Summer weather has finally arrived! And I can’t wait for it to make its exit! As you may have guessed, I’m not a fan of the blazing heat and the scorching sun. It makes me quite miserable and constantly keeps me searching for an escape from its torture. It got particularly hot at home today, so instead of blasting the AC, I decided to grab the laptop and treat myself to some new scenery (and AC off of someone else’s dime). So here I am at one of my favorite watering holes in Temple City, sipping on lightly-sweetened green tea, ready to share another epic engagement session when a previous client bumps into me! What a pleasant surprise! Cindy, who’s wedding Doug and I shot together a few months ago, notices me hiding behind my laptop and says hello! How nice of her! Her wedding and engagement session were so much fun to shoot and be a part of. I totally remember how cute her and Jerome were on their wedding day and during their engagement session. After briefly catching up with her, I find myself hiding behind my laptop again, but this time, I’m even more inspired and motivated to share that epic engagement session because of the delightful conversation I had with Cindy.

So here comes Andrea & Troy! Inspired by Troy’s family’s legacy of serving in the military and his active status in the air force, this charming couple picked the Palm Springs Air Museum in Palm Springs. Andrea and Troy were properly dressed in stunning attire for the occasion and were fresh off of a flight from Florida to make the engagement session possible. And we thought we had dedication for driving out at 5 in the morning to get there an hour before the museum opened! Please enjoy a few of the engagement photos that we captured in Palms Springs that morning.

As we were going from airplane to airplane, Troy was telling us stories about each plane. We learned that most of the planes in the museum were still operational and he pointed out which ones flew during World War II. It was so cool how he knew all these things! He was our tour guide the whole time we were in the museum and it was awesome!

Andrea was telling us about the journey she went through to get her outfit for the engagement shoot. She told us that after scouring the internet and local boutiques in the Florida area, she finally found a unique boutique on Melrose Avenue, which has been considered a hip shopping district in Los Angeles since the ’80s, that had exactly what she was looking for. It was definitely spot on,and it matched Troy and the theme that they were going for.

After our little photo adventure at the air museum, we headed back to their hotel at the Riviera Palm Springs. This resort and spa was full of bright colors and had this really cool bar area by the valet. I really love the white and orange color combination. The white piano and the orange lighting at the bar were particularly eye-catching.

It was a pleasure photographing their awesome engagement photos in Palm Springs. We all had a great time working together and the two were so happy with our work that they had to have us for their wedding in Lake Tahoe. It was our first time up there and it was gorgeous up there. I can’t wait to post up pictures from it as soon as I’m current with my events. These two are beautiful together and were enchanting to be around. They’re great people who were definitely fortunate to have found each other.

Troy will leave for a tour in Afghanistan later this July. We wish them nothing but the best and for his safe return. You two rock!

Signing off,

Danny

It’s about 5 minutes until midnight on this cool summer evening as I reflect on this past weekends happenings. Remembering that I am behind on blogging and since I forget how sensitive I am to caffeine, I am determined to share one event before I go to bed. (I need to remember to not drink tea after 6 p.m).

Here we are at the historic Mission Inn in Downtown Riverside for our Asian hybrid wedding. For those who may not know what a Asian hybrid wedding is, it is when a Asian couples incorporate Eastern wedding traditions with Western traditions that we are very familiar with. This growing trend of hybrid weddings allow couples to honor the wishes and traditions that their families are more accustomed to and be able to walk down an aisle laced with flower pedals.

Honoring the privacy request from this couple, here are a few select images from their gorgeous event.

I was very fortunate to get this shot. This little human was shy at first and would keep on running away to show his backside to the camera. Little did he know that’s exactly what I was hoping for.

The stunning bride as she makes her way down the stairs towards the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel.

Straight-on shot of the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel before the wedding ceremony began. The Tiffany stained-glass windows and the Rayas Altar housed by the chapel are two of The Mission Inn’s most treasured artifacts according to their website.

I love asymmetrical cakes and I love the bokeh and depth of field you get when you shoot at f/2.0 with a 135mm prime equipped 5d mark II.

This game always makes me laugh at Asian receptions! The groom in this game is first blindfolded before the host asks random female guests to participate. All sitting down in a row, the bride is mixed in with the handful of volunteers and the blindfolded groom is supposed to be able to find his beautiful bride just by touching her knee. A lot of times, a groomsman or, as seen in this picture, a small child gets in the action to try and fool the groom. It rarely fools the groom, but definitely makes for a room full of faces that look like that little girl in the stripes.

This wedding was a lot of fun to shoot and I was privileged to be a part of it.  I wish I was able to share more pictures because there were so many epic moments photographed by Doug and me. I hope this is the first of many visits to the historic Mission Inn & Spa because the architecture and the colors here are so stimulating!

Congratulations once again to our happy, and anonymous, couple! Good luck on all of your future endeavors together! You two are awesome!

Cheers!

Danny