Lindsey & Brian's Saratoga Springs Wedding | San Francisco Bay Area Wedding Photographer

Lindsey & Brian's day was nothing short of magical beneath the towering redwoods of the Santa Cruz mountains. Tucked away on a winding road in Saratoga, Saratoga Springs is a mountain oasis a world away from Silicon Valley. As you step out of your car the first things you notice are the drop in temperature and the smell of fresh greenery. The entire area exudes romance, similar to that of a fairy tale. Add in two beautiful people (Lindsey and Brian, obviously) and it's a perfect location for a wedding.

I lost count of the times I laughed alongside these two. From the moment we met at a Starbucks in Los Altos to discuss their wedding we were all at ease, fast friends. It was an honor and a privilege to document their day, as easy at that was with so much beauty -inner and outer- surrounding us.

Congratulations you two!

Lisa & Javier's San Francisco Engagement Session | Palace of Fine Arts, Crissy Field, and Ferry Terminal

I am beyond excited to photographer Lisa & Javier's wedding at the Grand Island Mansion next year! Funny story (okay, not so funny), I was actually an hour and 15 minutes late to our wedding consultation. I have never been late EVER IN MY LIFE. So technically maybe a few times, but I am one of those freaks who is early for everything and typically waits in my car for 30 minutes as to not be obnoxious with how early I am. Well, for whatever reason my brain decided to stop working, I didn't set the alert in my phone, and I remembered while literally in the shower with soap in my hair...at the exact time I was supposed to be meeting them. I ran, soapy hair and all, stark naked through my living room screaming at my husband to find my phone so I could call them. I explained what happened, the truth -that I'm a moron- and they were kind and generous enough to wait for me. Oh, and did I mention that we were meeting about 40 minutes from my home? I may or may not have exceeded the speed limit a few times while my heart raced frantically because I was so horribly guilty.

Seriously, I cannot believe that they didn't hate me after that, much less liked me enough to hire me for their wedding. But, at our wedding consult we bonded over tech (Javier works at Netflix with my husband and actually takes the same shuttle!), our mutual dislike for flying, and many other things.

They chose the Palace of Fine Arts and Crissy Field for their engagement session - both Lisa and Javier went to college in San Francisco and spent a lot of time hanging out on the grass of Chrissy field together and with friends so it was a perfect choice. We also headed to the Ferry Terminal and Embarcadero as the sun went down. It was the perfect day with new friends, and it certainly didn't help that we chose one of the nicest days of the year...it was almost 90 degrees in the city!

San Francisco Bay Area Wedding Photographer | Regale Winery Los Gatos

Stacy and Brian made my job easy. Stacy sent me a perfectly laid out timeline a couple of weeks before the wedding and when I asked who her event planner was she casually said, "me" :) They each got ready at a beautiful hotel in downtown Los Gatos before we all got in cars (okay, so I totally rode in a limo) up the mountain to the stunning Regale Winery. From there Stacy and Brian did their first look, we took portraits of the wedding party around the grounds, and finished in plenty of time for everyone to go back inside for some air conditioning.

One of the coolest things for me as their photographer was seeing my former bride, Kira, as their officiant! I photographed Kira and Jordan's wedding back in 2013 in Monterey (Jordan was a groomsman and gave a pretty hilarious speech). Another one of my good friends was in attendance all the way from Hawaii with her husband so while I had only met Stacy and Brian a couple of times prior to the wedding I felt very welcome and at home among their friends and family.

The speeches were full of tears, even more laughs, and then we snuck off for a few more photos just before the sun dipped below the hills covered in vineyards.

I had the best time and yet again feel so lucky to have the opportunity to photograph days like these. I never knew how fulfilling it would be to document weddings and the longer I do it the more I appreciate it. Moving back to the San Francisco Bay Area has made a great impact on my business and photographing weddings so close to home is a great treat!