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Akbar Sayed Photography Reviews

Akbar Sayed Photography

Akbar Sayed Photography

Leesburg, VA
5.0 out of 5 rating, 85 Reviews
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Reviews

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WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
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85 Reviews
100% recommend it
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Awards

85
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2024 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2023 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2022 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2020 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2019 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2018 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2016 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2015 Winner
  • Zarima
    Zarima G. Sent on 03/27/2023
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    10/10 Recommend

    I cannot recommend our engagement photography shoot with Akbar enough! From start to finish, the experience was absolutely incredible. Akbar made us feel comfortable and at ease, which allowed us to relax and have fun during the shoot.
    Overall, we are so thrilled with our engagement photos and would highly recommend him to anyone looking for a talented and personable photographer. Thank you so much for capturing this special moment in our lives!
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    Katie S. Sent on 02/03/2024
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    Best wedding photographer you could ask for!

    Akbar is the best wedding photographer you could ask for! From our first consultation, he put us at ease and made it clear that he cared deeply about capturing the beauty of our wedding day. We had a packed 12 hour day with a first look, baraat, wedding, portraits and reception — and Akbar did a wonderful job photographing all of it. His photos were everything we hoped for and exceeded our expectations. He also made us feel totally comfortable throughout the day and was a pleasure to work with. From day one, Akbar was a great communicator. He was easy to talk to and coordinate with. We got a sneak peek teaser the day after our wedding in the form of a gorgeous Instagram reel that we’re still looking back on even after getting all of our photos. Akbar shared a lovely set of photos as our official sneak peek. But the final set of photos exceeded our expectations — Akbar captured all of our favorite and most important moments. I think we have at least one beautiful shot of every wedding guest. Our portraits came out so gorgeous. Akbar was one of our very best vendors and made our wedding a day we will never forget because we have so many amazing photos of all the memories we made.
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    Faizah K. Sent on 02/23/2024
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    Incredible, reassuring, comforting and fun!!

    Having Akbar take our engagement photos was surreal. He made us feel so comfortable when we are two very awkward people. Our pictures came out INCREDIBLE!! I have no words to describe it. I always have a problem with my pictures being edited poorly. Akbar not only enhanced all of our features but also captured our feelings in every single picture. Even weeks after we get the photos, I still look back at the captured moments in awe. Akbar is also very quick to get the photos back to us. We are definitely using Akbar again to take our pictures in the future!
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    Nico T. Sent on 07/22/2023
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    Professional and Easy to Work With

    Akbar was so easy to work with. When initially meeting with us, he did a great job of getting to know what we wanted out of our wedding. He thoroughly explained what options were available and was flexible in working with what we wanted.

    The day of the wedding, Akbar was very professional and attentive to details. He made us feel super comfortable, even though we really haven't had much experience with extended photo sessions in the past. We had a ton of fun and Akbar played a huge part in making our wedding an amazing and special day

    Overall, we would highly recommend Akbar!
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    Summer Sent on 05/22/2023
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    Phenomenal

    If I could give a 1000 stars, I would! Booking Akbar for our wedding was by far the best decision! Akbar is kind,patient, professional and has a great sense of humor and energy that helps ease the nerves we all experience on that one special day. He takes his work seriously has done such a phenomenal job capturing all the joyful, moments shared with family and loved ones throughout the night. His work is timeless and honestly speaks for itself but if you ever need confirmation, then let this be it— you will not be disappointed!
  • Sonali
    Sonali K. Sent on 07/22/2023
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    Amazing Wedding Photographer!

    If we could give more than 5 stars to Akbar Sayed Photography, we would. Akbar and his associate, Hannah, did an incredible job capturing all of the special moments (and a lot of our goofy ones) during our wedding weekend. Both my husband and I are pretty awkward in front of the camera, however, Akbar's professionalism, eye for lighting and angles, and his endless dad jokes put us at ease and made us look incredible!

    Throughout the planning process and the actual wedding weekend itself, both Akbar and Hannah were approachable, attentive, and genuinely interested in understanding our vision for the wedding. Communication was a breeze, and they made sure to address all our questions and concerns promptly, as well as really listened to our requests to make our vision come to life.

    Not only did Akbar and Hannah excel at capturing candid moments, but they also demonstrated an artistic flair that took our breath away. The composition, lighting, and overall creativity in each shot were beyond our expectations. Akbar also delivered the final images extremely fast, and the quality was simply outstanding. The attention to detail in the editing process made each photo shine, and we truly appreciate the effort he put into ensuring that we received the best possible outcome. We had our sneak peek pictures less than a week after our wedding!

    Akbar is also very personable and we loved seeing his dad side and healthcare side come out during the events. He was very caring towards my elderly grandmother, ensuring she had proper support while she was standing up during the pictures, taught my aunt the correct way to manage a wheelchair, all the while taking phenomenal shots. He also sang (screamed?) "Baby Shark" a multitude of times to attract the attention of our toddler nephews and get them to smile!

    Thank you so much Akbar and Hannah for going above and beyond to help make our wedding feel like a fairy tale! We absolutely love our wedding pictures!
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    Asma Z. Sent on 01/01/2023
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    Amazing Photography and Service

    Akbar and his team go above and beyond for your special wedding day. I have known Akbar for many years and have referred many of our brides to him and his team. Not only is he talented but aLao extremely humble and kind.
  • Kelly
    Kelly B. Sent on 08/01/2023
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    Amazing experience!

    We cannot say enough wonderful things about Akbar and his photography skills! We had such a great experience working with him and his associate Hannah, that we would gladly recommend them to others.

    We first had a video chat with Akbar and were immediately drawn to how down to Earth and friendly he was. We discussed our vision, cultures, and just chatted about life. We found out Akbar also works as a nurse and that was super exciting, because I am a nurse as well and my husband is a physician. We knew with how comfortable we felt talking to him and our similar careers we'd hit it off!

    We had our engagement shoot with Akbar about a year before our wedding. It was a great experience, because we were able to meet before the day of our wedding and get a feel for working together. Our photos also turned out stunning! About a week or so before our wedding, we all sat down and looked over the engagement photos so that we could discuss poses and angles that we liked or wanted to avoid.

    Working with Akbar on our wedding day was perfect! He paid attention to our concerns and made sure we looked great in our photos! Akbar was professional and efficient, but made sure everyone was comfortable and having fun. He gave posing tips to our bridal party and their partners and when my sister in law said she had a good side, he made sure she was always posed that way! On top of being a great photographer, he is also a great person. My dad had trouble walking and Akbar was right there to help him up the steps. His caring nature and attention to others are just a few of the attributes that make him an awesome photographer.

    The final results of our wedding day photos were beautiful! We've gotten so many compliments and people have said they look like they should be in a magazine! Overall we're so happy we picked Akbar and had an amazing experience working with him!
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    Rasshmi S. Sent on 11/07/2022
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    Not allowed to have favorites, Akbar's ours!

    We probably shouldn't have favorites as all our vendors were top notch but we can't help hold a little extra space in our hearts for Akbar who made our engagement photoshoot and wedding so delightful. Akbar and his team took the time to get to know us personally and cater their approach to suit us. They knew what made us laugh, they knew when we got a little stressed and they knew how to capture the emotion from the day so seamlessly. We'd recommend this team for photo and video over and over and look forward to shooting our next event with them!
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    Jackson C. Sent on 11/23/2022
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    Akbar made us look and feel like royalty!

    Akbar is a tremendous photographer and human being! I can't recommend him enough for your wedding. He is such a thoughtful and caring person and it shines through in his photos. He was seemingly everywhere throughout our events and captured so many small details that we will cherish forever. He truly captured how our guests and we felt on our special day. We truly felt like royalty.
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    Ann A. Sent on 11/06/2022
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    So much fun to work with

    Awesome photographer. Makes everyone feel comfortable so that he’s able to capture relaxed natural photos. He also made sure he got the photos on our list and more!!! Akbar preserved all our wedding memories.
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    Ayda I. Sent on 12/04/2022
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    The best!!!

    We worked with Hannah on our wedding day and she went above and beyond and exceeded our expectations. Before the wedding Akbar asked the right questions to make sure we got what we were looking. We are so happy with our experience with the team & I would highly recommend them!
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    Heather L. Sent on 02/08/2022
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    10/10 great photos, great person

    My husband and I loved working with Akbar! Our photos are gorgeous and he really helped us by walking through planning the photo sessions (i.e. first look, family pics, etc.) before the wedding. He is an extremely responsive communicator and has such a great personality - important for putting people at ease while you're taking photos. He absolutely prioritized the photos we wanted most. We also did our engagement photos with Akbar, which I would highly recommend, as it was a great way to give some feedback on what types of photos we liked the best before the wedding. Really great experience!
  • Carolyn
    Carolyn C. Sent on 09/09/2021
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    Amazing Photographer!!

    Akbar Syed Photography shot our engagement photos and our wedding photos. We already knew how talented he was (as he did holiday photos previously) but we were so blown away by the results of both our engagement and wedding photos. They were soo beautiful and better than we could have imagined!!!! He made all the photo shoots so easy and helped us be comfortable in the moments (even the awkward poses) and we had so much fun during all the photos. He's so easy to work with, with large and small groups and even with our fur baby during our wedding photos. Our pictures were stunning and more beautiful than we could have asked for! Akbar also produced a wedding video for us and it brings tears of joy to my eyes every time I watch the video!! We highly highly recommend!!
  • Ashley
    Ashley A. Sent on 07/09/2021
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    Best Photographer

    We were so happy we hired Akbar to capture our wedding pictures! He did an amazing job and we are so happy with our pictures. So many relatives who also saw the wedding pictures were very impressed and said we had a great photographer and I couldn't agree more. We would highly recommend Akbar!! :)
  • Gopi
    Gopi P. Sent on 07/21/2023
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    Top-Rated Photographer

    Simply put, there’s no one better. Akbar not only has given us memories for a lifetime, but has also become a dear friend. He is so incredibly personable and truly takes the time to understand what is important to you and captures it perfectly. Not only is he easy going, but he goes out of his way to be there as a calming presence (like when my dress broke right before our first look!). He shows you that he wants to connect with you as individuals and as a couple, which is hard to find. His work shows the amount of investment and dedication he has to his photography. He is incredibly talented and I could not be happier with our choice to work with him. Akbar, thank you so much for everything you have done for us—Ricky & Gopi
  • Samra
    Samra A. Sent on 07/22/2021
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    AMAZING experience

    Akbar was a delight during the wedding planning process. I had already decided to use Akbar Sayed Photography after a pleasant experience a few years prior at a friends wedding and I am glad I made that decision! Akbar asked all of the right questions to get us thinking about what we wanted from a wedding photographer and, really, what to focus on during our special day. Ayesha, his associate, made an effort to fulfill our needs AND those of my guests during the event. There was nothing but praises afterwards! I would highly recommend
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    Neha R. Sent on 06/10/2021
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    Memorable Wedding Weekend

    From the start, Akbar amazed us in the initial interview by being super friendly, professional and also pointing out things that we weren’t even considering in our journey to finding a photographer for our magical weekend.

    Of course with how patient he was in listening to our requirements while reassuring that we were not being bride and groomzillas, we knew we had to go with him.

    He made sure to meticulously gather all of important aspects of the weekend from us. We took the time to plan literally every minute of the timeline with specific call outs for key moments. There was also the Hours spent getting the most important photo combinations down on a piece of paper with his guidance. And he delivered on the portraits as well as capturing the candid moments that make the weekend special.

    Fast forward to a month after the wedding and we find ourselves consistently checking the photos and cinema he provided because they so perfectly capture that feeling we experienced during the wedding weekend. Akbar made the greatest time our lives something we can continue to keep enjoying for the rest of time.
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    Ana A. Sent on 02/28/2021
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    Above and Beyond

    Akbar went above and beyond during our consultation, he got to know us, offered REAL advice and insight in answering our questions, and answered questions we had not even thought of. He helped us determine the number of hours of photographer coverage we would actually need (many other vendors tried to push us into more coverage and more photographers than that our small 20 person wedding really needed) and helped us work out other logistical questions that other vendors did not ever bring up. Due to the short notice of our wedding (we consulted just a few weeks before our wedding date), Akbar was unavailable to shoot for us, so if you’re reading this review do book him out EARLY!
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    Sudeep M. Sent on 12/13/2019
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    Sudeep and Rina - Nov 2nd 2019 Wedding at Hanover Marriott

    Akbar was one of our first vendors who we hired. We developed a great relationship from the beginning, as he set up video chat sessions with us to figure out more about our vision. As time passed, we developed a great friendship as well. Our pre wedding shoot pictures were captured in Washington D.C., and we then continued keeping in touch until our wedding. Akbar cares a LOT about what's important to us specifically in our photography. He has an artistic vision with great feel for the personalities he's working with. He is VERY receptive to feedback, and was willing to re-edit some pictures until they hit perfection in the bride and groom's eyes.

    Something even more important than what's listed above, is that Akbar is such a good person to work with. He treats you like family and is very responsive whenever questions or concerns are present. All our guests had so much fun working with Akbar as he captured pictures of the wedding. Photography is a very challenging task in large Indian weddings like ours. Akbar's tolerance and empathetic nature with all our guests was simply impressive. He checked in on my wife after re-editing some of our other pictures to ensure we did not have further concerns. We now LOVE our pictures.

    Thank you Akbar!

    -Sudeep and Rina
  • Meera
    Meera Sent on 01/26/2020
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    Excellence

    I stumbled onto Akbar's photography page on Instagram one night after having researched wedding photographers for over a month. I fell in love with the photos, immediately sent him a direct message that night, received a response the next morning, and had a phone call with him that very same day. By the end of our call with him, Akbar Sayed Photography was a no-brainer for our wedding.
    Besides being a remarkably skilled individual in his craft, Akbar wow-ed us as a person from start to end. He checked in with us before our wedding to see what was most important to us & what our priorities were, remained an excellent communicator throughout everything, friended not only our other vendors, but ALL of our family & friends (to an extent where people are *still* talking about his sense of humor!), and truthfully--just made mine & my husband's wedding experience sooo much smoother and more relaxed than could have ever anticipated.
    He is truly one of the most patient and genuine people we have ever met, and his photography just speaks for itself. He is able to adapt to the style of photography that you like, and his expertise combined with his creativity made taking pictures for my husband & I (both of whom are not very photogenic people) feel completely effortless. And in under 2 months of being married, Akbar had sent us over ALL of our wedding photos (for perspective, our Hindu wedding had 5 events altogether)--they are UNREAL.
    Professional, warm, always making us laugh, easygoing, able to handle family members very well.....I could go on forever. Thank you so much Akbar & Nadia!!!
  • Pooja
    Pooja P. Sent on 01/04/2020
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    Best vendor we hired!

    From our first conversation, it was clear Akbar is very passionate about his craft. He not only captured stunning pictures of our wedding but told a story with them. He made my husband and I feel very comfortable on our wedding day and even made me laugh when my nerves were on edge. His communication skills are wonderful and delivered on his promise to get our photos back within several weeks. I would highly recommend him if you want high-quality, memorable wedding pictures and someone that's easy to work with!
  • Sheena
    Sheena Sent on 11/12/2019
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    Wedding photography

    Akbar was my photographer for my wedding and I am SO happy I chose him. Not only did he capture the most perfect moments of my wedding weekend, but he’s such an easy person to work with—which is a super important trait to have in your vendors. He got our pictures to us EXTREMELY quick and they are absolutely perfect. I highly recommend using Akbar for photography.
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    Zainab Sent on 04/08/2020
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    Perfect photos from a thoughtful photographer

    Ladies and gents, wedding planning is stressful as heck... let me save you some grief, HIRE AKBAR. He captured photos I would not even have the creative imagination to request.

    Apart from the incredible level of skill that Akbar brings to his craft, his kindness and calming nature really plays a central role in making your wedding day better. Akbar went above and beyond, not only did he captured natural, timeless photos from the wedding... he worked with all of my vendors and family (edit: my crazy family) to ensure that everything went smoothly. After the wedding, many of my friends and family even noted to me that they noticed Akbar working tirelessly throughout the entire wedding to capture every special moment.

    If you want incredible photos and someone who genuinely wants you to enjoy your wedding day, hire Akbar. Best money you will spend on your wedding.
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