Hi there!

How's your day going? I hope it's full of laughter and joy! I appreciate you spending a few minutes on getting to know me.

I'm Maria, and family and friends are everything to me. I'm a new mom to a beautiful, strong-willed little girl named Eden, and an equally strong-willed, cuddle bug of a dog named Floyd. I'm married to my best friend, and the four of us live a pretty chill life in Philadelphia. We love adventuring in nature, watching weird Netflix shows and riding our bikes any chance we get.

Originally, I was born in Bulgaria and immigrated here with my family when I was 9 years old. Back in those days, the USA had citizen lotteries. You could apply just like you would for a regular lottery, and if your number got picked, you got to surpass decades of waiting for a visa to come live here (following a year's worth of rigorous interviews and a vetting process).

Welp. My father decided to apply on a whim at a party playing a drunken game of cards. And he won! Because of course he did-he's that guy that just gets himself into all kinds of shenanigans and has the best of luck in them.

Bulgaria was not doing well at all back then, and so my parents took this opportunity, sold everything we had to buy plane tickets, and began a new, long journey to here in the States.

Because it took me a year to learn English, I spent a significant amount of time using just my eyes to get around. This, I think, is the reason I eventually became a photographer. I think in pictures. I notice little things and gestures which helps me capture stories in my own Maria way. I've been told, this is what sets me apart from so many other photographers out there.

I also genuinely LOVE people. I studied photojournalism in Temple University, where my Maria heart cried happy tears every time I got sent on an assignment to some strange new corner of the city to capture the story of a person I've never met before.

After graduating college, I worked in the newsroom as a photo editor/photographer for The Northeast Times. I also worked with The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Metro, Philadelphia Weekly, and City Paper, to name a few.

Eventually, even though I loved the craziness of a busy newsroom, I craved something different. In the background, I started shooting weddings. At first, I wasn't sure I'd like it-it's such a different pace than the newsroom. To my surprise, I not only like it, I LOVED it!

What an honor, to be a part of the first steps of a new couple together, and use my camera to capture this precious time. Your grandchildren will see these photos one day, that frozen moment of your first kiss. And I get to be the person that freezes that moment!

And so, in 2017, Maria Young Photography was born. I devoted my self full-time to my business, and continue to do so today.

The core values of my business revolve around joy and laughter. I think it's just as important for you to have a good time while I capture your story, as it is get beautiful images.

Check out some little snapshots from my life below, and if you think you'd like to have a good time and vibrant images to share for decades, let's get in touch!

Thanks for your time!

Maria