Andrena Photography Blog »

The wedding of Priya and Rajiv took place at 11 a.m. on a sunny day at the beautiful Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. Coordinated by the fabulous Pinaki and Raakhi at Pink Rock Events, with decor by the uber-fabulous Fayaz at Bloom Box Designs, this South Indian wedding was truly lovely to behold. Fayaz worked bird cages into the lushly asymmetrical mandap, and the orange and green color palette photographed beautifully, even in the unforgiving bright sun. The ballroom was decorated in beautiful purple and reds, with cherry blossom gobos on the wall. Lighting was by the always wonderful Amber Event Production, videography was by Samson Pro, and makeup and hair was by Oscar Naranjo. Fun fact: I got such a bad sunburn at this wedding (because I accidentally forgot to wear sunscreen) that I was shivering with chills all night. I then peeled for weeks. Reminder to self: Don’t. Forget. The. Sunscreen.

It was an unexpectedly rainy day, and the wind was just silly, but the indoor Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel wedding of Mili and Srini went off without a hitch. The team from Rose Events coordinated the event, and did a great job changing things on the fly as the weather became inclement; the folks at the Ritz-Carlton were also super-helpful as things began to change. The always incredible Shawna Yamamoto handled the design and decor for the event, using yellows, whites and glass bubbles for the mandap and ceremony decor, and beautiful purples and golds for the reception. The talented Kevin Shahinian at Pacific Pictures handled cinematography, and we both felt each other’s pain as we arrived at 5:30 a.m. to shoot one of the pujas (LOL). The team at Special Occasions did a fabulous job with both DJ artistry and lighting, and Oscar Naranjo worked his delightful brand of magic on makeup and hair.

Susan and Neerav’s wedding took place at the Laguna Cliffs Marriott. Susan’s unique green lengha was offset beautifully by the orange mandap created by the lovely Smita Mohindra at Ethnic Essence, who also handled the bouquets, florals and reception decor. Neerav swanked it up for the reception, which was decorated in a fuschia-and-candlelight palette. Susan’s distinctive white reception outfit had the most beautiful skirt that fluffed out when she spun around, so of course, I asked her to spin and spin and spin until I got just the right shot. Oscar Naranjo did a wonderful job on Susan’s hair and makeup.

A rainy-day wedding at the Ritz-Carlton Laguna Niguel. With expert coordination by Pinaki and Raakhi at Pink Rock Events, who did a great job managing this event as the weather causes minute-by-minute changes. The wonderful Shawna Yamamoto at Shawna Yamamoto Event Design handled the florals and decor, working dark pinks and fuschias in with dark wood and reds for the ceremony, then creating a truly unique midsummer night’s dream for the reception. The soft and lush trees that she created were truly unique, as was the incredible cake, which featured differently designed layers (each its own art piece) presented on a gold tree. As a photographer, I always love seeing things that I haven’t seen before, and I can assure you that I had never seen decor or a tree quite like this. I also really loved the favors, which contained colorful Chiclets-style gum. Hair and makeup was provided by the always-awesome Jeannie Jeffries at Couture Beauty, with lighting by the team at Amber Event Production, video by Robles Video and DJ rockitude by DJ Rishi P. I also did a day-after session for this sweet couple, which is always something I try to do if it rains on the wedding day. With second shooting by the always wonderful Yoshi Morimoto.