this thing called Love.

Sunshine

This actually might count as my first Brazilian wedding because the family of the groom is from beauitful Florinapolis! Julie and Chris's wedding atop the Kaiser Roof Garden, in Oakland, Ca...a spectacular, and one of the more emotional weddings I have happily witnessed. Parabéns no seu casamento!!

San Francisco engagement...

Kelly and Kelvin were so brave to bear the chilly San Francisco weather for their engagement portraits. But the light at the end was so beautiful it was worth the brrr! We began near the Flower Conservatory and worked out way to Chrissy Field for pictures during dusk and a kiss at the Golden Gate Bridge. Thank you Kelly and Kelvin. It was joy to photograph you two!

reception details

Earlier this year, I was commissioned by one of my most favorite photographers, Meg Smith, to second shoot a gorgeous San Francisco wedding with her. She suggested that I bring my hasselblad to photograph the event, so I just wanted to share some details from their surprise wedding reception. yes. the couple married at home, and then surprised their guests with an announcement during a dinner party they had arranged at the very lovely Boulets Larder (what a fantastic place for an intimiate dinner party btw) at the Ferry Building, in San Francisco. Enjoy!

Postcard: A winter wedding with a touch of color

I figured it would be a good time to post a little postcard I made of Wan & Sean, whose wedding I recently photographed in NYC. Yes. recently. A snowy, chilly winter that had NY already in several feet of snow. And since SF is supposedly expecting a little flurry action sometime this week with this arctic storm approaching, I thought why not post their wedding postcard to show that a winter wedding can be done. I love the elegance a simple fur shawl, a touch of yellow color, an overcast day for even light, and snow on leaveless branches. And most of all, a very willing bride and groom to be outside in 20 degree weather during our portrait session.

Charlotte + Radesh - San Francisco

Charlotte & Radesh's wedding was a three-day event, typical of Indian weddings with a twist. Their celebration intertwined both traditions over the course of a few days...it certainly gives their families and friends a chance to get to know each other, since many flew in from all over the world. And despite traditions, Charlotte and Radesh's festivities were still yet very contemporary (can i say that i was so very "san francisco"?). No formalities, just families and friends coming to together to celebrate the union of this adorable couple! The initmate ceremony was held at the Swedenborgian Church, the mehndi luncheon was held at the Kirkwood Depot, and the gorgeous wedding reception was held at the delicious Brix restaurant in Yountville with DJ Dojah spinning an eclectic taste of Indian and 80s music! I tried to edit down this layout, but as you can tell, i had a hard time, so with that, enjoy!

Susan + Roberto, Georgetown (Seattle), Washington

This is Susan & Roberto's "northwest" themed wedding at this very cool historical building, in the engine room of Rainier Brewing Company. their artist friends created a birchwood forest installation and it smelled amazing inside. best of all, they had an ice cream truck for dessert (darn i just gave the surprise away!). they definitely won my heart over that one, besides the fact that they were really, truly, very sweet at heart...

(music: sigur ros/iceland. to view slideshow large, click on 4-arrows bottom right)

Lovebugs

Gorgeous evening at a secret Golden Gate Bridge spot...so secret i might not remember how to get there! This was an impromptu engagement sesh while at a going-away party for a mutual friend....

Georgie + Janet - Washington DC

I am so honored to have photographed this wedding. Last fall, The Daughters of the American Revolution, otherwise known as DAR, hosted its first same-sex marriage. And holy moley was it a fiesta to be reckon with! It truly was on a historic level. I've known Janet for many years, so this wedding especially brought tears to my eyes. And I just adore Georgie, the colorful firecracker that she is. Their wedding was by far the longest dance reception I have ever photographed in a wedding...even my feet were startin' to make some moves! But seriously. I think it was hours, and the music was fun! With the endless flow of Flor de Cana rum drinks - Georgie's family is from Nicaragua (and my only favorite rum), the night seemed to get better and better. And better it became. To surprise their guests, Georgie and Janet came out with their wedding party, umbrellas & masks in hand, with none other then a New Orleans Brass Band!

{there's about 50 pictures, and the song is about 4.60 min long. you have the option to click through the images w/o the music}.

Trish + Lyle - The Clift, San Francisco

  As I'm working out the aesthetics of this blog, I'll share a quick storyboard teaser (old newspaper slang) for Trish and Lyle from earlier this year that i shared with them soon after their wedding day. They married at The Clift, a swanky hotel in downtown San Francisco. The wedding was intimate yet super fun. And I experienced one of the most memorable ceremonies ever which had us -- the entire room -- crying from laughter. Those two bring a lot of light into the lives of their families and friends. We did family portraits before the ceremony which helped give us more time for bride and groom pictures after the ceremony. Sometimes there isn't enough time for all the ideas we have for these pictures if that time is shared with family portraits. This allowed us to do some "street" photography, which I absolutely love capturing, especially in the City.