Alison + Bryan Engaged!

Disastrous and embarrassing, yet oh-so-fun!  Alison and Bryan's engagement shoot was a bit of a foley on my part.  During the stunt portion of their session at Crissy Field, I fell hard (or rather supermanned) on the rocks damaging myself, my pride, and my brand new leather boots.  I wanted to wear my new boots so much that I neglected to consider they weren't exactly made for walking on wet rocks.  It took me a minute to recover, but we were having so much fun that we joked our way right through to the end.  Leading up to (and including the fall), their photoshoot felt more like a day out playing with friends than work.  Actually, we met Alison and Bryan over a game of beanbags at Jaclyn and Andy's wedding this past summer so we knew their session was going to be a good time and full of laughs.  At the end of the day all was well because we alleviated my aching body with wine and delicious food at this amazing little French Bistrot near their apartment in San Francisco.

I should note that where I fell was just a short walk from where Bryan proposed to Alison.  He lured her to Crissy Field with a little white lie and had to pay off some skateboarding kids to scram so that they could be alone on one of the benches.  Furthermore, the restaurant that we went to with them was the same place they went after he popped the question!  So, basically we relived their proposal, but with a little comic relief thrown into the mix.

We did a pan and combined exposures at one of the piers.  I know it's really small, so you can check out a larger version here.

I love the ballerina pose!

Adm had to make this silhouette given the incredible sunset we had!

Jessi + Michael Engaged!

This couple is pretty special to me: Jessi has been my best friend since I met her my sophomore year of college, and considering that we lived together for two years, we've got LOTS of memories.  Her family pretty much adopted me while I was in North Carolina, and even though I'm in California, I still like to think I'm one of the Owensby clan.  Since Jessi met Michael after I'd moved back to California, I only learned about him in our phone conversations and didn't really get to know him until they came out for a visit this past July.  Michael is pretty awesome, and Adm and I had such an amazing week with them, particularly since we benefited from their cooking expertise (check out their food blog here!).  I wish so much that they lived out here, and I'm doing my best to convince them to move out west!  I'm so happy Jessi has found a wonderful partner in Michael and can't wait to help celebrate their relationship at their wedding next June in Asheville, North Carolina.  Since I won't be photographing their wedding (bridesmaid duty calls), Adm and I did their engagement photos during their summer vacation.  We headed to Crissy field and then followed up with Lombard street in San Francisco.  Here are some of my favorites - enjoy!

About the above image:  this is Adm's photo that he made using an old viewfinder that was given to us by his friend Allen.  The viewfinder has collected lots of dust and bugs, which I think add character to the image.

This is Jessi and me on their recent vacation when we made a quick getaway to Lake Tahoe.