aloha! in case you were wondering, ohana means family. our ohana is made up of david, kim, april, rain, and kona the dog. welcome to our blog! we are san diego wedding photographers, but we put everything in here. san diego weddings, orange county weddings, hawaii weddings, destination weddings, road trips, and even friends with beach balls. come on in and share a little aloha. please leave comments as often as possible. we love hearing from our extended ohana.
mahalo for stopping by! if you'd like to contact us, here are all the deets: our website: www.ohanaphotographers.com email: david@ohanaphotographers.com cell: 858-663-3283 OUR NEW BLOG www.ohanablog.com |
april and rain's brother from another mother (and father) has been perfecting his shots from "a little outside the paint" and someone at ESPN noticed him and decided to feature him on espn sports nation. here's a short clip of the awesomeness.
and here's a shot of connor getting our bucket of victory during our last visit to the hottest place on earth, phoenix.
congratulations con-man! when do you sign up for the NBA draft? we love you!
kamran and leila's persian wedding at the Fairbanks Ranch Clubhouse in Rancho Santa Fe was both a beautiful ceremony and a learning experience for us. it was our first persian wedding, so we had a lot to learn. kamran and leila, in their grace, answered all of our questions with a smile and walked us through everything. we also had help from kamran and leila's wonderful wedding coordinator Nahid at Wedding Elegance. it was an incredible experience that we will always remember. we feel so blessed and honored that kamran and leila chose us to record their amazing day.
it began with us going to meet leila. when we arrived at the residence where she was getting ready the door opened just a crack. once our identity was confirmed not to be kamran the door slowly swung open...
on the other side stood leila in her jaw-droppingly beautiful wedding dress by Pronovias of Spain and super cute shoes by Alfani. makeup artist Itzel Ceballos (itzel_ceballos@msn.com) did amazing work once again.
to sum up, leila looked absolutely stunning. kamran was definitely going to be in for a treat when he arrived.
as we were taking photos of leila and her dear friends, a classic white 1969 rolls royce silver shadow limousine from Rolls Livery arrived and a very handsome and striking gentleman in a tuxedo appeared with a gift of flowers in his hand.
hint, it was kamran.
when he walked into the courtyard where leila was standing he paused and covered his mouth with his hand. seeing his bride-to-be took his breath away.
after regaining his breath, kamran walked up to leila, grasped her hands, and gently kissed her.
i LOVE when couples do a "first look" on their wedding day before they walk down the aisle. without a crowd of people watching, the emotions and expressions the couple feel comfortable enough to show are amazing. as an added bonus the bride and groom get some time, if only a few minutes, to just enjoy each others company without all the distractions of the day.
moments later kamran escorted leila to the car and the couple was whisked away to the Fairbanks Ranch Clubhouse in Rancho Santa Fe where they would be united in marriage in front of their families and friends.
before the ceremony began leila and kamran went behind the clubhouse for a little fun. no, not that kind of fun. remember, this was before the ceremony :)
hey, uh, kamran. leila. you probably can't hear us right now but the, um, ceremony, it's going to be starting soon. guys? ok then. we'll just leave you two alone and head on over to the ceremony site. see you in a bit. :)
as leila took her seat next to kamran under a beautiful silk they saw before them on their Sofreh-ye Aghd, that was made by leila's aunt sarvy, a multitude of symbols to help them in their new life together.
the mirror of fate, or Aayeneh-ye Bakht, and two candelabras (representing leila and kamran and brightness in their future), one on either side of the mirror. these are symbols of light and fire, two very important elements.
as the ceremony began, leila removed her veil. the first thing kamran saw in the mirror was the reflection of his beautiful wife-to-be.
family members and friends rubbed sugar cones, or Kalleh Ghand, together above leila and kamran and showered them with sweetness as they sat beneath the beautiful silk during their ceremony.
also on leila and kamrans Sofreh-ye Aghd were:
a copy of the Holy Qur'an, representing the blessing of Allah (God) for the couple.
a Jaa-Namaaz, spread in the middle of the Sofreh-ye Aghd to remind the couple of the importance of prayer, both at blissful times and times of hardship. it includes a small rug, or Sajjaadeh, a small cube of molded clay with prayers written on it, Mohr, and a strand of prayer beads, or Tasbih.
a Sini-ye Aatel-O-Baatel, or tray of multi-colored herbs and spices, to guard the couple and their life together against evil.
Esphand, wild rue, to keep the evil eye away and bring plenty of health.
a specially baked and decorated flatbread, noon-e sangak, held a blessing of Mobaarak-Baad for the couple.
Gol-e Mohammadi, rosewater, to perfume the air.
decorated eggs, along with almonds, hazelnuts, and walnuts in the shell, to symbolize fertility.
gold coins, representing wealth and prosperity.
silk bags containing sweets such as sugar coated almonds, Noghl, for the guests.
leila's aunt sarvy did an awesome job molding the esphand into flowers and painting them.
leila and kamran dipped their fingers in honey and fed it to each other, to sweeten life.
rings and kisses to seal the deal. CONGRATULATIONS KAMRAN AND LEILA!
i don't know who makes these shoes, but they are RAD!
i snapped this while everyone was enjoying some of the awesome food from Amir's Catering.
the floral arrangements by Ana at Floral Works and Decor Inc. were simply gorgeous. Their classic elegance brightened up the whole reception area.
and now is the time on sprocket's when we dance. heeeerrrrre's kamran and leila!
leila has one of the most amazing smiles i have ever seen. love it times infinity!
leila's cousin Kamiar, and his band KamyR, were incredible! they kept the dancefloor PACKED all night long. i didn't even know what they were singing and i still loved it! if you want your party to be awesome, hire these guys.
during a brief pause in the festivities kamran grabbed the microphone and said some very touching words to leila. it was such an amazing moment.
everyone at kamran and leila's wedding was beautiful. true story.
when it came time to cut the delicious cake, from The French Gourmet in La Jolla, we were in for another treat.
just as kamran was ready to cut a slice of cake for his bride someone snatched the knife away and began the Raghseh Chagoo, or knife dance. it was passed to several members of the crowd, excluding kamran and leila of course.
everyone, and i mean everyone, did an amazing job dancing. it was so much fun to watch.
this beautiful woman had some seriously hot knife dancing skills. i don't think this was her first time dancing with a sharp object :)
several benjamin bribes by kamran later, the knife was finally given back and the cake was enjoyed.
kamran and leila, thank you so so much. we had such an amazing time at your wedding. it was Fun with a capital F!
everyone at your wedding was awesome, especially you two. we are so grateful that you gave us the opportunity to be your photographers, and entrusted us to photograph our first Persian wedding. if every Persian wedding is even half as good as yours I hope we get to do many many more.
have a sweet life together with endless years of happiness.
just in case you missed kamran and leila's engagement session at balboa park and harbor island click here to go back in time and see the spot on harbor island overlooking the beautiful san diego skyline where kamran proposed to leila. at this point we all know how that turned out for him. it's kind of like watching a dvr recording of the last game your favorite team played after you've already heard that they won :)
on a side note, we'd also like to thank alyssa and simeon for lending a hand.
thank you for visiting our wedding photography blog
check out our portfolio.
contact us by phone at 858.663.3283 or email david@ohanaphotographers.com
i knew that title would catch your eye. :) well, danielle and david are more than just eye candy pal! :)
i'm going to do something a little different for this post. i want to share who this couple is, through some of their own words. of course, there will still be images of them from there engagement session in san diego, but i also want everyone reading this to feel a little of what we get to feel when we talk with our couples. as new friends, we try to get a better understanding of who our couples are, how they fell in love, and how we can capture images of them that show both their individuality and their love for each other.
we look forward to meeting new couples like kids look forward to hearing the recess bell. we totally geek out when we hear their knock on the door.
from the moment i opened said door and saw danielle's sweet smile and david in his dinosaur shirt from the san diego natural history museum (that he said he got when he was 13) i knew we had just won fun-couple bingo. we were instantly in L-O-V-E with this couple.
by the end of our first meeting we felt like david and danielle had been our friends for years. they are both just wonderful people. i am so glad our paths crossed and that we were given the opportunity to be david and danielle's friends with big cameras.
one of our favorite things to ask our couples is how they met.
this is how david remembers it:
"Let me start off by saying Danielle doesn't remember the day we met (how sad.... but then again she was like 12 or something). Anywhoo she was in a speedo, I was in a speedo... it was pure magic (lol) or something like that. She had just started swimming on the same swim team I was on, and I had been away for a while, and when I came back, there she was... and I was like, cool! Here's a girl who is crazy, has fun, and doesn't care what other people think. There wasn't love at first sight or anything like that, I just remember thinking “what a cool person!” The love came a couple of years later."
when we asked danielle and david to tell us about a date they went on that they will always remember they both said prom. how often does that happen?
david said: "Prom was our first real date, other than just hanging out together at the mall and such. It was a pretty crazy day. We both just competed in high school CIF swimming championships that morning and had to run home, get dressed, and go! We had a nice dinner followed by a rather forgettable dance, but all the while there was a look on her face that let me know this was more than just a high school fling."
danielle said: "Our first date was pretty memorable. It was David’s prom and the day of CIF. We went to the 94th Aero Squadron for dinner and I remember having French onion soup (don’t ask why I remember). We just had a good time talking to each other about the excitement of the day and getting to know each other better. One drunk restaurant-goer thought we had just gotten married and yelled from across the room “are you a bride? Contrats!” or something to that effect, which was really awkward/funny as a 15-year-old on her first date. We got to the dance when it was almost over, because CIF/prom prep took so long. Afterward we took a walk downtown by the Star of India and I just remember how cute David looked under the moonlight."
the question with the most anticipated answer for us is about the proposal. this is how danielle remembers that day:
"It was last summer and I was getting particularly annoyed being at home, so I asked David on a Friday if we could go to the mountains that weekend to walk around Julian. I had this really horrible cough that had lasted for over a month, so I wasn’t feeling that well, and I definitely wasn’t expecting to do anything athletic. David, of course, suggested that we go on a hike, and I said yes because I can sometimes be a little too hard core/competitive about all things athletic…even with my cough. We went up to Mount Cuyamaca and started getting ready when I realized I had misplaced my camera and so I grabbed the backpack (with the ring hidden inside) and started rummaging through it to find the camera. David about freaked out and immediately gave me his keys and told me to look in the car. He thought I had seen the box, because I had jostled it out of its hiding place, but I still had no clue. Even when David offered to carry the backpack the entire way up (we normally switch off) I thought he was just being sweet because of my cough. About half way up the mountain a light thunderstorm rained on us, which actually felt really good because it was very humid that day. Oh, I was also paranoid that a mountain lion was going to jump out at us because my mom told me that a hiker was attacked on Mount Cuyamacca the year before. I carried a huge stick/saber with me the entire way up. The elevation change was so dramatic that I really didn’t think I would make it to the top. I even told David that I wanted to turn around at one point, but he was persistent we should get to the top “for the view.” When we got up there, it was hot and there were a bunch of people around. I proceeded to suck on about 3 cough drops and find the only little bit of shade there, which everyone else was under too. David finally got me to move away from the crowd and then he started talking about our relationship and how much he loved me and somehow I still didn’t get it until he started to cry as he got down on one knee. Of course, then I started crying, and he proposed. I was so overcome with emotion that I was laughing and crying and coughing and he didn’t hear me answer him, but trust me, I definitely clarified that! We sat up there for awhile and talked and hugged each other and when we finally went back down the trail it felt so much easier than it did going up! Afterward, we went to my house, and then to his, and then out to our favorite Thai restaurant."
i asked both danielle and david "what about your fiance do you love?" their answers made me have to tell kim that my eye was having an adverse reaction to a sand particle that was dangerously lodged in it, aka NOT CRYING.
danielle: "I love HIM!!! David is cute, he loves God, he’s funny, and so much more. I love that he has the ability to loosen me up and teach me how to love life the way that he does. I love his integrity and his good character. I love his goofiness. I love talking to him about everything and nothing and how he knows what I need/feel sometimes even before I do. I love that he loves knowledge and learning new things. I love the half smile he makes when he tries to be romantic and his “thinking man” pose that he does when he’s concentrating. I love that he doesn’t care about what others think, but strives to live a good, fulfilling, honorable life. He is wonderful."
david: "I love her nose, eyes, lips, hair, smile, voice, hugs, kisses, laugh... and that's just the physical stuff. I also love the way she makes me feel (kinda like that michael jackson song (lol) RIP. I love how much she cares about other people, I love how much she loves me! I love how she always makes me smile. And most of all I love that no matter where I go with her I always feel like I am home."
danielle and david, thank you. thank you for sharing your feelings, your memories, and your words with all of us. my words could not have expressed your love for one another any better than your own. we feel blessed to know you and to have shared this awesome time in your lives.
check back soon to see images from danielle and david's beautiful wedding at the Rancho Guajome Adobe in vista california.
thank you for visiting our wedding photography blog
check out our portfolio.
contact us by phone at 858.663.3283 or email david@ohanaphotographers.com
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