Sarah + Jeff // Don't Jinx It

We love backyard weddings. The details. The intimacy. The uniqueness of the venue. There is so much that can be learned about a couple at a backyard wedding just by the thought that goes into every aspect of the day.

Sarah + Jeff decided to make their wedding happen in Jeff's parents' backyard. To say that every detail was attended to would be understating the event. Jeff and his grandfather filled in the swimming pool with a plywood base that can be seen during the rehearsal footage. The alter was also hand made. Photos throughout the house were filled in with pictures of the lovely couple and to top it off, dinner consisted of a made to order pasta bar (let's just say we gave that part specifically two thumbs up) and mashed potatoes in martini glasses.

As we arrived to the house, the rain from the morning was just beginning to let up. No sooner than the rain stopped, the sun cranked up about 14 notches. It was as if two completely different weather forecasts had collided. Perhaps it was simply fate as it never rains on a bride's big day in Southern California. . . .

As the day wore on, we began to focus some of our attention on all the work that was taking place behind the scenes. The dance between the Catering Crew, the Bartenders, and the Event Planners was almost choreographed. Although we don't show it in the trailer, it will reveal itself in Jeff + Sarah's final film and it was a very organized chaos to say the least.

When all was said and done, this wedding was hands down one of our favorites this year. Jeff + Sarah, married in his parents backyard, but not a backyard wedding by any stretch of the imagination.

A very large shout out to Lisa Moon from Lisa Moon Events. As always, she worked her magic on the big day, as well as at the rehearsal :-) Also, a very special thank you to Justin from Generations Entertainment for making our life easier once again at the reception! Krista Jon from Downtown Flowers ROCKED the florals as you will see, and Rog and Lyndzee from Ellsworthphotography were so great to work with as well!

And now, Sarah + Jeff. . . enjoy!

Scott + Brigitte // the Scigitte SDE

First and foremost, Happy Halloween!!! Belated or otherwise, always a fun holiday and an opportunity for children and adult children alike to give into the practice that is dressing up like a complete idiot and candy binging. . . guilty as charged.

Moving forward, we switch gears to Scott + Brigitte (who will be referred to from this point forward by their true power couple name, Scigitte).

Our crew lives for juxtaposition, the concept of placing two things together that you wouldn't normally see and making them more interesting because of it. If you watch our films, you know that we look for it in everything we do. So when Brigitte contacted us for her wedding day to take place on Halloween, you know we were instantly sold.

Before you jump to conclusions, however, this was not a wedding you would expect on Halloween. These two are not creatures of the night or costume hounds just waiting for October 31st to get married. . . . just a couple that stands firm in their faith and the belief that things happen for a reason, and ultimately a puzzle can only be put together in one way (to be explained in the SDE).

Scigitte has a crazy long backstory that involves several twists and turns that incorporate finding their faith, losing one another, rekindling, and vowing not to EVEN SHARE A KISS until they were married. It almost goes without saying that the Same Day Edit was going to have to end on that first kiss, right???

Scott began the day golfing with his father. A last outing as a single man looking for those fatherly words of advice, which he later shared with one of the guys on his car ride to the venue. Brigitte sat quietly at her friend's house, putting together the final touches for the florals, which she had done ON HER OWN for the entire wedding day.

A day that is so infamous for demons and devils, candy and scares, horror and fear. . . it was the ultimate juxtaposition for Scigitte. Demons and devils??? We saw an angel fairy princess flower girl. Candy and scares? We saw laughing, good food, and an overwhelmingly sweet candy bar. Horror and fear? Not on this day. . . . Only love, laughter, and an unyielding dedication of Scigitte's devotion to their faith.

It wouldn't be fair to proceed without first thanking two UBER-RAD vendors! First, Janel Conlan from Focus Photography. The definition of Rad Photographer, and amazingly sweet and cool human. Thank you Janel for always being so great to work with. Second, Justin from Generations Entertainment made the SDE possible. Thank you for allowing us to work through your soundboard all evening and for keeping the party rockin'

And now, Scott + Brigitte // the Scigitte SDE

A Tribute to my Wife

As a child, I hated the rain. Rain meant no recess, no outdoor activities, no playing hockey on the cul de sac after school. Rain meant cold and wet. Wet socks. Wet clothes. Wet backpacks. Rain made me take an umbrella everywhere I went. Rain sucked.

My wife, Jackie, LOVES the rain. To her as a child, rain meant her favorite sweatshirt, a cup of hot chocolate, the fireplace, and a good book. I never liked to read.

As I've grown older, rain doesn't bother me as much anymore. In fact, as the storms usher in the winter, I almost welcome the rain as a refreshing change to the scorching sun of the summer. With rain comes fresh air and new seasons. A clean slate and an opportunity to reflect. Now that I'm no longer a child, I find myself becoming more like my wife and on that note, this is what we saw outside the studio this morning as we were editing away. The rain reminds me of Jackie, and that is reason enough to post this clip, a tribute to her.

Miss Rockstar Energy AMA Motocross

In a continued effort to share some of the projects that we work on outside of the wedding world, we decided to share another Rockstar shoot with everyone out there. This one took place at Suzuki's factory and involved Danielle, Miss Rockstar Energy AMA. It can be found on Rockstar's website and we would be lying if we said it wasn't any fun to put together. Enjoy :-)

Keren + Pieter // Love

Soulmate. By itself, a word that is defined as somebody whom one has a feeling of deep and natural affinity with. But, there is so much more as we all know. A soulmate is the smile when you aren't having your best day. A soulmate is the off beat giggle when you tell a joke that really isn't that funny. A soulmate is the eyes you look into every morning knowing that this is the one. Keren + Pieter are soulmates.

We know this because of the way they connect every time they see each other. The way they look completed by simply being in the presence of one another. It's funny that we use a piece of audio in this trailer that is mumbled by Pieter as he gets dressed for the ceremony. "I'm really lucky. I've got everything I want and everything I could possibly need." In a society that focuses on "things", sometimes the one "thing" that is most important is easiest to see on the wedding day.

As Keren got ready for the day, a day which she scheduled around the USC football schedule, she watched her team via streaming online while sharing a laugh with the girls as they did hair and makeup, and ultimately a prayer as they prepared for the ceremony. The guys, on the other hand, got dressed over beers. Beers that Pieter's brother couldn't separate with as he made the trek from one end of the hotel to the other to deliver Keren her gift from Pieter.

And as the two opened their gifts, "things" if you will, they both were excited and said "wow" and "pretty", but it was the moments just before opening the gifts when they were reading the cards, hand written from one another, while fighting back teary eyes that showed what "thing" is most important on the wedding day and every day for the rest of their lives. Love.

A very special thank you to Courtney Toney from Joyful Weddings and Events for her help in orchestrating such a wonderful day. Also a shout out to our friend Jasmine Star from Jasmine Star Photography. Always great to work with good people on these shoots and Jasmine and Courtney rock!