Welcome to the Testimonials page! This page is where you'll find raves, from brides and grooms who've hired Mary to photograph their wedding day,written in their own words.
Below is the sweet card and gift sent as a thank you from Stephanie and Brian who were married at the Key Largo Lighthouse in Key Largo, FL recently. It reads: " I'm sorry this took so long to get to you! We wanted to thank you again for the amazing photos. We will always cherish them. We really loved working with you! Thank you for making everything so easy. You are truly a gem! Love Stephanie and Brian
Below is the adorable card received from Becca and Trey (pictured above) who had their wedding at Sombrero Beach in Marathon, FL. It reads: "Mary, Greetings from Texas! Thank you again and again for being a huge part in our special day. It was so nice to be stress free and fun. You were everything and more! Your attention to detail was amazing. Thank you for getting all our "favorite" shots. We miss the beach already and look forward to another trip to the keys soon! Love, The Berry's (Becca, Trey & Baby Bria)"
Below is the lovely card sent from Susan and Josh. It reads: "Mary- You have no idea how thankful I am to have stumbled upon your page. I am so grateful for your flexibility and talent. You blew away my expectations. Thanks again and warmest holiday wishes. Susan and Josh Eckhardt."
Below is the sweet post card they sent thanking me. It reads: "Mary- thanks for celebrating our wedding with us and everything you did for us. We LOVE the photos. I wish you lived closer so we could use your skills all the time! We hope to get together w/y'all next time we visit. Love, Laura and David Alderman"
I cannot recommend Mary Veal Photography enough. Not only did she serve as our photographer, but she provided excellent advice and recommendations on venues, wedding planners, music and more. She is a truly genuine person, and sincerely cared about our wedding day.
Our first point of contact was a phone conversation that lasted over an hour. I was confused and needed in guidance in planning a wedding from Iowa. Mary familiarized me with the island over the phone and took the time follow up with an e-mail with contacts I was in need of.
"We were beyond thrilled and excited to view the photos Mary took. She did an absolutely amazing job. And, they are event better in print! The quality is excellent and professional. She is the best on the island!
We cannot wait to visit Key West and have her take photographs for us again. She is a gem!" Jennifer and Christian ~ Married at The Southernmost House, Key West, Florida
Below is the lovely thank you card Jennifer and Christian sent me. It reads: "Mary and Rod, Thank you for all you hard work on our wedding day. The photos turned out amazing! You're lucky to have such a talent. You were both so great to work with, I'll recommend you to any and everyone :) Christian and I can't wait to return to Key West! Thank You! Love, Jennifer & Christian" ~ Married at The Southernmost House, Key West, Florida
"As an out of town bride, choosing a photographer was a leap of faith involving our local planner and a tour of photography websites. As anxious as I was about this element, all of my qualms were put to rest when we met Mary in person. The entire experience working with her was easy, and she really captured the feel of our day which was relaxed, candid, and family-centered. Though I arrived late for my own ceremony, Mary did not seem perturbed and even stayed late to take MORE pictures so that we would have a wealth of photographs to peruse and choose from. I really appreciated how easy she was to work with and how she helped my semi-awkward with poses husband look handsome and composed while I looked radiant and in love. The beautiful teasers that were posted a few days after the ceremony had me anticipating the rest of the album, and it did not disappoint. I, obviously, highly recommend Mary Veal Photography and would hire her again in a heartbeat. Thanks for capturing our wedding day, Mary!" ~ Jaquelyn and David ~Married on Smathers Beach in Key West, Florida
"I recently had a destination wedding in Key West FL that was absolutely wonderful. I live in OH so planning a wedding someplace I've never been or seen was very difficult and counted on vendor's reviews. All of my vendors were fantastic but out of everyone Mary was best. She responded to all of my emails very quickly which was so comforting. She was so helpful from the beginning even helping find a package that would be within my budget. She is so personable I felt like I knew her for years. The day of my wedding I of course was very nervous, she helped me stay calm bc she was sooo relaxed which I can't thank her enough. Also I was very upset bc it was not the prettiest day out cold and cloudy. I expressed to Mary that I was bummed cause I felt like my pictures wouldn't be as pretty she responded with o don't worry about that, that'll make your pictures even better, more dramatic. She was right my pictures were AMAZING!!! So passionate and dramatic. Some even looked like the sun was shinning! Best of all I told her I didn't really want posed pictures I wanted them to tell our wedding day story, which she did. I will never be able to thank her enough! And all my friends and family that couldn't come are amazed when they look at my pictures. Thanks again Mary, you have quite the gift!" Ashley & Tim ~ Married at They Hyatt in Key West, Florida
"Mary was an amazing photographer. We used her to capture our wedding this July. She has an amazing eye for photographs. She managed to capture the true moments of our wedding which is not an easy task especially trying to get 4 small ones to pose for pictures. Not only is she a great photographer she also became a great friend. She felt like family!." Jenna and Scott ~ Married on Palm Island in Marathon, Florida
"Mary is an amazing photographer! From the moment that I met her I felt comfortable and as if I was meeting up with an old friend! We spoke mostly via email since we live in RI and had a destination wedding in Key West. Mary's focus was getting every picture that we wanted and not on the time that we had. Mary picked me up at the condo that I was staying at and drove me and my now husband around Key West snapping photographers. It is obvious that Mary loves her job as a photographer and it is obvious in her photographs. I researched a lot of photographers and Mary is very reasonable and very easy to work with. Mary even took the time to get us some of our pictures within days so we could share with our families back in . I can't say enough good things about Mary, I am very happy with my pictures and my experience!!" Ashley and Steven ~ Married at Fort Zachary Taylor, Key West, Florida
"My husband I and were married in Key West while in port during a cruise. Making arrangements with Mary prior to the big day was very easy as well as enjoyable. On our wedding day Mary collected us at the docks and drove us to the beach location (with a mini-tour of the town) for the first part of the photo shoot. She was very professional and directed the shoot while being responsive to our desires. We then drove to the catamaran for the wedding service. Again Mary was very professional and not intrusive. When I received the proofs I couldn't believe all of the shots she had taken; many times I didn't know she was there snapping away. After our time on the catamaran, Mary offered to stop where-ever we wanted on our way back to the ship. Overall I feel we received an excellent value, Mary went above and beyond acting as tour guide and chauffeur for the day. Because of the fabulous shots she captured, we will be able to revisit this special days many years to come." Loretta and Gord ~ Married on Sebago's Catamaran "Marquesa"
Where do I even start? My husband and I had always envisioned this beautiful beach wedding with the sun shining and picture perfect blue waters in the background. The day of our wedding wasn't that...rain, rain, and more rain. Prior to our big day I had never met Mary. Once I arrived to the beach...Mary was one of the first people there to welcome me with her comforting smile. Yes it was raining lightly and I had to hold an umbrella during the ceremony! But who said you can't have beautiful pictures if the sun isn't shining? Our pictures still turned out beautiful and we are very thankful she is such a talented photographer. We were unable to get all the beach shots I had wanted due to the rain and wind. I had asked Mary if she would mind coming to the reception to take some additional shots and she didn't even hesitate. Her job was just to take photos of the ceremoney but she was more than willing to work with us. She then suggested that we pick a day that wasn't raining and she would take more shots of us at the beach. WE are SOOOOO thankful she offered that to us. Not only did Mary capture all the beautiful images from the ceremony but the beach photos that were taken a few days later were AMAZING! I describe how stunning they were. She has wonderful ideas and really knows how to create the perfect shot. We have so many memories from that day at the beach. She was an absolute delight to work with. I would highly recommend her to any couple looking for a photographer for their big day! We were blown away with the final images. WE have received so many compliments on our photos....they are perfect!
We are so thankful for Mary...now we have photos to last us a lifetime. :)" Kristie and Cory ~ Married on Smathers Beach in Key West
"I can not explain enough how much Mary made my wedding. Everybody says to cherish every moment because it will be over in the blink of an eye. You don't realize how true that is intill you experience it yourself. There is so much going on that it is hard to take it all in fully. But when you look back at the pictures that Mary takes, you can feel every bit of every moment all over again.
We had a very special situation, our child - our dog - Mia, hates cameras. I went into the wedding expecting that we would have no good pictures. Mia is impossible. Mary's tender, down to earth, and sweet personality along with her talent and motivation produced the most beautiful pictures of my life. I absolutly could not believe how shot after shot was so perfect and full of meaning. Without Mary, I would not be able to look back on my wedding and feel the same emotion I did on that day.
This sounds ridiculous, but I told my husband that if i won the lottery that i would hire Mary full time to just follow us around and take pictures. I can't wait to hire her again for my next party.
Thank You Mary. With all our hearts, especially Mia's." Cecilia and Antonio ~ Married on Smather's Beach in Key West
"I cannot even think of enough amazing things to say! Mary was a total professional, and has an incredibly creative eye. Instantly she made our group comfortable with getting our pictures taken. She is also fearless!! Our wedding was on a boat, and it was a rocky trip-during the ceremony she stood above us to take photos! I've never seen wedding photos from this angle and I cannot believe how beautiful they turned out!
Within a week of the ceremony, our pictures were on Mary's website. We were so convinced we wouldn't see photos so quickly! They were absolutely breathtaking! I highly, highly, highly recommend Mary Veal!" Jessica and Justin ~ Married on The Party Cat boat in Key West, Florida