Patrick had gotten the engagement ring ready more than a year ago and had been waiting for exactly the right time and place. He truly spent a lot of time planning and wanting everything to be exactly perfect, and I know this because during the more than three months that we had been in contact, he scouted out a bunch of spots and even sent me photos of places he liked! Eventually, he settled on the Berkeley Rose Garden for his proposal. [ read more … ]

Maggie & Joseph first met each other at UC Berkeley, and later both moved to Hong Kong after finishing school. They flew back to Berkeley for their engagement session, taking me on a trip around campus and showing me a few spots I had never been to, like the Hearst Memorial Mining Building and its stunningly beautiful and grand interior. [ read more … ]

To help with planning his proposal, Nate enlisted the help of his good friends Richie & Jenny. They had actually planned another friend’s proposal in the past, so this wasn’t new to them!

A few weeks before the proposal, Richie, Jenny, and I met up in the hills of Berkeley to scout out a location. We found the perfect spot — a beautiful cliffside point overlooking Berkeley, Oakland, San Francisco, Sausalito, and the SF Bay. Basically the whole area around SF. But the day before the proposal went down, they actually went back with Nate and found an even better spot, one totally isolated from sightseers and hikers, and spacious enough to set up a picnic table. [ read more … ]

After waiting for several months, we finally got to photograph Kristin and Brian’s wedding on the Commodore Hornblower as it cruised around the Bay to Alcatraz and back! It was such a memorable and cozy ceremony where Kristin and Brian were surrounded by their loved ones, with the captain being their officiant. After the reception, Brian’s sister threw the couple a surprise first dance challenge and these two NAILED it! Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Gnecco!