Sarah K Chen Photography

Not only did I get to shoot Jennifer and Jacob’s engagement session I was also lucky enough to be able to do a Day After Session with them as well! I’ve been dying to shoot at the Mission Basilica in San Juan Capistrano for a while now so when Jennifer told me she’d wanted to shoot her Day After Session there, I didn’t hide my enthusiasm and squealed, me too! And let me tell you, it did not disappoint!

I have a confession. I wanted to steal Jennifer’s sexy silver heels. I don’t even have anywhere to wear them to, but who cares when shoes are this hot?

I think Jacob will agree with me when I say that Jennifer has the most beautiful eyes ever.

A few of you requested an updated belly image so here you go! Self portraits taken while at Jesh De Rox’s Experiential Worshop in San Francisco this past week. I used the image on the left as my self portrait as the one on the right held no significance to me.

My belly portrait reminds me of so many things….

• From the moment I found out I was pregnant I’d wake up each morning, throw back the covers, and lift up my shirt to see if I’d gotten my baby bump yet
• The view I wake up to every morning
• Going to bed every night with the baby kicking up a storm and keeping me awake, but loving it none the less
• Jeff kissing me and then my belly before going to work each morning

(insert warm fuzzies)

I’m nearly finished catching up with emails and hope to be all caught up by tonight. You guys really know how to keep a girl busy! I had a ton of emails to answer when I got back from SF! Thanks for the love!

That is who I will be morphing into this month! I have 6 weddings, 1 engagement shoot, a three day workshop in San Francisco……and……I’ll be starting my third trimester! Bring it on!

Remember how I won Jesh De Rox’s Explore Awards Contest for exploratory post processing a while back with the image above? Well, I’m making good on my winnings and will be attending his workshop (with Jose Villa as guest speaker!) in San Francisco this week! I’ve heard such great things about Jesh and you all know my love for Jose so I know it’s going to be an absolutely amazing experience for me. I’ll also be bunking with the fabulous Sarah Maren and Jonilyn while in SF so I know it’s going to be a blast! Email will be delayed while I’m away, but will resume the following week. Thanks for your patience!

Everyone still says I’m so small and barely showing for being 26 weeks along. I’m not sure if they really mean it or if they’re just trying to be nice, but I did get an itty bitty lecture from my doctor about my recent weight gain so I know I’m not that small. And besides, everyone once in a while Jeff will see my belly and let out a, “WHOA, Mama….” to let me know I’m our baby is getting bigger.

Angie contacted me earlier this year saying she loved my work and was hoping I’d be available to shoot her wedding in NYC this fall, but it just so happens that I was already booked on her wedding date.

A couple of weeks later, Angie’s fiancé Tat contacted me saying he wanted to book an engagement session with me as a surprise for Angie! He wanted to book the session and fly over with Angie from NYC to do the session with me because she was so bummed that I couldn’t shoot their wedding. I was like wait…. for reals? This happens in real life? And then I got all giddy! OMG, how sweet! I have to give major props to Tat for being so romantic and sweet! Seriously though, I thought this kind of stuff only happened in movies!

So Tat and I planned while Angie was none the wiser. A couple days before they were to fly to California, he told her she’d need to take Friday off and pack her bags. Don’t you love it? We shot in Laguna Beach so that they could get that Southern California experience before heading back to NYC.

And after a quick change, we wandered further down PCH into the heart of downtown Laguna for more pictures!

Incognito.

And then we headed back to the beach to catch the last of the sunset.

Angie and Tat, thank you so much for flying all the way to the west coast to do an engagement session with me! I think it’s so sweet that Tat cared enough about your happiness to surprise you with a session with me! You’re a lucky girl and he’s one lucky man!

Photos that Jonilyn and I captured at Cathleya + Mark’s beautiful wedding in Plymouth, Ca are featured on Southern Wedding Magazine’s blog! How exciting!!!

You guys can check it out HERE!

At one point during the evening, Melissa turned to me with a huge smile on her face and said she couldn’t believe she’d gotten her dream wedding. It brought me so much joy to see Melissa so happy on her wedding day and that’s just one of the reasons I love doing what I do.
Melissa and Kyle married at Rancho Del Cielo in Malibu on a gorgeous summer day. It was my first back to back wedding and I have to thank my dear husband and my talented photographer friend Ming for coming out and shooting with me that day!

I adored Melissa’s wedding gown. It was beyond gorgeous!

Kyle looking all handsome. I loved that the guys were all tie-less. They looked dressy, but in a casual way that said they always looked that effortlessly cool.

The guys…

I love this moment before Melissa descended the stairs.

Melissa and her beautiful bridesmaids. How cute are the peacock blue dresses against the cream and celdon flowers? Melissa’s aunt created all the floral arrangements and they came out GORGEOUS.

Melissa sitting pretty waiting for the start of the ceremony.

A few detail shots. Loved their bright color palette! It was so fitting for Rancho Del Cielo.

Their bulldog Gerdie played the oh so important role of ring bearer at the ceremony and did a fantastic job walking the rings down the aisle!

Melissa and her Father. You can see the emotion in Melissa’s eyes as she sees Kyle for the first time that day.

The new Mr and Mrs!

Near sunset we took some time to get some bride and groom portraits around Rancho Del Cielo while the light was soft and oh so yummy. You honestly can’t go wrong with golden light and ocean views.

I loooooove the dreamy bokeh in this next picture!

And I love bright, colorful backdrops!

And then it was time to join the reception again! I love this next sequence. I remember capturing that first shot and thinking to myself, man, that girl has some serious hops! Only to realize a second later that she was indeed a he! He still has some major hops!

And a fun shot captured by Ming!

Dreams do come true.

Susan and Chris had such an amazing day filled with so many personal touches that it was hard not to feel completely honored to be a guest at their wedding.  Susan, a teacher, had her students draw their versions of “Love” and used those drawings as table numbers. Each place card was a personalized pin with each guest’s name and a line saying, “Ask me about….. ” and she’d filled in the blank with something personal to each of her guests. Mine said: Ask me about photography! Such a cute way to get her guests to mingle and break the ice with each other.  They also rented casino games so that their guests could play texas hold ‘em, craps, or black jack to entertain their guests. There was a photo booth which is always a hit and late night snacks were also provided for their guests! Susan even had a surprise slideshow made in honor of Chris to show all the reasons why she loved him. It was so sentimental and sweet and it included little video clips from their many vacations, their daily lives, and little silly/endearing moments you can’t help but awwwww over. And not only that, it was really fun to be able to photograph a wedding at Rancho Las Lomas which is where Jeff and I married in April 2007! It definitely brought back fond memories.

Angel Swanson of Events of Love and Splendor did an incredible job with coordinating all the big and little details of the day! I’ve been a fan of hers for a while now so it was so great to finally meet Angel and get to work together with her!

Susan’s beautiful bouquet of pink peonies and orchids and her sterling silver heels.

Susan and Chris chose to see each other before the ceremony so that we’d have plenty of time to get some really awesome portraits around Rancho Las Lomas.

I love how blissfully happy Susan looks here.

I asked Chris to whisper something into Susan’s ear to make her laugh and he did me proud!

Susan’s parents walking her down the aisle.

Susan and Chris wrote their own vows to each other. In one moment, Chris has Susan in tears and in the next, he had her laughing out loud. I love this moment where Susan’s wiping a tear away and laughing at the same time.

Susan and Chris wanted a group picture with all their guests! Thanks Ming for taking this shot! He insisted I keep both my pregnant feet planted firmly on the ground while he stood on the ladder to get this shot!

Their reception was held outdoors under the oak trees on a perfect summer evening. 24 Carrots Catering did an amazing job with the delicious food and plating!

Susan’s MOH giving her speech in the teatro.

Some photobooth fun!

Did someone say games?

And so their guests would have energy to last through the night…rocket pops (they married on the 4th of July), mini Kobe Burgers (delish!), and hot sweet potato fries!

And of course a big thank you goes out to Ming and my husband Jeff who both shot along side me that day!

 A little sneak peek into what’s to come!

Susan + Chris’s wedding at Rancho Las Lomas in Silverado, Ca.

Melissa + Kyle’s wedding at Rancho Del Cielo in Malibu, Ca.

Jennifer + Jacob’s day after session at the Mission in San Juan Capistrano, Ca.

Angie + Tat’s engagement session in Laguna Beach, Ca.

The other night as we wandered Babies R Us with a scan gun in hand, Jeff asked me if I thought he was a good husband. I couldn’t believe he’d ask me such a question.

The man who drove me to all those engagement sessions my first trimester when I was too tired to drive stick shift all the way to LA and back. The man who has been coming along to my weddings with me to carry my heavy equipment bag so that his pregnant wife doesn’t have to. The man who makes sure I stay hydrated while I work and brings me snacks so I don’t go hungry. The man who has been learning to shoot in full manual mode so that we can work and spend time together on the weekends. The man who asks me every night what I want for dinner. The man who lets me hold the scan gun and lets me scan to my hearts content for over an hour when all he wants to do is go home after a busy day at the office.

To the man who kisses me goodbye in bed every morning before he leaves for work whispering, Bye Baby #1 and then lifts the covers to kiss my belly and whisper Bye Baby #2 …. yes, you are a very good husband and I’m a very lucky girl.

Yesterday, a bunch of us girls took Kerrie out to lunch at Plum’s Cafe in Costa Mesa for her birthday. As is the case when you get together with good friends, the time just flew by and before we knew it it was hours and hours later. How does that happen? There are days that just drag by, but then when you’re in good company an hour turns out to be four and you’re left wondering where the time went!
Anyways, it was great seeing all you girls again! We’ll have to do this more often! And Kerrie, I hope you get everything you wish for this year because you certainly deserve it! Can’t wait to get Riley and Akira together for a little play date!

Left to Right:

Christina of Simply Modern Weddings

Crissy of Christine Farah Photography

Vanessa (who was a client of mine and is Kerrie’s newest assistant! yay!)

Yours truly

Kerrie (and Riley) of Platinum Weddings by Kerrie

Jonilyn of Jonilyn Photography

I know I’ve been a blogging machine lately, but I can you believe I still have a ton more to go? I’ve got 2 more weddings, 2 engagement sessions, and 1 day after session waiting in the wings! I’ve been incredibly busy this year and it’s such a blessing to me. I’m so grateful for the year that I’ve had and all that’s yet to come. Did you all watch the Sex and the City movie? Sometimes I feel like Charlotte. My life is so blessed, I’m completely content, and I seem to have everything that I could wish for. Great, right? Except every now and again I’ll get this feeling like something bad will happen only because no one can be so happy. But if I follow that train of thought, that means I may poop my pants…so I’ll stop comparing my life to Charlotte’s right now.