You know that feeling when you take a deep breath and exhale? A certain calmness wraps around you for a second, and the world seems to become a bit clearer, and a bit more fluid. That is how I would describe Maegan and Chris as a couple on their wedding day. They seemed so grounded and calm and present throughout the day, but together they just always had that feeling of an exhale… just peaceful. It was a pleasure to be part of this day. To tell their story. To capture their family. Enjoy.
Music Licensed from The Music Bed
Expression is the essence of emotion. Without expression there would be no smiles, no laughter, no tears. It is through expression that we share ourselves and how we feel. Of all the ways that we can express our emotions, the two most powerful are laughter and tears. That is how I sum up Hillary and Greg’s wedding day. Laughter and tears. It’s rare to have a couple who can find the humor and the sincerity throughout such an important day, bouncing back and forth like leaves swaying in the wind, but Hillary and Greg can and did. Behind the cameras we get a very intimate look into our couple’s lives, and unlike in Star Trek’s Federation, we do not simply passively observe. (Sorry Greg, I tried to work in a Star Wars reference but that was as close as I could get.) Instead we experience. We laugh, we cry. On this day we laughed and cried with Hillary and Greg, because that’s how open they are, that they can bring two people that they know only slightly, on a journey. We hope that you enjoy the journey as much as we have.
Music licensed from The Music Bed
Weddings can be a lot of things. They can focus on the details, the party, the extravagance, or the experience. But one thing that all weddings have in common is that they are all ultimately about two people coming together. On the day of Chris and Serein’s wedding I didn’t notice it, but looking back over their footage and editing their film, what I saw was two people who were already together. When they are holding one another and looking each other in the eye, it’s as if the world around them disappears. They have an unbreakable bond that we should all be so lucky to have. We, as artists, have always believed that the details of the wedding do not matter near as much as the love that is experienced on the wedding day. No matter what the day looks like, or what goes right (or wrong), as long as love is the reason, the wedding day will be perfect. Watch this film and tell me this day wasn’t perfect.
Music Licensed from The Music Bed
Giggles. That’s the noun I would use to describe Sean & Dawn’s wedding day. It was full of giggles. And the giggles came from every direction. Everyone was just so giddy for Sean & Dawn. Every single person there was just elated for them. It was so nice to giggle with them again at the Green Gables Estate after their Balboa Park engagement session earlier in the year. We absolutely loved filming and photographing them on their wedding day (a huge thanks to Ginnie of Roots Photography for second shooting with us!). I am going to go out on a limb and say that Dawn has never looked more beautiful than she did on this day. Drop. Dead. Gorgeous. And Sean did not disappoint in his awesome bow tie completed with his ear to ear day long grin. We are still so so happy for these two!!
Weddings aren’t perfect. In fact 99% of the time something will go wrong that’s completely out of anyone’s control. BUT we always tell our couples, “As long as you get married, nothing else matters.” We truly believe this and so did John & Carolyn. The day of their wedding the clouds opened up and rained on San Diego almost the entire day. But that didn’t matter to Carolyn & John. Nothing could ruin this day. Even though their ceremony had to be moved inside, that did not damper their spirits. The only thing John & Carolyn were concerned about was marrying their best friend and partner in life. Elation and excitement was what everyone witnessed in John & Carolyn. During the ceremony, John came alive when he saw Carolyn walk down the aisle. I dare say he became giddy! And it goes without saying that Carolyn was just as giddy as John, if not more. You could almost hear their hearts fluttering…for reals. In their Love Story, they talked about how they couldn’t wait to start their lives together and being there on the wedding day, I can say without a doubt, that they really couldn’t wait. In fact John and Carolyn were so eager to kiss during the ceremony that the officiant broke the rules and let them kiss right away!
{wedding day details}
El Cortez Don Room: venue
Jim Hjelm: bride’s dress
MaxStudio: brides shoes
Perry Ellis: groom’s suit
Ann’s Plans: coordination
Betwixt Studio: photography
Artistic Productions: dj
Artquest Catering: catering
San Diego Flower Patch: flowers
At the beginning of November we had the pleasure of filming John & Carolyn’s amazing San Diego wedding…which will be posted in the next few days (so stay tuned)! But a couple months ago we met up with Carolyn & John at their home in San Diego to film their love story. We bonded very quickly especially since Carolyn and I have around 80 mutual friends from theatre. Okay not 80, maybe 8. But they also love to cook together, eat pizza, drink wine, and take leisurely hikes…all the things that Ian and I like to do. John is a firefighter and Carolyn a teacher, which I greatly admire. Another thing that I admire about these two is their dedication to each other. They love each other so passionately and sincerely. It’s really something and their love story is fantastic. Carolyn & John showed their film at their rehearsal dinner and shared their story with their family & friends, a wonderful way to have everyone be extra invested on the day of your wedding. We had such a blast with them! Thanks for sharing your story John & Carolyn!
And while you’re at it, don’t you want to watch Carolyn & John’s wedding highlight film?
