Half Full Photography

BEST DECISION we could have ever made when choosing Joey and April to be a part of our big day. My husband and I. let’s just say we get a little awkward when having our pictures taken. It’s just not our thing. But it was our wedding day and of course we wanted photos and memories of it! With that said, it was extremely important to us to find a photographer who made us feel comfortable and relaxed– I mean if you think about it, you really spend more time with your photographers on your big day than anyone else! Joey and April were actually recommended by good friends of ours who used them for their wedding day photography. When we met it just felt right. They are easy going but insanely organized, fun but professional… just awesome people all around. They are great with communication whether it be by phone or email– and always quickly responsive to even the dumbest of questions. They offer packages, but also offer the ability to create a package that best suits you and your needs. We chose a package with an engagement photo session so we could have a little «practice round» before the big day. After taking a couple of pictures we were good to go– Joey made us feel so comfortable and was able to capture some great pictures of us. There weren’t any forced and corny poses– everything felt natural and organic. Our wedding day was just as easy with Joey and April and sharing such moments with them was as if we were sharing them with close family and friends. We are so in love with all the photos they took of us and are nothing but stoked that we chose them to create such special and forever memories for us– thank you April and Joey!

I wish I had the right words to describe how absolutely THRILLED we are to have found you two! I want people to realize just how connected and in tune you both are to each of your clients and how that connection shines through in your work. The early images you have shared of my daughter’s wedding are absolutely breathtaking! I am biased a bit, given I think I have a gorgeous girl for you to work with, but WOW, just WOW! Not only are the photographs stunning but your professionalism, good humor, organizational skills, and sense of fun brought the celebrations to a whole other level. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

We were incredibly fortunate to have found Joey and April as photographers for our wedding. We found that so many vendors offer limited choices and constant pressure to fit into a package of what is best for them and not best for you. Joey and April were an absolute joy to do business with, because they made it very clear their focus is on us and how we would like our wedding to be shot and every other details, not matter how small. They treated us like family and were a constant warm and joyful presence during the entire process.
Joey and April worked to ensure the package of products and services was exactly what we were looking for. We are incredibly thankful for that, however the photos they shot surpassed all of our expectations. We had several trial shoots with other vendors and they simply were not even close to the quality of shots from Half Full. They worked several locations, scenes, poses, and captured the light and sentiment of each photo perfectly. We are incredibly thankful for their work.
I will close with one of our favorite moments from the wedding. We had just finished the ceremony and were taking our newly married pictures. We were at an outdoor location right behind the altar where we were married. My husband was holding me close and kissing my cheek. Joey caught that moment with the perfect amount of sunlight that made the shot look stunning. He checked the shot on his camera and said «oh wow, you guys have to come see this». We were all instantly in love with it and knew it was ‘the photo’ of the wedding. We have a black and white enlargement on our wall and we will cherish that moment forever. Joey and April made that moment possible, and we are forever grateful. Please choose Half Full for your next wedding, they will exceed all of your expectations.

Joey & April are more than amazing! Their professional, yet calm, loving demeanor was exactly what we wanted. Their work captured the essence of our awesome wedding day!
They are the best! Super fun and also so in love! Their love and respect for each other engendered the most perfect environment for the happiest day of my life.
Joey & April with Half Full Photography are 100% full of awesomeness… And they shoot kick-​ass pics!
Thank you for capturing the magic of our wedding day in a way that I will be able to relive forever with my husband and best friend.

Our biggest hurdle in finding our wedding photographer was finding people who we were completely comfortable with. Within the first 5 minutes of our initial Skype meeting, we knew Joey and April were perfect for us! We spent most of the time chatting as if we knew each other for years! And yes, if you have checked out their website, they are as cool as you imagined. =) As easy going as they are, don’t let that fool you, they will keep you on schedule and get the shots that you’ve specifically requested and more. Not only were they extremely professional during the entire process — but they continued to keep us comfortable in front of the camera which helped make our photos look natural — exactly what we wanted. Joey and April definitely have a great eye and it shows in the photos that they captured — they turned out beautiful!!!

This review is a little late, but Joey and April were AMAZING wedding photographers! They were able to get the best shots and really made unforgettable memories for us. Not only are they extremely talented, but they are really nice people to work with. They had a quick turn around for the photos and even expedited a handful of shots from our late November wedding for Christmas cards. I’ve recommended them to every couple I know looking for a photographer.

Joey and April are AWESOME! We have gotten to know them over the past 2 years, first working with them for our engagement photos in 2014. My husband is in the military and we were moved to Texas at the beginning of our engagement which made planning the wedding a little difficult. Joey and April were able to work with our crazy schedules, and fit us in whenever we had time to come home to Southern California. Right off the bat, from our initial meeting with them, we felt comfortable. They invited us into their home, just weeks after having a newborn, and it felt like we had been friends for a long time. They answered all of our questions, ran through their photography style, and explained just how our wedding day would go. They constantly communicated with us over the next year about scheduling, the process, and everything in between. On the day of our wedding, Joey and April were there on time, ready to go, and helped ease us through it all. Having your photos taken can be kind of an awkward experience at times, especially when you are kissing and canoodling for those cutesy couples photos — but the entire time, we felt completely comfortable and at ease. They were efficient and professional — we couldn’t ask for anything more! We would absolutely recommend them to anyone! Seriously, hire them. Like now. :)

We cannot say enough awesome things about Joey and April. From one very organized person to another or someone who isn’t at all — these are your people. Their photographs are unmatched– ours came out better than we thought possible! On top of that Joey and April are so organized and help plan the details out beforehand so you’re aren’t swamped the day of or even the days right before. They also made my husband who hates taking pictures totally at ease and captured some amazing shots. We really can’t thank them enough for being so professional, so friendly, so talented and so awesome. You guys rock! –Aoife and Casey

This review is WAY overdue. I honestly can’t say enough good things about Joey and April from Half Full Photography. Choosing them as our photographers was one of the best decisions we made for our wedding. They shot our wedding at the end of June and it really did feel like friends were taking our photos rather than a photography vendor. From the moment we met them, we knew they were people we wanted to work with. Joey and April made sure that they were always available for any questions we had leading up to the wedding and even the day of the wedding. They always returned calls or emails right away and helped us out with everything we needed. They were absolutely incredible to work with and really made you feel like you were their top priority. They really were an absolute dream and our photos turned out AMAZING! (and were delivered rather quickly). You can tell that what these guys do truly is their passion and they pour that into their photos. They want to make sure that they capture the most important day of your life in a way that is personal and meaningful to you. Trust me when I say, you will not be disappointed with this company. They are honestly the best! They made this whole process so easy for us. We are so lucky to have come across Half Full Photography and now we have absolutely beautiful photos to cherish. Thank you Joey and April for sharing your passion with us and for giving us photos that will be hanging on our walls forever. You both are truly gems! Cheers! E+R

We can’t say enough wonderful things about Joey & April! From the second we contacted Half Full we were wowed. Joey and April were so easy to talk to and immediately put us at ease about the whole process. We loved meeting with them and beyond loving their photographs, we enjoyed their company and friendship. We worked with Joey and April for our wedding and engagement and photographs and all of the photos were so wonderful and fun. Joey and April helped us come up with amazing settings for engagement photos that really captured what we love to do as a couple, and of course made for great photos. Our wedding day was no different. Joey and April helped us organize WONDERFUL photos with our family and friends and everyone loved having them around — they really added so much to our special day! We loved every aspect of Half Full Photography and would recommend them to any of our friends!

Amazing photos? Check. Organized? Check. Fun? Check. Better dressed than the rest of your guests? Check. Not one, but TWO of our professional photographer friends recommended these guys above all others when we asked them for their opinion on the candidates for our wedding photographers, and we were not at all disappointed.

Besides the obvious, most important decision that started the whole wedding planning (saying «YES!» to my now husband’s big question) picking April & Joey of Half Full Photography was by far the easiest wedding planning decision of them all. Trust me, we contemplated and procrastinated every vendor decision. It was really love at first click with these two. From their awesome website (that truly reflects the duo’s personality and passion for what they do) to our first date over pizza and beer, we knew that we were in good hands/​eyes/​lenses with Joey and April.
If you are looking for a finished product and experience that’s personal, authentic and colorful (in more ways than one) these are your people! Our engagement shoot was such a fun experience (Ferris wheel, frozen bananas & cocktails included) and a great way to get comfortable in front of the camera and with Joey– he really made it easy for two camera shy people to open up for a great end result and to practice for the real deal… Our wedding. Their communication and random texts & chats were great leading up to both the engagement shoot and wedding and were just what we needed to plan and feel like they were 100% committed to the experience and (as Joey would say) the «RAD» pictures that we got in the end.
J+A, we can’t thank you enough for the amazing memories you captured and created for us! We can’t wait for a family shoot together… One day (but not too soon, mom and dad!!)

I really can’t say enough about our wonderful experience with April and Joey.
My (now) husband and I had a short engagement and wanted something very, very small and quiet. The one thing we were willing to «splurge» on was the photography. I started calling around and asking for a la carte pricing, knowing that we only wanted 1 – 2 hours of coverage. Another photographer actually referred me to April and Joey, and after calling many photographers, we decided that April and Joey were right for us.
Our wedding was planned to take place on March 1, 2014 — the same weekend as Storm Watch 2014 (oh San Diego weather people, the dramatics…). Our wedding was planned for Sunset Cliffs and with rain and wind, we started looking for other locations to hold the ceremony. I texted Joey several times, just giving him a heads up that we would give him a firm location for the ceremony the day of — he was SO relaxed with our approach. The day of, the weather broke enough and we decided to go to the Cliffs — I let Joey know and we planned to meet at the originally scheduled time. As we were headed to the cliffs for the ceremony, someone fell off the cliff (don’t worry, no one with us and I believe the person was unharmed) at the exact location where we had planned to get married. I let Joey know and he and April just texted back an address and told us they found another place for us. Our photographers found the spot for us to get married!
Our wedding was very short and we did family shots afterward. Joey and April did a great job of herding cats, I mean family, into the place and made sure everything was streamline. We then did private pictures on the pier. We felt the entire time like we could be ourselves.
After getting our pictures back, we could not have been more pleased with the results. They were simple and beautiful. Not to mention, the box they came in was adorable.
All in all, Joey and April take amazing pictures, are professional, and a joy to work with. Furthermore, they’re just really nice and genuine people.

If you are looking for a wedding photographer… look no more! SERIOUSLY! Half Full Photography is made up of one amazing couple, Joey & April, who genuinely care about their clients and concentrate on their needs and wants.
The first meeting with Joey & April… we were sold! One of the comments that stuck out to us most is they reassured us they would stay as long as they needed to capture the best photos. Another words… they truly care.
They came through with everything they promised and more. Our wedding was a destination wedding for most people so we decided to get married at The Dana on Mission Bay. It was a great location for all our guests. My husband and I had our dinner rehearsal on a Thursday and we were getting ready to leave the hotel, looked up, and there was Joey. He let us know he was just «scoping out the scene for Saturday.» Again… they truly care.
Wedding day. We had a blast. Every one of our guests commented on how great our photographers were! We warned them that we may have a rowdy crowd. It was nothing for them. Everyone was laughing and having a blast and the photos showed that!
The only thing I think I can say I regret… is not listening to Joey & April when they suggested doing pre-​wedding photos of my husband and I. PLEASE… if you are bride and reading this… consider it! It will give you more time to have relaxed photos and you will LOVE them later. I was all about having the «moment» and well yes, it was amazing… I still look back and wish I did photo before I walked down the isle.
Overall, the photography is awesome… Joey & April… well they could have been guests at our wedding :) We were so happy to have chosen them!

I’m not really sure how to start this review because I can’t even begin to explain how much these people mean to my husband and I. After getting engaged, we began to tackle our vendor needs and the first one we set out for was our photographer. We began to fall in love with Joey and April immediately upon visiting Half Full’s website when we read their opening message — «Marriage is so flipping rad! Welcome to the club!»
From our first meeting with Joey and April we were sold. They are two of the most genuine, caring and seriously fun people we have ever met and they will forever be a part of our lives. They made our engagement session and wedding day more than a blast, and totally flipping rad!
Aside from Joey and April being so much fun, they’re also AMAZING photographers. They let us set the scene for our engagement session and really be ourselves with milk shakes, balloons, bikes, and our El Camino! :) Seeing the first proofs of our engagement photos was unreal. To be able to see the love we have fully displayed in a photo was pure magic. And as if we thought those photos were unreal, the wedding day photos were absolutely beyond. We trusted them with concepts and ideas and it paid off. They can see things that we just can’t and they truly make MAGIC.
Your wedding photogs are with you EVERY STEP OF THE WAY.
Joey and April will deliver unreal shots of your amazing day AND bring so much fun along. 2 words — BOOK. THEM.

Joey and April shot both my engagement session and my wedding, and they were an absolute blast to work with! I wanted a bit of a nontraditional photographer for our wedding since we were doing some untraditional things, like taking our wedding party on an after-​ceremony trip to the beach bar where my husband and I met. J&A were super excited about the concept, and they even came up with an awesome on the spot photo shoot outside the bar that gave us some of our favorite shots of the day. April even jumped in to communicate with our bus driver and make sure we were still rolling on schedule.
After all was done and we had viewed our beautiful pictures online, I anxiously awaited our photos on a hard drive so that I could order pictures. Unbeknownst to me, the mail room at our building had been compromised, and the package containing our photos was stolen! I sent Joey a text expressing how upset I was, and then next day he hand delivered a new hard drive and thank you note. From beginning to end, they are just so wonderful– and so much fun!- to work with.

I’ve worked with Joey and April both personally and professionally. My wife and I hired them to photograph our wedding, and our business has used their services for product photography. Each time their photos have exceeded our expectations (just checkout my uploads of their work).
Since meeting them, we have always loved their photography, and knew we couldn’t have anyone else shoot our wedding. We literally called them first before setting a date for our local wedding. No, really. They are an awesome husband and wife team with an amazing energy. Not only are they wonderful, positive people, they have a whimsical creative streak that can make any event fun, or at least less stressful! I’m actually jealous that people pay them to fly around the country, to rad destinations, to take pictures! Don’t tell them I said that. ;)
Before our wedding, they both came to checkout the venue. They asked us a ton of questions about how the day’s events were to unfold, if there was any event or thing or person that we specifically wanted to be photographed. They asked about the style and theme to make sure they captured it well. Afterwards they gave us a written quote of the different packages and services they could provide. On the day of, they were there early to take pictures of all the pre-​ceremony chaos. Then, throughout the night, they did a wonderful job of capturing the spirit of the entire event. If this sounds over the top, its because they were.

Joey and April (the husband and wife pair who own Half Full) are so amazing! They were recommended to my new husband James and me and when we met with them for the first time, we knew they had to be our photographers for our engagement session and our wedding! They are so friendly, easy to work with, and really listen to what you want.
We did our engagement session in the Mission Beach area earlier this year. We had so much fun and the photos were amazing! James and I were both kind of nervous at the beginning of the day, but Joey made it so fun, that by the end of it we were just laughing the whole time and everything felt so natural!
Joey and April shot our wedding at the beginning of this month. From the beginning of the day, all the way until the end of the reception, Joey and April were so professional, but also so much fun! They were able to capture so many special moments throughout the day, but it never felt like they were getting in the way of anything. Their photos really tell a story of our day, from beginning to end, and we are so glad we will be able to look back at these photos for years to come and remember our perfect day.
One example of capturing a special moment is our first look. James and I decided to do most of our photos together before the ceremony so we could spend as much time with our guests as possible during cocktail hour. Joey and April helped us plan out our first look and they helped create such a special moment between us. Their photos of this moment really capture the essence of the day, and we will treasure them forever.
Basically, if you want a pair of photographers who are so much fun, listen to what you want, and capture your day perfectly, contact Joey and April at Half Full Photography. Once you meet them and see their work, you will realize you need them at your wedding, just like we did!