I originally connected with Denise through my good friend Nicole (who's also the fantastic coordinator who owns/operates Love Marks The Spot) and absolutely loved how optimistic and sweet she was! I later met Michael at their engagement session (I was so slammed in the beginning of the year that I didn't have a chance to blog their session, so I added my favorite five to the beginning of this post) and was stoked because he was extremely laid back and easy to work with. We got some amazing images and they both gave me some great tips about finding/owning a dog, since they (at the time) had 1 adorable little pup (which now, after the wedding, are two adorable pups!).

Fast forward to Denise & Michael's wedding day! Although it ended up being a little gloomier in Carlsbad, it ended up giving off a perfectly soft light that really helped make their wedding photos that much more amazing. After photographing the bridesmaids getting ready, I quickly rushed Denise off to see Michael for the first time in the Cape Rey gardens. From there, we photographed tons of portraits until their ceremony started. Their ceremony, officiated by Rabbi Ian, was both hilarious and emotional - two must-haves for a ceremony!

After the ceremony ended, we photographed a few more portraits and headed over to the ballroom for the ceremony where the couple ate awesome food, laughed, celebrated, and then ended the night with a lantern send off - epic!!

For photographers: I used a Nikon D5 + D750. I used the following lenses: 14-24, 24-70, 24mm, 35mm, 45mm, 58mm, & 85mm. I also used 4 Flashpoint R2 flashes for the reception triggered by the R2 transmitter. If you have any questions, be sure to leave them in the comments below!

PS: for another awesome Carlsbad session, check out this Carlsbad Engagement Session I photographed earlier this year.

Enjoy!