Megan and Kevin : A Wedding at Thomas Fogarty : Woodside, CA

I've photographed a lot of weddings this summer - and I'll admit, at times it has been a bit of a blur of brides, white dresses, flowers, ceremonies, toasts, cake, wine, champagne, bridesmaids, bouquets, ... but when I stop and think about each event individually it's easy to see that every wedding has a soul of it's own. No wedding is alike. It reminds me of that scene in Garden State where Natalie Portman says to Zach Braff : "I make a noise or I do something- that no one has ever done before. And then I can feel unique again even if it's only for like a second.....this could be your ONE CHANCE to do something totally original."

I often tell my brides at least once during the day to stop, look around, take a deep breath, and remember. Make an archived memory. I, of all people, know how fast a wedding can go- how quickly you get from getting the dress on to spinning around the dance floor in it. This moment, this group of people all together at this time, for this exact reason will never happen again- every wedding is unique and even though I have a handful of fall weddings I am already starting to look back on this summer and reflect on each and every love story I've been lucky to be a part of. Megan and Kevin's wedding at Thomas Fogarty in Woodside, CA is one I feel particularly blessed to have photographed as Megan has truly become a friend over the last couple of months. She drops by the house, we chat, catch up on the porch, share wedding planning tips, share wedding planning breakdowns, run into each other at Aqui's - I really feel like I've been right there with her during this whole process and am SO  happy with how her photos turned out that it literally makes me giddy inside!

Megan and Kevin 's wedding was recently featured on Style Me Pretty so be sure and check out their fabulous post there and if you're itching to see more check out their wedding slideshow here!

All their vendors are listed at the end of this post but I wanted to give a special shout out to Janece Shellooe and Amelia Thomas of Every Elegant Detail for a stellar job coordinating every last detail that Megan's heart desired!

Wedding Planner: Janece Shellooe and Amelia Thomas of Every Elegant Detail / Venue: Thomas Fogarty Winery / Floral: Amy Burke Designs / Paper Designs: Rachel Hanson Designs / Catering: Componere Fine Catering / Linens and Rentals: Hartmann Studio Rentals / Farm Tables and Bar: Zephyr Tents / Cinematography: James Burkart for Studio MSV / Cake and Desserts: Icing on the Cake / Hair: Alli Dunnam from Envy Salon / Makeup: Denise Azzarello from Envy Salon / French Band: Duo Gadjo via Peter Rudolfi / DJ: Henry Kim from Big Fun DJ / Wedding Dress: Lea Ann Belter / Shoes: Bagdley Mischka / Megans dress accessories and hair accessories: Ashley Maxwell Designs / Bridesmaids dresses: Butter by Nadia / Bridesmaids accessories: Ashley Maxwell Designs

Rose & Joe: A wedding at Four Seasons Santa Barbara

It's Monday!

Rose and Joe planned their wedding from Chicago and up until the wedding day, we'd only chatted via phone and e-mail! This is never my preference but between their schedules, my crazy schedule, and me moving up to the bay area last December we just couldn't coordinate a meeting! The minute I walked into Rose's getting ready suite at The Four Seasons Santa Barbara and saw her ear to ear smile I knew we were a perfect match. :) It was such a beautiful day filled with so many romantic details that helped tell their love story. Thanks to Kelsey Crews and Jasmine Star for helping me rock this one! (Seeing your wedding photographers images straight out of camera is pretty awesome- J*'s exposures were DEAD on and she has the most amazing eye- DUH! Can't WAIT for our wedding :) )

Modern Day Design did the florals and they were BREATH-TAKING! I mean... that pink bridesmaid bouquet is unlike anything I've ever seen. Absolutely perfect.

Rose and Joe had a group of their closest family members stand in a circle around them and pass their rings along a ribbon, each person putting their special blessing on the rings. I had my wide angle lens on so Miss Jasmine captured this perfect shot of the ring in motion.

We didn't have as much time I usually like to have for bridal portraits so Jasmine and I were booking it working as fast as we could. I was getting the view on the left and J* was capturing the one on the right as I set up the next shot. Team-work is key on these kinds of days!

Yelena Johnson of The Stylish Soiree (my wedding planner!) helped Rose and Joe coordinate their big day and everything went off without a hitch.

Carolyn & Andrew : A wedding at La Rinconada, Los Gatos

{ Happy Friday my loves! }

Tim is leaving on a jet-plane this afternoon and heading for Los Angeles for a little, "Tim-time" so I am holding the fort down with Stella and Stanley this weekend. This is my 2nd Saturday off since March and I plan on enjoying it with lots of wedding crafting and Teen Mom watching (so sue me- I can't get enough of Farrah and Maci's little Bentley! ;) ) ! So I'm sending you folks into a weekend of rest & relaxation with a beautiful wedding in Los Gatos at La Rinconada from last month. Carolyn and Andrew are so full of love and it was wonderful to watch them wed surrounded by so many people who love them so much!

Onward!

Jake & Julia : A wedding at Testarossa Winery : Los Gatos, CA

Jake and Julia tied the knot at Testarossa Winery last month. After all the battling with rain we did for their engagement session I half expected to wake up to cloudy skies on the morning of their wedding but it was such a beautiful day in Los Gatos! These two are absolutely perfect for each other and it was such fun being a part of their day! Julia's sister, Betsy, and I went to high school together so it was so fun to see so many familiar faces! Thanks to Karen and Emily for coming out and shooting with me that day- couldn't have done it without you guys! (Especially Karen who drove my car while I hung out of the window shooting in downtown Los Gatos!)

Happy Tuesday guys- I'm feeling a little under the weather today so I'm going to try and get some rest. Enjoy!

Blessin & Min: Rancho Palos Verdes Golf Club Wedding : Nautical Nuptials

Oh wedding season.... You and I love each other in May, start tiring of each other in July, and find each other again in August. I practically fainted when I looked at my calendar and realized that August 1st is this weekend. As in two days away. As in, our wedding is 3 months away. *Panic panic panic!* *excitement excitement excitement!* I am prepping some posts that will hopefully give you guys an insight into what my wedding is shaping up to look like soon- I realize that I have not kept any of you in the planning loop ... probably because we haven't really done much .... well, okay, we have- I've just been too lazy to share.... :) Enough about me (and Tim :)) - Blessin and Min had a lovely June wedding in Southern California full of really beautiful details and lots of laughter. Blessin is one of the sweetest girls around- I believe in one wedding toast she was likened to a disney-princess! Blessin's mom made her elegant dress and I think it set the tone for such a beautiful event full of simple, classic, details. So happy to have been a part of your big day- can't wait to see what the future brings you two!

Onward!

Never underestimate the benefits of a lovely hotel lobby!

I wanted to photograph her all day.