Our Family Holiday Photos

Happy Holidays from my family to yours! 

My husband and I, like most couples, have been busy this holiday season. So we decided that we would take our own holiday photos this year. Taking family photos can be stressful for anyone, but photographing your own family photos and then adding in our little naked cat made for some funny blooper images. Luckily we were able to get at least one photo of our little family that was Christmas card worthy. :) 

Does anyone else feel that the holidays arrive faster and faster each year? This past year was a crazy year for our family. We planned our wedding, got married, and went on our honeymoon (all while working of course). This will be our very first Christmas as husband and wife. So far the largest change has been giving both of our families equal amount of time with us. Our Christmas Eve and Christmas will be spent with my husband's side and my side. Yes, it does involve traveling a bit more, but isn't the entire point of the holidays to spend it with family? We are very thankful that both of our families are willing to work around each others schedules. Maybe someday my husband and I will be able to combine our families and host the holidays in our home. But until that day working together with everyone on time schedules will have to due. 

Sierra & Brandon at O'Neill Regional Park

Christmas pictures is always a must this time of year. But we know finding the perfect photographer can be a journey. Just always remember that one of the most important parts to picking your photographer is that you feel comfortable with them. You have to be able to loosen up and have fun with each other, so that your photographer can capture those fun candid moments together. 

This awesome couple is our cousin and his beautiful girlfriend. We had a ton of fun photographing these two. As photographers we are constantly offering to photograph our families, it always helps to practice and try new poses with our non paying clients. We are so lucky to have such an awesome family. Thank you both so much for allowing us to be your Orange County photographers. :)

 

Elopement Idyllwild Wedding

When we are chosen to be someone's wedding photographer, we consider it to be the ultimate compliment. We know that we have a lot of competition in the wedding photography industry (especially in the Orange County area) and we know there are a ton of amazing photographers. We feel it comes down to, obviously our photos, but also the connection that we are able to form with our clients. These two were like our long lost friends. This bride and groom were way too much fun to work with and we couldn't be happier to be a part of their wedding day. 

When we arrived at the venue we immediately fell in LOVE. To say we had a million locations to take romantic pictures would be an understatement. Once we looked around for a bit, we met up with our beautiful bride Valerie, in a quant cabin in the woods. We had a blast photographing her getting all done up and taking her into the field to photograph her by herself. :)

Then it was time for the first look. The bride and groom were both a ball of nerves but both felt that they would calm down once they could see each other. The first look was a complete success; he was emotional seeing his gorgeous bride for the first time and we had a wonderful time capturing that serene moment.

Capturing romantics before the actual ceremony is always a good idea. It gives the bride and groom an opportunity to calm their nerves and just have a moment together. This couple was game for any and all of our photo ideas. We had this awesome bride traipsing around in her wedding dress and sandals all over the forest. But the results were totally worth it. So many awesome nature photos for this couple which was exactly what they were hoping to have. They are both avid hikers and really enjoy the outdoors. 

The ceremony was intimate and romantic. You could just feel their love for one another...there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd. We are so thankful to have had the opportunity to be their Orange County wedding photographers. We know that this couple will last a lifetime and then some. Congratulations!!  

 

Daisy & Jose Eagle Glen Golf Club Wedding

If you haven't had the pleasure of attending a wedding at Eagle Glen Golf Club, you should at least try a round of golf there sometime. This venue is simply gorgeous and full of awesome photography spots. Such an awesome venue! 

This gorgeous bride had two wedding dresses which is always fun for us! Having two dresses on your wedding day never used to be a "thing". But I think it's super fun and gives the bride a chance to have that classical timeless look her family may desire while still being able to have that fun "dance party" look she may want. We say "thumbs up"! 

We loved working with this bride and groom. Photographing weddings is always fun but when you have an awesome bride and groom like Daisy and Jose, it honestly makes the day that much better. Thank you both so much for letting us be your wedding photographers. We know you two will have an amazing marriage together. 

 

Venue: Eagle Glen Golf Club

Shantei & Sean Ayres Hotel Wedding

We love photographing people in love! These two are so in love and we couldn't be any happier for them. This fantastic bride doesn't live in California so she had to plan her entire wedding from another state (that is some tough stuff to do). But everything was so gorgeous and perfect.

This was a "Beauty and The Beast" theme wedding (who doesn't like Beauty and The Beast...)! Such a fun theme. We couldn't help but tease Sean the entire day that we knew who must be the beast. :) The wedding took place at The Ayres Hotel in Costa Mesa. The ceremony was next to this lovely fountain and the entire wedding was so dreamy and intimate, just the perfect setting! The staff at The Ayres was AWESOME to work with and the coordinator Rolanda with Vision into Reality Events is AMAZING! She is definitely the best and if you don't already have a coordinator, you need to hire her! She will give you the most beautiful wedding day and keep you happy and laughing the entire day. For a wedding photographer it is always more fun when we have a coordinator that keeps you up to date and is there if we need anything, and she WAS! 

Overall this wedding was absolutely perfect we are so happy for this beautiful couple and wish them nothing but all the happiness in the world! Thank you again for letting us capture your fabulous wedding day. 

Vendors-

Coordinator- Rolanda - Vision into Reality events  

Venue - Ayres Hotel in Costa Mesa

 

Proposal at Montage Laguna Beach

I think it's safe to say every single woman has thought about what her proposal would be like. It seems that part of being a girl.....when you grow up watching Disney movies with a HAPPILY EVER AFTER, it's hard not to imagine what your own love story would be like. Well this awesome guy planned the perfect proposal and we are so glad we could help capture it. 

Being a wedding photographer is so rewarding. But I wont lie...I love when we get to help be part of a proposal. The men are always anxious, nervous, and excited! All of the prep that goes into men "popping the question" just makes my heart melt. It really is such a wonderful moment to be able to photograph. Carl chose to propose at Montage Laguna Beach (if you haven't been to this gorgeous location, do yourself a favor and check it out). We were able to capture every little detail of him getting down on one knee (check out the short video below of her reaction)!

The surreal moments after you're OFFICIALLY ENGAGED is so overwhelming. You seriously want to laugh, cry, smile, kiss, and sometimes scream. It is one of the best moments you'll ever share with your soon to be spouse. Well after each proposal we photograph, we ALWAYS take the couple for some fun romantic pictures. These are always the best...we always get giggles and she is usually always staring at her new sparkle on her finger. What can I say...being a proposal photographer is the best! Thank you both for letting us be a part of your perfect wedding proposal. 

Venue: Montage Laguna Beach 

O'Neill Regional Park Engagement shoot

This outstanding couple never stopped laughing. We had the best time traipsing through O'Neill Regional Park. This bride and groom to be work with horses and are hoping to someday own their own horse farm. Being a HUGE animal lover I immediately liked them even more! Tell me you can see my vision of engagement photos with horses!! Anyway, needless to say I'll be staying in contact with these two down to earth souls. We LOVED this couple and their spunky personality!

Private Estate Wedding

First of all let me just say we love family estate weddings; they can be such a special bonus to get married to the person you love at a place that means the world to you. Well this beautiful couple chose to get married at the bride's family home. When we arrived at the family home we were in awe of the stunning location and the water front views. Such a beautiful setting for a perfect wedding day. 

Now this amazing bride had 3 of the cutest little sons that she had in a previous marriage. When we arrived at the bride's room we were expecting to see her boys with her, but they were in the grooms room. The groom had decided that soon they would be his sons too and that he should share some special alone time with just the boys before the wedding. To say this family was adorable would be a complete understatement. I have a soft spot for step-fathers that step up to be a father figure. We just couldn't help but fall in love with the amazing chemistry that these parents had for each other and their beautiful family. We couldn't of had more fun working this amazing wedding and are so glad we could capture their wedding photos that they can treasure forever.

Location: Lake Elsinore Private Estate

Josie & Gunnar Just Because Shoot

As some of you may know The Everlasting Photo is a small family run business made up with two sisters (Amber & Nichole). Well this photo shoot is particularly special to us because this is our handsome brother and his gorgeous girlfriend (who the entire family adores). As his sisters, we felt that we could bribe him into letting us photograph the two of them...it worked :). We ended up deciding that Laguna Niguel Regional Park was the best pick for the style they were hoping to capture. What a gorgeous park! We had the absolute best time laughing and photographing this amazing couple. After spending more time with these two together I must write, when two people just click everyone around them sees it too. Well I think I speak for everyone that knows this awesome couple that THEY CLICK and we are so happy you two are happy. Thank you both for letting us use you as guinea pigs and for practice (photographers constantly should be striving to improve...right?!) You two were the best! 

Wilson Creek Winery Wedding

We are so glad we could share this beautiful wedding day with this awesome bride and groom.

We love hearing our couples' love story. This awesome couple had "basically been married" for 23 years....thats right, you read this right. With of all of the stress and obstacles life threw at them they never got around to actually getting married. But we are so excited that they decided to finally tie the knot and allow us to photograph their special day.

This beautiful bride almost didn't have a dress to walk down the aisle in... she was one of the MANY women that had purchased a dress from Alfred Angelo. We all know the story this company took money from brides and many never received their dress. So this sweet bride had to go out in search for a new wedding dress (I couldn't imagine the stress she was under). But she was able to find a dress and she looked absolutely stunning. 

What else can you say about Wilson Creek Winery but WOW. Such a stunning venue with so many gorgeous places for photography moments. The staff at Wilson Creek Winery are so helpful and kind. We had a particularly fun time photographing this wedding because we had the pleasure of working with my amazing husband Brian with Love is Cinema. I know most wives brag about their husbands....but mine is truly talented (if your ever in need of a wedding videographer you should hire him). Overall this day couldnt have been more perfect and we are so thrilled that we could capture this stunning wedding at Wilson Creek Winery.

 

Vendors:

Venue: Wilson Creek Winery - www.wilsoncreekwinery.com

Video: Love is Cinema - www.loveiscinema.com

Katherine's & Christopher's Engagement Shoot

True love..

These two are so deeply in love and so excited to finally become husband and wife! I had the best time photographing these two. But the love that these two have for each other is absolutely adorable. For those of you that don't know when you first get engaged all of these mixed emotions occur and can become overwhelming at times....but for this power couple they weren't stressed at all. They had planned out a majority of their wedding and they were still about 10 months away. I was truly impressed....I won't lie my husband and I were quite stressed during those engagement months. The pressure of having "THE PERFECT WEDDING" can make even the perfect couple a little dingy. But at the end of the day every wedding is perfect in their own special way. We can not wait to watch these two say "I do" on the best day of their lives. 

P.s. If your ever in search of a gorgeous place to take family photos, engagement photos, etc. O'Neill Regional Park in Trabuco Canyon is so gorgeous and a true treasure. 

Location: O'Neill Regional Park

Jacqueline & Johnathan

Temecula Creek Inn Wedding 

The amount of love and joy throughout this wedding day was astounding. We were so happy that we got to take part in this fun loving couples wedding at Temecula Creek Inn. 

When we arrived at this bride's hotel room she was blasting music with her girls and we knew at that moment this was going to be a really fun wedding to photograph. Our favorite weddings are when the bride and groom are just excited for the day with no stress. These two were nervous up until the first look; you could see the stress and tension disappear the moment they saw each other. The rest of the day was a dream between the gorgeous ceremony to the reception. The music was bumping at this reception and we couldn't help but boogey a little ourselves to the fun beats. 

This bride and groom picked the most beautiful venue; Temecula Creek Inn is just stunning and the staff is so awesome and easy to work with. In wedding photography your job is to make the wedding look as gorgeous as it was and let us just say Temecula Creek Inn made our lives easy! We honestly had the best vendor team at this wedding. We had the pleasure of once again working with my truly talented husband Brian with Love is Cinema; every wedding with him always goes just that much smoother. It really helps when your photographer and videographer have good chemistry together; it will make your wedding day go by even smoother. We also were lucky enough to work with Ian over at DJMC Ian B, talk about an awesome guy; he really made the reception a party....let's just say the dance floor was always full. We are so happy we were able to be a part of this fantastic wedding.

Vendors: 

Venue: Temecula Creek Inn - www.temeculacreekinn.com

Videographer: Love is Cinema - www.loveiscinema.com 

Dj: DJMC Ian B - www.djmcianb.com

Key words: Temecula wedding photographer, Bridal photography, Temecula Creek Inn, Stone House wedding venue

Maternity Shoot

We had such an amazing time with this beautiful couple at Aliso Creek Beach!

If you can believe it, this stunning woman was extremely nervous to be photographed....not that she would ever need to be nervous! The struggles of being a woman are enough to handle, but then add on pregnancy and sometimes it can be overwhelming for a woman. When you add a little bump you can tend to feel insecure.... We know taking photos can be so very intimidating anyway. But luckily we were able to get this beauty to feel comfortable enough to show her tummy off. :) So glad she decided to give us some awesome baby bump photos! These photographs turned out phenomenal I can't wait to meet this little bundle of joy and hopefully photograph the little munchkin. 

Being a lifestyle photographer can so often be so fulfilling. We love photographing weddings but it's always a good time taking photos of a beautiful mommy to be. We wish you two the best and just know that you will be the best parents ever!

Location: Aliso Creek Beach in Orange County, CA

Location: Aliso Creek Beach

Key words: maternity photographer, pregnancy, Orange County photography, pregnant, Temecula wedding photography, lifestyle photo