Posts Tagged ‘vineyard wedding’

{ tiffany + jeremy | fogarty winery wedding }

I’d like to say, for the record, that Tiffany and Jeremy have been dating for ten wonderful years. But in every little moment together – the way they look at each other, the way they kiss, the way they laugh together – it’s like that exciting beginning butterflies/honeymoon/giddiness phase never left. I think it’s a wonderful thing to settle into comfortableness, the feeling of warmth, of quiet, of home. But it’s also a pretty amazing thing to see a couple who has spent so much time together be so enamored, so inspired by their love for each other, that they seem to see each other in every moment as if it’s the very first time.

The last time I was at Fogarty was in the fall {you can see that lovely wedding here!}, and it was fun to see the contrast between the bright golden leaves I had seen then and the pretty green vines that greeted us this time. I so love the rustic feel of vineyard weddings & Fogarty was such the perfect backdrop for Tiffany & Jeremy’s day! :)

Special thanks to William Kim for coming along & shooting with me!

Tiffany read a sweet poem to her mother before the ceremony, thanking her for all her years of love & support – it was such a touching moment –

{ meenah + shaobo | fogarty winery wedding }

Meenah & Shaobo’s wedding was my very last one of 2010, and I could not imagine a more beautiful ending to the wedding season!

I was beyond ecstatic to make my way up to nor Cal to document their day at Thomas Fogarty Winery, tucked up, up, and away in the hills of Woodside. {Have I mentioned how much I love shooting in the bay area? If you’re getting married there, do drop me a hello :)} The drive up the mountain itself was so mystical & breathtaking, and Megan & I were in utter awe – thick forests of evergreens, trees with bright yellow & red leaves, canopies that spread across the entire roadway, and just when you think it COULD NOT POSSIBLY get any more gorgeous, you see the winery. Now green vineyards are amazing, but the rows of golden vines literally took my breath away. It was my first time seeing the vines aglow in fall colors and all I could think about was shooting Meenah & Shaobo in that amazing spectacle. And that we did :)

The weather reports kept announcing a horrific 90% chance of showers, but as always always (always!) happens, the skies cleared for all the important parts of the day. As an added bonus, not one, not two, but FIVE rainbows made appearances at different points during the day, including a perfect one during the ceremony (WHAT DOES THIS MEAN??) But say, even if the weather hadn’t cleared, even if it had been pouring/snowing/hailing during every moment, the thing is you would never be able to tell with Meenah & Shaobo. They are seriously one of the sweetest couples I’ve met, full of smiles, and patience, and love. And, happily willing to trek out into muddy fields of grapes, in 50 degree weather, all for the sake of photos. My kind of couple :)

Meenah & Shaobo – thank you so much for allowing me to document this exciting time in your lives! I knew from our very first Skype meeting that it would be a complete joy & honor to work with you, and I’m so so happy the interwebs allowed us to connect! :) Wishing you so so many more years of love and happiness to come!

{ Lauren + Josh | Firestone Vineyards Wedding Photography }

When Scott’s sister Lauren and her husband Josh first got engaged, they so kindly asked me if I wanted to be a photographer or a guest. The photographer in me dreamed of the beauty of their wedding, a lovely fall occasion set amongst the vineyards with the Los Olivos hills in the background, a lively but intimate union of two absolutely amazing people. But then the guest in me started imagining up the same scenario and I realized what a dream it would be to focus distinctly on the celebrating of their day (and the eating of amazing hors d’oeuvres, and the breaking it down on the dance floor – two aspects we as photographers generally do not partake in).

Though I was a guest and toyed with the idea of leaving my camera behind, I could not quite bring myself to leave it at home, and am so excited to share with you some images of their beautiful day. Throughout the day I tried my darndest to limit my shots and relish in the moments, even when I would randomly have panic attacks when I realized I didn’t know where Lauren & Josh were at a particular moment, and why wasn’t I with them? And OMG the ceremony is starting and why am I sitting in this chair instead of up by the altar? And the grand entrance is happening and I didn’t even get shots of all the details yet, THE DETAILS. But thankfully I caught myself everytime, and they had hired the utterly amazing and talented Susan Dean to capture all the important moments of the day.

And their day was nothing short of spectacular. Lauren & Josh are both such kind, warm, and thoughtful people, and honestly such a perfect fit. Together they cook meals, they drink wine, they go hiking and biking, they travel the world, and they plan an amazing wedding. Not a single detail was overlooked and the day spoke wonderfully of who they are and what is most important to them. And the Firestone Vineyards in Los Olivos provided the absolute perfect backdrop – it had the excitement and buzz of a mini-destination wedding, yet was still so conveniently close to LA. I am crossing all my fingers and toes that I’ll get to photograph a wedding there soon! :)

I could go on forever, but let’s let the photos do the speaking!

Lauren & her bridesmaids spent the night and got ready at a beautiful ranch house not far from Firestone. They didn’t opt for getting-ready photography coverage, so Lauren asked if I could get a few shots. It really makes a huge difference to have an attractive backdrop for the getting-ready photos and the ranch house was ridiculously perfect!

A fierce battle of checkers:

Lauren’s mother is one of the kindest, most warm-hearted people I have ever met. They have such a wonderful close-knit relationship and I loved how joyful both of them were on this day!

Once we arrived at Firestone Vineyards, I helped Mai of Bunch Studio with the floral arrangements (and snuck in a few [dozen] shots in the process). Mai recently started doing flowers for weddings and her work is absolutely breathtaking! (An added bonus: we have the honor of photographing her own wedding next fall!)

Ranunculus always make my heart skip a couple beats…

I love this moment right after the ceremony… it’s like they are the only two people in the world…

A quick shot with my handsome groomsman ;)

When we reached the cocktail hour, I may or may not have made a mad dash to the crackers & cheese table and gracefully stuffed my face as if I hadn’t eaten in 3 months, all the while keeping a keen eye out for any moving platters of delicious morsels. My favorite was the tomato soup cups with grilled cheese bites!

The cocktail hour was held in the barrel room and Lauren and Josh had strung up photos from their childhood as well as photos of the two of them together. It was such a thoughtful touch and the ambiance in the barrel room was unbelievable!

The night ended with a reception in the courtyard. I leave you with this shot of their first dance, to Adele’s rendition of “Make You Feel My Love”, one of the dreamiest and most romantic first dance songs ever!

And so concludes their lovely day! Lauren & Josh – congratulations and wishing you all the best for years and years to come! And to you amazing blog readers who stick it out through each of my mile-long posts, there are many more to come soon! I’m going to be playing a mad game of catch-up on the blog in the next couple of weeks and will be posting lots of wonderful October weddings & engagement sessions!