Hello!

My name is Raya, and I’m a queer photographer based in Portland Oregon. I specialize in honest, poetic, and timeless images to document your elopement, wedding, creative portraits, or family adventures. My style is photojournalistic, focused on the little details; the sudden laugh, the sun turning frizzy edges of hair to a halo of warmth. Every life is made up of a thousand intertwining stories, and I want to be there to help tell part of yours. 

I’ve known for as long as I can remember that I wanted to tell stories, but the photography part came a little bit later. It started slow, with a disposable camera full of photos of the sky, preteen afternoons spent studying stock photos, broken cameras collected in thrift stores, a growing joy. Now, so many years and a BFA later, I still feel that joy when I look through the viewfinder and see the restless world made still and beautiful. It is a true giddy delight to take love, this wild and indescribable thing, and make it into something tangible. I love this work. 

When not photographing, you might find me chasing my dogs, playing hockey with my girlfriend, or wandering a thrift store. I’m a voracious reader, collector of trinkets, and enthusiastic lover of analog photobooths. I’m sensitive and big hearted and especially love working with other artists, dreamers, and queers. If you think we might get along, I would be honored to be your photographer!