Heidi Ryder Photography: The Blog » Southern California and Destination Wedding Photography

You probably remember Emily and Free from their Griffith Park Observatory engagement session. Well, now this cute couple is Mr. and Mrs.! They were married this weekend at the LDS Temple in Westwood with a reception at the Pasadena Masonic Temple. Their wedding day was casual, cool and fun – just like them. It was such a pleasure being there with their closest friends and family on such a special day. My lovely friend Heather was along for the ride that day and I couldn’t have done it without her!

We started the day off at the temple, waiting patiently for Emily and Free to exit as husband and wife. The smiles on their faces made it worth the wait!

During the week leading up the wedding there was a forecast for rain all day. I know Emily hoped we would have sunshine instead and when the forecast started turning around as the day got closer, I was so excited for them! We couldn’t have asked for a more gorgeous day. Would you look at that blue sky?!

Emily and Free’s wedding party was the funnest. They made a good looking bunch, I must say. Oh, and aren’t the bridesmaid’s dresses lovely? Emily’s grandma made them, and I was in awe. And Emily’s beautiful dress was custom made, too, and inspired by a dress Emily saw on Project Runway. Love it!

This next one is probably my favorite from the day…

We had some time before the reception to wander around Old Town Pasadena and take some lovely portraits. I love that time of the day when it’s just me and the couple – they get to relax and enjoy each other and I get to capture it. The best.

I call this next shot Free’s Real Estate Mogul Portrait. I made him promise that if he ever got into real estate, he needed to use this shot on the side of a bus bench.

From the very first meeting I had with Emily and Free they told me they definitely wanted their reception to be a bit of a dance party. It’s a good thing, too, because they had some friends with some moves. I threatened one in particular (hi, Kate!) with a blog post dedicated solely to photos of her on the dance floor, but I’ll refrain and post this fun collage instead.

Emily and Free, I hope you are having an amazing honeymoon in Hawaii! Thank you so much for letting me a part of your wedding day. I wish you both all the happiness in the world.

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Every once in a while a client will ask me why they need an engagement session. My response is two-fold, but very simple:

1. Engagement sessions give us a chance to get to know each other. You get a chance to see how I work, and I get a chance to make you comfortable with my camera. That way, we are old friends by the wedding day and the portraits are a breeze to take – and fun, too!
2. There are so many things you can do with your engagement photos! You can make an album using the photos and leave plenty of white space for guests to sign on your wedding day, which beats the boring old guest book your mom and dad had at their wedding; you can use the photos to dress up and personalize a wedding website; you can pick your favorite photo(s) for your Save the Dates; and you can even use them for your wedding invitations. The possibilities really are endless!

When I first met with Emily and Free, I learned that Free was a graphic designer and they planned to use their engagement photos for their wedding invitations. I figured the result would be pretty neat, and I wasn’t disappointed when I received my very own copies in the mail.

It really warms my heart to see photos that I took being utilized in such an awesome way. It’s also nice to think that Emily and Free are really increasing the value of of their investment by utilizing it in such an important way – I’ve seen their wedding website, and the photos are very prominent there, too. So great!

I hope many more of my brides and grooms will be inspired by Free and Emily’s creativity. I cannot wait for their wedding at the end of this month!

Here’s a shot of the front of the invite, as well as the Save the Date card:

Invite upon first open:

The invite fully opened:

And here’s what the invite looks like from the back when it’s fully folded out:

Thanks to Free and Emily for allowing me to share this awesome invite with everyone!

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I can’t believe 2009 has come to an end. This has been quite a year for me, personally and business-wise, and when I sit and think about all I’ve had the privilege to see and do, I’m quite pleased. 2009 was the year I decided to focus solely on weddings. This time last year I wasn’t sure where this year would take me, but I was ready to hang on and enjoy the ride. And, oh, what a ride it’s been.

2010 already promises to be an even more exciting year and I honestly can’t wait. There’s something so refreshing about the start of a new year. I know technically nothing really changes, but there’s just something about seeing Jan. 1st on a calendar that sparks something inside me. I love feeling like I can change anything I put my mind to. Make things happen. Kick A$$ and take names. You know the drill.

I’ve already set wheels in motion for things that are sure to make my business better than ever, which means an even better experience for my clients. I am so looking forward to the weddings I have the honor of photographing next year and I can’t wait to share them all here.

In the spirit of reflection, I’ve chosen some of my favorite images, from both engagement sessions and weddings, from 2009. It’s been a VERY long time since I’ve posted a slideshow, but I figured why not let 2009 go out with a bang? Hope you enjoy.

A big, HUGE thank you to all of my clients – past and future – who chose me to capture their wedding day memories. I would also like to thank my photographer friends who have invited me along to shoot weddings with them and have also joined me at my clients’ weddings. The friendships I’ve made this year have proven invaluable.

Happy New Year, everyone! Here’s to a FANTASTIC 2010!

>>If you’re reading this post via an RSS feed or on Facebook, you’ll have to click through to my actual site to view the fun slideshow!<<

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Melissa and BJ’s lovely Fall wedding at Temecula Under the Oaks was such a pleasure to witness. I was lucky enough to get another invite to shoot alongside the wonderful Heather Kincaid, who happened to go to college with the lovely bride. Neither of us had ever been to this venue, but we were pleasantly surprised at its beauty – the grounds are literally surrounded by massive oak trees so we felt like we were in the middle of a forest. It was amazing and so great for photos! Thanks so much, Heather for bringing me along!

Here are a few of my favorites from the day.

After they were dressed, the ladies toasted to Melissa with some sparkling cider. The flower girl threw a few back to loosen up.

I love the sunshine that’s raining on the girls in this one.

On the grounds there was this one tree that stood out. It was different than the rest – maybe Maple? All of the leaves had turned so it looked like it was on fire with reds, oranges and yellows emanating from its leaves. Loved it so much.

Melissa looked so gorgeous and she was so fun to photograph!

And BJ wasn’t looking so bad himself!

I loved all of the Fall elements of this wedding. Melissa, BJ and their families had been collecting these leaves for months leading up to the wedding. I thought that was such a cool touch!

I honestly will never get over the way a bride and groom look at each other during their ceremony. There is something so special about it. Gets me every time.

Melissa had this idea of their bridal party throwing leaves on them while they shared a kiss. Who doesn’t love playing in leaves!?

Heather and I got to spend tons of time with Melissa and BJ for portraits. We got to take full advantage of the beautiful grounds the venue provided.

Heather and I were shocked when the owner of the venue walked over while we were shooting and said that no other photographer had ever utilized the forest area for portraits. It was a MUST for us, we couldn’t believe we were the first!

There was an awesome tree swing (of course – with that many trees, how could there not be a tree swing!) and Melissa and BJ were totally down for some tree swinging action. It. Was. Awesome.

Congratulations to Melissa and BJ and a big thank you again to Heather for having me along!

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Lara and Erik’s wedding at the La Cañada Country Club was truly perfect for those many reasons. In my book, a perfect wedding is one where the bride, groom and all those in attendance have a truly enjoyable day that is filled with laughter as well as tears of joy, and ends with a super fun dance party, which is exactly what happened with this one. I was invited to shoot this wedding alongside Jenny Smith of Alders Photography and I think it was halfway through the day that I realized how much fun Jenny and I were having capturing this day. Lara and Erik appeared to be free of stress or worry, their families clearly enjoyed each other’s company and everyone was having a really great time. Just how a wedding should be!

I met up with Erik and his guys at a nearby hotel while they were getting ready. I think Erik was nervous, but his buddies distracted him with jokes and fake mustaches to relax him a bit.

When we got to the venue, I joined Jenny in the bridal dressing room while Lara got ready. Lara was a gorgeous looking bride and paid attention to every last detail – the dress, jewelry, birdcage veil – it was all amazing!

Lara made sure her ladies were dressed to the nines, as well. I adored the necklaces she gave them as a gift. Gorgeous!

Love this shot of Lara and her dad trying to sneak a peek at Erik waiting at the altar.

One of my favorite parts of a wedding ceremony is the way the bride and groom look at each other. Almost like they’re seeing one another for the first time again.

And then there’s that “Married!” moment – that’s always a good one…

I think this first dance shot is one of my favorites ever. Such a sweet moment.

It was a beautiful day for a beautiful wedding with a gorgeous bride and beaming groom. Thanks to Jenny for having me along and a heartfelt congratulations to Lara and Erik!

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Jennifer and James were married this past weekend. Their wedding at Serenity Oaks Ranch in Valley Center, CA was a rustic garden affair that was both elegant and charming. When I first met Jennifer and James earlier this year, Jennifer was full of ideas for DIY wedding projects and seemed just giddy at the thought of seeing those ideas come to life on her wedding day.  I couldn’t wait to see what Jennifer had up her sleeve and I certainly wasn’t disappointed!

Jennifer loves to garden and all of her wedding details were a nod to her favorite pastime. Potted flowers adorned tables which were named after flowers, place cards were potted pillars of flower seeds and even included personalized pouches of seeds for the guests to plant at home. What a great way to give a gift that keeps on giving. I was so excited for Jennifer and James- they were married on a gorgeous day in front of friends and family who were all filled to the brim with happiness.  A big thank you to Mary Frances for her invaluable  help!

Here are a few of my favorites!

Jennifer and James’ ceremony was lovely. They put their own twist on a unity candle by imprinting their handprints into wet cement and having their wedding party each place a smooth pebble into the same cement. When the cement dries they will have a token of this day that will last forever and will be perfect for their very own garden!

Married!

The ranch was a great place for bridal portraits because it’s huge and had lots of great shade trees. I took the newlyweds around the grounds right after they were hitched and we spent some time making some beautiful portraits of just the two of them.

Here are some of those yummy details I mentioned before.

As the sun went down, the party began. There was lots of laughter and happiness all around.

I think my favorite part of the entire day was when Jennifer surprised James (and just about everyone else) with a song. It was sooo great! I love when brides and grooms surprise each other with something like that at the reception.

Congratulations, Jennifer and James! I am so honored to have spent such a wonderfully meaningful day with you. I hope you are having an amazing time in Cancun!

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Dorie and John’s wedding at The Inn at Hunt-Phelan in Memphis was nothing short of amazing. You may remember them from their rehearsal dinner, featuring an Elvis impersonator. Obviously this wedding was destined to be a good one, right?

What I loved about this wedding is Dorie and John weren’t afraid to do things their way. They didn’t follow any traditions unless they wanted to, and in fact, they even made up their own. The details of the wedding were a lovely arrangement of vintage elements mixed with beautifully-crafted DIY projects. Needless to say, this wedding was a dream to photograph.

There is just so much I wanted to share about this wedding, keep reading and you’ll understand why I had a hard time cutting this post down. Everything looked so great!

Dorie and John both got ready in separate quarters of The Inn at Hunt-Phelan. I say this over and over again, but it’s worth repeating: photographing a bride and/or groom getting ready for their wedding is one of my favorite parts of the day.  Dorie’s beautiful hair flower was made by JMG Jewelry Design.

Dorie wore three strands of pearls – each of them handed down from a different woman in her family. Wedding jewelry just doesn’t get any more special than that, does it?

I just adored the details of Dorie’s dress, and she looked absolutely gorgeous in it.

Meanwhile, our happy groom was getting ready for his day, and looking pretty snazzy, too.

Dorie and John chose not to see each other before the ceremony, which was just fine because their ceremony started early enough so we had plenty of amazing light to work with afterward. It was fun sneaking around the grounds taking solo portraits of them before the ceremony.

So, here is something wonderful. The only fresh flowers used at this wedding were for Dorie and her Maid of Honor’s bouquets. That’s it. The boutineirres were made out of folded maps and were purchased from Hope and Joy Studios on Etsy. I thought this was an amazing idea and the lack of fresh flowers phased absolutely no one. Love this! But, I think we can all agree at the fresh flower bouquets were quite gorgeous in their own right. They were provided by Gesture Gifts.

A vintage brooch from Dorie’s mother was pinned to her bouquet.

John runs an online music community called SongFight! and to propose to Dorie he enlisted the help of some of his SongFight friends by having them each write a love song for Dorie. When he posted those songs online, he showed them to Dorie and stayed nearby with a ring while she listened to the songs. So sweet! Those same songs were played during the ceremony and made into a mix CD called “Super Secret Love Maneuver”, which  was given out to the guests as a favor. The amazing programs were designed by Dorie’s friend, Sara Jackson.

This cute ring plate was made by Elm Studios – another Etsy find!

Dorie was walked down the aisle by both of her parents, which is something I love to see.

Now here’s where the new traditions come in. Dorie and John decided to literally “tie the knot” during their ceremony. They used two pieces of rope – one from Dorie’s family, and one from John’s family – and tied the two ends together. I thought this was a beautiful idea and I fully expect it to catch on and see it in other weddings!

Hooray, they’re married!

The grounds at The Inn were beautiful and perfect. I stole these two away after their ceremony and had so much fun photographing them. I think they had fun, too.

Never has sun flare in a portrait been more appropriate. You Are My Sunshine sign made by YeeHaw Industries.

Here are even more amazing details from the reception. I think i squeed a million times checking out all the craftiness that was put into this wedding.

These beautiful (and yummy!) cupcakes were provided by Sugar Bowl Cupcakes. The birds cake topper  was made by Dorie and embellished with a piece of Dorie’s mom’s wedding dress and some old modeling clay of John’s – making it unique and special to them.

In lieu of the standard floral centerpieces, beautiful lanterns adorned the tables and guests were invited to take their favorite ones home. Now that’s what I call a wedding favor!

And of course there was a photo booth. This one was from Party Booths, and it was an absolute hit.

The rest of the night was one big dance party, naturally. These are people who know how to have fun. I will leave you with these sweet images of Dorie and John’s first dance as husband and wife.

There are a million more images where these came from, but I must stop here! Stay tuned for another post featuring this couple’s Day After session on Beale Street. Yes! You are excited! So am I.

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Hey, y’all – I’m in Memphis! I have the distinct honor of spending the weekend in Elvis’ hometown to photograph Dorie and John’s wedding. The wedding is tomorrow (or today, depending on which timezone you’re in), but today the festivities started with a really great rehearsal dinner. I don’t get to shoot rehearsal dinners a lot, so this was particularly fun for me. It’s really wonderful to get to meet close family and friends before the wedding so that on the big day, people who know I am and they’re already comfortable with me and my camera. Love it!

It’s definitely out of the norm for me to blog images the day they were taken, but I wanted to rest up before the wedding and there’s not much else to do in this hotel room, so of course I had to spend the evening processing photos.

I went to the wedding venue to check out the grounds while Dorie, John and their wedding party were there rehearsing. I can’t wait for the real event!

I loved the details Dorie and her mom put together for the dinner. All of the tablecloths are vintage and belonged to Dorie’s grandmother. They were beautiful and were such a great way to personalize the tables.

Here’s Dorie doing her best Elvis impersonation

But then this guy tried to show her up. I have to admit, he gets extra points for the outfit.

I discovered babies are skeptical of Elvis impersonators. Go figure.

John is a musician – as are several of his friends – so to close the evening out, guests were treated to some acoustic songs by candlelight. Even though it was pitch black out, I purposely didn’t use my flash in order to capture the mood and ambiance of this impromptu concert.

Dorie’s dad was totally feeling it.

I am so excited for Dorie and John’s wedding tomorrow – it’s gonna be amazing!

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Annie and Robin’s Los Angeles Arboretum wedding was nothing short of amazing. You may remember this beautiful couple from their Huntington Gardens and Malibu Beach engagement session. I’ve already told you how much fun that session was, so needless to say I couldn’t wait for their wedding!

Cat and her team at Lemon Drop Socials Weddings & Events pulled all of the details of the day together – and what beautiful details they were! I would be remiss in not thanking Jen Berry and Ala Cortez, my second shooters for the day. Thanks, girls!

The other vendors who made the day possible:
Caterer: Grace Catering (who cooked a ten-course traditional Chinese meal on-site!)
Florals: Cat Tuong Flowers
Lighting: Mobile Illumination
DJ: Ernee Felix
Cake: Amor Bakery

The day started with two Chinese tea ceremonies, which I was excited about. Robin and Annie’s families are fun and rambunctious, but the meaning of the tea ceremony was not lost on them and  I loved watching them start the day with such a beautiful tradition.

Right after the tea ceremonies, Annie prepared for the wedding ceremony.

To say Annie looked stunning would be the understatement of the century. See for yourself.

Loved, loved, LOVED Annie’s shoes!

The Arboretum was a great place for wedding party and bridal portraits. There’s no shortage of scenery!

The ceremony took place in the Arboretum’s rose garden, which provided a perfect backdrop with gorgeous light.

I was standing close to Robin as Annie began her walk towards him down the aisle. The moment he saw her he said, “Oh, wow. I’m going cry.” I turned around and snapped this shot. He managed to keep it together (mostly), but I love how you can see the pride, love and excitement on his face.

A Japanese sensei performed the ceremony and it was quite beautiful.

After the ceremony I took the newlyweds around for some portraits. These two are seriously fun to photograph, so I may have gone a little overboard.

This is probably my favorite from the day. It just feels so quiet and peaceful.

The reception was awesome. Not only did Annie and Robin incorporate elements important to their culture, but they also made it very personalized. The place cards were small potted flowers for each guest too keep, which I thought was lovely. Also, I was pleased to find they they got good use out of their engagement photos with a sign-in book, in addition to a photo family tree and a large framed print at the entrance. Perfect examples of ways to utilize your engagement photos!

The reception’s kick off was a Chinese lion dance, which was so unbelievably awesome. That’s how you start a party, people!

Robin is part of a Taiko drumming group who also performed. They invited Robin to join them, who  of course had to show his bride how it’s done! So cute.

I have to stop myself here because I could go on and on about this wedding. Annie and Robin, thank you for letting me share in this amazing day with you. You are amazing people and I am so honored to have been a part of this chapter in your life.

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When my best friend Kim called me to tell me she was engaged, one of the first things we talked about – after squeeing into the phone for five minutes – was who her bridesmaids were going to be. Kim and I have known each other since we were 12 (I’d appreciate it if you didn’t ask me how long ago that was!) and talked about being in each other’s weddings well before either of us were even close to being married.

Kim was the maid of honor at my wedding and I was looking forward to being a bridesmaid in hers. As our conversation progressed, the topic of wedding photography came up and Kim said to me, “Can’t you be a bridesmaid and the photographer at the same time? I don’t want anyone else to shoot my wedding!”

While I appreciated the gesture, I had been gearing up to be a bridesmaid in this particular wedding since I was 12 and there was no way I was going to work it as well! Normally I absolutely love shooting friends’ weddings because it allows me to really be a part of the day, but this is the one friend’s wedding I did not want to photograph. So, I plainly answered Kim’s question with a simple, “Um, no.”

So, we agreed that she would hire another photographer and I would just enjoy the day as a best friend and bridesmaid. Mark Leonard was hired as the photographer for the day. It was an interesting feeling not walking around at a wedding with all of my camera gear strapped to me, but I managed. And, I have to admit I did have my camera nearby most of the day and captured a few moments. I am used to seeing the world through my lens, after all, so it wouldn’t have felt right to go the entire day without making any images at all.

So, here’s the wedding of Kim and Johnny as seen through the eye of a bridesmaid. Kim and Johnny, I love you both so much and cannot be happier that you’re on this lifetime journey together. Kim, you are my oldest and dearest friend and I don’t know where I would be without you. Johnny, thank you for taking care of her so well.

Love,

*ME*

Love these shots of Kim’s sister and brother (who are, for all intents and purposes MY brother and sister) getting ready.

And how beautiful is my best friend? Right?!

This shot of Kim’s grandpa seeing her in her dress for the first time brings tears to my eyes every time. Kim and her grandpa have a very special relationship so I know how amazing this moment was.

This adorable little guy is Kim and Johnny’s nephew, Lyndon. He is the most smiley baby ever, I loved him!

Lyndon looked quite dashing in his kilt. Here he is with his proud grandma Linda and aunt Kimmy.

I was kicking back watching Mark take some portraits of Kim when I caught her mom watching them and fighting back tears. That’s her baby girl in a wedding dress, about to get married!  Such a beautiful moment that I don’t think Kim was even aware happened.

Kim wrote her vows out on a pad of paper she found at the hotel. I don’t know why I think this is so awesome, but I do.

From the sneak peek…

And probably my favorite image from the day…

And look! I don’t have any photos from the ceremony because I was in it! Weird. The reception got under way and the normally subdued Johnny got a little, um, freaky with it.

And Kim wasn’t exactly a wallflower…

So there you have it, my best friend’s wedding. It was a truly great day.

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