LEILANI + MICHAEL'S WEDDING HIGHLIGHTS

Picture a nice warm sunny day as you look out onto the rolling hills lined with rows of grape vines as far as the eye can see.  Picture an outdoor ceremony in the breezy afternoon overlooking this picturesque landscape as a small gathering of family and friends watch two very genuinely kind and generous (and wickedly hilarious) individuals marry each other.  This was Leilani and Michael's wedding that we recently shot at the Palm Event Center in Pleasanton, CA.  To say we enjoyed shooting their wedding is a mild understatement, we had a blast!!  We were also lucky enough to get to work side by side with the ultra talented (and wickedly hilarious - see a theme here?) and fantastic friend and role model, Gene Higa.  Thanks so much Michael and Leilani for allowing us to be part of your special day!  We love you guys!!

JOY + JOE'S WEDDING TRAILER

One concept that is becoming more and more popular these days is the Wedding Trailer. Since we've already shown you what a wedding highlight looks like in an earlier post, I thought that it would be of interest to show everyone what a Wedding Trailer looks like. The two are essentially the same in the sense that they are a summary of the wedding day. The Trailer, however, is noticeably shorter (about 2-3 minutes in length) but that doesn’t mean that it’s any less compelling. With the right music and images, you can get a very moving piece that will keep the audience screaming for more. We really like putting the Trailers together because it give us instant gratification way in advance. It lets us show off to the couple and their family and friends (usually right when they get back from their honeymoon) all the best shots we captured of their wedding day and can get some direct feedback on our work early on. Every one of my clients loves the fact that they get a sneak peak at their video by watching the trailer and are happy to wait while we work on finishing up the wedding film for them.


Below is a wedding trailer sample of Joy and Joe’s wedding that we recently shot their ceremony at St. Peter and Paul Church and then their reception at the Officer's Club in the Presidio in San Francisco. The music is so powerful and moving…I just love how it adds to the video.

MOM + DAUGHTER PHOTO SESSION: CARRIE + REGAN

For this photo session, we were asked by our friend Carrie to take some photos of her bubbly and very cute daughter Regan who was turning 5 years old in a few months.  We of course were thrilled to get a chance to hang out with them.  This was our first time meeting Regan and she turned out to be a sweet and cherry little girl who loved being in front of the camera.  Carrie asked if we could do a few of our studio portraits as well so she can have something to frame so we took a few shots of those for her.  All in all, mother and daughter made a great team and were extremely fun to photograph.

AVA'S BIRTHDAY PORTRAIT SESSION

We had a chance to take some portraits of Ava as her mom, Jen, was looking to get some new photos of her for her upcoming birthday party.  We were thrilled to spend a few hours with Ava and she was absolutely a doll to photograph.  We started out a bit simple and let her do what she is most comfortable with, which was playing on the swings.  Then when she got a bit more comfortable being in front of the camera we decided to put a nice backdrop behind her to get some nice photos that her mom requested so she can frame. Needless to say Ava did great and we got some cute photos of her.  Looking forward to taking her picture year after year.

WHAT ARE WE UP TO? CHECK OUT OUR AVAILABILITY...

We are thrilled to have had a chance to meet and work some really great photography clients this past year.  We are very excited to see what new adventures and experiences 2010 will bring.  We look forward to working with our new clients for 2010.  If you know us, you know we can't sit still and we are always looking for things to keep us busy from covering a wedding, to doing a family portrait session, to hanging out with one of our friendly couples shooting their engagement session, or attending a seminar.  Please feel free to return to this post for our latest schedule updates. And contact us to setup a photo session.  :) Namaste!

==2010==
08.28.10 : Wedding - Andrew and Dona
09.05.10 : Wedding - Sylvia Hoe
10.10.10 : Wedding - Vivi Richards
10.16.10 : Wedding - Jason and Katie

==2011==
03.12.11 : Wedding - Lan and Linda
05.21.11 : Wedding - Shawn and Tina

COUPLES NEEDED: URBAN CITY NIGHTS PHOTOSHOOTS

For the month of January 2010 (originally we were going to plan the photo shoots for November but decided to postpone till after the holidays), we are putting together some experimental photoshoots and are looking for a diverse group of couples to shoot with.

Our concept: get images of a couple hanging out on the town, having fun, and just enjoying being together against various backdrops incorporating urban nightlife, bold street lights, neon signs, other city folks, and chaos of city traffic.  We'll also be experimenting with some new flash gel lighting techniques to incorporate some additional color into the images.  These will definitely be not your typical pictures you normally see.

Attire: something you'd wear if you were going to a nice dinner out on the town.  Also it will be cold in the evening hours so a nice warm coat is perfectly okay too.

If you are looking for some bold and unique images for your album, this is the chance you've been waiting for.  Please contact us if you are interested.  If you know anyone who would be interested as well, please refer them to our blog.

Each session will last about 2 hours and involves just one couple, me (the photographer), and two assistants.

For current available shoot dates for January 2010 please refer to our availability post (or click here).

Looking forward to working with each couple who participates!!

Best, Vincent

WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY INVESTMENT

investment packages begin at USD 2500.00, including:

• complete wedding day photography coverage
• all post-processed, high-resolution images on disc
• private online proofing of all images

for more details, please CONTACT US

JEFF + JENELL'S NASTALGIC WEDDING HIGHLIGHTS

we love super 8mm. it's sexy, chic, sophisticated, and just fun...just like our clients Jeff and Janell. when we first met jeff and janell, we knew we were in for something really fun. of course when we found out they were film buffs and that their wedding theme was classic vintage nuances from the 40'sand 50's...we naturally had to incorporate some super 8mm to complete the package. it's something we recommend to anyone wanting a unique touch to their wedding video (a dramatic change from the razor sharp high definition digital stuff). the images we got from the footage can attest to how gorgeous this medium can be and if you are looking for something a little different than your typical wedding video, try mixing in a few rolls of SUPER 8mm film, you'll be glad you did! :)

jeff and jenell's ceremony and reception was filmed at Decathlon Club in Santa Clara, Ca.

MIMI + TOM'S VINTAGE WEDDING

Vintage-style Highlights of Mimi and Tom’s wedding. Ceremony was at Santa Clara Mission and reception was at San Jose City Hall Rotunda.

Photographer - Gene Higa (http://www.genehiga.com/)

TERESA + TRUNG ENGAGEMENT SHOOT

this couple just oozes creativity and uniqueness.  i guess that's what you'd expect since teresa is a MUA (make up artist) and trung is a professional chef (Japanese-Asian fusion restauranteur).  we had a blast getting to know them and even more so taking their pictures.  whenever we work with fellow artisans, we find it hard to stay in our safe zone.  before we knew it, we were doing things we never thought we'd do...like shooting under a freeway overpass!!  teresa and trung were a fantastic couple to work with and we can't wait for the wedding day to come!

couple shots underneath a freeway in SF.  can you guess which freeway? (hint: it's near AT&T Park)

the sunny was shinning so we put our flash to work...

on the way to this location, a huge rat ran right across our path...good thing teresa kept her composure...you rock!

a few snaps at a nearby canal...so cinematic and dramatic at the same time!!

quick stop at a nearby abandoned train station...

this nice ivy wall makes for a nice backdrop...

a quick stop at the Rutherford winery...

then we saw this cool car in napa and just had to pull over for a few quick shots

this one is one of my personal favorites, just love the chrome on that baby!! check out that bumper!

it was late afternoon and the sun was just right in this little field of tall grass

the sun was starting to hang low and we managed to grab some nice shots in this grassy field...

quick run through the vineyard, after all, we were in napa

then over to sausalito for a few last shots

trung may appear to be a cool cat on camera, but deep down there's a big soft spot for his true love

-- vincent quach

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