Caroline and Christopher . Engagement

Some might call Anthropologie an overpriced flea market (myself included), but there’s something captivating about that store that make so many girls (myself included) swoon over. So imagine how I felt when I photographed this lovely couple – it truly felt like stepping into one of their catalogs. Caroline’s dress happened to be from there too. Christopher is a talented photographer himself, and fellow photogs know that it’s always such an honor (and extra pressure!) to photograph another photographer. It was also very touching to hear that while looking at our work, our images resonated with Caroline to tears.

Hannah and Andre . Engagement

Hannah came from a small town where technology was not part of everyday life, so since she’s been in the city for a bit, Hun (AKA Mr. Technology) kept making fun of her for not having email nor being on social media. After Hun’s prodding, she joined the world wide web, and fast forward several years where Hannah and Andre met on MySpace of all places – Hun takes credit for them coming together. ;) Since Andre is in the navy (thanks for serving our country!), we just had to do a reenactment of the iconic kiss…

By the way, not only is Hannah gorgeous herself, she makes other people look their best with her hair design skills! She works at Gene Juarez in Alderwood and she’s the one who made this before and after transformation for me earlier this year!

Susan and Alex . Engagement

Susan was the only one that was willing to be Alex’s partner in their School of Optometry at UC Berkeley (where they met) because his eyes were smaller to work with. And since she had all that practice, all her tests were a breeze for her. Sorry Alex! I only shared that because I think that story is so cute and funny. Both of these amazing and generous individuals spend their working days looking at eyes, but really, they only have eyes for each other!

Video Sessions by DvPixl Films!

Even more than yesterday’s images, I am super excited to show you a video of Rachel and Sam’s engagement session by DvPixl films! Being photographers, we’re lovers of still images of course, but we have an appreciation for great film work as well.

For our own wedding, the best decision we made was hiring him as our videographer hands down. Moses used to live in New York so it was harder to refer him, but not anymore because him and his wife recently moved to Seattle. He was also commissioned for Laina and Ray’s wedding and she described him and his work perfectly, “AHHH-MAZING! You were right that we won’t be disappointed by him. Such a quiet, sweet soul and so talented.” Since we love his work so much, I suggested that he add video sessions to his services, and below is an amazing film he came up with.

You too can have a video for your portrait/engagement/anniversary/family session (even if it’s not photographed by us). What an incredible way to treasure fleeting moments with your loved ones! Click here to inquire for videography.

Note: If you’re viewing with Safari, because of the latest update, you might have to refresh the page for the video to show up.

Rachel and Sam . Engagement

Rachel told me that she’s been following us since xanga days and that we were the one non-negotiable aspect for her wedding, so one of her first calls after the proposal was to us. She had us at xanga. During our first face-to-face meeting, Lisa popped by to say hi because she saw me in passing, and Rachel immediately recognized her from our blog. Love that!

Rachel and Sam are high school sweethearts so they’ve been dating for a very long time, but they still look at each other and treat each other like they just started dating. Something every couple could learn from. A beautiful couple with hearts of gold, and I would go as far to say that Sam is one of the kindest guys I’ve ever met.

For the second part of their session, I was so excited that they chose to have it on the ferry. In the middle of shooting, the captain’s voice came over the loudspeaker and said, “We have a whale siting on the port side of the boat.” And there they were – a mommy and baby Orca whale! A passenger told me that she rides that same ferry everyday and she’s never seen whales before. Even H and I go on the ferry often to visit his parents and we’ve never seen them either. Another passenger shared with everybody how he’s paid to go whale watching before and didn’t even see them. It was one of those bliss moments straight out of a movie with lots of oohs and aahs. So incredible.

Gloria and Charles . Engagement

One of our dear friends, Kelly played Cupid between Gloria and Charles, and for their first date, Charles planned a full day of activities. Risky but it was a total love-match, good thing! They are both incredibly thoughtful and know how to enjoy life together. I always encourage our couples to choose a location that’s special to them and since Charles proposed to Gloria at the airport, they thought it would be fun to do part of their session there. We had our own escort walking us around and we got to go through restricted areas. It was so much fun to shoot in a place that I usually frequent for other reasons.

Amy and Ryan . Engagement

Amy and Ryan is another couple that met online and fell in love. In our technologically advancing world, we see more and more of this type of match up. Both of them have lived in various parts of the country but currently settled in Seattle. They are a very relaxed couple that seem to really know how to enjoy life and each other and their dog.

Best of 2009

Presenting a belated Best of 2009.

Brought to you by…

Best Engagement Look

I tend to favor dresses for engagement sessions, but Laina and Ray impressed me with their fall-perfect wardrobe. It didn’t hurt that I have a thing for elbow patches.

Best Ring

Judy’s ‘something blue’ was a second ring gifted by her Jing Jing. You know what they say… a diamond is a girl’s best friend. Two BFFs in Judy’s case.

Best Shoes

I think I had the hardest time choosing this category because of all the amazing shoes we’ve seen. Ultimately, Hannah’s sophisticated Kate Spade’s won for their unique color.

Best Bouquet

I appreciated this modern take on the traditional cascading bouquet for Nhung created by Elizabeth Designs.

Best Hair

Stephanie’s hair looked divine in finger waves for her vintage chic wedding.

Best Bridesmaid Dresses

What are the chances that the same exact dress shows up on bridesmaids of two different weddings right after the other? These purple Ann Taylor dresses looked amazing on each one of the pretty ladies.

Best Decor

Something that I really loved about Michelle and Ben’s wedding was that they incorporated their engagement photos in so many ways – from their save-the-date magnet to the reception seating chart to the personalized M&M’s to the tags on the cupcake party favors. Also, they brought in lighting and draping which definitely transforms a space. And to top things off, they had an impressive dessert bar!

Best Cake

Most cakes are topped with frosting or fondant, but this one shimmered and sparkled with the meticulously made edible gardenias. Coincidentally, it was made by the daughter of my own wedding cake maker, and the same company who made my 2007 pick. To this day, I have yet to come across a better tasting cake. And believe you me, I eat a lot of cake. They go by referrals so they don’t have a website. Let me know if you’d like their contact information.

Best Venue

Oh my gosh. I cannot rave enough about this place! A winery with a majestic view of the mountains and Columbia River. So peaceful and breathtaking. Every single person on Cave B Inn’s staff was genuinely friendly and provided exceptional service.

Best Groom Attire

Scott looked dashing in his khaki suit. I like how he went with something different than the standard black.

Best Dress

This dress was actually just the reception dress for Lillian, but I absolutely adored it. It was made by one of Lillian’s friends who designs for Nicole Miller.

Best Overall Wedding

Something about backyard weddings make them my favorite. Amber and Brian’s wine-themed celebration was held in her parents’ backyard and there was no detail left unturned. It was truly a spectacular celebration with a firework show by Amber’s brother and sister-in-law to prove it. And it just so happens that last year, this category went to her Matron-of-Honor.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE PREVIOUS YEAR’S “BEST OF 2008″

Laina and Ray . Engagement

It speaks volumes to us when couples contact us even before having their wedding date or venue set – that photography is their number one priority, that they trust us out of thousands of photographers, and we are THAT important to them. Laina and Ray are one of those couples. Laina is originally from Seattle and Ray is from New York, but on one fateful day, they met through a mutual friend at a Fourth of July get-together. Fireworks went off and the rest is history. Since they were visiting from out of town, we had no room to reschedule their session so it was to be on, rain or shine. It wasn’t necessarily shine, but you wouldn’t think it different from their beaming personalities. When most people would be hesitant, they had no qualms about sitting on the wet grass, they helped me gather leaves without me even asking them to, and to top things off, they are simply gorgeous!

Mai and JD . Engagement

Hello! Coming to you from the friendly skies on Virgin America! We’re on our way back home from the east coast and there is in-flight wi-fi! Woo hoo!

I’m excited to share this lovely engagement session of Mai and JD. We went to the University of Washington, a gorgeous campus, not to mention the most requested location for shoots, and it was a perfect setting for them as it is where they met and fell in love. They are such a beautiful couple inside and out, and it just made us feel all warm and fuzzy when Mai wrote, “I love you! I was literally jumping for joy when JD said yes to GH KIM! He basically told me that since this is the only wedding detail that I have been pushing that I must really want you guys to cover our wedding. I have been telling everyone, including my customers, and man, people sure do know about you guys! Yeah, SUPER excited!”