker makeup. Frosted lipstick. Electric blue eyeshadow. Hair so teased it doubled as a fire hazard. It was… a time.

Thankfully, my skills have evolved. Now, I capture real, raw, and moody images that actually make people look amazing—without the threat of Aqua Net-induced hair disasters. If you’re looking for a photographer who keeps things fun, knows how to work with light like a wizard, and won’t make you pose like an awkward prom date, I’m your person.

A few other nuggets about me:

I live on a small farm in Cornish, ME with my husband and 2 boys. We have 2 dogs (Otis & Pearl), 4 chickens, 2 temporary pigs (because bacon is delicious), 3 ferrets and 1 very angry milk snake.

Since I was in my twenty’s, I’ve had the odd “hobby” of lifting weights & running.

I was an 80’s metal head, turned punker kid. I’m still kinda a punker kid / metal head.

When I was a kid I took tap lessons until I was told that I had to dress up like a California Raisin for my recital. I still stand by my decision to quit right before my recital.

I play guitar, not well, but I play. I thoroughly enjoy punishing every one of my family members when I like to “practice”. It’s a small miracle that they haven’t murdered me by now.

I love cake. Remember that if I am shooting your wedding….

I can live strictly on Red Bull, coffee and cheese. That sounds like a really gross combination now that I’m typing it out. I may need a life coach.

All of these pictures of me are a result of trying to take a “serious headshot” of myself specifically for this page, but my dogs had other plans. Oh well. Honestly, I like the outtakes much better. And if you have dogs, these are probably pretty relatable moments. (Sorry for the uncomfortably close picture of Otis’s butt.)

— Reviews —

“Val was excellent to work with for portraits when our son was a newborn, and incorporating the rest of our extended family into the shots as well. She was extremely accommodating with location, and quick turnaround of our images. We love her style, the high quality of her shots and her laid back demeanor and patience getting us all together!” -Kristen

“Val did such an amazing job capturing our wedding! We are so happy with how our photos came out, and she was so organized and had a game plan before the wedding so everything went smoothly. She arrived early before the ceremony and captured all the little details, and somehow (still not really sure how!) managed to capture both bride and groom's parties getting ready and some group photos before the wedding. We didn't do a first look before the ceremony, but had talked before the wedding about some ideas for formal photo locations for us a couple. Val took charge after the ceremony and family photos, and got absolutely gorgeous photos of the two of us in record time. We totally rushed her because we were ready to eat and party but they came out beautiful! Val also did our engagement photos which included climbing through the snow and dealing with our less-than-cooperative dog and they came out great as well. She is super professional and has a great sense of humor. So glad she was our photographer!” -Natalie

“Val has shot our family a couple of times now and the results are always fantastic! She makes my husband and I feel comfortable in front of the camera (which is not an easy task). And is so great with the kiddos, we love the real belly laughs she captures as a result!” -Jillian

“Val is so easy to work with. She’s very good at giving directions for poses. My guest loved her at the wedding. Everyone I show my wedding pictures to loves them. She was also reasonably priced compared to other photographers in the area. Her moody pictures and her black and white photography is what made me interested in her style of photography.
Val was always very responsive to emails and easy to contact. For our complimentary engagement shoot I decided that day to fly a kite during the photo shoot which she handled well. For our wedding day I bought light up balloons that she also shot well, and are some of my favorite pictures! She was very perceptive of certain pictures I wanted to obtain the day of my wedding.” -Melissa

“Val is amazing! We loved working with her so much and her work is STUNNING! I'm so glad we picked her to be our photographer. She is friendly, professional, and an incredible artist. We are so pleased with the photos captured of our special day. Thank you Val!!!!!!” -Sara

“Val is an awesome photographer. Down to earth and knows her craft. She was a blast to work with and made me and my husband look amazing even when we're usually awkward whenever a camera is near. Would highly recommend Val, she captured our special day perfectly and we can't thank her enough!” -Sarah

“One of the things we loved about working with Val was her focused energy. Val knew that there were great shots to be had, but to get them, we’d have to climb down to the rocks right up to the waters edge. In a tux and a big heavy wedding dress and red sparkly heels. It wasn’t easy but Val helped encouraged us to make it happen and the resulting shots are fantastic. Another thing we loved about Val was the she and her assistant were totally unobtrusive. They were there and got every shot but, it never felt like we were being followed around by a camera. Also, Val never pushed the poses on us so it all felt really natural and easy. Val was professional, responsive and accessible throughout the process. Most important though, her work, out photos are gorgeous. She captured the happiness and meaning of our day and we can’t recommend her more strongly. Thank you Val!” -Alison

“Val was our favorite vendor to work with! She was able to capture who we are as a couple and made us feel comfortable throughout the process! She was also so incredibly prompt and sent us our final photos before we even returned from our honeymoon!” -Meaghan