Saturday, December 20, 2008

San Francisco City Hall Weddings CAN be beautiful!


















They say "beauty" is in the eye of the beholder....however, most photographers know that portraiture is subjective and although subject matter really does help, it helps even more when whatever you see through your viewfinder BECOMES beautiful when we capture the right moment.


Amy, a sweet and grateful bride-to-be, dialed Weddings 9-1-1 and hired us to cover her City Hall wedding in San Francisco on December 19th. The first thing I thought was, ugh...I use to work there, I do not recall any kool photo op's other than the cool railings and the kinda cool statues that adorn the Rotunda wall on the 2nd floor, and of course all the crowds that run through the hall on a Friday, just was not inspiring at all. But, when we arrived yesterday early morning, we found a HUGE bountiful and gorgeous Christmas tree at the center of the Rotunda, and THAT made our day! And....all of the sudden, we noticed, a SPOTLIGHT...yes...to the left side of the tree and we thought, THERE IS LIGHT!


It got even better, when I got a call from Amy saying she was already there at the Hall, I then immediately noticed a gorgeous statuesque blond in a wedding gown..we both had cell phones in our hands and we immediately said, "hey is that you!?" We met and hugged and she gave me such a warm welcome, her, the tree, the welcome, this is a photographers dream! I then followed her to the ceremony check in and met her lovely 5 year old daughter Zyra, who was just an angel of beauty, and I also met, the groom, we can't forget him! David was a Dapper Dave, and they all just looked amazing! I'm sooooooooooo ready to shoot!


Amy and David had mentioned that Zyra was very much a part of the ceremony. During the Ring Ceremony, David, presented her with a beautiful ring of her own, and Amy presented her with a lovely tri-circle necklace, symbolizing their union as a family....just LOVELY!


We had some challenges and here is a note to help you avoid these simple little BIG details.


1) Make a list of poses, 2) Check your battery power, flash and camera, 3) Get there at least an hour before the shooting begins, we arrived 30 mins. before the ceremony and ran around like crazy! 4) Double check for White balance settings, to make sure you clear your last shoot's settings, and as always RELAX!

But now...meet Amy, David, and little Zyra Marie, we wish them a life full of love and best wishes!


And again and again MERRY CHRISTMAS to you and Happy New Year!

3 comments:

  1. I'm so glad you found City Hall the treasure I always knew it to be....the light inside is amazing in the afternoon...beems of sunlight stream through...the glass...the stone...the stairs...and yes the rotunda...I love it and so glad you do now too. Beautiful family...I wish them much happiness. What a wonderful way to celebrate the holidays and begin a new year together. For them! not me...lol

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  2. Hi Barbara and Wayne, I really enjoyed performing this Wedding Ceremony, you and Wayne, did such an amazing job shooting this City Hall Ceremony, the happiness of the couple and their daughter really shines through. Not only are the two of you great at what you do, you really put all of your heart into it as well.

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  3. Gina you are a dear sweet woman and beautiful too! I will always recommend you as a Wedding Officiant, you are the BEST! Looking forward to more weddings together!

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