Aaron Dieppa

Jackie and Mark have a lot going on right now. Not only are they getting married, but they’re also moving all the way down here from Washington. So when Jackie asked me to shoot her engagement photos I was so excited because I knew it would be fun to show them around sunny Orange County.

Jackie said she wanted some photos that had an edgy, urban look to them, but at the same time she wanted me to capture some romantic photos at the beach.

For the urban shots I decided to bring them to Old Town Orange right around the corner from where I live. I love doing portrait sessions there because the old architecture provides a variety of backgrounds with different colors and textures to work with. We had a nice and relaxing time casually walking around sipping our Starbucks and snapping off shots. It was fun!

After about an hour we all got in my truck and I took them to Laguna Beach to finish our photo session on the sand as the sun was setting.

I’m going to be shooting Jackie and Mark’s wedding in August and I can’t wait!

I had a wonderful time shooting Zach and Sandy’s wedding this weekend in San Diego with Ma5en. Ma5en is a really talented photographer, a true professional and a great friend. It’s good to work with other photographers in the industry because you can pick up little tips here and there that can really help you improve your work. Every photographer has their own way of doing things when it comes to their business, whether its how they compose their shots, or how they pose their subjects or how they manage large groups of people or how they change their lenses quickly without dropping their camera! There isn’t just one way of doing things, and sometimes when you think your way is the best you’ll come across an even better way. I definitely walked away from this weekend with a few valuable tips and tricks that will improve the way I work. Thanks Ma5en! You can check out some of Ma5en’s photos on his BLOG.

Now onto the photography! The ceremony was held at Blessed Sacrament Church, and the reception was at the beautiful Rancho Bernardo Courtyard. Zach and Sandy were such an amazing couple to work with. They had such an incredibly easy going, positive way about them that made photographing them a lot of fun. They both have really big hearts and their love for each other really shines through their photos.

Julie and Luke decided to have a traditional Chinese ceremony and banquet here with there friends and family because they’re going to Alaska soon to get married on a glacier! How cool is that!? Very! I would go if I could but the helicopter ride to the glacier can only hold 3 people so the pilot will also take the role of photographer.

The banquet was intimate and beautiful and the food was fantastic! As promised they had all sorts of traditional chinese dishes including shark fin soup, abalone and lobster! MMMmmm!

Julie.

Luke.

A little bit of spontaneous dancing is always fun!

They played this really fun game where they blind-folded Luke and then had girls and guys including Julie line up in front of him. Then he had to touch all of their hands and see if he could find his bride’s hands! He played it like a pro and picked out Julie’s hands right away! I was impressed!

Julie’s sister Mimi gave a speech.

Julie and Luke complimented each other perfectly and they were so fun to work with. I hope they have a wonderful time in Alaska!

A few weeks ago my friends Nicole and Natale called me because they needed some portraits done. But not just any type of portraits. Nicole and Natale are Flamenco dancers and sisters. It was such a unique and enjoyable experience to work with them and I am so excited with the way the photos turned out. They performed last weekend in Santa Monica and I was invited to attend. It was an absolutely beautiful performance, and I was so honored, because their dance instructor Yolanda Arroyo, put the portraits on display in the lobby of the venue for all to see.

Flamenco is such a passionate and dramatic dance with sharp vigourous movements, clapping of hands and stomping of feet, traditionally performed in the company of acoustic guitar music and a spanish vocalist. Its something that is not so much viewed and heard as it is felt. You have to experience it to understand it. It’s beautiful! It was a lot of fun to photograph.

I never once posed them, because I wanted to be sure to capture the movement of their dresses as they danced. Nicole and Natale were so cooperative, which was great because it gave me free reign to use some pretty creative lighting techniques. I really tried hard to express the dramatic mood that I think is at the heart of Flamenco dancing.