Meet Joe & Melissa Copenhaver
About Us
We're a husband and wife photo/video duo in the Maryland tri-state area specializing in Weddings, Family, and Lifestyle Photography and Videography.
Meet Joe
Joe is a photographer and videographer with over a decade of experience. He fell in love with making images during a summer internship with his best friend at the beginning of high school. Now a full-time working photographer, his work can be seen here at J&M Photo Video, on his self-titled Youtube Channel, and on Washington County Public Schools' media outlets where he calls home from 8:00-5:00. He is a proud #girldad, avid Penguins hockey fan, and never says no to a nicely baked treat.
Meet Melissa
Melissa is photographer who specializes in family, lifestyle, and wedding photography. She had an interest in photography for years, snapping photos on trips. She really fell in love with photography capturing her daughter's first year of life. Outside J&M, Melissa loves being a girl mom, is addicted to coffee, and organization.
CPO (CHIEF Preschool OFFICER) & CBO (Chief Baby officer)
Our "WHY" & the first ones to keep us grounded. Our CPO is usually found negotiating how many M&Ms she can have for being in a photo. She loves dancing, Barbies, and her baby sister. Our CBO is too little to negotiate M&Ms. She enjoys crawling on the floor and teething.
Testimonials
Emma S
“Melissa was going to do our maternity photos, but our little one came early. She was so accommodating with doing our newborn photos and not to mention they came out PERFECT. I highly recommend J & M, fantastic and lighthearted to work with!”
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you photograph family/lifestyle sessions?
We are natural light photographers. Outside photos are our favorites to capture. We can also shoot in your home using window light and flash if necessary. We do not operate out of a studio.
How do you photograph/film wedding days?
We love being by your side to help you plan before your wedding day. On your wedding day, we want to capture is the feelings, the mood, the emotions, the calm and crazy moments that make your wedding unique. We capture your day in a journalistic style with pockets of time for posed photos and video clips. We edit your photos and films with true to life skin tones so you look how you looked on your wedding day.
We will be your best friends on wedding day, fluffing your dress so it looks perfect in photos, stalling the DJ because your dress isn't bustled yet, and politely telling your guests to put down the iPad when they are trying to take pictures during your ceremony.
Where can I find more information about weddings?
Feel free to visit our page on our website "Wedding Packages." We have transparent pricing for photography or videography. We create custom packages for both photography and videography. We can also create custom packages for just photography or videography as well to meet your goals for your day!
Our podcast "Blue Hour with J&M" is a great place to learn more about us and our philosophy on capturing weddings.
Where are you based and do you travel?
We are based in Hagerstown, MD. For family and lifestyle sessions we like to stay within a 30 minute drive of Hagerstown, MD. However, we love making new friends so if we need to drive further let us know!
When will we get our photos?
For engagement/lifestyle/family sessions you will receive an online gallery link with all your photos within maximum 2 weeks (sometimes less depending on the season we photograph your story). You can download all the photos from the gallery but also share them, choose your favorites, and also order prints!
How many pictures will we receive?
For a 1 hours session, you will receive between 50-100 fully edited images. For a 30 minute session you will receive 30+ images. We always choose quality rather than quantity and that's why we will choose the best and more significant photos to tell your story.
What should we wear to our session?
We always suggest coordinating not "match-matchy" outfits. Neutrals look great in photos!
What kind of gear do you use?
Our primary bodies are Canon R6 & R6II, we have multiple.
Our favorite lens is the Canon RF 50mm 1.2
We also really love our Canon 24-70mm, 85mm, 70-200mm, and Sigma 35mm.
We have many different camera bodies, lenses, flashes, and accessories, too many to list here.