First image by Brian D Smith Photography, second of my little sister and me in Canada taken by family, third by Nicholas Gore Photography at Fairweather Studios in Charleston, SC, fourth of my wife and me at a friend’s party (with offseason mustache!), and fifth in New York City by Anne Rhett Photography.

Howdy, folks! I’m so pumped you’re here! My name is Stephen and I’ve spent my whole life just wanting to be an artist and I’ve found my home capturing weddings and shooting portraits. I feel so honored that every weekend I get up and my office is out on the city, in the mountains, or in the gardens putting a visual touch to the character of a relationship between two people. I’ve been doing this now for over 10 years and I never want to take for granted how incredible this job is.

On days I’m not working, you can probably find me hanging with my wife (almost 12 years married!). We love to spend time in our backyard garden, often with our cat, Galadriel. Every year we also set aside time to travel, this year we visited Alaska together. Finally, we love our local city of Charleston and we’re often just trying out a new restaurant or visiting a brewery with friends.

I grew up with a huge family of 36 cousins! My childhood experience was with the chaos of kids everywhere and strong matriarchal figures in my mother and grandma. My style is informed by that experience. I am enthralled with the in between moments and I put so much intentionality in capturing those snapshots in time. Photographers and industry pros call this style “photojournalistic,” but maybe an easier way to think about it is to imagine me working with you to grab those dazzling couples photos but also staying in the moment when grandma wants to come give you a post ceremony hug!

be sure to follow @stephenatohi for wedding related content!

and follow @atohistudio for studio related content!