I’d like to share some images from the wedding ceremony of Sara and Phil. Sara and Phil planned their day much further in advance than most couples I’ve met. Between the two of them, it seems like either one or both of them are always on a Navy ship in a far-flung part of the world, so advance planning was truly a must. I remember the first time I talked to Sara early in 2008, when November of 2009 seemed reeeaaalllly far away! It’s hard for me to believe that their day came and went, and that it’s already time to blog the images!
The day itself was perfect. The sky was blue, the sun was warm, and everybody was in a great mood. The day flowed just the way it was supposed to and it all came together for their sunset ceremony on the lawn at the Bayside in Point Loma. One of my favorite photographers, Kristina Chartier, was kind enough to lend her talent to the event and shoot with me that day, so I send her my thanks!
Without further ado, here are some of their images:
I have to confess: I was sent home with four of these cupcakes, and I ate them ALL before all of their images were uplaoded to my Mac!
Sara is a Nurse and this is part of her medical crew!
They act like Bad Girls, but they’re just clever stickers that say “Sara & Phil”
I love getting letters! When I open my mailbox and I see a card-sized envelope in there with a hand written address, I get excited. Knowing that my clients are happy means everything to me and it’s one of the most rewarding aspects of my work.
There are a huge range of emotions attached to a wedding day, so when the images are presented to my clients, their family, and friends, all of those feelings come right back as if the wedding happened just yesterday. Maybe it’s strange, but when my clients tell me that they watched their slideshow and that it made them cry, I feel like doing a little victory dance around my office!
I had one of those victory moments recently when I received a card in the mail from Anne Holland, the mother of my client Beth Holland….who is now Beth Vannoy. It was a moment where I thought I might cry! She wrote such a thoughtful card that I can’t help but share it here.
“Oh Philip!
What a talent you have – How lucky could Beth and Jay be? You captured the every element of emotion with the anticipation of the greatest and happiest day in Beth’s life.
Your Photos are absolutely dreamy! Beth is a beauty – but you definitely captured her inner beauty. What a gift you have in your ability to ‘evoke’ and ‘capture’ such lovely photos. We could not be more pleased.
Thanks to Sharon, we were so lucky to have pictures to remind us of that lovely day in San Diego.
With fond memories – and priceless photos!!
Anne Holland
Mother of the Bride.”
Hello Everybody!
It’s been a busy season so far this summer and I know I’ve got a ton of new stuff to blog. I am busy working on getting a new format dialed in here so I can show larger images and get a bit more creative. All the posts up til’ now will stay, but I have a feeling the images are going to seem small compared to what I’ll be blogging from now on. Look for plenty of updates in the coming weeks, as I start catching up on blogging everything that’s been going on. A lot of exciting changes are happening, including a new website set to launch in a few weeks, as well as a partnership that has been in the works for months.
Check back soon! Cheers!
Kara and Rusty were married at the Sacred Heart Church in Ocean Beach, and aftwerwards they treated their guests to a four hour cruise aboard the Hornblower “High Spirits” for their reception. It made for a long schedule, between getting ready at the hotel, the wedding itself, hitting sunset clifffs after the wedding, and finally, the cruise. It went by really fast!
All of Rusty’s 9 siblings were there ( Yes, NINE ) along with a bunch of family and friends from both sides. Rusty’s family is local, as Russ Sr. has been a family dentist here in San Diego for decades. Kara hails from further north in California.
Everybody was checking the program before the ceremony…”Who goes first?”
The Ceremony went perfectly! 
On the way to the reception cruise, we stopped off at Sunset Cliffs for more group shots and a few more of Kara and Rusty.
The recpetion was a real treat for everybody. I’ve shot on the High Spirits before and it’s always been a real pleasure. Even though so many of us live in San Diego, it’s surprising how many people never get out on the bay!
I
always like to close the night with a parting shot, and here is Kara and Rusty’s. We took a few extra minutes to light them up at the end of Broadway for a cool goodnight shot. : )
Yesterday I had the pleasure of photographing the wedding of Devon and John at the Prado, in Balboa Park. It’s such a beautiful venue for a wedding! It’s a classic San Diego landmark with so many places to shoot and wonderful light everywhere. Devon and John are getting ready to go on a loooong honeymoon, so I’ve been going through all of their images today so they can get a sneak peak before they fly off into the sunset. I’m still working my way through all the shots, but I did grab a large handful of Devon and John, just for them. So, without further ado…
Devon had a private room upstairs to get ready in…I took advantage of the roof : )
On to the ceremony at the wishing well:
Family played a huge role in the day for Devon and John.
While the guests enjoyed the coctail hour, we had a few minutes to ourselves.
Evening settled on the park, and everybody was in the mood to dance.
Sara & Mike
Wedding and Reception: Private Residence, Fallbrook, Ca.
It’s actually been a little while since I photographed the wedding of Sara and Mike up in Fallbrook. At the moment, they are laid out on a beach in Jamaica, enjoying their honeymoon. (Yay!) Sara and Mike are both school teachers, so they’re definitely enjoying one last hurrah before returning to middle school campuses again in a couple of weeks. Now that I’m finally finishing up work on my new site, I thought it was about time I shared some images.
The wedding was designed to be an intimate affair at a private residence, and it came together perfectly thanks to the work of coordinator Jenny from Luxe Special Events. They were able to make a private residence feel like a small resort, with a bar and candy favors by the pool and beautifully set tables in the garden. It was definitely a wonderful summer evening.
The guys broke out the cigars as the reception came near to close:
A little mystery in the garden…a closing shot:
I’ll admit that I don’t wake up every single day feeling all flowery and full of grace, but seldom does a day go by that I don’t say to myself that life is beautiful. Sometimes it’s an image, but just as often it’s a story on the web or a song on the radio that has me thinking : “Life is beautiful.” Maybe it sounds clichéd to some people, but for me, it has become a mantra. The more I ponder it, the more I look for it, and the more I see it, so the idea is reinforced. Life is beautiful.
