Gavin will be shooting Dez and Mario’s wedding on September 26 of this year.  They originally planned on having their wedding at a winery out in Temecula. Unfortunately, distance and traveling will be an issue for their families, so they decided to have it at the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach instead.  For their engagement photography session, I tagged along  and it turned out to be a wonderful double date!  To be honest, Dez and Mario are more like friends now than “clients”.

These two are so silly. They were a little shy at first… so guess what we did? Of course… nothing better than alcohol to loosen them up! We did some wine tasting at Churon Winery.  At Inn at Churon Winery is where I found my LOVE — “Gold Nector”.  Gold Nector is the perfect blend of Chardonnay and Muscat.  Desiree and I had to buy some bottles to take back home with us after trying it.

After a few drinks, they were ready to go.  Here are some pics that I took for fun as a second photographer.

While driving to another vineyard, I spotted a nursery filled with gorgeous baby palms. Dez and Mario laid out the blanket and enjoyed the sun as they sipped their delicious Gold Nector under the beautiful palm canopy. =)  They are so cute together… totally made for each other.

After wine tasting, we ended our double date with dinning at Lucille’s BBQ where we enjoyed delicious ribs while watching the Laker game.  Thank you Desiree and Mario for such a wonderful experience with wine tasting.  Gavin and I had so much fun hanging out with you two!

Stephanie and Nathan got hitched at the beautiful Rancho Capistrano out in San Juan Capistrano. I came along as a second photographer for Gavin.

I love Stephanie’s ring and dress.  It’s simple… yet so elegrant and classy.  Look at how the diamond sparkles!

Here is my favorite picture from the preparation.

Here comes our beautiful bride.  Stephanie has an amazing smile… but what’s even better is the smile on Nate’s face when he saw his bride for the first time during the day.

It had rained the night before so the clouds have passed and left a clear blue sky with gently breezes. WOW!!!  Beautiful day… lovely couple… astounding wedding… what more can we ask for?

And here it is… their really looooonnnng  first kiss!  =)  What can you say – when two people are in love… they are not afraid to show the world!

Stephanie and Nate really are a beautiful couple!  I can’t stop saying “beautiful” because really… everything about their wedding was beautiful!  Pictures were really important to Stephanie and so she allotted plenty of time for us to take pictures of them around the venue. You can see more of their couple pictures here.

Stephanie and I call this the “broccoli” tree.  It looks like a giant broccoli. Great for photos.

I thought it was really cool that they had a grand exit and send off.  Throwing of flower petals followed by driving off in a classic Rolls Royce is a perfect way to end the night.

These are my two favorite pictures from the night.  I love how it has the old classic look.

Congrats Stephanie and Nathan!!! Thank you for planning the perfect wedding! It was such a pleasure to work with you both.  Have fun in Hawaii…