Check Out Samantha Maye’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Samantha Maye.

Samantha, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I began my journey with photography by capturing my travels—the places I discovered and explored. I wanted to have a million memories to look back on, especially when traveling with my significant other and my dog. I loved capturing light on landscapes, tiny details like wildflowers, and the expansive night sky. While taking photos of my travels, I started feeling drawn to capturing other people’s memories, too.

When I began Maye.Be Take A Photo, I was in a weird transition period—I had just finished my undergraduate degree and had applied to graduate school, but I wasn’t feeling as drawn to the career path I was headed down. I realized I didn’t love what I was doing, but every time I went and took photos I had so much fun. I decided I’d continue with both a graduate program and photography while deciding what was a better fit. I didn’t start photography to make money or find a new career. I started to foster a passion, something I had never done before.

As soon as I started offering photography services to clients, I realized that all parts of this business came naturally to me—from taking and editing pictures to running and promoting my business to communicating with clients and providing them with the best possible experience—and that I was absolutely on the right career path.

Now, I’m officially a full-time photographer and I love my job (so much that it doesn’t feel like a job to me). I get to document important journeys for couples and plan an adventure with them, and I’m thrilled to be along for the ride!

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
This journey has not been easy! I’ve been running Maye.Be Take A Photo completely on my own. I started doing photography professionally while I was in a master’s program that I thought I would turn into a career.

I had to balance classes and research with the challenges of running a new business, and for a while, I didn’t have any free time. I would multitask all day, every day—feeding research cows at 5 a.m., doing homework on the way there and back, responding to emails from clients, responding to emails from colleagues, taking photos in the evenings and on weekends, editing images each night, posting on social media, building out my website, the list goes on.

Eventually, though, I realized that not only was I making enough money from photography to make a career out of it, but I was also so much more passionate about it. After graduating, I decided to pursue my passion full-time, and I’m happy to say that now I get to help plan and document beautiful and adventurous weddings and elopements every day! I’m still multitasking, with a lot going on and “wedding season” in full swing—but I am so much happier.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m an adventure elopement photographer! I capture couples on their intimate wedding day, where the focus is on them and what they want to do. Most of my work is done out in the middle of nowhere—requiring hiking, backpacking, offroading, or some other kind of adventure to reach insane views. I’m known for bold and colorful imagery that really captures the couple and the location.

Adventure elopements are an incredibly fun way to make it “official”. They are perfect for anyone—the couple that wants privacy and gorgeous views without having to hike or the couple that wants to backpack for days. Although adventure elopements don’t require the amount of planning that a large wedding does, they do have a lot of other considerations, like safety and weather in nature, and that’s where my expertise comes in.

One of the things that I think sets me apart from other photographers is that I’m not just a photographer—I also help my clients plan unbelievable adventures that are unique to them. I know the logistics that go into these kinds of elopements and can help choose locations, activities, timing, outfits, ceremonies, and other vendors needed to make them happen.

This isn’t just an extra service I can offer—for every couple I book, I have a customizable portal for us to use to stay on track, communicate, and plan the perfect day. I typically start with a location guide based on the couple’s preferences during their consultation call and in their booking questionnaire.

Once they pick the best spot for them, I help them choose where to stay, find vendors that will help make the day incredible and curate a timeline with fun activities. From there we can discuss all the little details and anything else needed to create the perfect adventure elopement!

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Most people who see my work would never guess that when I first started doing photography professionally, I was absolutely uninterested in shooting weddings (and frankly, had no clue that elopements existed). I hadn’t been to a wedding (even as a guest) since I was 5 years old. So I didn’t really know much about the different kinds of weddings people could have—the only option is not just big church weddings.

When I started photography, I was mostly taking pictures for families, and I told my partner I “wouldn’t touch weddings with a 10-foot pole.” However, another photographer reached out and asked me to second-shoot a beautiful, intimate wedding with her because she was not from the area. I had so much fun documenting this carefree couple who prioritized their relationship and had a very meaningful day. Initially, I was thrown off by the bride running around with no shoes on and the casual vibe of the day. But by the end of the day, I was obsessed. It was so much fun capturing the little details, the big picture, and everything in between. The other photographer noticed how much I loved it, and after seeing the photos, she encouraged me to reconsider wedding photography.

Since then, I’ve documented more than 50 wedding days—everything from big church weddings to multi-day backpacking elopements. I love all kinds of wedding days; as long as the couple is happy, so am I. But I will forever favor the small, intimate elopements—it’s what I’d choose to shoot every single day of my life if I could. There is just something about getting to capture a couple making such a big commitment to each other while doing their absolute favorite thing.

Contact Info:

• Website: mayebetakeaphoto.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/maye.be.take.a.photo
• Facebook: facebook.com/maye.be.take.a.photo
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@maye.be.take.a.photo