Jacky + Aaron in Big Sur, CA

When Jacky and Aaron, who live in Kansas, started making their wedding plans, they knew they wanted to honeymoon in Big Sur.  Fast forward a few internet searches later, and they ran across Rachel and Sky's Big Sur wedding and instead decided to get married in the same park.  Normally, we prefer to meet with our clients in person or at least have a Skype meeting before moving forward.  The idea is that this insures a good fit between us and our couples and making sure that we all feel comfortable together is crucial for allowing us to work in a documentary style and get those intimate moments.  However, because Jacky had fallen in love with Rachel and Sky's wedding, she was certain she wanted us to be their photographers, and so we never actually met or spoke before the wedding.

So, as Adm and I waited in the Pfeiffer Beach parking lot for Jacky and Aaron to arrive, eagerly staring into every car as it pulled in, playing the "Is that them?" game, I kept thinking that we should have met them first.  I thought, What if they don't like us?  What if we can't make good pictures with them?  It turns out this was just another time in my life that I had nothing to worry about.  Before the day was over, Adm was talking football with Aaron and I was joking around with Jacky's dad and we were having a great time clicking away.  Jacky and Aaron, you two are the sweetest!  Congratulations!!!

Photo below by Adm:

Photo below by Adm:

Photo below by Adm:

Photo below by Adm:

Photo on left by Adm:

Melissa + Donovan Engagement!

When we set out from our home in Oakland for Melissa and Donovan's engagement shoot  in the Marin Headlands, the sun was shining and we had a detailed plan.  We plan out our shoots so we can control the final outcome of our images, doing our best to give our couples exactly what they want.  When we reached our first stop, the wind whipped across Cavallo Point and showed us what little control we had.  The fog quickly hid the Golden Gate Bridge and San Francisco skyline, two features Melissa and Donovan had wanted in the background of their portraits.  The plan was done, but somehow it didn't seem to matter.

Melissa tossed her hair into a braid, laughed and moved on.  Their love and the summer fog were better than any plan we could have ever come up with sitting at home.  Adm and I played with the light and the fog, both knowing this was an opportunity too precious to pass up: a couple willing to let go and be themselves, perfect light, the perfect place and a perfect moment.

Photo below by Adm:

Photo below by Adm:

Aubra + Justin Engagement

After making engagement photos with Aubra and Justin for more than 3 hours, we can't wait for their October wedding!  Aubra and Justin are both so easygoing and fun to be around (not to mention that Aubra is also a Tar Heel alum).  This was my favorite kind of engagement shoot - leisurely exploring different parts of Oakland, looking for cool street scenes and art.  We ended up in our old neighborhood near the Parkway Theater where we found some great light, shadows and colorful murals.  They also brought along their adorable pup Lucy who joined in for the shoot.  I happen to be an avid Oakland lover, and so I love these shoots that get to show off my city and feel so quintessentially "Oaklandish."

Who doesn't love a good stick fight?

Photo below by Adm:

Laura + Jason Engagement

Laura and Jason are one of our 2010 couples who we met through Hillary and Matt.  They wanted more of a natural look surrounded by lots of trees so we began their engagement session at the Redwood Bowl in the Oakland hills.  It started off a bit cold and gloomy with some technical difficulties, but by the time we got things rolling, the sun came out as we hit Butters Peak so that we had some gorgeous light and fantastic views of the bay.  Laura and Jason are so easygoing and had such wonderful and natural laughs and smiles throughout the shoot.  We're really looking forward to their wedding next spring, which will consist of a two-day affair in their hometown Visalia.