June 21, 2018
Peggie “hijacked” Tom’s celebratory 40th birthday trip to San Francisco from Manchester, England, to elope at San Francisco City Hall. I was actually recommended to Peggie by a former Client, Christine, who also got married and eloped at City Hall while on vacation – Christine and Andy City Hall Wedding.
Being recommended by a former Client is probably the best compliment I can receive, so I knew I had to work my hardest to give them fresh images, different than what I photographed at Christine and Andy’s wedding a few years ago, since you know someone was going to compare (me!)
When I first met the two, I was immediately drawn to Tom’s hat, possibly because most American Grooms don’t cover their heads on their wedding day (definitely a British thing). He happily played around with it as they waited for their number to be called. tossing it at the camera in hopes of having it perfectly cover their faces. This was my initial idea, but I was most impressed with his first toss as it almost perfectly aligned with his head!
Being together a dozen years, being officially recognized as a married couple wasn’t at the top of their list, as they were already “married” in their minds…but I am so glad Peggie thought to have a dual celebration as they are such lovely people, as I was fortunate enough to have a few drinks with them in between their daytime and evening session and got to know them a little better.
The two opted to include an evening session, which allowed them free reign of San Francisco City Hall after hours, away from the crowds and chaos of the day. This is my favorite time to shoot, as having 4 floors of such a gorgeous building is a great challenge, yet so fun! For a few months, I was fixated with trying this idea incorporating shadows at the grand staircase, and I was super satisfied with the experiment! I actually wish it was darker to allow for stronger shadow play, but capturing Tom’s silliness makes it perfect for me!
