Nestled in the Vineyards of Saint Helena, Sarah + Sam chose a private estate for their Napa Valley wedding. Both being transplants to California, almost all of their guests were flying in, and a full weekend of hanging out with 75 of their closest people was just how they imagined celebrating.

Sarah and I met long before she hired me to photograph her wedding. We initially connected over Instagram, and quickly became friends over lunch dates and eventually branding sessions I photographed in her studio. Shout out – Arrow Art Studio. Sarah is a hand letterer based here in Northern California, creating beautiful wedding signage + paper goods. Her creations were sprinkled through out the weekend, from all the Signage, to custom leather wine tags, and personalized place cards with hand written notes to each guest. oh, how could I forget, her Custom Wedding dress designed by AleksandaD where Sarah painted florals around the skirt.

From brick oven pizzas, lawn games, and wine in the vineyards on Saturday evening to a laid back day of celebrating on Sunday. Their Wedding was highlighted by Stella, their 15 year old pup stealing the show throughout their ceremony, the most emotional speeches I’ve ever witnessed, and an impromptu acoustic set Sam’s dad and uncles played to start off the dance party.

Jess knew we wanted to keep things on the less traditional side, and not only did she roll with the punches, but she even contributed ideas that made our celebration so much more meaningful. She encouraged us to do an alternative engagement shoot and included our beloved motorcycle to keep it very “us” – her images from that day are magic and I can’t believe I didn’t want an engagement shoot to start with! As for our wedding photos, they are more beautiful than I ever could have imagined. Jess couldn’t have captured our day more perfectly but it’s not her extreme gift behind the lens that makes her the best. What sets Jess apart is who she is as a person. She is kind, generous, dependable, organized, and has the sweetest heart.