Since I captured my first wedding in 2017 I’ve been operating under Steve Michalak Media aka Steve Michalak Photography. But now as the new year unfolds — 2024 opens a new chapter.

Welcome to Storie Photo Collective LLC (Storie Photo Co).

The journey to here has been nothing short of incredible. I have seen and captured some of the most stunning weddings, and moving moments. Not to mention all the utterly talented vendors I’ve had the pleasure of meeting and working with along the way.

Many late nights, early mornings, long hours, failures and successes have led me to this new chapter. I’ve embraced it all along the way and wouldn’t trade it for anything else. The journey is what makes it all worth it. The journey is it.

I sat on rebranding Steve Michalak Photography for over two years. Going back and forth on how I was going to go about it. But I knew I wanted something new and fresh. Finally, I decided on Storie. I had a list of over twenty names sitting in my notes for those twenty-four plus months and I can’t tell you quite why, but it just felt right. According to google “storie” is an obsolete spelling of the word “story”. I guess I’ve always been one to go against the grain a bit – so using something considered obsolete just made sense. It had a strong, yet vintage feel. Plus the benefit of just looking nicer.

I’ll tell the story about how I landed my first wedding another time but I vividly remember waking up early the morning of and getting to the venue to get some exterior shots. It was a cold, brisk morning and the parking lot was still empty. I was nervous as heck and I wasn’t even getting paid. But I was committed and passionate. And that has never faded. I’ll never forget that morning and I’ll always be grateful for everything in between that’s landed me here today. I’m excited for this new chapter and all it will bring; and for every person that has and will play a part in it along the way.

My long term vision for Storie is to continue to strive for excellence. Create meaningful for art that speaks true to the vision, stay open minded, and to arm photographers with the skills needed to sustain a thriving business through the Wedding Photographers Academy.

To new endeavors…

– Steve