This wedding was unique in many ways, in both its unique settings and the challenges it presented to not only us, but the bridal party!

We go back to 5 days before the wedding, where the groom Steven broke his foot in a cycling accident – and throwing the wedding plans including our photography plans – straight out the window. But as many optimistic couples would say, the show must go on!

I had driven up from Anaheim in Orange County, to this gorgeous lakeside community in Auburn, just north of Sacramento in Northern California. With mansions and stately homes surrounding the lake with their own docks and piers – it made for a stunning background that could easily feature in any Hollywood summer film from yesteryear.

Despite the groom’s foot being encased in a Moon-boot for protection, we tried to achieve as many of the creative photos as possible, and much to Steven’s credit despite the sharp pains, he pushed through for his beautiful wife Lacey at both the ceremony and for photos around the area after.

The wedding may have affected our original plans for photography, but any good and experienced team would have a back-up plan and have the initiative to make beautiful art from anything. By the end of the night, the lovely couple walked through a sparkler exit and made their departure on a boat and into the darkness on the lake to start their new life together. It was a beautiful and romantic ending to my time in Northern California, at such an exclusive private community that not many would have experienced before.

Then I spent the next few days driving up north to Seattle, through one of Oregon’s biggest ever wildfires around us. But that’s a story for another day:)