Murietta's Well Winery, Livermore CA

Yorie and Khashayar, 6/9/07

These Livermore wineries are like little hidden gems, places I didn't even know existed until I started shooting weddings full time. I guess with it's proximity to Hayward and the industrial part of the East Bay, you don't usually think of Livermore as being this verdant, peaceful, zen place...but when you enter the grounds of Murietta's Well or the other area wineries it is like stepping into another world.

I particularly loved the country-house feel of the main building, and the multi-level staircase that the wedding party had to walk down before they got to go down the aisle...really great angles there. Decor and floral arrangements by Anne Mendenhall accented the natural layout of the place beautifully (Anne had also done my May 19 wedding at the Dublin Ranch, scroll down to see me rave about her work there).

Yorie looked incredible, with makeup and hair done by the masterful Toshi Murata. Her dress was perfect, her shoes were perfect--everything she wore worked to enhance the sense of sophisticated beauty that she already has. I also had the rare opportunity to photograph Khash in the getting ready room, as he and Yorie were not seperated before the wedding at all and did their prep together.

We stopped at Mission San Jose to shoot a few romantic moments before the ceremony, and thankfully there wasn't another wedding going on there that day so we had the place to ourselves. Yorie and Khash and I had just done our E session a couple weeks ago, so the memory of it was fresh...which was a good thing since Khash was a bit of a nervous wreck. He calmed down considerably after the ceremony, however, and the reception was loads of fun--everyone danced their hearts out, especially Yorie's mom! (She's the one in the kimono) DJ Sergio of Wedding DJ SF did a great job of keeping everyone partying with a great selection of Iranian dance music.