Everytime we get one of these in the mail, we feel we have to say thank you for the thank you. So here it is. Ashley + Ian. . . . . thank YOU for the thank you 🙂

One day, two people were introduced by coincidence at a San Francisco Giants baseball game during a corporate outing. The game may have finished in 9 innings, but Angie + Jason could have continued their conversation all night. The rest is history and we thought it only fitting to give this Same Day Edit a name that played off the first time these two met one another.

We were so honored to be a part of their day and have the opportunity to share this Same Day Edit Saturday evening at their reception in front of all of their family and friends.

A VERY special thank you to Cassandra Santor from Cassandra & Company Weddings. When we are under the pressure cooker that is the Same Day Edit, it makes our lives so much easier to be in the company of a great Event Planner, and Cassandra and her team are fantastic.

When we are a little child and all we know is the comfort of a bedtime story or the sand in the park around the corner from our backyard, we learn to ask a simple question for all of life’s mysteries. . . . “Why?”

Oh yes, the ever annoying questioning of the smallest minute insignificant things from a parent’s perspective, but for the child, the question is so incredibly justified. Seasons pass and as we grow and begin to figure out things on our own, we gain so much through our own problem solving skills and deductive reasoning, but we find ourselves asking such an important question less and less often. . . . “Why?”

As a creative studio,  we make an attempt to ask the question, “Why” every time we film a scene, compose a shot, choose our lighting or color tone. Shot selection in all of our edits is always done with purpose and intent and as we tinker with scenes and fine tune each piece, we are still asking “Why” and making sure it can be answered.

And when two people decide to formally and legally join themselves in one of the greatest covenants that life has to offer, unfortunately there can be so many answers to that question because life gets complicated.

For Edward + Ashlee, their lives are complicated, just like everyone else. There are commitments and obligations and all of the complications that we all experience, but fortunately for them, none of those things were the answer to the simple question, “Why?”

. . . . For Ashlee, the answer to the question is multi-faceted, but the root to the answer revealed itself on her face as she sat and wrote her card to him and again as she approached Eddie for the first time on their wedding day. For Eddie, the “Why” was quite simple, as it should be. Perhaps the title to the post will clue you in on his reason, as so beautifully explained by the Best Man in the trailer.

A RAD shout-out to Nick Radford from Nick Radford Photography. With a last name like that, how could he not be awesome??? Seriously though, great guy and working with him was a pleasure. Special thank you as well to Nikki Page from Elegant Weddings as well as Michael Palacios from Progressive Sound Productions for their assistance throughout the day!

Ian marches to the beat of his own drum. no seriously. . . . . . any guy who eats an Elvis Sandwich (Peanut butter, Bananas and Bacon) in lieu of a formal reception dinner on his wedding night marches to the beat of his own drum.

So it is no surprise that he chose Ashley because she is witty, caring, and can hold her own. The perfect compliment to Ian. . . . a witty, yet caring individual himself. While he and the boys kept the jokes coming all day, we know that his love for Ashley is undeniable.

At our first consultation, it was made very clear by Ian that wedding cinematography was not high on his list of priorities, but Ashley knew it needed to be a part of their day and thus, the challenge was born. We knew that this shoot was going to be unique in that these two have such a fascinating chemistry and Ian and the boys wouldn’t disappoint, so we couldn’t disappoint them. What we didn’t know was how well some of the story lines were going to play out, and for this trailer, it was the reoccuring theme of keys.

The guests were all given keys with their place cards as they sat down for dinner. Ian opted out of a wedding ring and had a tattoo of a key placed over his wedding finger instead. Ian gave Ashley a key necklace as his wedding gift to her. . . . and Ashley’s wedding gift to Ian??? Well, let’s just say it is the key to every man’s heart, lol. . . . and if you don’t believe me, check out the trailer and you decide for yourself.

It was great to work again with Jesi Haack from Jesi Haack Design. If you recall, we collaborated with her on Melissa + Eduardo’s wedding last summer. Also, a shout out to Janel Conlan from Focus Photography because she is always creative and a BLAST to work with. Mai from Bunch Studio rocked the florals and Eric from So-Cal DJ brought the beat.

The Project that has been kept under wraps for months. . . . . . is slowly brewin’ to the surface. . . . . . and while we can’t show you just yet, we have to build some anticipation, right????

Weddings by SML is undergoing a major change, and in a good way. Same crazy crew and same focus. . . .

But a new name, a consolidated direction, and a lot of cool changes in store just around the corner.

Stay tuned. . . . . .