MEF Photography Blog! » San Francisco-Based Wedding, Family + Portrait Photography

I must have some bananas karma built up this year because I have no other explanation for how great my clients are. I’ve already introduced a handful of them, but you’ll meet the remaining majority over the next month or so. I’m telling you this now so that you have ample time to prepare yourself for their awesomeness. Take heed!

Perhaps serendipitously, Erika + Chris are a perfect way to start this month, to ease you into all that awesomeness, because these two are so mellow and easygoing, so relaxed and in love. And they’re genuinely nice people, to boot. Erika works for a portrait photographer, so she knows firsthand how tedious and awkward it can be to have your picture taken, and how tough it can be for a photographer to get people to relax. But as always, I busted out my A-game crazy and washed away their anxieties in no time.  In that same vein, I wish to apologize to the homeless guy I woke up when I nailed a particular shot and yelled in delight. What can you do? ;)

ANYHOW.

Erika + Chris are goofy and happy, quiet and caring, and I think that while wandering around Lake Merritt in Oakland, we got some photos that show exactly that.

I’m structuring this post as a favorites sandwich: two at the beginning and two at the end with some deliciousness in the middle. Enjoy! :D

Bread favorites numbers 1 + 2:

And now middle-sandwich-goodness:

In this photo, Chris’ toes make me smile:

ERIKA, seriously. So gorgeous. :)

I blame it on the colors and the giggles, but this one just makes my heart happy:

Playing with light and shadow. And waking up homeless dudes:

And finally, bread favorites numbers 3 + 4:  Hello, Oakland!

Favorite, favorite, favorite, favorite! :D :D

Erika + Chris, you two are treasures and I am grateful to have met you. I am also looking wildly forward to the awesome party that is going to be your wedding and meeting all the people who love and support you. I hope you adore these photos as much as I did taking them (and you know how much that was!) :D

I almost don’t have words for this pair. They’re light-hearted and funny; they’re laid back and easygoing; they’re super smart; they are insanely kind; and they look like they could be the inspiration for a Disney couple. But more importantly, they are endlessly, hopelessly, effervescently in love with each other.

I don’t care who you are, what you look like, how old you are, or if you’re outgoing or painfully shy…if you really love your partner, I could photograph you all day long. For me at least, that’s the magic ingredient. When your future children and grandchildren look at your photos, three things will strike them: 1) How young you were, and 2) How in love you were (and, I hope, still are!). Oh, I said three things. They’ll also notice how outdated your clothes and hair are, but I think that’s the absolute perfect reason to focus on emotion first. No matter how silly your outfit may seem in 20, 30, 50 years, authentic love is never outdated. And you can’t get that from just smiling at the camera.

I think I was able to capture Jessica + Justin in exactly this way. (Although, as an aside, let me say that they were impeccably stylish.) These two love each other, and their photos scream it. So much so that I’m breaking two rules for their blog post: 1) I’m posting two very similar images (because I couldn’t decide which I loved more!), and 2) I’m posting several images from the same location (because they’re just too lovely not to). Enough of my jabbering! Let’s break some rules!

Similar heart-melting image #1!

Similar heart-melting image #2!

We started at Golden Gate Park, a place I could wander around all the live long day:

Jessica took a jewelry making class and crafted Justin’s ring—she’s legit!

Seriously, Jess, you could light fires with those eyes. So hot! :D

I don’t normally stay in one location for long, but the little white flowers and light in this corner of the park were calling my name. Observe:

I think they were giggling here because all of Jessica’s hair had just fallen in Justin’s face. :D

If I’m remembering the story correctly, Justin proposed after a candlelit dessert on the roof of their apartment (after climbing up the side of the building with furniture strapped to his back and getting reported to the cops as a cat burglar!). This was their view:

So of course, we couldn’t resist getting some photos at the scene of the crime:

Ray-Ban ad:

Oh, filthy San Francisco alleyways, how I love thee.

Getting the following photos required me to be all up in the collective businesses of several garbage cans. Worth it. :D

These two are moving to Portland soon, so I wanted to get a shot of them walking the streets of their SF neighborhood for nostalgia’s sake. Perfect colors in this. Success!

Our last stop was a local Noe Valley bar with this quaint little open air section (which is actually meant for smokers, but you don’t need to know that). We temporarily evacuated the nook, got some free beer and wound up with these:

And OH MY GOOD GRAVY, MY FAVORITE! This photo makes me lose my breath just a little bit. Beautiful, perfect, authentic love? Check!

Jessica + Justin, thank you for being your wonderful selves with me last week. You are joys to be around, pleasures to photograph and fabulous people. I hope you love these photos and I can’t wait to photograph your wedding in September. :D

If there is one quality I cherish in the best of my clients, it is an ability and willingness to laugh.  Maybe I reveal a deeper part of my own marriage in saying this, but I believe the strongest and most bewitching relationships are forged in the fires not of conflict, but of the joy and ease of deep laughter.  Have you ever noticed how people often cover their mouths when they laugh?  (I think this urge is stronger in some cultures than others.)  It’s because you open yourself up to a person who can make you lose yourself in a giggle.  You are vulnerable to the person who causes the well of glee inside you to bubble up and overflow.

But okay, that’s kind of a lie, because really I cherish couples that truly love each other.  Laughter is just a beautiful symptom of that, and my ultimate goal in my work is to show those genuine smiles. As I was selecting photos for Meg + Greg’s post, I felt so affirmed in this belief because they’re smiling and laughing in every single image.  :)

These two.  Where do I even start?  First of all, Greg opened my car door for me.  Uh, hello?  Gentleman, calling!  And Meg’s smile?  Absolutely infectious.  I’m sitting here, editing their photos, grinning ear to ear because of her sweet face.  They are the type of people to engage you, draw you in, make you feel important.  They sing to each other, they encourage each other, they calm each other — and I know this because I saw all of it in just two short hours!

They also love baseball (Greg’s family has Giants season tickets), so we started their session at the most appropriate place we could imagine.  Enough of my yapping, let’s play ball. :)

The beautiful marina opposite the park. :)  We tried to sneak in, but failed, so this photo is our consolation prize.

Remember that laughter I wouldn’t shut up about earlier?  Get ready for an overdose!

That’s the ballpark in the background of the next photo, by the way.  What you can’t see?  The bearded guy in daisy dukes doing yoga directly behind Meg + Greg — thanks, San Francisco!

FAVORITE #1!  Seriously, I look at this photo and I can’t help but grin like a fool.  Miss Meg, you are preeeeeeety!  :D

Can you guess their wedding date? ;)

This?  This is maybe one of my favorite photos I’ve ever taken, from their smiles and posture, to the colors and the sunlight.  Ugh.  Love it.  FAVORITE #2!

“Greg, just pull her toward you!” Haha.

Hands say a lot.  Love her grip on his arm.

After we finished wandering around the ballpark, we headed across the bridge to Treasure Island, which may be my new favorite go-to spot for engagement photos.  Seriously, that place is crazy filled with great backdrops.  But the wackiest part of this photo is what’s through the windows on the right.  First gaze at this lovely image, then check the next photo for proof.

Whaaaaat?  By being nosy, we learned that this building was actually a warehouse for an antiques dealership.  This was just a small snippet of the bonkers stuff inside. :)

BUT BACK TO THE BEAUTIFUL PHOTOS! :D

Last but not least, FAVORITE #3!  Meg + Greg, let’s please print this on a big ol’ canvas and hang it above your couch, k?  I MEAN, COME ON!  LOOK AT THAT SEAGULL!

Meg + Greg, I hope these photos are a ray of sunshine in your lives.  I know you’re dealing with far greater and more important issues right now, but I sincerely hope that when you look back at these photos in 20 years, you’ll see how joyful this time was and how much you love each other.  Enjoy these, and know that I am so looking forward to your wedding and giving you a big fat hug when I see you.  :)