You could tell that Halley couldn't wait to be married to Jessamine. Halley had to be one of the most excited grooms we've ever seen. And who wouldn't want to be married to the gorgeous and incredibly smart Jessamine?
Jessamine and Halley were married a few weeks ago near the Dahlia Garden in Golden Gate Park. They both have incredibly friendly and warm families. It was a true joy to see both families come together to celebrate this new marriage. Following their wedding, Jess and Halley had a beautiful cocktail reception in the park, followed by a dinner in the private room at the always amazing Absinthe in Hayes Valley.
Jess' entire family stayed in a flat in the Haight--that's such a great idea to have your family staying together in one spot. I was able to photograph Jess' family helping her to get ready, and caught a few nice moments with her parents and her grandmother.
Ray and I took Jess and Halley to Stow Lake, the Chinese Pagoda, Huntington Falls (all within GG Park), and finally over to Fort Point for a relaxed and elegant portrait session.
You can view more of our San Francisco wedding photography and engagement sessions.
Since June 16, 2008, same-sex couples now have the legal right to get married in the State of California. It's about time!
We wanted to let everyone know that Lilia Photography supports marriage equality for everyone. Over the last few weeks, we've received calls from couples traveling from out-of-state who are getting married here in San Francisco. It's wonderful to know that many of our clients have been together for years, and are now able to have the same rights as straight married folks.
Because many couples are traveling here to San Francisco, they don't have anyone to act as their witness. I'm more than happy to not only photograph your wedding, but act as a witness as well. :)
We found a few resources on same-sex weddings that might be helpful to you:
A few weeks ago, Ray and I drove up to Sonoma for Ashley and Chris' destination wedding at Viansa Winery. That day temperatures were blistering and it was around 108 degrees in Sonoma! Since Ashley and Chris are from the Dallas area, they didn't wilt in the heat!
Ashley and Chris were married in the gorgeous wine cave at Viansa. Reverend Peador of Your Ceremony Matters did a fantastic job with the wedding ceremony, and I highly recommend him if you're looking for a wonderful wedding officiant in the Sonoma and Napa valleys. Viansa has to be one of the most gorgeous wineries in the area, with sweeping views, a lovely courtyard, and a fantastic wine cave.
You can view more of our destination wedding photography with this handy dandy slideshow.
Ashley and Chris opted to have their First Look before the ceremony. Ray and I took them to a beautiful private courtyard on the grounds of the Sonoma Lodge where they were staying.
We did an extended portrait session with Ashley and Chris since they wanted gorgeous, casual portraits of themselves on their wedding day.
The wedding ceremony took place in the very intimate wine cave and was lit by candlelight.
Congrats to Ashley and Chris!
You can view more of our Wine Country / Sonoma wedding photography and engagement photography sessions.
Melody and Mel are two of the most energetic and fun people that I've met in quite some time. They're also our first gamer couple. Can you believe that they met while playing Dance Dance Revolution? How cool is that!
Melody and Mel are getting married in Maui early next year, and we decided to get together for their engagement at a time when we thought SF would be fog free. First we headed over to Clarion Alley in our old hood for some mural goodness. Since Melody and Mel are gamers, we thought it would be fun to check out some old school games at the Musee Mechanique.
You can view more photos of their engagement photography session.
You can view more of our San Francisco wedding photography and engagement photography sessions on our portfolio site.
The whole idea of having an engagement session is so that Ray and I have a chance to get to know our clients better before their wedding. We also get to see how a couple interacts with each other. Sometimes they're super lovey dovey, other times they have more of a quiet and laid back display of affection.
A few weeks ago, we took Joy and Jason out to Golden Gate Park and the GG Bridge for their engagement session. We were lucky enough to have gorgeous weather and beautiful light which I absolutely love.
When we first met at our client consultation, Jason was a laid back guy. Both he and Joy are attorneys doing great work in the community. That day we were lucky to see the funny side of Jason. He kept whispering in Joy's ear, and I would have loved to hear what he was saying! You can really see the love between Joy and Jason and it's wonderful to be working with two people who are making a difference in the world.
You can view more photos in their engagement slide show.
You can view more of our San Francisco wedding photography and engagement photography sessions on our portfolio site.
A few weeks ago Ray and I met up with Lissa and Curtis at the Cal campus for their engagement session. Lissa and Curtis met while attending UC Berkeley, and the campus was a meaningful place for them. It doesn't hurt that the campus is gorgeous!
Ray and I are really looking forward to photographing Lissa and Curtis' wedding in August at the Brazilian Room in Tilden Park, Berkeley. Lissa has been busy with her Gocco printer for their invitations. You gotta love handcrafted details.
You can view more photos in their engagement slide show.
You can view more of our Berkeley, East Bay, and Northern California wedding photography and engagement photography sessions on our portfolio site.
Ray and I have been super busy with weddings and engagement sessions and we can't wait to share them all with you!
When I first met Julie and Lou, I knew that their wedding would be as fun and warm as they were. We couldn't stop laughing during their consultation. A few weeks ago, Julie and Lou were married in an intimate ceremony at Brix in Napa. Kimberly Thompson of A Beautiful Ceremony did a beautiful job officiating the ceremony as usual. If you're looking for a Napa Valley wedding officiant, Kimberly is your gal! Fun, relaxed, and casual were the themes for the day, and their party didn't disappoint!
For a more in-depth look at Julie and Lou's wedding, check out their slideshow.
You can view more of our Napa / Wine Country wedding photography and engagement photography sessions on our portfolio site.
Our 2008 wedding season is in full swing! A few weeks ago we had the pleasure of shooting an engagement session for Misono and Dan who are getting married in Virginia later this year. Dan is a film student, and Misono is a web designer and it's always fun to work with such talented and creative people.
Misono asked us to photograph them when the cherry blossom trees were blooming in Golden Gate Park, and we had a narrow window of time to do this since the bloom only lasts for about two weeks. We managed to get some fantastic shots in the Japanese Tea Garden despite the throngs of tourists. Baker Beach was gorgeous as usual!
Take a look at more photos from Misono and Dan's engagement session slideshow.
You can view more of our San Francisco wedding photography and engagement photography sessions on our portfolio site.
Ray and I are back from WPPI where we had an absolutely amazing time meeting new people and learning lots of new things. We can't wait to start making some really positive changes in our business. Every year at WPPI, some of the best wedding photographers in the business donate their time by auctioning off mentoring sessions to benefit Thirst Relief, an organization that provides humanitarian and disaster relief by helping people get access to clean drinking water. Ray and I were lucky enough to the win a mentoring session with the wonderful and incredibly talented Michael and Anna Costa. We got together at the Eiffel Tower restaurant at Paris, and had a great lunch where we learned so much from the Costas. If you're a wedding photographer, you should definitely check out their new photo forum, Photo for the People.
Of course, it wasn't all work and learning at WPPI. There were lots of parties to attend, networking events, and Ray and I dined at lots of new restaurants. Some of our favorites were Cafe Matorano (Philly style Italian), Fix, and Sushi Roku. On our last day in Vegas, Ray and I checked out Dinosaurs 3D at the Luxor, so that's why we're sporting these sassy and haute couture 3D glasses.
It's been a while since I updated my blog! Ray and I have been super busy meeting new clients and booking weddings this year. We've met some fabulous clients and we're so excited about their weddings! We've heard some amazing stories about truly unique wedding proposals, and I can't wait to blog about them.
The latest good news for us is that Lilia Photography was accepted into the WPJA (Wedding Photojournalist Association). Membership in the WPJA is by portfolio review only, so we're ecstatic to be selected to be part of this organization.
More about the WPJA...
"The Wedding Photojournalist Association (WPJA) is a professional organization composed of photojournalists and wedding photographers from around the world. What sets our members apart in the industry is their candid, documentary approach - a distinctly artistic vision toward wedding photography.
sessions on our portfolio site
Hello and welcome! My name is Lilia Ahner. I'm a San Francisco wedding photographer working with my partner and husband, Raymond Ahner. We started