Weddings

A marriage 20 years in the making… Linda and Kelly celebrated the lifelong commitment they made to each other over two decades ago at a beautiful wine country wedding filled with family and friends.  From the outside, you might think they had just fallen in love!  You can see their strong bond in every look and every move: the way Linda gazes at Kelly, emotion in her eyes and a shy hint of a smile…the way that Kelly clutches Linda’s hand in hers, bursting with excited energy and enthusiasm.  There’s no question that these two were meant for each other. I first met Linda…

Proof that it doesn’t always take months of planning, Steve and Stephanie organized a breathtakingly-lovely riverside wedding in only a few weeks!  Having worked closely with Steve in the wedding business, I am completely versed on his easygoing, calm style, so there was never a doubt in my mind that he and his bride could pull this off without breaking a sweat.  They even handled a last minute venue change with ease: when many more guests arrived than what the couple had expected, they moved their ceremony from the hilltop to the river to accommodate all their friends and family.  Any…

On a warm late summer evening at David Girard Vineyards, Jenna and Casey said “I do”.  The sun may have been blazing hot but not much could hold a candle to the love that shone from these two.  These sweethearts proved how sweet they really are on each other by lighting a “unity Sterno” during their ceremony, which they then used to toast marshmallows for s’mores.  Sounds funny at first, until the bride and groom told us that they had shared s’mores on their very first date.  And before she slipped into her elegant lace gown, Jenna had been wearing the same dress that…

Chelsea and Chava celebrated their wedding on a sunny summer day in August at the Wedgewood Sequoia Mansion – and what a celebration it was!  Between the handmade, personal touches (s’mores trail mix!) and the enthusiastic mariachi band, this was a wedding that was guaranteed to make you smile.  Of course, a bride and groom as completely in love as Chelsea and Chava are doesn’t hurt matters, either!  Chava kept us laughing with his joking ways, and Chelsea’s bridesmaids (who also happened to be her sisters!) kept things light and fun for the bride. Chelsea and Chava shared their how-we-met story…

Rarely do we see this level of familiarity in a couple after 1 month of courtship…this depth of love and strength of connection is typically reserved for those brides and grooms with a 6, 7+ year bethrothel! Just kidding!  Hayle and Mason have been a couple for a lot longer than 1 month (since their late teens), so there is certainly no question about their familiarity and love for each other.  They just chose a fine weekend in early June to make it official. Watching these two together, the word “soul mate” comes to mind again and again.  Hayle and Mason…

We uncorked a bottle of Pinot Noir and chatted between shots. I learned that they have been together for 20 years, that they are adventurous, love to travel and are in fact heading off to Portugal for three weeks this month. By the time we were done it had felt more like a girl’s happy hour than a photo session, although we had more than enough gorgeous shots of them together.

Melanie and Mark were married at St. Joseph Marello Catholic Church in Granite Bay on a beautiful Friday afternoon, with a reception at Flower Farm Inn in Loomis.

Late summer in the middle of a four year drought and Elaina and Henry’s wedding day was blessed with summer rain, just as my own had been. The difference for Elaina and Henry was the fabulous undercover arches that David Girard Vineyards has and that provided the perfect plan-B ceremony site. That and the cloud cover that came to filter the sun and create beautiful light that we more-than took advantage of during out time together. I loved Elaina’s father’s speech during the reception which was superbly delivered and very moving. Another beautiful touch was that her dad orchestrated a…

Casey is one! And adorable and adored by her parents, Katrina and Joe, plus older siblings, Jordan and Shayla. The family purchased my baby package to document Casey’s first year, beginning with a maternity session, and this was their last session before I put together their one year memory album. It seems almost impossible that it was a year ago that I arrived 5 minutes late to photograph Casey’s birth. One minute Katrina was 4cms dilated and then the next Casey was already with us. I couldn’t believe how quickly she zoomed into the world and that I had missed…