Category: Video

One morning, out of the blue, Connie and I decied to take a morning walk around Walnut. Before we realized it, our morning walk turned inspirational when we got sidetracked and found ourselves at the Brookside Equestrian Center. I said to Connie, this would be great place to showcase our work. One passionate thing we do when inspire hits us is to sit right down and brainstorm. We began our search for models and gowns but also we began assembling a team to help make the idea come to life. One thing led to another, we hooked up with Erica España of Twine Events and we hit it off right away. I knew this was the beginning of something. Next was to secure the location. I called Rose Wade of Rose Wade Events who manages events at the equestrian center and pitched our idea. When she got on board, the rest started to come in place. For gowns, Veronica of La Soie Bridal was welcoming to the idea of our shoot and also added hair accessories from Veronique Coleccion. We made a casting call and found two great models, Nicole Maxwell and Mark Finochiaro. For makeup, we turned to our friend Kat Laskey whose work we admire. She brought her friend David Harrington to do the hair. Erica was so kind to find the rest of our team, Nancy Benninghoff Jr. of Oak and the Owl to execute the floral designs and Amber Moon of Pitbulls and Posies for the invitations. We also turned to our friend Gretchen Norton of Barnhill Boutique for antique rentals. Baker Party Rentals provided the exposed wood table, bench and chairs. And to tie it all together, Saadia Kibriya of Kismet Event Planning & Design helped with the romantic white draping that encompass the feasting table. We even managed to get a few boleros for the bride thanks to Joyce Brady of Gertie B on Etsy. Now, we needed to make sure this was all documented on video and we turned to Kelsey and David of Charles Lauren Films. The rest is history as we not only got a wonderful photo shoot out of it, but a behind-the-scenes look of what transpired. So sit back and watch a little video of our creative collaboration.  

Horses, Cameras and Couture: A Behind-The-Scenes Look at a Bridal Photo Shoot! from Charles Lauren Films on Vimeo.

Vendors Credits

Venue:: Brookside Equestrian Center - www.brooksideequestrian.com

Venue Contact:: Rose Wade Events – www.rosewadeevents.com

Planner/Stylist:: Erica España – www.twineevents.com

Florist:: Nancy Benninghoff Jr. – www.oakandtheowl.com

Stationery:: Amber Moon – www.pitbullsandposies.com

Male Model:: Mark Finochiaro – www.modelmayhem.com/2360336

Female Model:: Nicole Maxwell – www.modelmayhem.com/1614265

Makeup Artist:: Kat Laskey – www.katlaskey.com

Hair:: David Harrington – www.davidharringtonla.com

Cinematographer:: Kelsey and David Pluskat – www.charleslauren.com

Bridal Gown:: Veronica Trebels – www.lasoiebridal.com

Hair Accessories:: Veronica Trebels – www.veroniquecoleccion.com

Rentals:: Baker Party Rentals – www.bakerpartyrentals.com

Antique Rentals:: Gretchen Norton – Barnhill Boutique – gretchen.r.norton@gmail(dot)com

Draping:: Kismet Events – Saadia Kibriya – www.hellokismet.com

Bolero:: Gertie B – Joyce Brady - www.etsy.com/shop/Gertieb

Photography:: Connie and Desi Baytan Photography – www.desibaytan.com

Heart On My Sleeve from Desi Baytan on Vimeo.

 

The first time I heard Isaiah Olsen sing, I was struck by his voice. He sang at a wedding I photographed and later I learned he is a the lead singer for the band Last One Done. Their songs caught my attention and imagination and I invited Isaiah for a photo shoot and to make a music video.  He describes his songs as “California Soul” and reminds me of the many places in Southern California.  We picked my favorite spots in Newport Beach to shoot the video and what a perfect day it was. Together with my brothers, Apollo and Francis, we filmed Isaiah performing the song “Heart On My Sleeve“. Isaiah and his bands performs at the Orange County Fair and they do weddings as well. Check out his songs on his website, and I think you too will be impressed with their songs and his voice.

Level Up in Pasadena from Charles Lauren Films on Vimeo. (Thanks Kelsey & David for your great work!).

Our grand opening night at our new Pasadena Office on Feb 2, turned out close to 300 people! WOW.  Seven wedding industry professionals hosted this occasion at the Workshops in Pasadena.  I want to personally thank my colleagues who made this event a HUGE success.  They are:

Ngoc Nguyen of Skybox Event Productions

Theresa Huang of TH Makeup & Hair Design

Kendra Ackerman and Euri Wong of Fleuretica

Tuan Nguyen of Two 1 Studio

Margaret Wang of Muse Makeup Artistry

Caroline Tran of Caroline Tran

Other vendors who made the night alive:  Lights provided by The Music Man Production (thanks Jack), music by Zuno Productions, catering by Huntington Catering Company, Lotus Culinary Creations, Cakes by the Pound – Thanks for the delicious Sweets!

Special thanks to Annette Hatch of Sweet Addictions for bringing in the wonderful cake (it was delicious!!!).  Also to Selene Lum from Joie Patisserie, who introduced her  magnificent French macarons. “C’est magnifique.”

And to all who attended, THANK YOU for coming.