Red Rock Canyon: Eddie + Mar

I’ve known Eddie + Mar for a few years now.  I always knew that they were just meant to be together.  They have this easiness to their relationship.  They love and support each other so well.  I bet you can imagine how thrilled I was to receive Mar’s message that Eddie had proposed!  She wasn’t expecting it yet, but I had a feeling it was coming soon.  And…you can only imagine my excitement when she was certain that I had to be the one to capture these moments for them.

A little back story to their love:

The ever so amazing BJ’s will be the location to thank for making the initial sparks fly between these two.  They were both invited by a mutual friend to have a birthday dinner together.  Mar already claimed to have had her eyes on Eddie because her family would always dine at the restaurant Eddie’s family owned.  She undoubtably admits to making the move by asking Eddie for his number after the BJ’s dinner (*This makes me smile knowing Mar now, she’s a woman who knows what she wants…I love that about her!). Lucky for Eddie…she knew he was someone she really wanted to get to know.

Eddie was immediately attracted to Mar’s cute infectious personality and Mar says she found Eddie to be incredibly handsome and sweet. Needless to say…they hit it off, and that BJ’s dinner would be the first of many moments together.  Just about 2 months after this moment, they were on a journey to a very loving and fun relationship of five years.

The Proposal:

Eddie and Mar took a very much needed vacation away from work and school to beautiful Cancun Mexico.  Eddie planned a sunset sail boat ride along with other people (of which they knew none).  He orchestrated the whole thing, even had a random stranger help him capture the moment on video (which I got to see, and was totally smitten by it!).  It was beautiful.  Just the two of them, surrounded by witnesses who didn’t even know them but celebrated with them.  He declares his love for her and gets down on his knee on this sail boat during sunset on the gulf of Mexico and of course a totally shocked but super ecstatic Mar says…..YES YES YES 100 TIMES YES! (Well, I don’t think that’s exactly what she said, but I’m sure that’s what she thought!).  He picked out the most stunning ring and it just looked perfect with her beautiful radiant smile that she could not contain.

The Engagement Session:

Eddie and Mar had an incredible engagement session.  Right off the bat, Mar knew she wanted something different.  She knew she wanted a dessert vibe or some kind of landscape that was not by a beach or water.  We ended up choosing the Kern River Preserve and Red Rock Canyon State Park (and also used a few roads in between-of which I don’t know exact locations for).  Eddie says that he really enjoyed the locations we chose for their shoot and says having a great photographer was also a highlight (:-) thank you Eddie!).  He also mentioned how he could not stop looking at his beautiful bride to be because she looked absolutely perfect.  This is what Mar had to say about their session “I love Rubi and how focused she was on our shoot. She also made the shoot so fun for us. I loved all of the styles and locations that we did.  She gave us pointers on how to pose and look at each other. She captured US! As far as with Eddie, I loved how handsome he looked in all his outfits, the way Rubi captured how he looks at me and the love in his eyes from a different perspective.” I asked both Eddie and Mar if they had any advice for couples who are getting ready for the engagement session and this is what they had to say.  Eddie says “Just go with the flow and trust your photographer.”  Mar said “Take the time to coordinate your outfits.  Be excited and prepared.  Check into the weather.  Go out of your comfort zone….and most of all, HAVE FUN!”  That is great advice from both of them.

Wedding Day:

Eddie and Mar will be married this October at the Monji Gardens in Bakersfield CA.  They describe their wedding style as Modern Bohemian. I asked them both what they are looking forward to the most and they BOTH answered the same….that they just can not wait to marry their “best friend.”  Mar says she would’ve eloped with Eddie in the woods somewhere just to call him her husband.  They have one thing, and only one thing in mind for their wedding day….to be together in the moment.  How lucky am I to capture their hearts in this beautiful season?!  After their I do’s, they look forward to whatever life has to bring to them.  Somewhere down the line, more traveling and starting a family.  But they are happy to know that their life continues….together.

Final thoughts from Rubi Z and a few behind the scenes moments:

Well, this shoot was really a special one.  Mar and Eddie completely trusted me, they paid close attention to every single detail and they really lived in the moment.  Some things you may not know about this shoot:  1. The open road photos were not in the plans.  We were driving from Kern River to Red Rock and here it was, right before our eyes…this beautiful open road with an incredible perspective.  It was quiet as if we were the only ones in site.  We were going pretty fast and I kept stalling as to whether or not to stop.  I hate making quick decisions.  I feared getting to Red Rock too late and not having enough time at sunset.  I kept looking to Tora and Evan to help me make my decision…do I stop, do I not…they were just as puzzled as I was.  But we did.  We stopped.  As soon as we pulled over, I knew it was the right move.  2. Mar was freezing!  Poor Mar, it was windy and super cold.  During the open road segment it was so overwhelmingly cold for mar that she was literally shaking.  You would never know, but it’s true.  You may see a few goosebumps on her arms.  3.  When we arrived at Red Rock, the actual location that we wanted to shoot at was opposing sides to where the sun was hitting.  Meaning, the red wasn’t popping and it seemed more like a dull brown color.  We decided to actually shoot right outside of what was considered Red Rock in order to get the rocks that were really red from the sun hitting them directly.  It turned out perfect.  4. I couldn’t fly my drone.  I had big plans for this location to shoot a drone photo, it was so windy I couldn’t even think about getting it off the ground.  Oh well.  It happens.

Here are a few behind the scenes photos thank you Captured by Victora for always getting some amazing behind the scenes for me.