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Hellena Cedeno Photography Reviews

Hellena Cedeno Photography

Hellena Cedeno Photography

Oakland, CA
5.0 out of 5 rating, 16 Reviews
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Reviews

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16 Reviews
100% recommend it
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Awards

16
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2023 Winner
WeddingWire Couples' Choice Awards 2022 Winner
  • Mayene
    Mayene Sent on 11/08/2022
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    Fantastic experience, excited to build a lifelong relationship with Hellena!

    We combed through WeddingWire, TheKnot, Reddit, Instagram, and asked married friends for recommendations when we started looking for a photographer; we knew that photography quality was high on our list of wedding priorities so we looked at a LOT of portfolios, websites, Instagram accounts, bios, and so on to find photographers that matched styles we both liked and had values and a personality that aligned with us.

    I made a shortlist of about 5 photographers I really loved that were roughly around the budget we set, sent the list to my partner and he ranked them in his preferred order. We sent emails out to 3 photographer who all got back to me and were super lovely; since Hellena was both of our top choice based on what we had researched, we scheduled a Zoom call with her. She was quick to respond and the initial virtual meet was easy and nice!

    We absolutely LOVED her right away after the Zoom call (30 minutes, asked a ton of questions we had listed out beforehand) and went straight to booking after that call. We really loved her style and her vibe and she seemed really easy going and open/transparent about everything during our call.

    We just had our engagement shoot done and as someone who doesn't really like having photos taken or doesn't believe myself to be photogenic, it was such a fun experience, even though I totally tripped during the session and completely fell forward. Hellena has been super flexible and a really awesome person all around. We've openly communicated and stayed in touch over the months since we booked her to make sure we were all comfortable and healthy and open to the locations we wanted to shoot at. We rescheduled our engagement shoot date and location and also worked with my hair and makeup artist to schedule my trial the same day, so everything worked out.

    I am beyond excited to work with Hellena again for our wedding and our anniversary shoot, and hope to be able to book her again in the future for more life happenings and milestones after marriage!
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    Lyssa F. Sent on 12/13/2022
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    Hellena is so talented and fun to be around!

    Hellena is absolutely amazing— she is so talented!! She is also just so enjoyable to be around and I was amazed at how well she understood our vibe/what we wanted. She photographed my husband and my 30 person wedding and every time I look at the photos I feel all of the joy and coziness of that day. We had such a fun time taking couples shots at Mt Tam, and Hellena made us feel so comfortable; at the same time she took lovely candid shots of our ceremony and celebration. Our family and friends cannot stop talking about how well she captured our day. Highly highly highly recommend working with her!!
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    Eesha B. Sent on 10/20/2022
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    Courteous, warm and talented wedding photographer!

    We worked with Hellena (and second shooter, Jamie) for our wedding in the Bay Area and it was an amazing experience! This was a bit of a destination wedding for us, but we were able to meet with her and walk around the venue together well before the wedding to plan. Leading up to the wedding, we checked in 1-2 times to review the timeline and photo list (and she gave us some excellent suggestions on both). On the wedding day, Hellena was punctual and an extremely calming and comforting presence. She made sure our needs as a couple were met (including making sure we were hydrated and well-fed) throughout the day. We received sneak peeks about a week after the wedding, and expect to get the rest in the next couple of weeks. Hellena is courteous, warm and very talented. She made our wedding extra special!
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    Carolyn J. Sent on 08/09/2022
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    Hire hellena. She is awesome.

    We loved working with Hellena. We live pretty far from her (1:30), and she was extremely accommodating, straightforward, and prompt. she's a great communicator and delightfully kind and funny while also being extremely professional. For our engagement photos, we wanted to go to a waterfall deep in a nearby creek, and she climbed all the way down there with us and was an absolute trooper. She knew just how to pose us and when to let us do our thing. On our wedding day, I was SO GRATEFUL to her because she drove us everywhere, got us away from the crowd when I really needed a break, and when it was time for family photos... she was ON IT. She got everyone where they needed to be so quickly. It was a breeze when it could have taken an hour. And of course if all that wasn't enough, her photos are gorgeous. Dramatic. Sensitive. Personal. She's a delight to work with, and her work quality and ethics are fantastic. Hellena is not someone trying to rip you off cause you're getting married. She genuinely loves her craft, and it shows.
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    Heather R. Sent on 08/27/2021
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    Above and beyond!

    Hellena is the absolute best! She went above and beyond to photograph our last minute elopement. We are so grateful to have found her and will cherish her beautiful photos for a lifetime. She is extremely professional, responsive, creative, and we just cannot thank her enough!
  • Stephanie
    Stephanie P. Sent on 12/27/2022
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    Our dream wedding photographer!

    Hellena, GRACIAS POR TODO! Not only are her skills behind the camera incredible, she's also one of the nicest people we've met! We literally cried when we were going though our wedding photos. She captured the energy and you can see the love and care she took to get every important moment. She captured all the wedding decor/details, candid pictures of our friends and family, and the most angelic pictures of us. We couldn't have asked for a better person to trust on our big day. Thank you, thank you, a million times thank you.
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    Dawn Sent on 09/28/2021
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    Hellena is wonderful!

    Hellena is not only a wonderful photographer but also an amazing person. She captured so many wonderful moments for us to be able to enjoy for the rest of our lives. I absolutely loved working with Hellena and I am so incredibly happy I found her! She was very responsive to my texts and understanding of my situation - my father is terminally ill and we had to make special accommodations, in order to have him share the day with us, which Hellena was more than willing to help me with. I was able to get some photos with my father at his bedside which was very important to me. She also helped us set up a tripod so we could have our virtual guests watch the ceremony via zoom. Hopefully one day soon we’ll be able to hire her for a maturity shoot - fingers crossed! 🥰
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    Amber J. Sent on 08/14/2021
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    The best photoshoot experience I have ever had

    Hellena was absolutely amazing to work with. I have honestly never felt so comfortable in a photo session. She is so passionate about capturing every moment and it 100% shows in her work. My husband can be very reserved and shy, but the minute we started working with Hellena, he was so comfortable with her that he opened up and was really into having our photos taken. Hellena took the time to get to know me and my husband throughout the entire session and it felt like we had known her our entire lives. The best part about the entire shoot was her allowing our involvement in the photos we want done. She had poses selected and would show us her vision but then continued to ask us if there were any specific poses we wanted to do and kept us fully involved. She would make sure you were comfortable the entire time and if you weren’t she would switch it up until you were. I 100% would recommend Hellena to anyone that is looking for a photographer for their special day! I cannot thank her enough for her amazing hard work!
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    Amber J. Sent on 08/14/2021
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    The best photoshoot experience I have ever had

    Hellena was absolutely amazing to work with. I have honestly never felt so comfortable in a photo session. She is so passionate about capturing every moment and it 100% shows in her work. My husband can be very reserved and shy, but the minute we started working with Hellena, he was so comfortable with her that he opened up and was really into having our photos taken. Hellena took the time to get to know me and my husband throughout the entire session and it felt like we had known her our entire lives. The best part about the entire shoot was her allowing our involvement in the photos we want done. She had poses selected and would show us her vision but then continued to ask us if there were any specific poses we wanted to do and kept us fully involved. She would make sure you were comfortable the entire time and if you weren’t she would switch it up until you were. I 100% would recommend Hellena to anyone that is looking for a photographer for their special day! I cannot thank her enough for her amazing hard work!
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    Lauren D. Sent on 08/16/2021
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    Wonderful Photography, Wonderful Person!

    Hellena was absolutely amazing as our wedding photographer. From the second we met her, she immediately made me and my (now) husband feel so comfortable. We're not really fans of having our pictures taken, but we felt super comfortable with her. She also immediately was able to adjust to our personal style and was so good at keeping things on track during the wedding. And, of course, the pictures came out gorgeous! I would hire and recommend her 100% again. She was super responsive and very easy to communicate and work with. Thank you, Hellena! We appreciate you!

    Hellena Cedeno Photography's reply:

    Lauren! It was my absolute pleasure to work with you and Kevin. You two are so kind and SOOO MUCH fun! I hope you are enjoying your honeymoon and I hope we can work together again in a near future.

    -Hellena
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    Ashley G. Sent on 08/16/2021
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    Such a joy

    Hellena is such a joy to work with and so accommodating. I've hired her for my maternity shoot but I went into labor the day we were suppose to shoot. She was so sweet about rescheduling to do a family portrait a month later and our photos turned out beautiful. We decided to hire her for our little elopment wedding and I am so we did. Even when things were running behind, she was able to make it work and captured beautiful photos of my family. I can't wait to hire her again for an up dated family portrait.

    Hellena Cedeno Photography's reply:

    Ashley! I love working with you three so much! AND SOON 4!!! I can't wait to capture the next milestone Reid, Zoe and you have.
  • Christina
    Christina Sent on 09/06/2021
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    I loved working with Hellena

    Hellena was one of our favorite wedding vendors to work with. Our photos are beautiful! She was super responsive, thoughtful and helpful through out the entire process. One of my favorite things about Hellena is that she was very present and quick to respond to my messages and calls. This makes a big difference when planning an event. She's also calm, warm and naturally easy to relate with. Both our families are predominately Spanish speakers so they were very happy that Hellena is bilingual. They really loved her personability. I would definitely hire Hellena again :)
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    Brittany C. Sent on 09/03/2021
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    Highly Recommend.

    My husband and I first met Hellena to do our engagement photos 3 years ago. She is so kind, warm, and personable she helped us feel comfortable right away. We spent the entire session laughing. Walking back to the car and without even seeing the finished product we knew we wanted her do our wedding, thats how good she is. Since the she quickly become our family photographer, doing our wedding, pregnancy announcements, maternity, and soon our first family photos.

    Couldn't recommend her more highly.
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    Hazel D. Sent on 08/26/2021
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    Hellena is just the best!

    Found her here in Thumbtack when my now husband and I were looking for a photographer for our wedding day. From our very first conversation, I already knew that it would be such a breeze to work with her! She has a very warm, gracious and fun personality which is just what you need for a photographer. She made everyone feel comfortable taking pics especially when we requested to have a huge photo with everyone in our guest list. She absolutely captured the best moments of the most special and happiest day of our lives! The pictures came out perfect and every time we look at them, it’s like we were back in that very same moment. We will definitely be having Hellena as our photographer for all our future events! Thanks for such an awesome experience, Hellena! :)
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    Stephen P. Sent on 08/26/2021
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    Beautiful Photos, Amazing Experience

    My now-husband and I decided to work with Hellena to photograph our wedding, and we are so thrilled that we did. She was remarkable to work with, and her photographs are amazing! We HIGHLY recommend her. From the very beginning, Hellena was responsive, professional, and incredibly sweet. Even though she and I live on opposite sides of the state, Hellena was communicative and responsive, making sure that she understood our desires and concerns for our wedding day and that we were on the same page. She more-than delivered on all of her promises and took all of the photos we wanted, and they turned out beautifully. This is despite the fact that she had to work with our two large families, toddlers running around, older members with mobility difficulties, and family members running very late. All the while, she was friendly, thoughtful, and helpful. She thought of things we wouldn't have and made suggestions that turned out fantastically. She even helped me move some boxes that the caterer had left lying around! Ultimately, she was wonderful, and I would absolutely work with her again.
  • Rashelle
    Rashelle S. Sent on 08/26/2021
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    Creative, Energetic Wedding Photographer!

    Hellena was amazing to work with, and I cannot say enough great things about her. Our photos were stunning, we had an excellent time, and she was fun and engaging for our shoot. We had never met her before our wedding day, and she made us feel comfortable and heard. I would hire her again in a heartbeat! Best decision!
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