Recepción/Venue: St. Regis Monarch Beach – Dana Point
Coordinadora/Wedding Planner: Kiley Walker

↓ Photo by René Miranda

↓ Photo by René Miranda

ENGLISH
Tatiana and Darren jumped the broom a few weeks ago at the beautiful Villa Cascata in Malibu. I’d been wanting to shoot at this amazing venue for the longest time and what better couple than these two. This breathtaking Italian Villa sits atop the Malibu hills overlooking the white water at Paradise Cove, Little Dume and beyond.

Tatiana and Darren, thank you for having me at your wedding!

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ESPAÑOL
Tatiana y Darren ‘saltaron la escoba’ hace un par de semanas en la hermosa Villa Cascata en Malibu. Hace mucho tiempo que quería cubrir una boda en este lugar y qué mejor que con esta pareja. Esta espectacular villa Italiana está situada en la cima de las montañas de Malibu desde donde se puede observar el Océano Pacífico en todo su esplendor.

Tatiana y Darren, mil gracias por haberme dado la posibilidad de capturar vuestro hermoso día.

Recepción/Venue: Villa Cascata Malibu
Coordinadora/Wedding Planner: OneFourThree Events
Música Ceremonial/Ceremony Music: Ryan Cross
Comida/Caterer: Monrose Catering
Invitations: Cat Seto
Paper Goods: Paola Parsons of {love+cupcakes}
DJ: Tendaji Lathan

by René Miranda ↓

by René Miranda ↓

by René Miranda ↓

Just one from yesterday’s wedding at the St. Regis Monarch Beach during Nicole & Matt’s first look at the Rotunda… more to come soon.

ENGLISH
I’ve seen my images published before but it doesn’t matter how many times that has happened in the past, it’s always a great feeling to see your photos printed on the pages of a magazine… specially if you get the cover! In this digital era you can feel something special about the ‘touchy-feely’ nature of the printed medium.

Yesterday I received a copy of the latest issue of Latino Bride & Groom and I didn’t even have to browse the pages to look for Cynthia & Luis’ photos of their Malibu Saddlerock Ranch wedding since they were right there staring at me, on the cover.

Usually magazines choose a wedding for publication when it has a combination of elements that make it appealing to their target market being a beautiful couple one of the most important elements. The editors had to look no further when they saw these two. Thanks to everyone that made this possible!

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ESPAÑOL
He visto mis fotos publicadas antes pero no importa cuantas veces esto haya pasado, siempre se siente muy bien ver tus propias imágenes impresas en las páginas de una revista… especialmente si se trata la portada! En esta era digital hay algo acerca de la naturaleza del medio impreso que hace que todo sea más especial.

Ayer recibí una copia del más reciente ejemplar de la revista Latino Bride & Groom y ni siquiera tuve que pasar las páginas para encontrar las fotos de la hermosa boda de Cynthia y Luis en Malibu ya que ellos estaban allí mismo mirándome, en la portada!

Generalmente las revistas eligen una boda para publicación cuando reúne una serie de elementos que la hacen atractiva para su mercado siendo una hermosa pareja uno de los elementos más importantes por supuesto. Basados en eso supongo que los editores no tuvieron que buscar más luego de ver a estos dos Gracias a todos los que hicieron esto posible!

ENGLISH
Walking into the Cicada Restaurant at The Oviatt Building is like going back in time, so much so that on most Sunday nights, the restaurant converts into a 1920s-’30s style nightclub, Maxwell DeMille’s Cicada Club, complete with live bands/orchestras, singers, and dance floor. This Art Deco highrise in Downtown Los Angeles was listed in the National Register of Historic Places and it is also designated as a Los Angeles Historic-Cultural Monument.

Shooting Kristen & Jakub’s wedding there was incredible and hopefully I’ll be shooting many more!

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ESPAÑOL
Entrar al Cicada Restaurant en el Oviatt Building es como viajar al pasado, tanto es así que los Domingos por la noche el restaurante se convierte en un club de los años 20, Maxwell DeMille’s Cicada Club, completo con orquestas y bandas en vivo, cantantes y pista de baile. Este edificio Art Deco del centro de Los Angeles fue listado en el Registro Nacional de Lugares Históricos y fue nombrado Monumento Histórico-Cultural de la ciudad.

Fotografiar la boda de Kristen y Jakub allí fue increíble y espero poder hacer muchas más!

Recepción/Venue: Cicada Restaurant
Iglesia/Church: La Cañada Presbyterian Church
Coordinadora/Wedding Planner: Tobey Dodge
Peinado y Maquillaje/Hair & Makeup: Nuevo Studio for Hair
Video/Videographer: Couture Cinema
Música/Band: Rik Howard Music

Groom getting ready photos by René Miranda

“The Oviatt Building” Documentary Trailer

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On April 2007 Jennifer and David got married at the beautiful Ahwahnee Hotel in Yosemite. Theirs was the first wedding I shot at this incredible venue and since then I’ve been back every year to shoot more couples that found out about my photography after DNC Parks & Resorts -authorized concessioner of the National Park Service- included me in their preferred vendor list.
A few days ago I found out with surprise that one of the images from Jennifer and David’s wedding had been used for the cover of one of the brochures Yosemite Weddings distributes everywhere. The photo was shot during their ceremony on the main lawn and you can see one of Yosemite’s magnificent waterfalls in the background.
It’s an incredible honor and a privilege to be able to shoot my clients in a place that many consider to be the most beautiful place on earth. Can’t wait to shoot my next wedding in Yosemite in a few weeks!
Don’t hesitate to contact me if you’re getting married in Yosemite… I’d love to shoot you there!

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ESPAÑOL
En Abril del 2007 Jennifer y David se casaron en el hermoso Hotel Ahwahnee del Parque Nacional Yosemite. La suya fue la primer boda que realicé en este increíble lugar y desde entonces he vuelto a fotografiar a otras parejas cada año varias veces por año ya que DNC Parks & Resorts -compañía que maneja la concesión del parque- me incluyó en su lista de fotógrafos preferidos luego de aquella primer boda.
Hace unos días me enteré con agrado de que una de las imágenes de la boda de Jennifer y David había sido utilizada en la portada de uno de los folletos de bodas de Yosemite Weddings. En la foto se puede observar la pareja durante la ceremonia al aire libre y en el fondo una de las espectaculares cascadas.
Es un increíble honor y un privilegio poder fotografiar a mis clientes en el que muchos consideran el lugar más hermoso del planeta. Ya estoy ansioso de fotografiar mi próxima boda allí en un par de semanas.
No dudes en contactarme si piensas en casarte en Yosemite!

Cover image by Rodolfo Arpia Photographer

Style Me Pretty feature

ENGLISH
While traveling in Florida I found out that the wedding of Cynthia & Luis had been featured on Style Me Pretty. I loved shooting their wedding at the Saddlerock Ranch in Malibu and working with Angel Swanson of Events of Love and Splendor once again was the icing on the cake.

Thanks Style Me Pretty for the feature and all the great vendors that made Cynthia & Luis’ wedding great!
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE FEATURE!
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ESPAÑOL
Mientras estaba de viaje en la Florida me enteré que la boda de Cynthia y Luis había sido publicada en el blog de Style Me Pretty. Me encantó fotografiar la boda de Cynthia y Luis en el Saddlerock Ranch en Malibu y trabajar con Angel Swanson de Events of Love and Splendor una vez más fue un plus.

Gracias Style Me Pretty por la publicación y gracias a todos los proveedores que participaron para que esta boda fuera fabulosa!
CLICK AQUI PARA VER LA PUBLICACION!

ENGLISH
Definitely, Cynthia and Luis’ wedding was one of the highlights of 2010. A great venue, amazing details and wonderful people made this day one to remember.

I was thrilled to see this shoot featured on Grey Likes Weddings and I must thank everyone that made that possible.

In Cynthia’s words…

I have always been drawn to the old Spanish/Mexican elegance, and knew I wanted to incorporate part of our heritage and culture in the wedding. I love the Diego Rivera/Frida Khalo era and decided to include some details that fit in with a simple, yet romantic and elegant Spanish/Mexican affair that didn’t scream cheesy Mexican fiesta. To reflect this theme we decided on a dark cobalt/navy blue, shades of tan, and vibrant pops of fuchsia and other lively colors. I wanted to be as authentic as possible with the décor for the wedding, and I knew that trying to buy original and handcrafted Mexican items from L.A. would be either too expensive or extremely difficult. So instead I found a cheap ticket and flew into Guadalajara, Mexico for a weekend to go scavenger hunting with my relatives who live there. I went directly to the city where they hand-painted talavera ceramics and blown glass pieces are manufactured, and negotiated directly with the artisans.

Our wedding ceremony was held at the chapel at LMU, where I went to school both for my undergrad and grad degrees. Having the privilege as an alum to get married in this gorgeous chapel, and to have my very first professor and mentor at LMU officiate our ceremony, was extremely special. Choosing an outdoor venue that fit both the look of the wedding that I was aiming for and that spoke to who we are (traveling wine and animal lovers who enjoy the outdoors) I thought would be difficult, that is until the gates of Saddlerock Ranch in Malibu opened and we drove into a place that is sort of a world all on its own. It was the best of both worlds: large manicured lawns, oak trees, rolling hillsides covered with vineyards, and did I mention the exotic animals? Zebras, camels, and buffalo, Oh my! This was the first and only venue we physically looked at, and knew instantly that this was the perfect place for us.

For the cocktail reception we wanted to keep the décor to a minimum so that our guests could simply enjoy the charm and beauty of Saddlerock Ranch. We used hay bales and old wine barrels that we rented from the ranch. In addition to providing a delicious Spanish infused menu, Contemporary Catering also provided carrots and apples for our guests to feed the animals during the cocktail hour. For the reception we used a mixture of hand painted talavera pottery and cobalt blown glass pieces for the floral centerpiece arrangements; I purchased Mexican tiles for the table numbers and matching hand painted clay bells that also had our initials and wedding date to double as favors and guest seating cards. I bought hand crafted tin stars from Mexico in various designs and sizes to hang over the dance floor, in lieu of renting chandeliers. Drawing from the designs found on talavera pottery, Mekala at Tie That Binds created a custom suite of gorgeous letterpressed invites. Mekala was able to capture and conceptualize our theme beautifully and created a unique design that stood out in a subtle yet elegant way. She carried this design throughout our stationery elements for the buffet table menus, custom drink list, dessert table, favor tags, ceremony programs, and guest sign-in cards. Since we chose to serve our favorite desserts instead of the traditional wedding cake, we had a small cake made and used the border detail and monogram design from our invites to decorate the cake as well.

Executing a seamless day and ensuring that all of our hard work paid off was all thanks to Angel and her team at Events of Love and Splendor. I knew even before diving into wedding planning that I was going to need someone who was reliable, super detail oriented, and had a fantastic sense of style and creativity. She was one of the first vendors we booked and I was so blessed to have her on board as a central part of the amazing vendor team we worked with.

Favorite moment(s):
I can’t say I have only one. It’s hard to pick, from my mom’s reaction to when I gave her the photo book I made for her from one of my dress fittings (photos courtesy of our fabulous photographer); to when my dad walked in to our hotel room and teared up when he saw me all dressed up in my gown; to when the doors opened at the church… the church I had been to many times before as a student and staff and now taking the walk down the aisle as a bride towards the man I would spend the rest of my life with; getting roasted by my brother/the best man; when I surprised my husband and sang “Love Song” to him, accompanied by our Spanish guitar trio; or our walk alone around the silent ranch after everyone had left and visiting the camel “ET” at 2am before heading to our hotel. The whole day was a day I will never forget and even months later I am still hearing people rave about what a beautiful, personal, and fun wedding it was.

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ESPAÑOL
La boda de Cynthia y Luis fue sin duda uno de los eventos destacados del 2010. Una excelente ubicación, detalles espectaculares y gente con la mejor de las ondas hicieron de este día uno para recordar.

Me sorprendí mucho al ver esta boda como destacada en el blog Grey Likes Weddings y quiero agradecer a todas las personas que hicieron que el día especial de Cynthia y Luis lo fuera más aún.

Aquí los dejo con algunas fotografías que solo muestran algunos de los momentos tan especiales que la pareja, familiares y amigos vivieron con intensidad. Ojalá que estas imágenes logren revivir en años futuros lo que han sentido aquel 21 de Agosto del 2010.

René did a great job staying with Luis and the guys. I love this shot he took while Luis was getting a perfect shave at The Art of Shaving

VENDORS
ceremony site: Sacred Heart Chapel at Loyola Marymount University
reception site: Saddlerock Ranch – Malibu, CA
wedding planning & coordination: Angel Swanson, Events of Love and Splendor
photography: Rudy Arpia
videography: Isabel Gonzalez Videotique
catering: Contemporary Catering
rentals: Town and Country Event Rentals
floral design: Kristin Brancaleone, formerly of The Treasured Petal… Find her now at Petal and Thorn!
custom stationery (invites, programs, etc.): Mekala from Tie that Binds
dj: richard martinez of Hey Mister DJ
makeup: Nyrie Aitken of Symmetry Beauty

Gotta thank my buddies René Miranda and Erick Pozos for tagging along on this one!

Cynthia & Luis’ album is done and on the way to the happy couple!
I had a blast shooting these two and I’ll be posting images of the actual album soon. They decided on a 12x12in with ivory cover, it was a big one with 66 sides.

Their wedding took place at the amazing Saddlerock Ranch in Malibu and the ceremony at the Sacred Heart Chapel@ Loyola Marymount University.

Gotta thank my buddies René Miranda and Erick Pozos for tagging along on this one!