Just For Fun…

So, after that amazing wedding in Santa Barbara (complete with
two different receptions, partying ’til the wee hours, and WAY too
much fun).

The Bride, Groom, my assistants and I all met up late the next
afternoon before they took of for their Hawaiian honeymoon.
We’d planned a special “day after session” in the hills of
Santa Barbara… We spent DAYS researching locations and
finally happened upon the PERFECT place.

I’m sure you’ll agree when you see the pictures
Ready?

Beautiful, isn’t it?!
The colors are just so bold, and that sky… Mmmmm gorgeous!

As the afternoon light began to wane; we kept moving, constantly
seeking the last perfect strands of California Sunset.

/\ I almost feel like this one could be in Africa /\

Mmmmm that’s the light I love!!
Here’s some more:

Seriously some of my favorite photographs EVER.
You should have seen me dancing while we captured them!

See what I mean about the location?!
It’s just oh so beautiful… One of my new favorite secrets

The one above, and the next one are just a beautiful example of the light in
Santa Barbara… I love it oh so much!! Are you getting that yet?

Oh, and btw… No editing needed on any of the above photos; barely
tweaked the contrast; other than that they’re pretty much straight out
of the camera.

This next one’s just a little bit WIDER to show you a little more of the
location… I love the light reflecting off the grass

Of course, the groom WAS there, he didn’t dress up though; so
he was enlisted for transportation

A quick “fine art” piece to put on your wall…
The stunning sunset light matched with the Winter colors in Santa Barbara.
Wonderful.

Now for a quick explanation… This was day four of shooting.
And it was directly following 15+ hours on their wedding day.
When I shoot, I’m up and down a LOT… So it’s like 15 hours of
squats and pushups…

Seeing the gorgeous beach below us was wonderful; but seeing
the hundred disjointed steps to get there was SCARY!

We made it down though; even if it took a little while

Sooo wonderful; it was a clear day so you could easily see
the channel islands in the background.

After a little while; Brian couldn’t stay away from his new Bride
any longer… And we were all glad to see it

But THEN, he decided he really WAS being left out a little too much

Cute together, aren’t they?

We had such an amazing time…
Their wedding weekend is definitely one for the record books!!

I’ve got 15 more events to blog; plus our nearly 10,000 mile roadtrip!
This past weekend, my little brother got married… Can’t wait to share
THOSE photos, especially

So, what do you think? Like these photos? Enjoy the blog?
Tell me what you think, I LOVE hearing from you!

P.S. Is there anything I can be praying for you about?

One of My Favorite Places in the World…

I love California… Orange County, San Francisco, Yosemite, EVERYWHERE.
Such an amazing State.

It’s one of the only places in the world I just naturally feel AT HOME.
And yet, each time I go back; I find some new gem, some new cherry on top
of the heaping scoop of awesome that California IS.

This time, it was Santa Barbara… While it wasn’t my first time IN SB
by any means; it sure felt a lot different this time. Maybe it was because
my darling wife was with me, maybe it was because I was shooting another
amazing couple’s wedding…

Who can be sure?!

All I know is that I *love* Santa Barbara (and the rest of the Central Coast,
for that matter)…. Here’s a little taste of WHY:

Beautiful light, isn’t it?!
Mmmmm.

But, I’m getting ahead of myself again (nasty habit, that).

Brian And Mandee’s Wedding Adventure….

I *love* these people.
When they first announced their engagement, I knew I’d be getting a call
soon… And a great one at that

See, I’ve shot three different weddings with this couple in them; from the
first one a few years ago; when they’d just started dating, to the next (Brian’s
sisters) last year where I took the liberty of shooting a few “pre-engagement”
photos… Like this one:

Cute, aren’t they?!

Well, when the call came I started planning our trip cross-country.
Nelle and I decided to make a crazy road trip of it; with no real plans
as to where we’d go, how long we’d be gone, or where we’d even end
up in the end!!

I’ve got about 15 posts worth of photos from our trip (and endless
adventures to share) but I’ll save that for another day.

We were hired to shoot Brian & Mandee’s entire Wedding Adventure;
four VERY full days of fun. In all, we shot WELL over 5,000 images

So, what follows are just a few to give you a little taste of their love,
and of my love for California

Thursday night began with a delicious Italian meal:

Followed by a rousing game of BROOMBALL:

The Bride, Mandee thought it’d be fun to be the best player out
there… ’till she nosedived into the ice about halfway through the game:

Of course, she kept playing and ended up having a TON more fun.
(I love Bride’s with a little adventure in ‘em :))

Friday, we shot the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner… Lots of great details:

And then it was the Wedding Day

Isn’t her bouquet gorgeous?

As for HER, she’s ALWAYS one of the most radiant people
I know; her Wedding day simply increased the brightness

Time for a little boutoniere help.

Mom wants a picture too

Caught in the act!

A Little “Epic” Action

And hey, why not a picture of ME showing them that picture?



(Many thanks to my assistant for the day Carlos Chavez for shooting that one :))

Ahh soooo many fun portraits to share from this wedding!
I’m going to try to limit the number; but here are a few more

/\ That one is one of my new all time favorites /\

And another favorite:

And then; it was time for a wardrobe change… Mandee planned two
separate dresses, receptions, and more

Great times were had by all

The “Big” Portraits aren’t something I post very often; but here are a couple
of my favorites from this group:

And Another:




This one was their idea; not mine… Haha.

I always encourage my Bride’s and Groom’s to take a few minutes
to get away… To recapture themselves; close their eyes…
And just BREATHE on their wedding day.



I make EVERYONE leave them alone… Even if it’s just five minutes.
A bit of time to relax, and be alone is just SO lovely

Cute, aren’t they?

I have a bajillion more photos; I’m going to put just a few more
in this post and then possibly set up the rest for a future one

As we were walking down the street; I spotted this tiny little oasis
off the sidewalk. Brian had to carry his bride across the shrubbery;
but we got the shot!

I really DO get to shoot the most beautiful Brides

SO many more photos I *could* post; but I’ll leave you with their
wonderful ceremony… This is my second in this Church, and I just
LOVE the wood

Now,  as you might have seen by the new logo; I’m *finally*
re-launching myself as a photographer. I’ll be explaining all
of that sometime soon.

Can’t wait to share it all with you!

So tell me; which photo is your favorite?
I’d love to have your feedback