Wednesday, May 28, 2008

Rehearsal Dinner at Hollin's House Santa Cruz, CA

Jason and Liz had me photograph their rehearsal evening, two nights prior to their wedding. It was great to get to know the key family members before the wedding took place that Saturday.

After the rehearsal in his parents backyard - which is gorgeous! - we went to The Hollin's House in Santa Cruz. If you don't know exactly where this place is don't trust your GPS! I had to call the restaurant for directions after my GPS took me to a locked back gate on another road.

After I arrived, we took pictures on their back patio; which has an incredible view. They also have lots of green trees and a gazebo on the side yard. We started with some formal type poses and then quickly moved to some goofier playful images. I'm sure the other restaurant guests were entertained as they watched us from their dinner tables!

It was wonderful to watch these two families get together and enjoy each others company.

Stay tuned to see their wedding images in a week or so!


Monday, May 26, 2008

Wedding at Murrieta's Well Livermore, CA

Steve and Amber were married at one of my favorite locations. The wedding took place in April at Murrieta's Well in Livermore.

The first time I met with Steve and Amber she had purple hair, or at least part of it was purple. Was this going to be a punk wedding? On the wedding day I was elated to find Amber had transformed herself into an elegant and beautiful bride. I didn't even recognize her that afternoon when she first opened the bridal suite door!

Not only did Amber look amazing, she is also very self aware; being conscious of her facial and body movement. This made my job truly enjoyable.

My favorite journalistic shot from the day is when Steve is putting on Amber's ring during the ceremony. The groomsmen's facial expressions are just awesome!



Thursday, May 22, 2008

Eating Gluten-Free - Missing Big Pieces of Wedding Cake

I know this is not photography related, but I couldn't resist witting about my recent experiences with my new gluten free diet. I figured out sometime around February that I was gluten intolerant. I don't get super sick like some people, but I definitely don't feel good the next day.

If any of you have tried to change your diet in such a big way you will know what I mean when I say "It's a tough path!" Almost everything we eat in the United States has wheat in it. Did you know that most cream based soups (in the rue), most seasoned French fries, soy sauce, and most battered items (fish, veggies, etc) have some wheat in them?

I miss my chocolate chip cookies! But Whole foods carries gluten free brownies by Crave bakery. So yummy!

So when you see me only take one bite of your wedding cake don't be offended. It's probably to die for, but I don't want to be dieing the next day. However, I do want to be able to give props to the awesome bakers who create the pretty and tasty cakes for your weddings. So you will find me splurging on that one big bite!

San Francisco Engagement Session - Palace of Fine Art

I met Jon and Angel a few weeks back to shoot their engagement session at the Palace of Fine Art. We are all from the San Jose area so we didn't realize that the dome was undergoing renovations and had scaffolding surrounding it.

They were a little bummed, but we were in a prime location with tons of beautiful areas that didn't include the dome. So no worries! We photographed in the areas all around the Exploratorium and then went across the street to the little marina area.

Thursday, May 08, 2008

Cfoto has A New Website

Not only did we move in the middle of April, but the day before the move started I launched a new website! www.cfoto.com

I like to do everything at once for maximum chaos!

Check out the new site and let me know what you think; especially about the new logo and color scheme. Feel free to leave your comments on this post or send me an email with your thoughts.

Wednesday, May 07, 2008

We've Moved to San Jose

Lots of new things going on around here! A couple weeks ago we moved into a larger location in San Jose. We now have a huge yard that will be perfect for photo sessions! Oh, and big enough for volley ball games and BBQ's too!

The new place has wood floors; which I absolutely love! But the most picture worthy item has to be this bright yellow door that leads to the backyard.