Marina, CA- If you’re considering a Monterey Bay wedding, do not miss the opportunity to take photos on the beach. The beach is what we love. The beach is why you come. The beaches inside Monterey Bay are long and sandy compared to those in Carmel. With it’s miles of sand, it’s easy for a bride and groom to seclude themselves and feel like they’re the only people on Earth.
The only people left on Earth photographed by the 3rd to last person on the Earth.
After checking out my Instagram, Greg messaged me about a wedding photography session in the middle of March. He and Natalia were only doing a quick courthouse wedding but they wanted photos of themselves celebrating afterward. That’s where I come in.
The whole family was staying at The Sanctuary in Marina which is a very nice resort right on the beach.
Once I arrived we quickly popped the champagne and our wedding photography session was underway.
“This calls for a little bit of the bubbly!” - Lloyd Christmas
They even had a brand new puppy, Lazlo, and let me tell you: if there is a dog at a wedding and you’re not photographing it, are you even a wedding photographer? The dog is always in the top 5 of people you cannot fail to capture at a wedding.
Look at that face!
I said look at that face!
Once the champagne was flowing we spent a little time taking family photos on the grounds. As a photographer I like to capture images of different family and friend combinations as well as a big group shot.
We basically had the perfect amount of people for the setting here by the fire.
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Once drinks were had and we wrapped up the family shoot, Greg and Natalia were whisked away to the beach on the golf cart of love.
Moments later we were on the beach on a very bright and windy Friday afternoon. Some locations, like this sandy pathway to the ocean make my job really easy. Here I directed Greg and Natalia to just hold hands and walk to the beach! Super simple and great images.
Once on the sand we did a few close ups, chasing that front cover of a romance novel look.
Grooms: remember this pose. You can crush this. Greg’s suit is from Brooks Brothers and his shoes are by Alden.
Brides: remember these eyes. You can own this look. Natalia is wearing a champagne colored Gloriana Dress and Jimmy Choo shoes.
Whether it’s newlyweds, families, or just yourself, something I always ask of my clients when doing beach shoots is to just walk along the water for a ways and be yourself. Some of the best shots I get are from using my telephoto lens to zoom in on my subjects, creating lots of depth like in these imgaes.
I always say one of the things a photographer needs to excel at is to have the ability to “see the future”. In this case, about 200 feet down the beach was a flock of about 150 seagulls. So I think to myself, “If these two walk down there, those gulls are going to flee and fill the sky above them creating quite a scene.”
Greg and Natalia were troopers! After I mentioned this to them the quickly agreed and headed the gull’s way. However, I did not expect what Greg was about to do. Once they were about 90 feet from the gulls, Greg drops Natalia’s hand and starts sprinting at them at full speed.
Keep in mind that this man not only got married this morning, but he’s in full suit and Alden shoes, in the sand, and is baring down on 150 seagulls. Greg is a force. If this wasn’t enough, Natalia starts chasing after him in her Jimmy Choo’s. Not wanting anything to do with him, as predicted by John Ruddock, the gulls leap into the air, filling the sky above him.
Content that he has sufficiently cleared the beach of gulls, Greg turns back to Natalia and outstretches his arms, as if they haven’t seen each other in months and embrace.
They must have legitimately enjoyed this because once the gulls landed they did again! Together!
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When we reunited 10 minutes later they were glad to hear the photos were worth it! But before we headed back to the resort grounds I wanted to try a few slow shutter shots with them in front of the waves. As I was using my long lens I needed to be quite far away from them to make this work so I told them to just figure out their own poses and and listen for me to shout “Next!" from 75 feet away. Once they found their poses they also had to remain perfectly still for this affect to work. They were both very creative and we ended up with this pretty cool set.
The problem with saying “Okay, I think we’re done!” when you’re a photographer is that you have eyes and can still see shots you want to get. So of course on our way back to The Sanctuary I kept shooting.
There’s something about a bride carrying her shoes…
Despite popular belief, we really were done after this. Both Greg and Natalia went the extra miles for their photos and I’m so happy I could take these images for them to celebrate their big day! To our dismay, once we got back onto the resort grounds, the golf cart of love was not there waiting for us so we had to hoof it back to the lobby. You can’t win ‘em all!
Want photos like this of your wedding ceremony and reception? Message me today and let’s make you look good!
Go ahead. How many times do you get to hit a LAUNCH button in your life?
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John Ruddock is a professional photographer based in Salinas, CA. John grew up on the coast in Half Moon Bay and has spent over 30 years on the beautiful California central coast. He photographs weddings, engagements, families, sports, and landscapes from Half Moon Bay to Big Sur. Contact him today to book your session! You can also buy prints of his best images right here.
