Destination Wedding Videos

Sabrina+Cole // Palm Event Center

12/22/2024

Still in California for the summer wedding season, this stop takes me to the East Bay Area for day two of my double wedding weekend. Even though I only try to film one wedding a week, double headers always find their way into my calendar each year. This venue, The Palm Event Center, has become one of my favorite venues to film at over the years. Not only does the palm tree-lined driveway and the vineyards that surround the property offer stunning scenery, but the staff is truly top-notch. This wedding in particular offered an extra layer of excitement as I would be spending the day with one of my favorite photographers, Nicola, and my old high school friend turned wedding coordinator, Jenny. I arrived at the venue bright and early, beating the couple by about an hour. Fantasy Sound and Lighting Design was busy transforming the space into the magical reception venue it would later become. I love filming setups as it allows the couple to see some of the behind-the-scenes action that took place before they arrived. It also gives me the perfect content to introduce the feature film. Cole and his groomsmen were the first to arrive and got set up in the lounge area. I introduced myself and got started filming details. Knowing Cole would be the first to arrive, I had him bring the flat lay details. Nicola was still busy capturing the morning off-site with the girls, so I was left to my own devices to stage the details.... My photographer friends are always SO much better at posing details and are typically nice enough to allow me to capture their arrangements. Lucky for me, Nicola soon arrived, and we got started capturing Cole's getting ready process. Cole and, well, really his whole family were so fun to work with all day, but in this moment he and his brother Ben were too much fun. Ben helped Cole into his suit before giving him the most awkward hug I've ever captured. I headed over to Sabrina, who was patiently waiting in the barrel room. Palm offers two spaces for ceremony, the outdoor lawn and the barrel room. When the couple opts to have their wedding on the lawn, I always have my brides use the barrel room for their getting-ready process. The chandeliers in the barrel room offer a stunning location to film the dress, and by opening the barn door that leads outside, the sunlight transforms the space into a perfectly lit option for the bride to get ready in. With the help of her mother, Tina, Sabrina finalized her wedding look before putting her scent on for the occasion. Filming perfume being sprayed into sunlight creates a really cool, dreamy effect in slow motion. Cole, not to be outdone, later found out about that effect and wanted to also have his moment with his cologne. He also threw in a hair flip for good measure. This had to be one of my favorite shots of the day. Sabrina, now in her wedding dress, shared a first look with her bridal party before stepping out to have a private first look with her dad, Kevin. Guests soon started arriving as Cole gathered his groomsmen and his parents for a final toast before the procession. I will always choose natural sunlight over artificial, but one of the challenges with natural light is not having control of it. Palm typically offers a challenging ceremony predicament. Half of the aisle is usually in full sun, where the other half is shaded. In order to maximize the time in proper exposure, this is one of the rare venues where I capture the procession from the back of the aisle instead of the front. This allows me to capture each group as they walk from the doors to the reception, to the back of the aisle, maximizing each group's time in consistent light. If I filmed from the front like I normally do, each member of the procession would only be properly lit for a few seconds. The rest of the ceremony went on without a hitch as the two shared their traditional vows and exchanged rings before sealing their commitment to one another with a kiss. Cocktail hour was underway as the couple got started with their family photos. I like to jump around during this time between filming the reception space, candid cocktail hour guest interactions, and filming a bit of the in-between moments from the family portrait session. Following cocktail hour, guests were invited to take their seats for the reception. Cole and Sabrina were introduced through the barn doors to the barrel room and made their way to the dance floor for their first dance. This has to be one of my favorite first dances I've captured. The dreamy Christmas esc uplighting and the spotlight I used to backlight the dance floor really made the moment extra visually captivating. Cole then formally welcomed guests to the reception before being whisked away for some bridal party and couple portraits outside. Palm truly delivered and even went as far as to give me a gentle breeze. Wind and slow motion really go hand in hand. We staged our bridal party photos along the palm tree-lined driveway before moving Sabrina and Cole to the vineyard for their couple photos. The sunset was magical and gave us just enough light to get through their couple photos. Back inside, a few speeches were deliverd before the couple shared another dance with their respective parent. The dance floor officially opened and was never empty again; this group loved to party! I ended up staying well beyond my coverage capturing the action and may have had a fresh donut from the flambe station set up for some late-night snacks before officially departing. What an awesome two-wedding weekend this was!