It is sometime past midnight. A dreamy makeshift cafe, nestled in the middle of a woodsy area, sweetly lights up the otherwise dark surroundings. Cozy candlelight, warm tea, beautiful vintage furniture.. the absolute perfect stop for a newlywed couple! And all making for an inspirational shoot so creative & lovely, that it would entice even this can’t-function-before-10am-photographer to drive into the woods at 3am to photograph this beautiful setting. I’ve photographed many sessions that have gone from sunset to night, but this was my first time shooting from night through dawn!

A big big thank you to Amanda Auer of the super stylish and amazing wedding coordinating team In the Now for conceptualizing and organizing all the fabulous details of this shoot. And to Amanda at Ruffled for featuring this shoot on her blog! Ruffled is one of my favorite stops for gorgeous vintage wedding inspiration. And of course a big thank you to the beautiful newlywed couple who remained so pleasant and so in love despite the chilling temps!

Scroll down for a beautifully told backstory on the concept of the shoot, written by Amanda. And be sure to hop over to Ruffled to check out the post there!

I imagined a couple deeply in love, newly-wedded, who got distracted with the idea of a cup of coffee and some dessert on the walk home from their wedding. After the grand send off, after the dancing and drinks, after the party…. THIS is where the end up. At a quaint cafe, open late, laughing and loving the night away until dawn strikes and they mosey on towards home.

I love the idea of these two lovebirds reveling in the memories of their wedding day. Their feet ache, her head hurts from being pinned up, they’re exhausted… but they’re elated. Full of joy. Full of newness, hope, and love. Full of lemon crumble cake!

The idea is that these two order a slice of cake, a tea, and a coffee, and chat the night away until the cafe closes and as they walk down a quiet side road in the breaking dawn… they give a whole new meaning to the term “walk of shame”. I adore the idea of a wedding “walk of shame”- like you spent the WHOLE night out and you’re walking down the road now barefoot, shoes in hand, veil off and hair let loose, ready to head to sleep finally.

{ As seen on Ruffled }

Styling – In The Now, Amanda + Rachel
Rentals – Classic Party Rental
Furniture and Decor – Jeni @ FOUND Vintage Rentals; In The Now
Hair/Makeup – Carlie Buys at Carlie B
Dress – The Vintage Bride
Veil – Candi Merle @ Crowning Glory Veils
Models- Nick Bowser of Crafthouse Productions; and his lovely wife, Yanessa
Photography – Adrienne Gunde
Location- Trabuco Canyon, CA

Brittney and Joey held a super sweet celebration earlier this month. It was wonderfully relaxed, laidback and full of so much joy – as I was sorting through the photos, I realized how brightly Brittney and Joey were beaming in every.single.one! Brittney & Joey shared an emotion-filled First Look which gave us lots of time for fun bridal party and family photos before the ceremony, and enabled us to focus on romantics of the two of them afterwards (among the prettiest smattering of bougainvillea flowers, my favorite!)

The day unfolded beautifully and finished with a sparkler exit at the end of the night and a surprise Brittney’s brother put together for them – a classic Bentley, rented for a stylish getaway!

So cute & clever how the little flower girls had wands instead of a basket or flowers… such a unique idea and they loved their “magic wands”!

Brittney & Joey have 7 brother between them, all of which they included in the bridal party. Love this shot of Brittney & the guys:

Just a sneak peek from the New York wedding we photographed last week…

I’ve been to NYC a couple times when I was younger, but for some reason on this trip especially, I found myself awestruck by all the fantastic greenery around the city. Gorgeous breezy trees even on the busiest streets & most urban areas, shady parks & plazas around every turn, and of course the stunning spectacle that is Central Park. I didn’t quite comprehend just how ginormous Central Park was peering at it on Google Maps, and completely thought oh, we can TOTALLY walk from one end to the other, and then of course was super glad they put the MET in the middle so crazy tourists can stop and rethink their stroll-the-length-of-Central-Park plans. I am still wrapping my head around just how much is going on in the park and how such a huge green oasis exists in the middle of the busiest city in the country. I SO so wish we had something like this in LA, so I could head over with a good book every day, to read on a bench or sunny lawn or shady nook, and still always have another lovely corner to explore.

This photo is shot in just a tiny little piece of the park – the sun-speckled, tree-lined walkway felt very “New York” to me :)