The Jones Victorian Estate is this wonderful vintage house and property tucked away on a quiet street in Orange. You arrive entering a big gate, travel up a long driveway (locale of some of the best shots here!) and then escape back in time for a setting unlike any we've seen in Southern California.
The wedding ceremony is held behind the house, and afterwards, one lucky bride and groom and photographer get to enter the house, which isn't open to the public. What a memorable backdrop!
We first met Brandi and Kyran back in 2009, and had the good fortune of accompanying them down to the Manhattan Beach Pier for an unforgettable engagement session, highlighted by an amazing dip in the sand. It was fun recreating the dip in the Jones driveway.
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We first met Casey and Adam when we did their engagement shoot under the Manhattan Beach pier. They liked the pictures so much they invited us to go to Vegas with them for the wedding and we jumped at the opportunity.
The ceremony took place at Caesars Palace and we had fun capturing the two newlyweds in front of the statues and columns scattered throughout the famed hotel and casino.
As you can see, we had a lot of fun.
Casey and Adam, thanks for inviting us to be a part of your special day.
Just a few weeks ago we did the wedding video and photography for Joani and Marcel's Marina del Rey wedding at the Ritz-Carlton. Today, another highlight with the newlyweds--a ride on Marcel Air for lunch at the Catalina Island "airport in the sky." Marcel, a commercial pilot, has a small plane for 4 that he likes to take out to fun locations, for views that you never see on Southwest or Delta! Check out the video for a sample! And thanks again Joani and Marcel.
We had fun playing around with Animoto software to produce a two-minute semi "greatest hits," video montage of our Los Angeles wedding photography. Then we redid it, again and again. We added video clips, changed the soundtrack to classical music, added and subtracted pictures. Take a look and let us know what you think!
Julianna and Ayrick live in Miami, so it was a great privilege to be chosen by the couple to document their Los Angeles wedding in Hawthorne. (Mom lives nearby, so everyone met in L.A.)
The party was held in Long Beach, at the El Dorado Golf Course, where the bride and groom were photographed in their favorite setting--the rock with the water reflections.
The great thing about wedding photography is being able to capture special moments like these.
Joani and Marcel had a fun, romantic afternoon Marina del Rey wedding at the stunning Ritz-Carlton. It was wedding no. 3 for Marcel and no. 2 for Joani, and they were relishing every moment. Here's a photo series of the ecstatic couple, with their families off to the side, throwing flower pedals up in the air. Congrats guys!
Fireworks were in the air--literally, after Annie and David tied the knot last Saturday--7/4/09. Annie--she of the most expressive face we've ever had the good fortune of photographing--and David, wed at the historic Mary, Star of the Sea church in San Pedro--where we shot our very first paid wedding back in 2003! The reception afterwards was at the lovely Old Ranch Country Club in Seal Beach. Let's talk about the pictures: We can't get enough of the opening shot of Annie, lit like a movie star, holding her flowers in the church. Next up: Annie and David enjoying the fireworks display at Old Ranch with a heartfelt embrace and kiss, and the couple, earlier in the day, on the same spot, out on the golf course. For "wedding prep" days, we absolutely love photographing the bride in her home. There's just something so much more personal and loving there than in a hotel room. Love this moment with Mary and her mom in the living room of their Rancho Palos Verdes abode. More shots at the country club, golf course and church, followed by another all-time favorite. Annie's dad is taking one last week at his daughter, before giving her away to David. The expressions are priceless. Look for more here in the coming weeks--one highlight is a video clip of the couple cutting the cake--and the guests all serenading them with "Volare."
Some memorable moments from 2008 weddings. We begin with Miranda and Patrick's Torrance beach sunset wedding. Afterwards, we asked Mom to pose by the water, and her kids picked up on it. Look below to see the shape of one child immediately afterwards. And they were all going out to a fine Mexican restaurant to celebrate. Luckily, they brought along a change of clothes.
For Nisa and Jeremy's wedding in Venice, California, they wanted to get a nice shot of them with the dogs. The pups didn't really want to cooperate here!
Back to the kids.Below is the moment when the DJ calls all the single ladies to the dance floor to catch the bouquet. Someone neglected to tell the little boy at Toni-Lynne and Robin's Long Beach wedding, who was having too good a time to stay away.
Cathy wanted to reward husband Earl with a rendition of "I'm So Sexy," at their reception, complete with a lineup of ladies who agreed 100% with her. Folks, you just don't see stuff like this every day. Earl was in heaven....
The dance of the year. At Gaby and Dave's July wedding, there was a Mother/Son dance like we'd never ever seen before. Mo (mom) was just the happiest mother of the groom of all time--and quite a dancer--as you can see below!
Favorite location: the amazing Malaga Cove section of Palos Verdes. Cathy and Earl live in Northern California, and wanted to wed down South, near the parents, at a church in Carson, with reception in Torrance. We had a two-hour block for photography in-between, and offered a few of our favorite nearby spots. "I want to go to the prettiest spot in Southern California, Palos Verdes," Earl said. Not a problem! We used to ride our bike to P.V. every Saturday for several years before wedding photography entered our lives and know it well.
We stopped by the gazebo, which has a killer P.V. to Malibu view, and asked the happy couple to do a dip for us. Then we turned to Photoshop afterwards to enhance what was already a dynamo sunset. When they make a movie about Cathy and Earl, I hope they use the picture for the movie poster!
Bridesmaids Just Want to Have Fun: Toni-Lynne and the Gals @ Queen Mary This is our "Sex and the City," shot, one we always opt for at weddings, the girls linking arms and having the time of their lives. This is our best ever, thanks to the priceless expressions of the ladies on the deck of the stately Queen Mary. We visited the old ship three times in 2008, and look forward to returning in 2009.
Best Dress: Amy and her three gowns!
Amy put on a real show at her Palos Verdes Trump National Golf Course wedding with three wedding dresses. One for the ceremony, another for the grand entrance, and a third for the wedding cake and bouquet shots.
Most Romantic Venue: Mary & Steve @ La Venta Inn Back to idyllic Palos Verdes again, to the quaint, hideaway charm of the La Venta Inn. Mary and Steve wed on Labor Day, in a gazebo overlooking the Pacific Ocean, again, from P.V. to Malibu, with family and friends looking on. After the wedding, we stole the couple for a quick kiss shot at the other gazebo, on the other side of the property.
Best Surprise: Gaby & Dave and the Bruins.
Gaby and Dave didn't meet @ UCLA, but they're both Bruins, and love the school sooooo much. Dave and Gaby call each other on the phone--their ringtones play the Bruin fight song. So they insisted we do their engagement session at UCLA. And after the wedding at St. Timothy's in Los Angeles, they wanted to stop by UCLA for couple shots. Like it's not one of the greatest backdrops in the world? We were thrilled to be there with them. For their reception at Mountaingate Country Club in Los Angeles, they made their grand entrance with the Bruins themselves. Go UCLA!
One of the great things about being a Manhattan Beach based photo team is running down to the sand and surf for engagement sessions. Susan and Benjamin wanted to be photographed at first on a bike together. Fantastic--bring it along. Then, when sunset wrapped around, we dipped by the Hermosa Beach Pier, and asked her to jump into Ben's arms. Lucky for us. We got one of our favorite iconic images, by Sam Graham for Los Angeles Wedding Photo.com
Dampest Location: Palos Verdes Wedding
Jenna and John wanted to have their wedding party photographed on the steps of the Malaga Cove library in Palos Verdes. But it was raining, and everyone was going to get wet. Luckily, we had umbrellas in the car. Let's face it--the umbrellas bring the shot to life, doesn't it? Jenna @ Malaga Cove
Simple solution to the rain: move under a covered roof. That's exactly where we brought Jenna afterwards, to the beautiful, European style Malaga Cove shopping center. Best Cake:
We spent a lot of time with happy same-sex couples in 2008 in the pre-Prop. 8 good times. Let's hear it for Max and Paul, Lissa and Marty and all the other happy couples who were able to tie the knot in 2008. Our best wishes for 2009.
We've been to a lot of Los Angeles weddings over the years, but have never, ever, seen a happier mother of the groom than Mo! Here are some images of Mo dancing with her son Dave at his recent wedding to Gaby. Mo just came alive and electrified the event!
When Dave calls Gaby, her cellphone chimes with the UCLA fight song ringtone. So how appropriate that we should stop by Gaby and Dave's alma matter recently for wedding party and couple shots at UCLA. Not that we were complaining. It's one of our favorite settings for photos. We photographed Gaby and Dave @ Royce Hall, and on the big lawn in the Quad. The Los Angeles wedding was held at the beautiful St. Timothy's Church on Pico in Los Angeles, with the reception at Mountaingate Country Club. As you can tell from the photos, our couple kept the UCLA theme going during the reception. And their honeymoon? You'll never believe it--the UCLA dorm! (Just kidding.) Congrats, guys.
