Simple San Francisco City Hall Elopement » San Francisco, California

Gillian and J kept it simple by eloping at San Francisco City Hall and flying their parents in celebrate the occasion. It was sweet and neat, just as Gillian had hoped!

South of Yosemite Pines Resort Destination Wedding » Bass Lake, California

Ana and Joe love the great outdoors and love backpacking all around California. So it made sense when they chose to get married at The Pines Resort in Bass Lake. They jokingly referred to the location as “SoYo” otherwise known as South Yosemite. Their intimate wedding party included 50 of their closest friends and family who all stayed at the resort to spend the long weekend enjoying the lake and local trails. Ana and Joe made sure to provide all of their guests with a little welcome box of goodies. In addition to the thoughtful presents, Ana and Joe DIYed all of the decor with each table featuring an animal or tree species native to the Sierras. After their lakeside nuptials, which featured a hand-fasting ceremony, we took a break to take some photos on the nearby dock before heading back for dinner and dancing. My favorite part of the day was watching the sun dip down behind the mountains while the guests enjoyed the toasts and dessert.

VIVIAN & DRAGOS' Remote Corner of Iceland Wedding Celebration » A Practical Wedding

I am so so so x million excited to finally share Vivian and Dragos’ magical Iceland wedding on A Practical Wedding today! From the Icelandic adventure to the story of how I ended up meeting and photographing my name twin’s wedding, the whole celebration is one of my proudest moments as a wedding photographer. I am so grateful to have been apart of their incredible journey! You can read more about their wedding here.

Winter San Francisco City Hall Elopement » San Francisco, California

Jen and Mark were married on a warm and sunny December day at San Francisco City Hall. They kept it small and simple, inviting only their close friends and family. City hall was decorated for the holidays so we were treated to a beautifully lit Christmas tree in the rotunda for the ceremony. Afterwards, we shot portraits in the lovely diffuse light before heading outside for a few more photos under the cafe lights of Civic Center plaza.

Jewel Lake Tilden Park Engagement Session » Berkeley, California

Katya and Matt met at UC Berkeley and spent a lot of time together at the nearby Tilden Park. For their autumn engagement session, we explored the Jewel Lake trail and took in the gorgeous fall foliage.

Asian Art Museum Wedding » San Francisco, California

As members of the Asian Art Museum, choosing this historic venue was a no brainer for Sylvia and Andrew. They knew that by having their wedding celebration would be supporting one of their favorite places in San Francisco. We started the day at the beautiful waterfront Hyatt Regency Hotel where they held a traditional tea ceremony as a nod to their Chinese heritage. Afterwards, the wedding party, armed with bubble guns piled into a couple of pedicabs and we made our way down San Francisco’s Market Street, receiving congratulatory messages along the way. Upon arriving at the museum, we took some time to explore the galleries before heading to the ceremony held on the grand staircase. Their delightful dinner reception included a quiz about the couple where guests showed off their knowledge and competed for wine bottles. Sylvia surprised Andrew with a sweet ukulele performance before kicking off the evening with desserts and dancing.

Venue: San Francisco Asian Art Museum // Hotel: Hyatt Regency // Wedding Planner: 2 the 9s Events // Catering: Jane Hammond Events // Floral Design: Poppy’s Petalworks // Rentals: Bright Event Rentals // Lighting: Love in the Mix // Cake: The Cakemaker // Hair & Make-Up: Dreamcatcher Artistry // Videography: Shutter & Sound // DJ: DJ eTunes // Transportation: Cabrio Taxi Pedicabs // Invitations: Minted // Sylvia’s Dress: Watters from Papers and Petals // Sylvia’s Shoes: Badgley Mischka // Andrew’s Tux & Shoes: Generation Tux // Rings: Derco & Gordon Aatlo // Second Photographer: Nicole Morrison

Abandoned Naval Base Engagement Session » Alameda, California

Gina and Scott wanted to do something a little different for their engagement session, so they chose the abandoned naval base in Alameda. We started with the rusted and decaying airplane hangars before having a little fun on their skateboards. We wrapped up the shoot with a sunset overlooking the San Francisco city skyline.

Autumn Sunset Sutro Baths Engagement Session » San Francisco, California

Zelin and Yitian are getting married in China but they fell in love in San Francisco and wanted to have an engagement session in their favorite spot in the city. Lands End and the ruins of Sutro Baths combines all the beauty of the California coast so we headed there for a gorgeous autumn engagement session.

Untraditional Pema Osel Ling Redwood Grove Wedding » Watsonville, California

Meredith and Jorge chose the untraditional route for their redwood wedding in the Santa Cruz Mountains. They rented out Pema Osel Ling, a Tibetan Buddhist retreat, which allowed all of their wedding guests to spend the long weekend together. Florali provided the gorgeous floral arrangements while A Paper Flower Wedding helped keep the day flowing without a hitch. Since Meredith is a professional dancer and Jorge is a writer, their creative backgrounds meant that their celebration was uniquely them. Instead of a white dress, Meredith wore a custom made soft green draped shift gown. Instead of a typical wedding ceremony, Meredith and Jorge sat in the round and their friends sang songs and read poems. Since Jorge’s family is from Spain, every part of the day was translated from English to Spanish and vice versa. After the ceremony under the redwoods, everyone headed down to the Shrine lawn for a delicious family style meal paired with delicious Spanish wines. And of course, the evening wrapped up with an epic dance party that went well into the night.

Magical + Remote Hotel Budir Wedding » Snaefellsnes Peninsula, Iceland

// Part 1 of Vivian & Dragos’ Icelandic wedding celebration can be found here. //

The Wedding Weekend

After Thursday’s epic road trip engagement session, we all met up again for the wedding weekend. Nestled on a lava field on the Snaefellsnell Peninsula, Hotel Búðir provided the perfect backdrop for Vivian and Dragos’ celebration. Whether it was the famous black church Búðakirkja, Snæfellsjökull Glacier, the Búðir-estuary, or the expansive mountain range speckled with waterfalls, you were treated to a stunning view no matter which direction you looked. The hotel is also home to a sweet mastiff named Thor who likes to spend his evenings watching the tide go out and chasing seals. (Not that he’s ever caught one!)

Gathering 71 of your closest friends and family for a destination wedding in Iceland means pulling out all the stops. Just one day of celebration wasn’t enough so before their Sunday nuptials, Vivian and Dragos kicked off the festivities with a beach bonfire Saturday night with local drinks and barbecue. I was invited to attend and felt at home. Everyone was so warm and welcoming and I especially enjoyed introducing myself as “the Other Vivian Chen” among her friends. The evening continued and impromptu toasts were given as the moon rose above the horizon. Once the embers died down, guests were treated to roasted marshmallows and s’mores. Those who braved the dropping temperatures a bit longer were rewarded a beautiful display of the northern lights, dancing in the sky.

The Big Day

The next morning, Vivian and Dragos got ready in the hotel while guests spent the morning riding horses or exploring local lava caves. For their first look, we chose a spot next to the hotel near the dock with a view of the mountain range and the estuary. After a few sweet moment alone, Vivian and Dragos gathered with their wedding party and headed over to the ceremony site down by the beach. Their good friend Anna played a beautiful rendition of Sigur Rós’ “Starálfur” on her violin as Vivian and her father walked down the grass path where everyone was waiting. Their friend, Laura, who threw the housewarming party where Vivian and Dragos first met, officiated the ceremony. In addition to exchanging rings, they drank traditional spirits—homemade Romanian plum wine and Chinese baijiu—out of chalices. After they sealed their vows with a kiss, Vivian and Dragos lead everyone back to the hotel for cocktails. As Dragos earned his degree in mathematics, they had their guests try to find their seat assignments by answered riddles and math equations (some more successfully than others!) As the evening light faded away, everyone was treated to a delicious three course meal in the cozy dining room before heading out to the lobby for dessert and a dance party that went on well into the night. It was an incredible wedding weekend that was made even more magical because of the connection Vivian and I felt for one another.

Wedding Venue: Hótel Búðir // Floral Design: Thordis // Hair + Make-Up: Margret Magnus // Baker: Sætar Syndir // DJ: Atli Már Gylfason // Vivian’s Dress: Enzoani (Handmade cape by Vivian’s mother) // Vivian’s Shoes: Aquazurra // Dragos’ Suit: Enzo Custom // Paper Goods: Minted // Rings: ID Jewelry

Relaxed Yokayo Ranch Wedding Weekend » Ukiah, California

Laura and Jake are one of my chillest and most stylish couples I know. The plan for their wedding was to ignore all the stuffy traditions and just get a good group of their favorite people together for a fun weekend away. Yokayo Ranch in Ukiah was the perfect venue for this. Their families and wedding party stayed with them on the ranch, which made getting ready on the day of just a continuation of the weekend festivities. Since both Jake and Laura work in the restaurant industry (Jake owns Hardwood Bar & Smokery in San Francisco), I knew that they would pull out all the stops for their meal and they did not disappoint. After dinner, the guests were treated to delicious dessert and a bud bar with personalized prerolls. My favorite part of the day was Laura and Jake’s dog Frank. He was with them every step of the day, from first look to walking down the aisle and sitting with them for the ceremony to partying on the dance floor. He’s so beloved that they even made enamel pins and personalized homemade hot sauce in his honor. Truly the best wedding pup ever!

Epic South Iceland Engagement Session » Iceland

When Vivian Chen from Brooklyn, NY reached out me over a year ago, her email gave me goosebumps. Here was another Vivian Chen living on the opposite side of the country wondering if I would shoot her destination wedding in Iceland. Moments prior to seeing her email in my inbox, I had been literally daydreaming about going back to Iceland. Since we had the same name, this East Coast Vivian said she had been stalking me for years, hoping I’d give up the URL “vivianchen.com”. When she got engaged and started planning her wedding, she decided on a whim to contact me. Her inquiry felt too serendipitous to pass up, so I immediately wrote her back and a few days later we were video chatting. From our mutual love of cats, similar home design aesthetics and easy going personalities, we clicked immediately and it felt like I was talking to an old friend. There was no question we’d be going on an Icelandic wedding adventure together.

Three days before the wedding, we shot an epic engagement session that took us along the most scenic parts of South Iceland. Originally Vivian wanted to just go to the black sand beach but when I found out that we had the whole day free, I said, if you’re up for driving all day, let’s hit up a few more spots! And of course, she and Dragos were up for the drive. Setting out early in the morning, we started our day long portrait session at Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon before driving to Fjaðrárgljúfur Canyon and ending the day at the black sand beaches of Reynisfjara. And of course, we stopped to say hello to Icelandic horses along the way.