2011 was a little bit slower than past wedding seasons, but that didn’t mean it was any less special. I had awesome clients, awesome locations, and had the help of some awesome second shooters!

I picked one image from each wedding I shot this year for this post. I did things a little bit different this year, I didn’t pick a bride and groom photo from every wedding. I also didn’t always choose a posed image or a dramatically lit photo. I wanted to really show off the wedding. Sometimes it was a moment from the ceremony, sometimes it was a posed shot. Which ever image I chose for that wedding, I feel it was a pretty good representation of the day.

Enjoy!

John & Crystal : Benicia Arsenal :: You really cant go wrong with a brick wall and an awesome window. Add in an amazingly sweet and sincere couple, you have a great image!

Joshua & Kristina :: Lake Tahoe :: This casual pose was the last photo from our Bride and Groom session. With a freak Memorial Day BLIZZARD, our out door photos were cut short. However this image really shows the laid back personality of the couple, and their joy to be inside in front of a warm fire!

Suzie & Danny :: Lafayete, CA :: Sorry Danny, I had to post a solo of your beautiful bride. I LOVE this image. Suzie has a very classic look, and the location really brought it out. The color version of this image just doesn’t do it justice.

Michelle & Steve :: Santa Rosa Back Yard :: Emotion. A lot of times this is a very elusive subject, other times its out there for everyone to see. This wedding had the latter. Both Michelle and Steve were so happy and joyous during their vows that everyone could feel what they were feeling. The way Michelle looks at Steve in this photo is a true representation of this wedding. ( I had a similar photo of Steve, but hes a cop and I drive in Sonoma County a lot. LOL)

Tiffani & Justin :: Occidental College, Los Angeles :: Ok, I have a soft spot for this wedding. I have known Tiffani since High School and she was pretty much like a little sister to me. Being asked to photograph her wedding was a true honor. This image is so peaceful and intimate it immediately became one of my favorites from the year.

Betsy & Cole :: Tiburon Yacht Club :: This photo is just fun! I had a lot of fun with Betsy and Cole at their engagement session and their wedding. Getting such genuine laughter in this photo captured their personalities and showed all the fun we had at the wedding.

Victoria & Ernie :: Mission on the Hill, Vacaville, CA :: A beautiful bride and an awesome bike…..ok and Ernie too! This photo is all about them. We did their engagement session with a motorcycle tone to it and when I saw this hog in the parking lot I knew I had to do photos with it!

Michelle & Paul :: Camino, Ca :: So, I wasnt the photographer for this wedding, I was a groomsman! First wedding in 5 years I have been too that I wasnt the photographer! Well, I might not have been THE photographer but I made a deal with Michelle and Paul as well as the paid professional shooter for the wedding that I got to do some Bride and Groom photos. Michelle has been one of my closest friends for years now and the fact I got to be in her wedding AND get this awesome photo just made me so happy! The fact that I actually like Paul is a big plus too! Love you guys!

Jennifer & Art :: Chicago, IL :: This wedding was HARD for me to pick a favorite. I picked about 3 before I finally chose this one. Why did I pick this one? ITS AT WRIGLEY FIELD!! I think it was a pretty tight race between Art and I for who was the most excited to be doing this shoot. I am going to concede and let Art win this one, but I was pretty darn excited! Jennifer was beautiful, Art was a giddy little boy and it was all just perfect!!!

Kerri & Doug :: Keller Estate, Petaluma, CA :: So a week after I was shooting in Chicago, I got to shoot a wedding in California for a couple from CHICAGO!! I love my Chicago connection!! This wedding was HARD for me to pick a favorite but this image just speaks to me. This photo represents an entire 6 hour wedding in 1/500th of a second! Its these little moments that make me LOVE weddings!

Mira & Mark :: Pasadena, CA :: My very first Coptic wedding! There were a LOT of ceremony pictures from this wedding, I mean it was a 2 hour ceremony with a LOT of aspects to the actual ceremony. Lots of priests, lots of deacons, lots of stuff I didn’t understand LOL. Even though I didn’t understand most of the ceremony, I was briefed ahead of time about the meanings, symbolism and significance of what I was going to see. This photo of one of the priests blessing the bride and groom became an instant favorite of mine.

Loianne & Daniel :: St. Vincent Ferrer, Vallejo, CA :: I dont even know what to say. As soon as I saw this photo on the LCD of my camera I LOVED IT! I think being in Vallejo and shooting a Filipino wedding brought out a little Ed Pingol in me.

Jody & Andrew :: Backyard Wedding, Livermore, CA :: I want this one as a 40×60″ print in my office, I love it that much. I think this photo makes Jody and Andrew look like they are the only two people in the world. Just them, in the moment and soaking up each other. The serenity and calm that I feel with this photo makes me love it so much more….well that and the awesome backlight!

It was my first time shooting at St. Vincents in Vallejo and all I can say is WOW!!! Its such a pretty church with LOTS of natural light!! It is now on my favorites list for places to photograph, everything about it is wonderful. Then of course we have Hiddenbrooke, a place I have worked at multiple times but I try my best to get different angles whenever I am there. I think this time was no different. I love the images I got from there!! I just cant say enough about this wedding, it was fun from beginning to end. I wish the couple the best in their marriage!!

Please enjoy the images!

Now even though I was new to the Coptic ceremony, I have been a part of a couple Middle Eastern receptions before. They are nothing less than AMAZING. Beautifully decorated, lots of very friendly people, GREAT food, and LOTS of energy!! I enjoyed the music so much I asked the groom for a playlist so I could listen to it more! The whole day was wonderful. I am so happy that I got to be a part of Mira and Mark’s wedding and hopefully I can photograph some more Coptic weddings in the future!

Please enjoy the photos.

I am a photographer. Everyone knows that. However, if I do my job well it makes the client happy AND can benefit all the other vendors who I work with as well. Of course the majority of the images I take are of the bride, the groom, the wedding party, the parents, the family, and the guests. This is what makes the client happy. If I can not get those shots, the client is not happy and it doesn’t paint me in the best light. However, I also take photos that include other vendors work. The florist, the cake decorator, the venue, the coordinator, the DJ, and the list goes on. I do my best to make every one’s work look JUST as good as mine. I take the time to make these vendors look good, because they are making ME look good at the same time. If the bride is holding a beautiful bouquet in her photos, I will get amazing photos of those flowers and the florist will get the same amazing photos of their work, result: A happy client! If the venue takes the time to create and set up the brides vision, it makes the bride happy, it makes the photos look better, it makes the video look great, it gives the cake an elegant stage, and it all comes back to making the CLIENT happy. When the photographer AND the videographer work TOGETHER, not against each other the client gets their memories (ALL OF THEM)  captured and they can now enjoy those memories for a life time! Then the ball starts rolling again, the flowers, as well as the cake, the venue, the DJ, look good in the video AND the photos. I can go on and on about how everything ties together but I think you get the idea.

If we ALL do our jobs correctly, professionally, and as a TEAM we will complete not only the main goal of making our clients happy, but we will grow OUR businesses!! We all know how much this business is based on referrals, and if you show yourself in the best light to the client you should do the same to other vendors. I get asked ALL THE TIME, for vendor referrals from brides and I am sure other vendors do too. Why do brides ask us? Because we are at weddings more than they are and we see it all. We know who works well, who is professional, who isn’t, who shows up on time, who is a flake, and who ultimately is going to work well with the “Vendor Team.”

Now that the 2011 wedding season is winding down, Let’s all make a promise to ourselves and our clients for the 2012 and future wedding seasons.  Let’s all work as a team. Let’s dance that intricate dance together, not against each other. Let’s do our job right and do it well so that we ALL make the client happy!

Sincerely,

Christopher Cooke

Christopher Cooke Photography

The wedding went off with out a hitch. Monica from Keller Estate was wonderful, Erica Grube created some gorgeous floral arrangements (as usual), and all the guests at the wedding were great to work with. I love intimate weddings!!! The ceremony was personal, we got a tour of the winery, then had an AMAZING wine pairing dinner at El Dorado Kitchen in Sonoma. I will remember this wedding for a long time!!

Thank you Kerri and Doug for allowing me to be a part of your great wedding. Enjoy the images.

Now, as most anyone who has ever talked to me knows, I am a big fan of Chicago. After my trip last year, I fell in love! This wedding just took my relationship with this city to the next level. The hospitality, the energy and the pride that every showed was amazing. The bride and groom were an absolute pleasure to work with, and they (especially Art) were pure Chicago! From great food at the rehearsal, to the warm welcome I got from EVERYONE, to getting to shoot at WRIGLEY FIELD!! It was just an amazing experience and I can not express how honored I was to be a part of this amazing day!

Jennifer & Art, THANK YOU for allowing me to capture all the moments of your wonderful day! Enjoy the photos!

A big thank you to Natasha Wells for once again joining the Christopher Cooke Photography team and second shooting for me! Also Thank you to Jason Elewski for the video coverage of all the big events! And of course thank you to my wife for assisting all of us throughout the day!

Tiffani, the bride and I have known each other for about 16+ years now. We met in high school and were on the swim team together which lead me to join a summer team with her as well. Over the years that we were in school together and swam together our group of friends was pretty much attached at the hip at all times. Tiffani became a “little sister” to me and a couple of our other friends. Luckily with the popularity of Facebook and other social media we had been able to reconnect over the past few years and when her wedding was announced, luckily I was the one she picked for her photographer. It meant so much to me to be a part of her day. Getting to spend time with her, her new husband, as well as her family whom I haven’t seen in over 10 years made this an amazing wedding for me to photograph.

You will notice a strong hiking theme in the wedding. Justin and Tiffani met though a hiking group in Southern California and has pretty much been the glue of their relationship. They are VERY into hiking!! Its not only their hobby or passion if you will, but it is interwoven into their relationship and into their wedding. The hiking shoes instead of heals for Tiffani. Instead of a diamond, her ring is adorned with Tanzanite, a stone found mostly on Mt. Kilimanjaro, the mountian Justin was trekking up when he realized he loved Tiffani. Carabiners were used to carry the rings, and so on and so on. For their honeymoon…..They are hiking to Mt. Everest base camp! A 15 day, 100+ mile trek! I tried to get them to bring me to document it and shoot a “gown and dirty” session but no luck!

Please enjoy the images!