I love the wine country, it is one of the most scenic and romantic areas of the Inland Empire. I’m not sure how many wineries are here, but there are quite a few in the Temecula/Fallbrook area. There are wine tasting tours for those wanting to sample the local vintages and the Temecula Valley hot air balloon and wine festival in June is always a big draw. I must confess that I don’t know too much about wine but I do enjoy a good glass of cabernet with dinner:) My last visit to the wine country was a business trip, I was second shooting for my friend April who invited me to the gorgeous wedding of Heather and Jason at the Faulkner Winery.  It sits atop a hill so the view is extraordinary. The food was excellent and the staff very professional, I would recommend it highly.  Thank you Heather and Jason for the honor of sharing your day awesome day with you!

I have a confession to make: I crashed a wedding and loved every minute of it! The wedding took place about an hour outside of Denver while I was on “vacation”. I had intended on reading, sleeping and doing all those things that I never seem to have enough time to do…..so what do I end up doing? Photographing a wedding! While complete strangers to me, the bride Sarah, is the daughter of good friends of a good buddy of mine, Mary Lou. She had been invited, I had not, but I had my camera and it sounded like fun, so what the heck:) It was amazing! Sarah and Buck were married on a meadow surrounded by pine trees and fresh mountain air. Each had written vows for one another that were so beautiful and touching that there was not a dry eye in the house (meadow!). These photos are a brief glimpse of a truly blessed day.

Buck reads his vows to his beautiful bride whom he promises to love forever……sigh.

This little furry guy started to growl at me so I took a quick photo and went on my way. Down boy!

Armed with roses representing their love for one another, Sarah and Buck are introduced as husband and wife for the first time.

It doesn’t get much better than this.

Sarah’s parents, Dawn and Dave, share a moment of serenity after the ceremony.

This is my wacky friend Mary Lou and her long time friends Dawn and Dave. These beautiful people were kind enough to not only host a truly magical wedding but were also generous enough to invite us to stay for a couple of days with them. Fortunately for me, they really liked their photos:)

This is the view of the golf course across from the reception……kinda takes your breath away, huh?

One of the youngest guest and her daddy came out to see the elk on the golf course.

This is Elsa who according to her mother Edye has never met a camera that she didn’t like–I can see why!

The lovely Sarah is an accomplished horsewoman.

Elsa and I spent time shooting around the outside of the reception hall. She is a great little model and was a lot of fun to hang out with too:)

She’s a natural!

Me and my new best friend!

Have you ever wondered what a Las Vegas wedding was like? If you’re like me, you picture a bride and a groom being married by Elvis or Joan Rivers or something wacky like that. I guess that is one version of a Vegas wedding. The version I witnessed and had the honor of photographing was something completely different.

This beautiful couple is Jeff and Erin. They had been engaged for two years because this is something that they hope will last a lifetime, not at all what one thinks of when we think of a “quickie” wedding for which Vegas is notorious. They chose Ceasars Palace to exchange nuptials in a gazebo by the pool filled with guests looking to escape the 150 degree weather (I’m exaggerating but am certain the temps were nearing 120, check the annals;) Erin is quite petite and can easily pass for one of her middle school students, so it was a lot of fun to watch her be transformed into a miniature goddess by the experts at the Qua Bath and Spa Salon. I think I can speak for Jeff when I say that she left him breathless at the sight of her coming down the aisle. The hot weather did little to dissuade the friends and family that joined them to celebrate their union and all had a terrific time. Thank you Erin and Jeff for a memorable weekend! Please check out their slideshow for more pics.

Congratulations!

This is Erin BEFORE…….

This is Erin AFTER. Wow!

This is Erin during. I know it’s out of order but you get the idea!

The hotels have their own photographers wh0 must shoot the ceremony. Nice of him to wear a red shirt!

A quiet moment, one of the few of the day.

Only in Vegas, Baby!

This is Yuri. She is an up-and-coming photographer who was sweet enough to accompany me to the wedding and take some awesome shots. On the long drive home I introduced her to Frank Sinatra, Heart, and the Eagles. In return, she introduced me to eating ice cream with french fries! No lie:)

This is Yuri’s shot. Nicely done!

Weddings are always special events, it is not possible to be around people in love and not feel a little romantic yourself! One of my favorite places to shoot a wedding is the Mission Inn, located in downtown Riverside, CA., where I was lucky enough to have been asked to join my friend April Smith to photograph Noelle and Jefferey’s wedding. They are not only beautiful on the outside, they were truly amazing people to be with, and I wish them both the very best. Here are some of my favorite images from the day, I hope you like them!

This is the lovely Noelle. She is laughing because behind her is her husband desperately attempting to bustle her train!

The details of this wedding were extraordinary. See if you agree.

Just in case you were wondering what our handsome groom looks like, here he is in the arms of his beloved (sigh).

This is the famous Amistad Room. It is gorgeous!

The grooms little sister couldn’t wait to show off her teeth!

I played in Photoshop a little to get this effect. I liked it!

Thank you April! You look mahvelous:)