Friday, November 22, 2013

Jo & Steven's Wedding. San Francisco

Ceremony at St. Patrick's Church and reception at the The Four Seasons in San Francisco.

St. Patrick's had been the church they absolutely wanted to be married in. I think all would agree that it's an amazing site. When I first met them, I let Jo and Steven know that I had been waiting for the opportunity to photograph at St. Patrick's - I love its architectural style. The church was rebuilt in the early 1900's after the earthquake using red brick and is a stark contrast to the ultra modern concrete buildings around it. While working in San Francisco, I'd walk pass it's beautifully weathered bronze doors everyday and speculate how I would approach a wedding at the church.

The wedding was beautiful, set among the many Gothic style arches and columns. Jo and Steven's exit through the main doors was classic. I loved having guests gathered around the door as the bride and groom stepped through, paused, and walked down the stairs into the crowd - all happening along busy Mission Street. Awesome way to transition from the ceremony! The couple hired a cable car to ferry people to our photography location so we all climbed on board. Family and friend toasted with champagne as we drove through the South of Market.

Jo and Steven were super enthusiastic during their engagement session and the their wedding day was no different! Many guests were coming from out of town so the couple spent a lot of time and effort sweating the details with elements meant something to them while also creating a celebration their friends and family would love. I know they had a good time browsing Etsy, Minted, and Hello Lucky the months leading up to the big day.

That morning Steven handed out sixpack's with personalized labels to the groomsmen as Jo finished hair, makeup, and her Tiffany blue nails - finishing right on time. Steven had a dashing custom-made suit accessorized with his grandfather's watch while Jo stepped into a finely detailed lace dress wearing her mother's vintage jewelry. We decided on a first meeting with just Jo and Steven... and 4 cameras :) I love doing these, it was such a beautiful moment. About half an hour before the ceremony they saw each other for the first time in a hallway of the Four Seasons. Private meetings have, without a doubt, become a modern tradition worthy of including in your wedding day. Things happen so fast, this is a perfect time to slow down taking a moment to focus on yourselves before dedicating the rest of the day to your guests.

The Veranda Ballroom and Terrace were readied by Gabbi and the Four Season's staff along with Satra. Worth noting are the mason jars Nicole filled with succulents and candles hanging on the Terrace behind the bar. So many details! Escort cards in the form of tickets, lace used in the place settings, wood-block table numbers from Etsy, menu cards from Minted, invitations from Hello Lucky, coaster, CD's, mad-libs... a late-night snack bar with Root Beer floats (yummy). All capped off by a sparkler exit on Market Street; it was a pretty awesome day!


Event Coordination: Satra Zarghami of Events by Satra
Cinematography: Ric and Rose of Grover Films
Floral Design: Nicole Ha
Cake: Cakework
Makeup and Hair: Meaganne McCandess
Cermony Music: San Francisco Conservatory of Music
Reception Music: Jason Mitchell
Lights and Linens: Hartmann Studios
Transportation: Events West

 

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Jo & Steven's Engagement. San Francisco

Just this past weekend, Jo and Steven were married - congratulations! Their engagement session happened a little while ago, but I hadn't had the time to post them as we prepared for their wedding. Here they finally are.

Originally from Arizona, many friends and family would be traveling to attend the wedding. They wanted images with well known landmarks from across the City to be featured at the reception. We had an ambitious goal, introduce San Francisco in a way that didn't appear totally touristy. Normally I would encourage a more focused storyline because making a theme like this look cohesive in a reasonable amount of time can be a challenge. They communicated their ideas well, had a great attitude, and I saw a way to make it work. Besides, Jo and Steven gave me creative freedom - how could I refuse that?

So here we go, a tour of the City by the Bay! With about 15+ items on our hit list we met up at Tartine for that quintessential morning stop in the Mission. Man, there is always a line at this place. Like any self-respecting and hip San Franciscan, they were dropped off in a Black Escalade Uber Cab - nice! Lombard, Coit Tower, Palace of Fine Arts, Muni F-line, Fisherman's Wharf, Pier 7, Exploratorium, Ferry Building, cable cars, Chinatown, North Beach, City Lights, Transamerica Building, Muni Underground, Painted Ladies, Baker Beach/Golden Gate Bridge. They had their Wheaties 'cause we made it happen! On top of that, it rained.

Did they use the images you ask? Absolutely! But you'll need to wait a little while longer before we reveal images from the wedding ;) Be sure to check back for those. I think it'll be pretty wiked.