Vidal & Debi + Love + San Francisco City Hall = Intimate Wedding!

Vidal & Debi are so awesome! They were so fun and a joy to be around. I especially love the way Vidal looks at Debi. His eyes light up each and every time! Debi had mentioned that she is a little camera shy, I think she is beautiful. I especially love her baby blues- Franck Sinatra would be jealous!! Don't you agree?



They are both transplants to the Bay Area and as such don't have family here. Therefore to share their special day I have posted a slideshow at the end of this post so everyone who was here in spirit only can see the days events!


I am inspired by many things! I would say in my top 10 places to find inspiration is in Art, regardless of the era. Border's might hate me- I tend to plop myself in front of the Art & Photography section for hours thumbing through all the beautiful books. One iconic image which is burned into my mind is that of Grant Wood's American Gothic. (I must also add I was fortunate to see this piece in Mardid's Museo Thysen-Bornemisza while on exhibit borrowed from the Art Institute of Chicago)I would like to thank Vidal & Debi for playing along. Here is my version of this iconic image:


and a bit of a spin:


Another item of inspiration for me is architecture. I love the architecture in San Francisco's city hall. Here we see Vidal waiting for his bride and her best man doing his duty of holding her purse. ;-)



I love the emotion of weddings and especially the interaction between parents and children. Here is a heartfelt hug from mother & son.



A proud mother can't have enough photos!


How fun is the groom:


After the ceremony we headed over to The Presidio and did portraits at Chrissy Fields with the beautiful Golden Gate Bride in the background. (maternity images to follow in a separate post- stay tuned!)






Congratulations Vidal & Debi!!! I wish you much happiness!!

Mother's Day Contest Winner

Congratulations to Martha H. You are the winner! I will be emailing you to set up your mother's portrait session!

A big heartfelt hug to your mother for being a good Samaritan as well as carrying the heavy load of the event!

Here is what Martha wrote:

"One day in June 1999, there was a women waiting at a signal light and witness a horific accident. Another mother with two small children were waiting at a bus stop when a car jumped the curb and plowed right into the family. Without hesitation, this women jumped out of her car to help the family that was struck. Here is one mother comforting another mother, who was calling out for her children because she had a broken leg and could not move. She held her in her arms, knowing fully that the ladies baby was pinned under the car still in her stroller. This women had enough strength to later that same night attend her own daughter's wedding rehearsal dinner, not to say a word about what happened that day. She did not want to damper the wedding so she kept it all to herself and cried when she was alone on what she witnessed. It wasn't until the next couple of weeks when the daughter found out what her mother had kept from her. It was then when I realize how strong and truely amazing my mother was. This was my wedding and to know that she wanted it to be the happiest day of my life, even though it turned out to be the worst day of her life, touches my heart deeply. She always give never to expect anything in return. She is a grandmother to 5 boys and 2 girls and is proud to say she babysat every one of them so they wouldn't have to go to daycare. She is the type of grandmother that will drive all the way to San Jose from Manteca every weekend to pick up her grand-daughter because she "missed" her. My mother is a strong, loving, and caring person and for this reason, I wanted to nominate her for the Mother's Day Contest, but most of all because she's my mother."

Mother's Day Contest

Hello everyone!

Mother's give us the best gift possible. The gift of Life! In honor of this I am giving away one portrait session to one lucky "mother". Since this contest is as a thank you to all the mother's out there you cannot nominate yourself. Tell me who you are nominating (your mom/sister/auntie/grandmother/mother-in law/friend ) and explain why she is an awesome mother or mother figure. Stories are encouraged! Tell me here

The winner will receive an hour portrait session with a $50 print credit.

My mom is awesome! When I was little we would spend our summer's in Mexico. I am the oldest of 4 siblings and we were all about 2 years apart. Each summer my mom would pack us up and we would fly into Guadalajara then take a LOOOOONG bus ride into a small town in the state of Guanajuato for summer with my grandparents. My dad would stay behind and work so it was just her with us. Thinking back on this adventure I am amazed at how she managed not to lose us nor our luggage. Those summer trips were so much fun!! Today my mom had expanded her travel to other parts of the world and I'm always amazed at her energy. My dad used to say .. "Everyone is getting older except your mother. She is getting younger. " This is true! As a matter of fact- She just got back from a trip to Europe and her suitcase was just as heavy if not heavier as I remember those suitcases from my childhood.

here she is during a trip I took with her last November to Punta del Este, Uruguay.




The Prize fine print:
-Portrait session can take place anywhere, however after 40miles from downtown San Jose a travel fee will apply.
-Portrait session is a one person session and will last one hour.
-Model release will be required allowing Mariana Maya Photography to use all images in self promotion online & in print
-Portrait session is non-transferrable

The Contest fine print:
-Leave a comment nominating your mom/sister/auntie/grandmother/mother-in law/friend and explain why she is awesome or share one funny/sad/triumphant story about her.
-Please leave a valid email address, so I can contact you.
-One entry per person, however the same person can be nominated multiple times by different people. However a unique comment must be left.
-Only comments left on this blog will be entered
- 5 finalists will be chosen by awesome fellow photographer Kristel Wyman and one winner will be chosen by a random number generator.
*Deadline to submit is THIS Saturaday, May 9, 2009 at 9pm PST. The winner will be announced Tuesday, May 12 in the morning.

Wayne & Amy: The Engagement. It was a wet one!!

Hi everyone!

This posting will definitely be longer than the usual. So go grab a cup of coffee from your favorite coffee shop ( my personal favorites are Roy's Station, Barefoot Cafe & newly discovered Verve in Santa Cruz or if Starbuck's is more convenient) and enjoy.



Amy was my sister's first friend when we moved to San Jose back in grammar school. Years later, Thanks to Facebook we reconnected. I was so thrilled when Amy & Wayne honored me by asking that I photograph their wedding.

Amy & Wayne were made for each other, and this has been proven. They were even matched up twice. They are also the most laid back couple I have ever met! Rightfully so they live out in Santa Cruz. My second shooter, Micaela & I met them at their cute house by the beach and headed out to go grab Amy a surf board at the surf shop. As soon as we pulled up to Rip Curl I knew it was going to be an awesome session.

The dude at the store was awesome and let us have some fun! OMG! I was in heaven surf boards, flip flops & a great looking couple.









We then headed out to the beach to have some more fun!









We got really lucky the weather in Santa Cruz was in the mid to high 80's!! I especially got lucky! You see I was in shorts (sans wetsuit) and as I waded into the Pacific Ocean amongst kelp and slippery rocks I was very thankful to have the sun beating down on me to keep me from freezing my lower half of my body. I know crazy!! But I definitely think it was well worth it!!



The waves weren't huge -but we still had lots of fun!











And because everyone knows my first love is Black & White photography. I love the mood of these!










Amy & Wayne: Can't wait for your wedding day to come. Everyone stay tuned I promise a GORGEOUS backdrop, some BBQ, Karaoke and even something for the kids! I might even tell you a funny story about Amy's parents and how they met!!

Leave some Love for the couple or for me here!

one final image:

Vidal & Debi + Sneak Peak = Teaser!

If this isn't what you call sneak peek! Then really I don't now what is. The first image almost borders on a "Peeking Tom". HA!



Vidal & Debi are awesome! They had the most intimate wedding with only two loved ones to
witness . & me!!! Seriously!! I Love my job!! I get "invited" to the most amazing venues.

Without looking at the tags can you guess where this was??




more to come ......... stay tuned!!

Doug & Grace: The Engagement!

You know when you meet a couple and you can immediately see that they are perfect together. That is totally Doug & Grace! They get along great and joked with each other throughout the session. It was so much fun!


And I haven't even mentioned how romantic the woods are.



I think The most romantic moment is the split second right before the kiss, regardless of location or climate. What is your most romantic kiss scenario? tell me here



We met at Muir Woods, in Mill Valley. I had personally never been there. It was amazing. The trees are huge! There are nice paths to walk on, which I loved. And like I already mentioned it is super romantic. Except for all the tourists running around, which didn't phase this couple.



When asked where they met. Doug simply replied "in jail" ..I thought it was a joke and commented casually about who the troublemaker was. Well....later as we were heading to our cars I was chatting with Grace about school and work. Which led me to ask (again) how exactly they met. Grace replied we were co-workers. A-ha! Causally I asked where, to which Grace replied "at Juvenile hall" WOW!!! They did actually meet in jail. They were both working as teachers. That is so awesome. What really made me love this couple more was hearing Grace tell me a story, about how they both wanted the same full time position. But that when Grace saw how good Doug was with the kids she knew he was the better person for the job, and didn't persue the opportunity. AWWWW.

I love capturing moments like this. When the couple forgets I'm there.





They will be getting married in a few weeks and can't wait for the wedding! I know it's going to be lots of fun.