It’s always chancy scheduling a photo shoot in San Francisco…that is, if you want to see the Golden Gate Bridge instead of fog. I love this city in fog but it’s so nice to get that beautiful bridge in some of the pics. This time around we hit it on a perfect, clear day. I met Nicole and Brett at the Palace of Fine Arts and then we made our way to the beach. I’d been looking forward to meeting Nicole and Brett in person and we had a great time getting to know one another. These two have super chemistry together and I’m looking forward to their June wedding.
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Alex and Matt were married on October 24th and I was so excited about their pictures that I posted them to my blog before I had a chance to edit or organize. So, now, a few weeks later and I’m posting some more from this adorable, country wedding. I loved that this couple decided to get married at their home and of course, the old truck, owned by Alex’s father, made for terrific pictures. Alex and her grandmother made jam as the favors–once the guest found their name on a jar of jam, it directed them to their table. Very cleaver indeed. An amazing October sunset to top it off–pretty much a perfect ending to a wonderful day. Enjoy.
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Many of you may remember Gina from my wedding post in June 2009, Love, Llamas and the Italian Princess. I had the pleasure of nominating Gina for the prestigious honor of Valley Bride Magazine, Bride of the Year. We just got word this week that Gina is a finalist! Gina is the perfect candidate for this honor. She is from Kerman, has the most wonderful, fun personality, and graduated from Fresno State. Not to mention that she is drop dead gorgeous. Gina is currently doing her graduate work at UOP in Speech Pathology. So now it’s up to you to vote! If you would like to vote for Gina here are instructions:
How to Vote:
Send your vote to: P.O. Box 26208, Fresno CA93729
Or e-mail your vote to: editor@valleybridalmag.com
Or call: (559) 434-1585
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I just received these images back from editing and I love them! Generally, I do all of my own post production editing but being that I have had 5 weddings in 5 weeks I had to call in the emergency crew! Luckily, my emergency team consists of my son, Aaron, who is one of the most talented graphic designers (and musicians) that I know. Of course I would love to have him working with me full-time but he is off being a “rock star” in San Francisco. Check out the tags above to see more of Aaron’s work. Thanks Aaron for the great work and getting your Mum back on track. Nicole and Brian’s wedding was picture perfect and such a joy to photograph. Enjoy!
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Katelyn and Eric are planning a spring wedding at Victoria Gardens in Visalia, California. I’ve expressed my love of Victoria Gardens in the past…such a great wedding venue and I love the green barn. It was so much fun meeting this couple and trekking to my favorite orchard for pics. Much to my surprise, my favorite orchard is now firewood…so sad. Eric is a farmer and explained to me that trees go down when they aren’t producing any longer. Which did make me feel a little better knowing that these beautiful trees weren’t being sacrificed for another housing development. Looking forward to a beautiful May wedding!
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It’s been a busy month. On Saturday (10/24), I finished up October weddings with Matt & Alexandria’s wedding in Sanger, California. Alexandria is every photographers dream. She is quite comfy in front of the camera and basically very little editing required. The old truck in the pics was the first truck Alex’s dad bought when he was a teenager. I love old trucks almost as much as I love my 1969 VW Bus. The wedding was held at the couples home and they did such a terrific job fixing it up. Alex is a high school English teacher and a writer (yep, beauty and brains) and Matt is the real deal….a farmer. I’m not sure why I have been doing so many country weddings lately but it sure is fun. Alexandria and I will be doing a trash the dress shoot in the near future so stay tuned. Congratulations Alex and Matt!
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Alex with her Dad and his truck.
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I always take a parting shot and as I turned the corner to head to my car, here was a cloud of smoke and cowboy hats.
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Oh my goodness…I was in heaven at this beautiful venue. Nicole and Bryan were married October 17th at the Ritchie Barn in Visalia, California. This was my first time shooting a wedding at this venue and it was just magical. If you are ever in doubt that cowboys still exist, visit the central valley of California. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many cowboy hats at one wedding! Everywhere I looked, there were pumpkins and gourds…it was beautiful! Bryan is a firefighter and so the wedding party made their entrance on a fire truck–Nicole made her entrance in a vintage red truck. The guests dined outside under the clear October skies while the authentic country band warmed up inside the barn. Nicole is a high school Ag teacher so the venue could not have been more perfect. Beyond the aesthetics of this wedding was a wedding party that really knew how to have some fun. The wedding party danced their way down the aisle after the ceremony and also had a little bling, bling performance when they entered the reception. It was such a terrific, fun wedding. Congratulations Bryan and Nicole!
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Crystal and David were married on October 10th in the Cross Church in Fresno, California. This church holds a very special history for Crystal…her grandparents were married here and this is the church that she has attended since she was a child. Apparently this was the last wedding in the sanctuary before they remodel. I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know David and Crystal over this past year and they are such genuine, loving people. Crystal is quite a character and there is always smiles and laughter when she is around. This wedding had so many wonderful little touches that brought special meaning to their day. My favorite speciality of the day was when Crystal walked down the aisle. She started her walk alone and halfway down the aisle, David came and met her. The necklace she was wearing was engraved with….”may you never again walk alone”. I hope to stay in touch with Crystal as she is planning on starting her own wedding planner service. This couple is honeymooning in Jamaica. Congratulations!
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Okay, so Erica and Tory proved it…you can have a perfect wedding. Of course it requires that you spend countless days making, creating, collecting and continually searching for the perfect inspiration. Erica is an artist/designer…Tory is a teacher and together, with their own unique sense of style, they created a perfect wedding day at Newcastle Gardens in Newcastle, California. The venue in itself is muse-like–rustic, country charm mixed with an elegance from yesteryear. The entire day felt as if I were on a movie set of a 1940’s movie–it was fabulous. The details of this wedding are worthy of being featured in a magazine so I’ve included lots of pics and a little commentary. Erica and Tory are two incredibly delightful people and I’m thrilled they included me in their very special day.
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Erica designed the invitations and save the date cards. The save the date cards were so adorable and such a cool surprise when you pulled them out of the envelope. I can only imagine the time that went into these. Even the coolest of guests were invited to this event!
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Pretty much everything you see in this photo was designed or made by Erica and Tory. I especially loved the handmade books that were given to each guest. The thought and time commitment put into each book was mind blowing. Every little detail was intentional and well thought out. There was a Beattles theme running deep throughout the wedding day…music, quotes–even the way the guys walked into the ceremony reminded me of the Abbey Road album cover. Loved it.
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Erica was so stunning, I could have photographed her all day. Newcastle Gardens has a beautiful brides room and the lighting is magnificent.
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Gorgeous flowers everywhere! Check out the flower garland over the wedding arbor…it was the most beautiful I had ever seen. Flowers were done by Martha Andrews, Blooms (bloomsbymarthaandrews.com). The brooch in the bouquet was Erica’s great grandmothers.
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The old barn at Newcastle Gardens has been converted into this amazing room with an ambiance that is hard to beat. Everywhere I turned there was great lighting and wonderful backdrops.
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Okay, so let’s talk about this cake…oh my goodness! So I know fondant is the thing of the day but this cake was the real deal. Thick, yummy, chocolate frosting and decorated to perfection. I was too busy to eat a piece…so bummed. The cake was made by Ginger Elizabeth.
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Nicole and Bryan are getting married in two weeks! I know it seems a little late for engagement pictures but Bryan is a fire fighter and has been very busy this season. Nicole is an Ag Teacher and so we went for the somewhat ‘western’ theme for the pics. You can just tell that Fall is in the air by looking at these photos–so nice to have an engagement session where it wasn’t 100 degrees outside. I’m looking forward to their wedding at Ritchie’s Barn in Visalia. Stay tuned for wedding pics really soon!
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