katie and jason's wedding

katie and jason's wedding was dream to photograph! larner vineyard had so many unique locations to shoot, i could have spent the entire day with just katie and jason - taking pictures all over the property. and i think katie might win the "most relaxed bride of the year" award. she completely enjoyed her day. the gorgeous lighting was provided by lani at lbps. and the delicious meal was catered by pure joy. the beautiful flowers were designed by jennifer. it was an amazing day and a wonderful celebration!

i'm back!

my wife and i just got home from an amazing vacation to celebrate our 10th anniversary! we had an absolute blast, and everything was perfect. the weather was perfect, the food and service at pacifica was great, and we didn't get eaten by sharks! the only problem i have with this post, is how many pictures of yours truly there are - i definitely belong on the other side of the camera :)

this is the beach in front of the resort where we spent the majority of our time.

pacifica is located at the south end of ixtapa and the resort is spread out all over the hill on the point. here is the view of ixtapa from the top of the resort. this also happens to be the location where all the ixtapa postcards' photos are taken.

my gorgeous wife relaxing on the beach!

our anniversary dinner at the incredible el faro restaurant that overlooks all of ixtapa. to get to the restaurant, you can take the gondola top! want to have your reception here? let me know, i got all the details from the manager.

so...many of the locals called us "loco", the tourists thought we were stupid, but i just can't pass up big, beautiful, warm water waves. my buddy todd (also staying at pacifica last week) and i surfed several great breaks while we were down there. this sign was placed at the location of one of the, now famous, shark attacks. we got by far the best rides of the trip at this spot. so it was well worth it.

about to head out.

pete and krista's engagement session

i just had one of my favorite engagement sessions ever! the secret...feed the photographer. pete and krista are from laguna beach, and are going to have an amazing wedding on the beach here in santa barbara, and then a reception at krista's family home in hope ranch. this isn't just any home though, it has the absolute best location in all of santa barbara as it sits right on the beach where we took these engagement photos! i can't wait to show off the amazing artifacts from shipwrecks that were recovered and used to decorate the home. after the session, krista's family invited me to stay for fish tacos! if you know me, you know i LOVE fish tacos. what a wonderful evening!

happy mother's day!

we just had a wonderful day with family. after breakfast in bed for jenny, and some time with the kids, we headed to "the farm" where i grew up in the santa rita hills- to spend some time with my mom and dad. for those of you who don't know, my dad has become a gourmet chef in his retirement - and he cooked an amazing meal (my mom's favorite) of panko crusted scallops and jumbo shrimp, dill sauce, and spinach salad with an apple balsamic vinaigrette.

here are a few shots of the two best moms in the world! plus, the kids on a rope swing!

my mom and i

kaitlyn wasn't quite as sure about it as the boys

camille and rosendo's engagement session

you've got to hear this story...

this past christmas, rosendo was flying up to seattle where camille and her family were. he was excited because he was about to propose. but there was a bump in the road. en route to seattle, the engagement ring was stolen! not to be dissuaded, rosendo proposed to camille - with a promise of love and another ring to come. so, tonight at their engagement session - rosendo presented camille with the ring. i felt so privileged to be there to document it. camille's face was priceless. we got so many great images tonight, but i was so thrilled with the story that i'm mostly posting shots of the ring sequence.

i can't wait for their wedding at the amazing firestone vineyard this october!