About
Hi, I’m Mellisa Morgan—photographer, storyteller, joy dealer, and keeper of legacy.
For over 20 years, I’ve captured more than just smiles—I’ve preserved connection, emotion, and the moments that matter most. From the windswept edges of elopements to quiet, soul-filled portraits in studio light, I create timeless imagery that feels like truth and looks like art.
My journey started with a woman I adored—my Granny.
She was the first to hand me a camera, the first to show me that even an imperfect photo can hold perfect meaning. When she passed, the only recent images we had were the ones I had taken as a child. And in those simple snapshots, we found her laugh, her hands, her strength. That was when I understood: photography is legacy.
Since then, life has taught me again and again that beauty lives in both the grand and the quiet. After surviving Hurricane Katrina and losing nearly everything, I saw it once more—how one water-stained photo could restore hope. A single frame can carry a lifetime.
That belief is the heartbeat of Legacy in Light.
I don’t just photograph people—I witness them. I hold space for vulnerability, celebration, and joy. My work is bold and emotionally rich, rooted in true-to-life color and deep connection. I specialize in high-end family sessions, maternity, couples, and personal brand portraits for those who know that memory is sacred.
Whether we’re in the Las Vegas desert or the heart of Nebraska, where I’ll soon call home, my purpose remains: to help you see yourself in your fullest light—and keep that light forever.
So if you’re looking for a photographer who leads with heart, honors your story, and turns fleeting moments into fine art—
You're exactly where you're meant to be.
Don't get scared yet, because I have a calm and focused side too. When there's pandemonium going on around me, even in the chaos of some weddings, there's a peace that comes over me to see all the tiny memories unfolding. My distractions fall away and I capture those moments that might otherwise have been lost in the madness. Still, when I'm in the zone with a camera you might hear me belt out directions and orders to my sweet hubby like a drill sergeant. Let's just call that focus, though.
But, I will be your best friend when you need me. I'll calm your Maid of Honor down, pull your Groomsman out of the water fountain, anything to make sure I get the perfect shot of you smiling. (Or laughing because the groomsman fell in said fountain while dancing with your great aunt without spilling his third Fireball shot).
I love capturing these moments for you and with you, because your special day lives in my memories forever too. Often seeing that pure joy in your eyes is enough to bring a tear to mine.
The moment it all began
Shelby was stunning. She was wearing her mother's wedding dress from 1984. It was all lace, and classically beautiful, timeless even. Her mother clasped her necklace and was holding back tears as her little girl became her own woman right in that moment. When her Daddy took her hand and led her to the floor for their dance... I had to set my camera down and cry... not just because this was my baby sister, but because the pure love and joy of our father's face and hers overwhelmed me. I was blessed to capture all of it.
I've had a camera in my hand since I was around 6 years old. My Granny always made sure to have film in her camera every time I visited her. In later years this would prove more valuable than gold when in 1995 she passed away, and the family realized they didn't have many current images of her because she didn't like having her picture taken, except when one happy, silly, and curious little girl wanted to take her picture. All sorts of coffee drinking, crossword puzzle doing, cooking in her kitchen shots taken from a child's height looking up in awe and love of her Granny.
They never told me in High School that "taking pictures" could be a passion, a career... an avenue worth pursuing. Nonetheless I moved on to working for Lifetouch Portrait Studios, JC Penny Portraits, and Olan Mills. For 10 years I photographed and trained other photographers on not the technical side of photography (I was a novice then), but how to capture a moment. I told my employees and trainees, "We've been invited into people's homes, their life, and their memories. You're not just taking another baby picture... you're taking that family's first picture of the child they tried to conceive for 10 years. You are taking this family's last Family Portrait with their Great Grandmother who is edging on 100 years of life and stories. Imagine if you will that every photo you took was posted on a highway billboard for all to see... Would you be proud? Would it evoke a feeling of joy?"
I have been blessed to take a first... and sadly a last picture of someone.
Then it hit me... I want more. I want more than the confines of corporate pictures with 10 mins to "sell" someone their memories. So I bought my own camera... but had NO IDEA HOW TO USE IT!
I set it to Auto (taboo in the pro-photog world) and -gasp- people still loved my work, because they didn't see that my white balance was off, or that there was a fire hydrant in
the background... They saw that they were holding hands with the love of their life, they were holding their baby for the first time, they saw the memory right there, memorialized in print, on their wall, for years to come.
