San Francisco Wedding Photographer Blog | Choco Studio

Laura and David’s Wedding

Mike — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 17:06:07 +0000

When we meet with our clients for the first time we always ask them about their vision of the wedding, what have they planned so far, and how they envision everything. Because by that time the wedding is usually about a year ahead, more often than not we don’t get any particular answers. Not Laura though. When we asked them the same question Laura and Dave went on and on about the awesome rustic venue they found, about them collecting milk glass vases everywhere, and about Dave’s seersucker suit. These two had clearly already planned the whole wedding in their heads!

When we came to Radonich Ranch on the day of the wedding everything looked exactly like Laura described – a beautiful rustic outdoor venue and a super relaxed atmosphere. Radonich Range is a a fruit cannery that has been in the venue’s family for a hundred years and the scene is classical California with a Steinbeck feel.

Laura and her mom worked their butts off the whole year completing a whole bunch of DIY projects and there was an abundance of gorgeous and well thought out details that we just couldn’t stop photographing. Dear Laura and Dave, thank you so much for sharing your beautiful day with us!

Here are some of our favorites:

The table runners were super cute, made by Laura and her mom from oilcloth. Also, they used Laura’s grandmother’s recipe to make and hand jar strawberry jam as favors. The grandmother and grandfather, who jarred fruit back in the great depression, helped make all of them!

This cake was officially the cutest I’ve ever seen:

Loved Laura’s hairpiece:

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Radonich Ranch
Hair & Makeup: Tera Hardwick of Faust Salon
DJ/Band: All Occasions
Florals: Suzie’s Flowers
Catering: Vignette Events
Wedding Dress: Priscilla of Boston

Colleen and Keith’s Wedding

Mike — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 15:56:53 +0000

I don’t think there’s anybody in the Bay Area who has not heard about the B.R. Cohn Winery. Their wine bottles appear to be everywhere all the time and, coincidentally, it was another venue that we also considered for our wedding. We were super excited to have a chance to shoot here.

The B.R. Cohn Winery is located in the heart of Sonoma and is located on a huge property with stunning surroundings and amazing romantic locations for both ceremony and reception sites. There was plenty of room to move around for when we wanted to steal the bride and groom from their guests for sunset pictures :)

The best thing about having a B.R. Cohn Winery wedding is that you can have your ceremony on the beautiful Fox Hill – a setting covered in old Oak trees and surrounded by panoramic views of the vineyards.

I found it to be super special that Colleen’s beautiful gown was purchased at a “Brides Against Breast Cancer” event in Sacramento, so 100% of the proceeds from it went directly to breast cancer research! If that wasn’t enough, Colleen plans to donate her dress back to “Brides against Breast Cancer” for the next bride to enjoy!

When we asked Colleen what her vision is for the wedding day she said she wants it to be F-U-N! And fun it was :) The whole day was laid back and everyone was enjoying themselves. In the invitations the guests were even encouraged to wear flip-flops. Why? Because comfort is the key to a good time!

At the end of the night the guests were surprised by an old fashioned popcorn machine: Keith loves popcorn and Colleen customized popcorn boxes to say “Keith POPPED the question” :)

Ceremony & Reception Venue: B.R. Cohn Winery
Hair & Makeup: Blanc Bridal Beauty
Wedding Coordinator: Cirkl @ Cirkl Productions
DJ: Premier Productions
Florals: Oliver’s Market
Catering: Wine Valley Catering

Stephanie and Tom’s Wedding

Natasha — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 20:14:08 +0000

I fell in love with the Dawn Ranch Lodge the first time I saw it. Its rustic wooden cabins, spacious meadows, beautiful river, and tall Redwoods give out a beautiful relaxed vibe. The highlight of the property for me, however, was an apple orchard with beautifully old apple trees just covered in fruit. I was in love and Dawn Ranch was actually one of our own top two venue choices. Making the decision was painful, we had to make a long list of all the pluses and minuses of both venues and talked, talked, talked… We ended up booking the second venue, mostly because of how tiny our wedding is going to be – we didn’t want guests getting lost on the huge property! :) Right when I was all sad about not having a Dawn Ranch wedding we got a call from Stephanie and Tom. They were super sweet, getting married a month before us, and Stephanie’s vision for her wedding was almost a complete match of ours. Aaaand… they were getting married at Dawn Ranch! This immediately made me feel so much better, almost like I’d be able to have two weddings :)

So we’ve been looking towards Stephanie and Tom’s Dawn Ranch wedding for a long time and these guys exceeded all of our expectations! Their day was so beautiful, full of love and warmth. You could tell that Stephanie worked super hard and thought of every single detail to make the wedding theirs – from a custom made ring plate to the most beautiful and touching ceremony I’ve ever heard – the day was planned flawlessly.

Steph and Tom, you guys were such an inspiration for us, thank you for sharing your wedding day with us! Here are a few of our favorites:

Stephanie and Tom’s First Look was so sweet:

The gorgeous meadow at Dawn Ranch:

Tears and laughter during the toasts:

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Dawn Ranch Lodge
Hair: Stella Stevens
DJ: Patrick Numair
Florals: Lila B
Catering: Dawn Ranch Lodge
Wedding Coordinator: Erica Becks
Ceremony Music: John Chapman
Cocktail Hour Band: Russian River Ramblers
Jewelry: Yael Designs
Lighting Company: The Lux Productions

Gina and Gera’s Wedding

Mike — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 19:31:22 +0000

Gina and Gera’s wedding day was dramatic: it was simply overflowing with emotions and beauty. We visited a couple of different sites in the city for the photoshoot while the ceremony and reception took place at the bright and airy Temple Emanu-El. There was a lot of excitement throughout the day and we loved being a part of it all.

Gina and Gera opted to see each other before the ceremony to allow more time for photos at a more relaxed pace. I can’t say enough about how much we love to shoot portraits earlier in the day. This also lets the couple to see each other for the first time in a more private setting – it’s so beautiful and emotional without having two hundred eyes on you.

We had such a blast photographing this day. Please enjoy some of our favorites:

The first look:

This was the actual kiss at the end of the ceremony:

A very emotional toast from Sasha, the Maid of Honor:

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Temple Emanu-El
Hair & Makeup: Metamorphosis Salon
Video: AE Studio
Band: Regina’s All Stars
Florals: Inna’s Flowers
Catering: La Boheme

Choco Studio’s e-session in the snow is featured in “Engagement 101″ magazine!

Natasha — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 18:46:18 +0000

The Engagement 101 magazine is a “community for the soon-to-be engaged couples” and we are thrilled to have Vicky and Igor’s engagement story and photo featured in it. This website and magazine has a wealth of advice on how to propose and choose the rings, advice on dresses, jewelry, make-up, and some real-story features. You can view Vicky and Igor’s engagement photos here and part II is here.

I think this goes to show that being adventurous and trying new things always pays off! Last winter during one of our snowboarding trips we got the crazy idea of shooting an engagement session in the snow. We asked if any of our couples would be up for something different like that and immediately got a response from Vicky and Igor. Fortunately, it wasn’t too cold on the day of the shoot and we had a ton of fun walking around and even rolling in the snow :) And because the pictures came out quite unusual, the editor of this magazine absolutely loved them.

The magazine is currently out in the newsstands (unless Vicky bought out all the issues already :)

Erin and Paul’s Wedding

Mike — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 20:19:02 +0000

Erin and Paul had a beautiful ceremony on the front lawn of a private residence in Atherton. Erin described her vision for the day as “A fun, lighthearted enjoyable outdoor wedding”, and it was just that – fun, relaxed and elegant: full of friends and laughter.

After the ceremony we went to the Menlo Circus Club for some pictures of the newlyweds. Erin and Paul arrived in a beautiful green Ford Mustang that’s been in Paul’s family for a couple of generations now. The couple was up for anything and we had a ton of fun with them and this car! I love the freedom that comes from being a wedding photographer – when you are with a bride, you can park the car in the middle of the street and start taking pictures. Nobody will say anything except “Congratulations!” :)

Here are a few of our favorites:

The whole ceremony Erin and Paul couldn’t take their eyes off each other:

All the wonderful vendors and venues from this wedding:

Catering: The Other Woman Catering
Hair/Makeup: La Belle
DJ: Relative Motion
Florals: Patrick’s Flowers

Jennifer and Alex’s Wedding

Mike — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 17:00:38 +0000

Jennifer and Alex’s Kohl Mansion wedding was a day filled with love, joy, and celebration. Our preparations photos were taken at the Westin in Millbrae with a ceremony at the Holy Name Church is San Francisco and a Chinese/Vietnamese tea ceremony at the Kohl Mansion. It’s always exciting to be a participant in such an elaborate event and we loved watching Jenny and Alex really enjoy their grand celebration.

In any wedding this size it becomes important to understand who the family members are and to provide extremely thorough coverage. Sometimes it feels like you’re in the middle of a raging twister that is all around you as you capture one significant moment after another. We love the intensity as well as the responsibility of preserving the fleeting memories the couple will enjoy for years after their big day has passed. It feels like we gain inspiration from events such as this one.

The highlight location of the day was undoubtedly the Kohl Mansion. This venue has a particular charisma about it which makes even large events feel like an intimate celebration. It was so much fun to capture the wedding photos at Kohl Mansion that we still had energy left even after the 12 hour shoot. It also didn’t hurt that we live literally few minutes away and we were home to get rest in no time :)

Congratulations to Jenny and Alex!! We hope you enjoy this series:

Jenny looked absolutely stunning:

Natasha went crazy seeing the yellow shoes! She’s been hunting down her own pair for our wedding forever:

We didn’t have to ask twice for these fun-loving groomsmen to figure out what to do with the bouquets:

Our favorite shot of the girls:

Love the Kohl Mansion! How can you get bad shots with backgrounds like this?

One particular time of the day when the Kohl Mansion looked magnificent was at dusk. Capturing images of a venue just after sunset is something we try to to at every wedding and you’ll see these photos towards the end of this blog post.

The stars who made the day:

Wedding Coordinator: Mary Phan of Very Merry Events
Ceremony: Holy Name of Jesus Church
Reception: Kohl Mansion
Hair/Makeup: Maria Lee Makeup
Video: Thomas Hughes
DJ: Big Fun DJs
Florals: 8 Events Co

Vika and Igor’s Mexico Trash the Dress Session

Mike — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 23:08:17 +0000

After Vika and Igor took us up on the crazy idea of an Engagement Session in the snow, we knew these two would be up for anything! So it wasn’t a huge surprise when they told us they would looove to have a Trash the Dress Session after their wedding in Mexico.

We absolutely love Trash the Dress Sessions – it’s always an opportunity to get super creative without the time constrains of a wedding day and without worrying about getting the dress dirty.

Here are some favorites:

It’s not always easy being a model!

A few behind-the-scenes shots:

If any of our past or current brides are considering such a photo session, we’ll be excited to shoot it for you. It can simply be about roaming the city or countryside while taking some amazing shots with you fully dressed in your wedding clothes. Let us know if this sounds fun!

Featured on Valley & Co. blog!

Mike — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 06:21:44 +0000

The fabulous Southern California event planners Aleah and Nick of the Good Life Event Specialists are featuring two of our weddings on their blog! Check out the events we shot at Cornerstone Vineyards and Ralston Hall!

Vanessa & Mike’s Wedding

Mike — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:00:46 +0000

On a giant lawn overlooking the Ghirardelli Square, Vanessa and Mike’s family and closest friends helped them to celebrate their union with a wedding at 1 Fort Mason in San Francisco. As Natasha put it, she knew it would be an awesome day when she first saw Vanessa’s pink Louboutins in the morning of the wedding. From the time we first saw Vanessa and her entourage at the Glama-rama salon, to when we said goodbye at the end of the reception, Vanessa and Mike were smiling the entire day.

It just so happened that their friends invited them to get dressed at another house on the Fort Mason property and it was great to be able to walk next door to the 1 Fort Mason wedding. We had a blast with the couple for the bride and groom portraits and the cocktail hour naturally continued into a fun and festive dinner reception.

Here are some favorites from the day:

Our beautiful bride:

Vanessa’s gorgeous shoes:

This was the coolest groom’s cake I’ve ever seen :)

All the wonderful vendors and venues from this wedding:

Ceremony & Reception: 1 Fort Mason, SF
Wedding Coordinator: Duncan Reyes
Catering: Living Room Events
Florals: Natalini Flowers
DJ: Cris Ratkovic
Hair/Makeup: Glama-Rama