Wedding Photography in OC
Congratulations! If you clicked on this page, you must be looking for at wedding photographers in OC. I started my photography career more than a decade ago as a wedding photographer in Orange County and I still get giddy when I get the chance to capture a bride and groom on their wedding day.
Looking for wedding photographers in oc?
Why Choose Me as Your Orange County Wedding Photographer?
Now, you might think a portfolio is the most important thing when you’re looking at wedding photographers in OC, but I’d like to argue that it’s actually their personality and whether or not you would enjoy working with them. During your wedding photography experience, you will be spending many hours with your Orange County wedding photographer, so you want to make sure that you not only admire their work, but appreciate them as a person.
I insist on meeting all of my potential wedding couples. We can either meet in person or through zoom because I think it’s so important to know that we can work well together. Trust me when I tell you that it will show in pictures when you are enjoying your wedding photography experience. The first step in this process is to get together and get to know each other. We go over some of your wedding details, look through some wedding albums and decide if we’d make a great creative team.
My wedding Photography Style and Approach
Versatile Styles and Lighting for Any Wedding Aesthetic
I have taken wedding photography workshops from some of the best photographers in the industry. The last workshop was full of international wedding photographers, but I was the only wedding photographers in OC! Because I've learned from so many different leaders in the industry, my style reflects a little bit of everything. I usually let the venue and the couple dictate the direction their wedding photography aesthetic will go. We can do light, airy, natural light, bohemian style or we can add some dramatic lighting and go for a more editorial romantic glam look.
I bring a variety of lighting to help create the perfect look for your wedding pictures. I pack flashes, continuous lights, video lights, etc. No matter what the light conditions are on your wedding day, I’ll be able to adapt and create the beautiful wedding portraits that you want. I’ve shot wedding in outdoor receptions lit only by string lights and grand ballrooms lit with dramatic up-lighting.
Guiding You with Comfort and Ease
My approach to wedding photography is to let as much happen without my direction, but to step in when needed. I will typically set a scene or direct people generally where to be during certain moments. Once they're set, I then just let them resume what they were doing. So many people worry that they will look “awkward” in their pictures. My goal is to make everyone as comfortable as possible. Everyone turns into a super model by the end of the day. If all else fails, my trick is to have the wedding couple focus on each other and don’t worry about “posing” for the camera. Capturing those genuine interactions between the bride and groom is one of my top priorities on the wedding day.
My Equipment Behind the Lens
Most wedding couples don’t really care what type of camera that I’m shooting with, but I’m realizing more and more these days that everyone is becoming a little more knowledgeable when it comes to photography. I’ve been shooting with Canon equipment from the very beginning. I actually started as a film photographer! Yes, I had to actually get my settings correct without being able to look at the back of my camera. Then I had to wait a week or two to see what the pictures actually looked like haha.
I’m definitely much happier nowadays with how far cameras have come and what they are capable of. I bring Canon 5D Markiv and a Canon 5D R5 mirrorless bodies with me to shoot with. I have an extensive range of lenses that I use during the day. Different poses or scenes will require specific lenses. You can be assured that I have backups in case of any technical problems that may occur.
Serving Orange County and Beyond
My studio is located in Brea, CA in sunny Orange County, but I am available to travel far and wide. I have photographed weddings all over Southern California and Las Vegas and am available for destination weddings all over the world. In fact, I’ve done family sessions as far as Ireland. I’d be excited to travel anywhere to document your wedding day. Special travel packages can be customized to fit your specific needs. I would love to be your Orange County wedding photographer!
Iconic Orange County Venues & Locations:
I've photographed many weddings at some incredible locations and venues in Orange County.
Here are my top five:
The Heritage Museum of Orange County:
Oh boy! I've done soooo many weddings here! This place holds a very special place in my heart. I’ve photographed so many weddings in the lush gardens and around the beautiful Victorian home. There’s definitely a feeling of stepping back in time here, which makes every photo feel a bit more romantic and personal. The Heritage Museum of Orange County is great because you can do the ceremony and reception in the same space and it’s so big that you can get a variety of different pictures. Couples love how the quiet charm of the property sets a relaxed, welcoming mood for their day. One of my favorite venues as an Orange County wedding photographer!
The Heritage Museum of Orange County on Google Maps here
Villa del Sol in Fullerton:
Another win if you are an OC wedding couple looking for a venue that allows for the reception and ceremony to be in the same place! Villa del Sol has a very romantic feel while being in the heart of downtown Fullerton! The warm, Spanish-style courtyard with all the colorful tiles and arches welcomes you and your guests right away. This spot has SO much character. It’s an easy stroll to local shops and restaurants, too, which means couples and their guests can keep the good vibes going before and after the wedding itself.
Villa del Sol on Google Maps here
Orange County Courthouse in Santa Ana:
The old Orange Courthouse has an art deco and historical vibe. For couples who want something simple yet still visually striking, this place hits the mark. Its historic facade and stately columns deliver a timeless look without all the fuss. I’ve worked with couples who chose this venue for its no-nonsense approach, yet they still got plenty of meaningful, elegant images that really captured their special moment. It’s also been featured in a lot of TV shows and movies so it’s great if your wedding matches that vibe.
Orange County Courthouse on Google Maps here
Summit House in Fullerton:
A super beautiful hilltop manor- perfect for your wedding day! Perched atop a hill, the Summit House has a very elegant vibe with sweeping views of Orange County. There are cozy fireplaces, huge, perfect lawns, and a spacious dining room that all create a warm atmosphere where everyone can settle in and enjoy your celebration. It just kind of has that old-world charm to it. When the sun starts to set, the place practically glows, giving us photographers a golden backdrop that’s hard to beat. This place also allows for ceremony and reception in the same place and has lots of grounds to take pictures on.
Summit House on Google Maps here
Seven Degrees in Laguna Beach:
This Orange County wedding venue is in the heart of the Laguna arts district. Such a gorgeous area! So while it has a lot of artistic features, it’s also very modern. If you’re after a more modern vibe, Seven Degrees in Laguna Beach feels like an art gallery brought to life. It's right next door to the famed "Sawdust Festival". Inside is super sleek and tons of creative installations that encourage couples to show off their personal style in a fresh way. Plus, you’re in Laguna Beach—so you can easily combine a stylish indoor ceremony with nearby ocean views to round out the day’s photo opportunities.
Seven Degrees on Google Maps here
ENGAGEMENT SESSION FOR ORANGE COUNTY WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
Once you have chosen me to be a part of your wedding celebration, we can start the planning. First up, the engagement session. Not all couples choose to include an engagement session as part of their wedding photography, but I highly encourage it. Engagement pictures can be used for so many different purposes. One of the most common is probably save-the-date announcements. This gives your wedding guests a heads up as to when you’re having your wedding ceremony so that they can start to make plans before you send out an official announcement.
I also suggest enlarging and printing your engagement pictures to put on the walls of your house. It’s such a great reminder of what you were like as a couple. Your wedding pictures are going to be images of you dressed in wedding attire so it’s nice to have engagement images of you as a couple in casual attire. Another thing that I love to do with engagement pictures is to make a wedding guest book. A guest book includes all the images from the engagement session. If you don’t want to make a whole book, you can make one large print of your favorite engagement picture and have people sign the matte border of it.
Importance of Engagement Sessions
Even if you’re not interested in the pictures from the engagement session, it actually serves an even greater purpose. It gets you comfortable in front of the camera for your wedding pictures. The engagement session is almost like a date between myself and the wedding couple. It’s a chance for us to get to know each other a little better. Then when it comes to the wedding day, you can have all the trust and comfort that your mages will turn out amazing.
I’m not always the chosen wedding photographer for the couples that I do engagement sessions for. Sometimes venues will have assigned wedding photographers in OC and couples will choose me to do just their engagement pictures. This is common and just as special. Engagement session pictures will usually take about and hour or a little longer and I suggest couples bring at least three outfit changes. We may not get to all three changes, but it’s always good to have more options than not enough.
PLANNING FOR ORANGE COUNTY WEDDING PHOTOGRAPHY
Engagement photoshoots are usually the first thing that we do once I become your Orange County wedding photographer. Once you have secured more of your vendors and wedding venue, I help all my couples work on a wedding photography timeline for the day. I use answers to an extensive questionnaire that I send you and come up with suggestions on when and where we do certain pictures during your wedding day. The wedding photography timeline makes it so that you don’t have to worry about where to be at any point during your big day. I will also work with your other wedding vendors to make sure that we all have the same expectations with how the wedding day will go.
Collaborating with Other Wedding Vendors for videography
I used to offer videography as part of my Orange County wedding photography packages but I have since decided to focus solely on photography. However, I still work with some amazing wedding videographers that I trust implicitly and will recommend if that is something that you are interested in adding. It’s so important that all your wedding vendors work together to give you an amazing wedding day experience.
After the Wedding: Image Delivery and Preservation
Sneak Peeks and Final Delivery
Within 48 hours of your wedding day, I will post some sneak peeks on social media platforms. You are welcome to share the pictures with friends and family. Your final edited images will be ready within 3-4 weeks of your wedding day. All of my wedding photography packages include high resolution digital files. You will receive a link to download the images once they are completely edited. You can expect approximately 40-50 images per hour of coverage, but that is just an average and can vary depending on the size of your wedding. In general, the more guests that you have and larger your wedding party, the more wedding pictures you will get.
heirloom Wedding Albums, prints and Keepsakes
You want to display your wedding images in as many places as possible. You worked hard on all your details and looked beautiful on your big day so you should be reminded of that often. I offer wedding albums as part of my wedding photography packages to make sure that your wedding pictures are printed and preserved. The print companies that I work with print using archival paper and inks. This will allow them to last for generations to come. I also suggest putting up some enlarged canvasses or acrylic prints of you as a couple on your big day. Whatever your printing needs, I’m here to help.
from wedding day, to your Growing Family
Many of my wedding photography clients will eventually turn into my Orange County maternity photography clients and then my Orange County newborn photography clients. I consider it the ultima te privilege to be able to become a family historian of sorts. Doing wedding photography, maternity portraits, newborn pictures, and then family pictures in Orange County every year. I have actually been able to do this for quite a few families and they have become friends more than clients and that’s the way that I like it. So, hopefully you enjoy working with me on your wedding day because you may not be able to get rid of me.
Done looking through wedding photographers in Oc?
Reach out to me for further details, pricing and availability
Freebird Studios is an Orange County Maternity, Newborn and Family photography studio located in Brea, CA and serving Fullerton, Anaheim, Yorba Linda, Rowland Heights, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Riverside, Laguna Beach and all of Los Angeles and Orange County.
FOLLOW ME
