Santa Barbara Wedding Photographer

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Deja Vu

Today’s wedding reminded me of the wedding photography gig I did last August.  The wedding ceremony was at De La Salle Catholic Church in Granada Hills.  After the ceremony, we went to Brand Park at San Fernando Mission for formal wedding photography session.  I went through the exact same schedule last August.  The only difference was the location for reception.

Hot, Hot, Hot! (in San Fernando Valley)

It was a full Summer weather in San Fernando Valley.  I grew up in San Fernando Valley, so I came prepared with a bottle of Sun-Block lotion I bought last year.  I put on a coat of Sun block lotion at the parking lot of De La Sale Catholic Church.  Hot temperature was a big news on TV today.  Sierra Madre got caught on fire today (as I was out taking wedding pictures).  Look at the picture below - 101 degrees at 3:37pm.  

101 Degrees

After Catholic wedding ceremony, we went to Brand Park at San Fernando Mission.  Just like last year, Brand Park was busy with hundreds of people from several different weddings.  There were groups of wedding parties leaving and more wedding parties arriving.  Some were celebrating Quinceanera but they were mostly there for weddings.  There were about 5 wedding photography sessions going on at any given moment.

You see, San Fernando Valley doesn’t have enough locations to take outdoor wedding photographs.  And there are a lot of people living down here (compared to Ventura county, where we have beach and more open spaces… golf clubs with mountains in the background).  So public parks tend to get busy with weddings during the weekends.

I got very lucky today with photography spot.  The other group under the (only) large tree just finished with their formal photography session.  Pictures came out super-satisfactory under the tree, in the shade.  Actually, there is more story to this “Tree” episode.  I had to run across the park up and down.  And I had to shout at my customers “Please go to that big tree! That’s the spot, please, go go~!” .  Without that tree, we would have taken all our formal wedding photos under the piercing San Fernando Valley Sunlight. 

We took care of all needed formal wedding photographs.  We had some extra time in our schedule, so I encouraged everyone to stick around and get their single, couple, & family pictures done

I felt good about the pictures I took.  I even took one “Wave” shot (above).  I tell people to wave at me only when I get a positive vibe from the wedding party.  This wedding party was very positive and fun.

We packed up and headed up to Odyssey Restaurant in Granada Hills.

Odyssey Restaurant - Reception

I mentioned earlier that there are a lot of people living in San Fernando Valley and not much locations for wedding photography.  I think that applies with wedding reception venues as well.  Odyssey Restaurant is located on the hill-top of Granada Hills.  It’s one of the fanciest wedding reception locations in San Fernando Valley.   At Odyssey Restaurant, I saw least 4-6 receptions going on at the same time.  There is no recession in wedding business I guess.

Reception went on without any incident.  It was a good wedding.  People had a lot of fun. 

Today’s Wedding Location & Vendors

DJ Thrive
San Fernando Wedding DJ / all occasions
818-962-3569
www.DJThrive.com

De La Salle Catholic Church
10738 Hayvenhurst Ave. Granada Hills, California 91344

Brand park (across from the San Fernando Mission)
15174 San Fernando Mission Rd. Mission Hills, CA 91345

The Odyssey Restaurant
15600 Odyssey Dr Granada Hills, CA 91344
(818) 366-5817

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After last night’s wedding, I only had a few hours to get ready for today’s wedding.
Yesterday’s wedding was a film photography. Today will be a digital photography.

Today’s wedding took place around San Fernando Valley, centered in the city of San Fernando.  Bride’s house was in Sylmar, the church was in Granada Hills. But we spent most of our time in the city of San Fernando.  It was a Mexican wedding but I didn’t have to showcase my Spanish skill.  They all all pretty much Americans.

San Fernando Valley ?? 

I used to live in San Fernando Valley. I grew up in Granada Hills.
I have a lot of memory of San Fernando Valley.
My mother still lives in Granada Hills.
I graduated Granada Hills High School, I am a Scott.
Chatsworth High was my Summer School.
I also took a few courses at California State University Northridge.
Every new year, I went to Galpin Ford in North Hills to pickup free calendars.

After all these years, I finally visited San Fernando Mission and saw the statue of Father Serra.
Across the San Fernando Mission was Brand Park where we took formal pictures.
Brand Park was packed with the wedding parties taking pictures.
I saw at least 10 wedding parties while I was taking photographs.

It was interesting to observe other photographers.
Some came with a full team of photo, video, and lighting crew. Those guys were from Telemundo, a big Spanish TV station.  Some photographer wore pirate pants and bandanna.  Yikes..

Brand Park, San Fernando

I was super hot and humid today.  The groom took his jacket off every time he was not being photographed.  We had a record-breaking heatwave, you see.  It was not just the heat, but it was unusually humid today.  As I was taking pictures, beads of sweat rolled down from my arms.  TV news described today’s weather as “Tropic”.

But, despite the temperature and humidity, photography wise, I got very lucky.  Sky was over-casted.  I couldn’t see the Sun.  So I had even lighting.  Look at the picture above.  No harsh Sunlight.  No squinting.  It was a “Golden Hour” at 3pm.  I couldn’t ask for more.  Imagine the same picture with a full Sunlight beaming down.  At that position, the bride and groom would be looking right at the Sun.

Recetion went on smooth with Mariachi band and DJ to follow. 

UPDATE, April 26, 2008: I had a very similar Granada Hills Wedding Photography gig.  I went to the same church in Granada Hills for wedding.  And I also went to Brand Park in San Fernando for formall wedding photography session.  And it was also super-hot.  [Granada Hills Wedding Blog]

De La Salle catholic church
10738 Hayvenhurst Ave. Granada Hills (Mission Hills), California 91344

Brand park (across from the San Fernando Mission)
15174 San Fernando Mission Rd. Mission Hills, CA 91345

The Elks Lodge
804 Pico street San Fernando, CA 91340

DJ - Party People Productions (Joe Vasques)
Serves San Fernando Valley and beyond  818-365-7643

Mariachi - Fiesta Mexicana, San Fernando Valley and beyond
mariachi11gonzalez@yahoo.com
818-365-1088

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Today’s schedule
8:30AM Arrive at Santa Barbara, Hotel Mar Monte
9:30AM Wedding Ceremony, Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church
11:00AM Formal photography - at wedding location
12:00PM Formal Photography - at Santa Barbara Courthouse
5:00PM Pre-reception Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center
6:00PM Grand entrance Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center
7:00PM Mariachi Stops playing
7:30PM DJ to lead activities
11:00PM end

Back to Hotel Mar Monte
I was at Hotel Mar Monte 
I love Santa Barbara. I feel very comfortable being here.

Every time I visit Hotel Mar Monte, I get a different view of Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center.
Today, I arrived at Santa Barbara early in the morning.
The bride stayed in the East side of Hotel Mar Monte.
From the East wing, I got this shot of Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center. (below).

Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center, looking out from window at Hotel Mar Monte

I have seen a lot of happy brides in my line of work.  But today’s bride was perhaps the happiest bride I have ever seen.  The bride was keep dancing as everyone was getting ready. She was singing and striking poses as her mother video taped her.

It was my first time being in “Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church” in Santa Barbara.  It was a real nice Spanish catholic church.  They had a semi-traditional catholic ceremony.  I say semi-traditional because they allowed me to take all the flash photographs I want.  This is rare in Catholic weddings as some churches would completely forbid you from taking any pictures (with or without flash).

The ceremony was over around 11am and we went to Santa Barbara Court-House. The bride and groom are familar with Santa Barbara, but they never knew about the Court House.  They were happy with the location.  They wanted some panoramic view of the building in the back.  They brought umbrellas which worked out pretty cute.

My favorite image from this wedding
It was an extremely tight space, very dark, and awkward place to take photograph

Things worked out fine.  Bride and groom were never stressed out.  It was all fun and blessing.

Speaking Spanish
I had multiple opportunities where I showcased my Spanish skill.  I communicated with many people in Spanish today, I wrote a separate blog about speaking Spanish.

Wedding service providers at today’s wedding 
Hotel Mar Monte - 1111 E. Cabrillo Blvd, Santa Barbara, CA 93103
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church - 1300 E Valley Road, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center - 1118 E. Cabrillo Blvd, Santa Barbara, CA 93103

Related Topics
Hotel Mar Monte
Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center

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Customer’s Testimonial is located  here

June 2, 2007 - Wedding Schedule:
Getting Ready Shots - Mar Monte Hotel, Santa Barbara
Ceremony - St. Joseph’s Church, Carpinteria
Formal Photography - Court House, Santa Barbara
Reception - Cabrillo Arts Center, Santa Barbara
Beach Photography - Cabrillo Beach, Santa Barbara

I had a full 12 hours of working day today. (left home 10am and came back home 10pm). I brewed my usual coffee and headed up to Santa Barbara.  At 10:00AM the traffic was very light.  During the weekend traffic from Ventura to Santa Barbara can be very heavy.  Sometimes it takes me 2 hours to get to Santa Barbara. 

I arrived at Mar Monte Hotel by Cabrillo Beach very early.  I’ve been in Mar Monte before. The day started out as a gloomy day at Cabrillo Beach,  but we started to see the Sun right when the wedding ceremony started. 

The bride’s makeup artist didn’t show up to the salon.  So the bride was having a drama.  But it all worked out.  At the hotel, one of bridesmaids was in desperate need for a safety pin.  You know, I always carry a bunch of safety pins.  So, I provided one for the bridesmaid.   The bridesmaid was very happy, I think she actually used the word “Hero” on me.  I’m not so sure.

All in all, these were all parts of fun memory.  Everything turned out to be nice and fun. Then we headed out to Carpinteria.  I followed the limo to the church. 

As usual, I asked the father about my photography.  He said “No photography during the ceremony, except for the ring exchange”.  So, I kept myself low.  I waited for noisy moments (people laughing, etc) and took some quick shots during the ceremony.  I hope God would forgive me.

After the ceremony, we went to Santa Barbara Courthouse for formal photography.  There were a lot of tourists at the Courthouse.  As we walked across the grassy area, I have noticed dozens of people taking pictures of us.  I can understand how it can be an interesting scene for them.  Wedding party was all dressed up for the occasion, and I was running around with three big cameras (no assistant here, I keep my price low).

There, we took all the standard formal shots and a few “cheesy” shots.  As I tried some creative shots, I told the bride and groom. “This may seem cheesy, but we must try and see how they come out”  The bride and groom were sitting in uncomfortable positions.  But I thought I could create the illusion.  I am extremely happy with the results.  I hope they like them also.

Reception started as we planned. Everything went smooth.  They had a real nice looking wedding cake.  When the Sun set, we went out to the beach and took some more pictures.

God bless them.

Update: The bride wrote me a good testimonial.  Thank you, thank you… They liked my “cheesy” shots. (I said “cheesy” because I was pushing the limit.  Personally, I liked them a lot.  I was worried that the bride and groom might not like my taste)  Customer’s Testimonial is located  here

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Wedding Vendors:
Hotel Mar Monte: 1100 Anacapa St., Santa Barbara, California 93101
St. Joseph’s Church: 5048 El Carro Lane, Carpinteria, CA 93013
Cabrillo Arts Center: 1118 E. Cabrillo Blvd, Santa Barbara, CA 93103

Related Topics
Hotel Mar Monte
Cabrillo Pavilion Arts Center