Karen L. Barnes Photography

Kayniee and Kevin’s wedding ceremony was held at Wayfarer’s Chapel in Palos Verdes. There had been reports of expected rain, but it turned out to be a great spring day, with a clear view of the coast from the chapel .

Wayfarer’s was designed by Lloyd Wright, and is designed to create a feeling of being outside in a “tree chapel”. The chapel itself has a glass ceiling and walls, and is nestled amongst redwoods. It’s definitely worth a visit, if you haven’t seen it.

Kevin and Kayniee had their reception at the Renaissance in Long Beach. Their cocktail hour was held in a room that had a whole wall of windows facing the sunset, which makes for the perfect indoor photography lighting. I get a little too happy about these sorts of things.

The hotel also has these cool, colorful rugs that were great for some overhead shots of Kayniee and Kevin.

I love when couples have a cocktail hour. It gives your guests something to do while we get shots of the two of you together, and it also loosens everybody up for the reception, which means people will be ready to get up and dance, be willing to give speeches, and be generally ready to have a good time.

Kayniee and Kevin had booked this great salsa band, and had salsa instructors on hand to give the guests lessons. It was such a cool idea, and their guests loved it.

And, of course, there was DJ dancing also.

Congratulations to Kevin and Kayniee! And thanks for letting me be part of such a great evening.

Special thanks to Jeanette Sanchez, for second shooting. You were awesome, as always.

Just when I thought they couldn’t get any cuter than they were at their engagement session, Stuart and Erika had to prove me wrong at their wedding.

 Erika is from Japan, and Stuart is from England, and I think they may have had more international guests than any other wedding I’ve shot.  They put so much personality into everything, and the number of guests that took the time to travel from so far away speaks volumes about both of their characters.

The detail in these kimonos was amazing.

Erika made Stuart hold his breath for a moment when she paused for a really, really long time before saying “I do”.

I love how happy they look in this shot.

This was the coolest thing. We went out to the beach after the ceremony, and a couple of helicopters happened to pass overhead. When they saw Stuart and Erika in their wedding garb, they actually turned around and did a fly-by over us while we were shooting.

This may be my favorite shot of the day.

This beautiful cake was made by Jamaica’s Cakes of Los Angeles. Jamaica Crist is a really talented woman.

Of course, we had to steal them away from their reception for a bit for a few photos.

It would have been difficult not to have a great time at the reception.

This was such a great day. I wish both of them so much happiness, and a long, wonderful life together.

Erika and Stuart chose to do their engagement shoot in Venice, which was so much fun.

I absolutely loved that that they had this great sign in their apartment. It was so perfect I might have to start making them for other couples.

There is so much old brickwork in Venice, and it made for some great photos, especially combined with models who were so much fun.

We wandered around Venice and took advantage of some of the brightly painted walls.

Stuart and Erika were willing to try some shots on the boardwalk, which is a little daunting due to all the watching tourists, but we ended up having a really good time and getting some great shots.

Finally, we headed down to the water to get a few sunset shots.

Erika and Stuart are planning their wedding for later this month, and I can’t wait to work with them again.
Looking forward to seeing you both in a few weeks!

Jenn and Scott are engaged to be married in July, and, a few weeks ago, we headed out to Topanga and Santa Monica to shoot their engagement photos.

We started by walking around Topanga for a while getting some of the more rural shots that Scott wanted.

We then drove over to the Promenade just before sunset to add an urban setting. They are so in love with each other, and didn’t need too much coaching to get some great shots.

We stopped in front of a local pub for this one.

The patrons were pretty amused with Jenn and Scott’s comfort with public affection.

Jenn and Scott tolerated my love for gritty alleys, and managed to look adorable, despite the fact that it was freezing.

Lastly, we headed out to the beach for some sunset images.

I think it’s safe to say their wedding will be a whole lot of fun.

Melissa and Jose were married on December 13, 2008. They have known each other since high school, and had an amazing group of friends and family.

Melissa is so beautiful, and I love the black and white images of her. This is one of my favorite images of the day.

Melissa and Jose were married at St. Vincent’s in Los Angeles, which is a gorgeous cathedral style church built in 1925.

St. Vincent’s is now an historical landmark. The inside of the church is even more ornate than the outside.

Melissa and Jose had passed on the usual transportation choices, and had rented this classic car for the day.

Jose and Melissa’s reception included a mariachi performance, and found nearly every person in attendance dancing.

Congratulations to both of you, and thank you for letting us share in such a great evening!

Belinda and Edwin decided to celebrate their very first wedding anniversary with a photoshoot. It turned out we are from the same hometown (Downey, CA), and so had a lot to talk about right from the beginning.

First, we went to Topanga Canyon and spent some time hiking around and letting them become comfortable with the camera. Topanga is one of my favorite places in LA to shoot, and there were tons of places to stop and get some great shots while we rested.

We stopped under a bridge for a while, which turned out to be a really nice spot to shoot.

Next, we hiked up one of the trails for a bit, and found several romantic places to stop.

After we finished at Topanga, we rushed up PCH to make the Malibu Pier before the sun set.

This was such a fun shoot, and we’re already talking about planning another session in the spring when the wildflowers are out.

Thanks so much to you both!

Jen and Porter had an intimate wedding at Pepperdine University, followed by a dinner at Geoffrey’s. Jen and Porter met in Texas, but decided to marry at Porter’s alma mater. We stole away from the reception for a bit to photograph Porter introducing Jen to the Pacific Ocean.

Katherine and James were married on September 27 in Pasadena. They had a wedding which alternated between Chinese and Western traditions, beginning early in the morning and lasting late into the evening.

Edyta and Vance married on September 13, 2008, at Little Brown Church in Studio City.

Wishing you both so much love and happiness.

Liz and Kevin were married at Wayfarer’s Chapel in Rancho Palos Verdes on August 30, 2008.  They were married by candlelight in an absolutely beautiful ceremony.
Congratulations!