An Intimate Ranch Wedding in Monterey, California
Tiffany + Nick
From the first time I spoke with Tiffany and Nick, I knew that we clicked and I had this feeling deep down when I knew I'd made new friends in the process of being their wedding photographer…
Their story started way back when they both shared the loss of the important women in their lives. Tiffany's mom Jennifer and Nick's grandmother Ruth weren't with them anymore and they missed them the most at Christmastime. Deciding to start new traditions as a couple, they went to the Cardinal and Wright Christmas tree lot 2004 Fairgrounds rd., Gate 7 in Monterey, California and picked out their very first Christmas tree together. Their relationship blossomed and solidified over the next year and when they returned to their favorite tree lot, Nick chose that cold and rainy night to get down on one knee and propose to Tiffany with a beautiful ring from Zale's Jewelers. She told me that she ugly cried and then screamed YES!
Our story started when Tiffany showed my wedding photography work to her fiancé Nick on Instagram. They fell in love with San Francisco City Hall and had planned the wedding of their dreams in San Francisco. When the three months that we all thought would be the total of the shut down, turned into the rest of the year and their wedding date came and went , they made the very heart wrenching choice to cancel their plans and move their wedding to their hometown of Monterey California. While they were sorry not to be getting married in San Francisco, I have to be honest with you, Monterey is a stunning wedding destination in it's own right. If you're thinking about getting married in Monterey or the adjacent Pacific Grove, you'll need to get a marriage license from a county clerk in the state of California and present it to your wedding officiant on your marriage day. I'm going to write a separate blog about how to do all of the wedding prep work.
That was definitely the right choice, and not only because we still don't know when our beloved SF City Hall will open, but because the wedding that they DID create, was the bomb! For those of you planning your own events, I'm going to give you some tips along the way.
This bride happens to work in specialized veterinary care and naturally she's surrounded by friends and coworkers who love animals. One of her besties offered the use of her beautiful private ranch. Let me stop right here and bring up an important wedding planning point. She got her unique and very pretty wedding venue for FREE. One of the most expensive parts of planning an intimate wedding is the venue. On average couples spend 12k and up! It's very possible that you already know somebody with a nice property that would be overjoyed to help you on your big day. So don't be shy. Put the word out and you could probably save a small fortune.
The ceremony was held in an adorable brick courtyard with a bubbling lion's head fountain in the center. Interestingly, SF City Hall, their original venue choice, is also adorned with lions heads everywhere in it's architecture. The lion sculptures were intentionally created to give San Francisco courage after the devastating 1906 earthquake. And it worked, look at us today! So, the wedding lions had prowled down the coast to bring these two some good wedding vibes. Tiffany walked down the aisle with a truly unique bridal bouquet from Swenson and Silacchi Florist located at 432 Alvarado St in Monterey California. They are definitely one of the more popular florists in the area and with very good reason. I would highly recommend them, and we've had a number of couples trust them with their wedding floral needs. Her stunning gown was from Epiphany Bridal, located at 5 Mission Street in Carmel-By-the_sea CA 93921. If you are a stylish plus size bride, they have an entire section in their store just for you. This bride's dress was from the Wtoo brand.
The ranch was full of charming animals of all kinds, from a gorgeous young foal to donkeys that were brimming with personality and even a beautiful big horse named Neon. He tried to eat the bouquet and nearly got away with it. This is a very family oriented and sentimental couple, and their choice of locations for their newlywed session reflected that. I was so excited to learn their family history and hear the stories that brought us there for their session.
They brought me to Berwick Park which is also attached to Lovers Point in Pacific Grove. I instantly fell in love, and ended up photographing another wedding there the next week. This is a park that you can get a permit for if you want to set up an arch and put down some chairs, or you can hold a pop up wedding with no chairs and you aren't required to get a permit. We can take care of the permit if you're going to go a little bigger and more formal, so just ask for more information.
We also took their pictures in the Memory Garden in Monterey, where her Uncle had gotten married and five generations of her family had taken their wedding pictures. It was a beautiful space and I could tell that they were both feeling really nostalgic. I'm pretty sure there was some very good energy smiling down on them that day. Tiffany later told me that even though their plans got changed their foundation was even more solid because of it. Family, love and roots will get them through any challenges they face, great or small.
