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Preserving your most meaningful moments as they unfold like scenes from a movie
Not someone who’s going to yell cut during your ceremony or give you exact direction on how to deliver your vows, but someone who will guide you on this super important day and deliver the photos you’ve been dreaming of.
Whether it’s through my specific formulas for creating ideal timelines or managing your family for hassle-free group photos, you’ll experience this direction throughout wedding planning (Pre-Production), your wedding day (Principal Photography), and delivery (Post-Production).
Using my adaptive humor, outgoing energy, and creative prompts, I transform sessions with your partner from stiff and awkward to lively and fun.
Unscripted Candids
Having your family gathered is a momentous occasion. That's why I pay special attention to your in-between moments, so you can see how your day impacted your community.
Community and family
As an Arizona photographer with a love for cinematic moments, I utilize my filmmaker background to direct you and your partner on how to pose to create cinematic images that feel like stills from a movie.
Cinematic moments
Payton Chadwick
From meeting her at the vendor open house we knew she would be a perfect vendor for our wedding. She was so responsive throughout the entire process, made sure we always had questions answered, and made the whole wedding planning journey a breeze. All of our wedding party, family, and friends commented on how FUN and personable she was. She makes you feel like you’ve known each other for years and makes everyone so comfortable in front of the camera. She is so talented at what she does. We absolutely adore all of our photos and feel like we’re reliving the day every time we look at them!
I will never have enough good things to say about Maya!
Leslie Kastanes
Not only does she have the BEST personality, with an amazing attitude with a contagious cheerfulness but she is also punctual, flexible, easy going, and willing to adjust to help make the day as amazing as possible. That aside she is also an INCREDIBLE photographer! She has an amazing eye, and all of our photos were absolutely stunning! Everyone at our wedding loved her, and we got so many compliments on our photos as well. She is truly one of the most gifted photographers I have ever met and seen, and what an honor it was to get to have her for our wedding. I cannot recommend her enough.
We could not have asked for a more wonderful, amazing photographer for our wedding.
Abigail Jimenez
I cannot stress enough how much I love every photo/video she has taken for us. Not only is she amazing at what she does but she also is an amazing person! She truly cares for you, as she made me feel comfortable and would check up on how I was feeling; weddings can be stressful and overwhelming but not with Maya there! She helped make the wedding day go smooth and she gets all the guests/family members comfortable just by being herself! Cannot recommend her enough! Thank you for all your kindness, patience and hard work!
Maya did such an AMAZING job photographing our engagement and an even better job with our wedding photos!
Cortney Riesberg
We knew from the moment we had a zoom call with her that she was going to be the perfect fit for our wedding. We don't live in AZ so had to do a lot of zoom calls and she was so helpful and informative to ease my mind. Maya did amazing with assiting in the timelines, dealing with family/friends, and ensuring all of our hopes and dreams for our special day came true. We will truly cherish these photos for the rest of our lives. I would highly highly recommend having Maya capture your event any day! We truly feel like we walked away with a friend and plan to continue to have Maya capture more life events for us in the future!
I can't say enough good things about Maya.
Madalyn
Throughout planning Maya really took the time to get to know us and was here to answer literally any question we had so quickly. On the wedding day, Maya was full of the most amazing and contagious energy. She really brings people to life. When she saw our energy running low she would make time to let us cool down which was very needed. She kept the day moving on time and was so helpful throughout. I would absolutely recommend her to anyone looking for photography. I'd hire her a million times again. Her works honestly speaks for itself, but her attitude and personality made or day extra special.
Maya and her team are the absolute best!
In full transparency, most couples that book with us get an 8 hour package and on average spend around $4700. This package of course includes other add ons, like engagement sessions, second photographers, and potentially more. We can customize what works best for you and your wedding in terms of coverage on our call together.
In order to book the Maya Papaya Experience you can fill out on contact form and book a call to talk through all package options and what you’ll need for your wedding day!
Vanessa Costello
Maya is a true joy to work with, she takes the awkwardness out of taking photos...she is your hype person during the session truly making you feel like magic is being captured. As a disabled bride, it was important for me to work with someone who understood. At our engagement session I suggest taking photos with my mobility device, which wasn't a discussion beforehand. She handled it with grace and understanding and took flawless photos that highlighted us, not my equipment. I cannot speak more highly of her and can just say HIRE HER!
A dream come true.
Tayler Williamson
When looking for a photographer, my husband and I knew we needed to find someone special; unique, outgoing, but relaxed enough to roll with the punches. While on the hunt, I fell upon Maya and knew that there was something special about her. 30 minute consults turned into 2 hour phone calls. At our wedding, her and her team caught every moment with perfection, but were stealth enough for me to even forget they were sometimes there. Maya was my first hug after I said "I do" and was one of the last people busting out dance moves on the dance floor next to me. i would get married a million times over just to get to continue to experience her work and love for what she does. Thank you enough enough Maya, we love you!!!!!!
She was such a constant support throughout our wedding planning and we went from business partners to friends very early on in the process.
Amara M
We were recommended Maya Papaya Pictures through our inclusive wedding venue Aldea ( Weddings in the Woods). She was very professional (but super fun) punctual, and her and her teammate Bailey dealt with our unruly groomsmen SO WELL. She got our shy guests to open up and have a genuine good time. I was very worried about us having 45 relatives for family pictures but she made it a BREEZE. She made us feel comfortable and we had multiple guests and family members mention her by name and how impressed they were with her team.
I would recommend her to anyone and everyone.
Gillian
As Mother and Father of the bride we were absolutely thrilled with you being the photographer of choice! In fact you are welcome to any future family gatherings we may have - you were such a joy to have with us! Your energy, enthusiasm and ability to engage even the most reluctant of 'models' was amazing. As we watched you arrange the photo groups your creativity shone through and I found myself already excited to see the final results. I didn't have to wait long! Within just a couple of days Lottie and Matt were able to share a link to their sneak peek from you. The photos are stunning!! Thank you so much for capturing such a wonderful, joy filled day in such a beautiful way. you contributed to making the day such an upbeat, anxiety free day. Thank you for everything.
Don't hesitate! Choose Maya!
Kristy Gossen
Our daughter got married at Aldea 6/23/23 and when Miss Maya showed up, she was a force to be reckoned with!! That energy! I knew she was exactly what we needed! She was energetic & professional. Artistic & organized! She's everything my daughter had hoped for in a photographer. Maya even humored our family request to recreate a "Cousin Picture" of the bride and her siblings and cousins taken 7 years prior. I would recommend Maya to anyone looking to add joy to an occasion.
Miss Maya rocked it!
Michelle Sellers
I mean RUN do not walk!! Maya puts her all into your sessions. So far we've had our engagement session with her (we'll have our wedding on Oct '23) and oh. my. gosh. Is she a one in a million photographer. She keeps you happy and moving and never ever makes you feel awkward. my fiancé hates pictures with a passion so I was stressing but he has so much fun and we had an absolute blast with Maya. She is the kindest, sweetest, most genuine human and I am so happy with how our pictures turned out. We cannot wait for our wedding with her as well, true goddess behind the lens.
Get you a Maya Papaya IMMEDIATELY!!!!
Frequently asked questions
My business has been, and will always be, a safe space for all love.
We’re based out of Phoenix, AZ and primarily photograph weddings throughout the state (Sedona is my JAM). I am open to other travel, and you can get a custom quote by inquiring through our contact page!
We do have a team full of associates, second photographers, videographers, and more, however, you will know before booking if Maya will be the one present on your wedding day. Regardless of who on the team is there day of, you will still be working with Maya throughout your entire experience.
There will always be an option to add-on a second photographer, although some packages might have one included already! I’m extremely comfortable photographing weddings alone, however, there are of course many advantages to having an extra set of eyes and camera during your day.
The main advantage being the ability to be in two places at once during the entire day (for example: getting ready photos (both partners at the same time), 2 viewpoints during the ceremony, and cocktail hour coverage during couple portraits, etc).
Ultimately, this decision depends on your personal preference, wedding timeline, and other details. We can talk through it all together :)
I know it can be hard to try to guesstimate how much coverage you might need when the wedding is so far out. My goal when working with couples to determine coverage is to look at your wedding specifically, and what events you’re prioritizing. Together we can make sure you have exactly what you need (and nothing you don’t), we’ll talk it out in depth together before finalizing anything.
What photo style and coloring can we expect? Also, do you provide retouching/corrective services or adjustments to color?
All photos are edited to reflect the natural Arizona lighting - slightly warm, and yet true-to-color. You’ll of course get photos in black and white, and if there's any photos you receive in color that you’d like additional edited in black-and-white, I’m happy to do that for you. I do not, however, take any requests to change my editing style. What you see on my website and in my galleries is what you can expect to be delivered to you.
In terms of retouching/corrective services, I’m willing to retouch pimples and other small (mostly temporary) things. Any extensive editing can be requested, but is not guaranteed, and will come with an extra per photo fee.
When should we expect our photos to be delivered after the session is complete? How many photos will be delivered?
For any singular session (engagement, family, grad photos, etc) you can expect at least 50-100 images within 4-6 weeks.
For weddings, you can expect on average 600+ images depending on your coverage. This estimate is based on a 6-hour package.
I want to make sure you know that these are simply estimates, and I don’t follow any strict image cap. My philosophy is that if I have a solid image, you can expect it to be delivered.
You have full printing rights to use whatever vendor you’d like, however, I do provide a print house directly attached to your gallery that I can guarantee is great quality and easy to use! Outside vendors will present a risk for poor color and quality, so going with a professional printer is always a safer option.
You’re more than welcome to share this gallery through a link with any family that would also like to print the images.
providing a positive force on your wedding day
providing a positive force on your wedding day
providing a positive force on your wedding day
