Seattle is a fun city & I was lucky enough to make a day trip up for Kelly & Chad’s engagements in May. While I was driving towards downtown for their engagement shoot, I turned on the radio & Owl City’s, “Hello, Seattle” was playing. So I did what I normally do when awesome songs play on the radio at the perfect time…I blasted the radio, rolled down the windows & sang at the top of my lungs. Call me crazy but it was fabulous.

I just realized that I haven’t posted any of my personal photographs from my trip! So here are just a few of my favorites…

This photograph of Gretchen & Jakob’s first dance literally took my breath away. This…this is why I loooooooove my job.

I am going to be honest here. Like really honest. I think I live in one of the most under-rated cities in America. I have lived here for almost five years & there are so, sooooooo many things I love about living here. I love the fact that San Francisco is just a short drive away. I love that within 10 miles of our home, there are over 6,500 amazing restaurants (which really plays in my favor since I hate cooking), I love the people, the foggy mornings, the saxophone music by the BART stations, the Oakland A’s, Arizmendi pizza, Ici Ice Cream, the art, the Trader Joes just down the street from my house…everything! I am happy to say that “I Hella <3 Oakand.” And if you lived here, I think you’d hella <3 it too.

I had a fun little photo excursion to downtown Oakland with two of my favorite gal pals the other evening & we took some fun photographs. Downtown Oakland is filled with awesome  color, Art Deco Architecture & my favorite, favorite cathedral everrrrr, The Cathedral of Christ the Light. The architecture of the cathedral is literally mind-blowing. Seriously-someone please (pretty, pretty please) get married there & hire me as your photographer-I’d be in heaven! Enough rambling-here are my favorites from our quick little jaunt to downtown…

What things do you hella <3 about where you live? Spill the beans!

The Cathedral of Christ the Light is so amazing. The architecture blows my mind…

It was a serene, calm morning. As Angie’s friend put the final touches on her hair, Angie was as calm & collected as could be. She laughed, she smiled…she was over the moon. And why wouldn’t she be? She was marrying her best friend & it literally was her dream come true. Her bridesmaids gathered together to “ooooooh” & “aaaaaah” as Angie stepped into her custom made wedding gown. And as Angie & Nick saw each other for the first time on their wedding day in a grove of redwood trees, they embraced…they kissed…everything around them disappeared…and it was perfect. Because when Angie & Nick are together, all is right, all is perfect & everything is better. That evening as family & friends raised their glasses to toast the newly married couple, Angie’s brother said, “I love Angie & I love Nick. But I love Angie & Nick even more.” Everyone who knows Angie & Nick know what a fabulous & dynamic duo they are. There truly is no Nick without Angie & no Angie without Nick.

When I talked to Angie about the wedding, I knew it was going to be an event to remember. Angie put so much work into making sure the details were perfect. And perfect they were! They married at Nestldown in Los Gatos, a romantic & secluded location that was gorgeous-no matter where you were on the property! Family & friends were serenaded by a string quartet as the bridal party walked down the aisle (to the Beatles, no less!). The reception was gorgeous as everyone dined on delicious food, enjoyed a fun photo booth & a rockin live band. As always, there were so many beautiful, thought out details. I loved the bold purple & blue colors, the butterfly guests cards, Angie’s perfect shoes, her chunky gold jewelry, their fun bridal party & their incredible butterfly cake. It truly was an event for all to remember.

Angie & Nick-I honestly love you guys. It’s been so much fun to see you become husband & wife. You are such a wonderful, fabulous couple & I think that everyone who knows you can see how happy you make each other. Thank you so much for giving me the chance to photograph your picture perfect day- it was something that I will always remember & cherish! Congratulations to the both of you-enjoy your 2 week honeymoon in Indonesia (lucky ducks!) xoxo, marielle.

I’m obsessed with Angie’s shoes. Look how fabulous they complimented the hotel’s decor!

This is the reason why I think that having a first look on your wedding day is amazing.

My favorite from their wedding…

Angie-you were such a stunning, fabulously fabulous bride.

And Nick- you cleaned up nicely, too!

A gorgeous photograph from my assistant, Lynn…

I love the look of all the guests faces as Angie’s dad walks her down the aisle…

Nestldown is such a serene setting for a wedding…

The prettiest flower girl..

Which one is your favorite?

I met Olivia a few years ago when she was in middle school. I was so impressed with what an easy-going, caring & fun person she was. She is a friend to all around her, someone who knows how to make every situation fun & she is beautiful inside & out. She has grown up & now she is headed out to BYU Hawaii to start college-I’m soooooooo jealous! I know that she is going to have a great time in Hawaii!! I’m so happy to call her my friend & even happier for the fabulous adventures that are in store for her…

Here are my favorites from Olivia’s quick shoot…which one is your favorite?

Olivia-you’re gorgeous!

I had a blast shooting Angie & Nick’s amazing wedding on Saturday. I’m not kidding, this wedding was beyond beautiful & I can’t wait to share the rest soon…Here’s a sneak peek for the meantime…

Here’s my youngest sister, Morgan. She has a thirst for fun, adventure & is obsessed with candy canes. It’s true. Morgan is always seeking the good in every person…she loves to laugh, play her ukulele  & just have a blast. She is someone who is truly beautiful inside & out. I sure do love my little blue-eyed sister.

While she was in town a few months back, we thought it would be fun to do a quick photo shoot. You might not be able to tell from the photographs, but Morgan is a semi-fearless Mosquito warrior. She was literally fighting off mosquitos the ENTIRE shoot. I’m not going to lie, I thought it was pretty hilarious. I don’t know if Morgan felt the same way but she was a great sport nonetheless.

Morgan has been spending her entire summer as a counselor for our church’s summer camp. She has such a vivacious spirit that I’m sure the kids there are just loving her to pieces. I love you, Morgan! You rock my socks!

Maybe it’s because she sees me working on photographs of brides. Maybe it’s the Disney movies she loves watching where everyone lives “Happily Ever After.” Maybe it’s because every Saturday I tell her I’m on my way to a wedding. Whatever it is, Hadley has recently been talking about getting married. It’s kind of funny. The other night I had bought an artichoke so she went & put on a pretty dress, picked up the artichoke & said, “Look at me! I’m getting married!” It was adorable.

Watch out-this girl knows how to work the camera.

I‘m just going to say it: I basically worship this family. Seriously. I have been lucky enough to know the McClain family for about five years now through our church. I have seen their family serve selflessly, give with their whole hearts & stand as awesome examples of goodness to everyone around them. Each of them are wonderful, easy going, fun individuals & together as a family they are simply awesome. In essence, they are the kind of family that I hope my little family turns out to be like. I had the chance to snag them up for a quick, fun session & I LOVED it.

Now, on to my favorites!

I LOVE this one…

Which one is your favorite?

It was evident early on that they were just meant to be together. Kyrsten & Ben are both fun, easy going people who both have art running through their veins. So it didn’t come as a surprise when they met that they naturally began to want to know each other better. He was a musician. She, a film student. And as they began to spend more time together, they realized that they never wanted to be apart. Later on, as the waves lapped up onto the shore at La Jolla Cove, Ben proposed to Kyrsten with a gorgeous ring & a promise to be together forever. As they began planning their wedding, they realized that they couldn’t wait to be married. They decided after Thanksgiving that they would be getting hitched at Christmas time. And the reason was simple: they wanted nothing more than to be husband & wife! They had a small, intimate wedding in San Diego & they would have had it no other way! Because they only had a month to plan their wedding, they didn’t have time to have many great photographs of themselves. I was soooooo excited when Kyrsten contacted me about taking some photographs of them! I loved meeting up with them for a fun shoot! When you meet Kyrsten & Ben, you quickly realized that hey are a perfect pair who are perfectly matched!

Kyrsten & Ben are passionate people who love cooking, watching foreign movies & just being together. They love each other, encourage each other & support each other with the talents that they both have. They’ve been married for six months & you can just see how excited they are to spend the rest of forever together!

Here are my favorites from their shoot…which one is your favorite?

Um…….can you say favorite? I LOVE this photograph…