Amazing Engagement Photos

Engagements, San Diego Weddings

When Eric and Allison came to me and said “We want to do some crazy engagement photos. We want a lion tamer, a spy, breakfast at Tiffany’s, the queen, and a Terry Richardson photo”. My first reaction was to say “of course – no problem”. And then a few seconds later it began to sink in what they were asking me to do and I realized how cool this was really going to be. After just a few days of thinking about it I also began to realize that I had no hope of pulling this off without my favorite stylist and makeup artist Amanda Thorne. So at 8 months pregnant Amanda agreed to come on board under the condition that we get it done pretty quick before the baby arrived.

We started the day at the studio with one of the more simple shots. We were going for a photo in the style of the famous photographer Terry Richardson. There were LOTS of things I did not want to emulate about his style for these photos – but we certainly borrowed enough to keep the style intact.

Our next photos were based on Breakfast at Tiffany’s. We started out with a couple of quick studio photos before heading to West Elm to borrow some of their beautiful space.

After our quick stop at West Elm we were back to the studio for lunch and wardrobe before paying a visit to Britt Scripps to turn Allison into a queen and Eric into her butler.

For our fourth photo of the day we were going to create a “Lion Tamer” image with Alison dressed in a wedding gown with a safari jacket and a whip while Eric was dress as a lion wearing a tuxedo vest and a bow tie. From the time we first discussed the whole session this was easily the photo that concerned me the most. I could envision so many ways for this photo to go badly and I really wanted it to look amazing. Fortunately all the preperation and hard work came together and we created my favorite images from the day.

Our last photo of the day was to create a classic Bond looking image. In the style of a traditional Bond theme – Eric looks to be clever and in control but the stunning brunette clearly has his number

Thanks to Amanda, Jenny, Newsha, Casey, Fred, Dalia, Lupe, West Elm, and Britt Scripps for all your help on this project!

Rancho Santa Fe Engagement Photos

Engagements, San Diego Weddings

I’m absolutely loving the photos from this recent engagement session. My blog has been seriously neglected recently so this was the perfect excuse to bring it back up to date. I’m so excited to be shooting the wedding later this year!!

Kelsey and Steve Engagement Photos

Engagements

Kelsey is soon to be my baby boy’s pre-school teacher, although our family has already gotten to know her pretty well. I was very excited for her first when she told me she was getting married, and then when she announced that she wanted me to be her wedding photographer. I had not yet met Steve so we arranged a meeting and immediately began planning their engagement photos. Our session 3 days ago started at Old Poway Park before returning to the magical trail behind my home.

La Jolla Engagement Photos

Engagements

I almost always get to do some location scouting – even if it is just a google search for other photographs or a street view. But heading into this engagement photo session I was flying completely blind. We were meeting in the middle of an upscale neighborhood in La Jolla near a small trail that accessed the ocean (at low tide). The funny thing about last Saturday is that the tide was high and so was the surf. We ended up on just a small cliff about 30 feet above the water, and with the high surf I still managed to got soaked in the first 10 minutes of being on location. Still, the conditions were great for taking pictures and these guys were super photogenic. And not only did the beach location work out well… I may have discovered my favorite stair case in San Diego only about 200 yards from our beach trail.

Penasquitos Engagement Photos

Engagements

I first visited the historic Ranch House at Pensasquitos 4 years ago. And although I brought my camera and got some fun photos… I had never been back with PEOPLE to take pictures. So I was stoked when Kristine suggested this location for their engagement pictures.

San Dieguito Engagement Photos

Engagements

Winter is an absolutely wonderful time to do engagement photos in San Diego. We met at San Dieguito Park after some slightly more ambitious plans involving mountain bikes fell apart – and although I was disappointed the original plans do not happen… I was super happy with “Plan B”. Wedding to come in August !!

Crystal Pier Engagement

Engagements

I met Ben and Christina at 8AM on Sunday down at Crystal Pier in Pacific Beach. Of course the first thing I had to do when we met up was apologize for being a bit wiped out – I never would have guessed that the wedding I shot in Laguna Beach the night before was going to be 100+ degrees – and it really took a lot out of me. But Ben and Christina are a super chill couple and the whole theme of the shoot was a low-key “lifestyle” shoot so I like to think that my fatigue helped contribute to the final look in a positive way… haha – at least that’s my story and I’m sticking to it

Del Mar and Torrey Pines Engagement

Engagements

I met Dave and Jessi in Del Mar for a 2-part engagement photo session that would begin in the village of Del Mar and end on the trails at Torrey Pines. The weather was amazing (low 70’s and sunny) and we were lucky to avoid pretty much any crowds.

Engagement photos at Old Poway

Engagements

Courtney and Jordan were troopers yesterday morning… morning temperatures were in the high 30’s and they still agreed to meet me at 8AM for some nice early morning light. But as is so often the case… the results are worth the effort as we had absolutely spectacular conditions for these photos. Fortunately for all of us the temps started climbing pretty fast under the beautiful morning sun.

Old Poway Park has been a favorite location of mine for a long time – but I’ve never been able to talk anyone into getting up so early to do their pictures, so I was thrilled to have such a great looking couple keen to make great images with me.

Balboa Pier Engagement Photos

Engagements

I had only ever been to the Balboa Pier once as I was catching the boat to Avalon, but when we were looking for a place to do some engagement photos in the area I knew it would be perfect. The combination of sandy beaches combined with a very cool village area that is alive with color and texture provided a wonderful backdrop for a portrait session.