“Sam is an amazing photographer. She and her husband go above and beyond to make sure she gets the perfect setting for you on your special project. She captured my engagement and wedding day and I knew with confidence that I would not be disappointed. I am always amazed by the outcome and everyone is always so impressed by how she maximizes the setting to make each snapshot absolutely magical. Not only is she extremely talented, but she has so much passion and love that just brings an amazing energy to ensure the whole project is an enjoyable experience. I can’t thank her and her team enough and feel so blessed to have met such an amazing person. Book her early to ensure you have her to capture your special day!”

“Sam and Allen were amazing! Sam was in contact with me leading up to our elopement and they went above and beyond helping us scout out a ceremony location! Sam did a wonderful job with my make up and as a team they made sure of listening to our vision and making to come true!! We will definitely be using them again!!”

“I cannot say enough about how amazing Sam and Allen are. From the second I wrote her about our plans she was attentive and extremely helpful. Her and Allen know and love Yosemite which made our choice that much easier and more special. She was as excited about our elopement plans as we were!! When we first started planning it seemed very straightforward, but the actual day was so much more. We were up at 2am. Sam came over to do my makeup for the day and we headed straight into the park. Getting ready I realized I had never pinned a boutonniere and Allen came to the rescue. They wore so many hats during the day and truly made our dream elopement come to life. The photos literally take my breath away. I can’t recommend them enough. Of course as photographers- but also as people. From the bottom of our hearts thank you so much Sam and Allen for helping make our most special day perfect and for the beautiful photos we will cherish forever.”

“Where do I even start? Sam (and Allen!) made our engagement shoot adventure in Mammoth the MOST magical experience. We will truly remember how beautiful and fun it was for the rest of our lives. I’ve never looked at pictures of myself without judgement/ we are definitely not a couple that is “natural” and not awkward in front of a camera LOL! But Sam told us exactly what to do and made us feel so truly beautiful… She is a true artist in every way. Sam and her husband Allen are a crazy amazing team! There’s no way for me to describe without sounding cheesy as heck lol but they are like yin and yang. The way they communicate and work together is it’s own kind of magic. Not to mention they are seriously the most chill and fun people to hang out with- which may not be the first thing you consider when choosing a photographer but is SO important! Because it sets the tone for how you will feel shooting with them! It’s actually super crucial to making you feel comfortable enough to let go and enjoy!
It’s hard to believe that someone who is such a talented photographer could be an equally talented makeup artist… yes somehow this is true of Sam… it’s kind of unbelievable that she has two passions that work perfectly hand and hand together. I have smaller eyes and haven’t had the best experiences getting my makeup done in the past, but Sam knew exactly what to do and made me feel like a princess. I’ve honestly never had my makeup done and felt so pretty/ seen (if this makes sense).
At the risk of sounding too over the top, I honestly feel like booking Sam is the best decision we made in terms of our engagement pics/ wedding! We haven’t even had our wedding yet but I already know this is true. I can’t WAIT to see what she does for our wedding and the best part is I have no stress knowing we are in the best hands…. It’s an amazing gift to be able to touch people by making them feel truly beautiful and themselves and that’s the gift Sam and Allen gave to us. THANK YOU SAM for sharing your amazing gift! We will cherish these pics forever!”

“Sam and Allen are incredible and the sweetest humans I’ve met. The photos they took are stunning and I plan on telling any friend who is looking for a photographer to reach out to Sam. Not only did we love her work we admired her, patience, kindness and work ethic. One of my sisters has special needs and was not in the mood to have her photo taken but Sam took the time to capture her perfectly. They handled and engaged with our group of eight with grace and joy.

When people love what they do, it shows. Sam and Allen captured the essence of who we are as a family and we are so grateful! Call her!”

“Sam and her husband make a great team. They helped my fiancé and I with finding a location for our engagement photos, as well as giving me ideas for outfits and seating. I cannot say enough good things about Sam Rae Makeup & Photography.”

“Sam and her team did a wonderful job! They are very professional, kind and very reliable! Our wedding pictures came out beautifully! She captured so many beautiful moments that my husband and I will treasure forever! Thanks again Sam you are the best!! I highly highly recommend! Five star service”

“Samantha is AMAZING!! She shot our engagement photos in Big Bear and our expectations were exceeded! My hubby and I can be awkward in front of the camera, but she told us how to pose and was extremely friendly the entire time and made us feel really comfortable. Not to mention, our photos are BEAUTIFULLLLLLLLL. We share them everywhere and everyone compliments the color and style.”

“Loved everything about the photoshoot. The pictures turned out more than awesome!! Thank you so much for capturing the moments!”

“Amazing we hired them for our wedding and they were a dream team! I highly recommend as they were great to work with and total sweethearts!”

“Sam and I met for an impromptu photo shoot. I am blown away by the talent she has. Never, ever have I EVER felt so absolutely stunning after having my makeup done. If I could hire her as my daily personal MUA, I WOULD!! Thankful her Communications major didn’t steal her away. You couldn’t ask for better, really!!”

“Samantha invested the time to learn what we liked and what was important to us. She took the effort to make us comfortable and really captured us. We can’t recommend Samantha enough. We will always have Samantha take our important pictures.”

“Samantha was absolutely wonderful to work with! She is extremely professional and friendly, and my brother and future sister-in-law loved their engagement photos!”

“Samantha had a great attitude and was on time the day of my appointment. She is very friendly and professional. She is very skilled and knowledgeable of makeup and the latest looks. I loved how she explained everything she was doing and asked what I liked and didn’t like she made me feel very comfortable and relaxed. I would highly recommend her for your next event and I am definitely hiring her back for any future events I attend.”

“Samantha was ah-may-zing! Samantha came to the site on time and even had her husband assist her during the photo shoot. My husband and I did a photo shoot at the beach which was absolutely epic! The sunset displayed shades of pink, purple, and orange which was gorgeous. My husband and I adore Samantha and her approachable ways as a photographer. Samantha is both professional and friendly at the same time. We will definitely recommend her to other friends and family! She made our day today and yes, I decided to trash my dress in the waves that were crashing at me which I do not regret. Five stars and up for Samantha Rae Photography!”

“Samantha is AMAZING! She did both my makeup and my photography and I couldn’t be happier! The photos were exactly what I wanted, not posed, just natural and they were exquisite. I highly recommend Samantha.”

“Samantha did my makeup for my wedding and I LOVE IT!!!! She was very sweet and did a great job. I like a more natural looking makeup. I’m very picky when it comes to let someone do my makeup because they always apply a lot of product and I feel like I have a mask on. but Samantha did it just right, no too excessively. she exceeded my expectations ”

“amazing I was thrilled she totally nailed my wedding makeup xo”

“Samantha took my daughter’s graduation pictures. The experience was amazing from scheduling, to makeup, to the on site shoot, to the preview and ordering. Highly recommend her for your professional makeup and photography needs.”

“We had a great family session! Samantha was very laid back and friendly. Our pictures came out beautiful! Very pleased!”

“The entire process was amazing from start to finish. We had done a photo shoot recently and the experience felt very unnatural. But with Samantha (and Alan!) we were truly taken care of! The scenery was beautiful, but honestly we were put in such perfect situations to make the most of it.

Thanks so much again!”

“Working with Samantha was a dream. She did a wonderful make up job with high end products. Being from out of town it was so stress free to work with Samantha as she had a bunch of great outdoor places to choose from. My fiance and I would love to work with Samantha again and would highly recommend her as both a make up artist and photographer.”

“I love working with Samantha! She is very professional and has an amazing eye for a good shot in photography! She did my makeup flawlessly! She is very creative and doesn’t mind getting a little dirty for a good shot! I love how my pictures turned out!”

“Samantha did a wonderful job helping me with my engagement photos!”