Embrace Life photography is currently featured in the November/December issue of Society Social Calendar, for the photography of Meghan and Charles' wedding in Oceanside, CA. The wedding was gorgeous and so is the magazine feature.

Society is a somewhat local magazine specific to the Conejo Valley (Agoura Hills, Calabasas, Newbury Park, Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village) and surrounding areas (Camarillo, Malibu, Moorpark, Oxnard, Simi Valley, Ventura, Woodland Hills), focusing on the "social scene" (largely charity events), and they've recently decided to feature special weddings of local couples. If you happen to see the issue when you're out, go ahead and pick one up.

Meghan and Charles' wedding photography can be seen here on the blog. Their awesome engagement portraits are also here on the blog.

Labels: conejo-valley, magazine, oceanside, photography, published, san-diego, society-social-calendar, wedding

Despite the fact that they live in Arizona (!), Malea and Pat wanted to have their wedding on the beach out here in beautiful Ventura, California! They got married right on the sand at a cute, little venue called The Yellow Umbrellas. We were able to do a lot of fun photography on the beach and at the Ventura Pier. I can't complain about working barefoot on the California coast!

Check out this great cake! I love the "sand" and all the details that went into decorating the cake and the table. Such a fun, colorful cake:

Here's a group that knows how to have a good time! Not much better than a great time with good friends:

And one more before the sun totally says goodbye...

Labels: beach, california, the-yellow-umbrellas, ventura, wedding, wedding-photography

C & C were recently married at Maravilla Gardens in Camarillo, California. The bride loves flowers and chose the perfect venue to be surrounded by a natural, garden setting. Her floral dress and purple shoes were a great fit as well. She even created the table centerpieces for their reception.

C & C love their dog, Jasper, and made him an honorary attendant.

Congratulations C & C. God bless your marriage. I wish you great success and happiness!

May the road rise to meet you.
May the wind be always at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face.
And rains fall soft upon your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.
- Traditional Irish blessing

Thanks to their other vendors:
Delicious, professional catering for their wedding was provided by Command Performance. Their videographers, Buckley Videography, were really great to work with.

You can also view C & C's engagement portrait session, here.

Labels: california, camarillo, garden, maravilla-gardens, santa-rosa-valley, wedding, wedding-photographer

What an absolutely gorgeous affair Meghan and Charles' wedding was! Both the ceremony and reception took place at a private hilltop residence in Oceanside, California, overlooking the fields below.

Meghan looked stunning in her Vera Wang gown! Her wedding rings, beautiful bouquet of dark purple calla lilies, the white orchids - all of it, amazing. Here's a brief sampling:

 
I'd like to say that Steven from In The Mix entertainment did a great job with not only the sound, but a truly unique live music experience and the professionalism to keep the wedding running smoothly and to ensure that everyone had an awesome evening.

Congratulations Meghan and Charles. I wish you both MANY years of happiness, love and success.

Labels: california, marriage, oceanside, photographer, photography, san-diego, wedding

Christina and Evan's wedding was in beautiful Pasadena, CA. The Bride, Groom and their friends got prepared for the big day at The Westin Pasadena, which is walking distance from the amazing ceremony and reception site - Pasadena City Hall. The setting was incredibly romantic. What a day!

Labels: california, city-hall, los-angeles, pasadena, wedding, wedding-photographer, wedding-photography, westin

My wife and I just saw the new Indiana Jones movie, and the final scene of the movie was shot in a location that looked instantly familiar to me. I realized right away that it was the Fist Christian Church of North Hollywood where I photographed Jane and Brett's wedding last September.

Look familiar?

I know it's kind of silly, but growing up in the L.A. area and living nearby my entire life, I've always loved it when I recognize a location used in a movie or on TV.

More of Jane and Brett's wedding photography can be seen in the gallery.

Labels: california, indiana-jones, los-angeles, movie, north-hollywood, wedding, wedding-photographer

Just recently Janna and Mark picked up their finished wedding album. Their wedding was at Calamigos Ranch in Malibu, CA on one of the hottest days of 2007! This couple, their friends and family didn't let the heat get in the way of a beautiful, fun wedding, and neither did we.

Janna and Mark's custom wedding photography album features over 100 photographs from their big day, and as always, the design rocks! Check it out:

 
To see more of Janna and Mark's wedding, visit my Calamigos Ranch wedding photography gallery, here.

If you're having trouble with the flash photo viewer above, you can view the wedding album photographs on my flickr page, too.

Labels: calamigos-ranch, california, malibu, wedding, wedding-album, wedding-photographer, wedding-photography

Monica and Brian got married at the beautiful Lost Canyons Golf Club in Simi Valley, CA. It was a gorgeous day and I'm honored to have been a part of it.

Here are just a few of the photographs that I love:













I couldn't decide on the best caption for this next one: a) Now that's service with a smile, or b) What can I say, chicks dig a bald guy.



Thanks Monica, Brian, your bridal party, family and friends for a wonderful wedding.

Labels: california, lost-canyons-golf-club, photography, simi-valley, wedding

Happy new year, everyone! I wish you all a blessed, healthy, prosperous 2008.

2007 was an exciting year, including adapting the new name Embrace Life, which I just feel is a perfect summary for what I do with my photography. I was fortunate enough to photograph a lot of wonderful weddings, working with very cool brides and grooms along the way, create some incredible new sample albums, and add some great new changes for this website. Prepare for more in 2008.

Also, I just added two new California wedding photography galleries. One is from Nicole & Keith's Central California wedding at the Jack House in San Luis Obispo, CA and the other is from Jane & Brett's Southern California wedding at the Christian Church of North Hollywood with the reception at the Bistro Garden Restaurant in Studio City, CA. The two weddings were almost nothing alike, but both were very cool in their own unique ways. Take a look at the galleries.

 

* Archive searchable links:
San Luis Obispo wedding photographer
Central California wedding photographer
North Hollywood wedding photographer
Studio City wedding photographer

Labels: california, central-california, north-hollywood, san-luis-obispo, slo, southern-california, studio-city, wedding, wedding-photography

I was so excited to send Ashley and Riley their brand new custom wedding photography album just before Christmas. Their wedding was at the beautiful Lodge at Sonoma this summer. Check out their album!:

Here's what Ashley said about it after receiving it:
We absolutely LOVE the wedding album!!! Thank you so very much for all of your hard work...it sure did pay off and everyone we show is so impressed!!!! We can't wait to show all our friends and family...Thanks again...It is truly amazing!

Shouldn't everyone be that happy with their wedding photographer and album?!

To see more of Ashley and Riley's wedding photography, visit my Sonoma wedding photography gallery, here.

Thanks Ashley and Riley! I hope you enjoy that album for the rest of your happy lives together.

If you're having trouble with the flash photo viewer above, you can view the wedding album photographs on my flickr page, too.

Labels: california, napa, sonoma, wedding, wedding-album, wedding-photography, wine-country

On Sunday I had the pleasure of photographing Lisa and Jeff's wedding in Palm Springs, CA. It was held at a gorgeous, modern, private residence with great design and cool art throughout the home. The weather was perfect, the house was great, the bride, groom, their family and friends were all very cool... it was just a fun time!

The amazing thing about this wedding is how I came to be Lisa and Jeff's wedding photographer. After Lisa's friend showed her some of my photographs of the fire fighters from just a couple of weeks back while at a party, she searched my name online, found Embrace Life and decided to ask me to photograph her wedding which was just two weeks away! Fortunately, I was available and the rest is history. That's the power of "new media"!

Here are some nice shots from Lisa and Jeff's wedding:

On the day of Lisa and Jeff's wedding, the city of Palm Springs was celebrating Veteran's Day with a parade and other festivities. During their wedding ceremony several planes and helicopters did fly-bys - multiple times. Everyone, including the bride and groom found it quite humorous and they will no doubt always remember that about their wedding day!

Lisa and Jeff chose a wonderful place to have their wedding and created a really relaxed atmosphere where friends and family could relax and enjoy all the special moments.

I want to thank Lisa and Jeff, as well as their family and friends for making me feel like part of the family. I had a blast and I could tell you did too.

Congratulations Lisa and Jeff!

Labels: bride, california, groom, palm-springs, wedding