The bride and groom embrace in the dahlia garden inside the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens.
Mendocino, CA- Are you considering hosting your wedding in beautiful Mendocino? Come along with Mendocino wedding photographer John Ruddock as we go through an entire wedding day with Jonathan and Elizabeth.
Chapter 1.
Wedding Day In Mendocino
The day began like many do as I crushed an eggs benedict to give me the strength to cover an 8 hour wedding day. Then I drove to the Airbnb where the bride, groom, and many family members were in the early stages of getting ready for the big day. If you haven’t already booked your stay in Mendocino, I do recommend getting an Airbnb over a hotel as often times the properties through Airbnb’s are nicer. Many couples like to do family photos and/or the “first look” before they leave for the venue and a nice Airbnb can give us a great location to take those photos. This also eliminates a trip to another location would could involve many cars driving together and having to park separately somewhere else. Pro tip!
As the bride was prepping mentally and physically, I was able to steal her dress away take some lovely, artsy photos on the patio.
I really enjoy highlighting the dress in photos like this. Sometimes it’s challenging to find an appropriate spot to hang it that looks nice and clean but I found it on this day. I was also able to capture the bride’s bouquet as well as the boutonnieres.
By the time I was done capturing those images the groom was suited and booted so we ventured into the lovely backyard for some solo portraits. I loved this red wall to contrast his blue suit. He looks really sharp. I also wanted to use the color of the foliage in the backyard so we shot a few more on the path.
We snuck a few family photos in and then I went up stairs to capture the bride adding a few final touches to her wedding day attire with the help of her sister.
Remember, at this point the bride and groom still have not yet seen each other so we ducked down into the backyard and I set up the shot for their first look. With Jonathan facing away, I placed Elizabeth about 20 feet behind him so I could get a wide shot of them on either side of the frame. This way I can capture them walking up to each other. I prefer to have some distance between the bride and groom as they turn around and see each other for the first time on their wedding day. This really allows for them to soak in how amazing the other looks as they are far enough away to appreciate their full outfit. It also allows for them to approach each other and embrace in their own unique way. Some run towards each other and jump into each other’s arms and some burst into tears, collapse, and just can’t right now.
Jonathan and Elizabeth kept this one classy.
Chapter 2.
Bride And Groom Photos In The Botanical Garden
The Airbnb was only about 5 minutes away from the site of their wedding ceremony. However, a wrong turn as we left lead to a bit of a later arrival than we had planned.
But not to worry! I excel in crunch time and I was able to capture some beautiful moments of these two exploring the gardens in the minutes leading up to their wedding ceremony.
Chapter 3.
A Wedding among the Dahlias.
I’m trying to think of a more beautiful location for a wedding but I can’t. The dahlias in this garden were absolutely blowing up with color. Yellows, reds, pinks, whites, oranges (the color, not the fruit), and the green of the lawn were outstanding at this time of year. Not only that, but 150 foot tall cypress trees stand like sentinels at the back of the venue. A true California coast staple.
Then we had a beautiful ceremony that was officiated by the sisters of the bride and groom (a first for me). I enjoyed this venue not only for the amazing flowers in every direction, but because I was able to move around almost 360 degrees to get any angle I wanted. This is ideal for photographers. Like fresh, clean water we hate to be stagnant!
Then we kissed and broke the glass!
Then I whisked myself away to the reception in my blue Rav4 Prime (and I must say, someone else at the wedding had the exact same car which made things very difficult in the parking lot).
Chapter 4.
A Warm Reception
Once I figured out which Rav was my Rav, I got on the road to the reception house at the Caspar Community Center, a few miles south of the gardens.
The Caspar Community Center was built in 1912 and was a school house until the mid sixties. Now it’s a great place for events and is walking distance to the ocean. The CCC was beautifully set up with a welcome table on the front patio that held the schedule for the evening, a map of the venue, photos of the couple (and their families), a box to drop cards into, and match boxes as a gift. They also used my photos of their engagement session throughout the venue which was absolutely lovely for me to see.
Inside, the dining hall to the right was all set and ready to hold 100+ guests. It was dressed up beautifully by the folks there.
Photographers definitely want to take pictures of the dining hall before it fills up with guests. We want good detail images as well as super wide to catch the whole scene and to tell the story the best we can.
Then it’s time for exteriors of guests mingling, laughing, and enjoying their time. As a photographer, sometimes it feels weird to zoom in on strangers talking with others while you’re standing in a dark corner but that’s how you come away with amazing candid shots. It’s part of the job and really fulfilling when you capture great moments.
Once people had built up an appetite we moved into the dining hall and the newlyweds were introduced to a roaring ovation.
That’s DJ Eddie on the mic! His contact info is at the bottom.
That’s the couple of the hour!
Hand-made pizzas were created by Huria’s Woodfired Pizza & Catering of Bodega Bay.
As a photographer who’s heard many, the speeches from this wedding reception were some of the best I’ve ever heard.
There was laughter, tears of joy, and even a chair was thrown.
Just kidding! We were just moving it! Just moving it.
With only minutes of daylight left, we hustled towards the beach trail to try and capture amazing photos of the newlyweds at golden hour. However, we were so fogged in and the sun had already set by the time we could escape that we had to think of something else fast.
So we played around in this field and actually came away with some lovely images (and zero tics! Maybe the most important part of this mini shoot). In fact it was one of these images that became their album cover. It’s hard to tell here but it was pretty dark and misty at this point.
I will say that I really like that last image in front of the steeple and street sign. It’s a great sense of place and context. Really beautiful.
Once we wrapped up these bride and groom photos it was time to cut the cake and let it rip on the dance floor!
And then they lived happily ever- wait! Wait. First there were tequila shots and THEN they lived happily ever after.
That’s it, folks! That was an 8 hour wedding day in Mendocino, CA. If you liked these photos and vendors, please see the full list and contact information below. If you loved my images and want me to photograph YOUR wedding day, please reach out to me below and let’s make it happen!
Have questions or want to book me today? Send me a message.
want to skip the form? here’s my email.
highorbitmedia@gmail.com
Full Vendor List
Planner
Valerie Capri / vcaprievents@gmail.com / (707)489-9315
Food
Huria’s / www.hurias.com / info@hurias.com
Sound
The Celebration Co / Brandon Bosch / https://thecelebrationdj.com / (303)931-0812
DJ Eddie
djeddie@mendodj.net / (707)234-5505
Bartending
Mendocino Outlands Bartending / Max Courtney / mendocinobarproduction@gmail.com / (707)357-4844
Mendocino Botanical Gardens
Shaley Borgen / events@gardenbythesea.org / (925)812-0826
Caspar Community Center
casparevents@gmail.com / (707)964-4997
Decorations And Rentals
Matt Rowland Events / www.mattrowlandevents.com / @mattrowlandevents
