I was extremely excited to be once again photographing a wedding ceremony at Twin Oaks Garden Estate in San Marcos, CA. It’s one of my all-time favorite venues. I was also excited because John hadn’t been there before and this would be his first time on the property. He’s heard me talk about Twin Oaks before and I really enjoyed showing him around in person.Besides these personal reasons, I was also excited and grateful to be photographing such a large, beautiful wedding party for Bahareh and Brandon. Along with a beautiful venue, Bahareh and Brandon incorporated some traditional Persian wedding elements like a gorgeous Sofreh Aghd spread, which has been a tradition for thousands of years in Persian weddings. This was our first wedding with these traditions and it was STUNNING! We learned that the word Sofreh means “spread” and Aghd means “ceremony”. There are a lot of items included in the spread that is symbolic and represents the couple’s new life together. Traditionally, someone special is hired to create this but Bahareh and her mother thought it was much more special if they created it together. Her mother even made those beautiful tables herself! My favorite part was the shaving of the sugar combs over their heads. It was beautiful and intriguing all at the same time. It was a beautiful ceremony that mixed traditional Persian practices with current American traditions. After chatting with Bahareh we learned something very heartfelt, instead of telling you myself I thought it would be better if you heard it from her own words.”My mom escaped from Iran with me as a baby. She was a human rights activist and spent over one year in Iran’s most notorious prison, Evin. Once she was released, she was banned from ever leaving the country so she escaped. This is why she was in tears throughout the wedding. It represented so much to her to know her efforts were so worthwhile and led to Brandon and I finding true love”It was very apparent that Bahareh’s family was full of life and enjoyed one another’s company. Her sisters made the funniest and heartfelt toast to the new couple at the reception. Bahareh has the type of smile that just lights up a room especially when she saw Brandon during their first look. The two of them had gone back and forth a few times about doing a first look but after we chatted a bit and I told them how many benefits doing a first look could be, they were on board. It was also apparent that Brandon’s groomsmen had a lot of respect for him. After spending the day with him, I can clearly see why. Speaking of the reception, this group really liked to party. We stayed late into the evening until the couple made their glitter exit, and I don’t think a single person had even left yet. It was a great group of people.We thoroughly enjoyed the entire day, and we even took a little extra time during bridal portraits to style and photograph the bridesmaids on the white furniture ‘Vogue-style.’ This was truly a hit with the bridal party when they saw our same day slideshow we prepared for them during dinner.
VENUE- TWIN OAKS HOUSE AND GARDENS
FLORALS- SWEET STEMS FLORIST
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Amazing job Carrie and John! You two were such a joy and really captured our special day so beautifully
Love this so much! Carrie and John, you both did such an amazing job! The pictures look absolutely beautiful.
These pictures are amazing! Thank you for capturing the beauty and love Bahareh and Brandon share. The pictures are just gorgeous!
Such stunning photos! Thank you both for being so enjoyable to work with and capturing these special moments!
Absolutely stunning photos! So in awe
Great couple, amazing pictures!!
Beautiful photos!! I can’t wait to see the entire collection! You captured our best day ever perfectly.. thank you both so much!
Great explanation and fantastic photos 👌👌👌👌👌👌