Hey, I'm Lea Austen, a family and wedding photographer based in Charleston with 20 years of experience. I love candid, natural photography, yet also have a weak spot for elegantly posed family portraits. I think the experience you get while working with me matters as much as the end result. That's why each session is tailored specifically for your needs.
When I'm not behind the camera I'm a yoga instructor and I am happy to offer meditation and yoga sessions to brides and their bridal party. Are you planning a family reunion? You must know that I'm great with kids and can easily handle big family sessions. As for wedding ceremonies, I prefer the more intimate events.
When I'm not behind the camera I'm a yoga instructor and I am happy to offer meditation and yoga sessions to brides and their bridal party. Are you planning a family reunion? You must know that I'm great with kids and can easily handle big family sessions. As for wedding ceremonies, I prefer the more intimate events.
Services
I'm Lea Austen, I specialize in family portraits, senior sessions and intimate wedding ceremonies. I've been photographing professionally for two decades now, from Charleston, Kiawah and Seabook islands, to Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head and overseas. My approach is calm and down to earth. I like to use humor to put my clients at ease and make each session a fun and natural experience.
My photography style is candid, photojournalistic, yet intentional. I think my background in acting and teaching yoga has made me more mindful towards the little details. It's the secret winks, the silly smiles and stolen kisses, that often go unnoticed, yet carry so much value and meaning. I'll be sure to surprise you with some lovely shots of those moments.
Getting to know you and setting up a consultation appointment are the first steps in creating your session. I look forward to meeting you. Charleston photographer, with 20 years of experience in family portraits & wedding ceremonies. I capture love stories & meaningful life events in an elegant, timeless way.
Reviews (10)
Lillian Donahue
Apr 04, 2021
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Sabala Baskar McNiel
Feb 28, 2021
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Lea shot our wedding a few years ago and every time I look back on those photographs it fills me with such joy and appreciation for her as an artist. She went out of her way to accommodate our dual/bi-cultural ceremony and made sure she she had a second shooter on hand so that we didn’t miss a moment on what was a very busy day. Lea’s warm and kind spirit will put us and our guests at ease — I highly recommend her business!!
Aileen Larson
Nov 22, 2020
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Lea’s work is absolutely STUNNING! We received so many wonderful pictures of me and my family! She is great with kids! My three year old is so difficult when it comes to pictures and smiling. Lea has great techniques to get children to smile and we received multiple smiling photos of her! Overall, we had such a wonderful time and we would highly recommend if you are in search for a great photographer! Blessings❤️
Anthony B.
Nov 18, 2020
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Laura Robertson
Dec 07, 2019
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I researched Charleston area photographers and looked over their work and was lucky enough to find Lea last summer. She photographed our family on the beach during a family vacation and we were thrilled with the results! We loved Charleston so much that my sister and I took our 80 year old mother to the beach for her birthday in April and Lea captured a beautiful birthday trip to perfection. She is a TRUE artist and a special person to boot. We HIGHLY recommend Lea!
Barbara Halliday
Dec 25, 2015
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Lea is an awesome photographer! She has been taking our family photos for about 12 years now. She always pleases us with so many creative shots to choose from. She is patient, kind, positive and most of all fun! We always enjoy our photo shoot. She is definitely our "go to photographer" and we are also proud to call her a friend. She is amazing!!!
Arvin Jawa
Jul 28, 2015
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Lea was fantastic! She helped my family plan a photo shoot during an annual family reunion which happened to be at Wild Dunes, South Carolina in Summer of 2014. Lea knew great locations, was adept at handling a large family (20 people) and working with kids (infants up to 10 years). She prepared us well for outfits and presentation preparation. We loved our photos and found it really easy to order prints/images after the shoot. I highly recommend it to locals but also to families traveling to the area who are in need of a good professional photographer.
Elizabeth Dailey
Nov 12, 2014
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Lea is an amazing photographer and person! She photographed our wedding 5 years ago in Mexico. She captured the most magnificent moments that are now frozen in time for us to enjoy for year and year and years to come. Lea is very easy to work with and her talent shines through! She is great at corralling large groups of people too. I would highly recommend Lea for any photography needs!
Danielle P.
Aug 17, 2014
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We had a truly wonderful experience with Lea for our wedding day photographs. She was professional, prompt with answers to questions and on time. In addition, she was an absolute pleasure to be around and we LOVED working with her. Our photos turned out so well that we recently went to a wedding where there was a table of guest wedding photos and people kept coming us to us and compliment our wedding photo! It was difficult to choose from all the photos we received as to our favorite ones to hang on the walls. We highly recommend Lea.
L. Boyer
Jul 15, 2014
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Lea is an awesome photographer!!! She shot our Beach Wedding in Charleston and the pictures are beautiful!!! Lea is easy to work with and very personable!! She listened to our requests and exceeded our expectations. Very knowledgeable about locations and the area, virtually made our Wedding Day stress free!!! She made our experience perfect!!!
