Alyssa and Steve: e-session at the St. Regis

Alyssa and Steve are getting married in September so it was about time we did their e-session! ;) Alyssa wanted to have their e-session at a place that had beautiful architecture that reminded her of Italy... rustic and elegant at the same time. I think she was successful in identifying the perfect location... the St. Regis Monarch Beach in Dana Point. As any of you know that have been there... the St. Regis is beautiful and it was the perfect location for these two to strut their stuff and just hang out together in front of the camera. I'm really looking forward to your wedding guys... it will be lovely... just like you! ;) Enjoy some of my favorites from our time together below... Talk soon! - Nat

Jill and Dave: e-session

Jill and Dave were married earlier this month... (to be blogged soon)! But, before their wedding (only a week before, in fact) we finally were able to do their e-session. Jill and Dave are a great and funny couple... they are great together... and I think that shows in their pics. We headed to downtown Long Beach and started with a drink (to loosen Dave up... although... I don't think he needed it!) at Cafe Sevilla. After some yummy sangria we headed off on our search for fun spots (and a few wardrobe changes). From the alleyways to the parking garage to a few different flights of stairs... check out a few favorites from our exploits below. Thanks guys!!! I can't wait to post your wedding pics... so much fun!!!

7.7.7 Wedding Mini-Preview... Desiree + Steve

So... I'm a bit behind in blogging... and I just had to get at least a few pics up from my amazing 7.7.7 wedding with Steve and Desiree. So without further ado... here is a mini preview (I stress the word "mini") preview from their beautiful day. There will be another post (with a slide show and some words about Des and Steve and their day) coming soon! Now I'm off to shoot Jill and Dave's wedding... ;) Enjoy the preview... lots more to come...

How cute are these shoes??? Des was so excited! Look at that smile!
Brides really don't get any prettier, do they? ;) What a dress...
The boys...
After the ceremony... a grand exit with bubbles!
And finally, a kiss... want more? Stay tuned...

The Wilson Family: Portraits in Huntington Beach

I had the great pleasure of meeting and photographing the Wilson family down at Huntington Beach. They're out on vacation from Texas and wanted some great portraits while they were here. I'm so glad that they found me. I knew from the first moment that Charee and I talked that we were really going to connect. And, I was right!

Wow... what a sweet and charming family. Needless to say, the girls are beautiful and amazing... as were Carl and Charee. Thanks so much for letting me capture you as a family... being yourselves and having a good time. I can't wait for you to renew your vows so I can capture that, too! All my best... talk to you soon! - Natalie




I asked the girls to make a funny face... this is what I got... I almost couldn't take the picture because I was laughing so hard!!!




Can you believe these two have been married for almost 10 years? They look like newly weds...

4 Days in Napa for our Anniversary...

Matt and I are back!!! Napa and Sonoma were breathtaking. We made the short trip up north to celebrate our 3-year anniversary. We had such a nice and relaxing time. I thought I'd share some of the sites and our adventures with you. ;)

Perhaps the first image below is not the one you'd expect from our anniversary trip to Napa but alas... it took almost 2 hours of standing in line at the rental car pick up place to end up with "this". I tried to deal, I told myself ... "it's just a car"... "who cares if it looks like a khaki cop car?"... and then... just as I was about to give in... I told Matt... "nope, can't do it... we're getting a convertible!" So we did... you'll see Matt in our lovely convertible Sebring in the next pic... SO MUCH BETTER!!! Seriously, if you're heading up there... GET THE CONVERTIBLE! It made the trip (no offense "khaki cop car").

We were married at the Lodge at Sonoma so we thought we'd at least stop in there... and... get a great couples massage... ahhhhhh... you don't know how much we both needed that! It was phenomenal. Just like we remembered... (there's Matt in the "2nd" car.)
traversing the bridges on the way into Napa from SF/Oakland...
After our massages we headed back to our hotel, rested a bit more and then headed off to our favorite place in Old Town Napa... Celadon... also the restaurant where we had our rehearsal dinner... the one below is after we had eaten all sorts of good stuff... calamari, mushroom bisque, yummy meals, and my favorite... creme brule... ummmmmmm... Matt's dish seemed to inspire his best zoolander impression below....

Day 2... lots of wineries and lots of driving... beautiful skies... ahhh California... Did I mention that the car came with Sirius satellite radio... well, it did... awesome!
We headed to one of our favorite wineries for lunch... V. Sattui. If you're up there... you've got to stop here... it's busy but the wines, the beautiful grounds, and the picnic lunch are well worth it. As you can see, we had some red zin for lunch... and, of course, some chocolate... what a combination... my favorite!
Below... Matt looking very happy after his yummy lunch...
We headed off to Artesa Winery... I had heard that it not only had great wine but was a beautiful location with some incredible art installations. Take a look for yourself... not a bad view either...


We liked the light in this spot... so we thought why not do a little portrait with the point-n-shoot... I know people probably thought we were a little weird... oh well... :)




Now on to Day 3 highlights... There aren't any pics here but... we headed off to Domaine Carneros for some bubbly and then to Viansa for the chicken parmigiana that Matt has been dreaming and reminiscing about since we were here in 2004. Thankfully, for both of us, they had the chicken parmigiana. Next, we headed down to one of my favorite parts of the trip... this amazing spot... Cornerstone... gardens, modern outdoor art installations, architectural salvage, etc... and... home of the blue tree... you'll see. Check it out below. If you're thinking of getting married up in Sonoma/Napa... this is definitely a great place to consider for your celebration. Cool and beautiful.



We're always looking for "m's" (as in Moser) in architecture where ever we go... here's one (actually two) below

Check out the blue tree!!!
Doesn't it look like coral?






I don't want to bore you... so... that's the end of the highlight pics... but I can tell you that we ended day 3 at Bouchon's. I highly recommend it... it's owned by the same people that run French Laundry... make sure you get reservations!

Now I'm back to business... Desiree and Steve's 7-7-7 wedding, an engagement session, and a family session will be up shortly... stay tuned... (and thanks for obliging me by reading this whole thing... geez... ;).

AGWPJA Contest: One of my images placed! :)

Hi all! ;)

I'm excited to say that one of my images placed in the "Getting Ready" category of the most recent AGWPJA (Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association) contest. A big thanks to my beautiful bride Jenell who is having her veil put on next to her incredible dress .

Here's a little paragraph about the AGWPJA, which I'm proud to be a part of...

The Artistic Guild of the Wedding Photojournalist Association [AG]WPJA is a group of international wedding photojournalists, who capture unscripted wedding moments as they happen, and excel in the art of post-production image processing. The [AG]WPJA is a division within the Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA); one which specifically promotes Fine Art Wedding Photojournalism.

Stay tuned... my 7/7/7 wedding is coming shortly... meanwhile... off to Napa/Sonoma to celebrate my 3rd wedding anniversary to my wonderful husband, Matt... we'll be heading back to the place where we got married... I'll post some pics from our trip next week. ;)

Melissa and Nathan: The Athenaeum

I had the pleasure of being a part of Nathan and Melissa's wedding in Pasadena a few weeks ago. The ceremony took place at beautiful Holy Family Church and the reception at the amazing Athenaeum. Melissa and Nathan found me a long time ago and they have been so sweet to work with ever since. I couldn't believe how beautiful Melissa looked and how much she looked like Audrey Hepburn. Nathan is one lucky boy (Melissa is lucky, too :). The whole wedding from the location, to Melissa's hair and dress reminded me of an old, classic wedding... so... I thought I would present the images with the same feel... antique tones and classic imagery.

Melissa, Nathan, and your incredible families... thank you for being so sweet and complimentary to me and Daniel. You were truly a pleasure to work with. I hope you enjoy your pictures below and in the slideshow (here) there are lots more to come! ;) I wish you all my best as you begin your lives together and I can't wait to be your photographer and friend for many years to come. All my best - Natalie (PS- Thanks for the gift!!! How'd you know I like chocolate? ;))

The one below was taken especially for Nathan... he wanted a picture of the shoes... now, that's my kind of guy. :)

Nicole and Tommy : [seven-degrees]

Nicole and Tommy were married on June 16th at St. Paul's Greek Orthodox Church in Irvine with a reception following at the amazing [seven-degrees] in Laguna Beach. All I can say is WOW... wow about the amazing friends and family (Tommy's 100% Irish and Nicole's 100% Greek... now, there's a party!), about the beautiful church, about the fantastic [seven-degrees], about the very cool bagpiper, about the awesome Greek band and dancing that didn't stop, about the incredible videographer (Daniel Boswell from DV Artistry), about the beautiful flowers and artwork, the stunning sparkler grand exit, and, most importantly about Nicole and Tommy. Words can't really describe these two. But, I'll try... genuine, kind, loving individuals... phenomenal couple. The wedding and all who were involved were so incredible that I took SOOOOO many pictures... and I loved most of them!!! So... you'll find way more images below and in the slideshow than I typically would post but... after much ado... I just couldn't help myself.

So, a big thank you and congratulations to Nicole and Tommy... cheers to you and your incredible life together. I wish you all my best and look forward to seeing you again soon. Now... on to your pictures... don't forget to check out the slideshow here. There will be plenty more shortly for you to feast your eyes on! ;)- Natalie