Chico, Ca. Wedding Photograper- Jessica and Benny's Engagement Session

When I initially meet with my clients one of the major goals is to really get an idea of who they are. Doing this helps me come up with unique ideas to bring those traits out in our photo shoot. When I met with Jessica and Benny back in November, I had mentioned how I wanted to photograph a couple at the Honey Run Covered Bridge, in between Chico and Paradise. Jessica got the biggest smile on her face and proceeded to tell me how she and Benny used to take drives up Honey Run Road all the way to Paradise and that it had special meaning to them. With that, the main location was picked out.

After talking to Jessica on the phone a few times we came up with a pretty fun-filled day of engagement photos. Because Jessica is a 49ers fan and Benny is a Cowboy's fan, we had to play a little football. Additionally, I was also very excited for a giraffe umbrella (which turned out to be a tiger) and we needed some "Save The Date" photos so we decided to have some fun with chalk!

The long-anticipated engagement session of Jessica and Benny was so much fun and well worth the wait. Thanks Jessica and Benny, I had so much fun and can't wait to share your wedding day with you.

Destination Wedding Photography- Darla and Marvin's Florida Wedding

In August, 2010, my boyfriend and I bisected our 15-day cross-country train adventure with a few wonder-filled days in Lakeland, Florida. The mission: meet up with fellow wedding photographer Don Campbell and shoot the Darla & Marvin Short wedding.

Being a Northern California wedding photographer, this little stopover in the South really taught me a couple of lessons both as a photographer and as a traveler.

First lesson: the enveloping Florida humidity can wreak havoc on your lens. When going from the A.C. to the outdoors, the inside of my lens would completely fog up for almost 5 minutes.

Second lesson: while shooting weddings in the southern heat, one set of clothes may not be enough. Being a wedding photographer, your priority must be to get the shot. Sometimes, this requires standing in direct sunlight in 95'F at 100% humidity (literally - I looked it up!) which, inevitably, means you're gonna get wet. After the bridal party portrait session, I felt as though I had just jumped out of the lake, clothing and all.

Third lesson: Spanish Moss makes an amazing background and it grows everywhere around here! I would love another chance to shoot a couple in the moss - it would be the perfect setting for a fantastic creative session.

Darla, Marvin and their friends and family sure made our visit to Florida a wonderful experience for our first trip to the south. They make such a sweet, southern couple and told us we are more than welcome to visit them if ever we found ourselves in the Lakeland area - we just might take them up on their offer someday.

Here are some of my favorite images from the day:

Chico, Ca. Pet Photography- Table Mountain, Oroville Ca.- Little Misha

This last weekend we decided to have a picnic up at Table Mountain, we had little Misha with us so I brought the camera hoping that there would be blooms and we could capture her running in them. However, we found ourselves to be a little early and there wasn't really any flowers in bloom, just a few specs of spring here and there. Still Misha had her own little photo session and was as cute as can be.

Chico, Ca. Wedding Photographer- The Goodlaffs Engagement Session

Christopher (Chris) Ratzlaff and Elizabeth (Beth) Goodrich, together make Chris and Beth Goodlaff. Everyone needs a Goodlaff and this photo shoot was filled with plenty of good laughs. Chris is a long time friend of mine from my hometown and I couldn't have been more excited when I saw the news on FaceBook - he had found the one who stole his heart and was ready to share the rest of his life. I had to click the "like" button. I had yet to meet her, but I knew I was going to like her.

As life will take you in many different directions, Chris and I have talked only a handful of times in the past few years. A few months after announcing their wedding, Chris sent me an email asking if I would be interested in shooting their big day: of course I would! After meeting Beth, I knew he had made a great decision: not only is she a sweetheart, she keeps him in line! Best of all, it is obvious that their love for one another is real. I told them to give me funny faces they both stuck their tongues out at me, as if they read each others minds. Not to mention that they both look great in glasses! Chris and Beth have chosen to spend the rest of their lives together and they couldn't be more excited about it.

Because they are getting married in Grass Valley, we decided to do the engagement photos in their stomping grounds. We started shooting at the North Star Mining Museum in Grass Valley, then made our way to the wedding venue, Miners Foundry Cultural Center in Nevada City. This building is absolutely gorgeous - it has the church feeling without actually being one. From there we looked around downtown for a little then decided we better hurry on our next location. Chris and Beth treated us to lunch and we ate at their place so they could change into their evening outfits. These more formal photos, taken at the covered bridge in Bridgeport, remind me of a Valentine's date.

Thanks Chris and Beth for such a wonderful day, I can not wait for the wedding day!























Look for The Goodlaff's wedding photos in May!