I am a lifestyle family photographer in San Francisco, California and I specialize in maternity photoshoots, family portraits, wedding and event photos, and newborn photography. If you’re looking for something that falls within those categories, I’d be happy to chat about being your photographer. If you’re wondering what types of photography we offer, here is a non-exhaustive list of portrait services: Senior Portraits, Kid Portraits, Newborn Portraits, Baby Portraits, Family Portraits, Engagement Portraits, Wedding Portraits, Headshot Portraits, Executive Portraits, Business Portraits, Lifestyle Portraits, Group Portraits, and Location and Destination Portraits.

Kiarah Photography was started in early 2020. The word Kiarah is made by joining the names of my daughters Kiana and Airah. I love my daughters are decided to name my photography studio after them.

I’m good at what I do. I’ve been called a baby whisperer by my clients. I have a knack for making people look natural and confident. I can recall the clients who swore they never looked good in photographs — but then they saw their portraits — and loved how I captured the essence of their being.

I share Style and Select styling platform for you to decide perfect outfit combinations for your shoot. You can also reach out to me for outfit recommendations.

As a parent myself, I know how kids can be. During the planning process, we’ll work together to plan your session around naptimes, during your child’s most cheerful time of day. Rest assured, if your kid is having an off day, it’s okay to just give me a call so we can discuss options. If you’re concerned about your child sitting still, don’t be! We love working with wiggleworms, and have tricks for handling all that glorious energy that comes with being a kid.

Yes! Kiarah Photography has a dedicated studio, complete with a full array of professional equipment, located at 2800 Oakmont Drive, San Bruno, CA 94066

My studio, Kiarah Photography Photography, is located at 2800 Oakmont Drive, San Bruno, CA 94066, just 10- 15 minutes from downtown San Francisco! 

Yes! While our studio is a convenient choice for indoor portraits, I love going on location — to your home, a park, or elsewhere. I’ve photographed sessions in San Francisco, San Jose, Belmont, East Bay, San Ramon, Fremont, Mountain View, Menlo Park and many other fun spots! Tell me what you have in mind, and we can make it happen. 

If you’re planning a location session, it’s natural to think about inclement weather. During the planning process, I’ll explain my typical contingency plan for location portraits, which sets all of my clients at east. In general, if the weather is bad, we will reschedule (or decide on an alternate/indoor location). Some types of foul weather that we reschedule portrait sessions for include: thunderstorms/thundersnow and lightning heavy rain or downpours winter weather warnings/advisories, including extreme cold excessive heat warnings/advisories, including extreme heat/humidity tornado watches/warnings extreme fog We typically proceed with portrait sessions on a “play it by ear” basis for not-so-foul weather, such as isolated rain showers There has been a time or two when we’ve rescheduled a session, expecting foul weather — and it turned out to be a false alarm. But those instances are few and far between. Usually when we play it by ear, we agree to decide a few hours beforehand whether it looks wise to proceed with your portrait session or not. In short, if you’re concerned about the weather having a negative impact on your portrait session, please contact the studio. We can discuss your concerns so you can be confident as we make the safe choice for your portrait session. Foul weather may require us to reschedule your portrait session, but it will NOT ruin your overall portrait experience.

Kiarah Photography is pleased to provide photographic services in our local area. Frequent session locations include Belmont, Palo Alto, San Mateo, San Jose, San Francisco, Mountain View, Fremont, East Bay, Berkeley, Oakland, and many other locations in and around the Bay Area.  For more information about our availability to travel, please see the next FAQ question regarding travel and fees. 

Our portrait clients are always thrilled with the results from their portrait session, and typically invest based on the session they choose. Every session has a different pricing and further details are provided on the pricing page or can be requested by contacting our studio

The portraits you receive in your album are all edited by hand to at no additional charge. 

The images themselves are creatively crafted — I do not do cookie-cutter photography, so your session will be unique and styled to fit your needs. Each image you receive in your album is enhanced and retouched to eliminate temporary flaws and bring out your natural beauty — I personally inspect every image to make sure it is up to our artistic standards. Feel free to ask about any specific services you have in mind during the planning phase of your session, so we can plan accordingly.

We include 30 miles roundtrip from the studio in all our sessions, and have reasonable travel rates for further locations. Travel fees are mileage-based for much of Bay Area and the East Bay. More distant locations that necessitate an overnight stay will include individually quoted travel/hotel fees.

I recommend reserving your portrait session as soon as possible, as I accept a limited number of sessions weekly. During peak seasons, my clients often schedule several months ahead of time. Depending on your schedule and mine, we may be able to fit in something on short notice, and I do typically reserve time in my schedule for less predictable things like newborn sessions.

I personally discuss with all clients throughout their experience — not just for the photo session. If you desire a pre-session consultation, you can speak with me to talk about your vision and get any questions answered. When it comes time to order your favorite photos, I will help you through that process as well.

We are happy to include pets in your photo session, whether on location or in the studio. Please mention this during the planning phase of your session so we can be prepared to welcome your pet properly. Similarly, if you area allergic to animals, know that we do take special care to clean the studio after animals visit for portraits. Please mention any allergies during the planning phase so we can take extra care to prepare our space before your arrival!

Yes! It’s very popular, and is a great way to get the photos you know you are going to want. Our baby’s first year plan includes four sessions, plus a set of birth announcements, and even a bonus session! Please contact the studio for details.

Newborn portraits are longer, because babies are unpredictable and need time to nurse, feed, be diapered, and tended to. Babies often will sleep through most of the session (and the portraits). It’s not a big deal, because sleeping baby pictures capture the reality of a baby’s days. I usually recommend you stay indoors for your newborn portrait session. It’s just cozier for baby (and you). The studio is nice and warm for newborn portraits, there are comfortable chairs for nursing baby, and we have changing supplies at the ready. 

I also offer at-home newborn lifestyle sessions. These are much shorter than the in-studio sessions and are conducted in the comfort of your home. I may bring in a wrap or two to swaddle the baby and add color to the shots. I do not bring photo props other than a few wraps for at-home newborn shoots.

Yes. I photograph weddings to cover the event and actual wedding. Also, from time to time I do work with couples to plan engagement sessions as well as newlywed portrait sessions. How does this differ from wedding coverage? It’s not candid event photography during your actual wedding. It’s a planned portrait session, at a location of your choosing.

To reserve your session, you pay a non-refundable retainer fee (typically $50-200). This will be applied towards your session fee, the remainder of which is due the day of your session.

We accept cash, check, Venmo, and credit card.

We accept cash, check, Venmo, and credit card.

We believe in being a part of the community. Kiarah Photography has regularly donated time and photographic services to non-profits and local charities, given photography programs to the community and donated part of proceeds back to schools.

Some photographers publish their equipment list, but you won’t find one of those on this website. It’s not about the equipment. Have we spent thousands of dollars on reliable, professional quality, camera and studio gear? Most certainly. The real reason why photographers share their equipment list is to prove that they have reliable, professional quality gear and also backup equipment in case their gear has a mechanical failure. I typically use one camera and one or two lenses during a portrait session. I have multiple backup cameras and lenses. I have enough studio lights to swap in a replacement if there is a failure. I have replacement bulbs, extra batteries, duct tape, safety pins, the list goes on. Bottom line? I have reliable gear (and backups).

You can contact me by phone (+1-617-637-1204) or email me at photographykiarah@gmail.com or use the form on my contact page to send me a message.