Nina & Blake | San Francisco Presidio Wedding
Nina and Blake first met eight years ago, and their casual friendship took several years to grow at its own slow pace, before they finally looked at each other six years in and thought, should we try dating each other? The answer was yes. Absolutely. Their foundation was built very slowly but very solidly, and they soon realized their lives were best spent together.
On a rainy day in San Francisco, Nina and Blake shared a slew of tears and laughter as they joined with friends andf amily to celebrate their special union.
Nina surprised Blake with this incredible gift, delivered by the Best Man. She had asked the groom’s father to craft the wooden cigar box…
… and inside was a beautiful notebook, filled with hundreds of handwritten letters. Over three hundred, in fact, as Nina had been writing a letter to Blake every single day for the past year. He had often seen Nina’s secret notebook but completely respected that it was hers and never once would’ve thought of looking inside. What an incredible moment, and so telling about how special they both are to each other.
Blake greeting his sister after this incredible moment. A very emotional morning already.
Blake’s mother passed away, but she always loved ladybugs, and so all of the family members received a tiny ladybug pin on their boutonnieres and bouquets as a tribute to her.
Blake and Nina didn’t want to see each other before the ceremony, so instead of doing a first look, we had them do a written vow exchange without seeing each other.
This was a beautiful way for them to be able to share their more heartfelt sentiments with just each other, while their actual ceremony was kept short and sweet with much simpler vows.
They had to move their outdoor ceremony indoors due to the weather, but it was still perfect and beautiful in the Hawthorne Room of the Golden Gate Club.
The bride’s son Robbie served as the officiant. Very sweet, and funny to hear him trip over having to use Nina’s full name instead of calling her ‘mom’.
Married!
A quick trample through the soggy grounds for some completely worthwhile portraits with the bridge.
A lovely first dance
Some great toasts
A beautiful father-daughter dance
A bouquet caught by a bridesmaid (whose bouquet it was to begin with)!
And they all danced the night away!
Congratulations, Nina & Blake! Such a wonderful celebration.
Wedding Vendors
Photography: Anna Wu Photography
Venue: Golden Gate Club, Presidio, San Francisco, California
Hair: Hera Huang
Makeup: Shannon Le
Florist: Angella Garrett
Wedding Dresses: Chosen by KYHA & Before by Sarah Seven
Dog Chaperone: Dog of Honor Events
Catering: Wedgewood
Videographer: Interstellar Films
Cake: Mazzettis Bakery
Anna Wu is a wedding and portrait photographer based in San Francisco, California. She combines a “fine art” aesthetic with a photojournalistic approach to beautifully capture the moments of a wedding day. Follow her daily adventures on instagram and view more of her work at annawu.com.
