I know, no posts in awhile; I’ve been busy! Seems everyone got engaged over New Years so I’ve been super busy meeting with some really fun brides, welcome to all my new couples!
We had a great time in Mexico over Christmas and now I’ve been working overtime on albums and adding a few weddings to my wedding photography site. 3 weddings are now featured and I’ll finish up by adding another one or two in the next couple weeks. 2009 had some really amazing weddings so it’s been tough to choose which make it!
I’ll update my blog as soon as I can with some pics from Mexico. Here’s a couple of my favorite pics that just went up plus a page from a sample wedding album (above).

Tamara and Joe’s wedding at Fort Mason was such a blast! It was the day before the Fleet Week airshow happened so not only did I get to shoot to amazing people but got to watch the airshow practice session at the same time! Right when we ran out of the Argonaut Hotel to shoot, the Blue Angels made their first pass directly over our heads at about 100 feet! It was absolutely incredible and also incredibly LOUD! The entire session we all had to read lips as we could pretty much not hear at all! They were great and we got some awesome images where you would never know all that was going on!
We then headed over to 1 Fort Mason for the wedding ceremony and reception. The decor was great and the weather was perfect! Gotta love October weddings in San Francisco!
The ceremony was beautiful and very personal to Tamara and Joe. I started seeing the crowd get a bit anxious at one point and looked to see a skunk trying to crash the ceremony! The staff had warned us and had mentioned the skunk is quite friendly. Hmm, friendly or not, I was not going to risk it spraying so I left it alone. Thankfully a guest took charge and gently used a chair to block it’s path from getting any closer (it got about 10 feet from the guests!). Joe was so funny; he just says something like “Just a skunk, no worries” and goes right back to his vows… now that’s cool under pressure!
A huge thanks to Tamara and Joe for having me and I can’t wait to hang out with you soon!

Joe pulls all the stops and gets the Blue Angels out for the wedding!

I heard someone say “at least he’s wearing a tux.” Hmm….

Did I mention Joe is about 1 foot taller than Tamara?

What a great couple Thilani and Darren are! Here are a few shots from their wedding in Clovis a couple weeks ago. Harlan Ranch was a very nicely laid out planned community near the Sierra Foothills to the East of Clovis. The venue was beautiful, Darren and Thilani were great and the timing was perfect for the sunset! Seriously, they were the most laid back couple ever and just so completely in love, it was a blessing to be able to photograph them! I really love being a wedding photographer!

Before walking down the aisle Darren and Thilani had to post “We’re married!” on Twitter! lol!

What a year it’s been so far! Awesome weddings with beautiful people, what more could I ask for! Nettie and Leon were married at the beautiful Saint Patricks Cathedral with their reception at The Intercontinental Mark Hopkins in San Francisco. Nettie and Leon have been together for a long time and really wanted the day to reflect their personalities. If you remember from their engagement session, they are huge fans of the theatre so there was lot’s of little details from shows they have seen and even some super dramatic music from Phantom of the Opera!
The day started at the Mark Hopkins (you know, the hotel with “The Top of the Mark” up on Nob Hill). Everyone was having a great time and I knew it would be a great day when I saw that Taylor Pham and her team were doing hair and makeup. Great makeup not only makes everyone look their best but also makes my job easier!
Everything went totally smoothly and though the fog completely stopped us from getting a good shot of the Golden Gate bridge, we still managed to get some great shots downtown and at the Palace of Fine Arts. Wedding Photographers abound at The Palace of Fine Arts but that didn’t worry me as I always know that the couple’s love and my vision are what makes for memorable shots; the shot below with the red tree against the wall is one of my personal favorites! Not to mention that hot series of Nettie and Leon making out!
Nettie and Leon were awesome hosts and totally devoted to getting great images, thanks and congratulations!
I also want to put out a huge thanks to my friend John Griffin for helping out, thanks John!

My friends Kandi and Ronnie asked me to shoot their wedding in San Francisco at St. Dominics Cathedral and Bimbo’s 365 Club. Kandi is my sister in law’s best friend (Courtney is second from the left in the above image) and the entire Garcia family has been friends with my wife’s family for a couple of decades. Funny enough, Stephanie and I lived just a few doors down from the Garcia’s when we used to live in Petaluma! Because of this, pretty much Stephanie’s entire side of the family was at the wedding so I knew it was going to be a pretty wild night!
We started the day at a hotel next door to Bimbos 365 Club and that was something! Hair and makeup went pretty late so we were in a huge rush to get everything ready in time. The really funny thing was that Courtney told Stephanie and Caitlin (my other SIL) they could get ready in her room, but that turned out to be the room Kandi and the rest of the bridal party were getting ready in so it was a bit of a surprise for them! It all worked out so we then headed over to St. Dominics for the first look with Ronnie. St. Dominics is probably my favorite cathedral in San Francisco as it is just a stunning building and the staff there is always nice to work with.
We got a few minutes to run down to the Embarcadero and get some shots of Kandi and Ronnie but we all knew the real action was at Bimbos so we got back there pretty quick! The night was a blast and everyone had a great time! Kandi really wanted a nightclub-party feel to the reception and I really don’t think it could have gone any better. I’ve included plenty of fun party pictures and will have to put up the even funnier ones on Facebook (don’t worry other clients, I only do this with friend’s weddings! lol).

Big thanks to Riley of A+R Photo in Phoenix for helping with the wedding! Check out his great shot from the garter toss, nice!

Lori and Bobby’s wedding was such a great day; the weather was perfect, the details were amazing and Lori and Bobby’s love for each other was center stage! The day started at a hotel in Solvang then we headed over to Gainey Vineyard in Santa Ynez for the ceremony and reception. Gainey Vineyard is a great wedding venue as there are a ton of great spots for photographs all just a short walk. They even planted a lawn between the rows in the vineyard which makes vineyard shots much more beautiful! Add in the fact that Lori really went all out on the details and this made for a truly beautiful and memorable day!
Besides the amazing level of detail, and Lori and Bobby’s passion for each other, I think the most memorable part of the day for me was the school bus! Rather than limo’s or trollies they rented a school bus to take us over and it ended up making for some amazing photo opps, good work Lori!
Thanks to Lori, Bobby and all your family and friends for being such gracious hosts! And also a huge thanks to Riley of A+R Photo in Phoenix for coming out to help and for getting so many great shots.

Had an awesome time with Melanie and Nick, I love a good beach wedding! Here are a couple of my favorite images from their wedding on the beach in Cayucos.