Emily + Ryan // Marin Engagement

"Redwoods are our favorite backdrop" was the direction Emily and Ryan had given me for their engagement session, and the best part of planning this one was learning that I live only thirty minutes from a Redwood preserve. I was completely unfamiliar with this location and really hoped it would be everything I had imagined, and the moment I stepped foot into the forest, I knew we had found 'The Location'.

While this was the first time I was meeting Emily and Ryan, we jumped into this session with a mutual ease and playfulness and really just had a blast exploring the nature around us, together. They naturally held hands and laughed and flirted, while I continued to be my awkward, third wheel self by documenting their cuteness from afar (and also really up close).

I was so smiley after this session, and ultimately thankful that somewhere in the abyss of wedding photographers, these guys found-then-chose me (and my awful jokes).

Jess + Doug // Pelican Inn Wedding

In January of 2018, my family and I said goodbye to our favorite little beach town that we called home for the last four years, Half Moon Bay. While we weren't moving far, Marin felt like a different universe, and not one that we were certain we'd fit into. It took a handful of months to settle in, and while we were beginning to feel a bit at home in our new neighborhood, we had wondered if/when we'd ever find a community of our own. Cue somewhere in the middle of 2018, and the universe decided to gift us two of the greatest humans for friends, Doug and Jess.

Getting to know-then-love Doug and Jess has been the absolute highlight of our new-ish Marin life, and I have loved getting to know them as a couple, and also as two completely separate individuals. They are the most gracious and accommodating human beings, and they're just as down to go out to dinner with my husband and I as they are to hang out with our two kids and our massive (and often gassy) dog, and we have never felt anything but completely loved and supported by them. It is no surprise that I nearly starting crying when they asked me to be their wedding photographer, and the extra special bonus was getting to shoot this wedding with my husband on our 6th wedding anniversary. Creating art for the people that you love and with the people you love is absolutely how I prefer to spend my time, and it was truly the least we could do for two people who have been in our corner since day one.

This day was just as magical as it looked, and yielded a true depiction of some of Marin's finest landscapes, while also incorporating so much of Doug and Jess's history. An private hilltop ceremony followed by a small reception at the rustic Pelican Inn made for a truly intimate day, and allowed both Doug and Jess to be present and in the moment with all of their biggest supporters. My husband and I couldn't have asked for a better way to spend our 6th wedding anniversary, and we smiled the whole way home when reflecting on Doug and Jess's wedding day.

Cheers to these two beautiful humans, thank you for having us! (p.s. we ate your entire grazing table that night. It was us. )

Sky & Liz // Outdoor Art Club Wedding

When some of your sweetest friends ask you to be their wedding photographer, and you're 8 months pregnant, you still say, "Hell yeah"...but then have to warn them about your full-on pregnant waddle for the entirety of their wedding day. Luckily, these friends of mine both understood and encouraged the "pregnancy waddle", and luckily this didn't hold me back from telling their love story.

Sky and Liz are old friends back from when my boyfriend-now-husband and I moved to San Francisco, and we used to hang out at "The Warehouse", a type of friend compound (not really a compound, but we called it that anyway) that our mutual friends had rented out. It was a special time in our lives with limited amount of responsibilities, and we enjoyed the creative energies of these friends who lived here. Sky and Liz were fast friends of ours, and while our 'parents of two' life absorbs much of our social calendar, we love having these two over for dinner and watching our dogs play until they pass out.

Sky and Liz's wedding day was absolute perfection from beginning to end, and there is nothing more heartwarming than to see these old friends make a lifelong commitment to each other. Cheers to these two on such an incredible day, and THANK YOU for trusting that I could keep this baby in long enough to be able capture your day exactly as I saw it.

Lea & Max // Deer Park Villa Wedding

You know you really love your job when you always show up at least one hour early, even if it means you just sit in your car for awhile, and repeat your, "You've got this " mantra, over and over again. As fun and exhilarating as being a wedding photographer might be, there is always that looming thought of, "I have one chance to capture this day perfectly", and I definitely have to practice ALL of the positive self-talk prior to any big wedding day. This is the kind of neurosis I endure as a wedding photographer, simply because all of my couples are so unique and special to me, and I'm diehard about capturing their (very important) day in the most genuine way possible.

I met Lea and Max for the first time at their engagement session, and beyond their easygoing, up-for-anything attitude, they were (ARE) among the kindest people I've ever met. Their "spark" was so easy to capture on this day, and that general ease they had with each other translated so effortlessly on camera. Seeing them again for the second time on their wedding day was another honorable opportunity to document their realness, and I truly felt like I was there to capture friends who I've known for years and years.

Just as I anticipated, their circle of supporters were equally as enamored and in love with this couple as I was (AM). Through the heartfelt speeches, never-ending hugs, and "happy tears" from just about every witness on this day, it was clear that Lea and Max have positively impacted everyone's lives, and the general feeling of gratitude was shared among every person there.

Congratulations to this gorgeous and genuine couple, and thank you for trusting me to tell your story. 100% cried during your entire vows??

Venue:Deer Park Villa
Hair & Makeup: Whimsy Bridal
Florals+Coordinating: Tango & Foxtrot
Donuts: Johnny's Donuts
Videography: Yukio Studios