Words from newlyweds
Words from newlyweds
Megan & Peter
We had an amazing experience with Paul as our wedding photographer. He took incredible photos (digital and film).
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We had an amazing experience with Paul as our wedding photographer. He took incredible photos (digital and film). He is really talented at gracefully managing the wedding party crowd, and had incredible turnaround time for the photos.
Couldn’t recommend him more highly, thanks Paul!!
Christine & Craig
We absolutely love our shots and have already gone through them countless times. Definitely work with Paul if you can!
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We worked with Paul for our wedding in Sept ’23 and we could not have been more happy with our decision! The pictures are stunning and many guests have commented about how great they are. We also did an engagement shoot with Paul and would highly recommend that as way of getting to know each other so that when the big day comes around things are way more relaxed. We were looking for someone that could capture organic/candid moments with our guests not just planned shots and Paul really delivered. The editing and colors are extremely true to how we remember it and feel timeless and not overworked. We absolutely love our shots and have already gone through them countless times. Definitely work with Paul if you can!
Celeste & Eliana
As one of our parents said while looking through Paul’s photos of our wedding: you just can’t help but look at these photos and feel happy. They transport us right back to all the joy and love we felt on our special day— what a gift!
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We could not be happier we worked with Paul as our photographer for our July 2023 wedding!! We knew we loved Paul’s work because he had previously photographed our friends’ wedding and their photos came out beautifully. But it was another level to see his work for our own event.
Paul is excellent at capturing joy and movement—two key pieces of our wedding we wanted to document. We felt like so many other photographers focused on moodiness and still portraits, while Paul was really able to capture raw moments, documenting all the emotions and liveliness of the day. He also included several beautiful shots of the scenery and small details that we didn’t get to fully appreciate in all the excitement of the day, which we are so grateful to have and look back on.
Paul was also such a joy to get to know through our meetings leading up to our wedding. His kindness, thoughtfulness, and appreciation for fun and beauty is evident in both his communications and in his artistry. We are so appreciative of Paul and his assistant for how beautiful all the images came out.
As one of our parents said while looking through Paul’s photos of our wedding: you just can’t help but look at these photos and feel happy. They transport us right back to all the joy and love we felt on our special day— what a gift!
Manali & Dave
…we 1000% would recommend him to anyone! The amount of compliments we got from both of those events on the photos…
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Paul photographed our wedding and our engagement pictures and we 1000% would recommend him to anyone! The amount of compliments we got from both of those events on the photos and how wonderful it was to really capture the moment exactly how we wanted it was amazing. It was the vision both my husband and I wanted and Paul delivered it ten fold.
Paul – thank you so much again for not only delivering our vision but also being a great person to work with on a really important day. Means so much to Dave and I and we consider ourselves really lucky to have gotten the chance to have you photograph our wedding.
Madeline & Matt
I can’t say enough incredible things about Paul. Working with him was a highlight of our wedding (and we had free roam chicken and Wally the sheep
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I can’t say enough incredible things about Paul. Working with him was a highlight of our wedding (and we had free roam chicken and Wally the sheep which is pretty hard to top!) Apart from being so warm, genuine, and effortless to work with, Paul is incredibly gifted when it comes to capturing some of the sweetest, purest moments of that day. It’s hard to put into words, but there is a soul to every one of Paul’s photos. We treasure our pictures and cannot wait for another opportunity to work with him.
Bailey & Trevor
Paul is extremely professional, responsive, and his work speaks for itself!
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Paul was the perfect photographer for our day! We had an untraditional wedding and picked Paul for his excellent eye in capturing real moments throughout the day. You can see some of my favorites attached to this review. Paul is extremely professional, responsive, and his work speaks for itself! Highly recommend.
Camille & Dane
While we can’t go back in time and experience the day all over again, looking at all of the beautiful photos is the next best thing and we would work with Paul again in a heartbeat.
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Paul and his team did an amazing job capturing the joy of our wedding day and we could not be happier with the final photos. Throughout the day, Paul’s calm and professional demeanor helped us to relax and truly enjoy the day. While we can’t go back in time and experience the day all over again, looking at all of the beautiful photos is the next best thing and we would work with Paul again in a heartbeat.
Bel & Aaron
There are no words to describe how much we love Paul’s photos!
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There are no words to describe how much we love Paul’s photos! We are incredibly grateful to him for capturing lifelong memories in his natural and joyful style. We hired him to shoot our wedding at the Berkeley City Club in July 2023 and hiring him was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. Paul’s calm and positive presence made the whole process enjoyable and the photos are absolutely amazing. I’d recommend Paul without a second thought and am happy to speak with anyone who is considering hiring him for their own wedding.
Beatriz & Anthony
Hiring Paul to be our wedding photographer was hands down, the easiest decision we made in the wedding planning process.
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Hiring Paul to be our wedding photographer was hands down, the easiest decision we made in the wedding planning process. From our initial conversation all the way to album delivery, he has been polite, professional, and an overall delight to work with! He answered every question, addressed every concern, that we felt comfortable with him right away. The day of, he was prompt, communicative, and he blended right into the background – and I mean that in the best way! He wove himself so seamlessly into our day and captured the most beautiful moments; of our loved ones, of environment, of our dog! Paul is incredibly talented and has an amazing eye; if you are looking for magical photos of your day, he will deliver that and more! Thank you so much Paul! <3
Austin & Tom
We just got back our wedding album and it so perfectly captured the day, we love all the photos of the small details, some we didn’t even notice…
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Paul is amazing! We used him for both engagement photos and our wedding. We just got back our wedding album and it so perfectly captured the day, we love all the photos of the small details, some we didn’t even notice and various photos of our guests. By the end of the night we very much felt like good friends with Paul and his second shooter. We feel unique in that we are sharing out the photos with all of our wedding guests as there are great shots of a lot of attendees we feel they would want. The album really helps us relive the day and we could not be happier. Book Paul if you have the chance!
Sasha & Tobias
On the day of our wedding, Paul was such a calming presence and a joy to spend time with
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From the very beginning of our conversations with Paul, it was clear above all else that he is a photographer who is both refreshingly humble and absolutely committed to capturing the best images possible. We interviewed other photographers who emphasized their wedding planning experience and promised to offer an additional hand in that area, but as we already had a wedding planner it made much more sense for us to go with someone who was going to be focused intently on capturing great photos.
We did an engagement session with Paul about ten months before our wedding, and we’re so glad we did. We loved the photos we came away with, and it also gave us a chance to get to know Paul. He has a very relaxing manner about him and an impeccable ability to cultivate the right circumstances for great photos without being overbearing or stressful.
On the day of our wedding, Paul was such a calming presence and a joy to spend time with. Even though we’d only met him during our engagement shoot several months before, it felt like we had an old friend on our team helping capture every moment. He got every photo on our list and captured the magic of the day beautifully. We got our sneak peek back within a couple of days and our full photo set arrived on schedule as well. Before we hired Paul we thought the photos in his portfolio were the best wedding photos we’d ever seen, and we couldn’t be happier with the photos he captured of our own celebration. So glad we had Paul there to help us capture the memories of our day!
Ruth & Tom
If I had to do the wedding all again, the only thing I know I absolutely couldn’t do without is Paul. And my husband, I suppose.
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Ruth & Tom
Paul is incredible!! It was super important to me to find someone who would capture the day as it really was, and us as we truly are—no weird filters, no staged emotions, no uncomfortable poses. When I saw the emotion and documentary style in Paul’s photos, I knew that’s what I wanted.
Paul was super communicative leading up to the wedding. On the day he managed to blend into the background during intimate moments, take charge when it came time to wrangle friends and family, and then feel just like another friend hanging out in the in between.
Paul captured everything we asked for exactly as we imagined, but also so many things we would’ve never thought to mention. In between our ceremony and our dinner, our wedding party gathered at our apartment for some casual pizza and drinks. We’d mentioned to Paul at some point that we love our apartment so, so much—and that we were so glad being there would be a part of our day. Paul captured photos of our apartment not just as a setting—but as if it were another one of our friends. He took photos of the art on our walls, the coffee table books, the view out one of our windows. I can’t express how much these mean to me, and I know we will look back on them so fondly once we’ve had to move away from here.
If I had to do the wedding all again, the only thing I know I absolutely couldn’t do without is Paul. And my husband, I suppose.
Jess & Nick
How can I even begin to praise Paul enough for the extraordinary job he did for our micro-wedding in Big Sur?
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How can I even begin to praise Paul enough for the extraordinary job he did for our micro-wedding in Big Sur?
His work/blog/webpage speaks for itself — he has a knack for capturing the most joyful, natural, spontaneous moments and framing everything all so beautifully and uniquely with his genius eye. The photos he took of our wedding far surpassed our very high expectations. We are constantly getting compliments from our friends that they are the most beautiful wedding photos they have seen.
But Paul is not just an amazing photographer; he is also on awesome person. He’s laid-back, fun(ny), and such a good soul. He’s exactly the type of person you want around at a wedding (even a tiny intimate wedding, such as ours). Paul manages to defy Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle- he doesn’t change or ruin a moment by capturing it, he heightens the moment! He’s super stealthy and knows how to be invisible (even if you secretly want him to be your guest, because he’s so lovely!). I was so pleasantly surprised when I saw how many beautiful moments he had caught without our being aware.
His magical attitude and personal experience with weddings is infectious–during our initial consultation with him, amidst the craziness of planning and details, he really fostered a feeling of anticipatory excitement for that day to come (he also gave us excellent DIY ceremony tips!).
Last but not least, he is fantastic writer– the cherry on the top of it all was when he wrote about us on his blog with such moving words! It’s rare to find someone so stellar in two different mediums of expression, but Paul truly is a maestro!.
Maggie & Kevin
He is such a genuine person and truly wants to capture something beautiful that you can keep to remember the day. I would highly recommend him…
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My fiancé found Paul online and entrusted in him to capture our special moment. They did an amazing job at keeping it a secret from me! I truly had no idea, until the moment I turned around and he was on one knee! Paul was capturing the moment but I hadn’t even realized he was there! Paul then took us around to capture more photos of us. He is such a genuine person and truly wants to capture something beautiful that you can keep to remember the day. I would highly recommend him to you, for every occasion! Thank you for everything Paul
Julie & Ryan
The pictures themselves are gorgeous and the best part is that he really captured everyone at the wedding, so we have tons of great photos to share with our family and friends…
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Paul photographed our wedding and we couldn’t have been happier with the process or the beautiful results.
Paul was very knowledgable and guided us through thinking about what we wanted to achieve with our wedding pictures and how this might impact our schedule of wedding events. Our conversations with him over the course of the months preceding the wedding helped us figure out how we were going to structure the entire thing! He was very helpful and thought of everything.
On the day itself, Paul was friendly, professional, and didn’t need a lot of guidance about what to focus on. Which was great, because everyone told us the wedding day would be nuts, but I didn’t realize how busy it would be! The last thing the to-be-wed should have to worry about is the photographer, and with Paul, we didn’t have to. In particular, he was very easy to work with for the portraits, guiding us and our family into good positions but making the whole process as easy as can be.
The pictures themselves are gorgeous and the best part is that he really captured everyone at the wedding, so we have tons of great photos to share with our family and friends. He took exactly the amount of time he said he would to get us the shots–1 month–and they are stunning! Also he organized them well to make the process of sifting through them easier. I highly recommend Paul as a wedding photographer or for any other occasion that warrants professional work. Thanks Paul!
Mark & Brendan
Paul is a dream to work with. From start to finish he was professional, warm and thoughtful…
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Paul is a dream to work with. From start to finish he was professional, warm and thoughtful. Paul is somehow totally unobtrusive and very present–catching all the best moments as they happen. When we got the photos we were overwhelmed! Every picture is beautiful and together they perfectly capture the mood and feeling of our wedding. I can’t recommend him more highly.
Trevor & Hieu
From the beginning when we met him to discuss our special day we could tell he really cared which we didn’t feel with many others…
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Paul was great!
From the beginning when we met him to discuss our special day we could tell he really cared which we didn’t feel with many others.
He did a great job helping to direct younger videographers and had great vision on how to orchestrate us around multiple environments to capture the whole experience. We were amazed he captured some specific things we forgot to tell him about in advance.
Beyond the fabulous pictures, he was easy to communicate with and overall we certainly would recommend him!!
Joanna & Diana
Even more specifically, as a queer couple, we’ve encountered a TON of wedding vendors who are warm, enthusiastic, and “comfortable” with a gay/queer wedding, but it’s clear that it’s not their normal. Paul went above and beyond basic comfort; he quickly demonstrated such a level of cultural fluency and competency that without knowing anything about him personally, I trusted that he saw and understood us…
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Paul was *a dream* photographer! All of our family members, entourage/wedding party members, and guests raved about him, and he was such a pleasure to work with. Posed shots with large families and wedding parties can be really annoying, and we were running behind schedule, but Paul was the perfect professional. He was warm, relaxing, and focused – giving people direction so that they’d feel natural, keeping people laughing, and moving us swiftly through a very long shot list.
I’m so glad we got to work with Paul and that I can recommend him to local friends.
We haven’t gotten our photos back yet (which is to be expected, the wedding was 2 days ago), but my spouse and I were so enthusiastically raving about him that I immediately wanted to go look him up and leave him glowing reviews.
Even more specifically, as a queer couple, we’ve encountered a TON of wedding vendors who are warm, enthusiastic, and “comfortable” with a gay/queer wedding, but it’s clear that it’s not their normal. Paul went above and beyond basic comfort; he quickly demonstrated such a level of cultural fluency and competency that without knowing anything about him personally, I trusted that he saw and understood us.
I would heartily recommend him to any couple, queer, cis, trans, straight, etc., and the next time we’re looking for a professional photographer again, I definitely know who I’m going to call.
Noah & Sarah
Paul is a beautiful photographer, able to tell a story about a human life in one image…
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Paul is a beautiful photographer, able to tell a story about a human life in one image.
At our wedding, Paul put our parents at ease as we posed for photographs, gently encouraging us to show ourselves at our best. He’s funny and charming, so everyone felt comfortable around him. He was thoughtful about encouraging Sarah and me to notice each other, and it shows in the photos of us.
Many guests have commented on the amazing photographs. We couldn’t help but print several hundred of his photos to send to our friends and family with our thank-you notes.
Paul was very flexible about the balance of arranged photos, table shots, and candids, and he subtly captured many of our guests looking like their most radiant selves throughout the celebration.
I was never distracted by him during the ceremony, yet he has preserved details I would otherwise have forgotten. He was attentive to the choreography of the events, and he managed to be in all the right places.
He was responsive and easy to work with leading up to the wedding as well.
In the end, Paul was moved by the ceremony, and that emotion comes through in the images he shared with us.
Gideon & Lina
…showing the feeling that flowed through our wedding and the people who made it so wonderful…
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Paul did an amazing job finding moments that told the story, showing the feeling that flowed through our wedding and the people who made it so wonderful. HIs pictures are beautiful, warm and alive, we couldn’t be happier!
Maggie & August
If I had to pick a wedding photographer again, I would pick Paul a thousand times over! …
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If I had to pick a wedding photographer again, I would pick Paul a thousand times over! Incredible. He was wonderful at capturing the energy of the event and the space. Not only is his work product beautiful, he was a pleasure the day of. Friends and family are still talking about how talented he is!
Jenny & Trevor
Paul is so creative with his shots, quick with the camera, and great at giving direction without making shots look too posed
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We were lucky to have Paul capture our day. From the start he was super easy to work with. He took the time to meet with us and get a sense of who we are as a couple and individuals. While he was laid back, he was also really helpful in navigating us through the process of wedding photography. He is not pushy at all and gives great direction while going with the flow. I can’t say enough about his photography, his shots speak for themselves. My friends and family loved reliving our day through his photos. Paul is so creative with his shots, quick with the camera, and great at giving direction without making shots look too posed. He even suggested us stealing away during the most gorgeous light to take a few photos, he quickly took his shots and they turned out to be just about everyone’s favorites. Paul is very reliable and professional, such a great creative personality to work with.
Alexis & Maryanne
I could sense that he was someone who is a pro at capturing people as they really are. I loved the spirit of authenticity in his wedding photos…
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When I came across Paul’s work I immediately knew that I wanted him to be our wedding photographer. I could sense that he was someone who is a pro at capturing people as they really are. I loved the spirit of authenticity in his wedding photos. Besides providing us with amazing wedding photographs, he communicated great, was very easygoing, and gave us our pictures earlier than I expected. Many guests commented on how great, unobtrusive, and professional he was. He took into account everything we wanted yet also incorporated a lot of his vision on how to make the photographs go beyond our expectations. Besides all of that, I could sense that Paul was truly passionate about making our photos great and cared deeply about our experience;not just about the photos but also our day in general. It’s nice to work with someone who is truly meant to do what they do. Hiring him was hands down the best investment in planning our wedding.
Phoebe & Chris
He had terrific energy and grace in corralling people for posed photos and then kept snapping photos through a rambunctious dance party…
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Paul’s photos for our wedding were perfect and he was a pleasure to work with. His photos have an incredibly natural and candid feel to them. He did an amazing job of capturing all of the people we love in action and was always in the right place at the right time. He had terrific energy and grace in corralling people for posed photos and then kept snapping photos through a rambunctious dance party. Paul’s photos are beautiful and he is just what you want in a photographer. He was easy going, professional and went out of his way to shoot our event. We would recommend him without reservations as a photographer for any event.
Shelley & Kieran
[He] did amazingly well with challenging and varied lighting – from an outdoor ceremony where the sun kept darting in and out of the clouds to an evening reception in a tent with minimal overhead light…
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When we look at the pictures that Paul took we are instantly transported back to our wedding day. He got so many wonderful shots and did amazingly well with challenging and varied lighting – from an outdoor ceremony where the sun kept darting in and out of the clouds to an evening reception in a tent with minimal overhead light. Paul captured all of the photos on our list and then some! We highly recommend him to anyone seeking a photographer for any occasion.
Becca & Josh
He captured the emotion of the weekend, focusing on people’s expressions of joy and elation…
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Paul is a fantastic photographer, and I recommend him without reservation! To start, Paul was down to earth, easy going, present, and professional and personal in our meetings leading up to the wedding. He agreed to meet first via skype, while my partner and I were traveling out of the country. We later met in person and corresponded via email throughout the year leading up to our wedding. Paul was responsive and clear in all of his communications, which made the process super easy for us.
At the wedding, Paul was just incredible. Outside of the portraits, I don’t even remember seeing him, but he somehow captured our event beautifully. The photographs are more incredible than I ever could have imagined. When we’ve shown them to friends, everyone has agreed – the photos are amazing, but nobody saw him at the wedding – he didn’t get in the way at all.
Paul’s style is ideal for folks who want photographs that show what it was like to actually be at the wedding. His eye is tuned in to shooting shots from the perspective of an attendee, which is great fun to see after the wedding. He also captured the emotion of the weekend, focusing on people’s expressions of joy and elation. He got close-ups and larger framed shots, which together repaint the wedding perfectly.
I recommend Paul to anyone looking for a photographer who is friendly and professional, artistic, easy to work with, and bound to deliver images that will continue to re-evoke memories of your celebration. Thank you, Paul!!
Rachel & Bill
…thinking back as I write this, Paul is the only vendor from the day that I can’t even think of one thing that i wish had been different! So that’s pretty awesome actually 🙂
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Paul was easy to be around (which was especially important to my husband who was more nervous about being in front of a hundred plus people, etc.), but as important: his pictures blew me away. Our parents and everyone has commented on his skill and the caliber of his shots. He captured so many moments at the exact rt time and got portraits of our guests laughing, talking, looking radiant through the cocktail hour and dinner. He was completely responsive to the pictures and group shots we wanted and even convinced us to take a few more at times when lighting was amazing or a backdrop ideal; and he was totally rt. He also kept a closer lens throughout the night on our families and those we asked him to. He was absolutely unobtrusive so I can’t believe the photos he got of our ceremony and us later in the eve, given that I didn’t notice him being there at all. He also got fantastic shots of all on the dance floor. Back to his personality: he is easygoing, kind, and lovely. He listens astutely and the gentle calm just made a big difference given all the other (good) chaos of the day….But thinking back as I write this, he is the only vendor from the day that I can’t even think of one thing that i wish had been different! So that’s pretty awesome actually 🙂
Andrea & Sam
I never imagined I’d have photos like this of my own wedding…
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We are so lucky to know Paul Gargagliano (at Hazel Photo) because now we have the most beautiful wedding photos. I never imagined I’d have photos like this of my own wedding. We spent a lot of time and effort on details at our wedding and Paul captured them all. Our ceremony was on a cold, overcast day, but the shots all pop with bright light and colors. Paul took incredible action shots of everyone smiling and having fun during our parade after the ceremony. I think the greatest thing about Paul’s work is the way he captures people. All of our guests look stunning and full of emotion. It’s so beautiful because it looks like real life, and sometimes even better. Highly recommend.
Words from newlyweds
Megan & Peter
We had an amazing experience with Paul as our wedding photographer. He took incredible photos (digital and film).
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We had an amazing experience with Paul as our wedding photographer. He took incredible photos (digital and film). He is really talented at gracefully managing the wedding party crowd, and had incredible turnaround time for the photos.
Couldn’t recommend him more highly, thanks Paul!!
Christine & Craig
We absolutely love our shots and have already gone through them countless times. Definitely work with Paul if you can!
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We worked with Paul for our wedding in Sept ’23 and we could not have been more happy with our decision! The pictures are stunning and many guests have commented about how great they are. We also did an engagement shoot with Paul and would highly recommend that as way of getting to know each other so that when the big day comes around things are way more relaxed. We were looking for someone that could capture organic/candid moments with our guests not just planned shots and Paul really delivered. The editing and colors are extremely true to how we remember it and feel timeless and not overworked. We absolutely love our shots and have already gone through them countless times. Definitely work with Paul if you can!
Celeste & Eliana
As one of our parents said while looking through Paul’s photos of our wedding: you just can’t help but look at these photos and feel happy. They transport us right back to all the joy and love we felt on our special day— what a gift!
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We could not be happier we worked with Paul as our photographer for our July 2023 wedding!! We knew we loved Paul’s work because he had previously photographed our friends’ wedding and their photos came out beautifully. But it was another level to see his work for our own event.
Paul is excellent at capturing joy and movement—two key pieces of our wedding we wanted to document. We felt like so many other photographers focused on moodiness and still portraits, while Paul was really able to capture raw moments, documenting all the emotions and liveliness of the day. He also included several beautiful shots of the scenery and small details that we didn’t get to fully appreciate in all the excitement of the day, which we are so grateful to have and look back on.
Paul was also such a joy to get to know through our meetings leading up to our wedding. His kindness, thoughtfulness, and appreciation for fun and beauty is evident in both his communications and in his artistry. We are so appreciative of Paul and his assistant for how beautiful all the images came out.
As one of our parents said while looking through Paul’s photos of our wedding: you just can’t help but look at these photos and feel happy. They transport us right back to all the joy and love we felt on our special day— what a gift!
Manali & Dave
…we 1000% would recommend him to anyone! The amount of compliments we got from both of those events on the photos…
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Paul photographed our wedding and our engagement pictures and we 1000% would recommend him to anyone! The amount of compliments we got from both of those events on the photos and how wonderful it was to really capture the moment exactly how we wanted it was amazing. It was the vision both my husband and I wanted and Paul delivered it ten fold.
Paul – thank you so much again for not only delivering our vision but also being a great person to work with on a really important day. Means so much to Dave and I and we consider ourselves really lucky to have gotten the chance to have you photograph our wedding.
Madeline & Matt
I can’t say enough incredible things about Paul. Working with him was a highlight of our wedding (and we had free roam chicken and Wally the sheep
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I can’t say enough incredible things about Paul. Working with him was a highlight of our wedding (and we had free roam chicken and Wally the sheep which is pretty hard to top!) Apart from being so warm, genuine, and effortless to work with, Paul is incredibly gifted when it comes to capturing some of the sweetest, purest moments of that day. It’s hard to put into words, but there is a soul to every one of Paul’s photos. We treasure our pictures and cannot wait for another opportunity to work with him.
Bailey & Trevor
Paul is extremely professional, responsive, and his work speaks for itself!
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Paul was the perfect photographer for our day! We had an untraditional wedding and picked Paul for his excellent eye in capturing real moments throughout the day. You can see some of my favorites attached to this review. Paul is extremely professional, responsive, and his work speaks for itself! Highly recommend.
Camille & Dane
While we can’t go back in time and experience the day all over again, looking at all of the beautiful photos is the next best thing and we would work with Paul again in a heartbeat.
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Paul and his team did an amazing job capturing the joy of our wedding day and we could not be happier with the final photos. Throughout the day, Paul’s calm and professional demeanor helped us to relax and truly enjoy the day. While we can’t go back in time and experience the day all over again, looking at all of the beautiful photos is the next best thing and we would work with Paul again in a heartbeat.
Bel & Aaron
There are no words to describe how much we love Paul’s photos!
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There are no words to describe how much we love Paul’s photos! We are incredibly grateful to him for capturing lifelong memories in his natural and joyful style. We hired him to shoot our wedding at the Berkeley City Club in July 2023 and hiring him was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. Paul’s calm and positive presence made the whole process enjoyable and the photos are absolutely amazing. I’d recommend Paul without a second thought and am happy to speak with anyone who is considering hiring him for their own wedding.
Beatriz & Anthony
Hiring Paul to be our wedding photographer was hands down, the easiest decision we made in the wedding planning process.
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Hiring Paul to be our wedding photographer was hands down, the easiest decision we made in the wedding planning process. From our initial conversation all the way to album delivery, he has been polite, professional, and an overall delight to work with! He answered every question, addressed every concern, that we felt comfortable with him right away. The day of, he was prompt, communicative, and he blended right into the background – and I mean that in the best way! He wove himself so seamlessly into our day and captured the most beautiful moments; of our loved ones, of environment, of our dog! Paul is incredibly talented and has an amazing eye; if you are looking for magical photos of your day, he will deliver that and more! Thank you so much Paul! <3
Austin & Tom
We just got back our wedding album and it so perfectly captured the day, we love all the photos of the small details, some we didn’t even notice…
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Paul is amazing! We used him for both engagement photos and our wedding. We just got back our wedding album and it so perfectly captured the day, we love all the photos of the small details, some we didn’t even notice and various photos of our guests. By the end of the night we very much felt like good friends with Paul and his second shooter. We feel unique in that we are sharing out the photos with all of our wedding guests as there are great shots of a lot of attendees we feel they would want. The album really helps us relive the day and we could not be happier. Book Paul if you have the chance!
Sasha & Tobias
On the day of our wedding, Paul was such a calming presence and a joy to spend time with
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From the very beginning of our conversations with Paul, it was clear above all else that he is a photographer who is both refreshingly humble and absolutely committed to capturing the best images possible. We interviewed other photographers who emphasized their wedding planning experience and promised to offer an additional hand in that area, but as we already had a wedding planner it made much more sense for us to go with someone who was going to be focused intently on capturing great photos.
We did an engagement session with Paul about ten months before our wedding, and we’re so glad we did. We loved the photos we came away with, and it also gave us a chance to get to know Paul. He has a very relaxing manner about him and an impeccable ability to cultivate the right circumstances for great photos without being overbearing or stressful.
On the day of our wedding, Paul was such a calming presence and a joy to spend time with. Even though we’d only met him during our engagement shoot several months before, it felt like we had an old friend on our team helping capture every moment. He got every photo on our list and captured the magic of the day beautifully. We got our sneak peek back within a couple of days and our full photo set arrived on schedule as well. Before we hired Paul we thought the photos in his portfolio were the best wedding photos we’d ever seen, and we couldn’t be happier with the photos he captured of our own celebration. So glad we had Paul there to help us capture the memories of our day!
Ruth & Tom
If I had to do the wedding all again, the only thing I know I absolutely couldn’t do without is Paul. And my husband, I suppose.
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Ruth & Tom
Paul is incredible!! It was super important to me to find someone who would capture the day as it really was, and us as we truly are—no weird filters, no staged emotions, no uncomfortable poses. When I saw the emotion and documentary style in Paul’s photos, I knew that’s what I wanted.
Paul was super communicative leading up to the wedding. On the day he managed to blend into the background during intimate moments, take charge when it came time to wrangle friends and family, and then feel just like another friend hanging out in the in between.
Paul captured everything we asked for exactly as we imagined, but also so many things we would’ve never thought to mention. In between our ceremony and our dinner, our wedding party gathered at our apartment for some casual pizza and drinks. We’d mentioned to Paul at some point that we love our apartment so, so much—and that we were so glad being there would be a part of our day. Paul captured photos of our apartment not just as a setting—but as if it were another one of our friends. He took photos of the art on our walls, the coffee table books, the view out one of our windows. I can’t express how much these mean to me, and I know we will look back on them so fondly once we’ve had to move away from here.
If I had to do the wedding all again, the only thing I know I absolutely couldn’t do without is Paul. And my husband, I suppose.
Jess & Nick
How can I even begin to praise Paul enough for the extraordinary job he did for our micro-wedding in Big Sur?
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How can I even begin to praise Paul enough for the extraordinary job he did for our micro-wedding in Big Sur?
His work/blog/webpage speaks for itself — he has a knack for capturing the most joyful, natural, spontaneous moments and framing everything all so beautifully and uniquely with his genius eye. The photos he took of our wedding far surpassed our very high expectations. We are constantly getting compliments from our friends that they are the most beautiful wedding photos they have seen.
But Paul is not just an amazing photographer; he is also on awesome person. He’s laid-back, fun(ny), and such a good soul. He’s exactly the type of person you want around at a wedding (even a tiny intimate wedding, such as ours). Paul manages to defy Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle- he doesn’t change or ruin a moment by capturing it, he heightens the moment! He’s super stealthy and knows how to be invisible (even if you secretly want him to be your guest, because he’s so lovely!). I was so pleasantly surprised when I saw how many beautiful moments he had caught without our being aware.
His magical attitude and personal experience with weddings is infectious–during our initial consultation with him, amidst the craziness of planning and details, he really fostered a feeling of anticipatory excitement for that day to come (he also gave us excellent DIY ceremony tips!).
Last but not least, he is fantastic writer– the cherry on the top of it all was when he wrote about us on his blog with such moving words! It’s rare to find someone so stellar in two different mediums of expression, but Paul truly is a maestro!.
Maggie & Kevin
He is such a genuine person and truly wants to capture something beautiful that you can keep to remember the day. I would highly recommend him…
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My fiancé found Paul online and entrusted in him to capture our special moment. They did an amazing job at keeping it a secret from me! I truly had no idea, until the moment I turned around and he was on one knee! Paul was capturing the moment but I hadn’t even realized he was there! Paul then took us around to capture more photos of us. He is such a genuine person and truly wants to capture something beautiful that you can keep to remember the day. I would highly recommend him to you, for every occasion! Thank you for everything Paul
Julie & Ryan
The pictures themselves are gorgeous and the best part is that he really captured everyone at the wedding, so we have tons of great photos to share with our family and friends…
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Paul photographed our wedding and we couldn’t have been happier with the process or the beautiful results.
Paul was very knowledgable and guided us through thinking about what we wanted to achieve with our wedding pictures and how this might impact our schedule of wedding events. Our conversations with him over the course of the months preceding the wedding helped us figure out how we were going to structure the entire thing! He was very helpful and thought of everything.
On the day itself, Paul was friendly, professional, and didn’t need a lot of guidance about what to focus on. Which was great, because everyone told us the wedding day would be nuts, but I didn’t realize how busy it would be! The last thing the to-be-wed should have to worry about is the photographer, and with Paul, we didn’t have to. In particular, he was very easy to work with for the portraits, guiding us and our family into good positions but making the whole process as easy as can be.
The pictures themselves are gorgeous and the best part is that he really captured everyone at the wedding, so we have tons of great photos to share with our family and friends. He took exactly the amount of time he said he would to get us the shots–1 month–and they are stunning! Also he organized them well to make the process of sifting through them easier. I highly recommend Paul as a wedding photographer or for any other occasion that warrants professional work. Thanks Paul!
Mark & Brendan
Paul is a dream to work with. From start to finish he was professional, warm and thoughtful…
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Paul is a dream to work with. From start to finish he was professional, warm and thoughtful. Paul is somehow totally unobtrusive and very present–catching all the best moments as they happen. When we got the photos we were overwhelmed! Every picture is beautiful and together they perfectly capture the mood and feeling of our wedding. I can’t recommend him more highly.
Trevor & Hieu
From the beginning when we met him to discuss our special day we could tell he really cared which we didn’t feel with many others…
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Paul was great!
From the beginning when we met him to discuss our special day we could tell he really cared which we didn’t feel with many others.
He did a great job helping to direct younger videographers and had great vision on how to orchestrate us around multiple environments to capture the whole experience. We were amazed he captured some specific things we forgot to tell him about in advance.
Beyond the fabulous pictures, he was easy to communicate with and overall we certainly would recommend him!!
Joanna & Diana
Even more specifically, as a queer couple, we’ve encountered a TON of wedding vendors who are warm, enthusiastic, and “comfortable” with a gay/queer wedding, but it’s clear that it’s not their normal. Paul went above and beyond basic comfort; he quickly demonstrated such a level of cultural fluency and competency that without knowing anything about him personally, I trusted that he saw and understood us…
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Paul was *a dream* photographer! All of our family members, entourage/wedding party members, and guests raved about him, and he was such a pleasure to work with. Posed shots with large families and wedding parties can be really annoying, and we were running behind schedule, but Paul was the perfect professional. He was warm, relaxing, and focused – giving people direction so that they’d feel natural, keeping people laughing, and moving us swiftly through a very long shot list.
I’m so glad we got to work with Paul and that I can recommend him to local friends.
We haven’t gotten our photos back yet (which is to be expected, the wedding was 2 days ago), but my spouse and I were so enthusiastically raving about him that I immediately wanted to go look him up and leave him glowing reviews.
Even more specifically, as a queer couple, we’ve encountered a TON of wedding vendors who are warm, enthusiastic, and “comfortable” with a gay/queer wedding, but it’s clear that it’s not their normal. Paul went above and beyond basic comfort; he quickly demonstrated such a level of cultural fluency and competency that without knowing anything about him personally, I trusted that he saw and understood us.
I would heartily recommend him to any couple, queer, cis, trans, straight, etc., and the next time we’re looking for a professional photographer again, I definitely know who I’m going to call.
Noah & Sarah
Paul is a beautiful photographer, able to tell a story about a human life in one image…
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Paul is a beautiful photographer, able to tell a story about a human life in one image.
At our wedding, Paul put our parents at ease as we posed for photographs, gently encouraging us to show ourselves at our best. He’s funny and charming, so everyone felt comfortable around him. He was thoughtful about encouraging Sarah and me to notice each other, and it shows in the photos of us.
Many guests have commented on the amazing photographs. We couldn’t help but print several hundred of his photos to send to our friends and family with our thank-you notes.
Paul was very flexible about the balance of arranged photos, table shots, and candids, and he subtly captured many of our guests looking like their most radiant selves throughout the celebration.
I was never distracted by him during the ceremony, yet he has preserved details I would otherwise have forgotten. He was attentive to the choreography of the events, and he managed to be in all the right places.
He was responsive and easy to work with leading up to the wedding as well.
In the end, Paul was moved by the ceremony, and that emotion comes through in the images he shared with us.
Gideon & Lina
…showing the feeling that flowed through our wedding and the people who made it so wonderful…
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Paul did an amazing job finding moments that told the story, showing the feeling that flowed through our wedding and the people who made it so wonderful. HIs pictures are beautiful, warm and alive, we couldn’t be happier!
Maggie & August
If I had to pick a wedding photographer again, I would pick Paul a thousand times over! …
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If I had to pick a wedding photographer again, I would pick Paul a thousand times over! Incredible. He was wonderful at capturing the energy of the event and the space. Not only is his work product beautiful, he was a pleasure the day of. Friends and family are still talking about how talented he is!
Jenny & Trevor
Paul is so creative with his shots, quick with the camera, and great at giving direction without making shots look too posed
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We were lucky to have Paul capture our day. From the start he was super easy to work with. He took the time to meet with us and get a sense of who we are as a couple and individuals. While he was laid back, he was also really helpful in navigating us through the process of wedding photography. He is not pushy at all and gives great direction while going with the flow. I can’t say enough about his photography, his shots speak for themselves. My friends and family loved reliving our day through his photos. Paul is so creative with his shots, quick with the camera, and great at giving direction without making shots look too posed. He even suggested us stealing away during the most gorgeous light to take a few photos, he quickly took his shots and they turned out to be just about everyone’s favorites. Paul is very reliable and professional, such a great creative personality to work with.
Alexis & Maryanne
I could sense that he was someone who is a pro at capturing people as they really are. I loved the spirit of authenticity in his wedding photos…
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When I came across Paul’s work I immediately knew that I wanted him to be our wedding photographer. I could sense that he was someone who is a pro at capturing people as they really are. I loved the spirit of authenticity in his wedding photos. Besides providing us with amazing wedding photographs, he communicated great, was very easygoing, and gave us our pictures earlier than I expected. Many guests commented on how great, unobtrusive, and professional he was. He took into account everything we wanted yet also incorporated a lot of his vision on how to make the photographs go beyond our expectations. Besides all of that, I could sense that Paul was truly passionate about making our photos great and cared deeply about our experience;not just about the photos but also our day in general. It’s nice to work with someone who is truly meant to do what they do. Hiring him was hands down the best investment in planning our wedding.
Phoebe & Chris
He had terrific energy and grace in corralling people for posed photos and then kept snapping photos through a rambunctious dance party…
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Paul’s photos for our wedding were perfect and he was a pleasure to work with. His photos have an incredibly natural and candid feel to them. He did an amazing job of capturing all of the people we love in action and was always in the right place at the right time. He had terrific energy and grace in corralling people for posed photos and then kept snapping photos through a rambunctious dance party. Paul’s photos are beautiful and he is just what you want in a photographer. He was easy going, professional and went out of his way to shoot our event. We would recommend him without reservations as a photographer for any event.
Shelley & Kieran
[He] did amazingly well with challenging and varied lighting – from an outdoor ceremony where the sun kept darting in and out of the clouds to an evening reception in a tent with minimal overhead light…
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When we look at the pictures that Paul took we are instantly transported back to our wedding day. He got so many wonderful shots and did amazingly well with challenging and varied lighting – from an outdoor ceremony where the sun kept darting in and out of the clouds to an evening reception in a tent with minimal overhead light. Paul captured all of the photos on our list and then some! We highly recommend him to anyone seeking a photographer for any occasion.
Becca & Josh
He captured the emotion of the weekend, focusing on people’s expressions of joy and elation…
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Paul is a fantastic photographer, and I recommend him without reservation! To start, Paul was down to earth, easy going, present, and professional and personal in our meetings leading up to the wedding. He agreed to meet first via skype, while my partner and I were traveling out of the country. We later met in person and corresponded via email throughout the year leading up to our wedding. Paul was responsive and clear in all of his communications, which made the process super easy for us.
At the wedding, Paul was just incredible. Outside of the portraits, I don’t even remember seeing him, but he somehow captured our event beautifully. The photographs are more incredible than I ever could have imagined. When we’ve shown them to friends, everyone has agreed – the photos are amazing, but nobody saw him at the wedding – he didn’t get in the way at all.
Paul’s style is ideal for folks who want photographs that show what it was like to actually be at the wedding. His eye is tuned in to shooting shots from the perspective of an attendee, which is great fun to see after the wedding. He also captured the emotion of the weekend, focusing on people’s expressions of joy and elation. He got close-ups and larger framed shots, which together repaint the wedding perfectly.
I recommend Paul to anyone looking for a photographer who is friendly and professional, artistic, easy to work with, and bound to deliver images that will continue to re-evoke memories of your celebration. Thank you, Paul!!
Rachel & Bill
…thinking back as I write this, Paul is the only vendor from the day that I can’t even think of one thing that i wish had been different! So that’s pretty awesome actually 🙂
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Paul was easy to be around (which was especially important to my husband who was more nervous about being in front of a hundred plus people, etc.), but as important: his pictures blew me away. Our parents and everyone has commented on his skill and the caliber of his shots. He captured so many moments at the exact rt time and got portraits of our guests laughing, talking, looking radiant through the cocktail hour and dinner. He was completely responsive to the pictures and group shots we wanted and even convinced us to take a few more at times when lighting was amazing or a backdrop ideal; and he was totally rt. He also kept a closer lens throughout the night on our families and those we asked him to. He was absolutely unobtrusive so I can’t believe the photos he got of our ceremony and us later in the eve, given that I didn’t notice him being there at all. He also got fantastic shots of all on the dance floor. Back to his personality: he is easygoing, kind, and lovely. He listens astutely and the gentle calm just made a big difference given all the other (good) chaos of the day….But thinking back as I write this, he is the only vendor from the day that I can’t even think of one thing that i wish had been different! So that’s pretty awesome actually 🙂
Andrea & Sam
I never imagined I’d have photos like this of my own wedding…
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We are so lucky to know Paul Gargagliano (at Hazel Photo) because now we have the most beautiful wedding photos. I never imagined I’d have photos like this of my own wedding. We spent a lot of time and effort on details at our wedding and Paul captured them all. Our ceremony was on a cold, overcast day, but the shots all pop with bright light and colors. Paul took incredible action shots of everyone smiling and having fun during our parade after the ceremony. I think the greatest thing about Paul’s work is the way he captures people. All of our guests look stunning and full of emotion. It’s so beautiful because it looks like real life, and sometimes even better. Highly recommend.
Paul
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