I loooove this family! So excited to introduce their newest amazing, beautiful member; the one and only Adia! Adoption is something that has always touched my heart. I’ve loved talking with Kristin and going through their story with them. It’s so hard with the emotional roller coaster of it, but God is faithful and they got their amazing “gift”.

Makeup by Amy Clarke.
Hair by Melody.

I like how Adia is waving!

Jonathan’s face is priceless!

Thank you Rogers fam for sharing your fam and your amazing adoption story! Love you all!

Posted in Fams and Kids being Kids | 11 Comments »

You might remember the preview I did of this couple when I shot for my friend Kristin. There was no part of this wedding that wasn’t fun, real or heartfelt. Everyone was amazing and I’m so happy I got to be a part of it! Just my style : )

Adore this dress by Stephanie James.

Fun first look:

The guys.

The girls.

Thank you Audrey + Sam!!

Posted in Style & Inspiration, Weddings 2009 | 5 Comments »

This couple is so much fun and full of love! We started on Main Street in Huntington Beach (I forgot they do the street fair on Tuesday) so we used it to our advantage. They had an idea to use candles in their pictures somehow so I took them to this open field in Costa Mesa so we could set something up. The fab Lauren Reeves of Prince Events brought her many candles and designed the perfect setup!

Aaaaaand not only did my friend, BRANDIE BEDELL do the makeup, she let us use her house for changing and organizing!

This is my favorite accidentally-on-purpose shot.

Candles!

Thanks Shana + Travis for a fun time and dinner! And thanks to Brandie and Lauren! Love my creative friends : )

Posted in Engagements | 4 Comments »

You might remember Laura + DeeJay from their fun engagement session at their middle school. Well their wedding did not dissapoint. It has to be one of the most relaxed and unique weddings I’ve ever shot! And it had soooo many fun details. We started with the Chinese tradition where the groom has to answer questions from the girls to get to the bride. (Hilariously funny!) After was the Chinese Tea Ceremony at the groom’s house. Then we headed over to the park for a casual party and BBQ. All the guests had a strict (but very fun) dress code. The girls wore tea length dresses, flats and a hair piece (even me! I had way too much picking my outfit!) and all the guys wore hats and suspenders. It was a fantastic Labor day wedding celebration!

Park: Monte Verde
Dresses: Anthropologie
Flowers: The White Lotus

How much do I love Chinese culture?! A lot, thanks for asking.

The ceremony site.

Laura’s mom walking her down. How cute are their hairpieces?!

Short, sweet and to the point ceremony.

The brightly colored fun wedding party!

Thank you Laura + DeeJay for sharing your amazing day with me!

Posted in Weddings 2009 | 1 Comment »

My dear friend Kristin got really sick when she went to Ethopia to adopt her baby and she wasn’t feeling 100% for this wedding. (Her adoption story is amazing; read about it here.) So I filled in. It was such an amazing experience and I’m so glad I was able to do it for her.

“Dana,
Thank you so much for being an amazing photographer. We really enjoyed working with you and we’ll be most definitely referring people to you as well as Kristin! We are really looking forward to seeing how the photos looked. You were an amazing pinch-photographer and we are grateful to have worked with you on our wedding. In short: you rock!
Sincerely,
Audrey and Sam”

They are the sweetest! How gorgeous does Audrey look in her Stephanie James dress and how dapper does Sam look?!?!?! I can’t wait to blog this whole wedding!

Posted in Love notes, Weddings 2009 | 3 Comments »