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Living in SoCal do have its perks. It is supposed to be winter season and Los Angeles averages around a breezy 83 degrees. Unfortunately, the night can get a bit chilly, but I am settle for the warm afternoons.

Nina and Tom tied the knot at Casa Del Mar in Santa Monica last summer and it was such a lovely wedding! Their wedding photographs were all so priceless, but to save space, I will showcase only the highlights of their wedding photos from Casa Del Mar. It was a bright afternoon in Santa Monica where the streets were crowded with tourists and surfers. Casa Del Mar’s great location on the beach side of Santa Monica gave Nina and Tom a perfect view of the city from their suite. Tom spared no expenses for Nina to be comfortable throughout the wedding from her suite during her preparation to their reception. Since Nina and Tom were not to see each other until their “first glance,” Danny and I hopped around from one location to the other in Casa Del Mar to photograph both Nina and Tom’s parties. While Nina sat comfortably at her suite, we ran around with the boys at Casa Del Mar’s amazing lounge downstairs to start their wedding photography session. Once the full wedding party all joined together, we not only photographed inside Casa Del Mar, but also around the streets of Santa Monica to spice up their wedding photography session!

Through all the running around to take their awesome wedding photos, we made it in time for Nina and Tom to walk down the aisle and get married! Since Nina and Tom come from different cultures, they blended both Indian and Catholic traditions together for their heart-touching wedding ceremony. This was the first time I have seen these two traditions mesh together; it was actually really cool! Once the knot and all the formalities were tied up and settled, their wedding ceremony hall was converted into a sweet reception hall where everyone partied like rockstars! There were a few amazing speeches from the parents and brothers, and of course, an amazing thank you speech from Nina and Tom to all their wedding guests for making their wonderful wedding day so special.

Without any further delays, check out Nina and Tom’s wedding photos from Casa Del Mar (Santa Monica).

Casa Del Mar
Santa Monica, CA

Congratulations to the both of you. Your wedding here at Casa Del Mar (Santa Monica) was truly amazing. It was our pleasure to be your friendly neighborhood wedding photographers. =)

Cheers,

Doug – - Contact Me!

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Hello everyone!

11 hours and counting until the new year in sunny California, mainly sunny in Los Angeles and Orange County. Have you all made your New Years resolution yet?

My lovely wedding couple, Beth and Nik , finally tied the knot at beautiful Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach! Their wedding was so colorful all the say down to the boutonnieres, which made AWESEOME photos in the end. It was an early day when Beth and Nik prepped up at their designated suites provided by Shade Hotel and hurried up to get married at Wayfarer’s Chapel that was just a quick drive away in Palos Verdes. Since Nik woke up a bit earlier, he had some time to catch the surfs at Manhattan Beach before preparing for the wedding. While Nik took his board to the beach, the ladies all hung out and had their makeup done. Since Danny and I did not bring any swimming trunks, we hung out with Beth and photographed the ladies until Nik came back!

While Beth and her wedding party all prepped up, we took aside all the fun little wedding details to photograph. Every fine wedding detail was taken into consideration. Even the boutonnieres were color coordinated with the bouquets for the bridesmaids then the entire wedding party can match! I suppose of all the wedding details, the most eye catching was Beth’s Manolo heels. I was not sure what it was, but it was the perfect item to compliment her wedding dress. Every sit back and relax; this is going to be a long, yet worthwhile, wedding blog entry.

Shade Hotel
Manhattan Beach, CA

To start off, check out the wedding details of the boutonnieres and the matching wedding bouquets.

Even the flower girl got an wonderful bouquet of flowers to match her wedding dress!

And of course, the Beth’s wedding bouquet was the best.

While the ladies did their thing, we stood by the sidelines and photographed each touching moment. This photograph of Beth’s mother was one of my favorite photos of the day. =)

I just had to pair Nik’s suit and his favorite surfboard together for this next wedding picture.

Dig the socks

Here was a fun side story about Beth and Nik’s wedding. Nik is very particular about everything, even down to his tie. He forgot his favorite black tie at his house and none of our ties were able to match up. Danny and the Nik’s entourage did the next best thing – all jump into a car and speed off to the mall in search of the perfect replacement tie! After countless ties, Nik finally found a suitable one to match his taste. This next wedding photo kind of summed it up as Nik adjusted his tie as they took the escalator down.

Now that the wedding is back on track and all the little wrinkles in the wedding itinerary has been ironed out, everyone met at Wayfarer’s Chapel for the their grand wedding. With the spare time while the wedding guests made their way to Wayfarer’s Chapel, we captured a few fun wedding pictures with the entire wedding party.

The following wedding photos were touching moments when Nik finally saw Beth in her amazing wedding dress. I think Nik squeezed out a few tears too. I think anyone would if they saw her.

After that intimate moment was over, we quickly took one photo of the entire wedding party and rushed everyone to the front of Wayfarer’s Chapel for the wedding ceremony.

BAM! Sealed with a kiss.

Before we headed to Abalone Cove for their wedding photography session, we walked to the side of Wayfarer’s Chapel for some nice colorful greens to add in their wedding photos.

After the wedding photography session was over and a handful of the wedding party had thorns stuck in their legs (thanks for being a real trooper), we all headed back to Shade Hotel (Manhattan Beach) for a fun-filled night of cheers, laughter, and lots of sweets! The dessert table was wonderfully crafted by their wedding coordinator, Linsay Longacre from LVL Events.

Instead of the usual guestbook at weddings, Beth and Nik chose a cute bodyboard to match their personalities better.

After the father’s speech to Beth and Nik, this next wedding photograph was such a tender moment when Nik got out of his seat to give his dad the biggest hug ever.

Many speeches were given out that night to congratulate our wedding couple, but Beth’s sister’s poem stood out amongst the rest.

Since there we sweets everywhere, Danny thought it was only fitting to have the wedding rings photographed in a sea of blue…whatever those blue balls were. =)

Once everyone had their fill, the party started with the first dance as husband and wife. Afterward, DJ dropped the beat and the party rocked all night long!

Congratulations again to the both of you. It was an absolute pleasure to be your wedding photographers at Shade Hotel in Manhattan Beach (Los Angeles).

On another quick side note, this wedding made it to the publications for the spring issue of The Knot. How awesome is that! Check out their wedding on The Knot at your nearest Barns and Noble!

Cheers,

Doug – - Contact Me!

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I always get excited every time someone mentions a camping trip. It brings back memories when I used to be a Boy Scout and ran around the woods. Plus, the change of scenery from the city is always a breath of fresh air. Jessica and Max are two high adventure lovers who would rather escape in the woods more than anything. What better way of hosting their destination wedding than in a forest! Jessica and Max hosted their destination wedding at a beautiful venue in the deep forest of Idyllwild. The ironic thing about this wedding was that prior to their preparations, they each took a brisk 10+ mile hike! Once the two of them returned from their short adventure, Danny and I started their photography session. Simplicity was what they aimed for in this wedding, which they planned successfully. Jessica and her ladies handmade all the details for the wedding from the center pieces to the actual napkins and tablecloths! That was definitely a nice touch for this wedding. Their destination wedding in Idyllwild consisted of only the closest of family and friends (about 30 in total). Enough details, check out their wedding photographs from Idyllwild!

Rainbow Inn on Strawberry Creek
54420 South Circle Dr
Idyllwild, CA 92549

Jessica and her ladies prepped up

I thought this shirt said so much about these two, so I just had to include this photograph in their wedding. Jessica and Max both got their PhD in physics. Another unique part of this wedding was that Max wore a kilt to represent his Scottish side. Either way, that made their wedding photography session so much more unique.

This was a touching wedding photo when Jessica’s mother did the final touches before they all walked down the aisle.

Check out their simple, yet beautiful, wedding overview from the balcony. While Jessica and Max waited in their designated rooms, Danny and I had the opportunity to snap a few photos of their wedding hall and details before the actual wedding ceremony commenced.

This wedding setup was so cute! I specifically loved the banners that hung around the parameter. Jessica actually stitched each and every one!

A kiss to seal the deal and end the wedding ceremony!

Family photo session! Everyone was dressed with so much vibrant colors, which definitely created such an awesome photo addition to their wedding memories.

With some spare time before the reception, Jessica and Max had their wedding photography session taken with all the greens and nature for us to use at our leisure. Our wedding photography session was a brisk hike around the hillside and a short hop around a couple streams. =)

While Jessica and Max were out for their wedding photography session, their wedding guests had plenty of games to play while they waited for their food! When was the last time you played bean bags?!

Sorry, princess. You might have to wait a few more years before you can taste that bottle.

While the wedding guests all sat down and enjoyed a home cooked meal provided by this lovely venue, Jessica and Max made a wonderful speech and thanked everyone for their journey up the mountain to their intimate destination wedding.

For their adventurous honeymoon, they planned to conquer Mt. Whitney (a mountain that defeated my friends and me a couple years back) to kick start their lovely marriage. As a present from their wedding guests, they made a flag to mount once they reach the summit. Good luck on that battle!

To wrap up this destination wedding photography blog, I thought this photo during the wedding reception was a nice touch. Although Max is fearless in any high adventure, he somehow has a fear of babies. The impression on both Jessica and Max’s faces were priceless. I actually have a large printout of this wedding photo mounted on the wall of my studio to share with all my visitors.

Congratulations again to the both of you. Good luck on your conquest to Mt. Whitney because you will need it! It was definitely a pleasure to be your wedding photographers.

Cheers,

Doug – Contact Me!

P.S. – Since Danny and I were up in the mountains, we sat outside and enjoyed the entire blanket of stars after we clocked out. It would have made an amazing photo…but I was too lazy to take my camera out of the trunk.

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It was quite an insane weekend when Kelly and Dean’s wedding at La Venta Inn at Palos Verdes, Kristina and Grant’s wedding at US Grant Hotel in San Diego, and Nina and Ren’s wedding in beautiful Surf and Sand Resort located in Laguna Beach (Orange County)! With those three weddings we were given the opportunity to photograph, we were exposed to so many different cultures and color! Nina and Ren’s wedding at Surf and Sand was a prefect way of ending our wedding photography weekend with a huge bang! Of the three weddings, Nina and Ren’s traditional Indian wedding was, of course, the most colorful.

Surf and Sand Resort
Laguna Beach, CA
Orange County

Nina and her gals started their day early with breakfast, junk food, and plenty of hairspray! I would say that is a perfect combo for any girl at the wedding! While the ladies goofed off and practiced a dance they performed for the reception, we photographed their wedding details and their amazing smiles.

Nina’s wedding bouquet had a photograph of her mother who touched her life. That was a really sentimental detail for Nina’s big day.

Nina and Ren had their “first look” prior to the wedding ceremony. It was a private showcase that consisted of just the wedding party and us photographers. =)

With the extra time we had before the wedding ceremony, we ran around Surf and Sand Resort for some cool wedding photos! We made use of the driveways and the bellhop carts for the following wedding pictures.

Here comes the bride! It is always an awesome moment to watch and photograph different cultures celebrate their wedding.

Ren was a real joker, even at his wedding! In an Indian wedding, the groom marks a red spot on the bride, but he rubbed the red dye all over her nose like Rudolph the red nose reindeer. =D

After the wedding ceremony, we ran around Laguna Beach to wrap up their wedding photos.

After their wedding pictures were done, we had just enough time to get these two ready for their grand entrance. Nina and Ren danced the night away with the rest of their wedding guests. Congratulations on your big day, Nina and Ren! Your wedding at Surf and Sand in Laguna Beach was definitely one to remember.

Cheers,

Doug – Contact Me!

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I hope everyone’s holiday went well and you all were able to spend time with family and friends! Aside from receiving an awesome coffee maker from my Secret Santa, I spent the bulk of my holiday with friends, family, and cooking. =)

Kristina and Grant’s wedding brought Danny and me back to San Diego where they hosted their grand wedding at US Grant Hotel located in the heard of San Diego. Since these two love birds are both naval officers, their itinerary were in military time and they were on time for everything! Grant and his boys started their morning early at Vince’s barber shop for a nice straight razor shave. Fortunately, the Farmer’s Market was less than a block away, so Grant and his wedding party got some fresh orange juice and breakfast burritos! These spur of the moments in between the wedding events make the greatest photos!

Vince’s Barber Shop
San Diego, CA

While the Grant and his boys prepped up for the wedding, Kristina and her ladies were at a local salon getting their groove on. Kristina chose blue as her eye shadow to represent the Navy. I thought it was a really nice little detail in their wedding and definitely in their wedding photos.

I stole one of their cupcakes that was meant for their wedding cake table for this wedding ring photo. I am sure they did not mind. =P

Since Kristina was ready a bit ahead of schedule, we photographed a couple solos of Kristina during her wedding portrait session at US Grant Hotel.

US Grant Hotel
San Diego, CA

Grant and the boys took a quick drive to the nearby church right next to US Grant Hotel for their wedding ceremony. It was a beautiful church filled with all their family and friends. Best of all, they got the military salute with all the sabers after they concluded the wedding ceremony! It made such an awesome wedding photo!

Instead of driving back to US Grant for the reception, the fresh San Diego air was nice enough for the entire wedding party to stroll down a few blocks to the venue. We took so many fun wedding pictures along the way from the church to US Grant Hotel.

After we finished the wedding party’s photography session, I concentrated on just Kristina and Grant at a local Museum that offered beautiful architecture for their wedding pictures.

Once Kristina and Grant made their grand entrance at US Grant Hotel, the party just rocked on all night long! An awesome side note was they used their saber to cut their wedding cake. Who needs a cake knife when you walk around w/ a sword, right? =D

It was time to conclude the night, so all the guests lined up to see these two love birds off on their grand exit from the venue.

Congratulations again to the both of you. It was a pleasure to be your wedding photographers.

Cheers,

Doug – Contact Me!

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