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Every moment tells a story

My photography has always revolved around people and their stories. I have a desire to capture the true essence of who you are and the relationships with those who matter most in your life. Whatever stage of life you are in; newly engaged, becoming a parent for the first time, an entrepreneur starting your own business, I want to document the magic, beauty and chaos of your everyday life and important milestones.

 

kind words

ReviewsBlog

Melissa has a way of putting her clients at ease and capturing them in lovely moments. She has been taking my photos for over 10 years. I love how she explores the beauty in the world around her with color and movement. I would recommend Melissa to anyone looking for amazing photography!

-Megan

Melissa has been our photographer for engagement, maternity, newborn and 1 year photos. She is super fun and engages us in a light-hearted manner (we tend to take ourselves a little seriously and feel awkward in front of a camera.) She does a great job capturing our family relationships and gets some great shots, even with a grumpy kid. Melissa is also very timely with getting photos back to us. I highly recommend her to others!

- Lorene

We have used Melissa for 4 photo sessions including maternity, newborn and and family portraits with our twins. She is super laid back and friendly. She's very accommodating and I have gotten a ton of great compliments on our pictures. She's timely, reasonably priced, and truly loves her work! We love working with her and highly recommend her!

-Kristi

meet melissa

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I’m Melissa, a portrait, family and lifestyle photographer based in Lancaster, PA. Folks who know me well would describe me as a child at heart who is known for her killer party planning skills and obsession with unicorns and mermaids. I’m a lover of vibrant colors, impromptu dance parties and anything that involves bacon and avocado. Read more >

let's hang out on instagram

My first pregnancy was pretty much by the book until I tested positive for gestational diabetes at the end of the second trimester. I was shocked and devastated at first, in disbelief because I thought I was healthy and worried how it would affect my baby. For the rest of my pregnancy I became super focused on my diet and exercise, testing my blood sugars 4x a day and researching everything there was to know about gestational diabetes and birth. I really wanted a non medicated natural delivery and did not want to be induced. The weekend of my due date I was a crying nervous wreck. Induction was scheduled for Monday and an ultrasound showed that baby was transverse (sideways) which meant possible c-section if she didn't go back to head down. In one dramatic moment I told my husband I wanted to run away and give birth in a field alone. I believe in the power of prayer, and Sunday morning I went on a walk to clear my head and journal, in the hopes of getting labor started. I wasn't planning on going to church, but after my walk I ended up there near the end of the service and decided I would just stand near the back and if it was meant to be, Daisy Beamer would come and pray for me. This woman is a prayer warrior, especially when it comes to babies. Sure enough, she saw me and I shared my anxieties and she prayed for baby to flip. Later that day we happened to run into her at the local pool and she came over to me and said, "I didn't tell you this earlier b/c I thought it was a little odd, but when I prayed for you I had a vision of you doing handstands underwater. When I saw you here at the pool I had to come tell you that". So lemme tell you, that's what I did! And what do you know, she was head down when I went to the hospital and after a long hard labor she was born without any drugs or interventions! I could not have done it without my husband and doula by my side.
Sibling love in the sunshine ☀️
Made it to Zumba tonight and my butt was kicked. It was a nice reward to come outside into the cold air and see the snow sparkling like diamonds. I was reminded that I really miss dancing and need to update my playlist with some new music. Any recommendations on some songs that have a booty shaking beat?
Time for a getaway. Last year this time I was preparing to go to Utah for @photonative (excellent conference btw) Now that I’ve got an infant means a big trip across the country isn’t going to happen this year but I’m itching for a winter trip of some sort. Of course I’m always behind with planning a cabin weekend and all the reasonably priced Airbnb’s within 2 hours drive of Lancaster are pretty much booked. If anyone has ideas for a family friendly getaway this month or next, I’m all ears! I also hope to participate in some sort of in person creative photography workshop this year and affordability and driving distance is key. Hit me up with ideas! #risingtidesociety #motherhoodunplugged #candidchildhood #communityovercompetition #familyphotography #lancasterpaphotographer
First photo session of 2019 is in the books and I’m feeling excited for what is in store this year as I think about my goals. I think intentional is going to be one of my words of the year for my business. I want to be more intentional about connecting with my clients and preparing them for the photo shoot experience (especially first time clients). This means creating a “Welcome” guide is one of my goals. Basically a nicely designed printable PDF that talks about what to wear, how to prepare, when to expect photos, etc. along with some photos to show my work/style. If any fellow photogs have pointers on where to begin with something like this, I’d love to have your input and advice! Side note: I hope I get to shoot more maternity sessions in 2019! #doubleexposure #communityovercompetition #clickinmoms_new #maternityphotography #inspiredpregnancy #honestmotherhood #beyondthewanderlust #lancasterpaphotographer #melissaenglephotography
Finishing up the edits on my last photo shoot of 2018 today with the lovely Claire! Can't decide if I like this image of her in color or black and white better. Opinions? I love how her eyes pop with the green moss in color but I also love how the black and white shows the shape and texture. Also, side note, she reminds me a bit of a young Demelza from the TV show Poldark (my latest obsession). Anyone else watch it? #poldark #demelza #seniorsession #liveauthentic #lancasterpaphotographer #seniorportrait #melissaenglephotography #centralpaphotographer