We love a couple like Brandon and Win. These two were full of so many surprises and not a single one failed to amaze us. For starters, they flew us down for their Venice California engagement session a month prior. Here, we were surprised to find that Brandon was comfortable undressing and dressing on the sidewalk- and that they were game to sit on milk crates eating pizza and drinking beer with us after shooting for 2 hours.
Flash forward to the wedding day, back in Southern California for their Santa Monica wedding at the delicious and elegant Tiato restaurant. The day’s surprises began with Win’s girlfriends arranged a series of complicated tasks for Brandon to complete in order to earn her love and the chance to see his bride. After paying his way in cash just to get through the door, the poor guy had to write love notes upside down, get the groomsmen to form hearts with their jumping bodies and even sing a Backstreet Boys song. All the while, Win was watching via Facetime behind closed doors and when Brandon was eventually successful in his tasks, the two had their first look and shared plenty of laughs about what Brandon went through.
Their sweet and intimate ceremony in Tiato’s gorgeous enclosed garden was both endearing and light hearted. You can probably tell from the first dozen photos in this blog post, that these two don’t take themselves or each other too seriously. They are a couple of busy business consultants who travel the world by day and a whiskey drinking, sneaker wearing fun loving couple by night. For the ceremony and cocktail hour, Win wore a short wedding dress with heels. But when the reception began, she switched to match Brandon’s Vans shoes and then came the biggest surprise of the night. It turns out Win can dance…her damn ass off. Jaws were being picked up off the floor left and right as she moved circles around everyone else.
As the night grew to a close, we learned of the final surprise, for both us and their guests. The DJ had the guests form a large circle and we all participated in a rousing round of “Lean on Me” by Bill Withers. It was a perfectly touching way to honor their closest friends and family whom they had trusted to share their day with. We will definitely keep it as one of our fondest wedding memories and a constant reminder of why documenting weddings is so special. It’s one of the only times photographers are allowed into a person’s most trusted circle (no pun intended) and given access to capture one of the most important days of their life. Thank you Brandon and Win for giving us this gift!
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