Did you know that there are more than a thousand wedding venues in the San Francisco Bay Area? We are always super excited to work in venues where we have never worked at before. It’s such a thrill to scout the new location and find possibilities for some crazy creative portraits – often times we get all excited about a lamp, some door, or sometimes even a dark corner! We are super grateful to have wonderful clients who trust us to bring our creative vision to life and don’t hesitate for a second when asked to pose in unusual places. They trust us and know it’s going to be all worth it in the end.

There are also many venues that we’ve already worked at over the past five years. One such place is the Ralston Hall Mansion in Belmont. This setting has so much to offer for creative images: there’s of course the gorgeous ballroom, vintage mirrors, lamps, and staircases. Outside of the Ralston Hall there’s also a bamboo grove, rustic walls, fences, beautiful greenery, and lots of shade. The possibilities are truly inspiring.

Tatiyana and Jeffrey got married on the front lawn of the Ralston Hall. I absolutely loved how they included elements of Jewish as well as Persian wedding ceremonies – there was a beautiful Sofreh Aghd (a table beautifully decorated with symbolic items such as a mirror, bread, coins, walnuts, honey, and crystallized sugar) and they also included the traditions of honey-feeding and the breaking of a glass at the end. The day was warm, beautiful, and filled to the brim with energy.

Here are some favorites:

We love finding a great setting for setting up the First Look. This is the moment when the couple gets to see each other in private for the first time in wedding clothes and the emotions can be overwhelming.

It seemed here that Jeffrey was so smitten by Tatiyana’s beauty that he was afraid at first to touch her or the dress even while kissing her :)

We had beautiful light for the ceremony:

Their reception had so much laughter and such great toasts that it was too easy to capture the awesome moments:

Congratulations to this wonderful couple! Your wedding day was so vibrant and the energy was overwhelming. We wish you guys a lifetime of happiness together.

Ceremony & Reception Venue: Ralston Hall Mansion
Video: Fisheye Productions
DJ: Wildnights
Florals: Blooming Vase
Catering: Badry’s Catering

Some time ago, when we were deciding on the date for our own wedding and planning how many weekends we should have free around our wedding date we decided that we’ll take on a job the weekend after ours only if it’s going to be a very special opportunity. When we got to meet Megan and Albert last November right away we were inspired by their connection as well as by their love of photography. We captured Megan and Albert’s wedding as a newly minted husband & wife team only 8 days after our own!

The connection these guys share is undeniable and it made it so easy and enjoyable to create art for them. We also absolutely loved their choice of reception venue- The Rotunda at Neiman Marcus! It looked so amazing and unusual, the guests sat all around it and enjoyed a beautiful view of Union Square.

We loved having enough time for our portrait ideas as well as to be able to cover all the unscripted moments of emotion throughout the day. We are so glad to have met you guys and we hope our photographs will bring you a lifetime of blissful memories:

We loved all the details Megan and Albert prepared for their guests following the ceremony:

There was no shortage of love and excitement from their close ones:

The Maiden Lane near Union Square can be so much fun for portraits:

The Rotunda at Neiman Marcus in San Francisco is a simply stunning setting for a wedding reception:

Some of the toasts took place around the giant circle of the Rotunda and it made for some dramatic moments:

All the wonderful vendors of he day:

Ceremony Venue: UC Berkeley Campus
Reception Venue: The Rotunda at Neiman Marcus
Hair & Makeup: A-List Makeup
Wedding Coordinator: Chandara Phanachone
Video: Blue Moon Productions
DJ/Band: 106.1 KMEL Productions
Florals: Calla Lily Wedding Flowers
Catering: The Rotunda
Wedding Planning & Design: Chandara Phanachone

WOW it’s been a long time since we last posted on our blog! We have shot a bunch of beautiful and fun weddings and I promise to blog every single one of them soon!

I’d guess that the majority of our fans already know this, but for those who don’t, we have an announcement to make – as of September 10th Choco Studio became a husband and wife team! It still feels a bit weird to be a wife :)

For a very long time we did not know exactly how we wanted for the wedding to look like – but we knew from the beginning what we wanted the day to feel like. We both wanted it to be authentic, organic, warm, real, full of love and meaning for us.

We’ve possibly upset quite a few people because we didn’t want to do anything just for the sake of traditions, but only the ones that are meaningful to us, and ones that would resonate in our hearts. It was a bit difficult to go against the grain, but at the end of the day I think it was all worth it as the wedding turned out to be a true reflection of us.

We’ll be sure to share more with you in the upcoming weeks. I can’t wait to show all the details and DIY projects we did! :) We are anxiously waiting for the wedding photographs which should be ready (hopefully) soon!!!

And, because I’d hate to leave you without any pictures, here’s the inspiration board I put together during the wedding planning using pictures from different wedding blogs:

The images above have been collected from countless blogs and websites and we greatly appreciate the ideas and inspiration contained within them. We will be sharing our own wedding photos as soon as they are available.

Have a great start to the week!

Natasha