Stumbling upon Yana's website was a serendipitous moment. There weren't many reviews about Yana's work on social media or wedding sites, but the photos I did find were simply gorgeous and rivaled those of any coveted blog or photographer with numerous The Knot accolades (read: hidden gem alert!!) Despite the biting cold during our engagement session (typical 30 degF April day in Michigan), we had a lot of fun. Yana provided us with just enough professional direction so that we felt assured, but then set stepped back to allow for candid moments to unfurl (e.g. us having coffee, slurping ramen). She also wouldn't hesitate to help me fix my scarf or tame a loose strand of hair. Her attention to detail was really commendable. The shoot turned out so well that we decided to incorporate the photos into our wedding guest book. The day of the wedding, Yana truly shined. I really appreciated how Yana was okay with playing some parts by ear to accommodate potential weather contingencies and our large wedding party of 14 people. When it came time to shoot the bridal party and family portraits outside, it was outrageously humid. But like a true professional, Yana never once let on any sense of impatience or discomfort. TLDR: Yana's work truly speaks for itself. She is by no means just wedding vendor, but first and foremost a skilled photographer who is truly disciplined and passionate. She harks from a photojournalistic background, and has a knack for capturing candid moments. If you're camera shy, don't worry. If you're blessed with high cheekbones and have mastered the art of smizing, that's great too. Either way, Yana will manage to capture the best of you. One of the most common compliments I received after sharing pictures with friends and family was "This is beautiful. And wow, I didn't even notice she was there taking that shot!". So, talented AND stealthy. I highly encourage you to look up more of her work, and to consider having her document your special day!

Yana was absolutely incredible. She was extremely helpful and personable throughout the planning process including recommendations on her package options, timeline of events, and photo locations.

On our wedding day she was very punctual and prepared. Not only was she on time but she was also keeping everyone else in-line and making sure we got all our photos done on time!

Our photos could not have turned out better! We are SO happy with all of the photos and the way everything turned out. Both our parents and plenty of people in our wedding party also couldn’t believe how great Yana was on the day of the wedding. Not only that but once we got the photos and posted a preview of them an incredible amount of people asked who our photographer was.

The best decision we made for our wedding was having Yana photograph it! She’s so creative and FAST with getting photos back to us! We couldn’t be happier!

We chose our wedding venue because of Yana's stunning photos, and we couldn't be happier with our decision! Yana traveled all the way to California to capture our special day and did an incredible job. Despite the windy conditions, she perfectly captured the story and essence of our wedding. Each photo is filled with personality, and the unique traits of our family and friends shine through beautifully.

We really loved working with Yana. Having never worked with a photographer before and not considering ourselves super photogenic, we were amazed at how natural the experience felt. Yana gave us small, helpful cues, but overall, everything felt effortlessly natural. She blended in seamlessly, making the whole process enjoyable and stress-free.

Yana is truly an artist and I am so happy we made the best decision ever in working with Yana for our wedding. Thank you, Yana, for your exceptional work and for making our wedding memories so vivid and special.

Yana was everything and more when it came to our wedding. Without her planning, especially when we dealt with unexpected weather I am not sure what we would have done but we are SO lucky to have booked with her. Her work is so amazing and I was absolutely blown away by her. We consider ourselves lucky to have found her!

My Fiancé and I did our engagement photos with Yana, and they turned out amazing. Yana was so easy to work with and was thoughtful. She made us feel very comfortable, and really helped capture our love! My Fiancé and I joke about being awkward, but Yana made us look fantastic! The pictures are natural and beautiful, and were exactly what I was looking for in our engagement photos. She did a really great job of giving us pointers and advice, but also let us be ourselves. Thank you so much Yana!

Fortunately, Yana was the first, and one of the most important people, that my daughter selected to help her celebrate a memorable backyard wedding in October. From the beginning, Yana was always available for questions and suggestions and made our last minute preparations less stressful! She creatively turned a very simple setting and small gathering into a joyous and magical event. After our home ceremony, Yana accompanied the bride and groom to another picturesque location for additional photos, and then to our final destination for the reception. Her photography exquisitely captured many spontaneous, as well as planned moments, creating a memorable keepsake of the entire day and evening. Thank you Yana for your talent and this incredible gift!

10/10 Yana is the nicest photographer you will ever meet, and her talent is unmatched. I found her through looking at photos of our newly booked venue, and right away wanted to know who took a particular picture. I followed her on instagram, and was blown away with all the couple and elopement photos she's taken.
My fiance and I had our engagement photos done at Manistee Lake and took beach photos during the sunrise. We don't consider ourselves particularly photogenic, but holy moly these pictures were amazing! We felt adventurous and Yana guided us through poses and made us feel very natural.
Our wedding was a dream, everything felt so flawless and easy and once we received our sneak peaks, I was in awe. Every aspect of the day was captured and I was brought to tears when thinking back on the day. The candids were wholesome to see, and I am going to treasure all of the family portraits. The details, lighting, posing, editing, etc. were all top notch. Her creativity definitely shows and we had so much fun during our wedding, it's so hard to choose favorites. Highly highly recommend Yana for your engagement photos, elopement, or wedding :)

I can think of so many reasons to book Yana for your wedding photography. One, she travels ANYWHERE with you and your partner to do a unique adventure engagement shoot. We asked her to travel to a remote part of eastern KY to one of our favorite hiking spots, and she was totally game and the photos were spectacular. Two, she is great at making couples feel comfortable during the shoot - she has a very warm, relaxed energy and has great ideas for poses and shots. Three, she's got a great eye and she's always on trend. Four, she's a real professional - she works quickly and efficiently to take breathtaking shots so that you get to spend the maximum amount of time with your wedding guests. She can easily adapt her plan to work with the lighting conditions and surroundings, whatever they may end up being. Five, and finally, take a look at her work! It speaks for itself. My now-husband and I had such a great experience with Yana. She was thoroughly invested in us and our story, and she went above and beyond to capture our day! We heartily recommend her to other couples.

We worked with Yana for our intimate (50 person) wedding at Muir Beach in CA. Yana was wonderful from the first time we met with her virtually to discuss our needs and vision, through the day of photos, and ultimately working closely together to build our wedding album. I would say my favorite part about working with Yana was her calming presence on the day of our wedding. She put us at ease taking photos (we are not big on having our photos taken) and everyone said they never even noticed we had a photographer throughout the day/night! The photos were so beautiful that we ended up ordering an album with as many that the book would fit! I would highly recommend working with Yana for your event :)