Whenever possible, I try to meet the bride and groom before their wedding.  I love to hear the story of how they met (both versions), watch for expressions of their love for each other, and let them know what I’m all about.  Since Chris and Emilie live in San Diego, it wasn’t practical for us to meet up ahead of time, and as I drove down that morning, I wondered if it would make our interactions a little less comfortable.

It definitely didn’t.

Chris and I had briefly overlapped at college, and I knew him to be a cool, soft-spoken guy with a great taste in music. I’d never met Emilie, but after spending the day with them, I doubt you would have known that.  Emilie took the time to explain their whole relationship history to me, and at the end of the day, I felt like was leaving a friends’ wedding instead.

Here’s my visual tribute.

A reverse on the usual trend…

Thanks to Heroes for the inspiration for this groomsmen comp…

Seriously, girls.  This is the best “Charlies Angels” pose ever.

They had a custom aisle runner made… “S” for Southward!

Possibly my favorite bouquet toss photo ever.

Congrats, Chris and Emilie!  Thanks so much for inviting me down to SD to be your photographer.  I had a great time being a part of your day.  The rest of the photos will be online here soon!

Due to my latest trip to Malawi (more on that soon), it’s been about a month since Cassidy and Julie’s wedding.  Those of you who have been waiting all that time to see these… thanks for your patience!  While I don’t expect that to be the norm, I realized that it can be a good thing to let some time elapse between when I shoot a wedding and when I edit it.  A big advantage is that I’m less attached to the ideas behind a photo, and simply look at the image itself.  Which means that if I had a cool idea, but it didn’t really work out, I’m not going to force that photo anymore… and it will probably end up looking better.

This wedding was at Grace Church.  I’ve shot a ton of weddings there, and I have to try really hard to come up with something new and unique each time.  It’s a good challenge.  I feel like I definitely got some shots this time that I’d never done before.  See if you agree.

But enough about me.  The photos below are about Cassidy and Julie, a most gracious couple.  Some of you remember them from their engagement shoot downtown… their wedding was a delight too!  I’m so glad I got to know their personalities beforehand so that I could appreciate how truly excited they were to be getting married to each other!

My throwback to their architecture-themed engagement shoot…

The talented Stephen Sturtz…

I love that I finally got a ring shot where the action happens vertically…

They alternated sand colors…

Julie taking a quick break from standing…

Cassidy and Julie, thanks again for everything!  I really enjoyed getting to spend your wedding day with you, and to witness the true joy that characterized you as you began your new life together. God bless!

Jimmy and Erin have such a cool story!

Their dads were best friends in college, and did everything together.  As a result, their families grew up doing everything together, but a bit more sporadically, as the various parties moved to various parts of the world.  Somehow, Jimmy and Erin never really got to know each other until they met again at a mutual friend’s wedding.  Erin was living in China at the time, and Jimmy in India, so they had a lot in common.  They kept in touch, but officially, their first date involved Erin flying to India to see Jimmy.  The rest is history.

The groomsmen’s air band included a guitar, bass, drums, trombone… and harmonica.  What they lacked in sound, they made up for in style.

Special thanks to the kid who reluctantly moved to let us play on the playground.

The dads… where the story all began.

Jimmy and Erin had their parents pray for them as part of the ceremony…

Jimmy and Erin, thanks for giving me the opportunity to be your wedding photographer.  I’m excited, and a bit curious, to see where the Lord takes you next.   Blessings!