✨ Meet the Photographer: My Story & Why I Do What I Do ✨

Hi, I’m Stephanie — the eye (and heart) behind the lens at Graceful Rose & Graffin Media. Whether we’ve worked together before or this is your first time visiting my little corner of the internet, I’m so glad you’re here. I wanted to take a moment to properly introduce myself, share how I got into photography, and let you in on the “why” behind everything I do.

🌱 Where It All Began

My love for photography started when I was really young — before I even knew it could be a career. I grew up in a family that deeply valued memories. My dad was a freelance wedding videographer before I was born, and he always had a big video camera around the house. We had disposable cameras everywhere growing up, and my grandfather was always documenting family moments and putting together photo books. I loved it — all of it. I was always the kid asking to take pictures with whatever camera I could get my hands on.

In high school, that love became something more intentional when I began photographing the women’s lacrosse team I managed. I also ran their social media, and it lit a creative fire in me that I couldn’t ignore. Once I got to DeSales University and began working as a student photographer for the athletics department, everything shifted. I realized I didn’t want to go into the medical field like I’d originally planned — I wanted to be a photographer.

By my junior year, I was building my website and laying the foundation for this to become my full-time career. During my senior year, I started branching out into sessions beyond sports — senior portraits, engagement shoots, and lifestyle moments that made me fall even more in love with storytelling through photos. I’m now expanding into newborn photography (coming this fall!) and couldn’t be more excited. Working with children has always been a passion of mine, and combining that with photography feels like a dream.

🌿 My Style & Approach

I like to think of my sessions as relaxed, joyful, and connection-focused. Whether we’re shooting in golden fields of wildflowers, chasing the last rays of sun during golden hour, or capturing a cozy moment between a family of four — I want you to feel yourself.

I’m not into stiff poses or awkward prompts. My goal is to create a space where you can relax, laugh, connect, and trust that I’ll capture the beauty unfolding in real time. Graceful Rose and Graffin Media represent both sides of my creativity: one soft and sentimental, the other bold and dynamic — and both completely rooted in storytelling and authenticity.

💛 Why I Do What I Do

I do this because photography matters. Not just in the digital, scroll-past-it-in-a-second kind of way we’re all used to — but in the deep, timeless, emotional way that makes your heart pause. The kind of way that brings tears to your eyes when you find a forgotten photo tucked into a drawer or saved in an old folder.

The joy I feel when clients see their final gallery is unmatched — the smiles, the happy tears, the disbelief that this is their life, their love, their family captured so beautifully. But beyond that, what fills me most is knowing I’m giving people something lasting. Something they’ll hold onto forever, and can pass down for generations.

Life is only temporary and it definitely doesn’t slow down — babies grow, loved ones age, routines change, and fleeting moments slip by unnoticed. But a photo? A photo freezes time. It reminds you how it felt. It brings you back to who you were, what mattered, and who you shared it with. That’s why I do what I do. Because memory fades — but a photograph brings it all back.

🎉 5 Fun Facts About Me

1. I’m a total sentimentalist. I still cry looking at photo books from when I was a baby and my sister and I were little!

2. I’m obsessed with flowers. Sunflower and wildflower sessions are my favorite — and yes, I pick my locations based on bloom vibes.

3. My dream is to build a home studio one day with cozy vibes, natural light, and a space for mamas and littles to feel at ease.

4. I have two cats. They're my work-from-home buddies!

5. If I weren’t a photographer, I’d probably be working with kids full-time — they’re my other big passion.

📆 Ready to Book a Session?

Whether you're celebrating a milestone, updating family portraits, or just want to freeze a fleeting moment in time — I’d be honored to help you capture it.

✨ Click here to view my available sessions and book your spot!

✨ Want to see what minis are coming up next? View them here!