This was our first San Francisco city hall couple we ever photographed that we booked through our website. It is hard for me to believe, but this image was captured over 10 years ago. Since that time we have photographed 600 weddings in the great building. We have stayed in touch with this couple and watched them have some babies and enjoy a wonderful life together. I like to think of this image as them stepping into their new life as a married couple as they depart city hall. I think that pictures that tell a story can be the most effective of all. After all, great wedding photography should help create emotion in the viewer. To me this is what makes it so fun. More importantly, the bride and groom should be able to look at these photos and help them remember the great time they had during their wedding and photo shoot.
The image above was created by taking a low angle and looking up at the couple as they crossed the street. I also thought it would be fun to tilt the camera slightly to give the image an unconventional feel. Seeing this image again after a few years also reminds me that back in those days there was no crossing signal so it was a bit dangerous at times. We used to have to look both ways and try to find enough time for a traffic opening to create the image we wanted but also keep everyone safe. The photos below depict a happy couple sitting down on the Grand Staircase for a breather and to take a few relaxed photos. Below that shot is a black and white rendition of one of our first couples taking the elevator to the next floor of their city hall photo tour. We thought it would be fun to get a shot of them in one of the elevators.
