Andrew and Jenni Wed at the City Club in San Francisco

We got to know Andrew and Jenni when they visited us in the wine county and were good sports about going to the local county Fair to shoot part of their engagement session there. Both are soft spoken and somewhat shy in front of the camera, but were willing to try anything. They got ready at the Intercontinental in San Francisco and said their vows at the historic St. Patricks Cathedral, the oldest church in San Francisco (1872). The bride and groom did not see each other before the ceremony but did charter a mini-bus to drive to the reception and stop along the way in the financial district to take some photos. The San Francisco City Club is gorgeous with its huge mural by Mexican artist Diego Rivera in the grand stairwell. We got to go to the roof with the couple and photograph them in the twilight hour with the SF skyline in the back. Very cool!

Jessica and Tyson Tie the Knot at Thomas Fogarty Winery

Jessica and Tyson, a radiant and charismatic couple, got married at the Thomas Fogarty Winery in Woodside. We really enjoyed this rustic and scenic location with several cool indoor and outdoors locations to shoot in. It was a glorious day, the scene was set with great panoramic views of the valley and the vineyards surrounding the winery. Jessica looked amazing with her short veil and long eyelashes!  They chose not to see each other before hand, waiting instead till Jessica walked out onto the lawn where they said their vows. After dinner guests got to witness a spectacular sunset while enjoying hand rolled cigars by Patricio Angulo. Dancing was very energized thanks to wonderful DJ Woody and his amazing lighting which made for some great pictures! We had a great time working with Janece, from Every Elegant Detail who worked her magic throughout the day. We had a good laugh when we received Tyson’s email to us: “Like Jessica said, thank you so, so much, these photos all came out amazing. We keep having friends over to dinner and then we force them to look through all the photos again and again.  The slideshow came out great and we have been watching it over again and again.”

Journey To India

In December of 2011 we took our kids to visit India, mostly in and around Mumbai, where Meher was born and raised. We had a truly epic trip. Everything in India is an adventure, especially crossing the streets! We were glad we celebrated Christmas with the kids before we left, because it isn’t really a big celebration in India and we never got into the Christmas spirit once we were there. We did throw our own party though, a couple of days after Christmas.  We had a special celebration for our kids and threw a small reception, it was great way to meet up with Meher’s large extended family and friends. Even Marcel’s sister and her family came all the way from Germany which made it extra special.  An other highlight of our travels was a trip to a town called Matheran. It is a unique place, where no cars are ever allowed into the town. It is located only about 100 kilometers from Mumbai.  Although Matheran is not far from Mumbai in terms of distance, the journey can take 3 to 4 hours by car! Matheran is located on a plateau at a height of 2,600 feet., is well forested and full of wild monkeys. Once in town, the mode of transport is your own two feet (yes, a lot of hiking), or horseback, or a person pulling you along in a rickshaw (glad to say we didn’t have to resort to this quite yet). Our daughter (who is an avid rider) was in her own kind of paradise with all the horses and other wildlife around. Every day we went on hikes, while the kids rode on horses leading the way. It was a magical place for us and we were all sad when it was time to leave. Special thanks to Meher’s brother Darius who drove and guided us the whole way. The rest of the trip we stayed in Mumbai with Meher’s younger brother Zal and his wife Karishma, enjoying this vibrant city and surrounding areas, catching up with old friends and feasting on the varied Indian cuisine. A special thanks to Meher’s family for putting us up and helping with all the events and trips, they made this really special. Please find below some of our favorite pics to give you some impressions from our trip, hope you enjoy them.

One of the many vista points in Matheran.

Most of the trails in Matheran have a canapé of trees, making it pleasant to hike or ride during the day.

One of the many chickens calling Matheran their home. This Rooster was quite an impressive specimen. Seriously, you do not want to mess with this one

Our local guide Bhavesh, showing us the steep trail by which the milk is brought in every day.

Nikta and Behram’s Zoroastrian Wedding

Although we are privileged to shoot a lot of multi-cultural weddings, living as we do in the Bay Area, Nikta and Behram’s wedding was a very special one for us. Nikta and Behram are both Zoroastrian, as is Meher.  You won’t see many Zoroastrian ceremonies now-a-days, especially not in the United States. Behram was born in India like Meher, and Nikta’s family came over from Iran several years ago, before she was born. They started the day at the Le Meridien Hotel with love notes to each other while getting ready separately. We then helped coordinate the “first look” at a beautiful curved staircase located within the hotel. They wanted to ensure that there would be enough time to get some cool shots in the city, so we took off with the couple to the Palace of Fine Arts, and then some more urban shots in the financial district, very close to the Julia Morgan wedding venue. The ceremony was conducted by Nikta’s grandfather, who is a Zoroastrian priest. It was a beautiful and touching ceremony, with ancient prayers blessing this couple’s future together. The reception took place in the beautiful and classic Julia Morgan Ballroom. In true Persian fashion, the reception started and ended with dancing. Nikta’s cousins even put on a choreographed dance performance for her as a surprise! We had fun working with the very talented videographers from REB6Studios, who did a killer highlight trailer of the wedding.

Alexa & Jonathan Presidio Engagement Session

2012 is starting out to be a busy year. Here are some photos of the first engagement session of 2012. Couldn’t have asked for a better day and a more fun couple. We started out at Fort Point, under the Golden Gate Bridge. Fort Point is a great location (when the weather cooperates) and has some cool vignettes and some dramatic light. We then proceeded to the Presidio to take some fun shots during magic hour.

Shabnam and Jon’s Persian Wedding at the Westin Saint Francis

Shabnam and Jon had an elegant Persian wedding at the Westin Saint Francis hotel on Union Square in San Francisco. The ceremony took place in Victor’s Palace and the reception at Alexandra’s, both on the 32nd floor, with great views of the city.  The bride was stunning and the groom dashingly handsome. The best man made a comment about how Shabnam looks like Princess Jasmine of Disney fame — he was not far off This was a super fun wedding with a lot of Persian-style dancing, gorgeous guests, and great food. We managed to sneak the bride and groom away for some cool photos around the historic hotel after the ceremony. A special thanks to Natasha from the Westin and Niosha, the day of coordinator, both of whom helped ensure the event progressed smoothly.

Meredith and Evan Mission Ranch Wedding

Meredith and Evan tied the knot at the Mission Ranch in Carmel, a gorgeous location with spectacular views of the rugged Carmel shoreline. This historic dairy farm was preserved and restored by former Carmel mayor Clint Eastwood. The rustic setting provided a perfect backdrop to this couple’s unique personality. Meredith looked gorgeous, styled in a Hollywood-glamour kind of way. The beautiful ceremony was outdoors, with sheep grazing in the background, the gray sky adding to the drama of the moment. The reception was full of heartfelt moments, and we even got to do a fun portrait session with many of the guests during magic hour.

Meredith sent us a sweet email that made our day after she saw the pictures: “These are AMAZING!  Of course I’ve gotten no work done for the last hour and a half, but I’ve been tearing up, laughing and smiling like crazy.  I’m so thankful you both got so much documented in such a beautiful way.  I was hoping to see our wedding from a whole new perspective and that’s exactly what happened.  I’m just so happy. You know, we got a lot of comments from so many guests saying how much they enjoyed both of your presence at the wedding.  It was great that you were able to feel comfortable amongst our people.  They really felt it and responded very positively.”

Bunny & Jake’s Hitchcock Inspired Engagement Session

Bunny and Jake are getting married in 2012 at the Mark Hopkins in San Francisco. During our consultation Bunny and Jake mentioned that they wanted to do their engagement session in the area of the Mark Hopkins and incorporate some of San Francisco’s iconic locations. Jake, being a movie buff, suggested having a Hitchcock theme. For inspiration we watched Vertigo a few days before the shoot. Bunny and Jake were great sports and just like actors  worked hard to make each scene perfect. We love creative clients!