I think I left my heart in Big Sur! More specifically in Garrapata State Park with these two amazing souls! This was another newlywed session I was able to squeeze in during the time I was up for an elopement in Big Sur. We did a morning session, and the marine layer hugged the rugged coastline of Garrapata making it mystical and beautiful. Crystal and Matthew rocked the whole session with three amazing outfits, and being up for all of my crazy ideas! I love the diversity that Big Sur has to offer, and I am so ready to go back and do more engagement, newlywed, anniversary, or elopement photos there! Crystal and Matthew drove down from the San Francisco Bay Area to do this shoot with me, and it was amazing. Cell reception in Big Sur is spotty, so we met by my hotel and caravanned into the Big Sur area together. We captured it ALL from cliffside coastlines, to rocks, to trees, to flower fields and rolling hills. It was a magical session with two of the sweetest people. I am so very blessed by my clients, they really make my job to be the dream job it is. The locations are incredible and yes shooting at places like Big Sur or Yosemite or the Redwoods or anything else makes it super exciting, but without having amazing and adventurous clients it would not be possible. And I feel so blessed with absolutely wonderful clients who are so fun and easy to work with, who are so appreciative, and who become not just clients but friends! Crystal and Matthew made this photo session the amazing adventure it was but just being their wonderful selves! Thanks for being such incredible clients you two, and I can’t wait for more photo adventures with you both in the future!
Stacey and Andrew - Newlywed Photo Session in the Big Sur Redwoods
Tim and Allie - San Francisco Elopement Photographer - Mill Valley Wedding Photography
Tim and Allie are married! Woooo!! I met these two delightful souls when they were vacationing in Laguna Beach where I photographed their proposal! Tim had secretly contacted me the month beforehand to be the photographer, and it was a perfect day and moment for them! I was so honored when they asked if I would be willing to fly up to San Francisco to also photograph their wedding!! Of course, COVID threw a slight wrench in the plans, but these two planned to get married anyway! So their big wedding was pushed off to 2021 and instead they just had an intimate elopement ceremony with their parents and Tim’s sister and me! It was an honor to be there for this special moment and see these two tie the knot on their wedding day! It was a gorgeous day in Mill Valley; we were by the Bay and had a spot that overlooked San Francisco. The sun shone beautifully and the colors were absolutely wonderful! They had a beautiful ceremony conducted by Tim’s dad, and both moms shed a few tears! I loved being there as their photographer and they even got me a super cute “I Do Crew” mask to wear! After the wedding ceremony, we headed into San Francisco, across the Golden Gate Bridge to the Presido and Crissy Field! There we finished off the photos with the two of them with the beautiful Golden Gate Bridge as our final backdrop! In true San Francisco fashion, the city was covered in fog, but it added a beautiful mystical layer to our photo time! Tim and Allie were amazing though it all, braving the San Francisco wind chill to get those final wedding photos! Having this time with them just makes me even more excited for their big day next year!!! Congratulations to the new Mr. and Mrs. Altman, and enjoy the photos!
Zahida and Francisco- Big Bear Elopement Photographer
This elopement though! So so good! Zahida and Francisco killed it for their magical Big Bear Lake elopement! They were one of the lucky few who already planned to have an intimate elopement with just their immediate family and friends. But it was still a long time coming as they had to delay from November to April and then due to COVID again to June. BUT third time really is the charm for this newly married couple as June was the time we were able to nail it with all the elopement goodness! We switched from our original target of Joshua Tree National Park to Big Bear Lake because summer and the desert heat are a little hard to navigate. And the day we escaped up for this mountain elopement was perfect! It was in the 90s in OC but only 75 in Big Bear! Perfect weather to say “I do” in! They had an absolutely beautiful ceremony conducted by the one and only Marie of Let’s Get Married by Marie! Marie and I started working on elopements together this last year, and I am always amazed at how personally and beautifully she makes the ceremony for the couples! We have two more coming up in Big Sur and in Sequoia National Park and I can’t wait! For Zahida and Francisco’s elopement, we spent the first hour taking photos of the two of them, then had the ceremony and family photos, and finished off with that golden hour sunset! It was perfect. This year, I am planning on pushing more elopements this year as (1) they are great way to get amazing photos in amazing places, (2) they are a stress free, great way to get married, (3) due to COVID, they are a great way to get married safely in your dream location! So more elopements please! Let’s keep this trend going! And congratulations to Zahida and Francisco! You two are incredible together, I loved your vows, the tears, the laughter, and the joy your wedding day brought forth! This is another step in your happily ever after, and I was thrilled to be a part of capturing the beauty of this day for you! Cheers to the New Mr. and Mrs!!!
Elopement Location: Big Bear Lake
Officiant and Planner: Let’s Get Married by Marie
Floral: The Nature of Things
Makeup: Janette Eed
Brynne and Dylan - Death Valley National Park - Sand Dunes Engagement
Have you ever wondered what it would look like to have your engagement session on sand dunes? Well, let me tell you it is awesome! Brynne asked me about doing an engagement session for her and Dylan at Dumont Dunes by Death Valley National Park, and I was so excited! I have been wanting to do a sand dunes session for awhile, but it is always hard to plan with the weather as it can get really hot there. We picked a spring weekend, and also planned it on a weekend that was close to the new moon so that we could end with a beautiful starry night! It is always a gamble with star photos as you need a clear night, but even though we had some clouds during the day it cleared at night! Out by Death Valley National Park is one of the best places to get away from the city lights! This was my first engagement session outside of COVID, and I was itching to go photograph again! We had a great time going up and down the sand dunes and taking photos! There was almost no one out there so we were able to adventure all by ourselves! After this I have to say I am ready for more sand dunes engagement sessions! Or elopements, or weddings…I am not picky ;) Let’s do it!
Danny and Sally - Laguna Beach Proposal - Aliso Beach
Even though COVID stopped the world for awhile, as things started opening up, love was something that wasn’t going to be held back. Danny found me on Instagram, and we chatted about his plans for proposing to his girlfriend Sally at the beach! His original idea was to propose while vacationing in Hawaii, but with COVID those vacation plans had to be put on hold. Still determined to make the proposal special and unique, Danny and I brainstormed about a sunset proposal! Danny drove down from Washington state to spend time with Sally and her family, and we planned the proposal to happen before he had to go back home. Aliso Cove in Laguna Beach was one of the few beaches open if you observed social distancing rules. So, I arrived early toting my camera bag, a giant duffel bag with two cute lanterns, and carrying a dozen long stemmed roses that Danny had requested for Sally. He wanted to make it as special and romantic for her as possible! But I was quite the sight to see in Laguna as I lugged everything from a half mile down the road from my car to the beach and then a half mile down the beach! I chose the furtherest that we were allowed to go so we would have enough space from other people, and no one in our background. It was a gorgeous sunny day, perfect beach weather, and I have to say I enjoyed the fresh air after being inside so much due to the pandemic. Danny and Sally arrived during the golden hour of sunset, walking hand in hand down the beach. I had Danny text me a description of their outfits and photos of the two of them so I could pick them out! As they came, I pretended to be enjoying the day at the beach while secretly watching them. Once he reached the spot of the lanterns and flowers, Danny got down on one knee and proposed! Sally laughed and said, “Yes!” and Danny was able to present her with the flowers and their celebration together was adorable! We took some social distanced engagement photos after the proposal, and it was wonderful! I had so missed being out photographing, and a proposal was a great way to start anew! A proposal is the beginning of something, a sign that life and love will go on, and that we will all make it through this! In the hard times it is good to stop and remember the good times, and know that there will be good things still to come! It gave me hope and purpose to be there for this special moment, and I am so grateful that “love will find a way”! Enjoy these precious photos of these two wonderful people! And congratulations to Danny and Sally!
Part 3 of a Wedding Photographer's time in Alaska
Here it is! The final section of my Alaska trip! I was finishing the new design for my website and realized I hadn’t posted about this final section yet! So here is the last section of my Alaska trip where we went to Denali National Park. I would love to go back here one day and backpack more around Denali, and even do some shoots or weddings anywhere in Alaska! It is such an incredible and beautiful place! Being a wedding photographer who loves to travel means I often dream I can go back and do a wedding or shoot there! I think of my travel as a time to get away, reconnect with my passion of creating, get refreshed, and also location scout for future shoots and weddings! I have traveled all over the world and I would happily go back to any of these locations with my wedding or engagement clients! But without further ado here is Denali National Park!
We were able to see this mom and baby moose right outside the visitor center in Denali National Park. They didn't care (thankfully) about us hanging out at a distance to photograph them. Moose are actually one of the most dangerous animals in Alaska. There are more moose attacks than bear attacks every year in Alaska. There are 3x the number of moose to bears in Alaska; so, part of that statistic is due to the sheer number. But also moose can be territorial! They usually stay within the same 2 mile radius their entire lives. So if they perceive you as a threat they will try to chase you out of their territory. The best thing to do is to hide (they are not predators so they won’t try to find you) or just exit their area. Once they reach the boundary of their territory they will leave you alone. Just some helpful tips I learned for if you are ever around moose!
On the bus in Denali National Park to Wonder Lake, we saw an Alaskan Grizzly Bear! The key difference between a Grizzly and a Brown Bear is what they eat. Grizzly Bears mainly eat berries and other plants. The Alaskan Brown Bears are more coastal and eat a lot of fish. Loved seeing both here in this beautiful state!
This was our camping spot! If you look at the photo above, you can see our tent! And the photo below is where we would eat our meals. In Denali you need to set up camp in one spot, store your food in another, and cook/eat in another location. The most ideal situation is a triangular position so you have line of sight for everything! It was rather fun hiking a few hundred feet to our eating spot for breakfast and dinner every day! Thankfully we had quite the view!
On our trip, we were blessed with a clear view of Mount Denali! Only 33% of visitors to Denali National Park ever get to see the mountain. It is so tall that it creates its own weather! We saw it several times on our trip, and were one of the 10% who actually saw it without any clouds!! It was stunning and gorgeous! The photo above is the same location as the photo with me above that, but it is the next day with clear skies! We had no idea Denali was right there until we saw it peaking out later that evening. The photos below show off Mount Denali and the Alaskan Range, plus a few of the local wildlife we saw while exploring!
After Denali, we travelled back to Anchorage and flew home. It was an amazing 11 day trip with two dear friends of mine, Brad and Jessica! We went at the end of August into the first part of September which ended up being the perfect time for us to have fewer crowds, active animals, and experience the fall season in the tundra! I loved every moment, and I felt so blessed to be able to accomplish my Alaskan dream trip! There is still so much more I still want to explore in Alaska, and I hope to make it back again one day. But for now, I hope you enjoyed all the photos from the perspective of a wedding photographer traveling in the beautiful state of Alaska!
Part 2 of a Wedding Photographer's time in Alaska!
Continuing on my time in Alaska was a trip down to Seward. We took a day cruise out to see the glaciers and the sea life, because what would going to Alaska be without seeing some of it by sea? The mountains and glaciers were stunning, and we got to see a part of Alaska’s glorious sea life! There were otters playing in the water as well as puffins and seals! We ended our expedition with seeing a pod of Orca whales! It was a perfect ending to a wonderful day on the water!
After our cruise, we went on the search of Bald Eagles as they are much more common in this area! We went by the fishing docks, and as we parked we saw an eagle in the tree! There ended up being four eagles in the area and they kept us busy for some time! The next day we started our journey north towards Denali National Park! On the way we saw a place to take a flight tour! We decided to stop and take the plane tour which was absolutely gorgeous! It was such a unique angle to see the glaciers and mountains from the air! After that we finished with an airbnb on the lake where we saw the most gorgeous sunset!
Part 3 of my Alaska trip will be about Denali National Park! =) Stay tuned!
A Wedding Photographer's time in Alaska - Part 1
Oh Alaska, where to start? As a huge wildlife and nature lover, I dreamed about going to Alaska for years! Finally in 2018, my dreams were realized when two of my best friends, Brad and Jessica, agreed to go with me. We didn’t travel the typical way, by cruise ship, instead we wanted to experience it on land. We flew into Anchorage Alaska, and began our journey from there. With Alaska being almost 4x the size of California, we saw only a small portion of it, but what we witnessed was breathtaking! We visited in late August to the first part of September which is the beginning of Autumn in Alaska! Cooler temperatures prevail during this time, and the hills were green with some floral still appearing on our mountain hikes. We started in the Anchorage area and traveled down towards the Russian River on the Kenai Peninsula. I was glued to the window of the car, taking in all of the gorgeous scenery around me. It is so big and vast. In Alaska, it is known that your mind will play tricks on you making you think that the mountain you are viewing is smaller or a distance isn’t as far when in reality that mountain is huge and that distance stretches on for miles and miles. Our minds try to take the vastness we see and turn it into something more manageable, but Alaska defies our minds with its wildness and vastness! And I loved it for that!
The beginning of our trip started with a wildlife sanctuary where we saw wolves, bears, and bison among others! It was great to get a close up look at these beautiful animals! And you couldn’t beat the backdrop of the glaciers!
We camped down the road from this glacier location for our first night on the move. A bear had been sighted at our campsite only days before, and it made me super excited! As much as I love seeing animals in wildlife sanctuaries, there is nothing like experiencing them in the wild. Even though it was a little nerve racking setting up camp in an area where a bear could come through, it was also thrilling and exciting. But no bear came to camp that night, and so we set off to explore some glaciers instead! We hiked to Byron Glacier, and it was stunning!
On our drive down to Seward, we detoured to the Russian River in Kenai. My big bucket list item for Alaska was to see the Brown Bears fishing for salmon. So we spent the day driving around, talking to rangers and campers to get ideas of where the bears hang out. After spending 3 hours searching, we were told that the bears come almost every night to a popular fishing area but they wouldn't come for another 3-4 hours. Brad and Jessica, who had humored me thus far were reaching their limit as we had plans to spend a fun evening in Seward. I worked all my persuasion and sweet talk skills to convince them to stay as this was my chance to hopefully see the bears fishing for salmon. Being the amazing friends that they are, they agreed and we spent our down time hiking before going to the location we were told about. We spent an hour walking up and down the mile long board walk, checking the different sites to see if a bear appeared. The salmon were plentiful, slowly making their way upstream. At this time, most of them have completed their journey, have deposited their eggs, and are coming to the end of their life cycle. It was neat seeing so many of them in the river! It was getting later, and we had settled at one spot with a couple who also were looking for the bears. We had a wonderful time talking with them, and were enjoying the beautiful weather when out of the corner of my eye I saw movement. I turned to behold a gorgeous and huge Brown Bear walking along the river bank! In the blink of an eye I whipped up my camera to start snapping away while exclaiming, “THERE IS A BEAR!”. Everyone talked hushed and excitedly as we saw a mother bear and her two almost full grown cubs come to feast on the salmon. Momma Brown Bear and her one cub grabbed a fish and went off to eat. But one of the cubs came back to the river for more. He was like a puppy playing with a new toy. He would submerge his whole head underwater to come up with a fish only to drop it and try again! We watched him play with the fish and stomp around in the water for 30 minutes, and it was one of the best wildlife experiences I have had! One point he came a bit too close to the dock we were all on, and as he looked up at us and took a step forward to the steps leading up to us, we collectively took a step back. The raw power he had in his muscles was majestic. He was stunning, strength personified, a force of God’s creation. To all of our relief, he turned again to focus on the salmon to feast to his heart’s content. But I will never forget that experience with him!
After our encounter with that Momma and her two full grown cubs, I was on cloud nine and so extremely excited! It was everything I prayed for, my bucket list item was reached and I got photos to proudly show from my experience! But God wasn’t done yet! On our walk back on the boardwalk to the car, we looked out and saw another momma bear with 3 smaller cubs! We stopped to photograph them, one of the cubs was in the river and took notice of us. He stood up on his hind legs and looked huge and intimidating with water dripping from his long claws as he stared at us. But once he was down on all fours, you could see he was still a baby! But still, I wouldn't want to mess with babies or mama bear! The Alaskan Brown Bear is bigger than their relative the Grizzly! With weight that can range upwards to 1300 pounds, they can even outweigh some Polar Bears! They are huge and incredible to see in the wild! I felt so blessed by seeing not just one bear that day, but seven in all!
This was just the beginning of our trip, and there was so much more to experience! This is part 1 and I will continue on with part 2 to give more details of our time in Seward and Denali National Park!
Natalie and Jake-Strands Beach Engagement
Natalie and Jake were one of my last engagement sessions in earlier March. We had a beautiful day at Strands Beach in Dana Point, choosing to brave the rain forecast that had been going on all week. The rain held off, and we were blessed with beautiful clouds and a gorgeous pastel sunset! Winter and spring sessions at the beach are my favorite. The clouds add such a beautiful and dramatic affect, the sunset colors lean towards pinks and purples, and not as many people crowd the shores. There is a reason I mainly show my outdoor engagement and wedding sessions, and that is because not much can beat the unique beauty of the outdoors! Give me mountains, forest, beach, or desert! I will take them all with excitement and look for how to make it unique to my couple each time! I definitely miss being out exploring with my engaged and wedding couples! My heart breaks for everyone who needs to postpone their wedding and photo shoots. I am looking forward to the day we can all venture out together again! In the meantime, I am here for anyone who needs to talk!
A Wedding Photographer's Time in Antarctica
I am a traveler. I absolutely love to go to new places, to experience new things, and to find adventure wherever I go. One of the most unique and adventurous trips I have had the privilege of going on was a 10 day expedition cruise to Antarctica! We went with Silverseas Cruise Line, who I highly recommend for anyone looking for an adventurous and fun expedition! It was my first time on a cruise, and what a way to start my cruising experience! We started in Ushuaia, the southernmost city in the world, in Argentina. Here you are in the bottom part of the Patagonia region, and if time would have allowed I would have taken a week extra to just explore the surrounding area! As it was we only got a few hours to explore the area, and I loved every bit of it! We took a bus to a lunch spot where we got to visit a Husky farm as well! So fun! The cruise departed the morning after we boarded, and we set off across the Drake passage which boasts some of the roughest seas in the world. There are two experiences you can get while crossing the Drake passage, the Drake Lake or the Drake Shake. Fortunately for us, our way over was super smooth, even smoother than the usual Drake Lake! And in a day and a half we got our first sighting of the South Shetland islands surrounding Antarctica!
The morning after we reached the official Antarctica region, we visited Hope Bay. On the land there was a colony of Adelie Penguins, which ended up being my favorite penguin species of the whole trip! They are about 2 feet in height and always travel together because there is safety in numbers from waiting Leopard seals and Orca whales. We were unable to go on the land with them because it was a protected area, but we took zodiac boats around to see these adorable penguins up close! They were nesting in the rocks above, and the parents would take turns fishing. We were able to see them swim in the water which was a sight to see! They can propel their whole bodies out of the water like dolphins, and then can dive and swim under the water for up to 6 minutes!
After visiting the Adelie penguin colony, our ship moved on to it’s afternoon location, Esperanza Base. Here we got to step out onto land for the first time at a Argentinian research base! It was at this base that the first Antarctica citizen was born! Now there are at least 11 children who have been born on this continent! The base requires researchers and their families to live there for an entire year before switching out with a new group. They have a school and some stores around their little village. Penguins wander around the base and hang out on nearby Icebergs as well! I was so excited to be able to set foot on the continent of Antarctica for the first time!
The next morning I looked out my balcony window to behold one of my favorite views from the entire trip, Cierva Cove! There were snowy mountains looming in the sky, and it was a winter wonderland of glacier ice leading to the mountains. Here, I was able to go on one of the first zodiac boats that went out around the cove. We saw Chinstrap penguins at this stop, and we also had Humpack whales join us in the cove! They were feeding on the krill in the waters below. Unable to drive close to the whales, we would turn off the zodiac and wait in anticipation for the whales to pop up. We ended up having one come within 15 feet of our boat! It was such a unique experience as mothers and their calves travel 5,000 miles to feed here in the waters of Antarctica! We ended up seeing at least 15 whales in this cove, and I would have been happy to spend all day out there with them! Not to mention being in this stunning scenery!
We moved on to Portal Point where we were able to hike around. Here was the longest I was able to stay on the land as generally you only get an hour or two per landing site due to the Antarctica treaty which only allows 100 people on site at one time. I spent 5 hours here hiking around, and when we were about to go back, we saw that there was a wedding for two of the guests aboard the ship! So being a wedding photographer, what did I do? I photographed it for them! I have it say, it was the most unique location to photograph a wedding and I don’t think I can ever beat it! At the very end of it all, we went back and did the Polar Plunge! Yes, we jumped from the zodiac docking platform of the ship into the frigid waters of Antarctica! It was the coldest I have been in my entire life! But it was worth it to say I did it! You can see the video by clicking on my Instagram!
Another one of my top places that we visited was our time in Danko harbor. I did not go on the land here, as I had signed up for the lottery kayaking tour that they had! This was a bucket list item for me, and it was INCREDIBLE! We had the calmest water, with no wind, and me being a camera addict couldn’t settle for just having my GoPro out there so I took my camera in a dry bag strapped to the kayak! With no wind, the water was crystal smooth. I ended up spending more time taking photos then paddling! The views were incredible as you kayaked by penguins on the land who jumped in the water and swam underneath you, and sheets of ice brushing up against your kayak. The reflections were stunning as the clear skies and smooth waters lent to gorgeous scenery everywhere you turned! It was absolutely amazing, and this is a kayaking experience that will forever be at the top of my adventure list!
With the amazing weather we were having, most of the days in the 30s with little wind, they added on options to go hiking at 6am in the morning! Being an avid hiker, and not wanting to turn down extra time on the continent itself, I went for the morning hikes! This was Telefon Bay at Deception Island. It is called Deception Island because from the outside it seems like one giant island, but there is a passage through it where you can access different landing sites! The channel to get in and out is rather narrow with rocks on the sides, but our captain navigated it with ease! We went from there to Whalers Bay which was an old whaling station. The remnants of it looked like something out of the apocalypse with not much snow, tons of dirt, abandoned tanks, and even whale bones. I am so glad that whaling was stopped in these regions! The whale population has been growing, and I pray it continues to grow!
Another hiking spot was Cuverville Island where you could get up early to hike then go back out with your group later to explore as well. Here we got a good look at what are known as penguin highways! Penguins will trek up and down tp create two paths in the snow known as a penguin highway. They will travel these same paths up to their nests and down to the water to fish. Here we also saw a baby elephant seal who was super curious and wanted to say hello! Poor little guy could only move a few inches at a time on land and then would lay there to catch his breath before trying again. At this age, the parents usually leave the elephant seal pup to be by himself, so he will seek companionship in humans if given the opportunity! The expedition staff on our cruise have stories of sitting and waiting and having elephant seals come and lay on them! They are a couple of hundred pounds already, so definitely an experience! I did not have enough time on land to wait for this guy, but I did snap some photos of him!
My last landing on Antarctica was at Yankee’s Harbor, a part of the South Shetland Islands. Here I had a goal to see penguin chicks! I had not been able to see any yet, and I was ready! We went to the nesting site and waited. It was a super windy and cold day, and so the penguins were hunkered down and we didn’t know if there were chicks or eggs underneath. After about 15 minutes of waiting we were rewarded with a Gentoo Penguin sitting up enough to see some chicks peeking out from underneath! That was all I needed and I set up camp at that nesting site for the hour we were on land, and photographed the Gentoos and their chicks! It took a lot of patience and watchfulness to get the photos I was looking for, but I am super excited by the ones I took! It was the perfect end to an already incredible trip! And so our trip finished with the two day travel back to Argentina. We did not have as good of luck on the way back and definitely experienced the Drake Shake, with towering waves that made you lose sight of the horizon and the effects of seasickness lingering. But it was all worth it to visit this incredible place! If I ever get the privilege to go back, I would love to do South Georgia Island with the King penguins! Regardless, I feel extremely blessed and privileged to of had this opportunity to visit this unique and rare place in all of its glory.
Mike and Jasmine-Noguchi Garden and Target Engagement Session
Mike and Jasmine found me through Instagram and booked me for their wedding and engagement photos! They chose Noguchi Garden for their engagement session, and we had a blast running around and taking photos at this fun little spot! It is a little art area in Orange County tucked away behind some corporate buildings. Definitely a hidden gem of OC! Mike and Jasmine were so easy to work with! They are just so natural together, and we made use of every little corner of Noguchi Garden! Part of their love story involved them going to Target on their first date, and both of them working at different Targets in the beginning of their relationship! So naturally we had to make a stop in a nearby Target to take some photos! For all you Target lovers out there, the second part of this session is for you!! It is sessions like this that remind me to always explore your home town, you never know what treasures lie within! In this case Orange County came through with some fun new spots to play with, and my creative needs were filled with exploring new places and trying new ideas! Enjoy adventuring through Noguchi Garden and Target with us through the photos below!
Rogers Gardens Christmas Proposal-Deepak and Reena
It isn’t always easy trying to capture a proposal, especially when it is Christmas time and a lot of people are out and about! Deepak contacted me a week prior to the proposal with the idea to do it at Rogers Gardens the day before Christmas Eve. The original plan was to propose in one of the shops, with the backup plan to discreetly follow them around until he found a spot to propose. The shops filled with Christmas cheer and people bustling around, meaning we went on the move. Deepak and Reena left the shops with me trying to unobtrusively trail behind. Hiding myself, a giant camera bag, and my camera was no easy task as I followed them out through the gardens! Finding a path that wasn’t overtaken by people, Deepak took a knee and proposed! She said yes and we were able to spend the rest of the hour taking various engagement photos around Rogers Gardens. It was a Christmas proposal filled with gorgeous lights and Christmas joy! Congratulations on this newly engaged couple! May 2020 be filled with even more wonderful surprises and times of joy!
Amanda and Gio-The Homestead Oak Glen Wedding-Exotic Animals-Larissa Bahr Photography
I am so excited to share this wedding that took place at The Homestead in Oak Glen!! Amanda and Gio are an incredible couple, and they decided to be a little unconventional for their wedding day. They did a first look so that they could walk in TOGETHER for their ceremony. As Amanda said, “We are always together, so we want to walk in together!” I thought it was so sweet that they wanted to start their ceremony hand-in-hand walking their fur baby Charlotte, already committed to spending the rest of their lives together! Amanda also has a deep love of animals which led to them hiring Pacific Animal Productions to come out and bring exotic animals for their friends and family to enjoy during the cocktail hour! I have been to weddings that had zoos on the property, but never had a couple arrange to have exotic animals come! It was so exciting! They had an alligator, ant-eater, owl, hedgehog, sloth, spider monkey, and a wallaby! The photos were so fun with the animals!! I was in heaven being surrounded by them all! And the Homestead staff just loved it all too! The other fun thing that Amanda and Gio did was to throw the bouquet together to ALL the single people, men and women; it was a great way to get everyone involved! These two epitomize the meaning of partnership! They support each other, stand by each others side always, get so much joy from spending time together, and they are true teammates in everything! From their engagement to their wedding day, it was all fun, relaxed, and stress free. No nerves for these two, they knew they were meant to be! I am so happy for them both, and so excited to share these photos from their special day! Also a special shoutout to the amazing Minister Marie with Let’s Get Married by Marie for referring this incredible couple! She is an all-star officiant who I adore working with!!
Venue: The Homestead at Wilshire Ranch in Oak Glen
Photography: Larissa Bahr Photography
Officiant: Let’s Get Married by Marie
Hair and Makeup: Golden Glow Beauty
Wedding Dress: Saint Clark Bridal Suite
Animals: Pacific Animal Prouctions
Floral: Nadine Waters
Brianna and Alex-Joshua Tree National Park Anniversary Shoot-Star Photography
Brianna and Alex got married a few years back, and I had the privilege of being their wedding photographer! We had so much fun for both their engagement and wedding shoot, that when Bri asked me about doing anniversary photos, I was so excited! These two are naturals in front of the camera, and so darn photogenic! After a debate on whether we should do Death Valley National Park or Joshua Tree National Park, we decided on Joshua Tree! We were able to road trip part of the way together, and had a great time catching up on the latest in each other’s lives. It was both Brianna and Alex’s first time actually inside Joshua Tree National Park and I loved being able to show them around! The wildflowers were blooming when we first entered the park, and we pulled over at the closest turnout and began! It isn’t every day that you get wildflowers in the desert! After that came scrambling on Joshua Tree’s Jumbo Rocks, and wandering around the Cholla Cactus Garden! We even tried our hand at dancing in the street as the sun began to set! Our final images were the ones I was most excited to take! I had been wanting to do some star shooting, and we had a perfect New Moon night to pull it off! Brianna and Alex, being as awesome as they are, decided to indulge my star photography fantasy and pose out in the now very cold Joshua Tree Desert night so we could get some night photos with them! And I am thrilled with how they turned out! So thankful for amazing clients who come back time and time again to take photos! You all deserve all the love!
When a wedding photographer goes on safari! Maasai Mara National Reserve and Lake Nakuru, Kenya
If you can’t tell from most of my wedding work, I absolutely love the outdoors! Scenic landscapes, beautiful places, and wide open spaces just win me over heart and soul! Photography is my passion, and I adore weddings, but at least once a year I like to take a trip with no agenda except to capture the beauty around me. I don’t ever want to lose my passion for photography or my desire to create beautiful and meaningful images. I get super excited when I take photos even though I have had a camera in my hand for most of my life and I have been doing photography professionally for 12 years! But taxes, marketing, emails, endless hours of editing gets to me, and this is why I travel! I want to experience new places, new cultures, and see it all with my own eyes! Not only do I want to see it, but I want to capture it! To be able to say I took the photo of the sunrise over the African plains or of an animal in its natural habitat just thrills me! And so I go, I travel, I capture, in nature I reconnect with my passion and with God, and I come back a better person and better photographer for it!
This trip was special because I was able to travel with my dear friend Jessica, who also went to Alaska with me, and we did photo and video work for a charity water organization called Ekenywa. You can see the photos I took and read about my experience here: Ekenywa Blog! The first half of our trip was about giving back, making a difference, and using our time and talents to help those in need. The second half of our trip was about exploring, going on safari, seeing wildlife in its natural habitat, and experiencing God’s beauty to the fullest! We booked our safari through Apex Photo Safaris and I am so glad we did! Aatish and Aashit Patel are twin brothers who run Apex Photo Safaris, and they took care of our flights from Nairobi out to the Maasai Mara National Reserve, the set us up with great accommodations on the reserve, they connected us with Dickson -an incredible guide/driver who had 30 years of experience, and they came out with us on several of our safaris! We all became great friends at the end of the 5 days we spent with them, and we still keep in contact! Our days would start by leaving on safari by 6-6:30am to see the animals in the early morning. We were blessed by seeing tons of lions, a few cheetahs, and even three of Africa’s elusive leopards! The big cats were a big draw for me, and checking off the Big 5 was a must for me! The Big 5, named by early game hunters, were the hardest and most dangerous animals to hunt on foot. This made them the biggest prizes. Now, the Big 5 are the sought after safari sightings and they consist of: the African lion, the African leopard, the African elephant, the Cape buffalo, and either the white or black rhino. On my previous trip to Kenya, I had seen 3 of the 5, but I was missing the rhino and the leopard! So on this trip those were big goals of mine along with sighting some flamingos! We had a one day safari at Lake Nakuru National Park with Elohim Tours and Travels and another amazing guide, Erastus! With him we saw the black rhino and the white rhino and the flamingos along with a few lion sightings and some other awesome animals! So when we went to the Maasai Mara, the leopard was the last one I needed to complete my Big 5 viewing! And on the last few days of the trip, my prayers were answered with viewing not just one but three different leopards! And the last sighting was the best of all! This entire trip was incredible from start to finish, and I loved spending my days driving around the African plains. Kenya will always have a special place in my heart, and I love being able to share a portion of it with you here! Enjoy seeing the Maasai Mara and Lake Nakuru through my eyes! And if anyone is ever wanting to elope and have a wedding out on safari in Africa, you have found your girl ;)
PS if you wan to make this post truly epic, play “Circle of Life” from the Lion King while you scroll through! =D
Above is a black rhino and her calf in Lake Nakuru National Park! We found her about 30 minutes into the safari and got some great sightings with both of them!
This was our second leopard viewing, a male and a female were hanging around the same area which is unusual since leopards are solitary animals. We saw the male first and in our attempt to follow him around, we found this beautiful female who stepping out of the bushes to give us some great views of her! We ended up parking the car, and having breakfast there with her resting in the reeds! Breakfast with a leopard? Bucket list item that I didn’t even know I had until being there! =D
This is a Lilac-breasted Roller, the state bird of Kenya! Truly a beautiful creature!
Fun fact, male lions will not rule with other male lions unless they are brothers. These three were brothers and were in fact ruling much of the Maasai Mara lions! The one in the front is known as Scarface, and he is quite a famous lion in the Maasai Mara!
The lion cubs were another big highlight as Jessica and I loved every baby we saw! These 5 were so rambunctious and cute! I just melted! They were part of the Marsh Pride.
Jessica and I with our amazing guides and friends Aashit (left) and Aatish (right). These two were a wealth of knowledge and information, and were a blast to hang out with! They took care of everything, and we had a great time with them!
This was our third leopard sighting, and she was gorgeous! She stayed out in the open for 20 minutes even though about 10 safari jeeps were following her! She would switch areas, bathe herself, rest, then keep going! I got so many photos of her, but had to narrow it down so it wasn’t all a leopard post ;)
These were the flamingos we found at Lake Nakuru, close to where we did the work with Ekenywa! it was beautiful here. Fun fact, Lake Nakuru is a salt water lake!
We would end our night afternoon safaris watching the sunset from this spot, having some food and drinks, and talking, laughing and dancing to our music as the evening light faded! This group was amazing, and I loved being with them all! Featured from left to right was myself, Dickson, Aatish, Aashit, their father Bharat in the back, Daisy who works at the front desk for the Mara Intrepids where we stayed, Jessica, and Judy who works as a naturalist and works with the kids who stay!
Our last evening had the most incredible sunset with two giraffes walking across the planes! It was a perfect ending to a beautiful and amazing trip! Kenya, you will always have a special place in my heart! Until we meet again!